On public sparring arenas.

[FantasyWriter]

My idea is more along the lines of creating a new place for sparring, preferably one that a PC has worked for for the benefit of their House, because seeing something come to fruitation is always better than having it magickally summoned. (IMHO)

Charge entrance fees to unclanned characters, make it almost prohibitively expensive.
Only GMHs and clans based in the city of the "arena" would count as clanned. Tribals, the Guild, etc would still have to pay unless worked out with the controlling house's PC representative.
Clanned characters get in free because either 1) Their clan controls the arena or 2) Their house has payed and upfront fee for this employment perk.
Unclanned characters may come in -with- clanned characters via the follow command without paying, though, in theory, either they have paid for lessons are are a potential recruit.

[Harmless]

This thread is filled with so much hyperbole and generalizations that it's kind of just self-defeating.

Going outside != instadeath every time
Hunting alone != bad RP
Nonclanned != no interaction

I mean the list goes on...

[long live miley cyrus]

If new clanned folks used the pre-paid arena fee perk to train, I could see that working, but the fee, although virtual, I think should be taken into account; for example, if you're still using the Arena after a game month with RL day-to-day regularity (like every other time you log in you either hunt or train, 50/50) and your employer finds out, they should be pissed. That stack of fees is enormous, and your hunter needs to start bringing in the hides and materials, quit while they're in one piece or be revealed as a shit hunter minus a couple of fingers.

That way the Arena doesn't just become a place for a majority of clanned hunters and rich indies to fight with and rp with each other. That sounded like a better argument in my head. I just would feel weird about a place where only clanned hunters went from different clans on a regular basis, usually without much in the way of political motives, and in a large part because there's a lack of a Byn in Tuluk, an ooc reminder I can do without.

[ShaLeah]

I don't think any city state will allow anything for the masses that they don't directly profit from. Wanna spar with your buddies? Pay a real fee for access, none of this virtual shit.

[LittleLady]

I think a public sparring place would be great. I'd like to see it run by a House, sponsored by a PC. Perhaps make it rentable from the House. Make it someplace they could host things like "sparring tournaments" or "open recruitment gatherings", and even a place people could give lessons. There are a lot of good ideas that could come from this, and keeping it PC run/operated, as well as charging an actual fee, will help to enforce rp and make it less about spam training.

[Gunnerblaster]

Open arenas, with entrance fees each time you pass through - Provide your own training gear.

[ShaLeah]

Open arenas, with entrance fees each time you pass through - Provide your own training gear.

Ditto.

Make it like a backroom. Sorry, the arena is not available now. Trent with Yalta, Amos, Tango and Sid.

[Scarecrow]

In response to FantasyWriter, I agree those options could be interesting and add to the game. Only one problem.

People were never using the public sparring for that. If we listen to Nyr, they just became spam sparring fests for people. Nobody used them for sneaky assassinations and whatnot. It got abused.

[FantasyWriter]

I must have missed that, but if a PC is spam sparring, it sounds like a good time for them to be staff-forced to pass out from exhaustion so your local sticky fingers can have their way with their things.

[long live miley cyrus]

Didn't staff say they were working on a fix for this? For the lack of the Byn in Tuluk. I don't remember.

[Barsook]

I think it would be nice if there was a clan like the Byn in the North rather than public sparring arenas.  Or a GMH for something that deals with sparring and sparring equipment.  But the abuse is this issue in the bottom line

[Nyr]

Didn't staff say they were working on a fix for this? For the lack of the Byn in Tuluk. I don't remember.

Pay attention to something staff mentioned...on the GDB?  Surely you can't be serious! 

[James de Monet]

Code Select Expand

On the sparring ring floor:

Looking down at the twitching body of the tall, muscular man, the scarred trooper says in sirihish, a hint of a smirk touching his utterly remorseless features:
"Oops."

Indifferently, the militia sergeant shouts, in sirihish:
"Somebody get that body out of there. Next!"

This...kinda makes me want to have a public arena. Everything else, not so much.  I don't think it's realistic. Even in RL, where public works and societal benefit are a thing, how many places can you go and just be allowed to beat your friends bloody for free?

Schools, to a degree. Schools exist on Zalanthas for the few.

Otherwise...?

[BleakOne]

It's probably not in the best interests of the Powers That Be in the cities to provide free training for people not working directly for them.

[Amoeboid]

I think that two things could work.  The first is the pay for entry arenas that folks mentioned.  It'd be like going to the gym - you rent some gear, and there's indie instructors offering to sell lessons.  Secondly, you could take free classes from the militia and have your name recorded on a list of reservists that could be called into duty.  I thin those could work to prevent abuse.

[AreteX]

I am all for this idea as long as you can draw real weapons and murder the heck out of someone without consequences.

Why I say this is because it would be akin to entering an arena, and if your opponent and yourself agree to "Spar" each other, sure, but heated words get exchanged and suddenly it is a shanky bloodbath.

I think this would be great for Allanak, actually, and really fit the theme of a heated argument turning into drawn boneswordz.

Lets do it!

[Patuk]

I still don't see this as being very appropriate to our setting. Most modern states do not provide the opportunity for people to go and turn themselves into trained and armed professionals, and most modern states aren't oppressive and totalitarian regimes.

[Fragmented]

I still don't see this as being very appropriate to our setting. Most modern states do not provide the opportunity for people to go and turn themselves into trained and armed professionals, and most modern states aren't oppressive and totalitarian regimes.

Psh. This is what paintball arenas are for. I'll bet there's some paintball fanatics out there who are better snipers then a SEAL.

(P.S. - Try letting the government find out you don't have health insurance. Hehe)

[whitt]

I'll bet there's some paintball fanatics out there who are better snipers then a SEAL.

I wasn't, but he was.

[Evilone]

My thoughts it would have to be a war school or such, and people pay to join for lessons on battle and weapon training. Tuluk wise, I think opening Sujaal's place to be an actual clan wouldn't be too much work to build, and use that like the Tor Academy was in Nak? I'm not real familiar how the Tor Academy was run though.

I don't think there needs to be full public access for indies to train.  If you want to be a great fighter, join a soldier clan. It should be difficult for those not in certain positions to acquire good training. Those are the benefits the legion, militia,  byn and fist have. Much like how its difficult for indy merchants to make the good shit that gmh can do because they have the better tools and workplaces, and trainers. Freedom comes at a cost.

[Riev]

My thoughts it would have to be a war school or such, and people pay to join for lessons on battle and weapon training. Tuluk wise, I think opening Sujaal's place to be an actual clan wouldn't be too much work to build, and use that like the Tor Academy was in Nak? I'm not real familiar how the Tor Academy was run though.

I don't think there needs to be full public access for indies to train.  If you want to be a great fighter, join a soldier clan. It should be difficult for those not in certain positions to acquire good training. Those are the benefits the legion, militia,  byn and fist have. Much like how its difficult for indy merchants to make the good shit that gmh can do because they have the better tools and workplaces, and trainers. Freedom comes at a cost.

One common argument is that outdoorsy indies get the option to find critters to kill. Soldiers dont get that option and in fact with so many cland around, interaction can be tough to come by.

[Patuk]

My thoughts it would have to be a war school or such, and people pay to join for lessons on battle and weapon training. Tuluk wise, I think opening Sujaal's place to be an actual clan wouldn't be too much work to build, and use that like the Tor Academy was in Nak? I'm not real familiar how the Tor Academy was run though.

I don't think there needs to be full public access for indies to train.  If you want to be a great fighter, join a soldier clan. It should be difficult for those not in certain positions to acquire good training. Those are the benefits the legion, militia,  byn and fist have. Much like how its difficult for indy merchants to make the good shit that gmh can do because they have the better tools and workplaces, and trainers. Freedom comes at a cost.

One common argument is that outdoorsy indies get the option to find critters to kill. Soldiers dont get that option and in fact with so many cland around, interaction can be tough to come by.

Whereas this may or may not be true, creating the One True Way for indies to spar without risk of getting a tembo on 'roids to reel lock you is not going to solve that issue at all.

[Riev]

My thoughts it would have to be a war school or such, and people pay to join for lessons on battle and weapon training. Tuluk wise, I think opening Sujaal's place to be an actual clan wouldn't be too much work to build, and use that like the Tor Academy was in Nak? I'm not real familiar how the Tor Academy was run though.

I don't think there needs to be full public access for indies to train.  If you want to be a great fighter, join a soldier clan. It should be difficult for those not in certain positions to acquire good training. Those are the benefits the legion, militia,  byn and fist have. Much like how its difficult for indy merchants to make the good shit that gmh can do because they have the better tools and workplaces, and trainers. Freedom comes at a cost.

One common argument is that outdoorsy indies get the option to find critters to kill. Soldiers dont get that option and in fact with so many cland around, interaction can be tough to come by.

Whereas this may or may not be true, creating the One True Way for indies to spar without risk of getting a tembo on 'roids to reel lock you is not going to solve that issue at all.

And as such, isn't my argument at all. Just that the common argument is that there is a way for "indie" PCs to go out and get their skilling done in a rather asocial way, all things considered.

Just taking Tuluk for example, there are 2 GMHs, and 4 open clans, two of which could be considered "soldier" clans.
In Allanak, there are 2 GMHs, and just about the same number of open clans, 3 of which could be considered "soldier" clans. One of which, being the T'zai Byn which has a reptuation for "Come here to learn to fight, then find your way.".

I've played numerous characters, hire-ers and hire-ees, that particularly feel that asking to be a Recruit in any Noble House or even GMH is kinda preposterous if you're literally right out of chargen. The T'zai Byn used to be a place to say "Yeah I was in <Sergeant's> unit, went through my full year, ask for a recommendation". Salarr used to say you -had- to work one Recruit year, and FOUR years of contracted work before they'd even THINK of offering a recommendation to -any- other affiliation.

But in Tuluk, if you want to learn to fight, you have to choose one of the two soldiering clans. Which are LIFE OATH ONLY, there is no "Oh, well, I recruited for a year but this isn't for me". You can't do that in Tuluk, you can't just waste the City Militia's time.


The idea of a "Public" arena is nice (as I said, working on it but.... eh), but really what Tuluk could use is a Byn-like presence where warriors/fighters/people with few other skills can come together because... maybe you can't fashion fancy bone swords, but you can always fight.

[Qzzrbl]

Well.

You're not exactly stepping on any huge clan's toes by starting up your own mercenary group in Tuluk these days, so I hear.

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

Yeh - somebody should do that. One of you old, 5-year long character vet types.