5.1 What is the major difference between Qeynos and Freeport, aside from their names?

The distinction is one of good versus evil. Qeynos, ruled by the wise Antonia Bayle, is a city of courage and honor. Freeport, controlled by the ruthless Overlord Lucan D'Lere, is a town of oppression and corruption.

5.2 Will I be able to switch my citizenship between Qeynos to Freeport whenever I want?

You will be able to switch citizenship once (and only once) prior to the selection of your subclass. The change is not a trivial one; it is intended to be a challenging path. Here's an example of how it works:

Say you make a troll named Buhlia, and she decides to become a fighter. Trolls are an evil race, so they are only accepted by Freeport. Buhlia remains a citizen of Freeport as she gains levels, and eventually becomes a crusader. But as she matures, Buhlia realizes that she actually supports the principles of Qeynos more than those of Freeport and wishes to become a force for good. Before choosing her subclass, Buhlia can renounce her citizenship and work to become accepted in Qeynos.

This will not be a trivial task. Buhlia is going to walk a challenging road, because the citizens of Qeynos won't be quick to trust a former enemy. Furthermore, the people of Freeport will look upon the poor troll as a traitor. But if she completes a series of quests and proves her worth, Buhlia can earn citizenship in Qeynos and be trained as a paladin.

5.3 Is there any way to be accepted by both cities? For instance, can I do some quests and build up faction with the enemy city?

No. You will either be welcome in Freeport or Qeynos, never both. The only way you’ll gain favor with the opposing city is if you betray your current citizenship prior to your subclass choice and then pass through a series of challenging quests related to that process.

As you advance through the game, you will do things that gain and lose favor with various organizations and individuals in the world. But it is not a matter of "I must gain X amount of Faction Y so that I can be welcome in Zone Z." If you are a citizen of Qeynos, there is no quantity of orcs you can kill in the Commonlands that will make you welcome in Freeport. Faction is not a mathematical equation, but rather a series of relationships between individuals and organizations. It is built not only on what you do, but also the social structures to which you ally yourself.

5.4 Will I be able to form groups and guilds with citizens of the opposing city? Will doing so hurt my standing in my home city?

You can group with whomever you want for as long as you want. There is no penalty or loss of standing for doing so.

You can be guilded alongside citizens of the opposing city, but there will be some challenges. Player guilds pledge support to a certain faction within their home city. A citizen of Freeport cannot be allied with a faction in Qeynos. However, if a citizen of Freeport belongs to a guild registered in Qeynos, contributions made by that player to his guild will be going toward the benefit of the good city. In essence, the Freeport person is indirectly helping Qeynos become dominant. But regardless of how much that Freeport person benefits his guild, he will not gain favor with the NPCs in Qeynos, nor will he be able to walk the streets of that city.

5.5 Will there be cities built by players? Or can I become ruler of Freeport or Qeynos?

Sony will not be implementing player-built cities at launch. While players can rise to prominence in Qeynos and Freeport, both cities are home to established leaders who are unlikely to give up their positions.

5.6 What happened to all of the other cities that EverQuest fans are familiar with?

Exploring the world and discovering what has survived the cataclysms is one of the central themes of EverQuest II. As you adventure in the Shattered Lands, you will learn the fate of some of your favorite locations from the past. Expect many surprises as our story unfolds.