There are no classes. Fallen Earth asks if you prefer combat, crafting, or supporting roles to determine the types of quests and rewards ahead. Another player might complete a quest to learn how to wield a heavier pistol, whereas you will learn how to make his ammunition (for a profit of course). You can cross over to other roles, although you have to pay for your abilities instead of questing for them.
Fallen Earth has one of the most involved and rewarding crafting systems to date. There are 10 tradeskills ranging from the familiar, such as Armorcraft and Ballistics, to the more obscure, like Nature and Geology. You are free to pursue as few or as many as you like, and you’re crafting queue even continues while you’re logged off. A makeshift sword from a lawnmower blade, a pair of leather pants dyed red, my own ATV, and a refreshing salad - I have yet to make a single thing that I would consider a throwaway item.
More than a means of lining your closet with stylish threads and turning a profit, crafting is a self-contained path of progression. Completed items yield experience toward leveling up, and you can even craft your own instructions for the next tier of recipes as you improve a tradeskill. Since your maximum abilities in tradeskills are linked to your stats, only devoted players will be capable of creating the most advanced items. The tradeoff is that they won’t be as formidable on the battlefield.
Leveling is a long, extensive process, but AP for raising stats is awarded in spurts throughout a single level. This is where things get a little confusing, but refreshingly malleable since you can tailor a character to your exact liking. You have eight stats, like Strength and Intelligence. These directly affect your competency with nine skills, like Melee, Dodge, and Rifle, which can also be boosted with AP. Although the menu provides guidance in creating archetypes, the full impact of some stats and skills isn’t felt until the high teens and beyond, out of 45 levels.
You have the option to join one of six factions upon reaching the thinly wooded areas of Sector 2 (of 3). Like Eve Online, factions are driven by ideologies instead of good/bad dichotomies. The Enforcers believe in order through military might, the savage CHOTA want to burn any hint of civilization, and the Travelers are only concerned so long as the money keeps flowing. Faction-balance operates like a color-wheel. Your two neighbors are allies and the rest are enemies who shoot on sight if you get too close to their towns. I highly recommend that you read the synopses of the factions before you step foot in Fallen Earth, since your stats will affect your ability to use faction-specific gear.
Much as in Champions Online, combat is a mix of reflex-based attacks and stat-based results. Despite what you might assume, rifles and pistols don’t always beat out melee attacks. Clever players who prefer the crushing thud of close-combat can duck behind cover and crawl through the brush, and mutations (the closest thing to magic) can surprise even the most seasoned combatant.
