The Way and new characters.

[Dizzy kank]

Alright, seriously... using the Way is far too hard for new characters. It costs like 30 stun points to try to contact someone, and fails something like 5 out of 6 times. It's practically impossible to rely on it in any way. My character is 3 days old now (3 days played, not existed for 3 days), and it still takes me up to 5-10 minutes to deliver a message to someone because I have to contact, fail, contact, fail, contact, fail, contact, fail, rest, contact, fail, contact... it's ridiculous. It should either fail often or cost a lot of stun, not both. Do we have to sit and twink-train it when we don't need to so that we can actually use the damn skill when it's necessary?

[Cale_Knight]

I, too, think that newbie contact is stupid silly.

[mansa]

...

And when we up the starting skill percentage again, people will complain that it is still too hard to use.

It's the circle of life.  I find it perfectly fine.

[Tuannon]

Moofassa should be making circle of life comments, not Mansa.

On the matter of contact, I tend to rest before contacting someone, the reasoning being, it makes you dizzy so you had best lie down or sit down before you fall down.

[ibusoe]

Would like to see it raised as well.

[Halaster]

If I had my way (hee hee), we'd make it much, much harder for everyone and limit the effective range of it.  I've always loved the idea of having to send notes for those who can write, and messengers for those who can't.   The Way, specifically contact, is something that helps make the game a bit more playable since we don't have hundreds and hundreds of players online at once.

So, personally, I think it's fine the way (hee hee) it is.

[Armaddict]

I second Halaster's opinion on all counts.

[Fragmented]

No way (hee hee). It should be just like you just described it Halaster. Limited range. If you're a Tuluki who goes to Allanak for some trade, make it so your friends don't know if you got ganked or not until they see you again. Hunters who move far from the base of operations may or may not be alive after trying to take down that uber creature. People who flee their previous binds in Allanak should be -able- to blend anonymously in Tuluk, even if as a visiting southerner. I really, really, really would like to see this implemented. To balance the playability issue, make contacting people within range much easier. That way, if you can't get their mind after 2 or 3 tries, you know they're not online, or out of range and don't have to keep trying to contact yourself into unconciousness.

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

As do I.

Besides, they already have made it easier a couple of times. No more.

[Author]

I wasn't talking about making the Way any better in general, and talking about range and such is totally beside the point. What I meant was that for new characters compared to characters who have been around for long enough to get a decent Way skill, it's too poor. If your employer, for example, contacts you with a question, it can easily take 5+ minutes to answer him, and he won't know if it's because you can't reach him or are ignoring him. It costs me nearly 30 stun to attempt to contact someone if I'm resting, and over 40 if I'm standing. It more often than not fails 5-6 times in a row on people who have just contacted me. For being the one single way of long-distance communication, and being very much a necessity for anyone with a job or someone they have to report to, it is way too poor to start off with. I'm not saying "make the way better", like some of the repliers apparently believe, but "make it easier for new characters to use, because as it is now, it is so ridiculously bad".

[Author's edit]

And if you don't make it better, then at least take my advice: if you're an employer or otherwise a person who occasionally demands other players to report back to you, stop getting angry or causing IC consequences to new players when they can't answer you right away. I've had this happen to me several times, being told things similar to "Are you gonna answer me or do I give the job to someone else, commoner?". It can easily take several full stun pools to even reach you, so cut the new players some slack. Not saying that you do this, but some do.

[Maybe42or54]

Employers can get around the way by saying "Stupid fucker, meet me at the bar. We'll talk in person." Face to face conversations just make sense, right?

[Anonymous]

With new characters, The Way is needlessly difficult reletive to even 5 day characters. Let's also keep in mind that needlessly difficult for new charecters also means needlessly difficult for new players, a resource we cannot afford to waste.

Call me a twink but I tend to train contact repeatedly on npc's. Again, some might call it lame but I think it's just an ooc workaround for an ooc problem.

[Armaddict]

We should all be able to fight well and disarm well and backstab well from the beginning too.  Actually, we do.

Contact is a skill like any other.  The fact that it's used for communication isn't basis to improve it for no reason other than it's annoying.  It is still a -skill-.  It goes up with time, and people who use it more are better.

In my opinion, wanting it higher from the start because it would be easier isn't basis to start upping starting skills.  If you have to contact five time before you finally connect...that's fine.  Like I said, you'll get better.

I dunno.  I understand the frustration, but I don't think the frustration means we should do away with it.  Like Halaster said...I consider it a gift that the Way is even as useful as it is.  I'd rather see it less so...and then suddenly those mindbenders are ten times more scary.

[picklehead]

The way's not that hard to get a handle on if you use it in a reasonable manner. Honestly.. I've never had much trouble with it. Would it be wrong to give a couple tips? Heh.

[Maybe42or54]

Maybe if people met in person more, instead of asking you questions over the way...

[Ktavialt]

If I had my way (hee hee), we'd make it much, much harder for everyone and limit the effective range of it.  I've always loved the idea of having to send notes for those who can write, and messengers for those who can't.   The Way, specifically contact, is something that helps make the game a bit more playable since we don't have hundreds and hundreds of players online at once.

Yep, you can always copy the gay assed notify command from SOI to
balance out the playability of being able to contact other players. But,
then again, I can't manage referring to that command without prefixing
it with gay assed... so maybe not.

[Hymwen]

We should all be able to fight well and disarm well and backstab well from the beginning too. Actually, we do.

Contact is a skill like any other. The fact that it's used for communication isn't basis to improve it for no reason other than it's annoying. It is still a -skill-. It goes up with time, and people who use it more are better.

Well, very few employers and contacts expect you to be able to efficiently disarm or backstab them when they need you to. For a skill that is so clumsy in the beginning, people sure make you rely on it a lot.

[grog]

I'd love to see limited range at low skill, and for those that complain about how hard it is, make is limited range but less stun.   Then when you get skilled enough to contact your cousin across the world, make it take more stun, maybe even a lot more.  

So new characters can contact employers in their town more easily, but a merchant in Tuluk needs to send a messenger, find someone skilled in the way, or make a dangerous journey to talk to their counterparts in Allanak.

[bloodfromstone]

Starting off terrible at the Way is damaging to a new player's experience, I can vouch for this. It's silly, because, as someone already said, it's a playability issue to have it in the game to begin with. Yes, it would be awesome if the Way was more limited, but it's not. It's something everyone relies on, day-to-day, hour-to-hour, conversation-to-conversation. It's how we get jobs, deliver information, and find out who in our clan is online. So long as the Way is such a huge part of social interaction, I think that it is silly to make it so easy for new players to pass out and get robbed/killed and/or overlooked for a job simply because the Way is treated as a second language that everyone knows in the game setting, but treated as a non-essential skill by the game mechanics.

[RogueWarrior]

We should all be able to fight well and disarm well and backstab well from the beginning too.  Actually, we do.

Contact is a skill like any other.  The fact that it's used for communication isn't basis to improve it for no reason other than it's annoying.  It is still a -skill-.  It goes up with time, and people who use it more are better.

In my opinion, wanting it higher from the start because it would be easier isn't basis to start upping starting skills.  If you have to contact five time before you finally connect...that's fine.  Like I said, you'll get better.

I dunno.  I understand the frustration, but I don't think the frustration means we should do away with it.  Like Halaster said...I consider it a gift that the Way is even as useful as it is.  I'd rather see it less so...and then suddenly those mindbenders are ten times more scary.

That's beside the point. The fact is, that The Way is a common part of life, and the average Zalanthan probably uses it more times a day than he/she can count on their fingers, so it doesn't really make any IC sense for it to be crap once you start the character. I mean, it just doesn't make sense for me when a 30 year old human has to walk up to you, because what he's been doing all his life suddenly stopped working. I'm not saying we up the skill or anything, I'm saying that if we are going to make it hard for new characters, make it harder for old ones. It should just be more balanced among the playerbase, if nothing else than for IC accuracy.

[Larrath]

My only beef with the low-starting Contact skill is that it makes life hell for new players.  They don't manage to have it work, they don't usually know they can sit down to lose less Stun points, and in many cases they end up passing out and having their belongings stolen.
Most likely this will often lead the players to consider Ginka's sexual orientation and then leave.

[spawnloser]

Maybe a blurb in the docs that tell people not to rely on the Way for communication early on?

Personally, I'm fine with the way the Way works.  I never have problems besides my own stupidity when using it.  [Editted to add: my first character NEVER used the Way.]

Still, I would find it awesome if there were ranges...in room is easier and takes less stun...but across the world?  You'd better be damn good.

The only issue I see with this is what if people aren't logged in?  What range is used?  People will be able to start using contact to find out if someone's logged in.  ("I know Amos didn't leave town, so getting that stun cost must mean that he's logged out.")  Ideas?

[jmordetsky]

If I had my way (hee hee), we'd make it much, much harder for everyone and limit the effective range of it.  I've always loved the idea of having to send notes for those who can write, and messengers for those who can't.   The Way, specifically contact, is something that helps make the game a bit more playable since we don't have hundreds and hundreds of players online at once.

So, personally, I think it's fine the way (hee hee) it is.

I hate the way.

[Angela Christine]

Legalize literacy!  I'd rather leave or send a scroll to someone than way 'em anyway.  Written messages have a much greater chance of being intercepted.  They also have a tendency to hang around and become incriminating evidence.   Literacy for all!


Ok, back on topic.  As for newbie psionics, I think it is ok the way it is.  If you think you are dealing with a newbie ask them to meet you somewhere rather than psi you.  It is also handy if you state your name and location in your message, the name makes it easier for them to zero in on your mind (they may have forgotten your name or the spelling of your name) and the location gives them the options to try to find your body if they can't find your mind.  You know that expertise with the Way is extremely variable, so work that into your roleplay.


Angela Christine