I\'d like an increased focus on ranged weapons. While melee weaponry is nice, it\'s a little impractical in a world based on flashy magic spells designed to blow up one quarter of the planet (most fantasy games). It would probably be easiest to do this by implementing guns. Their straight-forward aiming system would be easiest to implement, I think.

A first-person shooter interface for ranged weaponry would probably be as close to ideal as possible. I wish there was a way to implement peripheral vision in first-person mode. I guess that\'s what ambient sounds are for. Aiming and firing would be similar to most FPSs.

Now, while ranged weaponry would be extremely powerful, I don\'t really think allowing one-hit-kills fits with the MMORPG environment. At the same time, I feel that one should be rewarded for hitting vital zones. I would say a simple multiplier to damage (like +50% for head shots, and +25% for pinky shots) depending on where the shot hits would work. Added effects for hitting certain body parts would also be something to look into. For example, if you hit someone in the leg, your target would lose a bit of mobility temporarily. Maybe the effect could last a certain amount of time until the character is healed with a spell.

To encourage multi-class communication, ranged weaponry should require ammo to fire. Ammo would have varying properties, but most of the stronger effect ammo (like freezing bullets) should only be available by making them from scratch. One class could make the basic bullet, while a more magical class could imbue it with certain properties (like homing, burning, exploding). The type of material used in constructing the basic ammo would affect its base power and its ability to be enhanced with magic.

When it comes to skills, one should be able to learn things to enhance things like draw speed, reload rate, chance to cause the target to flinch, accuracy when moving, and accuracy for multiple shots fired in succession. There could even be a skill that causes bullets fired to ricochet off walls to enhance effective range. The effects of most of these skills should probably be minor but noticeable.

I\'d try to stay away from leveling or experience (of any sort) providing major combat benefits, especially in ranged combat. This may be because I\'m not a big fan of the experience point and the tedium and gods it tends to bring with it. Skill caps should probably be kept low and a global cap should be enforced to keep people from being masters at everything. So in this case, a gunner may have to choose from being accurate in all situations, being able to shoot shots in faster succession, or being an all-rounder.

That\'s all I have now. It may not be all that great for this game (considering our current server), but you did say ideal.