9DRAGONS

'9Dragons' is a MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game) published by Korean game company Indy21 and remastered for the Western Market by Acclaim Games. The game features 3D graphics and traditional MMO control schemes. Set in China during the Ming Dynasty, it includes actual Chinese geography and historical features such as the Great Wall of China and the famous Shaolin Temple.
The Clans a player may join in 9Dragons are based upon various schools of Kung Fu and are separated into two major factions, The White Clans (loyal to the Imperial Emperor) and The Black Clans (who have no allegiance to him). The White Clans include: Shaolin (male disciples only), Wu-Tang Clan, and The League of Beggars. The Black Clans include: Sacred Flower (female disciples only), The Brotherhood of Thieves, and Heavenly Demon Clan. Each Clan has its own separate but very similar requirements for admission.

Contents

Development and Distribution

Clans

Classes

Gameplay

Events

References

External links

Development and Distribution

Indy21, a game developer in Korea, originally created the videogame 9Dragons, then they made agreements with both "Persistent Worlds" and "Acclaim", to allow them to market and sell 9Dragons to the European and American markets. The original In-game story for Indy21's Korean version was written by best-selling Wuxia novelist Jwa Baek. Both companies released the game in "Open Beta" to the public in January 2007. The deal that Indy21 has with both companies allows them to market and sell the game using their own method of choice. Acclaim (American) then stated that the game will continue to be F2P (Free to Play) when Open Beta comes to an end, they will integrate advertisement and an Item Mall to obtain their profits. Later Persistent Worlds announced that they would cease trading and that their servers would be shut down. Indy21 has now granted European Rights for 9Dragons entirely to Acclaim.
The Commercial game is at the version 18 now (21.06.2007) and the item Mall is integrated, as well as some new advertisements. ^[1]

Clans

The clans are various groups and temples that a player can join, all based out of different cities. The choice of clan determines what weapons you will be able to use well, and which other clans you can associate with. There are also special "Advanced clans" (under production) that you evolve into later on into the game. Little is known about the "Advanced clans" but they are supposedly very powerful.
'White Clans'


★ Wu-Tang: (swords, gloves, bracers) Joining cheng Gathering Chi 8


★ Shaolin: (polearm, gloves, bracers) Joining cheng Losing Self 6, Men only


★ The League of Beggars: (staffs, gloves, bracers) Joining cheng Losing Self 4


'Black Clans'


★ Heavenly Demon: (sabers, gloves, bracers) Joining cheng Gathering Chi 8


★ Sacred Flower: (wheels, daggers, bracers) Joining cheng Losing Self 4, Women only


★ The Brotherhood of Thieves: (spears, axes, bracers) Joining cheng Losing self 6

'Advanced clans'


★ Black Dragon: (Scythes,???,???) (Black Advanced clan)


★ Disciples of the Iron Fist: (Fists,???,???) (White Advanced clan)


★ The Union of the Noble Families: (Fans,???,???) (Neutral Advanced clan)

The requirements to join advanced clans are that the player must possess a level 160 character. (Not implemented in acclaim version of the game yet)

Classes

After you reach Opening Chi 1, you can then choose a role in your clan. They all go by different names but they fall into 4 distinct classes:

★ Warrior: Masters of the clan's main weapon. (Main stat: Constitution, Strength, Dexterity)

★ Strategist: Buffer and healer (Main Stats: Strength, Dexterity and to a lesser extent Essence)

★ Chi Kung Caster: Long-range attack specialists, Also know as a "Nuker" (Main Stats: Wisdom and Essence)

★ Hybrid: The soloist fusion of Strategist and Chi Kung User with adequate physical capabilities with the clan's secondary weapon (Main Stats: Strength, Dexterity and to a lesser extent Essence and Constitution)

Gameplay

'Leveling'
The game uses a unique leveling system, in which each level has 12 Cheng as a kind of sub-level system. Each time a character receives a title change (such as when leveling from Losing Self 12 to Gathering Chi 1) a mini-game is required to level.

'Level'	'Cheng Type'
1 - 12	Cheng 1-12 of Losing Self
13 - 24	Cheng 1-12 of Gathering Chi
25 - 36	Cheng 1-12 of Opening Chi
37 - 48	Cheng 1-12 of Revolving Chakra
49 - 60	Cheng 1-12 of Raising Light
61 - 72	Cheng 1-12 of Five Dragons
73 - 84	Cheng 1-12 of Sun and Moon
85 - 96	Cheng 1-12 of Golden Blossoms
97 - 108	Cheng 1-12 of Elemental Crown
109 - 120	Cheng 1-12 of Floral Crown (Cheng 10 of Floral Crown is the current level cap for Acclaim 9Dragons)
121 - 132	Cheng 1-12 of Crimson Snake
133 - 144	Cheng 1-12 of Golden Lotus
145 - 156	Cheng 1-12 of Humble Master
157 - 168	Cheng 1-12 Little Master (It is said that one can join an Advanced Clan at Little Master 3)
169 - 180	Cheng 1-12 of Hermit
181 - 192	Cheng 1-12 of Projected Soul
193 - 204	Cheng 1-12 of Dissolved Body
205 - 216	Cheng 1-12 of Immortal
217 - 228	Cheng 1-12 of Heaven's Gate
229 - 240	Cheng 1-12 of Heavenly Immortal

'Blood Essence'
There is a common material in the game known as Blood Essence(BE). It can be obtained as COMMON drops from killing monsters or as a redemption. Blood count, a blood number shown in the game, determines how much a person has killed-the more kills, the higher the blood count. When the blood count of a player reaches its maximum, or 999, the player receives a Blood Essence and it is reset to 0 again. Blood count can be lost when a player dies from being killed by monsters. Blood essence can be used to refine or strengthen weapons, which makes them glow brightly and make it stronger. Level 3 refinement and above require Blood essences. Weapons can be refined until +9 in the Nirvana, Asura and Bardo servers, whereas on the other game servers, there are available refinements for up to +12. It is often sold or traded at different values depending on the server you play. On Nirvana(US) the price is around 230-320 thousand in game gold(As of August 23, 2007) On Bardo(EU) it is around 100-200 thousand in game gold and on Asura(PK server) it is around 120-150 thousand game gold (As of August 19, 2007).
'Refinement'
For weapon refinement, certain amounts of game gold and Blood Essences may be required to increase the weapon's damage. For levels 1 and 2, succes is 100% guaranteed. However, from levels 3 and above, there is a chance of the weapon breaking, resulting in the loss of the weapon as well as the blood essence used to refine it. However, half the Blood Essences used on the failed level will be returned.

'Level'	'Amount of Blood Essence Required'	'Weapon Colour'
1	0 (Material can be bought in Hefei.)	Weapon remains the same colour.
2	0 (Material can be bought in Hefei.)	Weapon remains the same colour.
3	1	Faint white glow.
4	2	Strong white glow.
5	4	Faint green glow.
6	7	Strong green glow.
7	10	Faint blue glow.
8	15	Strong blue glow.
9	20	Strong red glow.
10	25	Large purple glow.
11	35	Large bluish glow.
12	50	Large orange glow.

Events

★ Acclaim holds weekly events which usually involve double exp. For two hours all experience points are doubled for the duration. The rewards for quests are also doubled during this time. The double exp events always start on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 16 PST for Asura (US) and Nirvana (US) and at 16 GMT for Bardo (EU).

★ The second weekly event is war between the rival factions in which black clans fight white clans. The basic objective for both sides is to eliminate the others while trying to protect their own. The winning clan receive a 3 hours poison free passage to the conquers cave which contains many rare items and the strongest bosses. This event is always held on Saturdays right after double exp.

References

1. 9Dragons Open Beta Begins

External links

★ 9Dragons homepage (Acclaim)

★ 9Dragons homepage (Nexon)

★ Vietnam Cửu Long Tranh Bá homepage (Vinagame)

★ Taiwan 9Dragons homepage (PFamily)

★ 9Dragons Designer Steven-Elliot Altman Interview at mmosite.com

★ Acclaim CEO Howard Marks Interview at mmorpg.com

★ 9Dragons MMOsite Professional game database with original and authorized guides, Clans, skills etc.

★ 9Dragons wiki

★ 9Dragons forum 9Dragons fan-forum; many guides and prompt answers

★ 9Dragons Trailer The non-commercial 9Dragons Fan Trailer from MAM Entertainment