Warwitch

Ultima Online was when I started playing MMO's. Let's hope there is a sequel and more importantly that it doesn't copy WoW's interface and concepts.

My first experience with MMO gaming also began with Ultima Online. I've played many different releases since then.

For me the answer is simple. Every since I was a kid I've always been fascinated by the 'dark side'. When Star Wars first came out (yes, I saw the original in theaters when I was 5 years old), I was a big fan of the Empire. When I'd play with my GI Joes, I'd always have Cobra win. In the He-Man universe, Skeletor and his minions were the dominant power.

When I began to play MMO's later in life I often, but not always, gravitated towards darker elements. In Ultima Online I broke from tradition and ran a peaceful guild devoted to helping new players rather than spend my time PKing, and n Everquest I gravitated to Wood Elves as opposed to Dark Elves.

Later, however, when Dark Age of Camelot debuted, I found myself drawn to the darker more savage nature of the Midgard faction. That continued when I began to play World of Warcraft. In the 6 years I've played (on and off) I've spent 95% of that time as Horde, only dabbling with Alliance to see some of the content from the other side.

So, in short, while I lean towards dark undertones it really does depend on the game and how the different factions strike me at a given time.

"Now instead of sitting around for six hours fighting the Horde, you can get up out of your seat and punch an orc in the face."

Awww, c'mon now! Why not spend six hours punting Alliance gnomes? We all know they are the true scourge of Azeroth!

Any game that I really embrace I ultimately end up being a Guild Master or a Raid Leader. This has been true in both MMO's as well as competitive online games of the past.

For me the trend began in Quake 1. I lead a clan (the term used in that game for guilds) called the QDC, or 'Quake Dragon Clan'. It was my first real experience in taking the helm of a large group of players and leading them into a gib filled future. This was back when 28.8 modems were standard.

From Quake I made my way to Ultima Online and helmed a guild on Pacific called 'The Sisterhood'. We were actually quite successful in the early days, putting a focus on PVE related activity and helping each other succeed. I remember the first day we managed to save enough gold to purchase our own two story guild house near the anvil of the main social hub (who's name I can no longer remember). It turned out to be a real pain as well. We were next to the main flow of traffic so the amount of people harassing us and/or trying to break into our guild house was without end.

Everquest was my next home, and while I never did lead a guild in EQ, I did make officer status and was the lead Monk for a time with a tiny but effective guild called 'Undying'.

I dabbled and moved to various other games where I held tenure as a leader/guild master for quite some time.

My most recent experience with leading others has been in World of Warcraft. After years of being THE guild master, I've learned a valuable lesson that sometimes it's actually better to be the #2 guy. With that in mind I joined a successful raiding guild called 'Paradigm' and rose from the ranks as a lowly Paladin healer, to class lead and eventually raid leader, or the GMs right hand man.

Ultimately though, real life always comes knocking and the amount of time it takes to devote oneself to the daily commitments of being a guild leader take their toll. For now I'm quite happy lurking in the background as a nobody, quietly going about my business with no strings attached.

I really loved playing a Mastermind in City of Villains. It's an incredibly complex class that was somewhat easy to learn but very difficult to master. There was so much you could do if you really wanted to put the time into it. My only regret about it was being unable to customize the look of your pets.