Before I go any further, I should note that there is an in-game tutorial for surviving Seven Swords' real-time warfare. I would encourage the reader to check that out at the quest counter, if you haven't already. Two reasons why it's a good idea to run through that before engaging in wars - first, it explains what's going on with hands-on examples, which is more than I can do in this iPod game blog (most of which I have actually written from my iPod, thus limiting content to some extent by default); second, I'm taking it for granted that you're going to check it out, so I'm not going to take time to discuss the stuff a player can learn from the tutorial, so you might miss out by just reading this or just going on gamer instinct. Besides, the in-game tutorial "quest" is only like a minute long - and if you're an MMORPG gamer, you probably have more spare time than most anyway. ^^
Anyway, why is war significant? In the world of Seven Swords, it is a primary dynamic of the game itself. Monster hunting is fun, but rarely yields lucrative loot, and can be a little tedious when trying to get to higher and higher levels. Anyone who has played Halo, Call of Duty, or even Bomberman DS knows that online play with (and against) other human players is where the real challenge lies. That aspect aside, Seven Swords encourages players to wage war by offering several unique perks for warlike nations and players.
First, winning a war earns your country territory. That means bragging rights, but more importantly, it means a chance to hunt and exp-grind in previously inaccessible areas.
Second, you get bonus experience and money regardless of whether your side wins or loses (but much more if you win). It is hands-down the fastest way to earn money in the game- and the game world is just like the real world, everyone wants money and the stuff it can buy; the more, the better.
Third, your participation is ranked according to that of every player in the battle. Win or lose, your contribution to the battle counts for something and the top three or four ranking players in a given category get seals which can be used to brand your character with a title. If you see other players with titles like "Killmaster" or "Dead Expert" under their names, that's where they got them - fighting in a war somewhere. Ah, and a quick caveat to the seal deal, if you don't want to use a seal you've earned, you can sell them at the item shop for about 1,000 gran a piece. Few bits of loot can earn so much in one sale, so seals indirectly refer back to the second benefit I mentioned: war = money. (kinda like real life) ^^;;
Another interesting facet of the wars system is the frequency with which they occur. This refers back to another post where I noted the usefulness of having two parallel sever universes to log into. The host countries (in the real world) are on opposite sides of the planet, so there is always someone playing somewhere and wars rate almost constantly during the weekends. Once you're hooked on the iPhone's 7Swords PVP goodness, the frequent chances to participate in wars (even wars between countries other than your own) will help to satisfy your appetite and fill your pockets.
Last, and perhaps most importantly, you don't lose any experience when you get PK'd (props if you caught the Hack.Sign reference), or killed by another player in wars, so feel free to go all out. You can even get a seal if you were killed more than anyone else in a battle! ^^
So get out there and die for your country - or make the other poor fools die for theirs!
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