People of the Land
Summary
People of the Land is the term of the 'NPCs' in the MMORPG of Elder Tale Online. Adventurers have taken to calling them Landers by shorthand. This is a term that the People of the Land use to refer to themselves as well - in the way that humans in the real world refer to their own collection as humanity, regardless of their looks and race.
Historically, People of the Land in Elder Tale Online boast some fairly complex behaviors for a video-game. A shopkeeper may favor players that come to their stores more often, and nobles will infight. One will not find a People of the Land whose only lines are 'Welcome to Corneria', and based on their stature in life, they will be able to engage somewhat on topics they might logically have some knowledge of.
Intelligence and Behavior
There is a 'spread' when it comes to People of the Land, which tends to be related to their Importance. A shopkeeper is likely to be able to engage in some very basic small talk, but may repeat various sentences a lot. Their responses when they don't know things, tends to be fairly standardized along the lines of 'I do not know' or 'Sorry, I do not understand'.
However, more complex People of the Land exist. Heroes, Nobles, Military leaders and the like will stand out in their ability to hold more complex conversations, and even wax some philosophy. They might plot against other kingdoms, or come up with complex tactics to take out monsters. Their personalities tend to be more 'notable', and tend to have more depth to them.
Quests
Some People of the Land have the ability to generate official quests that result in rewards. A large sum of these tend to be requests that get posted at the Hunters Guild. But exceptions exist.
Death
Death for People of the Land is permanent. If their physical form expires and does not get resurrected in the small window of time after their ending blow, that is the end for them.