Norman Osborn

The rhetoric behind your post can essentially be reduced to "we should be nice to each other", which I think is something decent to look at from an aspiratory standpoint. Being nice is good. I don't think there are many people here who can deny that in its most basic form. The simple reality though is that LotC just does not work like that. You've been around long enough to know this; I don't know why you're asking questions you already know the answer to, or what you were expecting people to reply with. Were you hoping for an injection of hope to get you through these trying times? The best advice I can give anyone is to commit themselves to a set of principles and find a few friends. You can't please all people. In my experience, you can't even please most people. All you can do is please yourself, and the best way to do that is find a few principles that are important to you and stick to them. All too often people sell out on this aspect for pixel advancement, so just don't. As for friends, that should be self-explanatory. Not having to be alone makes it easier to stomach toxicity and maybe, just maybe, have a little bit of fun.

Philippe Hakon van der Sainte-Blandine lay sitting on a rigid, uncomfortable cedar chair in the study of Caer der Hoden. He was well informed of the rising tensions between the nations of men and dwarves, and aptly knew that an armed confrontation was nigh certain - after all, Dwarves always fulfill their grudges, be it against a swindling merchant or a brash Emperor. Thousands were to die over a dispute between ten hot-headed skirmishers, a dispute that could have been settled with a conversation rather than a war. But was it truly about a pack of half-men being denied elven ears, or was it something more ingrained, something that could not be settled in a single meeting? The truth, Philippe knew, was that Urguan simply practiced a way of life that was diametrically opposed to that of the Empire's. And where there is disparity, there is turmoil. The Baron of Caer der Hodenn was not idle during the prologue to war, he was writing letters for numerous requisitions. Food, horses, pack animals, camp supplies and other provisions needed to transport and keep his men fed. The clicking of leather shoes against the stone brick floor of the castle resounded as one of his bannermen barged into the study bearing parchment. The Footman performed a crisp salute; "News from Urguan, my liege. The Irehearts have sworn revenge on the Emperor." "Dismissed." Even in spite of his giddiness, Philippe kept a stoic composure. His man saluted once more and exited the room. Reading the contents of the letter, Philippe smiled the sun's smile at the prospect of another feast for crows. "So it begins."

Stefan Vladimirovich lay asleep in the barracks of the modest yet fortified keep of House Carrion, certainly a promotion for the Dobrovian footsoldier when contrasted to his destitute abode dug beneath the hamlet's granary. Rising from his bedroll and the slumber which confined him to it, that Raev bore witness to this strange parchment, pinned to the castle's wooden infrastructure. With the assistance of one local esoteric Saevel, the literately challenged strelt pieced together a response. Name: Stefan Vladimirovich Race: Human Age: Twenty six winters Past Accomplishments: Put my sword through a Herald of Azdromoth, fought through the Tenth Nordling War, scourge of all Elf fornicators in Orenia. ((Discord: Suit#7207)) ((Username: Suitblade))

[!] Numerous dark cloaked figures visit cities and settlements alike, nailing the following message written with letter stamps to any notice board they could find. [!] Let it be known by all that the Mali’ata Rowan Laetheryn has been discoverred a servant of the Titan, a Herald of Azdromoth in light of newly attained evidence. Offer her no quarter or entry to your lands, for she would see the Titan’s influence spread from Oyashima to the Rimevald.

I have constructed this long overdue survey in an attempt to gauge critically needed details as to the server's role-play climate. If you are feeling so inclined, please fill out the survey as objectively and impartially as you can.

The Masked Ranger sat in the snowy hovel in the Rimevaldian with three of his compatriots, a makeshift shelter of woolen tarp and packed snow meant to shield them from the unforgiving elements. He tossed more and more fuel into the fire constructed to keep them warm, though everyone in that hovel knew that there was no braving the Rimevald - only escaping it. The expedition team had constructed a bonfire of grease and ice in an attempt to attract a troll, both to study it's behavior and as a means to leave the Rimevald, as the group's own supplies were dwindling. It only made sense to kill two birds with one stone. Indeed, they had come there to study the Trolls' ecological behaviors; their numbers, health and social hierarchy. The hefty woolen layers they brought proved to be useless against the biting winds and primordial cold, cutting through them as though they were wrought from paper instead of wool and fur. For the ranger and his team, the cold proved to be the only true danger in the Rimevald. Edgar felt something in his bones different from the cold, a kind of pent-up, unleashed intensity in the arctic air, and murmured to Gustaven. "Gustaven, dry up my bowstring by the fire." "Why? I thought you said these creatures were peaceful." "Harmless - not peaceful." Man's first discovery was not fire - it was violence.

yes

How this went from a Vortex announcement to a heated debate on gatekeeping is beyond me. You're right, Alchemy's philosophical nature is just wish-wash said to console those without the app, anything said otherwise is just Nozoa being a (epic, lovable) boomer. People want the potions, otherwise why take the Feat? Thing about LotC is that it's just a chaotic heap of players climbing and clawing over each other, trying to pull more and more BS in order to reach the top for a bit of momentary peace and serenity before someone right below them pulls at their ankles, and they go plummeting towards the ground again. You do it, I do it, Noz does it, everyone does. It falls to the ST that push doesn't come to shove and we start eating each other, which at times involves restricting certain things. Can you really trust the population en masse with electromancer potions? The app isn't the hardest to get if you put in some effort, it's a lot like evocations. You can find someone with the TA to be your OOC overseer if you can't find anyone around you IC. Thing is, people with the TA's are more likely to spend their student slots on people within their immediate vicinity, such as friends. That's just plain logic. And seeing as it takes 3 months for students to teach t3 in Alchemy so that the teacher's slots clear, you can be waiting for awhile. Most new players don't have that kind of patience, which is understandable. I think a good solution would be to let ST members act as OOC overseers, only without the student slots of normal teachers. Or at least a higher amount of slots. That way an aspiring alchemist player can still learn, even if all the teachers they know have all their slots full.

everything that has happened on this thread has happened according to my design

what madness have I inspired...

dog

Sort of disagree here. All the potion does is make you look pretty, at the cost of some fairly rare symbols and one of the ingredients being from a niche player race.

Fae’s Freshener, Gravedigger’s Grime and Termite’s Toxin all seem too weak and niche to be Tier 3 and Rare Knowledge. I’d recommend bumping them down to Tier 1 or 2 and Common. Goblin’s Gold should also be Tier 1, since the coins’ radius attack doesn’t do any actual damage beyond a nuisance or distraction. Greater Green seems a tad unbalanced. Maybe add some kind of counter to its effects or complication in it’s creation, since being able to disable spellcasting is very powerful.

sorry to check your vibe, alpha moist, but isn’t the premise of compacting with voidal horrors already taken?

Would you be so kind as to elaborate why, Lego Boy? Rest assured, I was originally in possession of much more rep for this thread before the forums died.

Flavor, my good man, flavor. I do agree that utilizing Oren and Sutica as the polar representations of this, does present it in a lopsided manner, and I apologize for that, even if I did not deem it necessarily to include every nation. However, I still think you’re neglecting the points displayed with those examples. The main point being that gun and anti-gun opinions are largely distributed on a geographical basis, therefore those who disdain guns can choose to not engage with those who enjoy guns. However, if a gunman goes to Haelun’or and starts packing heat, people are going to have to respond to that RP. Just like if a mage from [Insert Magic Town Here] goes to Helena and tries to chuck a fireball at the Emperor, people are going to have to respond to that RP. Such is why I included the mage example of Oren tolerating mage RP’ers in their cities. If they can do it, why couldn’t the vice versa happen? @LionbiletiIs the formatting any better now?

((The following message was pasted from my comment in the Firearms discussion thread. However, I thought it fitting to copy it onto an Off Topic thread, as to ensure my message is heard instead of lost in the flood of other comments)) I am egregiously inactive on the forums, with me never even updating my character list. The only aspect of my forums account I am proud of, is Ronald Weasley from Harry Potter consuming two drumsticks in tandem. Alas, I feel as though I am compelled by my civic duties as an LotC’er to provide commentary on such a matter. I am pro-gun, yet I comprehend and appreciate the arguments offered by those of anti-gun sentiment. Allow me to rebuke such arguments. The Potential For Guns To Be Powergamed: Virtually every pro-gun person I have had the pleasure of discussing this with, has resolved that guns ought to be reskinned crossbows- nothing more, nothing less. The same emote requirements for loading, the same velocity and speed, the same range and the same stopping power. Even if guns could aptly penetrate plate unlike a crossbow, we would happily accept a reduction in penetration in exchange for simply having guns implemented in a fair, balanced manner. The same attitude of compromise also extends to the concept of pre-loading. The reason for this is due to the fact all we desire, is to pursue a new flavor unexplored on the server thus far. Guns Have Already Been Tried (Medesculers): To compare our vision of guns to medesculers, is simply incorrect. Medesculers were far more unbalanced than a reskinned crossbow. Furthermore, they were made to only be accessible to and enjoyed by mage RP’ers- whereas we desire for firearms to be enjoyed by the masses. Our vision of guns is drastically different from that of Medesculers, and to treat the two as the same, would be flagrantly obtuse and unfair. Nobody Wants Them: If one looks at the poll attached to this thread, then it must be acknowledged that most do not want guns. However, it is hardly a landslide. 47 to 53 percent or 200 to 220 players. Just because anti-gun sentiments barely obtained a majority, does not mean the wants of 200 players should be neglected. Furthermore, the desire for guns is geographically distributed- human hubs such as Helena are pro-gun, while nonhuman hubs tend to be anti-gun. These two ideologies do not need to directly mingle, as they can remain in their own hubs. That separation-by-preference also extends to Canonist RP, Magic RP, Crime RP or any other sort of RP niche you may or may not enjoy. Why would a Sutican mage RP’er go to Oren? Guns Are Too Modern: The argument I see spawn in such debates constantly. To say that LotC is a rehashing of LotR by nature, and should always remain that way, is quite frankly narrow-minded. 200 players want LotC to have guns, for purely aesthetic reasons (refer to Point 1). So what we want to roleplay the colonial era with our powdered wigs and flintlock weapons? That is the flavor we want, and even if other communities disdain it, they do not need to actively engage said flavor (refer to Point 3). If Oren can tolerate mages casting spells in their cities, places such as Sutica or Aegrothond can tolerate people going into their cities with flintlocks. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

I am egregiously inactive on the forums, with me never even updating my character list. The only aspect of my forums account I am proud of, is Ronald Weasley from Harry Potter consuming two drumsticks in tandem. Alas, I feel as though I am compelled by my civic duties as an LotC’er to provide commentary on such a matter. I am pro-gun, yet I comprehend and appreciate the arguments offered by those of anti-gun sentiment. Allow me to rebuke such arguments. The Potential For Guns To Be Powergamed: Virtually every pro-gun person I have had the pleasure of discussing this with, has resolved that guns ought to be reskinned crossbows- nothing more, nothing less. The same emote requirements for loading, the same velocity and speed, the same range and the same stopping power. Even if guns could aptly penetrate plate unlike a crossbow, we would happily accept a reduction in penetration in exchange for simply having guns implemented in a fair, balanced manner. The same attitude of compromise also extends to the concept of pre-loading. The reason for this is due to the fact all we desire, is to pursue a new flavor unexplored on the server thus far. Guns Have Already Been Tried (Medesculers): To compare our vision of guns to medesculers, is simply incorrect. Medesculers were far more unbalanced than a reskinned crossbow. Furthermore, they were made to only be accessible to and enjoyed by mage RP’ers- whereas we desire for firearms to be enjoyed by the masses. Our vision of guns is drastically different from that of Medesculers, and to treat the two as the same, would be flagrantly obtuse and unfair. Nobody Wants Them: If one looks at the poll attached to this thread, then it must be acknowledged that most do not want guns. However, it is hardly a landslide. 47 to 53 percent or 200 to 220 players. Just because anti-gun sentiments barely obtained a majority, does not mean the wants of 200 players should be neglected. Furthermore, the desire for guns is geographically distributed- human hubs such as Helena are pro-gun, while nonhuman hubs tend to be anti-gun. These two ideologies do not need to directly mingle, as they can remain in their own hubs. That separation-by-preference also extends to Canonist RP, Magic RP, Crime RP or any other sort of RP niche you may or may not enjoy. Why would a Sutican mage RP’er go to Oren? Guns Are Too Modern: The argument I see spawn in such debates constantly. To say that LotC is a rehashing of LotR by nature, and should always remain that way, is quite frankly narrow-minded. 200 players want LotC to have guns, for purely aesthetic reasons (refer to Point 1). So what we want to roleplay the colonial era with our powdered wigs and flintlock weapons? That is the flavor we want, and even if other communities disdain it, they do not need to actively engage said flavor (refer to Point 3). If Oren can tolerate mages casting spells in their cities, places such as Sutica or Aegrothond can tolerate people going into their cities with flintlocks. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

@HotArcanismBeam Is it possible for a magic to be so weak, that it’s actually unbalanced on the other end of the spectrum? Nah but seriously, this could just be RP’d with household magic. The concept of telekinesis is not terrible and can work on LotC, you just need to put in the effort to make it work. Use the methods we talked about in PM’s: provide tangible numbers (emote count, mph, weight, damage) and emphasize aspects of gravity that do not have to do with lifting objects (kinetic blasts, levitation, etc). Any lore can work on LoTC if you make it work.

People are always going to find ways to avoid RP consequences. At least Seer of Vaseek and Runic eyes have weakness/downsides. Seer of Vaseek can only be used up to a certain range, while Runic body parts slowly kill the person. When any edgelord can just get their maims reversed via Cloud Temple without any downsides, this is the best deal we are ever going to get.