Committed to improving the game's new player experience, Darkfall's Tasos has announced a set of new player protections that newbies can opt-in to so that they can get their bearings in the game world without having to deal with some of the harsher aspects of the game right out of the gate.

The feature may be introduced with the game's next patch, and will be fairly limited, only lasting for several hours, and as we mentioned before, is entirely optional.

Read below for the specifics of the New Player Protection feature:

• If you're a new player entering the game for the first time, newbie protection is on by default. There's an option to turn it off if you don't want it.
• You won't be able to damage other players and other players won't be able to damage you.
• You can only damage monsters.
• The protection only lasts for a few hours of gameplay. There's a visible count-down timer. You'll get a warning before the protection expires
• The protection is active only in the racial starting areas. If you wander outside your starting area, you'll get a warning and if you don't return within a couple of minutes, you will lose the protection.
• There's a visual indicator that signifies you're a new player with protection on.
• You can trade and interact with NPCs without restrictions
• You cannot use any items that cause structural or player damage (battle spikes, warhulks, cannons, ships etc.)
• You cannot use mounts
• You cannot unspawn objects
• You cannot teleport
• You cannot use Runestones
• You cannot use portals including Nexus
• You cannot create a clan
• You can give and receive buffs and heals
• You can join a clan
• Newbie protection works only for new accounts
• You cannot skill up on other players or be used to skill up on

View the original announcement here.