To answer the actual question of
I would say its purpose is as a tool that helps form and strengthen bonds between people (players).
If chatting to people was like a cooking device... using things like WhatsApp/FB/ would be your basic campfire
Using Line/Forums would be like an old wooden stove
Discord would be your modern stove/oven combo with induction hobs etc.
Of course, they can all do the basics however of course you can also do so much more too... and here are some examples of what it could be used for.
Information channels - We have a lot of information about the game out there, a lot is harder to find but not impossible.
Such as the list of daily events and when they happen. elite ap boss locations, egg locations, or how to complete certain AP guides, etc.
Forums you could search for those things and after a few hours might hopefully find what your looking for after digging through post after post.
Line does have notes you could save in a group chat along with being able to upload photos and screenshots (because most won't want to post on forums with screenshots with friends having fun in-game so share on platforms they are already on together).
But along with all that information Line also starts using a heavy amount of data and starts being slow with so much content so it starts limiting people.
Discord however you can do all of the above and as mentioned you can actually separate and organize the information to be a lot quicker and easier for people to find and share... example...
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When it comes to the daily events which are under the al-calendar channel...
How many times do some of us wish we had a notification go off when it was x2 XP or Boss Loot Elixer sales as a reminder as we get busy and forget throughout the month of waiting? Well, discord can it a possibility.
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But along with the dates of when the events are up next, you can even use discord to be able to get notification when the event does start as a reminder too... a fine example of enhancing the gaming experience.
This is made possible by having different bots on a server that when programed correctly can have so many uses such as being able to show a live calendar update and send you reminders for certain events should you wish it!
If being really lazy/clever about it can even do something as simple as sending a message/command into a chat such as "!bosslocations"
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Voila! You instantly have the list of Elite bosses and where you need to go farm to find them.
There is some examples of how a "multi-purpose tool" can be put to use to make it a better gaming experience not only for you but your friends as well.
Of course, being an MMRPG whole point is we obviously converse with each other about all sorts of things and it isn't always just the game as there are many different interests that bring so many different people together to the same place.
So we all know how we love to share things like memes, food pics, stories, pet pics, etc with each other and we also like looking because of course it tickles our interests!
Well, mostly these are shared in a general chat which will end up getting lost along with other conversations people have but again with discord this can all be neatly packaged up making it easier for people to find the topics that interest them the most.
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Maybe your having a meh day and want some cute animal pics to check out (pet pics) perhaps want some inspiration for what to eat/cook for the day (food pics/recipes) or maybe you just fancy a good laugh (Memes of course) perhaps stuck on a new book/movie/anime to read/watch... well there are separate areas to discuss and share such things too! Helping to bond relationships between players in general and next time you looking for people to help with a map or to run with I can bet you it would be easier to find when you have better connections with others :)
Being connected via the internet across the world of course brings people together from all walks of cultures and languages too. Rather than keeping people closed off in smaller communities due to the language barrier, rather than just asking people to only speak English all the time.
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Can also use discord to dedicate chat areas for languages other than English for people to still communicate and when its all done under the same roof people tend to mingle together bringing in a great diversity of people again expanding on connections to others and further enhancing your gaming experience
Of course, none of it is just limited to just whats been shown above... its about being fluid with the times. Being like water so to speak which only helps with the nourishment of growth :)
Admittedly discord servers can be quite daunting at first especially when there is so much information/content on there however once you've got your head around the basics most will never look back!
I wouldn't let rather bleak perspectives such as these
Be a put-off, if we went into it people discuss things that would get them banned even on forums. Also, example chances of me sharing stories or pictures from my work wouldn't exactly be appropriate for forums and couldn't be done in game.
Ironic for Oakmaiden to also say such things especially when she also spent many years on Line sharing pictures of the garden she grew and maintains... I've still might have the pictures somewhere if I search back hard enough :)
With that same breath its worth noting that the link I shared in my original post to the large AL community discord server has over 2k people along with a few mods from STS... 1 of them also being on the HS server.
So its not healthy to try to cast shade on something that can genuinely give a positive impact :)
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