Sword Art Online - Q & A

[Doria]

I think the Japanese word is ambiguous. It just means incident/crime/etc. But without prior knowledge of the novels, there's no way to know from the title that it refers to a murder, so whoever TLed it that way is using the short story title, rather than the Japanese itself.

As for the second word, it's kind of general, encompassing inside/within/etc., but since it's referring presumably to the safe areas of the towns (or I guess? other inhabited places), then saying "incident/crime inside" makes it sound like it's an emotional crime of some kind. Like a crime of the heart...

EDIT: But to answer your question, if you're happy with what you're watching, there's no real reason to switch due to either of those translations per se.

[ZGMF-X10A]

What's the point in houses? Lets say they started the game in 2022 dec 2, and on 2023 dec 24 they were on level 49 (maybe higher). 1 year to get to floor 49. ~8 days a floor. Is it worth to spend money on a house? and I'm pretty sure it's floor restricted which means if you bought a house at level 30 you need to go back to level 30 to live (shown in episode 4).

I put dec 2, 2022 instead of oct 31, 2022 because it took them more than a month to even find the boss door.

How does the pk system work? Kirito mentioned green they turn orange if they pk. 1-2 days gets you back to green. Is there a red? Kirito had a teleport to bring the orange guild to jail, how long do they stay in jail? What happens when green kills an orange/red?

Originally Posted by Clarste

Spoiler for more details on weapon skills:

You can hold a weapon in your offhand, but it doesn't do anything without any skills for it. There are no classes in the game, but you do have skill levels that correspond to weapons. Which is also why it was hard for Sachi to retrain as a one-hand weapon user (so she could hold a shield). Since it's impossible to learn a skill for dual-wielding, there's no point.

If is something like RF online where you need to attack with 2 handed weapon in order to learn 2 handed weapon skill? If that's the case why didn't anyone just train with dual wield in the first place? I don't see how 1hand + shield would be better then dual wield. Shield can block but dual wield can parry(in some games).

[Clarste]

Originally Posted by ZGMF-X10A

What's the point in houses? Lets say they started the game in 2022 dec 2, and on 2023 dec 24 they were on level 49 (maybe higher). 1 year to get to floor 49. ~8 days a floor. Is it worth to spend money on a house? and I'm pretty sure it's floor restricted which means if you bought a house at level 30 you need to go back to level 30 to live (shown in episode 4).

I put dec 2, 2022 instead of oct 31, 2022 because it took them more than a month to even find the boss door.

You can quickly teleport between any floor that's been unlocked. Even the low level people can visit any town without danger after the high level people kill the appropriate boss. So even if the front line is on the 70th floor, having a house on the 50th floor isn't really an obstacle. It's not like the commute is any longer because it's just a teleporter. So houses are chosen based on how much they like the neighborhood and boring normal considerations like that. The people who really want to stay on the front lines at all times would just camp in the field anyway. Although they might have a house to go back to when they want a break.

How does the pk system work? Kirito mentioned green they turn orange if they pk. 1-2 days gets you back to green. Is there a red? Kirito had a teleport to bring the orange guild to jail, how long do they stay in jail? What happens when green kills an orange/red?

Your cursor turns orange when you attack a green player. It stays orange for a few days to mark you as a criminal. You don't have to kill them them to turn orange, just attack them at all. Attacking an orange player is equivalent to "self-defense" so there is no penalty for it and you stay green. There is no red cursor, it's just the nickname the players use for murderers. Incidentally, attacking people in towns is mechanically impossible: the game just doesn't let it happen.

"Jail" is not actually a game mechanic, it's just a place the players have designated to house criminals. There's a huge guild on the lower floors called the "Aincrad Liberation Army" that was created to clear the game in the beginning but quickly gave up and instead devoted itself to running the lower floors like a government. Distributing food and whatnot to the players who choose not to fight at all. They also run a prison, which is where Kirito sent the criminals. So, basically they'll never get out unless they escape, since the people hiding them there are other players, who obviously don't like them much. They might even be accidentally killed, depending on what happens with the guards.

If is something like RF online where you need to attack with 2 handed weapon in order to learn 2 handed weapon skill? If that's the case why didn't anyone just train with dual wield in the first place? I don't see how 1hand + shield would be better then dual wield. Shield can block but dual wield can parry(in some games).

You can't raise the dual wield skill because there's no skill for it. It's just not programmed into the game. Dual wield may be better, but it's simply not an option for the players. You can swing around the swords, but your attacks won't do any significant damage without using the pre-programmed Sword Skills, and since there are no Sword Skills for dual wielding it's completely useless.

[Deltaray]

Originally Posted by ZGMF-X10A

What's the point in houses? Lets say they started the game in 2022 dec 2, and on 2023 dec 24 they were on level 49 (maybe higher). 1 year to get to floor 49. ~8 days a floor. Is it worth to spend money on a house? and I'm pretty sure it's floor restricted which means if you bought a house at level 30 you need to go back to level 30 to live (shown in episode 4).

I put dec 2, 2022 instead of oct 31, 2022 because it took them more than a month to even find the boss door.

How does the pk system work? Kirito mentioned green they turn orange if they pk. 1-2 days gets you back to green. Is there a red? Kirito had a teleport to bring the orange guild to jail, how long do they stay in jail? What happens when green kills an orange/red?




If is something like RF online where you need to attack with 2 handed weapon in order to learn 2 handed weapon skill? If that's the case why didn't anyone just train with dual wield in the first place? I don't see how 1hand + shield would be better then dual wield. Shield can block but dual wield can parry(in some games).

For first question, you need to sleep somewhere, because game is using your brain as controller, which basically means you are living so you need to sleep, and you can rent room in one inn, but it gets more expensive. If you buy house, in longterm it gets cheaper, and you can decorate it in almost anyway you want (mentioned in novels).

Second question, you turn orange if you kill someone yes, or even attack, if you commit alot of kills in SAO you turn red, which probably takes forever to get back to green. Jail is monitored by mass guild, I won't spoil anymore on that yet, other than that their methods can be kinda rough. And if Green kills orange/red, nothing happens to them.

To learn sword skills, you first have to have the skill for it, you need 1 handed sword skill to learn sword skills for that and so on, if you don't have using your example, dual wield skill, you can't learn dual wield sword skills, and if you don't have dual wield skill but still take two weapons on your hands, system doesn't recognize the other sword, so it just comes in your way because that.
/5am answer times.

Edit: and it seems i got beaten to it, oh well

[FateAnomaly]

Do the players actually need to eat/drink?
Do they get physically tired? Like can they all run all day w/o getting tired like most mmorpgs?(They probably get mentally tired since they needed to sleep)

[Utsuro no Hako]

Originally Posted by Clarste

"Jail" is not actually a game mechanic, it's just a place the players have designated to house criminals.

However, NPCs will attack orange players if they tries to enter a town, which means they don't have access to the teleport gates and have to either walk from floor to floor or use expensive teleport crystals.

[Clarste]

Originally Posted by FateAnomaly

Do the players actually need to eat/drink?
Do they get physically tired? Like can they all run all day w/o getting tired like most mmorpgs?(They probably get mentally tired since they needed to sleep)

They don't need to eat since their bodies are presumbly being fed through IVs in hospitals, but the game gives them the feeling of "hunger" so it's very uncomfortable not to eat for a long time. So they eat.

They don't get tired physically.

[Wild Goose]

You do, however, experience mental fatigue, which is why you need to sleep.

Also, thre's a sensation of fatigue when you do anything in game. So sleep is required to stay sane.

Also, sleeping in a house you own, with doors you can lock, prevents you from getting PKed as you sleep. It's also a good base for sundry errands - there's a reason all Skyrim players WILL buy that house in Whiterun. (Apart from Jarl Balgruuf being a bro.)

[Clarste]

There's no way to break into a room at an inn either though, so you don't need a house to sleep in peace.

Normally speaking, you can't be killed in town at all so you might think sleeping in the street is safe, but apparently they can drag you outside of town and stuff (there's an anti-harassment feature where you can prevent people from touching you, but you have to turn it on yourself, so it's useless while you're asleep).

[Wild Goose]

Basically, wait for ep 5; it will really explain why you need to have a house.

[don_Durandal]

Originally Posted by Deltaray

<...>Second question, you turn orange if you kill someone yes, or even attack, if you commit alot of kills in SAO you turn red, which probably takes forever to get back to green. <...>

No. Your cursor will stay orange even if you kill someone.

Red is only used for hostile mobs, with the intensity of the red depending on the mob's level relative to yourself.

(for the non-mmo savvy people, a "mob" is how creatures/monsters are usually called)

Spoiler for PK-ers in the novel:

Even PoH and the Laughing Coffin members had orange cursors in "A Murder in the Area", not red.

[Deltaray]

Originally Posted by don_Durandal

No. Your cursor will stay orange even if you kill someone.

Red is only used for hostile mobs, with the intensity of the red depending on the mob's level relative to yourself.

(for the non-mmo savvy people, a "mob" is how creatures/monsters are usually called)

Spoiler for PK-ers in the novel:

Even PoH and the Laughing Coffin members had orange cursors in "A Murder in the Area", not red.

Oh, must have missed that myself, it has been kinda long since I did read SAO last time.

[Awrya]

Originally Posted by don_Durandal

No. Your cursor will stay orange even if you kill someone.

Red is only used for hostile mobs, with the intensity of the red depending on the mob's level relative to yourself.

(for the non-mmo savvy people, a "mob" is how creatures/monsters are usually called)

Spoiler for PK-ers in the novel:

Even PoH and the Laughing Coffin members had orange cursors in "A Murder in the Area", not red.

Did they MPK then? But one is called Red-eyed Xaxa, with Red-eyed probably a title given by others because he had red eyes from PK, so there are inconsistencies due to all the side stories.
Why would PoH&co have orange cursors? In The Black Swordsman Kirito said orange will turn to green after a day or two, by the same logic red turned to orange after a while?

[Anh_Minh]

He probably just had red eyes. Maybe some kind of colored contacts item.

[Xacual]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

He probably just had red eyes. Maybe some kind of colored contacts item.

Nah eye color is customizable. Along with hair color and style. It's pretty much the only thing players can change about their appearance after Kayaba forced them all to assume their RL appearance.

[chaos_alfa]

Originally Posted by Xacual

Nah eye color is customizable. Along with hair color and style. It's pretty much the only thing players can change about their appearance after Kayaba forced them all to assume their RL appearance.

But you still need to have an item to be able to do it.

Spoiler for Aria in the Starless Night Light Novel Quote:

In addition, his long hair flowing down in waves on either side of his face was dyed a brilliant blue. Since hair dying items were not sold in shops on the first floor, he must have hunted for a rare monster drop or bought it.

[Clarste]

I assumed he just had red goggles, although an eye-color changing item also makes sense. He had the same kind of nickname as Kirito's "The Black Swordsman" based on his appearance. Which only makes sense really, since other players can't see your name when you're not in a party so a notable appearance becomes more famous than your name. "The Rat" is another example.

[vansonbee]

Can players kill each other? Just saw episode 3 and if they can, is there a plenty?

[Clarste]

...just watch episode 4. Answer: yes.

They can only attack each other outside of town though, so it's not like everyone's in constant danger. And if you want to have a non-lethal fight you can challenge someone to a duel which under game mechanics lets you win without killing. This is what happened in episode 3, although they didn't show that for some reason.

[don_Durandal]

Originally Posted by Awrya

Did they MPK then? But one is called Red-eyed Xaxa, with Red-eyed probably a title given by others because he had red eyes from PK, so there are inconsistencies due to all the side stories.
Why would PoH&co have orange cursors? In The Black Swordsman Kirito said orange will turn to green after a day or two, by the same logic red turned to orange after a while?

No. By the same logic orange stays orange. There's no "becoming red" mechanics-wise. No matter how many people you kill your cursor stays orange.
The game doesn't care whether you just slapped another player or killed him. In both case you're an orange-cursored aggressor; nothing more, nothing less.
Red cursors are only used for hostile mobs. Players can only have green or orange cursors.

"red players" is a term used ingame to describe pk-ers. It does NOT mean that they have red cursors however.