It's Not Fun Anymore

[Tomar Angatle]

Hi Makz,

I have a request, if you can.

Delete all my characters please.

I won't be playing IOF anymore.

Here within the last month I have noticed quite a change in IOF, Some not good.

It seems everywhere you go on IOF someone is either wanting to PVP you, Grief you about infringing on them while they hog an area to try and level up. This really impedes on doing some of the quests.

Just today, I was trying to do a quest, and couldn't complete the quest because of players hogging the area and not letting the quest creature spawn in.

This has been an increasing problem as of late.

So please just delete my player folders

Tomar Angatle and AstralStorm.

Sorry, It was fun while it lasted.

[MitzaVolchenko]

*sighs*

Anyone else on dm-side hate to see things like this and have never heard word one prior to it?

[JoScMa]

Indeed, Mitza. I never even spoke one word or even heard one word from Tomar. Things can't get fixed if no one comes to us :\

[Makzimia]

I have spoken to Astral Storm to say hi a few times, but never been told of a problem ANY time, so, as you say, can't fix what you don't hear about.

Makz.

[Silentus]

Seriously all you players out there, let the DMs know when you have problems with the game or with other players. One of the largests strengths about IoF is that the DMs are usually around and try to remain very approachable. Utilize them - its the only way to make IoF better!

There is no need to feel like youre tattleing on someone. Some people really dont know the rules (despite thier jounals and the Forums) anyd need to be informed to read them and follow them. Those that know them and break them anyway need to be reigned in or banned, we dont want to play with them if they can't behave with others.

You dont like something about IoF - let the DMs know!

[clark625]

Well, even if we can't make Tomar happy because it's after the fact, perhaps it's a good idea to consider what he is (and isn't) saying. I'll toss a couple of thoughts in, since to some degree I can sympathize with Tomar.

First--there's a LOT of people on Fredian. Wandering around, there's certain places you know will just be slammed with people. West Styne, the swamp crypts, the maze, and even crafting areas. It's great if you want to meet lots of people; but, not everyone is interested in making new friends once they find they have about 5 or 10. Some folks are down-right rude (most of it IC, but a few are just poor players). And if people are partied and hunting, they aren't as likely anymore to invite new people in as I used to experience often (or even worse, the invite comes without any conversation or rp).

Second--people squat on areas for a while. Sometimes a very long while (hours). I don't see this as an issue until someone else comes along exploring, or would like to spend a bit of time training. I don't think it would be a bad idea to have a policy where people are allowed to train in an area for a while, but after some amount of time (say ten minutes) if someone else comes along, the area is given up. I mean.... come on, people.... invisible stalkers aren't the only thing to kill from levels ~15 through 35. You can only go around that loop so many times before it really should get boring, and you should move along.

Third--people that do train even a little bit in an area do tend to get really grumpy.... largely due to people always coming along, and a few players that just immedately run in and pick spawns. I've gone into an area for the first time, stopped at a door to buff, and someone came along from the outside to get to the critters first, and didn't say a word. Events like that probably cause players to start getting mean.

Most of these things probably never go reported to a dm--it seems petty to the players, really. If someone picks my spawn, my character is going to yell at them for it. If I see someone squatting.... I might tell a dm, but, really, I move along so fast and don't come back to check often.... so how would I even know? And it seems like a real waste of characters to complain to a dm about there being so many players all crammed in the same few areas.... most of us that explore know that there are many nice places to take down monsters, so we move along. Those that don't explore.... well, they are the ones probably causing 80% of the problems anyway.

[Tomar Angatle]

Just to reply to some of this before I leave.

I believe I had mentioned this to a DM a couple of times, Can't remember who it was because there are so many, and nothing had been done about it. So I blew it off, and continued to play.

The matter seemed to get worse, probably because I did tell a DM, so I feel it's best I just quit playing IOF.

Squatting on areas to level is a big problem on IOF, I admit I have done it too, but my concern was mainly in the areas that are part of a quest. If you have squatters in an area that people need to go into to complete a quest, then players can't complete quests until all players leave the area and allow for the quest NPC's to spawn in.

Like a certain cave in the swamps near Willem.

As it was mentioned before, the problem lies in those players not interested in adventuring and just want to level up their characters as fast as possible so to do the PVP fights and such.

I too would like to obtain lvl 40 status, but it takes time and hard work to obtain that status, My characters where between the levels of 15 and 24 after 3 months of hard work. Mind you I could have squatted like some players on areas and pushed my characters to level 40, but it's saomething called Player Courtesy and RP that has kept me from doing this, Unlike quite a few of the other players.

So, with that said, I bid you farewell and Good Luck.

[Makzimia]

Those of you that know me, know I keep a close on this stuff and an ear out, so to speak , however, no matter how we do as DM's, if a player doesn't say anything to us, we can't act. I have numerous times appealed to players individually and collectively under pause conditions even, and threatened... at the end of the day, the only solution for some people is banishment. However, that all being said, it comes down to going somewhere else if an area is crowded out, I hate to think what some players would do on a place with much less in the way of things to do and areas to go than Fredian has.

We have tried for months with making changes to Castille to make it more attractive to players to go to for example, everyone still hangs out in West Styne I realise most of the quests that are hard coded happen near there, and that is on purpose, as they give the new players a chance of learning history as well as exploring etc. More difficult quests have been added, admittedly slowly, as I am the only one that can do them, and I have many other things as the main/only creator of this part of my world.

Remember one of my main rules, courtesy, and if you can't find it in yourself, you are on the wrong world. Go somewhere else please, and let others enjoy my work.

Thanks,

Makz.

[serpitus]

*sarcasm evident*

Hey how bout you developers just make up a 16x16 room with say 8 doors that lead to battle areas. The areas could be level spawned for 1-10 north side 11-20 east side 20-30 south side and 30-40 west side. then you have to come up with some code to have a ticket taker like at the deli. when your number is called its your turn. Of course fill each area with firebeetles, we wouldnt want anybody dying and losing there spot, that respawn immediately after death. That give say 1000xp for each kill. Then you only have to walk to 4 places and get 4 numbers and you should be 40th in say 20 minutes. Ok problem solved.

*serious tone*
Man that would be boring.

Ok Tomar

I was trying to do a quest, and couldn't complete the quest because of players hogging the area

There are like, and I havent done them all, 23ish quests. Come on, the one in the caves is only 4% of the available.

That first comment is getting of beam but I had to weigh in.

[CloveClovenhoof]

Just a suggestion, and I realize it might be out of the question, but what about having higher level players log on at different locals, like 1-10 at west styne, 10-20 at Castille, and so on? That might encourage ( but not enforce) players of similar levels to congregate, make parties, and give DM's the ability to make events that apeal to a certain level of player. It would also level out the poplation density of certain areas. There's nothing to say that higher level players couldn't go to west styne, but if they did it would be for a reason. It might also help identify griefers, since they would be to high level and out of place.

Anyway, just a thought.

[SoMF]

Sorry to see you go Tomar, but I understand what you are saying. I to have ran into several players that just don't have any kindness our courtesy towards other players. I have seen a lot of players that will flat out tell you as soon as you come into an area "I was here first" and say nothing else. When you go back to that area a couple hours later, same person, same response. I have even gone into a place exploring after Makz had changed the layout of it and had a person pretty much threaten to kill me if I did not leave the area because they had been down there training for 4 hours straight. They even told me that in their chat with me. "I have been down here for 4 hours so you need to leave" LOL... ohwell

I had a little chat with the online DM at the time about it and they told me that I was in the wrong and I needed to leave. But that night as soon as another DM came online the whole situation changed. Anyways the short of the story is that this person had a history of griefing others and what he did to me was considered griefing. I don't know what the DM did to him but he must had just got a warning or something, don't know. I still see the person around but they do not bother any one now as far as I know.

Maybe some of the DM's do not clearly understand the whole courtesy thing, not sure.

Makz, I can give you the whole details about that situation if you like and who was involved when I log in next time and you are online if you are interested. I am usually on as Lester DragonStorm.

Anyways, back on the subject. I too usually go out training trying to get my next level but as soon as someone shows up wanting to train in the same area as me, I give the area over to them. If both that person and me just arrived I usually try to make some type of party deal with them so that both benefit. As far as someone coming into the area to complete a quest, I would myself leave the area to let whatever needs to spawn for that person to complete their quest since there are so many things to do on IoF. I can always find something to keep me occupied for a while.

That's my 2 cents.

See ya,

[Lumix]

The Eternal two words of the DM:


"Screen Shot"


Thank you,
Lumix

[addicted2rpg]

In the coming days, beware of the DM assassin!

Historically I have been known to give XP to people for good roleplaying as I do the rounds.

But why not be the antithesis of that?

I don't have to do my notes, books, dev talk, and testing necessarily in the temporary spawn point like I usually do. Why not a popular XP area?

I promise I won't kill anyone being a jerk though. They just need a little help/counseling. They will be sent to Mr. Swift for psychological evaluation. I heard he has a way with people

[Phoenix]

There will always be players who are rude or selfish. I have run into this problem a lot when leveling my different characters. I tend to deal with this a couple of ways, depending on how the person is.

If I walk into an area that people are training in, and I want to train there I ask to join. If they say no, that's fine, they were there first. There are other places to train, and other things to do like RPing or crafting.

If someone approaches me while I'm training I join with them, if the xp is worth it with them in the party. I don't mind taking an overall hit, but if we're getting 20xp/kill with them in the party... If not I usually give up the area if I have been there a while, or let them, ooc, how long I will be.

There is the rare person that walks in, and doesn't RP or anything, they just start hacking away at the spawns. Here I do one of two things. If I can't handle their spawn, I leave, they 'muscled me out of the area". Oh well...

If I'm able to handle their spawns, I totally RP the situation. Someone just walked into an area and start fighting creatures, well might as well help them. When I start taking "their" kills I laugh. They didn't give me the consideration when they came in the area.

[MadBernie]

I really like the idea of DM's getting involved when there is a problem. And not just "telling" the players, but showing up in person. It would only work if the players didn't know it was the DM. The DM could come in and "out-muscle" the muscle-head. Teach the person a little about rp'ing along the way. I had an encounter the other day with a DM in player's disguise. It was a blast for both of us, we almost got into a fight and ending up getting along great. I had no idea it was a DM. Getting XP for great rp'ing is a great idea, and so is getting wasted by a DM.