MMOre Power: Mule accounts an MMORPG must

Welcome to the second installment of MMOtaku’s new weekly topic MMOre Power, which highlights playing essentials in the world of massively multiplayer online role-playing games that aid characters in their quest for might and glory.

In this edition, we’ll talk about mules and how they can help a fledgling hero cope with the hardships of leveling in any MMORPG. By “mules,” of course, we are talking about secondary or alternative character, which act as (you guessed it!) mobile and interactive storage bins.

Here’s a brief but more detailed description of a mule character courtesy of Wikipedia:

One of the most common uses for an alternate character is to act as a beast of burden, a “mule,” for a main character. Rather than using this caracter to actively participate in the game, the player who controls it just needs a way to hold and transport goods, and perhaps to obtain more of some resources which are limited for each character by the game rules.

In games such as Ultima Online, Everquest, World of Warcaft, and Lord of the Rings Online, mule characters often specialize in “trade skills.” These mule characters are used to manufacture high demand goods that can be used by the player’s main account, sold for profit or traded to other players for other highly sought items.

Introducing my Atlantica Online mule character Shandril.

Despite being seen as a cheat by some diehard role-playing game fanatics, the need for a mule in MMORPGs is indisputable, at least for those who know their way around a game and wish to make serious moolah by storing potentially valuable items in mule accounts and selling these for a profit.

Although you can create a mule character alongside your main character in a single account, I suggest you open a new account and create the mule there. Note that this is easier to do in a free-to-play online game than it is on pay-to-play or subscription games.

If you only have one computer or don’t have access to two computers, there are only two ways you can move items from your main character to the mule. First is by using the in-game mail service that lets you attach an item or currency to a message. The problem is not all MMORPGs have this feature.

The other way to move items between two characters is by launching two game clients. Remember that launching multiple game clients on a single computer is not permitted by some online games developers and operators. At the moment, the only online game I know that permits this is Atlantica Online. The drawback: If you don’t have a strong PC (Pentium Core2Duo, and at least 2GB memory and 512MB video card), you’re screwed.

Next time you run out of inventory space on your main character, remember that a mule is waiting in the wings to take the burden off your shoulders.