Listen

[Krath]

I was wondering everyones thoughts on this.

When your pc has the skill listen, is it something that is always on? Or is it something you can turn on and off. People with naturally good hearing, just over hear conversations even if they do not mean to. So do you think the skill Listen, if your PC has it, should always be on? Meaning, when you type listen status, if it says you are currently not listening, type it until you get the You are currently Listening echo, Or is that simply twinkish, it is something that you can choose when you can and can not have it on.

[Anonymous]

I've always heard that spamming listen on was twinkish.  I've done it, with some thinks about how I want to hear something involved.

Honestly, I don't see the problem but am willing to learn if need be.  Still, I don't think typing 'listen on' four or five times in a row means you are putting one of those curvy, old-time listening cones up to your ear and leaning over the table you are trying to eavesdrop on.

You are just trying to weed out the noise.

[Bestatte]

At first, I try to get my listen to work as needed (meaning, without having to type it a jillion times before it finally kicks in).

Then I'll use it - as needed. I don't normally toggle it off, but instead let it run out and don't turn it on again until I need it.

Sometimes though if I'm playing a character who has the listen skill, and I'm in a very crowded room trying to pay attention to the person at my table, I'll shut it off just to reduce the spam. I figure ICly I'm trying to focus on the other person talking to me, and so I'd "tune out" the rest and make it just so much background noise.

Even when it's on though, I try to keep what I hear realistic. If there's a room with tables designated in different parts of the room...like one is at the back end and one is near the bar..if I'm sitting at the bar, I will RP that my character doesn't hear what's going on at the back table. But would hear what's at the table next to her.

I treat the listen skill the same way as I treat being capable of watching someone walk into the room. If my character is in a position to notice, then they'll notice. If my character is facing the other way, they won't notice. And if my character is at the other end of the room from a conversation, she won't hear the conversation. Even if the skill allows -me- to see it popping up on my monitor.

Sometimes though, I'll allow my character to "hone in" on certain things. Like if something really important is going on in her life, she'll hear her own name mentioned no matter where she is in the room. This reflects my real-life situation as well. I am half-deaf, and had to learn to listen for my name so I'd know if someone is trying to talk to me. And so, whenever someone says my name, no matter where I am, no matter how crowded the room, I almost always hear the name and will immediately focus in on the conversation.

That doesn't count for really huge crowded places like nightclubs that have 300 people in it and loud music blaring from enormous speakers planted in every corner of the room and dangling from the ceiling, obviously. But these taverns in the game aren't that big, nor is music amplified through any artificial means.

[sarahjc]

It may be twinkish but my Character is alway listening, I mean -always-. Why? Thats just the type of gal she is, She wan't to know about everything she can, she's nosey. And I think you can safely asume that if your talking about something in public be it at a table or not, you are making it fair game to be heard.

However if the room is packed and there is too much going on I will normally Type Listen Off.. Cause it messes up my own conversations with the rediculous amount of scrolling.  

Bestatte is right though, it should not be abused, if I am listening I try to only focus on one converstion at a time and not every converstaion..I would be unrealsitic to say that I can hear everything that is going on in the room..

You can also just type "Listen on" then if you are already listening it will tell you so.  Stops that annyoing feeling of not knowing, am I listening? Do I type listen again.. But if I am listening it will turn off...

Type Listen
You start trying to listen
Type listen
You start trying to listen
Waits a few minutes

Type listen
You stop Listening
Think Doh!..

[spawnloser]

I type 'listen on' to turn it on, myself...after listening for a while, I'll type 'listen off' emote something about shaking my head or something, and then type 'listen on' 'listen status'...and wait a couple moments.  If I'm not listening, repeat the on/status routine until I am listening.

[Tamarin]

Yep, listen on.  That's where its at.  What I would find idiotic is someone who just types listen over and over when there is no one in the room.  I only ever try and turn it on (and that requires spam until and only until it turns on...then I stop) when there's someone in an adjacent room or someone at a table I want to hear.

[Lasakar]

I like the skill listen. If I am in a crowded bar and have nothing to do I regulary turn listen on. It is awesome how much information you could get. You learn really fast who is who in the city. Very useful. And sometimes, like spawnlooser, I react like chuckling or shaking the head. But I turn it off for conversation or other action. And gathering information is for me not twinkish.

[Larrath]

Here're my thoughts about listening, and I admit that I may be a little twinkish about it.

Listening is a skill.  Some are good at it and some are worse at it, but it is more than the natural ability of having a naturally sound hearing...I can imagine that the average Zalanthan will have far more developed senses than the regular human, and the streets are not really filled with cars.
People do shout about, but, well, that's not the point.

Listening is an ability that people practice...it is about taking in a lot of noise at once and separating pieces of it to make sense.  Or, alternately, to block out some sounds while concentrating on the other.

I personally do not feel that it is very twinkish to spam 'listen on' while in a tavern.  On a realistic level, the character will be very well aware of whether they do or do not manage to hear things...can they block out the five Bynners sitting at the table next to them, or not?  The same cannot be said about listening from a quiet room towards a second room, but I digress.

Spamming 'listen on' in order to focus in on a conversation, as far as I believe, is not twinkish.  It simply means focusing and re-focusing very hard.

I agree to not always being able to hear the farther table, especially when people speak more quietly, and I'll eventually learn how to incorporate that, too.

I think that pretty much sums it all up.

[John]

In the past I've turned it on whenever I can, sometimes when I'm just walking down the street and I think I'm in danger (code-wise I don't know if it helps stop people fail a sneak or backstab, but IMO IC-wise it should so I do it). In taverns I like to have it on when I think about it, not necessarily cause I'm trying to overhear, but because whenever I go to restaurants I'm constantly overhearing a snatch here and there. So I'll RP that, hearing snatches, not entire conversations (except when I'm TRYING to listen to something).

I normally turn it off when having a convo, but I'm experimenting with custom colours to help notice things (such as room psi's, people looking at me (although I hardly react to this), people talking at my table, etc). So I might keep it on so I can RP saying "sorry? Didn't catch that cause of the noise"

[ShaLeah]

I love listen. It's probably safe to say that I am addicted to listen. It's always on. Most people I know can catch things happening on other tables so I'd love to see a general listen skill that doesn't have to be turned on that allows you to listen to anything within the same room.  People with the skill to eavesdrop at a distance (room away) should have a separate skill altogether.  I know I have been guilty of picking a subclass just for listening purposes alone.

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

When I must play a guardish type character, or a character who will be standing around watching folks while everyone else talks, I take listen. Truthfully, I don't even always utilize it for gathering information. I'll pick it so my character has something to use think on other than, "Man, my feet hurt...oh, boy, gods, my...ow...shit...I think I gotta cramp."

[deviant storm]

Dude, if you ever play a half giant you almost -have- to have listen. Let me tell you why.

A character, the flabby dorky hg, wanders into the tavern. Maybe they're looking for work, or just someone to talk to, or some lovin'...in any case, they're there and looking for interaction. They sit down by the bar to show they're looking for talk of some kind...can't sit -at- the bar because every bar in game (that I know of) doesn't have stools big enough to hold an hg's weight.

And guess what everyone at the bar is doing? Talking. Emphasis on the 'talk' command. If the hg doesn't have listen, he's excluded for the most part.

Now sure, there's tons of ways to get attention to the hg, get people talking to him. Or he can carry around a big giant chair or something. The point I'm making is if he wants to just know what's going on, listen is the HG's friend. (edit, adding that when I have an hg I have listen on whenever I can.)

[John]

On the half-giant issue. I've heard people say that you can just "sit" at a table and emote out sitting beside it. Sure if someone does "exa bar" they'll see your sitting at it, but if they're going to ignore your emotes and ldesc, well, they probably do the same thing when a dwarf smacks a half-giant around the head in combat

The thing I love is, people acting all surprised when a HG "eavesdrops" on them. The way I figure it is, a half-giant has bigger ears so they can hear more That and if your in the same room, it's quiet, don't be surprised when I can hear you. I can hear my parents who're sitting at the kitchen table 2 rooms away

[deviant storm]

HG's can't codewise sit at most bars and tables. If you try you get a 'You're too heavy to sit there' message. Or at least I have...

I like how people react when they realize some big hg is listening to them too.  :twisted:

[John]

HG's can't codewise sit at most bars and tables. If you try you get a 'You're too heavy to sit there' message. Or at least I have..

Thanks The thread I read someone suggest that, no-one was sure if it was possible to code-wise sit at a bar or not