I just want to chime in with more love for DAOC.
Had a 50 RR7 Minstrel on Igraine. I have to say that watching the call go out to defend the frontier in the face of a relic raid was just awesome. Staying up late and butting heads with the Russian guilds in emain. I had the relic grab down. I think I was relic runner more than a dozen times. That mad dash to get in, grab the relic, dash out, and regroup with your own 8 man to try and get back through the milegate. It sounds stupid but I don't think I've ever had more exciting moments in gaming. There are so many moments running 8-man, soloing, and PVP raiding that I can still recall and hold as fond memories. I thought that's just what MMOs were. I tried a few afterward and have basically given them up. I can't devote the amount of time necessary and no game creates the balanced focus on PVP that was so enjoyable in DAOC. It helped that I played such a useful class though. At any given time I was a necessary component of any group.