Ned Lud

But I say unto you, that ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall click-click thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. - Matthew 5:39

Always been a big fan of mimics. This would be a great addition to dungeon based events, especially those with a rare prize item at the end. I imagine a party of adventurers barely surviving the dungeon, losing half their numbers and finally stumbling across the treasure room only to get their lock-picker stuck to a mimic and having to figure out how to kill the thing in a low-lit grotto.

If it were changed, it would instantly be abused, more so than it will surely be by players with multiple accounts.

I'm a little disappointed that there was little to no room for argument with this patch.

Bango Blackfoot slings his shovel and lights up a smoke as he watches for trespassers, ever vigilant.

"No dark meat chicken allowed beyond these walls...too stringy. What's that ma'am? Soup bones, ye' say? Carry on then, carry on."

Somewhere in the distance a sheepdog barks and the world is a safer place, at least for one more pleasant night in Lenfarthing.

(I ******* love you meanking. I've wanted to see this go down for some time now.)

...and the descendants of the Knockout Plugin, they were IMMOLATED!!

A sheepskin has been posted at the Lenfarthing noticeboard, bearing a message:

Ran into some friends of Faldo Featherfoot's. Strange fellows they were, but they seemed nice enough. One of them called himself th' High Prophet. Servants of the Eye, they fancied themselves. Said they were th' ones tha' destroyed Aegis, but nae ter be troublesome, rather ter begin th' world anew. It would be like when ye' burn a wheat field ter render th' ground fertile fer a new harvest, er when ye' snip a few roses from th' bush so it has th' strength ter grow new buds. They said this was thar intention, but them ones called th' Ascended stood in th' way like greedy weeds 'n' smothered out th' harvest, intent on watchin' th' world burn ter ashes 'n' dust. Aegis was destroyed before th' field could be resown 'n' here we be, as th' story goes.

They said thar be a few of them left alive 'n' they could use some help from a few friendly folk such as us. Offered an eternal life without fear 'n' such. They claim they ne'er laid a hand on Dunwood of old, which from what I hear they tell it true. Said they would watch o'er 'n' protect those who give 'em a helpin' hand. Thar be some rough 'n' troubled times ahead in these lands we live in 'n' methinks we could use a good eye watchin' o'er us. We ain't exactly dragon slayers is what I be sayin' is all. I know I get at least a tad fearful when I hear a bump in th' night these days.

Jes' figured I'd mention it. If'n' ye' see any strange folk around, give 'em a warm welcome as they's most likely friends o' Faldo Featherfoot, keepin' their eye on the smallfolk of Lenfarthin'. A little unusual, mayhaps, 'n' nae much of an appetite or a thirst, which I found a wee bit odd-like, but friendly nonetheless. Mostly harmless if ye' ask me.

That be all. Fine farmin' weather we been 'avin', aye?

- Bango Blackfoot

PS: Found one of th' milk cows grazin' in th' onion patch agin'. That's th' third time this week. Close th' soddin' gate next time. Them poachers 'n' wolves is bad enough trouble as it be.

Definitely explore around before making a decision, but I recommend Kralta for human role-play or the Arcane Delvers if you like magic. Lenfarthing is great, but it's not something I would recommend jumping into when you're new to the server with a group with varied tastes. Kralta, Lenfarthing and the Arcane Delvers are all relatively close to one another anyway. Groups like yours always bring some good to the server, so welcome. Hope you enjoy your time here.

Something goes bump in the night at 7 Lighthouse Lane and 4 Branbrook Bend. The occupants stir briefly for a moment and then roll over in their beds, paying no mind to the faint sound of old hinges creaking in the darkness. The sheepdogs at Lighthouse Lane are sleeping soundly and appear to be well-fed as the morning sun peeks over the hills.

If custom items are being reverted to default, vanilla items, there may be potential for abuse/exploit here. Mugs being converted into flower pots, while clay is currently more rare than iron. Hops being converted to cactus green, which makes it much easier to obtain in bulk. Chain link scrap being converted to iron bars, giving more bar for your buck than crafting, random animal skins being converted to leather, random meats being converted to standard meats. While these may seem like very minor abuses, it will just get worse as more custom items come into play if this continues to go unchecked.

That's why you don't store the Treasury of Oren in a shop plug-in.

((This is a great idea. I've had such a hard time finding books in-game with most places being locked up and players offline. I would have ordered more but I figure you'll have your hands full until we get a Scribe Desk with the new plug-in.))

See, I told you. The staff around here doesn't do anything...

Thanks a lot guys, I mean it. We'll continue to support you in the form of harsh criticisms and a good long, cyclical rant thread at least once a week.

This is great. I've been waiting for more diverse animal drops for over a year now. Lots of nice changes and more to come. Thanks for all the hard work.

Bango Blackfoot draws the hood of his traveling cloak over his head to protect him from the wind. He lights up a smoke, taking his time as he eyeballs the gruesome sight. A thin stream of smoke trails from his nostrils as he looks off towards the wilderness.

"Hard times a'comin'...kin feel it in me knucklebones..."

He scribbles down the symbol into a small notepad and tucks it back into his belt.

"Looks like a watchin' eye. Best cut it down 'n' burn 'n' bury it afore it see's somethin'. Th' ash 'n' bone will do th' wheat some good."

Lock-breaking could be handed out the same as lock-picking. Players would just need to specify in their VA that they are breaking locks and would require a combination of both lock-picking and breaking and entering. Perhaps there could be a sledgehammer item or an axe required that would function similar to lock-picking tools, just to keep the ability tool-based.

Lock-breaking could also make that obnoxious noise that you hear when a zombie tries to claw down a door. Maybe three instances of this. It should be loud and obvious to everyone around.

A tattered old pigskin has been nailed to the noticeboard in Lenfarthing bearing a mysterious message written in crude, black ink.

Need somethin'? Reckon I can find it fer ye'. Leave yer name, yer need 'n' yer burrow 'n' mayhaps one day it'll come ter ye'. Th' tougher it is ter find, th' longer ye' wait. Th' only two rules is put 'er ter good use 'n' dunnae ask where it came from. Ye' kin pay me when ye' sees me in good cheer 'n' merriment, but nae without breakin' rule number two, so follow 'em closely. Locals only, excludin' trolls. Anythin' goes.

The letter bears no signature and the bottom has been stamped with a black, wax seal; the impression resembles a pig's trotter.

A list has been added and seems to be loosely maintained:

Orcish excrement containing trace amounts of Cakeman

Alchemist's Fire

Stones and Iron for Shovels

Bottles of Ink

BOOKSES on TINKERERINGING!

Pick-pockets that run around pick-pocketing and getting caught will just be dealt with accordingly in-game. Either run them down or take it as a loss. Players will need to be more wary of their surroundings and suspicious of those that close in on them. You're also only losing a single, light weight item at a time. Nothing game-breaking, even if you get hit multiple times.

There should be some way to deflect the pick-pocketing attempt though. For example, if you're looking at the thief within a 90 degree sector of frontal vision or if you turn around and spot them as they're setting up for or in the midst of the pick-pocketing, perhaps that should result in a failed attempt and alert you. I would hate to think that a common thief would be able to pick your pockets using game mechanics while you're looking right at them with a sword in your hand, aware of their every move.

Welcome. Another thing you can do is leave a signpost next to the chest saying that you borrowed a thing or two. As long as it's not major stuff, most of us probably won't mind.

The orcish badlands were horribly designed from the get-go and are way too far out there to serve as a proper hub for role-play. I'd really hope to see them get a soulstone pillar a little closer in. Orcs have always done best when they were closer to the Cloud Temple and the ability to return quickly has always helped balance out the awkward mechanics through all of those deadly arena battles. Those bluffs need to fill up with sand and the majority of the desert needs to be devoured by the sea.

That's a simple fix. Just require that lock-pickers perform the proper emotes in addition to using the plug-in. Thieves should still be using signposts and books as well when possible, to leave some sort of trace of the burglary. If they get meta-gamed, that's just too bad. It comes with the territory, but they should never be blowing through a burglary half-assed for fear of getting meta-gamed. A group of five burglars should be putting forth five times the emotes. It's just a risk they have to take.

You shouldn't be fleeing in ten seconds either, that doesn't leave time enough for proper role-play from those that might catch you in the act. If they catch you, you can still attempt to flee. It would take about ten seconds to type and emote a fleeing attempt anyway and even more to wait for a response from the other player.

The lock-picks breaking can be heard for 32 blocks, but that doesn't mean everyone within 32 blocks needs to come running. Players should judge for themselves whether they would have been able to hear this or not and then if it would have been suspicious enough to warrant investigation. Once again, will this be abused? Sure, but that's just the bane of being a thief. You give them the information and they choose how they would respond to it, same as an emote or a whisper or a shout or a visible name.

Be happy with two items. Simple as that. Who cares. We don't need to loot their entire life savings in one day. Come back another day for more. It should be about the thrill of the burglary and the role-play created, not the profitability.

I don't mind the one minute alert or the 32 block alerts. Players will abuse it and meta-game sometimes, just as they do visible names, but that's their loss. If you sprint-hop away after pick-pocketing for fear of meta-gaming, you're also meta-gaming and that's your loss as well. You just missed a role-playing opportunity.

I really, really like the look of this and have nothing to offer on it. I'm actually finishing up my VA for lock-picking as I read over this.

You mention utilities. Will there be Thieves' Tools or something of the sort that are required for lock-picking? This would provide work for Blacksmiths and further limit notorious outlaws. You could have Black Market tinkerers and stuff, which would be pretty cool.

So does this mean thar be no sausages smokin' fer ter break my fast? Uggh, ain't war th' nether...