MORGAN LOCKHART
RIFT
Content Lead (Defiants)
I was a part of the launch of the dynamic MMORPG Rift and served as a content lead, specifically overseeing all lore and story related to the Defiant faction. With my partner, the Guardian lore lead, I also generally oversaw the lore and story creation for the whole game and marketing materials. In addition to the creation and curation of lore, I designed, wrote, and implemented major questlines, story instances, collectibles, lore books, guild content, the Defiant starting zone, external story materials (like the "soul stories"), and the ambient city population and events for Meridian. I also provided voice acting for Kira Thanos and a number of smaller characters.
Soul Stories
Chronicles
I participated in the creation of highly scripted story instances we called "Chronicles," doing the zone setup, scripting, population, and writing. One of those was the Defiant level 50 "Soul Attunement" ceremony.
One of my final projects at Rift was to prototype some role-play focused experiences. The most successful of these were in-game marriage instances. Work was done to finish these after I left, but the ceremonies were designed and written by me. I took care to make the ceremonies reflect the lore of the in-game cultures they came from and not just be carbon copies of real world ceremonies.
In-Game Weddings
One of my favorite little projects was writing "soul stories" for each class. The conceit for swapping out classes in Rift was that you attuned to the soul of a famous hero to take on their skills. The stories defined those characters and illustrated the abilities of the class. Here are a few of my favorites.
Lore Books
Two of my favorite lore books. "Nameless" deals with one of my favorite characters I created for Rift, the Faceless Man, and "The Day the Rifts Came" is a child's take on the horror of the rifts.
Rift Comic Book
I helped write the Rift comic book, which was a fun new experience.
