“Community Matters” has always been a moniker that has followed Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen since its inception. From game mechanics that require groups uniting to overcome a dangerous world, to building a reputation among those that populate the world around you, it always comes down to the social interaction. While Pantheon is still being built, the community continues to expand and grow beside it. Within the community we see fans who have been playing MMORPGs for years, to those just discovering the genre. We discover passionate story tellers, artists, and dreamers sharing a common excitement for everything RPG. While we wait to all step into Terminus together, we are already building bonds and motivating one another to speak up, be creative, and show your passion. Today we highlight community member RedbeardFlynn, a writer, a creator, and a passionate fan of lore and community. Join us in learning a bit about him.
Hi RedbeardFlynn, why don’t you go ahead and tell us a bit about yourself?
Hi all! Does everyone answer all the other questions and then circle back here or is that just me? This one’s tough for me to answer without it sounding too much like a dating profile. I like long walks through the undergrowth of Faerthale beside the gently setting sun….Without delving too deep into my life’s story I’ll just say I’m old enough to remember dial-up internet and AOL floppy disks. I have a deep love and affection for lore and story-rich games which influenced my career as a writer and led me to Pantheon early on. Oh yeah, and my beard is red, that’s a defining personality trait, right?
When did you get into gaming?
I played games before this, but I can pinpoint Ultima Online as the moment gaming became an important part of my life. From there I went on to Everquest and continued to grow up with MMOs and the occasional RPG. Those first games taught me so much about social interaction, vocabulary, narrative, lore…just endless life lessons.
How did you find out about Pantheon?
I found out about Pantheon, I believe back in 2016 but I’m not sure if I stumbled upon it first or a very good friend of mine did. At the time we were both playing Everquest on the progression server. Our interest was immediately piqued due to Brad McQuaid’s involvement in the project and it just grew from there. The first stream of Pantheon with Cohhcarnage sealed both my fate and his as Pantheon backers.
How long have you been creating content for Pantheon?
The first video I made for Pantheon was only three months ago, but it was much longer in the making. I wanted to be ready when I finally got around to making a video for this game I’d become so passionate about. I wanted to make the content worthy of Pantheon and acknowledged the great content already out there from amazing creators like Pantheon Plus, Nathan Napalm, and BazgrimTV who laid the groundwork for smaller and newer creators like myself.
What made you want to become a content creator?
I’ve been writing for years, publishing two books, but that’s a very different type of content. That’s all behind the scenes and hidden. 2021 was the year I decided to step in front of the curtain and see if the personality my wife seems to appreciate (or at least tolerate) is something others would enjoy without an editor to polish my language. The initial push though came from a very special content creator who has had an impact on me for years, one who may have a few close ties to Pantheon: Cohhcarnage. After watching him positively impact people with his entertaining content for years, I was inspired to try to do so myself. I wouldn’t be able to do any of it without the incredible support of my amazing wife who encouraged me to give it a try and has supported me throughout. She is absolutely instrumental in me being able to make the kind of content I want to share with you all.
What kind of MMORPG player are you, PvE, PvP, RP or something else entirely?
I lean very heavily into PvE but I get the PvP itch every now and then as well. A game like World of Warcraft had the perfect mix for me but all my best memories are still in games like Everquest and Everquest 2 which are noticeably lacking in PvP. Long answer longer: PvE with a PvP cherry on top.
What about Pantheon keeps you excited for its release?
Everything? Can I say everything? That sounds like a cop-out but it’s true. I’m a lore junky, and I’m drawn in by how much care is going into that part of the game. I’m eager to experience strategic class-oriented combat once again where classes have distinct identities. I want to see how Pantheon will modernize the MMO genre with new systems like climbing, perception, and dispositions. But perhaps most important to me, perhaps the one thing I would highlight above all else is a line from Pantheonmmo.com and iterated on in one of the earlier trailers: Bring Friends. You’ll need ‘em. To me, MMORPGs are about playing together, and I can’t wait to play with this community in a game built for it.
Do you have a favourite mechanic or feature that you’d like to share?
While I am deeply intrigued by the perception system as an eager lore hunter, the feature I keep coming back to is one I feel many MMO’s have mostly abandoned for convenience and/or speed: the quaternity. Somewhere along the way, it feels like we moved away from having four distinct roles to the holy trinity of healer, tank, DPS, or even more simplified a do-it-all system. It’s taken a strategic dynamic out of MMOs, not just active crowd control spells like mez, but other linked traits of older games like pulling, feign death, kiting, off-tanking…etc. I think the quaternity just provides so many more options both to the devs and to the players. It allows more creativity in strategy and it’s something that immediately drew me to Pantheon.
What race and class combo will you main in Pantheon?
I think I change my mind on this about as often as I change my clothes (I swear, that means daily!) but more often than not I settle on Dark Myr Monk.
Thanks RedbeardFlynn, and finally, is there anything you would like to say to your fellow community members?
Be kind to one another, be kind to yourself, and be kind to those who doubt, too. Part of what I believe is making this game so special is the community that has grown around it. I’ve seen so much earnest love and respect in this community and it’s part of what drew me to make content for it. This game is being spearheaded by a team of incredibly talented and passionate individuals. If you’ve seen my content it’s obvious I’m a huge fan of Joppa and the team for that reason, but not everyone will feel that right off the bat. Let’s try to be patient with those who don’t see the promise of this MMO or the reality of its progress and keep those gates open, shall we? Thank you so much for this opportunity to VR, and to all of you for giving this a read. I hope you have a fantastic day.
Thank you RedbeardFlynn for taking the time to talk to us about your passion for RPGs, MMOs, and Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen. We are excited to see where your creativity takes you, and the stories you will look to tell as you continue to dig into the depths of the lore of Pantheon, and the community itself..
We are thankful for the amazing stories our community has shared thus far with us. Do you have a story about how MMORPGs have made a difference in your life? Has it driven your creative urges? Has it made you a better leader? Has it helped you overcome difficulties in your life? We’d love to hear your tale, and show why community truly matters. Drop us a line in the forums.