Ever

I think you fail to grasp how large 250x250 is. http://i.imgur.com/Dg0Dza4.png This is 250x250 with an NPC village pasted on top. That NPC village alone could house most small playergroups. We most certainly ARE a survival server. It's obviously not the most important thing, I agree, since roleplay is why we exist and roleplay is why players come, play, and return for, but we ARE a survival server. You may disagree with that but it does not change facts. No one is preventing you from roleplaying. This does not stop you from building your house without creative. The only limiter in this situation is... well, you. The banned item list wasn't increased by much. There needs to be some semblance or rare or sought-after items- we ARE somewhat of an economy server too though that portion of the server is in desperate need of assistance. I hate to be rude but it just sounds to me like you'd prefer if we were all in creative mode and could do whatever pleased us the most. That's not how the server operates now nor how it has ever operated. We started as a way to play Minecraft through a different lens. Instead of being players, we were Elves, Orcs, etc. Instead of building a house, we were building clan halls and fortresses to protect ourselves or wage wars out of. We're much more focused on roleplay now than we were then but we still have our survival/economy roots and, as long as I foresee, always will. Again... 500x500 is ridiculously large. You don't get a capital, you get your keep/castle, your entire city built, your outlying villages and farms built, your walls and monuments built, etc. You can either spend months building manually and save lots of money, or pay money and save time. The system is a luxury and a convenience. It was not designed to be used by everyone. You are not being forced to use it. You do not have to use it. You do not have to pay for it. You never even have to acknowledge that it exists- and, as always, if you have legitimate suggestions for making it better, I'm always receptive to ideas. I just feel like you want the server to cater to you; free builds, roleplay only. That's not our server. We are a hybrid blend of survival/economy and roleplay. We always have been and always will be. Additionally, you don't have to cover your entire region as a LC buildable plot. You pay for what you need, though you can only have one active building plot at a time. You outline where you wanna build and I spit out a price, it's not a cuboid, just 2500 blocks covered = 1k.

A fair point. It's changeable at any time, I just want to prevent the past issue of people being in LC/building limbo for weeks at a time. There needs to be a hard number somewhere. Again, a fair point, but you can't really solve it. I want to avoid people placing blocks then having others break them to store/sell/trade/grind with. And you don't have to put your entire region in a buildable LC state. You can build half your village/city/etc., while leaving the other one a tent city. Or you can build a palace/keep/fort/castle first, then work on the other parts.

I'm still not entirely happy with the system, to be honest, and that's why I said that it might be subject to change or outright removal in the future (though that'd likely be only if we switch to a new map if it IS ever removed). You'd pay 3k minimum or just... y'know, update it without LC :P The system is mainly designed around fresh builds. It's impossible to appeal to everyone's specific case unfortunately.

I don't want to give definite (or even estimates) as it's bitten me in the ass before. The updated fast travel system (it has not died!) will be coming alongside the new spawn, that much is for certain. We still have lots of ideas and goals for a new economy system, just some of it would require amendments or additions to code for it to even work as I'm envisioning. We WOULD like for certain hard-to-get materials or items to be sold, though- maybe you could buy an Elytra, you'd just have to fully drain your nation's treasury to obtain it. Again, I don't want to give any definite dates or details just yet, just that I really want to see it done sooner than later. I've mostly been around still, it's just hard to be as active as I like with full time work and full time studies. I'm still almost-always available via Skype and forum messages, though!

It could have been thought out more, aye, just as the system itself could have been thought out more. It was rushed because I was rushed. It's not an excuse, though. The system was very bad and put a large strain on the moderation team and just... wasn't good. And, despite what you think, people are constantly building. I brought it down when not as many people were building, then the biggest center for human roleplay exploded. Again, you guys might think there's some malicious intent here but there really wasn't. Just poor timing and coincidence. Thread is gonna be taken outta the announcement forums and locked.

Time for testing part 2! Despite it being a test run, I fully believe this system is more efficient and effective for players and moderators alike. I will be the one handling this system for today until other moderators understand how to set it up and how it works. The Core Differences: Instead of paying-per-block, you pay for the area you would like to build in. Two regions will be set up where you intend to build- one region denies entry to non-builders, and another region denies exiting. Only builders can enter and no one can exit without moderator assistance / soulstone. You have 10 days to build. Once that time is up, your LC period is over regardless of you being done or not. After your build is complete (regardless of whether or not you have used the full 10 days), you have 7 days to pay. The region locks will still be in place till you've fully paid. The region locks will still be in place until you're finished building even if you pay beforehand. No specific amounts of builders - they will be added to the build region. Only one building region in your region at a time. No, you cannot have 18 50x50 regions working at one time. You can have a smaller region, complete it, then begin work on a different smaller region after you are finished and have paid, however. Specific blocks and materials banned via the in-game blacklist: Shulker Boxes Workbenches (enchanting table, crafting table, brewing stand, etc.) End Materials Nether Materials Minecarts Chorus plant/fruit Dragon Egg Prsimarine, Glowstone, Magma, TNT, Obsidian, Lava. Lava will be placed at admin/gm discretion- this is to prevent lava moats and the like =) All ore / ingot blocks (sans redstone blocks) This list is subject to change at any time. Materials were banned with the mindset of wanting to keep SOME material rare and desirable. This is, also, subject to change with any large economic update. That include the LC system as a whole. While I will (hopefully) give prior announcement beforehand, don't expect this system to be around forever- especially for new maps or large changes of how we handle builds. No more having to tediously calculate block-by-block price, no more having to worry about non-builders messing with the region as you build. While the region-lock system might be a tad much, we'll see how it goes beforehand before making any changes to the system. As for pricing, the simplest way to explain is that it will cost 1k per 50x50 amount of blocks covered. See the chart below to guestimate how much you might be paying. Pricing Chart: 50x50 - 1k (If you're building area costs less than 1k, you will be paying 3k minimum). 100x100 - 4k 125x125 - 6,250 150x150 - 9k 250x250 - 25k A better explanation is thus: You pay for what you need. You don't need to cover your 250x250 region to have access to creative. If you want to build up your 100x100 village, that'd cost 4k for free access to any material not blacklisted. If all you want to do is a build a fort and a village then that's all you need to pay for. In other news... The closer you are to the ruins of Johannesberg, the more damage you will take. Chests can be looted but they will not be mass unlocked- you'll have to smash-and-grab under moderator assistance. I would like to plan for expeditions and scavenging runs into the city itself in the future, but those will be more like mini-events rather than requested-via-modreq. Entering the city without proper protection WILL kill you quite quickly- if you value your life, I suggest staying away. We are nearly done discussing the "new" Nation system. It is still very much the same, though, and will make much more sense when it's fully announced and you can see all the details. Expect it sometime this week, hopefully and more-than-likely within the next few days rather than at the end of the week.

I'm going to say this once: cool your jets. You're making a mountain out of a mole hill. LC will be available tomorrow- not early/mid Feburary as I had planned. It should have been announced prior, yes, but 1.) the forums have been up and down and up and down, and 2.) I was waiting to announce it alongside the new Nation creation rules/guidelines (which will also be coming very soon, just discussing some last few points). You're acting like I killed your dog and burned down your house and you need to not be doing that. A sour attitude helps no one's cause- and especially not your own.

As I said (to someone on) Skype: Obviously not exactly what you want to hear but it's something that needed to be said. The server ran just fine before we had a system for creative, mind you. Additionally, it was not brought down to coincide with the start of these new nations or anything like that, it was put on hold almost a week before Oren split apart. It's hard to believe, but not everything that is done is done to inconvenience you as much as possible- that level of paranoia and distrust is a bit worrying. THAT BEING SAID, I would like to start testing a new system Tuesday as that is my day off. The system might not entirely be the same as it is currently (the current one is fundamently broken and not many people can argue against that, and also there are two systems I am looking to test) but it will be avaialble, in some way, shape, or form, this coming Tuesday / tomorrow. Sit tight and don't fret too much, the world's not ending.

((A region flag. There will be VERY ample warning that you are entering a deadly area. You will have a few seconds to escape before you die too.

The 16th of Malin's Welcome in the year 1595 also read this: A Dragon's Last Breath --- credit: tirenas Whether it was a show of stupidity or courage, Emperor Philip Frederick and his most trusted men were defiant to their last breath. Thanhium is a dangerous substance- did the Emperor expect this outcome? Or was it his final, spiteful wish to damn his kingdom to a frozen grave? Whatever the case, he took one small satisfaction to his end: his land would not be taken, his kingdom would not be conquered, and his people would not kneel. It is rumored- and rumors travel fast in uneasy times- that his final words were "I have lived steadfast and fierce, I will not kneel to the dogs of war, and my wings shall not be clipped by greedy paws of Staunton. I live for the Empire! Ave Oren! Ave Horen! Long live the Empire!" Perhaps his men cheered and chanted. Or perhaps they stood quiet and solemn, accepting what was about to take place. Regardless, they watch over their poisoned city from tombs of ice forevermore. credit: Dormmar

Hi guys. Nothing too special here, just wanted to wish you all happy holidays! It's been a long year, both on the server and off and now we're at the finish line. Enjoy your breaks, time with your family, and all that delicious holiday food. And hey- if you don't celebrate Christmas, have a good one anyways. Thanks to... well, everyone. From every application team member and applicant, to every Dwarf, Orc, Human, and Elf, to every builder or actor, moderator in-game and forum, to every single member of the server: thank you so much. While we all don't always see eye-to-eye, I hope we can at least all come together and enjoy the holidays. Stay safe, stay warm, stay awesome. Have a good one guys.

Woo, that was a lot to read though I'd be lying if I said I didn't skim a lot of it. Nothing I really wanna address specifically but I do want have a heart to heart with you guys. This server means a lot to me. Like... a lot, a lot. I've grown right alongside LoTC from the very start. I've put in hundreds, hell, maybe even a thousand+ hours of my time into the server for no other reasons than because I love the server and I want my players to enjoy it as much as I did when I was a normal player. Seeing people having fun roleplaying, developing friendships, and just having an all around good time is the reason this job is at all bearable- and yes, it is a job. It feels weird to say that when I'm spending my free time elsewhere like playing another game, I feel really guilty that I'm not actively working on the server by doing modreqs or helping people in some way. The few weeks I took off to finish out my semester nearly killed me, I swear. I don't even know what I want to talk about here, I guess I'm just rambling. This tag is a burden as much as it is an opportunity to help and serve. I've coveted it for years- finally I could truly make a difference rather than be a modreq workhorse but... it's hard. There's so much I wanted to do- WANT to do even yet but it's difficult to muster up the energy to do them. It's not like three years ago where my days were 50% LoTC, 50% sleep. I've still got free time but when my choices are sleep, play another game, watch a movie, etc. VS work on a server where people vehemently attack one another or trash the server/each other at every opportunity... I tend not to. I've been shaky the past month or two. I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep doing this or not. I'm feeling renewed and ready to get back at it, though, and that's thanks in part to your guys' kind words / legitimate criticisms. I just wish you guys would be kinder to each other. You don't have to love or like each other. Just show a sliver of respect. I really want the server to be the best it can be. I want players WANTING to be here rather than loitering around because they feel obligated to still play. I want to do everything I can to provide the best experience for you guys. I know we don't always make the greatest decisions (though we're trying our best, I promise). I know we can be slow to act or too quick to react. I know there's legitimate kinks in the way we operate that need to be worked out. I know we can be better just as I know you can be better. I can't make everyone happy but I can sure as hell try. What's the point in me being in this position if I don't? Thanks guys.

Path linked! Happy travels.

Path linked! Happy travels.

Yep. Welcoming all questions, complaints, etc. As always, keep the shitpostin' and shitflingin' to a minimum guys.

Last minute announcement here so everyone is on the same page for this warclaim: https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/153139-battle-of-the-gray-peninsula/?page=1 We’ve (@Pyro™, @Tsuyose, @Marijuanaology, @Tahmas, and @Ever) spent a few hours discussing things last night. That discussion should have happened a few days prior which is why we’re dealing with a whole confused mess at the moment. I apologize for that. Due to this miscommunication, no one is really prepared. While some people were told to prepare as if it WAS going to happen, there’s still a lot of preparations that have not been attended to due to the assumption that, again, it would be called off due to admin decision. For now, the warclaim is being pushed back one week, to next Saturday. This gives players more time to prepare and possibly discuss peace terms, and it gives us time to be ready to prepare the server for a large battle. Instead of a warclaim today, though, we’ll be setting up a warzone similar to Fenn’s. I’ll have Thomas to explain the details below. Hopefully this is a conclusion that most people can agree with or enjoy. The admin team wants to interfere with roleplay as little as possible but sometimes we need to step in and deny some terms, or clear specific things up. I apologize again for springing this on you guys last second and I’ll continue to strive for better communication in the future.

I spent 3 or 4 hours last night (attempting) discussing this with a few people: @Pyro™, @Tsuyose, @Marijuanaology. I want to interfere with roleplay as little as possible hence why I tried to get both sides to agree to some sort of terms. The justifications for this battle are murky at best and it seems to be dripping with OOC intentions are both sides. In any case, if a battle DOES take place, it will never reach the conquest stage. I'm explicitly denying that portion right now. Again, I want to interfere with roleplay as little as possible, but there's not a single good thing that will come of it. Fracturing an already dead playerbase further while forcing them to once again find a new place to settle will only harm the way player's interact with each other more and more. All land that has been conquered via warclaim so far has sat empty and untouched for months and I'm not going to allow a repeat of that. Roleplay should be fun for both sides, at least to an extent. Would appreciate it if Pyro and Humanistic touched bases with me as soon as possible.

Hummm... I wonder what level of irony there is in being an avid minecraft roleplayer yet still calling others out on being "cringe-y"...

I don't think that's a very good way to look at things. You can't dismiss legitimate problems by telling people to "suck it up". ---- Just reminding people to keep things civil. No shitslinging or attacking one another.