The Arisen uses a character class, which unlock different combat and support options to use in battle, in addition to giving passive abilities. The basic class types are the "Fighter", close-range melee-based character builds focusing on attacking; the "Hunter", which can attack from a distance using bow and arrow; the "Priest", which specialises in healing and magic; and the "Tank", which has high defence abilities and can draw enemy attention. Players choose a class upon creating their Arisen character, and can change their job at the White Dragon Shrine. Some quests the player can complete are exclusive to certain classes.
Combat uses a similar real-time action-based battle system to the original Dragon's Dogma. Encountering enemies during exploration, and have particular vulnerabilities to different classes; some enemies are giants which can be climbed by the Arisen. Monsters have varying experience levels, which affect how much damage the Arisen can deal during combat. Each enemy has weak points which can be attacked for high damage, with some boss encounters relying on these mechanics. Each enemy has a fatigue and stamina meter, both relating to their energy and attack power. Depleting and manipulating these meters allow players to deal higher damage. Smaller enemies can be grappled and held down by allied combatants.
Alongside the Arisen, players create a human-like companion dubbed a Pawn to accompany them on their quest. Like the Arisen, the Pawn is a customizable avatar summoned into the world at the beginning of the game, assigned a gender, general appearance and class. The Pawn accompanies the Arisen on their quests, and aids them in combat. When knocked out in battle, the Pawn can be revived within a short time. If allowed to completely pass out, they are removed from the battlefield and retreat to a place in the world where Pawns gather, where the player can summon them again.
Synopsis
Dragon's Dogma Online takes place in the land of Lestania. The overall narrative, focused on the roles in the world of five powerful dragons, is planned out in five story phases or "seasons". For as long as its people can remember, Lestania has been protected by the White Dragon, who helped humanity prosper until a Golden Dragon challenged it to combat three hundred years prior to the game's opening. After three days of continuous battle, the Golden Dragon was killed, but the White Dragon was seriously injured during the battle. To compensate for its weakened state, the White Dragon turns select humans into "Arisen", warriors who share the White Dragon's power and carry out its will in defending Lestania. The performance and adherence to the White Dragon's will is referred to as the "Dragon's Dogma". The player character, a newly-created Arisen, is commanded by the White Dragon to defend Lestania from monster attacks, which have increased as the White Dragon's power wanes. An Arisen also has the potential to become a new Dragon when needed. Due to the discontinuation of the game, the storyline is incomplete.
The initial phase of the story focuses on the Arisen confronting the failure of a key defensive fortress that has kept monsters and demons at bay for centuries. The monsters, having constructed a powerful airship dubbed the Ark, are able to launch powerful attacks on Lestania, forcing the Arisen and the White Dragon's army to fight for survival. It is eventually revealed that an evil alchemist called Diamantes has recreated the Golden Dragon as a weapon for the monster army. Infiltrating the ruined city of Margoda, the Arisen and their party defeat both Diamantes and his Golden Dragon, stalling the monster invasion. This victory prompts the White Dragon to awake for the first time in centuries, prompting general rejoicing in Lestania. Their ally Leo, the planned successor of the White Dragon's power, leaves for other lands.
The second story phase begins six months later. The Arisen helps a young amnesiac girl named Cecily, defending her from a black knight who seeks her death. Coinciding with her arrival is a fungus-like blight which begins infecting Lestania. Cecily eventually regains her memories, revealing herself to be an Arisen serving the Spirit Wilmia, guardian to the neighbouring realm of Findam. Travelling to Findam, they find the blight has infected both Wilmia and the magical trees which maintain the land's balance. While the Great Tree is purified, the Arisen's party are forced to kill the despairing Wilmia to encourage the birth of a new dragon. Their task complete, the Arisen's group returns to the purified Lestania.
The third story phase begins when the White Dragon's domain is attacked by the "Dragon's Eye", a powerful projection from an evil dragon currently ruling the nation of Acker Chelan after killing its native Fire Dragon. The Arisen and their companions are kidnapped by the power, arriving to find Acker Chelan in a state of apathetic despair after years under the evil dragon's rule. Acker Chelan's last hope is Ned; as an Arisen and last surviving prince of the land's royal line, he is destined to become the next Fire Dragon. The Arisen works with Ned and Acker Chelan's surviving resistance force to overthrow the evil dragon and its monster armies. They are then confronted by the black knight, who is served by Leo; the fourth Water Dragon has died and its continent is ruined, and the surviving lands will soon be attacked by the antagonistic Black Dragon.
