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Meet the Team: Writing Team Lead Emlly

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Comments

  • AulonAulon ✭✭✭✭
    One more question, there is a NPC in Castanic that talks about if you feed an Elin after Midnight they turn into Hyenas. Do you know who wrote this, if so could you tell them thank you for me?
  • EmllyEmlly ✭✭
    Ardire wrote: »
    The writing in this game is outstanding, it's honestly one of my favourite parts of it. A lot of people just mash through quest text to hurry up in getting experience but the first few times I leveled I read all of the quests I'd come by and laughed, cried, etc. My screenshot folder is sprinkled with NPC text boxes of certain phrases and lines that I particularly liked. Notable ones that come to mind is a male castanic NPC who, I think in Heartwood, says the lines "Death on toast", the entirety of everything Kezzar the crazy shaman says in the Savage Reach area, and a sidequest outside of Zulfikaar Fortress that has you pick up tags off dead federation soldiers who's names are Misha, Genevieve and Jared, very sly Supernatural reference!

    Also all the Wonderholme gear will never be forgotten... good ol' Boojum Gripples.

    So my question is, what's your favourite bit of text in-game? Piece of gear, monster name, NPC text, etc.

    On behalf of the Writing Team, past and present, Thank you.

    Kezzar's lines are awesome. So are Cromagh the Mighty's (also in Savage Reach). They always make me laugh (probably because I didn't write them).

    There's a couple items with personal meaning for me. The Artful Gracebloom (Strife in the Fey Forest) is a nod to my grandparents. The More than Friendship Ring. And I named two of the frog pets after a neighbor and classmate of mine.

  • NopiNopi ✭✭✭✭✭
    Hello. I'm Nopi. I'm a derp. But I try to be helpful around here. Now my question may be liked or maybe not.

    I was a lore follower but it seems that many mmos out there, and sadly even Tera, seem to throw the immersion out of the window. In the first days of the game in NA, I was bothered by terms like Bam (I still am since I see no medieval fantasy knight calling a large monster something like that) I know I know, the term is not in game(well Rootstock has Bamarama >.<), but when it's tossed around from the staff and down... well. I'll just say a lot of immersion points were tossed aside on that name and what followed, which brings my last point which is pretty much the same question but in relation to the whole modern outfits, car mounts and most of what's in the cosmetic side of the cash shop. How do you as a roleplayer and professional writer feel when you try to be in a medieval fantasy theme surrounded by a kids version of a Camaro, someone with a waist clad inflatable duck swimsuit, and someone wearing the 1.99$ version of a Dragon Ball scouter?

    Very respectfully. :)
  • EmllyEmlly ✭✭
    Aulon wrote: »
    One more question, there is a NPC in Castanic that talks about if you feed an Elin after Midnight they turn into Hyenas. Do you know who wrote this, if so could you tell them thank you for me?

    I'll admit, I didn't remember that bit of text, but I know who wrote it, and I'll mention your appreciation when he returns from China.
  • ZoknahalZoknahal ✭✭✭✭✭
    Emlly wrote: »
    Mesogog wrote: »
    Zolyn x Paesyn or Elleon x Jelena?

    Both are great friendships. But if you're asking about true love... Zolyn x Syona

    How about Fraya x Kaidun? Their love was so trong that one died and the other one became an eternal artifact that only lives to maintain a city.
  • EmllyEmlly ✭✭
    Nopi wrote: »
    Hello. I'm Nopi. I'm a derp. But I try to be helpful around here. Now my question may be liked or maybe not.

    I was a lore follower but it seems that many mmos out there, and sadly even Tera, seem to throw the immersion out of the window. In the first days of the game in NA, I was bothered by terms like Bam (I still am since I see no medieval fantasy knight calling a large monster something like that) I know I know, the term is not in game(well Rootstock has Bamarama >.<), but when it's tossed around from the staff and down... well. I'll just say a lot of immersion points were tossed aside on that name and what followed, which brings my last point which is pretty much the same question but in relation to the whole modern outfits, car mounts and most of what's in the cosmetic side of the cash shop. How do you as a roleplayer and professional writer feel when you try to be in a medieval fantasy theme surrounded by a kids version of a Camaro, someone with a waist clad inflatable duck swimsuit, and someone wearing the 1.99$ version of a Dragon Ball scouter?

    Very respectfully. :)


    Since I'm also responsible for the user interface, I know that we have to break the fourth wall a few times to ensure players can do the things they want to do. TERA added an interesting conundrum with the Big-[filtered] Monsters. They're not exactly dungeon bosses, but they're not ordinary monsters either. We had to have a new term for them because of the way certain skills work and we needed a term we didn't need to explain over and over again.

    The cars drive me crazy, personally. And there are a few costumes that will make me drop a party. But I usually ride a flaming struthio, so that's not entirely immersive either.

    My aim as a player is to have fun. So I'll outfit my character to suit the way I want to have fun that day. Usually it's bad-[filtered] armor. Apothecary dyes are my friend! And every once in a while, when I'm feeling silly, I like to put on a giant bunny costume and poke things with a carrot. Because silly.

    As a side note, if it weren't for the bunny costumes, I would have never realized how assymetrical the baraka arms are!
  • How did you get into this line of work? :)
  • NopiNopi ✭✭✭✭✭
    Emlly wrote: »
    Nopi wrote: »
    Hello. I'm Nopi. I'm a derp. But I try to be helpful around here. Now my question may be liked or maybe not.

    I was a lore follower but it seems that many mmos out there, and sadly even Tera, seem to throw the immersion out of the window. In the first days of the game in NA, I was bothered by terms like Bam (I still am since I see no medieval fantasy knight calling a large monster something like that) I know I know, the term is not in game(well Rootstock has Bamarama >.<), but when it's tossed around from the staff and down... well. I'll just say a lot of immersion points were tossed aside on that name and what followed, which brings my last point which is pretty much the same question but in relation to the whole modern outfits, car mounts and most of what's in the cosmetic side of the cash shop. How do you as a roleplayer and professional writer feel when you try to be in a medieval fantasy theme surrounded by a kids version of a Camaro, someone with a waist clad inflatable duck swimsuit, and someone wearing the 1.99$ version of a Dragon Ball scouter?

    Very respectfully. :)


    Since I'm also responsible for the user interface, I know that we have to break the fourth wall a few times to ensure players can do the things they want to do. TERA added an interesting conundrum with the Big-[filtered] Monsters. They're not exactly dungeon bosses, but they're not ordinary monsters either. We had to have a new term for them because of the way certain skills work and we needed a term we didn't need to explain over and over again.

    The cars drive me crazy, personally. And there are a few costumes that will make me drop a party. But I usually ride a flaming struthio, so that's not entirely immersive either.

    My aim as a player is to have fun. So I'll outfit my character to suit the way I want to have fun that day. Usually it's bad-[filtered] armor. Apothecary dyes are my friend! And every once in a while, when I'm feeling silly, I like to put on a giant bunny costume and poke things with a carrot. Because silly.

    As a side note, if it weren't for the bunny costumes, I would have never realized how assymetrical the baraka arms are!

    Thanks kindly for answering. I personally learned to accept it so I'm still playing. One can say those cash shop things came from some hole in reality that maybe one of the many gods in the game made, just for trolling purposes.... Maybe we do need a god of pranks or something. :)

    As for what to wear. Dyes and the fashion coupon shop are on my frequent buyer list.

    Lastly, I do agree that many of the stories around are nice indeed. Good job on those. I personally get a bit touched by the tragic ones like Kaidun's(Freeing Kaidun) and Detrian's(like a brother to me)

    Anyway, cheers. :)
  • EmllyEmlly ✭✭
    Lilithyne wrote: »
    How did you get into this line of work? :)

    My degree is Industrial Design, with a focus on Toy and Game Design. My minor is in Medieval Studies. I play a LOT of games. But I think it was more broad experience that got me here: School work in engineering and computer programming; job experience in graphic design; plus pastimes in word puzzles, theater, and music.

    My first job in the gaming industry was as Continuity Manager for Magic: the Gathering.

    Then I worked as a producer for Fisher-Price on electronic books with game content.

    Then I was a producer for DS and other handheld games at a small studio.
    I was about this timeframe that I was raiding in WoW (BC through WotLK).

    That led to my first localization job on one of NCSoft's MMOs. And some contract work on Guild Wars.

    And now, I'm here writing for TERA!

    It's not an easy career to break into (or stay in, as the game industry is pretty volatile). But if I can offer any advice, it's don't keep your skills specific to gaming. Pasttimes outside gaming (art, music, puzzles) plus raiding have been key to every job I've gotten in the industry.

    I worry about programmers who only study game programming. There's plenty of jobs for database programmers (check our jobs!), systems engineers, tools programmers and more. Knowledge and experience in other areas will surprise you in it's usefulness.

    I use engineering and puzzle skills all the time when trying to reverse engineer where text shows up in a game. I use programming skills to deal with text that isn't wholly text. And I use my theater and choral skills to sync localized text to pre-set animations.
  • EmllyEmlly ✭✭
    Nopi wrote: »
    Maybe we do need a god of pranks or something. :)

    I don't think it's a coincidence that Lok Shop rhymes with Joke Shop.

  • NopiNopi ✭✭✭✭✭
    Emlly wrote: »
    Nopi wrote: »
    Maybe we do need a god of pranks or something. :)

    I don't think it's a coincidence that Lok Shop rhymes with Joke Shop.

    Gotta admit. From all I've read about Lok, I still have no idea what is Lok god of. >.< All I know, or remember, is that he shanked Balder and because of him and those things a lot of bad things happened. Meanwhile on the subject of Tera gods, and hoping I'm not grabbing too much question time here. What are your favorite gods? Mine are Kaia(because of strong woman and only god that goes into the fray with the player) and Killian(because he/she/it is funny).
  • EmllyEmlly ✭✭
    Nopi wrote: »
    Emlly wrote: »
    Nopi wrote: »
    Maybe we do need a god of pranks or something. :)

    I don't think it's a coincidence that Lok Shop rhymes with Joke Shop.

    Gotta admit. From all I've read about Lok, I still have no idea what is Lok god of. >.< All I know, or remember, is that he shanked Balder and because of him and those things a lot of bad things happened. Meanwhile on the subject of Tera gods, and hoping I'm not grabbing too much question time here. What are your favorite gods? Mine are Kaia(because of strong woman and only god that goes into the fray with the player) and Killian(because he/she/it is funny).

    Lok is our trickster God.

    Killian has a few psychological issues. If I were throwing a barbecue, Seren, Ishara, Baharr would be on the invite list!
  • ArdireArdire ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited June 2016
    A "few" psychological issues is probably the nicest way to put it, in Killian's case.

    Since we're talking about gods I've always wondered where do the names Sikander and Kelsaik come from? Kelsaik borrows a few letters from Sikander to the point where it kinda makes sense that they're the same entity but I've always wondered if they meant something/were inspired from somewhere. Sikander is my favourite god, alongside Isren, but you have to really dig to learn much about him before he went to sleep in his egg and then went crazy bananas thanks to Thulsa & Killian. In the same vein, I've always wondered if there's cohesive alphabets for the different races, I've seen fanmade ones for the main playable races but not for the sub-races like Nagas, Prions, Sikandari & Mekonari, etc.
  • AulonAulon ✭✭✭✭
    edited June 2016
    The Mention of Baharr, in game you can find them in North Fyremont feeding the region as lava pours out his maw. Though not much has been touched when it comes to the Gods of late. With the progression of TERA, how much influence does the creative writer side have? Are you happy with how it is going? Would you enjoy the story evolving in a different direction then it is now? Little things like the Smolder mount was named after Baharr in KTera, what was the reason for it not being here?
  • Err sorry about my earlier post Emily, I meant no offense to you, I don't actually have an issue with you or how you play, it doesn't hurt me at all. I was just hoping to ask some questions to someone who is more like me in playstyle. And it definitely was no sarcasm, I'm much nicer than my text would let on.

    Sorry I offended you.
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