Working title: Project N.M.E. (No more elves)
Backstory: Elves overthrew the dragons, who went into hiding. Elves ruled for thousands of years, and were assholes that enslaved every other race. Eventually they had a civil war, creating a magical apocalypse. The lingering magic is deadly to elves; the loyalists reside in orbital stations, the rebels fled underground. The slave races inherit the land.
1. Giant procedurally generated terrain. Enough real estate for every person, and room for every playstyle.
2. Levels open up more options, not necessarily more power. 2 level 1's can defeat a level 20 if they have the right gear.
3. Crafted and looted gear is equal; crafted gear lets you choose the abilities, however. Stack +mana and +mana regen and become a glass cannon, or balance out resists/+HP/+damage to be ready against any threat, but vulnerable to specialists. Nothing in the game is soulbound.
4. Action like TERA style combat.
5. Spells are fully customizable with sliders. Choose an element, choose a shape (cone, line, burst, targeted area), duration, and the mana cost increases the more you tack onto it. Blow your load with an Arcane Kamehameha finisher, or whittle them down with efficient fire bolts + dots.
6. Artifacts are unique, one of a kind items. They cannot be stored in a bank, and disappear if their requirements are not met. Tales will be told of how a bandit king used the Banner of Lost Souls to hold a kingdom ransom, until he was betrayed, and the Banner fell into the hands of a small kingdom that used it to expand by destroying 1 rival and suing 2 others for peace.
7. Each crafting game is a minigame; the better you do, the better quality the product you make. See #8.
8. Mobile/Browser game integration. Mobile minigamers have their farm with all the tradeskills available. Mobile gamers can be hired and can replace NPC's in the MMO. Need a good alchemist for your guild? Look at the top scorers of the alchemy minigame; the gold you pay them can be used for in-app purchases instead of using RL money. Posting/hiring can be done publicly or anonymously.
9. Game uses RL flora and fauna, so it's educational and people learn about stuff in addition to being fun. "Timmy, what are you doing on your phone all the time?" "Learning about jewelcrafting so I can sell rings and expand my farm. Did you know aquamarines are a type of beryl with a hexagonal crystal structure and a vitreous luster?" "Oh, well that's nice son." "Yeah mom, they also give more mana depending on the quality of the cut, and add frost damage if socketed into a weapon."
10. Cults. You don't have to join a guild. Just forfeit your soul and X% of all your gold to an otherworldly being in exchange for power! You can't heal or buff non-cultists (and vice versa), but that's a small price to pay. Join the cult of Dagon, and ravage the coastlines and waterways with tentacles, or worship one of the immortal dragons. If you like to socialize, the Cult of Elurea are pacifist wanderers that can only heal others, and are sworn to non violence.