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Announcements / On Recent Behaviors...

« on: August 24, 2018, 06:36:01 am »

So I'm sure a few of you guys have noticed already that we're a few players short, and rather than stay tight-lipped about it we would rather let it be known just as to why this is.

Perhaps the most important rule to have in a community like this is mutual respect, not just between the DM team and the playerbase, but between the players as well. Naturally we will disagree from time to time, that's what happens in any community, and doubly so via the internet, but acting in a respectful and amicable manner is vital to preserving a healthy community. The alternative from even one individual can prove toxic to the rest.

Initially we had hoped to change the behavior with slaps on the wrist and then temporary bans. What we found though was that in this particular case improvement never did come, and rather than fix the problem we found that it worsened because the toxicity would spread.

Thusly we have decided to adopt a Zero-Tolerance Policy when it comes to the way we treat eachother. We are here to play a game. A very silly game with elves and dragons that we all love. If poor attitudes or rude behavior is getting in the way of that, then what is the point?

The solution then, is simple. We are to be respectful and kind to one another. If anyone is acting in poor form towards you, then you must choose not to engage with it and let the DM team know. If you feel a DM is being disrespectful or rude towards  you, you must similarly choose to disengage and notify the other DMs. What is not okay is to escalate the situation with insults of your own.

I reiterate. Be kind. Be respectful to one another. This also implies that you should act in a way that is respectable and worthy of kindness. If you cannot, this is regrettably not the server for you.

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Announcements / PVP and You

« on: August 07, 2018, 12:10:49 am »

There is often a lot of controversy around PvP, and for good reason- to be successful usually requires some expertise when it comes to the mechanical aspect of the game, which is hard to manage for some people, (I myself am quite terrible at establishing mechanical power,) and therefore when it does happen, it feels bitter and unfulfilling to the uninitiated.

I stress that this is an entirely natural response.

That said, I must submit that this response, while natural, comes from a skewed perspective on just what a game like this is.

We are telling a story, collectively, and that is as far as it goes. This means that the narrative is told collectively. You can try to make your character the hero of the story, or the villain, or something else entirely, but when you're telling a story with dozens of other people, sometimes the story does not unfold the way you hoped. Sometimes bad things happen, and it changes your personal story. This, at it's heart is necessary for an immersive collective roleplaying experience.

When you find that bitter PvP loss, your initial response, (that entirely natural feeling that we all get,) does not come from a perspective complimentary to what I described above. It comes from a different perspective, a perspective we all have starting out on a game like this. I like to call it the “Win Mentality.”

The Win Mentality, at it's essence, is the belief that bad things should not happen to your character. Of course, nobody will state it quite so brazenly, and will be quick to say that they don't care about winning- they just don't want the bad things that cause the feeling of losing to happen.

Which is the same thing, really, if you think about it.

Now, shift instead to what I call the “Storytelling Mentality.” This mentality is one where you recognize that you are not the main character in this collective story we are telling. You are simply a character interacting with other characters, and so is everyone else. These interactions are entirely dependent on the nature of your character and the natures of the characters he or she comes in contact with. They can range an entire gamut of descriptors, because human interaction is pretty elaborate, but it also includes hostile interaction. This runs the risk of Bad Things Happening.

Think about your favorite books, tv shows, movies. The characters in these stories usually have Bad Things Happening to them, don't they? You'll also notice that usually this results in a better story.

Would Game of Thrones be so good if the Bad Things Happening stopped happening?

What if the Bad Things Happening weren't happening in the Harry Potter series?

What story would there be, do you think?

Is it the sort of story you'd like to be a part of?

If the answer is no, then congratulations, you've taken the first step out of the “Win Mentality.” All that remains is to develop the OOC grace necessary to roll with the punches as they come. Recognize that what you're feeling is what everyone feels in regards to their own character, and that in order for the story to progress, it needs to be a collaborative effort, because that's what we're all doing. Collaborating a story together.

As always, if you feel that the PvP in question was brought about by anything other than in-character purpose, then you can and should notify the DM team in a respectful and calm manner.

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Announcements / Greater Sanctuary and You

« on: June 30, 2018, 12:04:01 am »

It has become clear that the spell Greater Sanctuary is a buggy mess at worst, and over powered duration wise at best. The DM team is working on adjusting the spell, but these things can take time.

For this reason, until the spell can be adjusted to where it works properly, it should not be prepared or used in game at all.

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Announcements / Isle of Sauros Pt. 2

« on: June 26, 2018, 12:27:47 pm »

Hey guys, sorry for ta king so long posting this. Those that wish to pursue the lizardmen of Sauros down into their dangerous hovels, may attempt to do so this weekend, (exact time forthcoming.)

Please note that this will be a sufficiently brutal event, no free raises, no rests in the middle of the event, and even more high CR foes.

With that said, success will be well rewarded.

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Announcements / A Wanderer from the Mists...

« on: June 21, 2018, 02:14:13 am »

"Stuck out of a west window was a great black-bearded face whose eyes shone phosphorescently with the imprint of unheard-of sights. But the voice was gentle, and of a quaint olden kind, so that Olney did not shudder when a brown hand reached out to help him over the sill and into that low room of black oak wainscots and carved Tudor furnishings. The man was clad in very ancient garments, and had about him an unplaceable nimbus of sea-lore and dreams of tall galleons. Olney does not recall many of the wonders he told, or even who he was; but says that he was strange and kindly, and filled with the magic of unfathomed voids of time and space."

- The Strange High House in the Mist, by H.P. Lovecraft



I have always wanted to do that. Hold onto your butts, I'm the newest DM.