What CAN'T You Play?

[Armaddict]

So far, any pickpocket/burglar character of mine has been especially short-lived.  Whether it's player interaction/RP or solo activity I'm happiest keeping active when I'm logged in, and the sneak-thief types seem to require a level of patience and keeping your head down that I, so far, just can't seem to muster.

Not to say this is the only way to do it, but...even if you're a burglar, you don't need to be constantly burglaring.  Even as a pickpocket, you don't need to be constantly stealing.  They are the two classes that when acted upon, turn you into the most hated PC at a given time.

Space things out.  Make marks.  Don't rob people blind, take things you hope they won't notice for a long time.  So on and so forth.  By the time you're 'known', see if you can have made yourself previously known as useful to someone or another, rather than just a rogue who needs to die.

A lot of these two classes get stamped out early because they see that they have the skills and just start using them constantly without regard to just how noticeable they're being.  Leave ripples, not waves.

[In Dreams]

I tend to gravitate towards the same general area of unimportant city-dwelling semi-socialite.

I've actively been trying to branch out, but with mixed results!

Non-humans don't interest me very much. So that's what I don't play. But I'm not sure that I can't. Eventually, maybe.

[tapas]

It sounds like good advice.

But again the problem is the inability for players to react appropriately.

If you pickpocket the wrong character, they're bring down the fury of God upon you. They'll use ooc deduction to pinpoint who exactly you are and they'll pull out all their power and contacts just to destroy you.

Up until that point it's irrelevant whether you've been playing smart or not.

[Hauwke]

I cant play smart guys. And its not because I am unintelligent. I am intelligent. (mostly)
Its actually just that I struggle to slow down and plan properly, which I can do if I try. The big issue is that I rush my plans through instead of letting them run their course.

[Riev]

I have a problem with elves. Mostly in the "trust nobodoy, and screw everyone" mindset. If all elves behaved in the manner SOME people (like me) read the docs, its a wonder any last long at all. Especially without a city elf tribe/family to be a part of... you're out to screw everyone and lie, cheat, and steal to get ahead in a world where stealing someone's packet of rolling papers is a capital offense.

[Grapes]

I have a problem with elves. Mostly in the "trust nobodoy, and screw everyone" mindset. If all elves behaved in the manner SOME people (like me) read the docs, its a wonder any last long at all. Especially without a city elf tribe/family to be a part of... you're out to screw everyone and lie, cheat, and steal to get ahead in a world where stealing someone's packet of rolling papers is a capital offense.

Keep in mind that how people read the docs is sort of an OOC concept. They aren't really issues that can be taken as a singular matter in and of themselves, but that need be compared to other general guidelines and made to mesh with them, such as the idea that a person shouldn't play a character whose behavior makes others question how they survived to that age. There is room for trust in elves, but that trust factor is very hard-earned. Elven concept of thievery is also broader than the human practice, and includes things that may be seen as standard business practices.

[Hauwke]

Some humans I have seen played would have made brilliant elves, untrusting at first, definately ripping you off but there isnt a thing you can do about it, complete assholes in their own way.

You want a guy to start a business for you? I would personally go to an elf, sure he will likely rip me off, but its entirely possible he makes enough cash that being ripped off wouldnt even matter.

[Grapes]

Some humans I have seen played would have made brilliant elves, untrusting at first, definately ripping you off but there isnt a thing you can do about it, complete assholes in their own way.

You want a guy to start a business for you? I would personally go to an elf, sure he will likely rip me off, but its entirely possible he makes enough cash that being ripped off wouldnt even matter.

You likely wouldn't want to do that, they'd rip you off repeatedly... well, unless you were a "friend" of theirs, and even then, but if they did they'd be violating their own testing process, which isn't forbidden, but the wise would measure benefit vs. cost. Most won't, trouble is, you're stuck with stupid elves, because of short-sighted humans playing them.

[Riev]

Elves make shrewd businessmen, and are always looking for a way to make that one extra coin of profit. I feel like that's why they don't tend to last long... hiring thieves to steal materials and resources, paying raiders to attack and assault supply lines, stealing items they JUST sold to you. It would make high profit quick, and then the elves would get decimated either by an angry clientele or jealous other elves.

Which is why you'd need a family, with at least one person as a decently trained fighter or threatening assassin. And you can't do that without months of work, staff approval, and luck that the person you chose doesn't fall off a roof.

[Dahlia]

I can't play stupid.

Now, to clarify, I'm not regaling in the glory of my intellect here.  I'm not a genius, I'm just an average Jane in that regard.  But playing stupid really drives me insane.  I don't like it from other players either, but I can at least get through it when it's someone else.  When I tried to play stupid once... it was just... ugh, awful.

And I understand that people can be 'playing stupid' and thinking really intense and complicated thoughts.  But I'm talking... stupid.  Just stupid.  I can't handle it.  It just irritates the holy bejesus out of me.

[ShaLeah]

Anything that requires a GPS.

[solera]

Anything that requires a GPS.

Me neither! But I do. 

[MatisseOrOtherwise]

I can't play mean people. I try, but it just doesn't work. I feel horridly guilty and end up making up for it in extremely overt ways.

[Hauwke]

I can't play mean people. I try, but it just doesn't work. I feel horridly guilty and end up making up for it in extremely overt ways.

Its easy! Just say whatever pops into your head and remember, its only a game, until the elf gets horribly maimed. Then, its a victory.

Seriously though, I agree with that for the most part, I feel a pang of guilt anytime I do something assholish. The trick, I think is to just roll with it and let a mean character play itself rather than playing the mean character. Sounds wierd I know, but I do think there is a difference between the two things.

[Jihelu]

I can't play mean people. I try, but it just doesn't work. I feel horridly guilty and end up making up for it in extremely overt ways.

It's easy. Just type 'kill elf'

[Tuannon]

I can't play mean people. I try, but it just doesn't work. I feel horridly guilty and end up making up for it in extremely overt ways.

The best advise or alternative I can give here is have guidelines for your character and have a few tenets or rules that elicit an anger response. That's if you want to try to experiment with being less nice. It's up to you though, the idea is for everyone to progress a story along.

[Cind]

I've been leery lately of playing elves. When you are the only elf in Allanak, it is hard to stay inside the Gaj when they keep kicking you out. And elves in other areas don't seem to do it for me, because they feel like a true city race to me.

The only thing I don't like about playing humans in nak is that some people 'expect' you to magically join the 1%. Sometimes I just don't want to. Usually I don't want to. Most of the time, all of the time. I haven't figured out shit shoveling and I play during lonely hours so I can't really play a city-dwelling 'naki and be self-sufficient at the same time. There's no potter job, no street sweeper, nothing like that that would interest me because no one else is boring like I am.

[Miradus]

I can't play "mean" either. I can play vicious, evil, and cruel.

The thing to tell yourself is that without villains and consequences, Armageddon is just playing paper dolls. If you remove the risk from the game, it gets boring very fast. Knowing that there's raiders out in the sands, or muggers roaming southside at night, or the potential that the evil Guild leader that you're about to have a secret meeting with just might turn on you ... that brings the game to its proper fun level.

[Delirium]

What Miradus said. Plus the most fun I ever have playing Armageddon is always when I'm taking risks with my PC. There is a temptation not to risk your character when you get attached but that's exactly when you should continue taking risks. Otherwise you end up with "long-term-pc-itis", which is the affliction of having a skilled, well-developed PC that has become boring to play.

[Grapes]

I can't play "mean" either. I can play vicious, evil, and cruel.

The thing to tell yourself is that without villains and consequences, Armageddon is just playing paper dolls. If you remove the risk from the game, it gets boring very fast. Knowing that there's raiders out in the sands, or muggers roaming southside at night, or the potential that the evil Guild leader that you're about to have a secret meeting with just might turn on you ... that brings the game to its proper fun level.

Vicious, evil, and cruel are certainly tolerable qualities to a certain extent, even desirable in an ally. If you need something done to protect your best interests, yet can't bring yourself to do such a thing, can always wash your hands of it and be like, well, at least I didn't do it. This creates a mutually beneficial scenario, provided it's done in moderation and there are boundaries.

Machiavelli warns against crossing certain lines, as doing so is bad for business, trust gets damaged. The enemies of your previous ally might be overjoyed to see you turn on your friend, but they will not often make good allies because they will have learned from the mistakes of their previous enemy. As the mafia well knows, there's a code in place to insure you survive and thrive. Breaking it and getting caught is bordering on suicidal, so it is best done sparingly.

[Miradus]

Yeah, but the mafia guys (and Machiavelli) intended to live a long and fruitful life.

When I play one of those scumbag types, I want to make a huge impact. I want to be the one people watch out for late at night on the street, or the one that keeps them looking up and down in all directions when they walk out west gate or sneak over for some water cactus in the Pah.

My goal is never longevity, as that leads to storage. My goal is action, murder, and mayhem until the entire populace knows my name ... at which point death is surely soon to follow.

Crank that terror level up a notch every day you play until the world HAS TO deal with you. That's my suggestion.

Once I received a murder contract for the hardest person in the world to kill. I'd become pretty good at murder in the city, but just couldn't manage to kill this person. Why? Because they only ever existed in two rooms. Red's, and the quit room inside Red's. I tried for WEEKS to get them away from those two rooms and couldn't manage it. For all I know, that person is alive today and here I am like 10 characters later.

[Grapes]

Never putting yourself in a comprimised position sort of leads to a lack of roleplay opportunities. Whenever I see an opportunity to get apartment-killed I'm like, "Yessssss! Let's go!", never happens that way though, not to me, at least.

Playing it safe ICly is a lot different than playing it safe OOCly. ICly, your character will have to step outside sooner or later to take a dump or something. OOCly you know this is unsafe, but this shouldn't really factor in. You can't always put yourself in a comprimising position however, because sometimes you have to speedwalk to a source of food or a meeting or something, and it's not an effort to avoid the grinning shadow just behind you, but partly because, you just, don't really know they're there.

[Cind]

An unmanifested krathi in nak. I've had people sing to me to try to get me to hang out with them and make friends.

[Riev]

An unmanifested krathi in nak. I've had people sing to me to try to get me to hang out with them and make friends.

Legitimately, I actually played one in Nak recently enough that I can't talk about it... but I chose a Krathi guild that I felt would fit the PCs personality, and they NEVER ONCE cast a spell. There was only one instance where the stress of the situation would've triggered it (in my mind), I rolled for it, and they resisted it.

They died, unceremoniously, without ever having cast a single spell.

[Arabian Nights]

Half-giants. I tried a few times over the years and I could never get into them.