Ressurection is just the most obvious benefit of True Magic.
Also True Magic is the only plan here that features an actual mage character. The others are rogues. And yes, I know that many quests go the predictable route of choosing the mage class but c'mon, it's got magic!
If an MMO has healers at all then a party is going to want one, and I'm curious what kind of exotic healer/spellcaster options can be cooked up. Some variation of the TF2 Medic or Mercy from Overwatch where we continually heal a target with a beam? Be able to cast restoration magic while wearing plate mail or some crafted robes that reduce mana costs to zero? Some oddball variation where we write up contracts, set down healing dispensers, or have an aura that heals people around us as we charge into battle?
I'm kinda interested in what magic stuff would be possible in a modified SAO.
Edit: Actually, hell. Skyrim has the most awesome necromancy system I've seen in a game. You can do stuff like kill an enemy, raise it as a zombie, and kill it again to essentially double your experience on top of leveling Conjuration. Even more if you kill it with a summoned weapon.
Then the Master spells of conjuration include a permanent necromancy effect that lets you raise a zombie thrall permanently, and if they die you can just reanimate the corpse. With perks you can have two of these bad boys.
Now imagine if that effect worked on other players? Like, if someone dies we have a minute or so to cast a necromancy spell to reanimate their Avatar and give them a temporary respite from dying for real. With the master level reanimation being basically permanent (but they can still be killed again as a zombie and we'd have to recast the spell of that happened).
Point is: Magic gives you options for being a hero or even doing Xanatos Roulette manipulative bastard shenanigans. If your Xanatos doesn't have access to magic, or bazillions of dollars from some multinational conglomerate that somehow exists in the game... I don't see how he's gonna be making big plans.
Kinda similar thing with a roleplayer. But I can see why role-playing as a studious wizard nerd might not have the same effect as a dashing rogue. Personally, I think the knight in shining armor persona really lends itself to RPing.
Funny story, when I started playing Skyrim I could never finish it. I'd try for some super optimized mage build, or sneaky rogue, then hear about another build and try that...
The first time I actually beat Skyrim was when I said "screw it!" and made myself up a sword and shield heavy armor wearing Kajjit. I was this big cat running around in plate mail not taking anything seriously. I ramped up my Alteration skill, took the perks that grant magic resist, enchanted more magic resist on my armor plus the Atronach stone... I was a crazy cat in shining armor with like 80% something magic absorption and magic resist on top. Mages couldn't touch me and any enemies I couldn't stab to death I would summon Deadric Thralls to fight them while I desperately cast restoration on myself.
Fun fact, I think at high enough magic absorption you can absorb more mana from spells cast on yourself than you actually spend, even if the effect absorbs much of the actual healing effect.
That character was hilariously broken and fun to play.
. Indecission is a problem I have, and switching back took time before I chose. I returned to true magic because as cool as a master of disguise is I could not solve faking a mage as a rogue. Limiting the play potential of the build. I also feel that it might be a little boring story-wise.
