Space reserved for the answer.
“And, unlike other MMOs, these racial differences are dynamic and will evolve as new families are created with parents from different bloodlines.”
Mixing blood lines opens up possibilities of character having more than one set of racial traits. For example if a character from the jungle had a child with someone from the desert you could get a mixed race child with traits from both sides. As the gene pools are mixed even more you could create offspring with specific traits.
There are Birds of Prey large enough that Mann must be careful of attack. Giant Eagles / Vultures? Pterodactyl
"When talking about plants and animals, this allows players to create selective breeding programs, cross-pollinating and breeding until they get the outcome they’re looking for."
We'll be able to cross breed plants and possibly use selective breeding to develop new species of plants and animals!
_ this allows players to create selective breeding programs, cross-pollinating and breeding until they get the outcome they’re looking for_
We can breed animals an plants to create races to better fulfill our necessities (just as we did in RL).
"At the same time, noble Houses can become well-known for a specific set of physical traits, such as auburn hair and green eyes."
Some mutations can be passed down through the generations.
The way you play the game and the choices you make will ultimately dictate how you look in game. We can spend hours in character creation but it has a minimal impact on our appearance over the long run of our characters life.
additional customization such as your character's girth or how muscular or frail looking they are is a function of how you play your character and will change over time.
”As Elyrians spread out across the map and settled in different locations they began to develop adaptations that made them more suited for their current environments.”
All land is owned, but not occupied so by settling down in an unoccupied location your character/offspring/etc... could begin to develop adaptations not yet seen in Elyria.
1) There will be a complete set of crafting, adventuring, and humorous achievements solely for the purpose of allowing you to take on new Surnames.
2) as well as which apprenticeships are available in that town
3)Play a book worm
4)This gives us a chance to introduce new attributes, colors, etc. into the gene pool and can result in unique combinations such red eyes and white hair (albinism).
http://i1351.photobucket.com/albums/p795/SilDarklight/Chronicles%20of%20Elyria/Forum/Sigs/Luccheno%20600x100altzpsuev3knqe.jpg
Luccheno - I like number three. The book worm hints at all sorts. Well, books for a start! Perhaps readable and writable, ones we can use to pass down knowledge or stories of the world. Write down our research in certain areas and then pass these on so people can try new ideas. It could also be there are books from ancient times that could be studied for clues. If I know anything about ancient books it is that they always include the exact way you need to defeat your foe!
If there are bookworms...
There will be books to interact with. Wither it is lore, history, science or religious. Books could be found individually and in repositories.
There will be places of learning where one could go to study and attain specialized training.
If we can become adept at a certain knowledge we could inturn train others. We could be able to record events that others could then read in turn.
"Grow up in the frozen north, the burning desert, a subterranean grotto, or in a bustling city."
*"As Elyrians spread out across the map and settled in different locations they began to develop adaptations that made them more suited for their current environments."
WARNING: The above post may contain sarcasm and/or sophisticated satire. Any psychological damage sustained is purely your fault!
A family or a group of families can start a new village, and name it. Village inhabitants will have the unique opportunity to choose a surname linked to that vilage name. This might be one of the few options we have to pick an original surname.
As a side note, during the last egg hunt, Liva mentioned that the way we play can change our character appearance, like getting fat. In my opinion, that right there is worth at least half the IP points deserved for finding the egg. And I saw many other valuable answers like that. I'm not trying to be friendly, just trying to point to what I consider fair.
"apprenticeships are available in that town"
I can have an apprentice that I have hired and can train.
"Wards begin character customization by identifying which race or bloodline they’re a part of."
Wards get a bloodline! Can they go back to the dynasty that has that bloodline and through achievement's or some other system claim to be part of it?
The bastard son come home to claim his inheritance!