So apparently it has been confirmed that DMO only contains two factions; Order and Chaos. Personally, and I don't think I'm alone here, I think this is a terrible idea for multiple reasons:

1. First and foremost, it goes against the 40k lore. In this world, there is only war.

2. This game seems like it is going to be very PvP centric, which is a GREAT thing IMO. Limiting the game to two factions passes up on some seriously great RvR opportunities.

3. The two faction system is getting old. By the time DMO comes out, WoW will be over five years old, TOR will have been out for over a year, etc. etc. It is time for something new, and 40k is the perfect IP to do it.

I have really high hopes for this game, but the fact that there are only two factions makes me think Vigil is simply jumping on the WoW clone bandwagon (much like Bioware has done with TOR), despite the fact that it simply doesn't make sense from the stand point of the IP.

What does everyone else think? And more importantly, is it too late to change?

EDIT: Wanted to include this idea in the OP.

Like many, I was heavily discouraged upon Vigil's announcement that DMO would only contain two factions. Originally I thought that each race should simply be its own faction. However, while that would make for some seriously awesome RvR, it could result in the Imperium teaming up with the Chaos to take a PvP objective from the Eldar. This would obviously never happen from a lore standpoint -- especially with Black Templars in the mix -- so it presents a huge problem. So I thought about it for a while, and had an idea as to how the two faction system could still work from both a lore and RvR standpoint.

Here is my proposed idea for RvR/Open-World PvP:

1. Two overall factions as follows;

Order - Imperium, Eldar and Tau
Destruction - Chaos, Orks and Dark Eldar

2. Open-world PvP objectives, and any benefits derived from controlling them, are be held by specific race, NOT by faction (i.e. Objective A is held by the Eldar, not by the Order faction).

3. Accordingly, each race is it's own "mini-faction," and each race will have to fight each other to gain control of world PvP objectives.

4. World PvP alliances can ONLY be formed within each faction (i.e. Order with Order, and Destruction with Destruction).

It is easier to understanding using a hypothetical. The Imperium control Objective A. The Eldar is trying to take control of Objective A, but are outnumbered on the server, making it extremely difficult. Eldar can then team up with the Tau to gain the advantage in numbers and to take Objective A from the Imperium. Once the Imperium is routed, the Eldar and Tau then fight amongst themselves for control of Objective A. Of course Chaos, Orks and Dark Eldar could also team up and try and take Objective A. However, the Order races can never form an alliance with the Destruction races (i.e. the Eldar, Tau, Chaos, Orks and Dark Eldar cannot all team up and take Objective A from the Imperium).

What this does is it creates a multi-faction system, with each race being its own "mini-faction," within the confines of a larger two faction system. This system is also completely consistent with lore, as the individual races are willing to create short-term alliances (within their own faction) that are to their benefit, but in the end, each race is in it for themselves.

And of course, this would only apply strictly to Open-World PvP and RvR. Instanced battlegrounds and PvE could have some story-based objective that would justify content by faction, and not by specific race.

Maybe this system is overly complicated, and maybe I am just thinking into it too much, but I think this proposed system would actually create awesome RvR, while still keeping within the general 40k lore.

Let me know what you guys think. Is this idea viable?

It should be seperated into 4 factions Imo
IoM, Orks, Other Xenos, [eldar tau] Chaos

The problem being is if it is an FFA with each race, one can easily be overpopulated and zerg over all the others, causing people to leave server en masse [of course that depeneds on how vigil balances it]

It isn't actually foreign for some races to team up, it happens quite in lore, example being Ork freebooters.

Or maybe there could be something along with, at certain times on a server, factions would enter a sort of temporary alliance.

idk there could be some politicing.

I think that it's kinda hard not to make a WoW clone. Blizzard took something very basic and made it first so everyone calls it a clone. Also, it's a game people should and will be able to jump right into knowing nothing about 40k if it was only people that knew about 40k servers wouldn't be too great because let's face it, DMO isn't making any large appearances. It's probably too late to change.

Another thing about this teaming up with two factions that has me kind of confused, is how they're going to implement the Eldar in the same faction as IoM, 'cause the Black Templars will not side with any witch, of any kind... they will mercilessly smite them in the name of the emperor on sight.
If this is going to work there has to be some restrictions to the alliances in the game, and within the factions.

Personally I think it's a very foolish mistake (yet another they appear to be making). WoW's success comes not from how well 'balanced' it is but from how addictive it is. I played it for 2 1/2 years and at the end I looked back and thought "Why was I playing that game? Seriously! Why?".

W:AR showed how a 2 faction system can not work in an open RvR world. One faction will get overpopulated, there won't be a third or fourth faction to balance that out, people of the losing faction get tired & leave the server to join a server where their preferred faction are winning. They then get bored that they're not getting a challenge out of it and leave the game. Voila, 50% of the reasoning why W:AR went down the pan so quickly.

Actually in W:AR a bunch of us got so tired of being on the winning side, EU Burlok as Order, that we formed a Fight Club instead with some Destruction people. That was far more fun than outnumbering Destruction constantly day in & day out with them only having a surge of players once or twice a week. If they were lucky. It was also far more preferable than racing through all the zones on 'Keep swap' days. The world was too tiny as well for such an RvR campaign as well, with the Battlefield Objectives being largely pointless.

As we pointed out in another thread the best game for an open RvR system was Dark Age of Camelot - 3 factions and if one was too dominant the other factions would team up to face them. That could echo well into the Lore of 40k where races have not been too picky in their bedfellows if the aims of their missions are the same, but then turn on each other at the end. I imagine 4 factions could do this quite well too, but 3 factions would be better for population levels & to make sure that it doesn't become a split of '2v2' with the factions.

No it doesn't.
Large 40k campaigns such as the Armageddon campaign were split into two overall sides, Order and Destruction.
This didn't mean that the races wouldn't return to their own agendas once the opposition was thwarted, just that they had temporarily ceased hostilities until their mutual enemy had been dealt with.


In this I agree, mass free for all PVP and realm control PVP against multiple factions would be great fun, but there are other ways to make great PVP and RVR than just throwing a whole heap of factions into the pot and leaving it to chance to assemble a decent PVP game.

This is your opinion, you are entitled to it... But it's the opinion of the developers that really counts... sorry.

It does fit with the IP and they aren't making a WoW clone (how is a 3rd person semi-twitch shooter anything like wow?! seriously a similar UI, levels and 2 loose alliances facing off does not equate to an attempt at cloneing!).


I think you are making some false assumptions based on very little information and need to actually wait till we all have more information about how they are structuring the alliances and PVP/RVR game before jumping to conclusions.

This is a very good point, BTs seem a really damn poor choice for a Space Marine chapter if they are in an alliance with Eldar or Tau. This leads me to hope that they will make the 'alliances' very shaky and antagonistic indeed, hopefully nothing like the ridiculous love-in that was WoW.

If I see an Eldar player wandering about in a Black Templar shrine (or /dancing grr) I will cancel my sub in absolute disgust.

QFT

Not only should they not be allowed in them, they should be shot on sight by NPC guards just for coming close to it.
Codex: BT clearly says that when they see a witch (or any xeno/mutant/heretic with psyker abilities) on the battlefield, they just rage and attacks them so.. I don't know how an Eldar/IoM alliance will work out.

Precisely. If I am not mistaken, Vigil has already confirmed contested planets dedicated completely to PvP. If there is a faction imbalance on a particular server -- which there almost always will be -- this will create major problems that will require developer-created fixes to remedy (i.e. NPCs, buffs/debuffs, etc.) It just makes so much sense, even from the IP standpoint, for each race to be its own faction. Imperium, Orks, Eldar and Chaos seem like the logic choice for launch. Four factions would be awesome.



True, but this is the rare exception. It just seems like Vigil is finding ways to fit this game into the "WoW formula" even though it makes so much more sense to have separate factions. And no, I am not saying that this game will be a total "WoW clone," as the combat does look substantially different (thank god!). I am simply wary of developers butchering great IPs to fit their game into the WoW formula because they are just trying to emulate its success. I saw it happen with the development of TOR, and I just don't want to see it happen to DMO as well.

We need to remember we are stuck i nthe Sargos sector so while i hate 2 faction system, BT wouldn't team up with xenos, and i don't know how we would do it; it PROBABLY won't spread to the Wargame and the MMO alliances won't do jack to the outside sectors.