Random acts of cruelty

[Anonymous]

I've recently found myself at philosophical odds with one of the Imms, and I think he's enough of a grown up that I can safely beg to disagree. After all I do understand that ultimate decisions are and should be left to the staff.

Am I in the minority, creating each pc with, if not an expectation of death, an acknowledgement of death's possibility? And liking it?  I want to be afraid. I want to believe that if I piss off the wrong person I might not live to regret it. However, for that fear to be true and immediate, it needs to be real.

In another thread someone complains about the possibility of death for no reason. I embrace it. I think if those in power exercise that power in an arbitrary manner, every now and then, people will remember they have it. Yes, it sucks for the victim, but it benefits the game. And as long as I get a little fear and loathing before I go, I don't mind if I am that victim.

What about the rest of you, do you agree that an occasional sacrifice to the volcano gods is what the game needs?

[Barzalene]

Whoops sorry. That was me. I thought I was logged in.

[X-D]

Yes.

Or if that is not a good enough answer how about Hell yes?

[Plazgoth]

I'll second that yes. As attached as we get to our chracters, especially when they are long lived, I belive that the game is supposed to represent a very harsh reality and what you speak of fits in perfectly.

I think suffering to a well thought out and realistic death is what makes Arm fun.

[Xygax]

I dunno...  I'm not a huge fan of random _fatal_ cruelty, personally.  I'd like to see more people get limbs cut off, or ears, or eyes poked out, or even a good old-fashioned whipping.  Killing people dead should be taken pretty seriously as there are almost always -real- IC consequences involved.

[Masochistic Templar Lover]

Feck yeah is more like it.

I remember a time when I literally perked up in my seat at the mere entrance of a templar (and some nobles).  Honestly, lately it's been sort of... (shudder) nice.  I -want- to feel persecuted. I want to hold my breath when encountering a templar on patrol. I wanna pee my pants when they look at me. I do NOT want them hanging out in MY tavern because I might piss them off for breathing.  Bring BACK brutality, please!

Far too many people -dont- die. Twelve years (Maybe a real life year) in a sweltering wasteland with barely enough food to keep you healthy and complementing that with unhealthy amounts of alcohol and irregular sleep patterns, combined with the lack of any 'health-care' per se, would probably be a little under unbearable for the normal inhabitents of such a world. Tempers are far longer then they should be, people are unnaturally nice and caring, and most of it can be related back to the fact that people (myself included) few their, and other people's, characters as just characters from time to time. Its pretty impossible to totally immerse yourself into something to the point where you treat it as reality. Otherwise it wouldnt be a game, it would be an alternate reality.

So in the end you have a few more kinder people because they realize, usually from their own experience what a pain it is to die and have to put time into starting a new character, fleshing out concepts and doing all the boring mechanical stuff that people take for granted later on in their character lives. (Ease with the way, riding, bartering, you name it.). Thus tempers become longer, some people are nicer, characters live longer if they are smart enough not to challenge the coded-dangers of the world (scrab, angry npcs, etc).

So to sum up my view, yes, some violence wouldnt be too bad.

[Marauder Moe]

I agree.  You Imms should hurry up and start wounding/maiming/killing people/me.  My characters life is -way- to easy.  

[Bestatte]

<sigh> I was REALLY hoping my PC would die fast, so I could apply for one of those templar gigs. And damn if she's not only still alive, but now I'm actually having fun with her.

DAMN that easy life damnit all!

Okay so everyone be nice to my PC until another juicy role comes up, k?

-The Wanna-be Mindbending Bearded Dwarven Defiler Nilazian Templar Chick

[My 2 sids]

For me I see little in the random/whim/punishment of many PC deaths, although violence, humilation, punishment, inslavement, etc... well... we could stand to have a bit more of that.   Here is my reasion.  Death only adds so much to the game.  A few (if it gets spoken about on a board/in a tavern) may remember a few deaths.  But that's it.  Punishments/fear that does not center around a pc's death... that can continue to add to the story and culture.  The PC gets to add it to their own background (and hopefully RP accordingly)  More PCs will get to know about the stories (Did you hear what happend to whats-his-name?  Let me tell you how I lost my arm.  Why do you freak out everytime that templar enters a building? etc)  The templar/noble would be able to get more storyline too... If templar always picks on PC X, or has PC X watched, or allows PC X to live long enough to try and plot the death of stool pidgon Y... it can all affect the story line so much more... for so many more people!   Lets face it... it follows the basic idea that nine times out of ten longer lived characters contibute more and have more personaility than short lived ones.

For those that love the idea that they "might" get to die... why not add it to your objective?  "I think I could role play the arena well... "  Better yet, how about someone (Imm or karma/good/lucky players) use a NPC for the role of publicly having the templars kill them?  More scedualed arena mataches/deaths/etc.  Just a thought.

Finally, just start rumors.  Don't name the noble/house/templar but just start rumors about how scary they are... about what they did... etc.

[deviant storm]

After having close to 50 pcs in the almost two years I have played here, I have to say I know how to die. Heh. And yes, I love a good death.

A good death is simply one that involves roleplay. And preferrably no instadeath. I'm delirously overjoyed they've done some work on the code so that some actions can be done while mortally wounded (imms please feel free to correct me if I got that wrong). I haven't tested what can be done. All I want to do is have a last thought before I see that mantis head...closure, you know?

But yes, dying is part of playing, for me. A good one (where I get to cry) is always welcome. Beats having a gortok eat you.

[SailorMars]

My thoughts are: Having a character with some days put in would suck to lose over something totally boring.

However, dying in a blaze of glory is what it's all about! :twisted:

Live fast, die young, and leave a good-looking corpse baby! :twisted:

[Dracul]

random acts of cruelty are exiciting in this game

I was just subjected to one (not exactly random, but not personal, and very cruel) was going to be left close to dead. then was going to .be. dead.

though, ended up with a much more intresting outcome through rp use rather than code (although...codewise he still got cut up ...real bad)

[Shinigami]

Disclaimer:  Shinigami personal opinion, not staff canon.

I'm a -huge- fan of random acts of cruetly.  I also remember the days that my hands would shake and my heart would thump crazily when Lady Templar... let's say Aquila walked into the room (Aquila and Thesaen both come to mind).  Templars were to be -feared-, pickpockets did -not- try to make deals with them beyond "Take my coin and not my fingers, please!"  and no-one would bother a cop-kill suicide with a templar, knowing full well that they would likely be murdered outright anyway if they inhaled the wrong way.

In the past few years, the southern templarate has, imo, taken on a lot more of the hidden conflict that has, in the last year, come to personify the northlands.  It filled a niche that was needed in that time quite nicely, and the politics around it all were... simply amazing.  I personally would love to reach a happy medium, seeing southern templars who are political masterminds (nobles, too) who also have absolutely no love for their non-noble charges.  There is no nobless oblige in the south.  The nobles rule, the commoners oblige.

As far as -random- acts of violence, I don't mind that at all, cruelty's good too.  I'd rather the player have a chance to walk away from it (this is not referring to any particular event, btw), but if they make it more ic realistic for their death to be the result... then I expect the noble/templar/mekillot to do just that.  By random acts of violence I'm talking about strangling an elf to unconsciousness for looking at you the wrong way, not typing 'kill elf' every third elf you see.  Then, you should know that.  You're the valued players of ArmageddonMUD!

-Shinigami, Iron Fist of Tektolnes

[Pungee]

I'll admit I was very surprised when I came back to arm and I noticed people being allowed to live when they didn't bow to a noble. I remember I had one char executed based on the fact that he hadn't bowed down to a templar. He was an elf so that kind of contributed to it but you get the point. I don't think that little tidbit is too IC since I imagine lots of elves have died at the hands of a templar.

Some horrendously cruel stuff has happened to my earlier chars at the hands of templar and I'll admit it, I loved every minute of it. I'd much rather die at the hands of a templar (who is almost guaranteed to RP) than at the hands of some sneakthief who's going to knock me in the back and set me to staring at a Mantis head.

So once again, big fan of cruelty if its justified (towards elves for instance which I usually love playing because they die quick but are oh so fun to RP). Mmmm Well RP'd public execution. Thats what I'm talkin' about.  

[spawnloser]

I'll admit I was very surprised when I came back to arm and I noticed people being allowed to live when they didn't bow to a noble.

One thing that's been discussed recently is that insta-bowing isn't necessarily good RP...the size of rooms and the amount of virtual NPC's in rooms could easily prevent you from noticing the Templar or Noble walk in.

[X-D]

Shinigami said he prefers if the char is left alive, So do I. But you know, once I played a raider/highway robber, He would plainly state to the victem, You money or your life, Not one player ever just gave up the sid, over half of them had less then 50 sid on them too< i think I left most of them alive, but without weapons and basicly naked. Since my char was annoyed that they wanted to fight.
Figured that would teach them to risk there life for 26 sid.

Anyway, My point I guess is, Sometimes people make it very hard to leave them alive.

[aeshyw]

Instabowing may not be appropriate at all times - but bowing when your character is in a position to notice an entering noble/templar - or the wave of bows that they create - is perfectly appropriate.  And while Allanak currently has a crop of rather easy going nobles that rarely take note of who pays respect or not - and hasn't trained their servants to do so either, relying on that as the standard could be a quick trip toward punishment or worse.

As far as X-D said... I know I was one of those who resisted (It was a flee while subdued) and they didn't  kill me, but man, would I have liked it if maybe they just gave me a shot to the stomach, but I would imagine that would start combat... but if they roleplayed it, that'd be fine. Rough em up if they don't get the "don't resist", then kill, if they keep resisting after you smack em around a bit, you should kill em, if they give in after that, smack em around some more for making you hit them in the first place.

I do agree that people for the most part should be left alive when you're being cruel, but if their very being is a thorn in your side, -and- they have more power than you, it's certainly not unthinkable to kill them. Now if they have less power than you, it's cooler to leave them alive, because then they have to strive to get you back, not just wave a hand.

[Angela Christine]

As far as X-D said... I know I was one of those who resisted (It was a flee while subdued) and they didn't  kill me, but man, would I have liked it if maybe they just gave me a shot to the stomach, but I would imagine that would start combat... but if they roleplayed it, that'd be fine.

You know what would be cool?  If the brawl code worked in all lawless areas.  I don't know how doable it is, but being able to slap or punch someone without initiating full combat could be useful.  It would still initiate combat with most NPCs, because even a tregil isn't going to just stand there while you slap them around (some animals might flee).  This wouldn't be much use for lone raiders since you can't wield weapons when you hit, but there are situations where it would be useful.

If you are dual weilding, then one of those weapons could be a whip.  A whip is more a weapon of terror than a killing weapon, but sometimes terror is better.  You can use a whip without initiating combat, the echos are cool, and it gives you a nifty Indiana Jones vibe.  In the event that the target initiates combat you can sheath the whip and draw another weapon if you don't want to fight with a whip.

AC

[Marauder Moe]

I don't know how doable it is, but being able to slap or punch someone without initiating full combat could be useful.

If I remember correctly, there is(was?) a 'touch' command thats like an attack, but nothing happens if you hit.  Once long ago I saw this command used for a brawl.  Though, eventually it escalated to full coded unarmed combat and the loser took a nap on the floor while the winner was dragged away by the guards.

[mansa]

Someone said something about the 'touch' command?  Go here:

http://www.zalanthas.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1762

[Swordsman]

Kind of agree, kind of disagree with you, Barzalene. I think PC-to-PC harshness could go up (which isn't to say I think pkilling specifically should go up), but I think it'd be annoying to see obviously-staged stuff happening just to OOCly reinforce the harsh theme. If every PC's being played true to character, then the harshness should be there anyway. Let the surface details sort themselves out, we should focus on getting the deeper stuff (playing true to character) right ... just my take.

Swordsman