Sprucing up the place.
Posted: Fri Mar 08, 2013 5:52 pm
Readers,
I think lore should be an important update to the site, as it is, its extremely difficult to figure out what is/has going/gone on in the world of Illarion. This creates issues of where your character has spent the better part of their life (unless native to the region play takes place in). RPG wise, I believe the place that has the best organization of ig lore and facts would have to be an Ultima Online Enforced RP Shard I played on called Dark Age II. If you will be so kind as to look at this link http://darkagerp.com/world and take note of how easy to read and navigate everything you could ever want to know about the world the shard is set in is. Take particular care in reviewing the Recent and World history. The Recent history are all events that happened IG during this version of the shard. The events in World history have a mix of non-played events and events from the first version of the shard, Dark Age.
The Religion and race lore have seen massive overhauls (not just adding new entries like in the history section), but retain the information under the link "Old Revisions" which is reviewable by anyone whom would like to brush up on the lore in those categories for whatever reason (mostly for the application process).
In my opinion, compared to everywhere else I've rp'd at (aside from maybe comraich, but their website isn't available to use as an example) Dark Age has the best method of showing off their flavor which is incredibly important (in my opinion) to ensuring continuity in the roleplay IG. If people don't know how to act, if they don't know their history, racial lore, theological lore, and all the other types of lore, then they will just act how they want to act and not have a clue how the world actually is! Like me, coming back to find Gobaith blown the hell up and spawning on the mainland with three towns to choose from with absolutely no information aside from the sparse stuff during the tutorial!
Secondly, I would like to address the ever solid stance on mechanics. Illarion has a lot of them. Illarion hides them like soiled unmentionables the first time you bring your significant other to your house. This is no good, in my opinion. Illarion is the only place I've ever been to (and I am an rp whore, I get around...ALOT) that gives flavor text as explanations to how the mechanics work. It makes absolutely no sense why you do this. The argument that it will ruin rp or hinder it somehow is dead wrong, and I know it from experience because everywhere I've been has had detailed guides to how their mechs work and they have all given me countless hours of fun roleplay, similar to what I experienced when I joined illarion way way way way back in the second client. I'd love to be a regular at illarion again, to make new memories playing here, memories like those up through the first character wipe.
We need more people, and people like to know how to play the game part of the rpg. People -DON'T- like to be punished for powergamers mistakes. What I mean by this, is that you have every system designed to punish those whom don't powergame, because let me tell you, you aren't hurting the powergamers by making shit harder. Powergamers enjoy the grind and find the effort worth it. No matter what you do, you are going to have powergamers. Know what I say? Let them powergame. It's their character's actions that will ensure they receive their just rewards. For those whom like a point-by-point, this is what happens when you try to quell pging:
1: You try to quell power gaming.
2: Power gamers are slowed down some while they relearn the systems; normal people are still hindered beyond belief, even more so now.
3: Power gamers figure it out and work harder then ever; normal people fall back even more.
4: Rinse, repeat.
This wont be acceptable to the majority of new players. In fact, it's one of the reason the dozens of buddies I rp'd with elsewhere refuse to come here, and they are all grade A roleplayers who happen to be kind and friendly people oocly, too.
Now... I don't know if I'm going to be listened to, or if I'm going to be flamed, but I don't really mind. I just wanted to put my two cents in on what needs to be done (in my opinion) to spruce this place up some. The only thing I'd personally add, would be character applications, but only after the lore is properly published and made easily available.
Thank you for reading this,
Vagabond
I think lore should be an important update to the site, as it is, its extremely difficult to figure out what is/has going/gone on in the world of Illarion. This creates issues of where your character has spent the better part of their life (unless native to the region play takes place in). RPG wise, I believe the place that has the best organization of ig lore and facts would have to be an Ultima Online Enforced RP Shard I played on called Dark Age II. If you will be so kind as to look at this link http://darkagerp.com/world and take note of how easy to read and navigate everything you could ever want to know about the world the shard is set in is. Take particular care in reviewing the Recent and World history. The Recent history are all events that happened IG during this version of the shard. The events in World history have a mix of non-played events and events from the first version of the shard, Dark Age.
The Religion and race lore have seen massive overhauls (not just adding new entries like in the history section), but retain the information under the link "Old Revisions" which is reviewable by anyone whom would like to brush up on the lore in those categories for whatever reason (mostly for the application process).
In my opinion, compared to everywhere else I've rp'd at (aside from maybe comraich, but their website isn't available to use as an example) Dark Age has the best method of showing off their flavor which is incredibly important (in my opinion) to ensuring continuity in the roleplay IG. If people don't know how to act, if they don't know their history, racial lore, theological lore, and all the other types of lore, then they will just act how they want to act and not have a clue how the world actually is! Like me, coming back to find Gobaith blown the hell up and spawning on the mainland with three towns to choose from with absolutely no information aside from the sparse stuff during the tutorial!
Secondly, I would like to address the ever solid stance on mechanics. Illarion has a lot of them. Illarion hides them like soiled unmentionables the first time you bring your significant other to your house. This is no good, in my opinion. Illarion is the only place I've ever been to (and I am an rp whore, I get around...ALOT) that gives flavor text as explanations to how the mechanics work. It makes absolutely no sense why you do this. The argument that it will ruin rp or hinder it somehow is dead wrong, and I know it from experience because everywhere I've been has had detailed guides to how their mechs work and they have all given me countless hours of fun roleplay, similar to what I experienced when I joined illarion way way way way back in the second client. I'd love to be a regular at illarion again, to make new memories playing here, memories like those up through the first character wipe.
We need more people, and people like to know how to play the game part of the rpg. People -DON'T- like to be punished for powergamers mistakes. What I mean by this, is that you have every system designed to punish those whom don't powergame, because let me tell you, you aren't hurting the powergamers by making shit harder. Powergamers enjoy the grind and find the effort worth it. No matter what you do, you are going to have powergamers. Know what I say? Let them powergame. It's their character's actions that will ensure they receive their just rewards. For those whom like a point-by-point, this is what happens when you try to quell pging:
1: You try to quell power gaming.
2: Power gamers are slowed down some while they relearn the systems; normal people are still hindered beyond belief, even more so now.
3: Power gamers figure it out and work harder then ever; normal people fall back even more.
4: Rinse, repeat.
This wont be acceptable to the majority of new players. In fact, it's one of the reason the dozens of buddies I rp'd with elsewhere refuse to come here, and they are all grade A roleplayers who happen to be kind and friendly people oocly, too.
Now... I don't know if I'm going to be listened to, or if I'm going to be flamed, but I don't really mind. I just wanted to put my two cents in on what needs to be done (in my opinion) to spruce this place up some. The only thing I'd personally add, would be character applications, but only after the lore is properly published and made easily available.
Thank you for reading this,
Vagabond