[Guide] FanFic Writing Guide

• This is to make writing the FanFic of Royal Road easier. 
• This contain spoilers beyond Volume 5
• VxCy represent Volume x Chapter y
• This FanFic Writing Guide was made by Vindrueelsker
• Feel free to comment and ask questions, I'll be updating this regularly
• Be sure to check the Guide from time to time as any updates are edits, and therefore will not appear on the home page

FanFic Writing Guide

General Rules of the FanFics:

1. When emailing the FanFic to Wing the [subject] of the email should be
   
   [FanFic] <name> [by <Author>]    -     e.g. [FanFic] Dark Side [by Vielfras]
2. When sending the FanFic to Wing remember to write a small description of it in the mail. If one wishes the FanFic to contain Mature content then write a "warning" in this description. The description will be the few lines that appear in the FanFic section.
3. No strong language (so, keep the curses at a minimum)
4. If one uploads more than one chapter at a time notify Wing about this in the email.
5. The font of the FanFic is up to the author  
6. The file of the document containing the FanFic may be  .doc , .docx , .text , .html , gdoc. If the FanFic was posted in the Forum, and one wants it to be on the blog, send Wing an email with a link to the FanFic. Remember §1 and §2 if the FanFic is new to the blog

Rules of Royal Road:

• Avatar creation
  Genders: male, female, or neutral
  Races[1]: Human, Elf (I assume that there are different elven races, such as dark elf, wood elf, and high elf, just to mention the classics), Orc, Dwarf. In total there are 49 races, but one can only choose between 29 races (V1C2) this can hint towards three things: 
  
  1. Some of the 29 primary races have sub-races, e.g. when one chooses Elf then one have to choose between different kinds of elven races.
  2. There are a total of 29 races as of Weed's creation which mean that the players can do something to unlock new races for new players (or other avatars, the novel doesn’t state if one player is limited to one avatar, as seen in Yu Wo’s novel “Half Prince”) to enjoy, like when some prestige classes are unlocked then they are unlocked for all who fits the requirements (as seen when Weed unlocked the Necromancer class for Mages after killing the Lich Shire in V7)
  3. One can chose from 29 races (including any sub-races) when creating an avatar and the last 20 races are then races the avatar can gain access to by playing the game, e.g. becoming a vampire would probably changer the avatar’s race to “Vampire” or “Undead”.
     It could also be a mix of the three
  Appearance: can be altered 
  Start city and kingdom: player chosen, but have to be in a capital or major city
• Time
1. Time is moving faster in RR. One week in RL is the same as four weeks in RR.
2. When starting one is confined to the starting city for one week RL
• Death
  Upon death one is banned for a day RL, one decrease one or more levels, and one’s skill progress decrease. When one dies it is also possible to lose items, both to NPCs and other Players. 

Skills:

“And while all the highest ranking positions are still occupied by NPCs instead of users, this reinforces the need for personal contacts.” So, when Weed starts in Royal Road the highest are Intermediate, or perhaps the low Expert (I think).

“it it was extremely difficult to acquire skills unrelated to his [Weed’s] own class.” (V1C3). This quote shows the fact that it is very difficult to gain skills unrelated to ones class, and the only reason Weed got some in the beginning is because he was “lucky” enough to get a hidden quest that rewarded those skills.

I don’t really know what to make of the following quote from V1C5 “Weed was penalized by being undecided class-wise, so that he could not learn any skills”, I mean, Weed have already learned Sword Mastery at this point and gotten four skills from doing the quest in V1C3, the quest skills I get, for they are a special reward, but what about Sword Mastery (Weed gets that in V1C2), Cooking (Weed gets that in V1C6), and Archery (Weed gets that in V1C7)? According to the quote Weed shouldn't be able to get those skills.

There are at least 4 different ways of learning a new skill.

1.  Learn by Doing (Seen in V1C2 where Weed gets Sword Mastery by attacking a Scarecrow with a wooden sword)
2.  Quest rewards (this is seen in V1C3 where Weed learns Item Identification, Sculpture Mastery, Repair, and Handicraft after completing “The Sculptor’s Past” and accepting “Follow Zahab’s Last Wish”)
3.  Being taught by NPC (this is seen in V1C6 where Weed learns Cooking from Mrs. Lancer, it is also shown in V2C10 where Weed learns Lion’s Roar)
4. Skill books (seen in V1C8 when Weed learns the “Secret Sword Techniques from the Imperial Family of Arpens”). Futheremore, skill books comes in different grades “The Book of Secret Sword Techniques was flashing in gold when it was identified. It meant that the book was a rare skill book! Moreover, it was an A-grade sword technique book.” (V1C8). To learn from a skill book one simply have to tuch it and say “learn” (V1C8) 

When Weed migrated his class to the Legendary Moonlight Sculptor one of the benefits was “Enables you to learn all craft skills to the stage of a master.” (V1C8). This hint towards the possibility that even if you are able to learn a skill you may only progress to a certain level in it, if it’s unrelated to your class (So, e.g. normally only Chefs can progress further than, say, Intermediate in Cooking. But, to my knowledge, the novel didn’t state how far one can progress in a skill unrelated to one’s class)

“The maximum number of skills that a user can learn when his class is undecided is ten.” (V1C7) This could mean that when converting to a class one gets unlimited skill slots, or just that one has 10 skill slots to whatever one wants and then the class skills (So, in the case of Weed, his Sculpture Mastery (and perhaps Sword Mastery?) doesn’t take up any of his 10 skill slots as they are class related)
In V2C1 the novel shows that a player can give skills custom names "The first form was named Triple, and the rest Backstab, Power Break, Sword Dance, and Sword Kaiser, respectively."

Skills are raised in levels and stages. Each stage contains levels 1 to 10, and the stages are Beginner -> Intermediate -> Advanced/Expert -> Master -> Grandmaster. When one hits level 10 you promptly gets to level 1 of the next stage (seen with Repairing in V3C8), so, in a way, level 10 only exists for Grandmasters.

Known Skills:

• Sword Mastery 
•   Increases attack power with a sword (+10 % pr level at beginner) 
•    Increases attack speed with a sword (+3 % pr level at beginner) 
•   Raised by sword fighting

• Cooking (craft skill)
• REQUIRES HANDICRAFT BEGINNER LEVEL 3 TO LEARN (seen in V1C5, but perhaps one can cook even if one doesn’t have Handicraft Beginner Level 3 one just doesn’t get the skill boost, or hints that the skill provides)
• Chefs can cook meals which boosts health and/or mana regeneration while eating
• Some types of cook meals can cause buffs like extra vitality (like the “Well Fed” buff in World of Warcraft)
• “Cooking Skills—they are simple skills that you can learn anywhere, by paying a membership fee to a chef's guild or by serving an apprenticeship in a restaurant.” (V1C6) So, I guess, one first learn the Handicraft skill at  a restaurant, then raise it to level 3 then one can learn cooking
• Enhances the taste of meals
• the cooking skill works in real life. As the cooking skill matures, it gives you a list of available recipes based on the types of ingredients that you have now. You can try a new recipe in the virtual game, and it will stick in your head after you log out.” (V1C10)
• Increases speed of recovery of stamina when served
• At Beginner level 2: Increase life when served. (+5% LIFE) (V1C7, I assume at a higher cooking level you life increase more)
• Raised by cooking

•  Tailoring (craft skill)
• REQUIRES HANDICRAFT BEGINNER LEVEL 3 TO LEARN (seen in V1C5)
• Can create cloth, and possible leather, armour, as well as enhance them
• On Intermediate level 2 one gains the “Raw Material Extraction” ability
• Raised by sewing

• Blacksmithing (craft skill)
• REQUIRES REPAIR INTERMEDIATE LEVEL 1 (seen in V3C8)
• Can create armour made of different kinds of metals, as well as enhance them
• Can create different kinds of weapons, as well as enhance them
• If using a blacksmithing hammer one can enhance the created items by 10% ((V3C6) it is implied that different hammers my give different bonuses to the blacksmithing)
• Raised by forging armour and weapons

• First Aid (a.k.a. bandage; herbal medicine(?)) 
• Used to make bandages and gauze
• Enables one to stop bleeding (by applying bandages and gauze)
• Increases life of the wounded when tended
• According to V2C1 one may only apply bandages in between battles, that is to say when out of combat
• The higher the skill level the less guaze one have to use (V1C8 “Weed’s bandage skill, now level four, empowered him to tend a minor injury by rolling gauze twice”)
• Raised by mending wounds with bandages and gauze

• Handicraft (craft skill)
• "it is an understatement that the crafters would become extinct without the existence of the handicraft skill. They cannot catch up with combat specialists unless they beef up their pathetic combat abilities" (V1C9)
• At Beginner Level 3 it enables the user to learn Cooking and Tailoring (V1C5)
• Increases attack power with melee and long ranged weapons (+3% at Beginner level 3, meaning probably 1% pr level.)
• Increases attack with rower and fists (+5% at Beginner level 3 = 5/3= 1 and 2/3 % ~ 1,67 % pr level)
• At Beginner level 7: “Enhances your craft skills in every field” (V1C7)
• At Intermediate level 1: “increasing overall attack power by 30%.” (V1C9)
• At Intermediate level 1: “Enhances every field of craft skill and Sword Mastery.” (V1C9)
• At Expert level 1: “The expert handicraft skill can lift guild restrictions for a user into a wider field of craft skills, such as blacksmith work and alchemy.” (V1C9) I think the guilds mentioned are guild such as a Cooking Guild which you need to be part of in order to upgrade certain skills above certain Stages, e.g. in order to raise Cooking from Expert to Masterone normally have to register with a Cooking Guild and then pass a test (or quest), but if one have Expert Handicraft then it’s not needed
• Raised as a by product of other craft related skills 

• Alchemy (mentioned in V1C9, to my knowledge we don’t know what it does)
• Archery
• I assume Archery does the same as Sword Mastery, but for bows instead
• Multiple shot
• Passive ranger skill (V2C1)
• increase firing rate of bows 

• Penetration
• Passive ranger skill (V2C1)
• I assume this is a skill for armour penetration (bypassing a percentage of the enemy’s armour causing one to deal more damage)

• Item Identification (a.k.a. Identify; "Feelings" in some chapters. Might be a craft skill)
• Identifying seems to be a bit of a dice roll as “Due to his low level in that skill, he succeeded in finding out the identity of the statue only after a couple of failed attempts.” (V1C9)

• Sculpture Mastery (craft skill) 
• The higher the skill the more complex a figure one is able to create
• The higher the skill the lower the chance of failure
• “The expertise rating in sculpture mastery does not advance by mass production of similar statues as if they were made by a cookie cutter. Only when a sculptor is dedicated to create an original work of high artistic value that has never been tried before, will sculpture mastery gain an enormous expertise rating.” (V1C9)

• Engraving Knife Technique 
• Enables one to care the invisible, the intangible
• Activated skill. Coasts 50 mana pr second at Beginner Level 1 (reduced on level-up)
• Weed gets this skill at Sword Mastery Beginner level 5 (V1C4), but only because of the statue left by Zehab (“When Weed identified the wooden statue left by Zahab, he also found an engraving knife technique whose prerequisite was five or above skill level in sword mastery.” ((V1C9), that would make the statues fall under the “Skill Book” Catagori)

• Imperial Formless Sword Technique 
• general
• This skill is tailored for Sculptors by Emperor Geihar Von Arpen.
• As the level in Sculpture Mastery rises, the Attack Power of the skill increases by1 %
• The skill is composed of five movements (forms), one breathing technique, and a foot technique

• The First Form (a.k.a. Tripple, even after more the form gains more than three strikes)
• Consumes 300 mana
• Strikes the enemy 3 times (more strikes and higher damage as the skill levels up)

• The Second Form (a.k.a. Backstab)
• Consumes 400 mana
• Sneaks behind the enemy and strikes the back of the enemy

• The Third Form (a.k.a. Power Break)
• Consumes 600 mana
• Destroys  an enemy's weapon by improving attack power temporary

• The Fourth Form (a.k.a. Sword Dance)
• Consumes 1000 mana
• Aims at the enemy's vulnerable spot in a dance-like motion 

• The Fifth Form (a.k.a. Sword Kaiser ("Kaiser" is German for "Emperor"))
• Consumes all available mana (please note that if one's mana is less than 2000 the difference is subtracted from one's health)
• Concentrates all available mana and explodes into a single point

• The Footstep Technique (a.k.a. Seven Celestial Footsteps) 
• Consumes 100 mana
• one activated the skill have a 1 minute duration
• Doges an enemy attack by taking 7 swift steps

• Repair
• Used to repair items and gear
• With each level a skill gains the efficiency of maintenance increases. In the first level it can be repaired by 7 points, the second level is 10, and the tenth level 23 points. (V4C2)
• At V4C2 it is mentioned that there are two ways of repairing an item. The first is by using a sledgehammer (if you’ve played The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, then think of the Repair Hammers), or by saying repair. In V3C6 it is mentioned that “With it [the repair hammer] , the power of blacksmithing and related skills increased by 10%!” It is implied that with different hammers the skill increase may be different
• At Intermediate Level 1 things can be repaired to maximum durability (V3C6)
• At Intermediate Level 1: Blacksmith skill can now be learned. (V3C8)

• Herb gathering
• Used to gather herbs
• The ability to tell poisonous plants from edible plants
• Herbs have different uses depending on their colour
•  “Herbs with red leaves help with vitality and the ones with green leaves help with mana.  In fact, most of the herbs follow this pattern. But the leaves that are colored black, white, purple, and yellow are also herbs.  The black herbs are mostly used for black magic. The white herbs can be processed by wizards. The purple herbs are used to create poison. (...)The yellow herbs increased -stamina!” (V7C2)

• Vision (a ranger skill, mentioned in V2C1)
• The ability to see further
• Useful for ranged avatars, as they can shoot the enemy at a greater distance, so the enemy is probably dead before reaching the avatar

• Observation (a ranger skill, mentioned in  V2C1)
• Used ti analyse diverse landscape
• An example could be in V2C1, where Pale can tell where the lizardmen’s territory begins

•  Multi-fist (a monk skill, mentioned in V2C1)
• Activated by shouting "Yon-han-kwon!"
• strikes the enemy 5 times, fast (I assume that the higher the skill level the more strikes)
• "It was a basic - yet the most popular  combat skill for monks"

Economy:

• Users can work for NPCs
• Users can set up kiosks and possible larger, permanent shops 
• water is free, and can in cities be found in wells and fountains
• If one become the Lord of a city then one can directly influence the economy locally, and possible globally if one’s city becomes important enough, by building the “right” buildings
• Players and guilds can control cities and their surrounding land, even dungeons. The owner of the city is entitled to collect taxes, from things like, but probably not limited to, things sold and bought within the city’s sphere of influence, dungeon crawling, traveling through the sphere of influence

Contacts: 

• With nations it’s possible to earn public service points 
• “As public service is largely accumulated, it gives a user the upper hand in trades in the country in question, and he is qualified for government positions as well.” (V1C9)

• With other users it depends on the personality and what wares one offers
• It is possible to add other players  to one's Friend List
• One can chat with people in the friend list, even if one is far away from the friend ((Seen when Weed asks Mapan to bring silver to the Plains of Despair in volume 6 chapter 5 summery) almost like whispering in other MMOs, except it isn’t mentioned if you can whisper to other players if you aren’t listed as friends)
• To become friends one has to ask another some ting along the lines of, “Will you be my friend?” but I think when Seoyoon and Weed became friends all she asked was “Friend?” which Weed then confirmed. If the asked person declines the “invitation” then one does not become friends
• I assume that when checking the friend list you can see if the friend is online
• In V7C2 (the part where the focus is on Pale’s party) it seems that a user can both message (as in something written on the screen somewhere, as seen in our current MMO's whispering) and chat (as in speaking), because Pale asks Mapan if he can talk right now, and before that Mapan didn't answer Pale for a couple of minutes

Stats:

It is possible, but hard, to gain stats by doing stuff. For example, Weed gains +1 strength (10 -> 11) after hitting a scarecrow for six hours straight. I assume it gets harder to gain stats this way the higher your stat is, and there is a limit to how much you can raise the stat, for example you can raise your strength to 40 by hitting a scarecrow, according to Pluto (random avatar, watching Weed's training, V1C2)
"Simplistic repetition and Wisdom got decreased" (V11C2) I assume this means that other stats can decrease as a result of one's actions as well.

You gain five bonus stat pints when leveling up.

In V1C5 it is mentioned when Weed tries to delete Art that “Stat cannot be deleted.”

“The maximum number of stat slots is fifteen.” (V1C5) I do not know if these 15 stat slots includes the 7 (Human) starter stats.

In V1C6 it is shown that it is possible to show NPCs your avatar's stat window.

Known stats:

•  Vitality (starter stat, starts with 10 if human)
• Influences health
• Raised by using stamina

• Strength (starter stat, starts with 10 if human)
•  Influences damage with melee weapons
• Raised by melee fighting

• Dexterity/Agility (starter stat, starts with 10 if human)
• Influences speed
• Influences the ability to dodge enemy attacks (evasion)
• Influences the ability to hit the enemy (accuracy)
• Raised by melee fighting
• I assume it can also be raised by archery

•  Wisdom (starter stat, starts with with 10 if human)
• Wisdom is a composite term for the character's enlightenment, judgment, wile, willpower and intuitiveness. Wisdom influences the number of spells a divine spellcaster (like clerics, druids, paladins, and rangers) can cast per day, and the effectiveness of said spells. It also affects Will saving throws, the Heal, Listen, Profession, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival skills, the effectiveness of the Stunning Fist feat, and a monk's quivering palm attack (this is for Dungeons & Dragons, as LMS doesn't mention much about Wisdom. Found at
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons_%26_Dragons_gameplay#Ability_scores)  
• “If your Wisdom is too low, you won’t be able to learn new skills when a situation arises that requires you to do so." (V11C2)
• Raised by spell casting 

• Intelligence (starter stat, starts with 10 if human)
• Intelligence is similar to IQ, but also includes mnemonic ability, reasoning and learning ability outside those measured by the written word. Intelligence dictates the number of languages a character can learn, and it influences the number of spells a preparation-based arcane spellcaster (like a Wizard) may cast per day, and the effectiveness of said spells. It also affects how many skill points a character gains per level, the Appraise, Craft, Decipher Script, Disable Device, Forgery, Knowledge, Search, and Spellcraft skills, and bardic knowledge checks. (this is for Dungeons & Dragons, as LMS doesn't mention much about Intelligence. Found at
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons_%26_Dragons_gameplay#Ability_scores)
• Raised by spell casting

• Leadership (starter stat, starts with 0 if human)
• Influences how well an NPC army responds to your commands 

•  Luck (starter stat, starts with 0 if human)
• Influences item and gold drops, probably also things such as quest rewards and critical hits (BUT critical hits can also be pulled off with skills (knowing where to strike))

• Stamina
• Influences how long one can keep fighting. I assume stamina affect melee fighters more than archers and magical avatars (well, that is if one is not a magical swordsman)
• Undeads have unlimited stamina (V13C1)
• In V1C4 we are told that with little stamina left one risks immobilization (this may hint towards stamina not being a stat but more of a "bar" of same status as the "healh bar" and "mana bar" instead of a stat)
• Raised by fighting, and generally actions that would deplete it

• Fighting Spirit
• Decreases the pressure that NPCs and other players can give off due to having a higher level than oneself
• Possible to cower creatures of a lower level than oneself with a glare
• Temporally call on superhuman strength
• Raised by fighting creatures of a higher level than oneself
• Raised by continuously fighting creatures
• You may not distribute bonus stat points to Fighting Spirit

• Art
• Affect meals and products elegance in an aesthetic and practical sense
• Raised by seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching beautiful things, or by creating works of art

• Endurance
• Decreases stamina usage

•  Perseverance/Sustenance
• I do not know what it does as I would like to put it together with endurance, but according to V13C1 Perseverance and Endurance are two different things

• Charisma
• The charisma stat acts over NPC troops ((making them more liable to do as you command) stacks with personal rep and leadership. For personal rep, see “Reputation” further down the Guide)
• Makes it easier to tame pets
• Makes it easier to hire mercenaries
• Allows one to change how NPC thinks (seen in V1C7, when Weed talks to the soldiers about the stupidity of duelling monsters)
• Raised by giving good advice to NPC following you (V1C7)
• Raised by giving popular/good/fair orders to NPCs following you (V1C7)

• Physical Resistance (Defense)
• Not really a stat, but it's listed together with the stats in the character sheet
• Armour rating
• Raised by wearing armour (different armours yields different benefits)
• I assume some skills/passives/buffs affects Physical Resistance as well

• Magical Resistance
• Not really a stat, but it's listed together with the stats in the character sheet
• Magic defence (Probably the same as "Resistance" in World of Warcraft)
• Raised by wearing armour (different armours yields different benefits)
• I assume some skills/passives/buffs affects Magical Resistance as well

The things below "Resistance to Magic: None" are there because this is when Weed just got the Legendary Moonlight Sculptor class.

The things below "Guilt: 96" are there because it is the special additions to being the Skeleton Knight class.

Reputation:

• Measured in fame/infamy (in some chapters it is notoriety instead of infamy)
• There is a global as well as local reputation, but only the global is listed in the character sheet
• Affects the prises from NPC merchants
• Affects the available stock from NPC merchants (this is an asumption of mine)
• Affects available quests
•  Some NPCs refuses to talk to players of low reputation(for example Counselor Rodriguez, the Star of Wisdom) 
• Raised (fame) and decreased (infamy) by actions (e.g. player killing, questing, exploration, and for crafters making high quality items (such as the fine pieces a Sculptor can make)
•  Personal rep[2] can be determined by how you speak to the NPC and act around that NPC[3], and in the case of NPC merchants probably also by how often you frequent them.
•  Effects what information they will give you, and if the NPCs a merchant what the price is
•  Effects possible favours (such as Weed eating with the Instructor of the Training Hall, seen in vol. 1)

Spells:

May function the same way as skills, but I do not know. This was mainly intended as inspiration to spell books for people that wanted some mages in their FanFic.

Known spells by class:

• Mage
•  Fire Ball (First appearance V1C4) 
•  Fire Strike (first appearance V2C1)
•  A pillar of flame split into four fireballs in the air 
•  “The side effect of the spell was to push the enemy back temporarily - technically speaking, 'bashing' - giving leaders a precious break to catch their breath.” 

• Ranger 
• Fire Arrow (first appearance V2C1) 

• Cleric/priest/priestess 
• Blessing (First appearance V1C4) 
• Magic formula: “Divine power leads us to a triumph, Blessing!"
•  It appears that the formula is not needed every time the spell is cast

•  Healing Hand (First appearance V1C4)
• Holy Blessing ((First appearance V2C1) may be a more powerful version of “Blessing”) 
• Magic formula/incantation: "Freya's protection upon <name>. Protection from the Holy Spirit. Strengthen <name> against evil powers. Bless!" (In <name> insert the name of the avatar who is being blessed) 
• Empowers defence and strength 

• Shaman
•  Voodoo Art (first mentioned V2C1) 
• speeds up and increases strength and dexterity of the avatar temporarily

Gear: 

• Starter gear 
• A canteen and ten pieces of rye bread 
• A wooden sword is obtainable for free in the Training Hall. This sword, however, seems unable to get outside of the Training Hall as "If Weed had not been fortunate enough to obtain the iron sword in the beginning, he would have repeated commonplace quests here and there to collect a few coppers each time, and rushed to a blacksmith's workshop to buy a crude sword before he headed to the field.
  Otherwise, he would have to punch monsters, relying on the stats that he had accumulated by striking the scarecrow." (V1C4, props to Tony Yon for pointing this analysis out)

•  Fine leather armour, other than disposables, cost thirty silvers. (V1C3) 
• Life cotton ring, a rare item that doubles maximum life (V1C9) 
• Mana ring: Increases maximum Mana. (+3% Mana) (V2C1)

Status:

• Hunger and thirst 
• Decrees by eating and drinking 
• One is supposed to eat every five hours, more if training exercise intensely (Weed, vol. 1 chap. 2) 
• Effects 
• It is possible to die from starvation, possibly also from thirst 

• Satisfaction (perhaps its linked to hunger and thirst) 
• Can be raised by eating 

• Cold 
• The body has become more rigid and decreases physical ability by 5% 
• The speed at which satiety is reduced has increased by 25%. 
• The  effects may become worse over time, if the cold is not treated     

• Stun
• “In stunned mode, a monster is unable to move, and is damaged twice when hit.” (V2C1) I assume that the double damage is the same for players    

• Poison
• “When a user is poisoned, his face darkens” (V1C8)   
• I assume that poison works the same way as a DoT

Quests:

• It is only possible to have three quests in your quest log at a time.
• The quest (as seen in the quest log) consists of five elements.
  1. A title
  2. A (short) description
  3. Difficulty level (the difficulty levels from easiest to hardest are F, E, D, C, B, A, S)[4]
  4. Quest requirements
  5. Quest rewards/penalties (reward upon turning the quest in, penalty if the quest failed). Bear in mind that not all quests mentions the rewards and not all quests have a penalty if failed. Also, some rewards depend on how (well) you complete the quest

• The rarity of the quest is not linked to the difficulty, but rather what your avatar should do to unlock it, for example the quest Weed took that lead him to become a Moonlight Sculpture (the first time when he refused the class/job/occupation) was only an E-level quest, but was rare due to the requirements it took to unlock the quest.
• Some quests cannot be refused (seen in some of the Church of Freya quests Weed takes).
• Some quests can give you money/rewards upfront (seen in Weed's very first quest, “A Mystery Sculptor Rumoured to Have Visited the Royal Palace”)
• Serial quests (quests that when completed leads to another quest)
•  Even if a serial quest has a low difficulty, the rewards are more substantial than from regular quests
• Sserial quests get harder for each progressing stage (quest) of the series (V1C3)
• An important thing to note is that the quest doesn’t state it’s a serial, so the player has no way of being 100 % sure of any quests type before completing it and turning the quest in. 

• In V1C3 we are told that it took a whole party of “power rankers” at the level of 300 to solve a level B quest. 
• In V1C8 we are told that (some) quests are shareable. 
• Here’s a quote to show how “easy” a D difficulty quest is “"For the difficulty level D, at least eight hundred lizardmen are encamped over there. Am I correct?" Weed said.” (V2C1). Remember that those 800 lizardmen are at a minimum of level 60 each.

 

Known cities:

• Versian/Versailles Continent 
• Perforation of Lavias (aka. Sky Island Lavias) 
• The city where Weed completed the Beginner Training Center 

• The Citadel of Serabourg, Rosenheim Kingdom 
• Starter city from before the novel starts 
• “There were two men at the center of a power game in Rosenheim Kingdom—Duke Kanus and Count Albrook. Of the two, Duke Kanus, in charge of the military affairs, was more powerful.” (V1C9) 

• Baran Village, Rosenheim Kingdom (Southern Province) 
•   Baren Village have 500 households (V2C1) 
• Baran Village is 10 days away from Serabourg on foot ((V1C10) but that might be less as a party of 500 people are bound to walk slower than a small party) 
• A village overrun by lizardmen, so Darius got a D difficulty quest to kill the lizardmen (Darius then enlisted 200 NPCs from the Rosenheim Army and 300 users (minimum level 30), the numbers are found in V1C10) 
• The village where Weed made his first fine piece

Guilds:

• Intelligence guild (found in V1C4) 
• The intelligence guild gives counsel to users, depending on their stats and skills 
• On rare occasions, the guild unveils hidden classes 
• Separates classes into two categories: combat (melee + supportive) and Crafters (merchants are counted as crafters)

Known classes/jobs/occupations/vocations:

The classes are also split up in primary class, subclass/prestige class and secret classes. For example, the Legendary Moonlight Sculptor is a hidden/secret subclass of the Sculptor class. Secret classes seem to be unlocked only to users (volume 1 chapter 3) where prestige classes are unlocked for all who fits the requirements

(“-Special Job Quest

In the history of the continent their is no class for the Necromancer.  Defeating the Shire will allow the selection of the Necromancer class.” From the volume 5 summary)

It is also worth to mention that the avatar doesn’t have to be the primary class to gain access to the subclasses (as seen in V1C3, where Weed was class-less but gained access to the Moonlight Sculptor class)

Pale explains to Weed in V1C4 that you get some bonus stats when converting to a class, and afterwards we are told that “Pale omitted this, but additional rewards in accordance with a user's class were more noticeable. For instance, take an archer wielding a sword and a sword warrior yielding a sword, the sword warrior can inflict twice the damage as an archer wielding a sword. On the other hand, his arrow will make less than half the damage dealt by the archer.” (V1C4)

And in V1C3 we are told that hidden classes have exclusive skills withheld from the primary classes.

“Most users choose their primary class long before they hit level ten.” (V1C8)

In the following the “Secret” is from the general Royal Road players point of view.

Known classes:

•  None
• Every player in royal road starts without a class and then chose to convert to a class based on what skills and stats they get.

• Cleric/Priest/Priestess (Combat - support)
• Can use Holy Magic (V1C8)
  
• Can restore both hp and stamina both of themselves and other players, at the coast of mana
• “If you fight for a long time under the influence of a blessing from a priestess, you will feel almost powerless without them.” (V2C1)
• Irene is a Priestess from the original novel

•  Sculptor (Crafter)
• May not wear armour made out of metal
  
• “The defense of a sculptor is undeniably pathetic. Except for spell-casting classes, the sculptor class was one of the most vulnerable ones.” (V2C1)
• There are at least two secret subclasses: Moonlight Sculptor and Legendary Moonlight Scuptor
• Benefits for the Legendary Moonlight Sculptor (found in V1C8)
• All stats are added 20 points
• Art stat is added an extra 80 points
• In moonlight nights all stats are increased by an additional 30 % 
• Enables one to equip certain items specialized for the class
• Enables one to learn all craft skills to the stage of a Master
• Grants extra options that are produced or refined
• Increases Attack Power for the Engraving Knife Technique
• Decreases mana consumption for the Engraving Knife Technique
• Enables one to learn secret skills based on one's level in Sculpture Mastery
• Increases Fame by creating statues of extraordinary image or artistic value 
• Weed is a Legendary Moonlight Sculptor form the original novel

• Shaman (Combat - can be both melee and supportive)
• Can use white magic to buff Strength, Agility, and Speed
• Can use black magic to debuff enemies (Probably also add DoTs)
• Can use offensive magic (direct damage I assume)
• Can use healing magic, counteract poisons, and dispel curses
• Can wield both Maces and Swords for melee
• Since Shamans are jacks-of-all-trades they are generally weaker than the specialised classes, e.g. their healing spells are weaker than the Clerics, their melee skills are that of an archer going melee, and their curses are weaker than a Black Mage’s
• Da'in is a Shaman from the original novel

• Ranger (Adventuring, term used about the class in V1C8)
• + 50 % bonus Attack Power when the ranger is armed with a weapon of choice according to the subclass

• Explorer (Adventuring)
• Only mentioned in V1C8

• Warrior (Combat - melee)
•  + 50 % bonus Attack Power when the ranger is armed with a weapon of choice according to the subclass (V1C8)
• "The moment the class is decided, a sword  warrior wins a 50% bonus on sword mastery" (V1C9). This quote shows us that the Warrior can specialize in weapons, making their subclasses weapon related as in "<insert weapon type> Warrior"

• Paladin (Combat - melee, possible supportive if they can be used as main healers)
• Can use Holy Magic (V1C8)
• Volk is a Paladin from the original novel (he is in V1C9, I do not know if he shows up again later)

• Knight (Combat - melee)
• Mage (Combat - supportive)
• The Black Mage is a subclass that specializes in curses ((V2C6) I assume that curses are both debuffs and DoTs)
• Necromancer is a subclass that specializes in summoning the Undead. The Necromancer becomes available after Weed defeated the Lich Shire in V7C3
• Romuna is a Mage from the original novel

• Archer (Combat - supportive)
• May be synonyms with Ranger, as Pale is mentioned as an Archer in V1C2, but as a Ranger in V2C1. Or the Ranger could be an Archer subclass.
• Pale is an Archer from the original novel

• Monk (Combat - melee)
• Uses martial arts related skills 
• In the Dungeon & Dragons universe Monks are prohibted from using most weapons
• Surka is a monk from the original novel

The Wonders of Weed 

• Weed was number 3800 to complete the basic training program (number 16 in the Citadel of Serabourg) and the fastest at the time ((Seen in V1C4) I would argue that Weed was even faster than the geomchis as Weed did not die of hunger during his training) 
• The Statue of Goddess Freya (Barran Village) (completed in V2C3) 
• This statue was a Fine Piece
• Increases speed of life and mana recovery by 15% for 24 hours
• The effect does not overlap (stack) with another statue.

Trivia and things I didn't know where else to put:

• NPCs can die from old age 
• NPCs can gain levels 
• Some NPCs have names 
• 100 copper = 1 silver, and 100 silver = 1 gold. BUT, according to V1C3 you are supposed to exchange your money yourself. So, it’s not like, say, World of Warcraft where 100 copper coins magically and automatically transform into 1 silver coin 
• It is possible for in-game cinematic to occur, which is shown in V1C3 where Weed gets a flash back of the young Zehab and the young Queen 
• “The only way to tell users from NPCs is when they come out with their identity” V1C4 
• It is possible to become emperor of a nation, or even the world, in Royal Road. (Found in V1C4) 
• Newbies in virtual reality games when fighting monsters their first monsters generally “You simply lose your calm, lose your reason, and then lose your life, in that order” (V1C4) 
• In V1C4 we are told that healing from clerics (perhaps just healing by spells in general) replenish both health and stamina 
• “Royal Road reproduces every aspect of reality, even taste, to the extent that sushi made of fish that was caught minutes ago actually tastes fresh, and outdated food hardens and rots. Rye bread is no exception.” V1C6 
• Interracial marriage are allowed (as the Instructor of Training Hall in the Citadel of Seraburg as married to a Barbarian while he himself is an Orc (V1C6)) 
• “A user can hide his true identity, sometimes pretending to be an NPC as long as he wants it that way” (V1C6) 
• “I will resurrect soon, but you’ll never come to life again, got it?” Weed to Arse the Stallion in V1C8. So, NPCs can't be resurrected 
• “Granted that a city was actually floating somewhere in the air, violating every law of physics” (V1C9) this quote shows us that normally there are some sort of physics system present in Royal Road (even if Lavias violates it) 
• In V1C10 some knights are calling Weed (and I assume other players in general) for “foreigner”. Perhaps this is normal for some NPC. This is backed up with “users are freedmen sent by Gaea the Holy Seer” (V1C10), I have no idea who Gaea is 
• “They [NPCs] had emotions, spoke and acted like real people” (C1V10) 
• According to V1C10 spells are used to preserve food 
• “Defensive gears made of non-metals are typically weak in defense unless they are made of special materials or enchanted with a permanent spell.” (V2C1) 
• “Since his [Weed’s] expertise rating in many combat skills was virtually close to zero, he often failed to activate the skill. When the sword techniques didn't arrive, he was stunned into immobility for some seconds.” (V2C1) 
• When in  a party “earned EXPs were collected and fairly distributed” (V2C1) Fairly in that sense you get more of the EXP if you contribute to the party, than if you stand doing nothing.

PvP

In Royal Road there are different ways to do PvP. Some of them being murder which the novel calls PK, and has this to say about it “a murderer who has PKed one or more users is promptly denied the right to privacy. A red name and a bloody diamond on the forehead—the sign of a murderer” (V1C6)
But, one can also participate in guild wars for ownership of different lands, towns, and so on, something to which the novel says “If your side wins, you will receive additional rewards. Also, along with an increase in fame, you can get a title.” (V4C6) And as the novel doesn't say anything about Weed getting the blood diamond here, I assume that the blood diamond is reserved for murderers, that is to say killing players not flagged for PvP.

About the blood diamond, there are at least two different ways to get rid of it.  “The fastest way to get out of the Murderer state is to donate money to the Church.” (V13C4) and the other is spending enough time without PKing others, but this can be hard as other players may kill a PKer without penalties, they are even rewarded for doing so, as V13C4 stated “Damn, I wanted the kill. Miss the opportunity to raise my Reputation.” This was a nameless players comment on Weed upon returning to Morata from the Vampire Kingdom (I forgot its name).

Monsters, NPCs, and dungeons 

• Creeps (monsters) gets strong by 50 % at night, but yield 30 % more experience (V1C4) 
• “Monsters in general were repulsive and unsightly.” (V2C1) 
• If you are the first to discover something you get a bonus 
• “DUNGEON: You are the very first players to discover Memphis Hall.
  Reward: Fame +100.
  Every day for one week, double EXP and double item drops. The rarest items will drop from killing the first monster of each type. Subsequent kills will drop common items.” (V2C4) 

• Serabourg, Rosenheim Kingdom 
• Basic Training Hall Instructor at least level 200 (V1C4) 
• The average level for infantrymen is almost 30 (V1C4) 
• A knight generally surpass level 150 (V1C4) 
•  Titled Knights are levels 180 – 200 (V1C4)
• The Red Order is the key of the Rosenheim Army (V1C6)
•  “The weak deserve to die. The code of chivalry developed in Rosenheim kingdom was cold-blooded.” (V1C7) 
• Just outside Serabourg there are foxes, rabbits, raccoons and wolves in the nearby forest 
•   Foxes are known to be at level 5 (V1C3C) 
• We aren’t told the level of the wolves but they appear to be above level 10, as Surka in level 7, even with a team, which consisted of a cleric, an archer, a mage, and an undecided of levels slightly below hers, was afraid of a wolf (V1C3) 

• Lair of Litvart, Rosenheim Kingdom 
• “The secret cave in the Lair of Litvart—inside it, whispering was automatically blocked” (V1C9) 
• Kobolds around level 20 (V1C4. Kobolds are “midget-like monsters, below four feet in height, armed with coarse wooden shields and bronze swords.” (V1C7)
• Kobold rascals are level twenty-three (V1C7) 
• stronger kobold warriors twenty-eight (V1C7) 
• Kobolds have floors 1 and 2 of the Lair of Litvart
• Goblins level 50 and above (V1C4 and V1C7)
• “The combat strength of the goblins is five to six times that of the kobolds.” (V1C7)
• "Goblins gathered in lesser numbers than kobolds" (V1C7)
• Goblin Raiders are level 58 (V1C7)
• Gigantic Worms in the hidden room of the 4^th floor
• The Worm Queens have little bugs that defends them (these bugs are the size of pinkies (V1C8))  
• The Worm Queens can release a poisonous gas 
• The Queen of the Queen Worms are five times bigger than the normal Queen Worms 

• Surroundings of Baran Village, Rosenheim Kingdom (Southern Province) 
• Lizardmen – no less the 60 (V2C1) 
• “The reptiles resembled giant lizards on two feet with slippery, greenish skin” (V2C1) 
• “Finding a home in swamps, the lizardmen are weakened in the open, as in this case.” (V2C1) The “home-field advantage” may be different for different monsters.

Jobs (as in a place where one work, not necessarily a class):

Weed is given job opportunities several times throughout the novel, and I assume accepting those wouldn’t change his class, but maybe give a title, e.g. Weed the X, or X Weed, where X symbolises the name of the job.

Known Jobs:

• Denarion (in the Rosenheim Army)
• “If you accept it, you will take a military position of Denarion in the Rosenheim army. You will command ten foot soldiers. You are entitled to receive regular training, and a monthly income of fifty silvers“ (V1C7)
• “Upon the completion of the regular training, a few basic sword techniques and a quantity of military equipment such as swords and shields are given. Certainly, they are not the sharpest tools in town—an iron sword, or similar, and heavy armor with only defense options.” (V1C7)
• Centurion (in the Rosenheim Army)
• If you accept it, you will take a military position of centurion in the Rosenheim army. You will command one hundred foot soldiers. You are entitled to receive regular training, and a monthly income of three gold.” (V1C7)
• “An officer in command of a hundred troops, a centurion is deemed to be a sub-knight who is qualified to embark on an annual trial of promotion to knighthood in the Red Order.” (V1C7) 
• Temporary Knighthood of Rosenheim
• This is given to Darius in V1C9, and Darius was grated the command of a punitive force for the duration of a quest
• Misc 
• The misc jobs are jobs such as working at a restaurant (possibility mentioned in V1C10). Some jobs, such as working at a restaurant, is looked down upon by the general user ““Bad choice. Why did he decide to work at a restaurant where there’s nothing much to learn?” In Pale’s eyes, it wasn’t wise to make a career in a restaurant.
  Newbies are advised to take quests that pay well or, in the case of spell-casting wannabes, to read and learn many things in a library. This is so they can buy more advanced weapons and gear, hunt monsters more easily and level up faster in the long run.” (V1C10)

General abbreviations:

• Agro/aggro = aggression. The more aggro a player have the higher the chance a monster attacks said player. 
• NPC = Non-Playable Character/Non-Player Character. Things like guards, farmers, townsmen, shopkeepers and the like (provided that they aren’t Players) are generally listed as NPCs, even though, in principle, all things living in the world that are not Players can be categorized as NPCs. 
• Hp = health points. This is how much damage one can take without dying 
• Mp = magic points/mana. How many spells and/or abilities one can cast/use 
• Str = strength 
• Agi = agility 
• Dex = dexterity 
• Vit = vitality 
• ATK = Attack (power) 
• SPD = speed 
• PK =Player Kill 
• PvP = Player versus Player 
• Lv. and lvl = level 
• EXP, XP = Experience Points. What one need to get in order to level up. It can be obtained primarily from solving quests and slaying monsters.
• DoT = Damage over Time

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[1] Of course this is only the playable races. You can’t, for example, play as wolf, fox, or rabbit (yes, this is the starting critters to be killed around the Citadel of Serabourg, Rosenhiem Kingdom (well, I assume you can’t play as critters by normal means. I mean, Weed could probably because of his shape-shifting but normally you can’t))

[2] the avatars relationship to a specific NPC

[3] Just rewrite Newton’s Third Law to: “For every action there is a reaction”
[4] In V1C6 it is shown that there also is the difficulty level: “Secret”