The world of Rubi-Ka are divided in different areas (called zones) which all have a unique rules settings, regarding PvP combat handling. All in all there are 4 zones relevant over the world, with land control areas adding another zone. The zones are: 100% = no combat possible at all, 75% = combat vs. NPCs and Monsters possible, 25% = Political zone which means PvP against opposing factions and neutrals is possible, 0% = Mayhem zone = Free PvP for all even against the same faction. Land control areas have sometimes a 5% zone which means that PvP is possible even against same faction members outside of the guild. All arenas on Rubi-Ka have 0% suppression gas which enables PvP for all (friendly duels or ganking *tehehe*).

So how do PvP zones vary?
It ranges from no PvP allowed at all ("gassed" or safe zones) to PvP free for all zones ("mayhem") including Rebel versus Rebel and Omni versus Omni.

At this point, political zones are spread around the outer parts of Rubi-Ka, but are very rare to find. Most commonly you will find PvP in land control areas which contain towers and have cycling suppression gas zones (100% - 25% - 5% and back to 100%). All other areas are either 75% or 100% gas areas.

Inner Cities:
Big cities are filled with Suppression Gas (formerly referred to as 'Happy Gas'). This gas prevents all Player versus Player combat. However it was stated in an interview with a development team member that "Big Cities" would have that gas. So it might be that PvP will still be possible in smaller cities. Big cities are: Omni-1, Rome, Athen, Tir, Newland City. Smaller cities with suppression gas are: Bliss, Hope, Wine, Home. The suppression gas may change during the course of the storyline, so the above mentioned places may or may not always have the same suppression gas level (usually 75% or 100%). So it seems we also can look forward to enjoy some nice little faction related fights taking place in and around cities.

Bars And Slums:
In some cities you will find slums. These slums will have the "Mayhem Zones" rules setting attached to them. So all kinds of PvP situations will be able to find there (everyone will be able to attack everyone). This is however currently not in the game and will maybe not be in the game at all.

In addition PvP will be allowed in some bars. This actually sounds very interesting and exciting. So it will definitely be possible to see some bar fights between Omni and Rebel followers. The first PvP bar in AO is "Beer & Booze" in Hope (Mort).

Civilized Areas:
Areas around cities are called Civilized Areas. Here you are able to attack NPCs and monsters. Guards will react to all kind of PvP activities. The guards attack every monster that is aggressive towards you and has engaged combat (even if you engaged combat first) and will attack the monster (and in most cases kill it for you). In that case you will not be able to loot the monster, nor will you get XP for the kill, since the guards attacked it. Inside cities, guards will attack opposing faction members (and sometimes even neutrals) in 75% areas only. It is however possible to outrun the guards or even take them out. Omni-1 and Tir are the best protected cities.

Political Areas:
In Political Areas it is possible to attack opponents of the other side. So this is most likely the main place for us seeing Omni Tek versus Clan activities. Most of the PvP related quest activities are launched in such zones. So if you cant stand the heat of battle, better avoid this areas then.

Mayem Zones:
These zones in the wilderness are free for all kind of PvP situations (Rebel versus Rebel, Neutral versus Omni and so on). These areas are relatively dangerous if you do not own a yalmaha (to fly), since everyone can attack you (given the attacker matches the needed PvP rules to be able to attack you - e.g. is not of too high or too low level compared to your character). Travelling in a mayhem zone should be done in teams to avoid an untimely death.

Neutral characers may attack Omni and Rebel players in political areas. Especially in notum wars, this is a neccessary feature and some neutral organizations use this ability to function as mercenaries.

Attacking in groups is possible, however the PvP rules of too high or too low level being not able to attack still apply to the individual group members. Ganking others in PvP in groups is generally disliked since it shows bad social abilities. However in mass combat it is best to be teamed to increase chances of surviving - especially teaming with a doctor is helpful. An attack on someone while grouped, does not flag the whole group as attackers, only the individual, unless the whole group attacks.

You do not receive much experience points for killing an opponent. By statement from the Development team, the reason for doing PvP should in most cases be story or quest related. Of course you will always experience the thrill by comparing your fighting skills with a 'real human' opponent. However if you are up for some 'Rewards', PvP is not the thing you want to do (as long as it is not story or quest related).

A PvP opponent can loot your items that have not been "saved" yet. Meaning all items and XP you gained since your last use of an insurrance terminal, are unsaved and can be looted by the player who killed you and only by that player. If you lose enough XP (around 5-10% of the XP needed for your level), your corpse will also contain a "XP Pinky" which can be looted and functions as trophy for killing you, however it doesnt serve any function, nor does it have any consequences for you if you lose a "pinky" due to PvP ;)

There is a percentage wise PvP limit. Lower level players are not able to attack or be attacked by players far above or below their current level.

If you have been in fight recently you will not be able to log out safely without suffering char time out for a few minutes. However it is possible to log out instantly everywhere where Suppression Gas is to be found.

Moving between zones makes it possible to escape combat. This counts especially for combat against monsters since monsters cannot follow you over the zone border. In PVP this tactics is often used as "lame" tactics to escape a player. It is essentially abusing the game mechanics for a benefit which borders to exploiting and thus should not be done. In Notum Wars you may experience that suppression gas around the land control area will not take effect for you for a while when you engaged in combat. This has been designed to disallow people from abusing the gas areas for taking over bases without fearing any consequences.

As mentioned above, you will get an XP-Pinky on the corpse of an enemy (player) if you killed the playr and the opponent lost enough XP (around 5-10% of total XP needed for a level). A XP-Pinky does not serve any purpose other than being a simple trophy.

You see all healthbars as bars above the head of the enemy or monster. So you will get no exact figure how many hit points he really has left. This will make the battles a lot more interesting and also quite risky.

It is called AggDef in game which stands for Aggressive-Defensive. It defines how much effort you put into attacking (Speed of attack) and how much you put into defending yourself (Defense). They are mutually exclusive in a way. You focus what you want, what your particular playing style is like. If you are "tanking" you go for defense, when you want to take someone down quickly, you go for Speed.

With the release of Notum Wars - a booster pack for Anarchy online, land control has been added to Anarchy online, which enables organizations ingame to capture pre-defined land control areas. Having "towers" set up and defending them, grants skill boni either for the whole guild with organization advantages or for single players with "skill buffs" provided by the towers which are effective on the whole planet. To learn more about Towers and Notum Wars, please check our Notum Wars section.