A new featured post on tcos.com popped up answering some questions about the release and and high house PVP, which to my surprise turns out to be enable you to fight your own guild mates provided are member of a different high house. To my disappointment the special in-game item for buyers of the premium edition will not be available on release but later, when all first sign up waves are over. Talking of which, the release in France, Benelux and Scandinavia got postponed to December 5 for what I assume server load related reasons. The game servers may be able to handle all the players that are going to play, but it might just be a bit too much for the web server handling the registration process.

But don’t be surprised if the servers still crumble or at least struggle because of all those users trying to register their copy at the same time. I played a lot of MMORPGs in my life and yet not a single one has managed to not die because of a new release, it’s nothing to be ashamed of as long as the user data is kept secure and isn’t deleted.

Anyway, here’s the Q&A

1. Will it be necessary to uninstall the beta client of the game before installing the release client of the Chronicles of Spellborn? In any case, what measures have to be taken regarding the GameGuard?
No, it will be possible to update your beta client (either Closed Beta or Open Beta) of the game to the release client of The Chronicles of Spellborn.
There are no special measures to take concerning the Gameguard. Yet, we strongly recommend that you keep your computer clean of any spywares/malwares that might be identified as suspicious software while the game runs. You can use programs such as Ad-Aware or CCleaner and your favorite Anti-Virus program before installing the game in order to avoid any issue with spywares/malwares or viruses. Make sure no other processes are running when you launch the game client (there is a known issue with programs such as SETI@Home).

2. Will the beta accounts still be active for the release of the game and will it be possible to register as a subscriber with them?
No, all the beta accounts will be deleted. You’ll need to create a new account in order to be able to register as subscriber.

3. How many universes (servers) will be available? What will be their names, rule set (PvP or PvE) and their language?
The six following universes will be accessible to the player for launch:

(Localized universes launch date may vary on release date of The Chronicles of Spellborn in specific countries)
1  Deiquonril                  PvP      International
2  Dravhare                    PvE      International
3  Jumanvhare               PvP      German
4  Mornexus                  PvE      German
5  Sarakaril                    PvP      French
6  Drayom                     PvE      French

4. Should all members of a guild belong to the same High House regarding the PvP system between different houses on PvP universes or it won’t be a problem for the players?
Guilds don’t influence the High House PvP settings. A guild with Runite members will be able to attack guild mates being in another High House. Choose wisely and carefully.

5. When the universes (servers) of The Chronicles of Spellborn will be launched and accessible?
The first universes (servers) will be launch and accessible to players the 27th of November 2008 at 10:00am (CET). Additional universes will be opened the 28th of November 2008 at 10:00am (CET) (please note that Mindscape box release is scheduled for 5th of December).

6. Is there an early access for players who pre-ordered the box ?
No, there is no early access planned.

7. When the FreeToPlay Client will be available to download?
The FreeToPlay Client Online will be available to download the 5th of December 2008.

8. Will the Redemption of item from the Premium/Special box be available at launch?
No, the Redemption of item will NOT be possible at launch. The Redemption of items system isn’t currently 100% fully functional. Nevertheless, The Chronicles of Spellborn box owners don’t need to worry, their Premium/Special box info will be stored on our database, and as soon as possible, the item will be redeemable on the Player-Site. There is again, no need to worry about losing anything for The Chronicles of Spellborn Premium/Special boxes owners.

The redemption of the item is only and simply delayed.

9. Will online payments for the downloadable version of the game be available for the release of the game?  What payment methods will be available?
Only box owners will be able to play until the 5th of December 2008. Then the Free2Play Client will be available for download. At this stage, it is possible to subscribe immediately.  Right after creating a Free2Play account, players can log into the Player-Site with the information they just filled in when creating the Free2Play account. They can hit the “Subscribe” links in their profile information boxes, and also buy a subscription by going to the Shop tab, all accessible on Spellborn’s Player-Site. Payment methods may differ from one country to the other.

Once it’s done, they are 100% flagged as subscribers, and all limitations linked to Free2Play account are dropped. Going for a subscription also grants access to the Player-Site Forum for Subscribers and Box owners, containing plenty of cool features.