Swordland (SAO-inspired, but it makes more sense)

Before you even step into the first post, let me stop you riiight there and point out the major differences between the canon SAO and this awful jury-rigged arrangement of fanfiction you are about to be reading. Here we go:

• Most notably, there is going to be magic. I don't care what you say, but an MMORPG without devoted support classes would lose a spoonful of fun from the concoction.
• I will take some (but very little,) inspiration from Overlord's YGGDRASIL. For example, there will be items that let you request shit from the developers/Gods (Kayaba) and there will be ways to forge your own, custom items and even create NPCs using magic. There will also be unique magic items and the like.
• More than 10,000 players, because guess what? Games are made to make a profit from them, regardless of whether or not they are huge deathtraps. 10,000 sales for any MMORPG would be considered the biggest commercial failure in history.

Other than those main points, most of the stuff is pretty much the same to what you'd expect in canon SAO, except for a few differences. Kayaba is still a douche with a God complex who wants to use this situation to fulfill his throbbing power fantasies, if you die in the game your brain will explode, and you're not here by choice anymore.

Also, this will not be a dice-based system, because I don't want to spend ten days writing down a system based on SAO's mechanics. Despite that, there will be stats and the like, and they will have an impact, and you can have an impact on them. Just don't expect 100% ultra-accuracy in calculating every, single, little number.

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In May 2022, Kayaba Akihiko invented and published the second generation of FullDive technology and the NerveGear went live for the reasonable price of $6699.99, which later, fortunately, fell down to $1999.99. Of course, only YouTubers would buy it at first because it only included short example games that toyed around with the system. Despite that, because you were a completionist, you bought (or rather, your parents bought you, as a late-slash-early birthday gift, at your request,) a fully working, used NerveGear for half its price almost a month later.

In August 2022, Argus announced its plans to develop and launch a fully operational MMORPG using the NerveGear as a platform. Your pants were soaked at the news, 'nuff said.

You started playing games at the young age of eight, and have dabbled in many titles and genres since then. However, as you entered your teens, you started developing a strong favoritism for RPGs, not necessarily MMOs though. The game that established this mindset was...

[] World of Warcraft.
[] Fable.
[] EverQuest.
[] Wakfu.
[] The Elder Scrolls.
[] Neverwinter Nights.
[] Witcher.
[] Something else... (Write-in.)

After the announcement, you...

[] Broke your piggybank, worked part-time and begged your parents for extra pocket dough to buy the game with all DLCs when it came out. Pre-ordering has its perks.
[] Were invited to participate in the beta testing and spent most of your time every day doing that, becoming unattached from the real world.
[] Did the thing - you researched, looked for clues, asked questions to beta testers, so that you could master the game's mechanics before it was even out.

What is your attribute?

[] Fear Not The Ganker: Your combos are crazy, and you are an excellent multitasker and respond well to combat. Your APM is heads and shoulders above that of the other players.
[] Sound Of Mind, Statistically Speaking: You are and always have been a number person. Thinking about how to min-max your build, optimize, make it more efficient. It has always been your thing.
[] I Draw Forth... Pot of Greed!: You believe in the spleen of the cards. Being a charismatic person with little empathy for people over the internet has led many to believe you are a high-functioning sociopath. Maybe they're right, or maybe you just know what to say to make them think so. Also, you excel at strategy and minigames.
[] 1337 Trollgamer: The secrets of magic are open before you. By magic, I mean the ability to find exploits and glitches, including the capacity to enable the Respawn mechanic for yourself, but only for yourself because after you do it, Kayaba will patch it for sure. Now, you fashion yourself a lonely, traveling lich. However, the developers gods are onto your ass for making short work of your sins against the game engine nature.
[] The Xanatos *Proposition by @Unilateral*: You've always had a knack for thinking ahead of others and planning long-term. Every major decision you make is calculated to maximize your future success, without closing off any options. Despite this, you never bet more than you can lose, so you can switch tracks the moment things start going belly-up. You're always three steps ahead of everything and everyone else, your losses only serving to further your interests.
[] Roleplaying Nerd *Proposition by @Space Multiply*: Through thick and thin, you stay in character, stubbornly sticking to whatever personality you assigned to the pixels you played. You acting skills are awesome, able to pass yourself off as anyone of any background with the right disguise. Identity was just a costume to wear, right?
[] Shy Loner *Proposition by @Card Captor*: You've never been good at interacting with people. For some reason, talking with others just makes you a little panicky. You're fine with people you're close to, but strangers have you on edge. You made an effort to learn how to stay calm in such situations, but that somehow translated to looking 'cool and aloof'. You've got no idea how.
[ ] PC Master Race *Proposition by @Rossum*: When the nervegear first came out, it was an expensive bug-ridden toy and it wasn't long before someone made an emulator for it. You installed the emulator on your gaming PC, worked as a beta-tester, and by the time the first full-dive MMO was running you were an expert at playing a full-body avatar using only a game controller and an old-fashioned VR headset. When things turned into a death game, you were completely safe from the nervegear's deadly effect. However, your avatar isn't.
[] Baby Don't Fear the Reaper, nor the Sun in the Moon *Proposition by @Opifex-Plebian*: You almost have a complete of complete and utter offense with little or no defense like a glass cannon with a very much a death-seeking mentality.
[] Glitchworking *Proposition by @dunk1010*: You've found several loopholes in the Cardinal System through research and it finds it difficult to detect your abuse because you've found out how its pattern recognition algorithm works. You can exploit the game in various ways, such as making some items last longer, copy items, glitch through walls using items and mechanics. Doing these things tends to be tedious and usually can't be done in fight-or-flight situations but it does put you a shelf above others. As soon as someone finds out, expect lots of attention.
[] The Casual 'Genius' *Proposition by @Taku*: Things always come easy to you. Whether they be real life or online. Games weren't really any different. They were fun, and helped pass the time. Not to mention helped elevate your sense of self awesomeness. Thing is, anything too hard and you pass it off as not worth your time, or too lazy, or any other form of excuse to not do it because failure meant losing your Genius status.
[] Faceless In Majority *Proposition by @Taku*: You're just another pawn on the chessboard. Not a knight. Not a rook. Not even a bishop. You're nobody special, regardless of how good you actually are.
[] Propose... (Tag me, then give me a proposition. If I approve of it, then it will be added here.)

During a poll by the developers regarding the game, you voted...

[] That the game should be one, large, open world.
[] That the game should be a floating castle made up of floors.

And finally, the real kickers.

[] Name: Write-in.
[] Age: Write-in. (Above 14.)
[] Username: Write-in.
[] Avatar: (Appearance in-game; can be a picture or written description.) Write-in.

Select a starting class, specialties available later:

[] Fighter.
[] Mage.
[] Rogue.

One last, perhaps most important question. What is your gender?

[] Guy.
[] Grill Gamer?...

And then... in June 2023, the game was finally available on Steam and in stores alike.

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VOTE BY PLAN, I MEAN IT


STARTING CHARACTER SHEET