1. General Questions
1.1 What is Dominia ?
Dominia is the general name for the multiverse, all of the infinite planes (universes) in existence. It is travelled by planeswalkers.
In the fictional multiverse of the Magic: The Gathering collectible card game, a planeswalker is a powerful mage, able to travel across the planes of existence. According to the setting, the potential to become a planeswalker (called the "planeswalker spark"), is innate--very few are born with such a spark, and anyone who does not possess such a spark cannot possibly become a planeswalker. (Such a spark can, however, be transferred from one being to another, though the process is highly dangerous and potentially fatal.)
The "spark" is not the only requirement for becoming a planeswalker, however--many people who possess the spark never realize their planeswalker potential. A person who possesses the spark must also "ascend", which usually occurs during a time of great stress (most common being a form of horrendous death, e.g. the sylex blast or its after-affects). This ascension, as well as the extraordinary amount of power at their fingertips, drives almost all planeswalkers insane over time. In an attempt to prevent this, most planeswalkers are tutored by older ones. Wilders exist (Ravidel) but are dangerous.
A planeswalker has complete control over his or her physical appearance, and does not have mortal needs, such as the need to eat, drink, sleep, or even breathe (though sleeping helps them retain sanity). Planeswalkers are very difficult to kill and can't die of natural causes. Some, however, (such as Urza, the most well-recognized of planeswalkers among Magic) do eat and sleep in order to feel more sane. Their need to do mortal things has become a mental one. Planeswalkers rarely have relationships with non-planeswalkers due to their near-immortality -- they know, as soon as they meet someone, that they will outlive them, and that they will have to live with the loss. Urza made two exceptions, one for Xantcha (an artificial Phyrexian human loyal to him), and Barrin the master wizard, who can slow his aging so much that he can even reverse it. Both Xantcha and Barrin eventually died, though not of old age.
Players are considered planeswalkers in the context of the Magic-card game.
1.2 What is Magic: The Gathering ?
Magic: The Gathering (colloquially "Magic", "MTG", or "Magic Cards") is a collectible card game created by Richard Garfield and introduced in 1993 by the company Wizards of the Coast, which was later purchased by Hasbro. Magic was the first example of the collectible card game genre and remains the most popular, with an estimated six million players world wide. Magic can be played by two or more players each using a deck of printed cards or through an internet-based computer version.
Each game represents a battle between powerful wizards who use magical spells, items, and fantastic creatures depicted on individual Magic cards to defeat their opponents. Although the original concept of the game drew heavily from the motifs of traditional fantasy role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, Magic bears little resemblance to pencil-and-paper adventure games. Rather, Magic is more similar to bridge or poker but has substantially more cards and complex rules than other card games.
The world-wide popularity of Magic has spawned an organized tournament system and a community of professional Magic players, as well as a secondary market for Magic cards. Magic cards can be valuable due to scarcity arising from their power and utility in game play or the aesthetic qualities of their artwork.
1.3 What is Dominia Online?
Dominia Online is an attempt by a bunch of Magic freaks to write a multiplayer online role-playing game in which players act as planeswalkers and must duel other players and computers at Magic: The Gathering in order to accumulate more powers.
During the game, players move on a 2D isometric map and travel to various locations, such as towns, where cards can be bought or sold at auction houses, castles where tournaments take place for big prizes, etc. Whenever a player meets another character and proposes a duel, the interface changes to a game table to show the duel.
2. Software
2.1 What does it consist of?
The game is divided into two components: a server and a client. The server is entirely written in C. The client application is written in Java, using the Eclipse Project's SWT widget toolkit.
2.2 What platforms will it run on?
The server will only run on POSIX-compatible UNIX platforms. OpenBSD, FreeBSD, NetBSD and Linux are all part of that group.
The client should run on any operating system with a working JVM (1.4 or higher, 1.5 recommended).
2.3 Is this thing free?
Yes. The whole thing is released under a BSD license. This means that you can download the compiled versions (when available), the source code, modify it as you wish and redistribute your modifications if you wish.
NOTE: Magic: The Gathering, the MTG logo and all MTG-related art is copyrighted by Wizards of the Coast, so we cannot provide any of this as part of the source. We certainly do not want to anger the fine folks who created this amazing game.
3. Project-related questions
3.1 How can I help?
You can email the project members and tell us how you can help. There is a lot of work to do, and