First impressions count. The way you present yourself can really impact how people view you and interact with you. In Chronicles of Elyria this is just as true. Walk down the street wearing a mask and people will get nervous. Turn up carrying a rapier and people are going to think you might just want to use it! In Elyria those first impressions are going to make a difference to how you are treated by other players. So I think you better go and read the Journal Abridged and then we better talk about the equipment and inventory system, as how you use it might save your life.

What you see is what you get, and what you get is a rather different equipment and inventory system to what you may be used to. Equipment that offers a lot of choice and a lot of customisation. That means there are a lot of indications to onlookers about how much of a threat you might, or how valuable a target you are. With the ability to loot players in this game, if you are dressed in the richly coloured robes of noble you might want to be travelling with some guys who covered in studded leather carrying large maces.

Though it is not just armour and weapons that are going to give away your characters intentions in the world. Even your choice of backpack could give valuable clue to others you meet. Sabbicat asked whether there might be different types of packs:

Yep! We plan on having different styles of backpacks, many which will have different attach points for things like weapons, canteens, bedrolls, etc… In line with today’s DJ, you should be able to get an idea of what a person’s character is about by looking at their “luggage”.

Not only does that sound like another interesting way to see if someone looks like they are going out looking for adventure or trouble it gives a great link onto attachment points. These in general sound like an interesting mechanic. How we use attachment points, the choices we make, are going to make a big difference to the way our character looks and plays. If you look at a simple belt with two attachment points what do you choose? Two scabbards and go dual wield? Thrown weapons? What has the character approaching you has chosen? People watching is going to be a great pastime! It is also good to know that you can add more attachment points so if a couple aren’t enough and you want to load up with daggers (and scare anyone who sees you on the street) find yourself a good leatherworker.

Something else that you could put on your belt is a coin purse. An item which Sabbicat had another question about, well, really it was about the volume used in the inventory system. The developer journal made it clear that you could not put additional items in a container that went over it’s weight or volume limit. However, what sort of weight or volume limits there were we didn’t know. Could we put armour in a coin purse?

All containers have a volume and weight limit. However, shape is also taken into account. If you attempt to drag an item, say a poniard into a purse, it’ll indicate it can’t be put there. It’ll tell you no. Even if it’s volume is small enough to fit. t simply isn’t the right shape.

Now if you, like me, haven’t majored in medieval weapons a poniard is just a fancy word for a super skinny dagger. If you have majored in medieval weapons the comment section is below for you to correct me! Basically what it means if the item is too big to put in the purse it isn’t going to fit even if it is light weight and low volume over all. So no armour in a coin purse then, which lets be honest does make a lot of sense. Though I thinking as a lot of us are used to the bottomless backpack system this is going to take some serious adjustments in thinking. I can not be the only person who in other games, *cough* Elder Scrolls *cough*, picks up every darn item they see and then gets annoyed when their bag is full. Quite the change to have to really make a choice about what you take home, or leave for another trip back with a bit more transport.

However, if we can not put other things in a coin purse but they have a weight and volume limit what does that mean for coins? Well this was going to be in the Developer Journal but ended up on the cutting room floor, luckily for us we have Rhaegys to ask the right questions. He asked if coins will just be a number or physical objects?

Coins are objects! Coins can be minted by any blacksmith or miner by pressing metal into coin shapes. The coin is quite literally ‘worth its weight’. But we don’t expect metal coins to be the only currency. We expect a more traditional barter system. To a blacksmith coins may have slightly more value, whereas to a leather worker, leather “bills” may have more value. In the end, we expect the value of currency to change as resources are exhausted in an area.

Currency sounds like it is going to be a very interesting concept in the game. I have never played a game where the value of currency changes, are there any? I think it could be one of those mechanics that sounds very interesting, but how will it work in practice? How will the current value be decided? How will you know what the current ‘exchange’ rates are? I might simply stick to a barter system, something that I think fits into this game very well. Perhaps the blacksmith will give me upgrade tools if I am able to provided him material for his new shirt. Though if this will work for all goods and services we will have to wait and see.

There is a lot about the inventory and equipment in the game that is different from games many of us are used to. With it being one of those systems we are really going to be hands on with, using it every time we log in what ever our play style, it has to be right. Personally I think some parts are going to work perfectly, I am thinking about the what you see is what you get equipment system. However, I think some things are going to take more time to adjust to. Inventory being so reduced, currency fluctuating, these are things that are going to be tested in time. I hope they make the world more engaging and do not simply act as a distraction from enjoying the world.