Blade & Soul

Blade & Soul is a fantasy martial-arts MMORPG in development by Korean game developer NCSoft and its Team Bloodlust division. Korean closed beta testing is scheduled to begin in April and the game is set to launch later this year in Korea and sometime in 2012 for the US.

At launch there will be a total of 8 playable classes. Four of the classes are Kung-Fu Master, Destroyer, Force Master, and Blade Master. A fifth class, assassin, was revealed at the G-Star 2010 convention but little is known about the class at this time. 3 more classes are to be revealed.

The four playable races will be Gon, Jin, Kun and Lyn.

• Lyn-This small and adorable race, known as the Lyn, were first introduced during the GStar 2009 video. They have exceptionally cute features such as big furry ears, tails, and a petite frame. They are a gentle and mischievous race but they do hold mysteries of their own. They have inherited the ability of a legendary creature, the Kylin. This trait allows Lyn to communicate with the realm of the dead and grants them access to secrets and mysteries hidden from the ordinary folk.

• Gon- The exact opposite of the adorable little Lyn. The Gon are a massive race, a symbol of strength and power in the world of Blade and Soul. They are built with sculpted muscle and subtle elegance. Their extraordinary height allows them to tower over the other races, striking fear and intimidation into any who may oppose them. The Gon's represent the spirit of earth; strong, proud, and steadfast. However, in ancient times they were easily manipulated by evil forces. It is said that the Gon's were born of dragons breath, and carry with them the curse laid upon the dragons themselves by the gods. The Gon's have taken this curse as their fate and now travel the world trying to assist those in need, hoping that some day their curse will be lifted by the gods.

• Kun- What elegance, beauty, and grace are made of. This race consists of only women and are believed to have embodied the strength of the phoenix. Their beauty is so striking that they are sometimes mistaken for goddesses that have descended from the heavens and thus the name "Kun" meaning "Sky". They are very in tune with nature and have a love for the arts and entertain themselves with music and poetry. They are what every male dreams about; irresistible beauty and grace.

• Jin- Closest to what we perceive as "normal". But don't let their appearance fool you. The Jin's spirit is far superior to that of the other races and thus they are far from "normal". The Jin's have the capability to master anything they put their minds to and will stop at nothing to complete a task. Their determination is clearly without equal. This gives them great advantages when training in the combat arts of Kung-Fu and blade mastery. The Jin are very opened minded and strongly inclined to justice and thus they spend their days assisting others, helping them deal with their hardships and miseries.