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Powergaming in Combat Introduction Right, this is likely a bad time to write and post this given the heated atmosphere surrounding the topic in the latest days, but I and others feel that perhaps now is the opportune time to clear up some things and aim to prevent some arising concerns from coming to mass fruition. Blame Bagley, he told me to do this now. I had planned to give it a week before making another post, but hey ho time to continue on. Seriously, blame him. He smells really bad. Anyhow, on to the topic. In this thread I will not be covering what powergaming is, as I have done that in this thread, I will, however, be covering Powergaming directly in combat, how to avoid powergaming and the best course of action to take if you are confronted with a Powergamer. It was never specified how long this will be, but to avoid super paragraphs I’ll try and be concise and to the point. How to avoid Powergaming I am going to go off the assumption that all reading this are directly aware what Powergaming is. If you do not, however, please refer to the thread linked above in the introduction. As for powergaming in combat, a simple explanation would be “being too powerful or using mechanics too overpowered to forcibly emerge victorious in a roleplay fight, even if it made no sense to do so.” So how do I avoid powergaming? It isn’t easy to spot a power gamer from a simple Minecraft skin, and it often requires you to engage in roleplay to understand the full extent of their powergaming nature. There isn’t anything you can directly do to avoid finding powergamers, however there are some things you can do to avoid being a powergamer. Here is a bullet list, for ease of reading, which can help you discern whether or not you are powergaming: Avoiding of *dodges* every incoming attack. Using emotes which assume the outcome of an attack. When attacking someone, you attempt to attack someone, you cannot assume your attack is successful. Ex. *kills him / *grabs and throws him. / *breaks his nose. | You cannot assume what result your attack will give. Using overly complicated emotes to get out of an inescapable scenario. Ex. Two men have you chained to a wall, you use your slippery skin to get out, overpower the guards and run away. Being unrealistic. One old man will not be able to beat two fully armoured men. Not giving your opponent time to react. If you string together a list of attacks, and an escape before someone can even respond, you’re doing it wrong. Like above, you cannot assume to be able to predict the defense your opponent may have. Doing stupid things like backflipping out of situations. Stalling a situation and waiting for your buddies to pop up and help you, whilst mainly a metagaming issue, is worth a mention here. Character have flaws, no one is perfect and no matter what you do, in real life and roleplay, someone will always be better than you. No one wants to lose, but losing is more beneficial (most of the time) than winning. Losing helps your character develop, gives them more purpose. If you’re better than everyone at everything, what is the point? Character Development is a subject I’ll be touching on soon in another thread, but I think it needs to be partially said here. Having an OP character isn’t fun for you, it isn’t fun for me and it isn’t fun for anyone else either. So follow this bullet list to ensure your character has room to develop, and prevents people getting irritated at any powergaming ways. Give your character an equal amount of weaknesses as you have strengths. Give your character a goal, something to accomplish. Make this goal difficult to reach, but do not make it impossible. Work for this goal, have it impact your character in various ways when you do not immediately achieve it. Shoot for a physical weakness, such as blindness in one eye to lower the depth of your field of view, or a rigid shoulder which locks up during combat. Do not forget your weaknesses in combat. If your character is blind in one eye, play to that. You won’t be an expert in sword combat if you’re unable to discern where your opponent is. Do not be afraid to lose. Now I know, I know this goes against human nature but go against this base instinct. Try to win, for sure, but always stick within the realm of reality and what makes sense for your character. Make sensible moves, be realistic. You cannot just ‘get out’ of a grip, you need to be sure. Be emotive, explain your movies. Do not over complicate everything. Remember you’re roleplaying with someone else, they need to be able to understand what you’re saying. How to deal with Powergaming Those who powergame are often regarded as ‘new players’. People new to the server, people knew to Roleplay in general generally are the most at fault for this. Powergaming is bad, and I’m sure I can speak for everyone when I say that dealing with a Powergamer is no easy task. There is, however, a way that most people have taken to dealing with powergamers, and that is to powergame back. This isn’t okay, this isn’t proper and it simply perpetuates the problem. A powergamer will simply start to believe that powergaming is the norm, and there is nothing wrong with that. Handling a powergamer takes time, and it isn’t always something you want to do. So, if someone is powergaming and you don’t want to handle them or spend the time to teach them what to do, do one of the following: Refer them to this thread. Refer them to google what powergaming is, and ask them to amend this. Refer them to an Application Team member, they are responsible to watch over and assist new players. Report them to a GM. GMs will take the necessary steps after this. If, however, you do have the time and you want to teach whem what to do, do as I have instructed above. For clarification, here is a few steps: Inform the player via PM that what they are doing is known as powergaming, and is against the rules on this server. Refer them to this power, or explain to them what powergaming is. Explain to them how they were in fact powergaming, and what they should have done instead. Explain why it is against the rules, and ask them to either try again or to be more mindful of this in the future. Profit. If, and this will happen, the player refuses to listen or simply continues in his ways, screenshot the conversation and post a BR on the forums. Staff will handle it from there. Under no circumstances should you get angry and yell at them, or simply powergame in return. This is not helpful. Closing Be mindful of others and adhere to the server rules. Remember what was said and try to guide people into being better at what they do. I do acknowledge that it can become a pain to handle, and I do understand how some people simply cannot be bothered to deal with repetitive behaviour. Some people simply do not wish to listen or learn, and we all get that. Instead of getting mad, however, simply submit a modreq saying ‘X was powergaming in <location>, and refuses to listen.” and simply go on your way. Yes, modreqs sometimes go unanswered, and yes it won’t be responded to instantly. But what does that matter? You’ve given the location, for which the GMs can look into and handle outside of your involvement. You can continue on with your day. Even if it isn’t dealt with or looked at, at least you don’t need to handle it. Powergaming isn’t fun for anyone, and with the Defender Default trial, there may be an increase in powergaming. Following what was said above may be able to aid and prevent the growth of the aforementioned. Thank you for reading. -Thomas

Bonus Conduct - Out-of-Character Manipulation Introduction Welcome back again, okay okay. Forgive the shortage of these, with the War Claim and a host of other things I figured a brief break would be nice. Anyhow, this one is going to be a little short given the singular topic. There isn’t a great deal of stuff to cover, but I’ll do my best to be as concise and explain as much as I possibly can. Once again, I shall bold all the important parts so anyone reading who doesn’t want to read every last word can skim over the necessary parts. What is Manipulation? So, here we go again. Oh man. To manipulate, in this definition, is to “control or influence (a person or situation) cleverly or unscrupulously”. Manipulation is considered a negative thing to do, for good reason. To control someone or a scenario is generally seen as possessive, though it entirely depends. Manipulation can be used for good, and when it comes to roleplay, being manipulative is almost a necessity in politics. However, this can only be said for things that occur in character. Manipulating someone in character for their land, their money or their resources is entirely possible and oftentimes encouraged to provide and entertaining experience. Out-of-Character Manipulation Now let’s get to the point of the post. In-Character manipulation? That’s allowed. Manipulation Out-of-Character? That is not allowed. Manipulating a real life person for anything, not just for your own aspirations in character, is disallowed, against the rules and downright wrong. Anything in roleplay should and must stay specifically in character, and anything out of character should and must stay specifically out of character. If someone does something against you out of character, you are expected to take the necessary measures to ensure that person is punished for what they have done. By this, I mean reporting them to the appropriate member of authority. (AKA Server Staff, or in severe cases the police). It should not, however, leak into your character decisions. How about some examples: The Scenario Player A and Player B are having are not exactly the closest of friends. Player A and B are in a skype chat, and Player A isn’t particularly being the nicest of individuals. Player B calls A out on it, explaining their behaviour will not be tolerated and essentially sasses Player A out. Player A is upset with this, and because of that A starts to speak poorly about Player B in all kinds of chats. The scenario escalates so much so that Player A and Player B begin to rival one another Out-of-Character. Because of this, Player A decides that he wants to spite and attack Player B because of the scenarios occurring OOC. Player A then targets each of Player B’s characters, either wanting them killed or exiled, sent away to a location which will essentially make the character unplayable for Player B. The Problem This one is as simply as the others. Player A, despite the arguments and disputes with Player B, should not resort to leaking Out-of-Character into the In-Character world. This is not allowed, and essentially makes the entire situation and atmosphere unpleasant for everyone. Especially if Player A is of an influential position, and can cause sufficient damage to Player B. not only can this make Player B feel disinterested in playing their characters, it may also make them reluctant to create a character of the same type or even another character in general, out of fear of being targeted. This isn’t fair, for anyone involved. The Solution The solution here is simple. Do not leak anything Out-of-Character into In-Character. It is not allowed, and it isn’t fair for any parties involved. Simply put, the solution is to not let the two worlds cross. It causes problems, and not only can it lead to meta and powergaming, it causes disinterest and loss in motivation for anyone in the damage radius. If you are having problems with someone Out-of-Character, leave it out of character. If it reaches a point of problem, then report it to the appropriate people and allow them to handle it. Under no circumstances should people be afraid of role playing or creating new character out of fear of being targeted. Summary In brief? Don’t do it. It’s easy to want to punish someone or hurt someone because of Out-of-Character stuff, and no one will blame you for wanting to do that; however, it cannot actually happen. It’s not tolerated, in any means. As I have mentioned several times so far, it’s demotivating and inappropriate to target someone just for out of character means or measures. Never do this, never. You wouldn’t like it if it is done to you, so why should you do it to others? Limiting the Roleplay experience for someone simply because they’ve ticked you off Out-of-Character not only makes no sense In-Character, but it causes mass detriment to the server and roleplaying scene as a whole. But yep, all done. Cool stuff. Once again, questions, corrections. It’ll help us all. -Tahmas (Thomas) (Don’t be a nerd. Don’t be uninformed. Ask the questions. Do it.)

Roleplay Conduct - Powergaming v Camaraderie Introduction Oh boy, okay okay. Third installment. Do you know how long these take to write? Long, and I’m in the middle of watching Macbeth, the 2015 version with Michael Fassbender. It is sweeeet. ANYHOW. Time to move on and actually get to the purpose of this post. Like the first, and second post, this will cover two different topics. It will explain the specifics of each, citing examples and doing a whole lot of talking. Once agaaain, I shall bold all the important parts and summarise in the final paragraph or two. I’ll do my best to cover the topics in as much detail while trying to retain as much of your attention as possible. As I have mentioned in previous topics, once again, many people tend to perceive Roleplay Conduct and Etiquette in a decisively opinionated and varied view from what is generally expected. Because of this, I am continuing to make these to hopefully inform the masses. As an aside, I’m going to break these into two different posts tonight cause there is a lot to cover. So, what is Powergaming? Here we go again. Time to break down the meaning of Powergaming to it’s core. So what does Powergaming literally mean? Well, “Powergaming is a style of interacting with games or game-like systems, particularly video games, boardgames, and role-playing games, with the aim of maximising progress towards a specific goal, to the exclusion of other considerations such as storytelling, atmosphere and camaraderie.” To me, that’s a pretty clear and solid explanation of what Powergaming is. In case you don't understand, I'll try and expand. What this means, is that Powergaming is an action where you take every possible action to reach a certain goal. This could be winning a fight, for instance. While this seems pretty standard and okay, it’s more-so often referred to as “being too powerful and strong so it’s unfair on others”. Powergaming is often used synonymously with God-Roleplay. So what can this include? Well, for one, buffing up your character so they’re increasingly intelligent or strong, so much so that any combatant they come across can hardly lay a finger on them. Having a skilled character is fun, and of course it makes sense for some characters to be more skilled and some things than others; however, when used to extreme levels, it can cause some characters to become not only dis-interested in roleplaying with you, but unmotivated in general to roleplay given the serious overpowered nature of some characters. As one can assume, this has a very negative effect on the server, and on everyone involved. Powergaming in Combat? To start, let’s get this clear. Combat does not actually work as it does in the movies. It doesn’t, as much as it sucks to hear it. For sword fighting, take a look at these two videos, here and here, and unarmed combat here. While in movies, combat is drawn out over the span of a couple of minutes, with each opponent getting closer and closer to victory. This really isn’t how it worked. Combat is quick, and is over in a matter of seconds. Even in hand to hand combat, the fight begins and seconds later it’s over. Let’s get some examples up in here: The scenario: Player A and Player B are squaring off to fight. Player A is somewhat capable with a blade, having served in a local militaristic order and having a form of martial upbringing. Player B is more or less the same, perhaps being a member of the same belligerent order. Player A engages Player B, and a fight commences. A decides to strike with a very offensive tactic, pushing Player B back with each blow. Although it would appear Player B is being bested, B pushes back A and deflects every incoming attack, choosing to take no hits for his character during the battle and eventually he uses a systematic and complicated maneuver to best Player A and win the duel. The problem: While Player A may have gone on the offensive and exhausted efforts, Player B effortlessly deflected every incoming attack. This isn’t exactly realistic. Why? Well, as stated above, combat doesn’t work that way. I’m not going to give a long lecture about how combat actually works, but what I will say is that deflecting every incoming attack and winning a duel that easily against someone the same skill level of you is incredibly unlikely. Plus, it isn’t entirely fun now is it? No one wants a character to be too overpowered, you limit your fun and everyone around you. That, and it limits character development. The solution: I like these example formats, they’re cuuute. Once again, apologies for getting sidetracked. So we’ve identified a problem here, so what’s the solution? Firstly, the best thing to do for everyone is to look at your character. Are they flawed? If so, good. IF not, why? Where is the fun in having no flaws? Secondly, take into consideration the fun you’re having, and the fun the other people are having. Imagine yourself in their shoes, would you enjoy this? No one likes to win all the time, and you need to lose to get better. Lastly, maybe do some research? I know reading and watching videos about combat isn't’ the most entertaining of things, but it’s all that can be done I suppose. Powergaming in Politics? Ahah. Okay, I can’t believe I’m writing this but yes. Powergaming in Politics is possible. Having a character that can outsmart the entire political system of an organisation alone isn’t proper, nor is it very fun. If you want to dismantle an organisation or an entire political system, go for it. If that’s what your character would do, of course. Although, look for help. Don’t do it alone. It makes no logical sense that a single person, without help, managed to cripple an entire organisation. What is Camaraderie? I seriously this isn’t actually a question anyone is actually asking, but I’ll take it’s rhetoric and answer it anyway. So, Camaraderie, by definition, is “mutual trust and friendship among people who spend a lot of time together.” Do we all spend a lot of time together? I’d say so. If you’re here reading this post, no doubt you’re actually commonly versed with the realms of minecraft and because of that, likely occupy your time with it quite often. Due to this, it’s no doubt you spend a fair amount of time with each and everyone on of us in one way or another. Simply put, we play this together and we enjoy it together, whether we all interact with one another or not. We’re all here to have fun, and it’s oftentimes, as mentioned in a previous post, that we all come here to have fun. Why is Camaraderie important to the Server, and each of us? For whatever reason we come to play, we’re all here for one underlying reason. Fun. And because of that, it’s sort of the duty of each of us to ensure that others are having fun. Would you like it if someone did something to compromise your fun on here? I’d wager that as a no, and I’m fairly certain that would be the answer of all of us. Because of this, we should take pre-emptive measures to ensure we don’t hurt other people's gameplay in the same way we’d hate it done to us. Extensive powergaming can do this, and it isn’t nice. If we’re not having fun, people leave the server. If people leave the server, the server loses player retention. If the server loses retention, it loses new traffic. If it loses traffic, it cannot draw in new players. Thus no more donations, thus no more people coming to enjoy themselves. It’s a vicious slope which would end in the Server being unable to sustain itself, and eventually needing to close down. So if you ever think that being mean to someone for no reason won’t ever come back to bite your backside, then you’re wrong. But hey, at the end of the day the choice is yours. People are banned and punished for the reason of protecting the players and keeping the server moving. Camaraderie just prevents that, and offers a more fun and enticing environment for not only new players, but yourself too. Summary Hi, what’s up, hello. Yes I wanted to keep this post ‘short’, there wasn’t much to cover and I’m going to assume that most people will understand what I’ve said. I have a lot to write up tonight so I tried to be as brief but informative as possible. If you have any questions, please please ask them, I can help and provide extra insight on things I’ve missed.. and no doubt I’ve missed things. Love you bye. -Tahmas (Thomas) (really, really. Ask questions, it’ll help you and I both, trust me, I’m a lawyerman. )

Roleplay Conduct - MetaGaming v Convenience Introduction Greetings again,. I figured I’d pump these out consecutively to ensure no interest is lost when reading through them. Hopefully this one will retain the same kind of loose and lighthearted as the first post, so I’ll get right ahead to it. For this post, I’ll be covering the specifications regarding MetaGaming and it’s difference to Roleplay Convenience. I’ll go over the definitions and provide some examples. This post will be fairly extensive, so I’ll try to add a TL;DR at the bottom of each section I type up and I’ll bold some things as I go along to ensure that nothing is missed, and those with short attention spans receive the information necessary to understand the purpose of this post. As mentioned in the previous topic, many different people tend to hold differing opinions on Roleplay Conduct and Etiquette, and those differing opinions are what I hope to solve/unite. So what exactly is MetaGaming? Much alike my breakdown of conduct, I will now explain the fundamentals of MetaGaming. As per its definition, Roleplay is “a strategy, action or method used in a game which transcends a prescribed ruleset, uses external factors to affect the game, or goes beyond the supposed limits or environment set by the game. Another definition refers to the game universe outside of the game itself.” So what exactly does this mean? This means that your character is bound by a certain set of rules in regards to information and actions that that character currently knows. This can include information found Out-of-Character, certain skills which your character could not feasibly be aware of, or simply having information In-Character about something your character couldn’t possibly know. After communication with Server Staff and a host of players, it has been determined that whilst MetaGaming is technically a break in character, there can be some allowed exceptions to this rule. This will come under the convenience section. Instead, we defined MetaGaming as taking something which you couldn’t possibly know in an In-Character scenario which provides a negative impact on the scene. Examples of this are: The scenario: Player A tends to his family farm, having known no other life than the wheat he picks from the fields. A is about 15 years old, and works for his father. His Father wasn’t too interesting, he worked the farm like his father before him, and his father before him. They never really left the farm unless they needed to travel to the local village for supplies, never visiting any major city or interacting with anyone higher than that of a simple farmhand. Player B wanders along and asks Player A what the know a war which occurred 50 years ago. Because Player A, as a real life person, was present during this war that was played out, his character suddenly replies to Player B with intricate details in regards to the storyline of the war. The problem: Do you see a problem here? I hope so, because I do too. Player A’s 15 year old character has somehow accumulated knowledge on a war half a century past due to some strange symbiotic connection they have with the person playing the character. In reality, Player A’s character would shake his head and move on, as it is entirely likely that he wouldn’t even know who was fighting who in a war so distant in which his family played no part. The correction: Player A would feasibly know next to nothing of this conflict. “But what do I say, wouldn’t that limit conversational roleplay?” I hear you ask. Well, the answer is a mixture of both. Yes, it may limit the conversation to some extent. Okay, you know nothing of the war so you are unable to inform the person you’re speaking to about the things you may know Out-of-Character; however, as an opposition to this, you can continue and return the question to the person asking. Chances are, if they are asking about it, they know a thing or two about the scenario, and to continue the conversation and propel roleplay forward, you switch the focus of instigation to yourself. Have them tell you all about it. “And what if they don’t know either?” Then revel in that fact. You both know nothing of the war, so find something new to talk about. Or talk about how your character feels about being stuck on a farm, and being unable to learn all this information. How about another example? The scenario: Player A is raiding City 1 with a group of his friends, A.1, A.2 and A.3. They reach the settlement and find a large city, with many houses and many public buildings. They are looking forward to finding people to beat down and ravage for minas or valuables which they can later sell. Player B is in his house with his wife, B.1 and his son, B.2. This house is tucked away and near no public buildings. Player A’s sees the name tags of the three and walks straight up to that house. The A’s kick down the door and loot the house, beating the family and stealing their precious items. They then leave. The problem: City 1, as stated, was rather large with many houses and public buildings. Player A, even after seeing Player B and his family’s name tags, should not have walked straight towards that house. Player A’s character cannot see through walls, and name tags are not to be taken In-Character. “But Raiders could check every house and eventually find them!” I hear you cry; and you’re right. But not in the way you think. Player B, as stated, walked straight up to the house and kicked down the door, even though his character couldn’t have realistically known anyone inside. The correction: The correction to this is simple. Don’t think that because you can see their name tag, that you can take that In-Character. What should have occurred, was Player B and his group moving through the city to the public buildings and searching them for people. Upon realising no one was nearby, they would start on the houses. They’d start on those closest to the public buildings and work their way through the city, kicking down doors until they found someone. If at this point, after searching other houses and more likely buildings, they stumble across Player A and family, that’s completely fine and correct conduct. There is nothing wrong with this, as they searched each house for people and eventually found them. However, in contrast, it is very likely that Player A and family would hear the commotion outside and could use this as a chance to escape. In contradiction to that, the A group could only vacate when the raiders are close enough to the house that the sound of bursting doors would be heard, and not the moment they see names. Alright great, you just explained MetaGaming. So what about Convenience? This is where is gets somewhat tricky. It can often be said that Roleplay Convenience can be taken as partial Metagaming. It isn’t entirely different, and it isn’t too difficult to understand, however it must be noted there is a difference. While using information you have acquired Out-of-Character for negative purposes, such as spotting where someone is hiding, is called MetaGaming, using information you have acquired Out-of-Character for positive purposes and to better the entire roleplaying scenario is seen as Convenience and is often permitted to an extent. The tricky part of this is being able to determine whether using a piece of information you have garnered Out-of-Character will affect everyone in a neutral or positive way, and unfortunately no amount of writing will be able to teach you how to do that; however, what I can add, is that a general rule of thumb to adhere to is “If this was done towards me, how would I feel?” or “Does this interrupt the Roleplay experience in any way?” or lastly, “Is there any feasible way this could actually make sense In-Character?”. Once you have determined the answer to these three questions, you’re ready to start. Examples of how ‘MetaGaming’ can be used to enhance Roleplay are as follows: The scenario: Player A is roleplaying in City 1. Player A is lonely and is looking for people to roleplay with, so A contacts his Out-of-Character friend, Player B, in Private Message, or on any platform outside of roleplay, and asks them to come to City 1 to roleplay. Player B is in City 2, and technically has no reason at all to go to City 1 other than the Out-of-Character reasoning to entertain Player A. Player B ends up wandering over to City 1 to entertain Player A. The explanation: “Isn’t this technically MetaGaming?” You’re probably asking, and you’d be correct. Yes, it’s true, Player B had no reason whatsoever to go over to City 1 and entertain Player A other than Out-of-Character motives. But what was produced from this? Roleplay. The two likely had some fun and engaging conversational roleplay, which possibly escalated into some really interesting Character Development. The bottom line here is that Roleplay was provided. Good roleplay, roleplay that didn’t resort in anything necessarily negative coming from this. Player B didn’t gain an advantage from going to City 1, he didn’t manage to assert him/herself over Player A, he/her simply managed to provide enjoyment to both parties by doing so. How would the situation need to go for it to be MetaGaming?: Say for instance, Player A and his group, A.1, A.2 and A.3 are all beating down Player B in the middle of nowhere. Player B then messages Player C Out-of-Character and asks for help. Or maybe Player B hops onto Skype or Teamspeak and asks for assistance from his friends, D, E, F and G. They suddenly and miraculously appear out of nowhere and beat Player A and his group. While similar to the scenario above, this action is interpreted as MetaGaming as it is seen as a negative impact on one or all parties involved. In-Character reasoning: Alright, alright. I get the difference. MetaGaming provides a negative response, Convenience provides a positive one. So what could I use In-Character to explain this ‘convenience’? Simply put, it’s pretty much down to you. Carrier Pigeons are a thing, as are messengers. These can be used as an explanation, or you can simply make something up. As long as it makes sense, of course. You cannot say “I telepathically figured out you were here, friendo.”. So what’s your overarching point here? I aim for everyone to understand the difference between MetaGaming and Convenience Roleplay. The difference between conveniently appearing in a certain area which you wouldn’t normally be to provide a positive response, and ‘conveniently’ appearing to jump to someone's aid and provide a negative reaction for one or all parties involved like some kind of troubled minecraft social justice warrior. Not everyone understands this difference, and I’m hoping that this post will have cleared up a few contentions (there’s that word again. Eeee.) and helps those who are currently out of the loop understand what is expected of them. Roleplay is supposed to be fun for us all, and instigating and providing roleplay as an antagonist or protagonist in certain scenarios is fun, as long as you don’t overdo it. Be wary and cautious of all involved and take that into account before deciding whether to do anything listed above. Oh! Thomas, you forgot something. What about MetaGamed skills, can they be used in Convenience too? Hrrmm, urrr. No. They can’t, unfortunately. As much as it may provide a positive outcome for you to suddenly know first-aid or get over your squeamishness in a situation simply because your friend is dying out on the ground, it provides a negative outcome to the person who inflicted that on someone, and you simply cannot come up with an In-Character reason for it. New skills aren’t acquired, they are cultivated. A young sales merchant will likely not possess the required knowledge to stop the bleeding of a crossbow bolt to the shoulder blade, let alone holding the information needed to know to cut of the arrowhead and pull the shaft out first. Logic dictates all. Can your character logically or possibly know/do this? If the answer is yes, it’s probably convenience. If no, then it’s MetaGaming. Summary? Why do I make these things so ruddy long. Anyway, that should be all of it. As a closing summary: Information or Skills acquired Out-of-Character cannot transcend into In-Character unless they have any form of logical explanation for doing so. There is a difference between Convenience and MetaGaming, one is positive, one is negative. While it’s ‘technically’ MetaGaming, it’s permitted and often encouraged. Roleplay is what keeps the server moving and without it, the server would grind and jarr until it started moving again. Providing and instigating roleplay is great, and it keeps everyone interested and engaged. To do this, sometimes some things need to be used to enhance the experience, as long as it’s used in a positive way and all parties involved agree to it. That’s the most important part. Though this has gone on too long and I am super hungry for dinner, so woop woop. I hope you had fun reading, expect the next one tomorrow or on Friday 12th, I’m not too sure how busy I’ll be tomorrow. Love you bye. -Tahmas (Thomas) (once again feel free to ask questions on the thread about the up and coming discussions, or about the topic at hand. Or anything really. Go wild, go nuts..)

Roleplay Conduct: Introduction Introduction Lord of the Craft is based on Roleplay. It breathes Roleplay: it bleeds Roleplay. Roleplay pushes this server forward and is the core component to every single thing on the server. It’s prided itself in this, as it should, and the pride it’s taken has proven to be a large benefit to the Player-base. The Whitelist feature of the server helps weed out those just wishing to troll, and those who currently do not fit the criteria for the Roleplaying standard of the server. Due to this, massive contentions arise across the Roleplaying scene. These mostly culminate in a series of forms that not everyone seems to adhere to. Some tend to hold a different ideal on how Roleplay should work, which is all well and good, but there are a few guidelines which everyone must follow to ensure everyone enjoys themselves. After a few less than savoury scenarios which prompted me to do some research and communication with the Server Staff in regards to the view of the now discussed, I decided to make a small mini series of topics on the RP conduct nature and delve into the specifics in regards to RP customs and regulations which are generally put in place to ensure all are enjoying the Server’s Roleplay universe. This mini series will cover and hopefully clear up any contention between some common misunderstandings. I will cite references and sources, and have ensured that everything I have said has been approved by those who manage the Server to ensure complete transparency with what I say. So let’s get right into it. What is Roleplay Conduct? This is going to get mundane, and I’m going to apologise for that now. To understand and delve into problems around, you need to break it down to its fundamental core and build up from there. So, conduct by definition is “the manner in which a person behaves, especially in a particular place or situation”. So what is Roleplay Conduct? If it wasn’t fairly obvious, and I hope I don’t beat a dead horse or prompt anyone to feel belittled by this clarification, Roleplay Conduct is how one presents themselves and how they behave when Roleplaying. This can occur anywhere, on any server and even in real life. (Not particularly Mommy and Daddy, Doctor's dress up type roleplaying you did as kids) Why is positive Roleplay Conduct important? Positivity is vital in many scenarios, most importantly when handling other people. Many people are cynical and like being negative, and that’s completely fine. If that fits you as a person, wonderful. You do you, but much like offering a lactose-intolerant person cheese, you really shouldn’t shove it in their face. The Internet is vast and filled with all kinds of people, some are here to make the Internet a lighter place, some are here to make it darker. Then there are those who use the Internet, and in many many cases, Roleplay, as an escape from Real Life. This isn’t always as depressing as you’d think it may be, but people use Roleplay as a way to express themselves in a way they never thought possible in their day to day runnings of the real world. Someone may wish to be an adventurer in real life, so as a substitute they create a character who lives to explore and delve into new endeavours as a way to satiate the thirst in their real life. If someone is having a particularly troubling time outside of the Internet, they usually resort to coming online in search of escape or just a treatment to what they are feeling. Because of this, it’s a general rule of thumb to act like a good ol’ bloke with everyone you come across. Who knows what they’re going through in the real world. Because of this, positivity is a very important thing. “You’ve sidetracked”, I assume you’re thinking, and you’re right. I do that; I rant. Back on topic, however: as we just established, positivity is important. “But what positivity in Roleplay?” “What if I want my character to be rude and negative?”. Good questions, and no one is asking for your character to be a good guy. If you want your character to be abrasive, mendacious and cynical and then by all means go for it. Give it your all, be negative! What I’m referring to here; however, is the focus of being positive in regards to the guidelines of Roleplay, and how to act when Out-of-Character. This, of course, is in regards to the infamous ‘Metagaming’, and ‘Powergaming’. Both of these topics I will cover in following posts. Having a positive Roleplay Conduct is important because it helps everyone feel welcome, prevents people from feeling targeted. The last thing anyone wants is to feel targeted In-Character because of something that occurred Out-of-Character, or for their concerns to not be heard. So what are you getting at here? I’m really bad at staying on point, so I’ll try and re-rail myself. Roleplay is fun for us all, it’s something we come to do and if you don’t enjoy roleplay; I’m not sure why you’re on Lord of the Craft. Following a decent set of guidelines is vital to ensuring everyone receives the maximum enjoyment any one individual can, and allows everyone to understand what is expected from them as people. There are many who do not take this into account, and just do as they please. We get it, it’s the internet, and you want to mess around. But there are people here who are trying to enjoy themselves, and for their leisure to be interrupted because someone wishes to break or provide negative conduct, is not something which should be taken lightly. In the followings topics posted by myself over the coming week, I will try and highlight certain areas of negative conduct and expand on them, detailing specifically what they are and how an individual can take a step in the right direction. I’ll cite examples of negative and positive scenarios, and provide as much additional content as I can. Summary? Be a good human being? I’m not pandering to everyone here, and of course there will be some people who will just be bullheaded and ignore me, which I suppose is all fine. I’ll be making a bunch of posts in the coming days in regards to the appropriate RP Conduct all should follow, to certify that everyone is on the same wavelength on how they should act. Hopefully this will prevent Conduct violations, and resolve any future misunderstandings or longstanding contentions between different Roleplaying communities. Yay for bridges? I don’t know. They’re good I suppose. That’s pretty much all for this post. It’s about 1am, and I’ve spent the entire night on Teamspeak and Skype chatting with a host of fun and interesting people. I wanted to whip this up and post it as quick as possible to notify any who care of what is to come, to stay tuned within the coming days. I probably should have bulked out (or thinned down) the content in this post, but I wanted to make it as lighthearted as possible so I don’t seem like some sheriff shouting laws to the locals about how some of them should behave. But I am tired, so I’m going to go to bed. Love you bye. -Tahmas (Thomas) (also feel free to ask questions on the thread about the up and coming discussions, or about anything in general. I’d love to clear up any contentions. I love that word, can you tell?) (double also, if this is in the wrong section, feel free to move it <3)

Aterruce'tras - Ape Creatures Seiges Snow Apes Sinha Snow Lion Maimou Pink Apes Ektos Jungle Outlaw Phindar Fighting Beast OOC Hello fellow peoples and hunters of LOTC, yes I am aware these creatures are from something else just edited. But hey there’s many things in lore or such that are on the server from different places, so why not give it a shot. Anyway to give a short idea for these creatures and maybe questions. Are the creatures playable ? Yes and no… I’d think it would be better if an ET actor would play the creatures, because there will not be a skin for the monsters. I find that rather hard to make and for others to make, with such limits. If the creatures are accepted I would like them to be built and copy and pasted to the areas with signs to connect whom to play them. No, as players aside from ET members. Whats the point of them being in Athera? Well, unseen creatures in the world can be fun, either for hunting or researching. There are people the love the thrill of the hunt and things to kill for fun or as trophies. How will the creatures be represented? As I said before, they will be built with mc blocks. I do not see the point of using mc skin and players to do it. Are they rideable ? Eh.. I'm on the fence about that.. It's very possible if given the chance you can, but you would be hurt or killed. Since they are hostile and will not like that. Can they be capture and trained? Well.. IF there was a percentage chance of capturing, give it a shot I guess. It would be your choice to do what you want with the creatures but remember they are very heavy, so it would be best to have a few orcs to help you take it. Tameable.? That is another tricky idea.. Due to them being very hostile and predators it is very unlikely to tame them as pets or friends. Leading to my Druids out there . Well these creature would be in the animal category so Druids would be able to talk to them, on the other had since they are hostile and want to eat,kill and fight with you. Druids would have a hard time calming the creatures if lucky they'd calm them . What do you get from killing the creatures? Well the reward from actually hunting and staying alive from the hunt you would be rewarded with such loot. If hunters brought a skinning knife or a sword to skin the creatures for their pelt,hide and what not. Others would take the bones or teeth from them using for weapons or trophies. If hungry heck, use the meat as a meal for yourself and your fellow hunters. Why are they so over powered ? Why can't I fight them one on one?! These creatures and a lot tougher and stronger than even an Orc. Their skin and bodies are a lot thicker and resistant to just a flesh wound. It would take at least a good 5-8 man with armor and Mages to attack one head on. If you was to fight one head on there is a 100% you would not make it for more than an hour, you would be a toy for the creatures. Do they have any weaknesses? How is the best way to take them down? Well, I don't want to ruin the fun or spoil the ways to proper hunt the creatures. As hunters you must look around the surrounding you and the creatures would be around and let that speak more for you. I really don't want to tell the weakness because that would break the point of the RP fighting it and players should be surprised on these encounters. Anyway all ideas and suggestions are looked at and taken. :) Just given this a try. So please keep it clean.

Aterruce'waezit - Scaled Creatures Shia The Lurking Shadow Archontas Lord of the Seas Tromos The Underwater Terror OOC Hello fellow peoples and hunters of LOTC, yes I am aware these creatures are from something else just edited. But hey there’s many things in lore or such that are on the server from different places, so why not give it a shot. Anyway to give a short idea for these creatures and maybe questions. Are the creatures playable ? Yes and no… I’d think it would be better if an ET actor would play the creatures, because there will not be a skin for the monsters. I find that rather hard to make and for others to make, with such limits. If the creatures are accepted I would like them to be built and copy and pasted to the areas with signs to connect whom to play them. No, as players aside from ET members. Whats the point of them being in Athera? Well, unseen creatures in the world can be fun, either for hunting or researching. There are people the love the thrill of the hunt and things to kill for fun or as trophies. How will the creatures be represented? As I said before, they will be built with mc blocks. I do not see the point of using mc skin and players to do it. Are they rideable ? Eh.. I'm on the fence about that.. It's very possible if given the chance you can, but you would be hurt or killed. Since they are hostile and will not like that. Can they be capture and trained? Well.. IF there was a percentage chance of capturing, give it a shot I guess. It would be your choice to do what you want with the creatures but remember they are very heavy, so it would be best to have a few orcs to help you take it. Tameable.? That is another tricky idea.. Due to them being very hostile and predators it is very unlikely to tame them as pets or friends. Leading to my Druids out there . Well these creature would be in the animal category so Druids would be able to talk to them, on the other had since they are hostile and want to eat,kill and fight with you. Druids would have a hard time calming the creatures if lucky they'd calm them . What do you get from killing the creatures? Well the reward from actually hunting and staying alive from the hunt you would be rewarded with such loot. If hunters brought a skinning knife or a sword to skin the creatures for their pelt,hide and what not. Others would take the bones or teeth from them using for weapons or trophies. If hungry heck, use the meat as a meal for yourself and your fellow hunters. Why are they so over powered ? Why can't I fight them one on one?! These creatures and a lot tougher and stronger than even an Orc. Their skin and bodies are a lot thicker and resistant to just a flesh wound. It would take at least a good 5-8 man with armor and Mages to attack one head on. If you was to fight one head on there is a 100% you would not make it for more than an hour, you would be a toy for the creatures. Do they have any weaknesses? How is the best way to take them down? Well, I don't want to ruin the fun or spoil the ways to proper hunt the creatures. As hunters you must look around the surrounding you and the creatures would be around and let that speak more for you. I really don't want to tell the weakness because that would break the point of the RP fighting it and players should be surprised on these encounters. Anyway all ideas and suggestions are looked at and taken. :) Just given this a try. So please keep it clean.

Inlu'thin - Insects Eloch Entomo OOC Hello fellow peoples and hunters of LOTC, yes I am aware these creatures are from something else just edited. But hey there’s many things in lore or such that are on the server from different places, so why not give it a shot. Anyway to give a short idea for these creatures and maybe questions. Are the creatures playable ? Yes and no… I’d think it would be better if an ET actor would play the creatures, because there will not be a skin for the monsters. I find that rather hard to make and for others to make, with such limits. If the creatures are accepted I would like them to be built and copy and pasted to the areas with signs to connect whom to play them. No, as players aside from ET members. Whats the point of them being in Athera? Well, unseen creatures in the world can be fun, either for hunting or researching. There are people the love the thrill of the hunt and things to kill for fun or as trophies. How will the creatures be represented? As I said before, they will be built with mc blocks. I do not see the point of using mc skin and players to do it. Are they rideable ? Eh.. I'm on the fence about that.. It's very possible if given the chance you can, but you would be hurt or killed. Since they are hostile and will not like that. Can they be capture and trained? Well.. IF there was a percentage chance of capturing, give it a shot I guess. It would be your choice to do what you want with the creatures but remember they are very heavy, so it would be best to have a few orcs to help you take it. Tameable.? That is another tricky idea.. Due to them being very hostile and predators it is very unlikely to tame them as pets or friends. Leading to my Druids out there . Well these creature would be in the animal category so Druids would be able to talk to them, on the other had since they are hostile and want to eat,kill and fight with you. Druids would have a hard time calming the creatures if lucky they'd calm them . What do you get from killing the creatures? Well the reward from actually hunting and staying alive from the hunt you would be rewarded with such loot. If hunters brought a skinning knife or a sword to skin the creatures for their pelt,hide and what not. Others would take the bones or teeth from them using for weapons or trophies. If hungry heck, use the meat as a meal for yourself and your fellow hunters. Why are they so over powered ? Why can't I fight them one on one?! These creatures and a lot tougher and stronger than even an Orc. Their skin and bodies are a lot thicker and resistant to just a flesh wound. It would take at least a good 5-8 man with armor and Mages to attack one head on. If you was to fight one head on there is a 100% you would not make it for more than an hour, you would be a toy for the creatures. Do they have any weaknesses? How is the best way to take them down? Well, I don't want to ruin the fun or spoil the ways to proper hunt the creatures. As hunters you must look around the surrounding you and the creatures would be around and let that speak more for you. I really don't want to tell the weakness because that would break the point of the RP fighting it and players should be surprised on these encounters. Anyway all ideas and suggestions are looked at and taken. :) Just given this a try. So please keep it clean.

~*<>*~ Bhhöürx ~*<>*~ Bhhöürx is quite a strange being, it is not known to the public how he came into existance. He is a pigman, obviously. He is dressed in a raggedy pair of shorts, seemingly made by himself. It is not known if he had any family, or if he is a descendant of anyone. Noone really knows where he came from, or who he is. He cannot speak any language, he uses squeals and body language to express himself. He does not understand any language. The ugly truth behind how he came to be is through magical coincidence involvling lightning and magic of purity. It is unknown who is responsible for the magic, however. ~*<>*~ History ~*<>*~ Bhhöürx is obviously not a fully natural occurence, but it is widely known that there is existance of a creature known as the Zombie Pigman. There is rumor that he has a connection to this creature, but it is not FULLY known yet, as he cannot speak any language, nor understand it. He actually DID start out as a Zombie Pigman, a simple wild pig struck by lightning due to sheer serendipity. A wandering sorcerer came across this powerful being, which was too dumb to understand that it was made for evil. The sorcerer took advantage of this short amount of time before lust of flesh, using polynomancy to transform it into a Pigman with no rotten flesh and restored its pure vegetarian diet. Thanks to this non-selfish sorcerer, Bhhöürx ended up being a confused Pigman of young age. In fact, Bhhöürx was only a PIGLET when he was struck by the magickal lightning. After reaching age 10, he realized that he must cover himself to protect his skin. He gathered leather which he had found at a campsite and tied it together to make some shorts. He occasionally would wash the simple clothing, and over time it grew raggedy. He still wears the same shorts to this day. Of course, the clothing information was irrelevant. Bhhöürx is not skilled in anything useful other than farming. He can catch a fish, but he doesn't eat them, he wishes to keep them as a pet, showing a sign of the sorcerer's spell of purity paying off. He roams the land, occasionally getting a strange look by the inhabitants that have never even thought of a creature such as him. He has no special advantages, only disadvantages. He can be mistaken for a pig, unless he is standing up as usual. He pretty much looks like a pig wearing a loincloth, with the features of the nonrotten half of a Zombie Pigman. He never wields weapons, and the only time he will ever harm anything/anyone is when he is forced to by natural instinct of self defense. Even when doing so, he feels bad and tries to make it up to the person who was harmed. He does not understand the idea of evil, and only thinks that being attacked is an instinct of who-knows-what. When attacked, he will squeal in distress, and feel worried. He cannot perform any magic himself, and when he sees magic, he is amazed. Bhöürx doesn't understand how life works, nor death. He doesn't suspect that death will affect him truly, only that it will end him. When he feels pain, he truly enters a state of pure terror. While in the state of fight-or-flight, he usally leans torwards flight. He'll hop onto all fours, which he isn't used to, and flee. Bhhöürx recently has turned 14, and is just now integrating with society, not needing a home at all. He typically wanders around anywhere with a tree, especially orcish areas due to a happy experience with two orcs earlier in his life. ~*<>*~ Allignment ~*<>*~ Bhöürx is a Neutral-Good type allignment, not really minding what's going on, while not doing bad. Bhhöürx typically will mind his own business, unless someone is in danger caused by nature. Example: A man floating down a stream unable to catch a branch. Bhöürx would step in and help the man out of the stream, even if that man was chasing him only seconds ago, trying to eat him. Bhhöürx is always going to be the nice guy- err... pigguy... Whatever. ~*<>*~ Instinct ~*<>*~ Bhhöürx has carried over instinct from when he was a simple pig. The main instinct is that weapons mean danger. If he sees a weapon, he will fill cornered and in danger. His main instinct in cases like this is to run away. ~*<>*~ Genetic Makeup ~*<>*~ One can assume that Bhhöürx would have fingers, which is true. His fingers are almost useless, however. This is due to the fact that his fingernails are hooflike and thick, and cannot be trimmed as simply as a humans'. Similar to a Kha', he carries traits from his ancestors. Don't misunderstand that, he is not his own race, but a creature. He has a snout, piglike ears, and a short tail. He also has simplistic, derpy eyes almost identical to your average pig's eyes. ~*<>*~ Psychological Makeup ~*<>*~ Yes, he realizes he is different from a pig. But he does not realize he is similar to any other humanoid race. In fact, he doesn't relate himself to them at all, other than his shape. He does have feelings and slight intelligence, but not much. He feels things such as sorrow, happiness, fright, sadness, and even anger. However, feelings such as anger and sorrow are not common in him. The only times he feels them is when: A) The trigger for these emotions normally in the common races is applied multiple times in a short period of time. Or B) An extreme exaggeration of the trigger of these emotions normally in the common races is applied all at once. Bhhöürx often feels only two emotions: Extreme happiness, or extreme sadness. On occasion, he feels extreme fright. ~*<!>*~ OOC Information ~*<!>*~ I made this post as a request for your opinion, I really would appreciate if you gave me feedback on it. I also made this as a suggestion to have my dream character approved. I have always wanted to play a pigman, and I saw someone named Porkour play one. I understand that there are no ways of communicating through spoken or written language, and that there will never really be. I also want you to know that there is no benefit to this creature character, and only a disadvantage or two. Advantages: None for me, interesting roleplay for others. Disadvantages: May be mistaken for a simple pig. Subject to be entered into slavery. Not handsome. Not often getting his side taken in an argument over if he should be eaten/taken into slavery, in fact, ignored in most cases when being kidnapped. Cannot write or talk. The only thing he says is "Bhöürx," which he says rarely. The only time he'll say it is when someone has taken him and doesn't know anything about him. He'll point to himself and say: "Bhöürx..." Can be mistaken for a monster. The only real advantage for me is a fun roleplay experience, which I share with other players. I'll make sure not to break the mechanical standard by going on an elf-eating rampage(whatever that means, someone mentioned it to me earlier...), or performing magic. I also accept any forced changes made by a LM, and also accept if it is disapproved. However, if it is disapproved, I will be persistant and try to alter it much more to be accepted. I don't plan on giving up, but if I am forced to give up, I will cri evry tiem. Thanks for reading, I appreciate it. I leave you with this image: ~*<>*~A picture of Bhhöürx I made using a 3D Skin Viewer and PaintDotNet.~*<>*~

Tuskarr The Tuskarr are a race that have lived on the coasts of Athera long before all the races arrived from Thales. Unfortunately, with the arrival of the races came diseases they had no resistance to. The already low Tuskarr population was ravaged, killing a large majority of the Tuskarr and putting an end to almost every community. It will take a lot of luck if they are to rebuild what they have lost... Appearence Tuskarr are a very stout people, the largest they can get is 5'5" but they tend to hover around 4'-5'. They are very strong, able to rival the fiercest of the dwarfs. Above their muscle is a thin layer of blubber and thick, flaky skin. Their skin is brown, however the shade varies greatly, they can be nearly black or almost as light as a human. Tuskarrs also host mighty tusks, often engraved with elaborate designs. They are the pride of the owner and grow slowly as they age, it is said the larger a Tuskarr's tusks the more courageous they are. Above the tusks are white whiskers and eyes that range from icy blue to deep greens. Their feet and hands are webbed and unlike on land they are very agile in the water, it would be near impossible for any other race to keep up with a Tuskarr. Aging Tuskarrs are pregnant for a very long time, taking 25-30 months for a pregnancy to complete. Once they are born they grow slowly, reaching their height after 30 years. Tusks grow during their entire lifetime and are sometimes shaved down by elders. They do not live as long as elves, but they live a lot longer than humans, they typically give off their last breath around their 300th year. Culture Sadly, with most of their villages dissolved a lot of their culture has died and not much is known about it because they have for the most part been assimilated into other cultures and religions. However, before the races arrived they practiced a form of shamanism, similar to what the orcs practice. They had no written language and told their history orally, passing it down father to son in a tongue foreign to anyone who is not a Tuskarr. They place a large value on fishing, it is dishonorable and unacceptable for a Tuskarr to not be a good fisherman, arguments were settled on who could catch the biggest fish. To a Tuskarr fishing is not only their source of food, but a way of life. Pros and Cons Pros -Tough -Strong swimmers -Tusks Cons -Rival dwarfs in their short legs -Bad at stealth -Not agile in combat This is just an idea, any suggestions will be heeded and appreciated, if this is one day accepted there will also be few Tuskarrs as disease have wiped out most of them. If it's not accepted I feel this would make a great ET race instead.... After not reading this for a few weeks I look back and think this is not the greatest idea I've had, lore is poorly written and we have enough races.

First off, this (redone) lore is a collaboration between myself and Lanader. Second, about the original (which was purely his work, and I will take no credit there). When he first posted it, there were multiple of us in the community whom took a great interest in the idea. First off, support mages - Wat? Since when did we have those? We want support mages! - and second, it just seemed like an aspect of RP that would be new. Of course, this received a lot of support, eventually being accepted by the old MT. However, the LT was yet to reach a verdict on the lore. When the old lore system was abolished, everything in implemented and accepted lore was moved to official canon lore. This lore, was one of them. Myself, still having not forgotten about this, one day modreq'd to have some locks removed on a building left behind by the previous owner. Lanader was the one to answer, and of course, myself, wondering, if it was official lore, why it hadn't in fact started up, asked him about it. He said that whilst the MT had accepted the lore, the LT had not, with the majority of the vote being undecided with one saying no, because it was apparently too similar to Ascended lore. I then offered to try rewriting it, in hopes of having it truly accepted. The ordinary playerbase will never know Ascended lore, apart from what was known publicly in Aegis. Of course, clerics would be the most obvious source to compare to, as they are, in essence, weakened Ascended (yes yes, technically not. I don't care, in the end, it's the closest thing). Now, I compared the two. Whilst I found similarities, it was clear that I couldn't changed Lanader's original lore without changing everything. So I added on. Lanader may or may not have already sent this in via PM. However, public interest is always important, and can help sway/quicken the decision. This is our remade lore for battle monks. I hope you enjoy, and I hope the changes we've made to the original lore will be of satisfaction to the LT. And without further ado, we present to you... The Battle Monks of the West ~*~ "They will die for what they believe in.." The Creation A long time ago, there were four men. These men went by the name of Rezu, Zera, Saydhi, and Adi'ken. These men were born within great and large tribes that focused on self-discipline and being at peace with themselves. But these men had no great gods, no leaders, no spirits to look up to. They believed in the world, and to the world they were grounded. But as with any culture, any race or group of people, there are those who rose up to bring about change. These men were Rezu, Zera, Saydhi, and Adi'ken. These men believed they were inspired by a greater force, but what it was, none of them could give a name to. But, when they spoke up, they were exiled and banished, in a rare act of anger by the tribes. And thus, they grew to be wanderers. Alone in the realm of Aegis, they walked long and far, shunned by humans, elves, dwarves, and orcs, for various reasons. But the men, staying true even still to the basis of their culture, continued to believe in this greater being, and would eventually be rewarded for it. They had been running, blindly, through a large and old forest, before they came across a great temple. They ventured inwards, and saw various artifacts strewn about. Whilst some men might have plundered the temple, these men did not. Instead, they began the process of repairing it, and picking up the pieces. They did not fiddle, nor experiment, nor fool around with the artifacts, but instead, cleaned, preserved, and honoured them. And there, they continued to live. It was for many long years that they had lain, meditated, and rested there. After some time, they thought they felt a strange, but comforting presence as they walked through the ruins, and this only reinforced their beliefs further. And so they crafted long staves, and placed upon each end, some sort of valuable crystal. These staves, they thought, were merely symbolic, and they often compared their crystals to their philosophy, but they were, otherwise, unimportant except as a symbol of their unity. And further years came to pass. And at last, the men were discovered. Six armoured bandits came, and they rushed into the temple. In moments, artifacts were destroyed or plundered, the temple desecrated, and the men were sent fleeing for their lives, right down to the bottom of the temple. The story of what exactly happened in that deep and dark place is not known by any, for Rezu, Zera, Saydhi, and Adi'ken refused to tell, but it was believed and widely accepted that the presence (which they would later call the "Great Spirit") granted them abilities which would allow them to beat off the invaders, and so the crystals began to glow and spark. After a short battle, the bandits had either fled or died, and the monks reclaimed what they could. The men eventually learnt of their former tribes' troubles. They were beginning to die out, engaged in a civil war with each other. When one tribe came to them to ask them to come back and help them end the war, and thus preserve the tribes, Zera told them no. And, in anger, the man representing the tribes said slander against Zera's "Spirit. " And so, Zera killed him, even before the masses came to slaughter him. And so came the first Monk to give his life for the spirits. ~*~ Monks in Present Day The monks, after receiving the blessing, knew they had found a basis through which they could truly spread their beliefs. They began to treasure and honour, even worship the temple, for it's spirit's saving of them. They believe they owe their lives to the Great Spirit, and so, they decided, they would protect it's holy places and name with their lives. By the end of Aegis, however, the temple was destroyed, taking Adi'ken with it. As Rezu and Saydhi continued on, they found the blessing weakening, and soon after arriving in Asulon, resolved to build further temples and shrines, and keep their religion alive. In time, with the aid of the blessing, they garnered others to worship the Spirit, and others who would even go on to become monks themselves. And so began the Battle Monks of the West, for that was where they had discovered the first temple. And when Rezu and Saydhi had died peacefully in their beds, the former initiates took over, and they continued the order until present day. The current Battle Monks of Anthos believe their duties are to protect the spirit's holy places at almost any cost. They must, however, first and foremost, never let the religion die, so there must always be one person and one holy place. They do not necessarily use their powers for good, albeit most do, however, are considered more to be neutral. Most do not go out of their way to protect others except for fellow monks and, on occasion, their flock. As such, they are considered to be a lawful neutral alignment, and are simply good-natured. They do not often concern themselves with outsiders, and as such, rarely participate in wars, nor actively seek to bring peace to the world. ~*~ Appearance The monks wear robes, cut short, with trousers, to allow for mobility. Unlike many other mages, they are also able to wear small amounts of armour, most often consisting of bracers, large metal "belts," chain skirts, and so forth. They most often wield staves bearing two long, thin, crystals. These crystals may be a variety of colours, but appear to be mostly cosmetic, until a monk begins to draw on his blessing. Once a monk begins to draw on his blessing, it begins to spark, flow, and glow with energy. ~*~ Magic (Lanader and myself thought it'd be interesting to see a support-mage rather than a pew pew mage, etc..) (Yes, we realize we have not SAID what their magic does. Well, here you go!) The Battle Monks, once they activate their blessing by channeling energy through their staves, gain various powers to help them and allies turn the tide in a fight. Firstly, they will be able to provide a support-type of magic to their allies. For example, if Monk A is fighting with Swordsman A against Swordsman B, Monk A can buff Swordsman A with a status effect such as strength, and perhaps turn the tide in a fight. How this would work RPly is this: Much like Clerics and Druii, the Monks draw power (which they call "nature energy") from a deity as well. The energy they draw from this deity can then be directed through the staff to the long crystals at the end. These crystals begin to glow and spark, and begins to collect the energy that the monk is drawing. Once enough of said energy is drawn, they can release this energy into allies or themselves, and the power drawn from the deity will allow for things such as increased force behind blows, greater strength, skin which grows tougher, greater morale and stamina, and various other such buffs. However, these buffs drain the energy from the crystals, from the monk, and from the deity, and once it runs out, all active buffs are no longer effective, and a monk will have to pray/meditate nearby a shrine. There are tiers of a sort for this magic, and it IS necessary to go through each tier before attaining some significant, new level of power. As explained, a Monk cannot cast magic without his staff, as it is the medium through which a monk can draw energy without overloading his body with various buffs, and thus, destroy/severely damage it. This is due to a deity's power being far too great for a mortal body to redirect by itself, particularly when it causes temporary changes to the body. As such, attempting to draw the energy of the Great Spirit without a staff will cause the monk attempting to utilize it to die (and by this, I mean a Perma-Death. Your character is gone. Dead. It cannot come back. So yes, you are welcome to try using it without a staff. Just remember, your character does it, he's gone. Dead). With each tier comes newer, stronger, longer lasting, spells. However, it's unlikely that any buff would persist throughout a long fight until at least the "4th" tier. At the fifth, it's possible a buff may last through two, but only with a lot of practice. It should be noted that a monk's staff is personal and truly unique. It cannot channel any magic except for the blessings (albeit a monk can still learn non-restricted magic barring Clerical), and is indestructible, except for by an Elder Monk's severing magic. It cannot be wielded by any other monk. A monk may have multiple staves, but each can only be used by himself. (When the actual order comes, the names of shown tiers may change. Also, many buffs here are based on MC status effects.) Initiates: When a monk first receives the blessing of the "spirits," they must practice gathering and utilizing nature energy, and then pushing it into their staves' crystals for usage. At mid-point of this stage, they should be able to push small amounts of energy into others or themselves, allowing for a small, weak boost to stamina, and an increase in speed (increase to speed does not mean agility nor dexterity. It is quite simply a character's SPEED). (Speed I) Novices: When a monk has practiced and meditated multiple times at a temple or shrine, they will be given a task to complete. This task is meant for the initiate to see their own values, their own strengths and weaknesses, and then act upon it. Their loyalty to the battle monks and to the spirit are tested as well, and if the initiate in question is found insufficient, punishment may follow, or they may simply have to wait longer. An initiate can ask for his first trial at any time. If he passes, he becomes a Novice of the Order. A Novice begins to grow to understand the Spirit, and his bond becomes closer to it. They begin to see the true nature of the energy they draw upon from the spirits, and begins to grow comfortable with it's usage. Their magic allows for them to direct energy to the eyes without damaging them, allowing the monk to enhance his or an ally's vision to the point they could see relative shapes in pitch black darkness, and see almost regularly on a moonlit night. They can also inspire others, which would increase morale in combat and give hope when one would despair. (Night Vision) Adepts: When a monk believes his bond with the Great Spirit is strong enough, a monk can ask for a second trial. This trial varies per person, but it again tests loyalty, knowledge, and their own personal self. If found insufficient, he may be punished, or he may try again, depending. If he is, however, found sufficient, he begins the journey to join the Order as a true monk. He begins to learn to affect himself and others in greater ways. As such, he is beginning to learn to "toughen" skin, so that it is somewhat harder to cut, like scar tissue without the debilitations that would come with such. At this stage, a monk would truly begin to feel willing to kill or die for the spirits. (Resistance I) Monks: The final trial to become a monk is a show of prowess. A show of prowess of strength, knowledge, loyalty, and of the self. As such, it is often a dangerous expedition, and one must be careful not to fail, as, unless the monk was lucky enough to simply be given a trial by one of the Elder Monks through a duel and other such things, the trial will most likely end in the monk's death (this does not have to be PK). However, if the monk can succeed in completing the tasks set before him, he is honoured as a full-fledged monk. He is sworn to the spirits, and he has complete, unwavering faith in them. He will not betray the spirits or his order for ANYTHING, be it money, or land, or glory. They can push nature energy behind strikes, making them more meaningful and far more powerful. For an extremely short amount of time, the power derived by the nature energy can even protect against lesser burns and fires. After this point, a monk is able to do almost anything that is available to monks, and can even experiment with various abilities not listed here. They can also teach other monks. They are able to construct small shrines to the Spirit as needed, which, to believers, will exude a feeling of peace and comfort. (Strength + Fire Resistance) Great Monks: These monks have done great things for the Battle Monks, or else is extremely deeply attuned to the spirits. For this, "tier," per se, it is possible to self-teach into reaching it by practicing the spells often. At this tier, one would become able to grant an even more resistant skin and immune system, and has essentially mastered all basic (listed) abilities. Also, their previous buffs become stronger and longer. They may continue experimentation with new spells, however, canonification of said spells requires a lore post. (All previous abilities gain an additional level, and Health Boost. Stronger the buff, the sooner it'd fade. Second level buffs would likely only last a few seconds MCly, maybe a quarter to a half of a fight RPly.) Elder Monks: No great differences between Greats and Elders. However, an Elder Monk is chosen by another Elder Monk, and these can take control of greater decisions concerning the Order. As such, they also have the power to sever a monk's power, if needed and only if the spirits are in accordance. (In other words, this cannot be done unless the Monk in question had somehow power-gamed or acted in a way that does not follow lore. Regulates magic and so forth.) ~*~ Requirements/General Information -Monk staves are personal and truly unique. They cannot channel other magic types, cannot be used by other monks other than the one who first used it, or at least until they die, and are otherwise indestructible. -The magic cannot be self taught until the monk has truly become a Monk. After that point, he can choose to learn until he becomes a Great Monk. -To join, one would have to find the monk in RP. This CAN be done through forum RP, but it will not be done through apps. After that point, a monk will show them around, and let them stay so that they can observe existing monks RP. They would also likely accompany the Monks as part of the flock, until they decide to join or not. -A Battle Monk should venture around Anthos and try to spread his beliefs, and should attempt to garner a flock. -A Battle Monk cannot cast magic without his staff, unless the player wants to PK his character. By joining you acknowledge said fact. -A Monk will die and kill for his spirit, and the strongest will take it to the extreme. The slightest slander of their beliefs may end with him ripping out the offender's heart, or otherwise brutally murdering him. -The glowing staff is mainly cosmetic, however, they channel their magic through it. -The Monks use an alternative for mana: They, like druii, clerics, and so forth, draw from an otherworldly entity, called nature energy. Unlike regular mages, they cannot regenerate power on their own, and must meditate or pray at a shrine instead. After some IC time, they will have gained the power to keep going. -Monks are NOT protagonists. That is to say, they aren't necessarily good people, and it can be hard to move them to do something except in self-preservation or preservation of the spirit/religion. They are merely support mages, whom, if NEEDED, will use his magic to aid others and himself. So a criminal runs across the rooftop, at night, and guards can't see him? They come up to a monk and ask, "Can you grant us vision?" The monk is unlikely to do so, except for POSSIBLY as a way to show that his religion is the greater one. -For monks to properly draw nature energy from the spirits, they must go through great amounts of training and meditation to understand the world around them as best as possible. Whilst this may not necessarily be scientific knowledge (it might be metaphysical, it might be metaphorical... He must simply have knowledge of some great sort of the world as a whole). -Battle Monks' magic can alter the monk in question physically and mentally permanently, after great amounts of training and extended usage. This is not to say that they would be able to grow extremely overpowered (use your common-sense when you RP the long term side effects), but they would have longer life-spans, and unlike most mages, no physical retribution to the use of their magic. Their connection to the spirit, rather, makes them more indifferent to outsiders, and they become more observers than activists. They also would kill and die for their Spirit, and at "tier five," we're talking a small slander could lead to them trying to break a neck. ~*~ Significant Items/Artifacts of the Monks Staves of the original Monks: These staves are greatly prized and held within glass cases. They were used by the original monks who were first blessed by the great spirit. No monk has used them to channel his power since, and it would be considered a crime to do so unless it were a last resort to defend a holy place. Head of the "Spirit": One of the most prized items within the order, it was placed upon the shrine in which the original monks defended. It ranges back from Aegis. It appears to be an old skull, and was carried with the last monks to Anthos. All Monk Staves: As each staff is personal and truly unique, each staff is thus an artifact of the Order. These staves can - and many of them HAVE - channelled the Spirit's nature energy. The Chalice of Hope: One of the original artifacts, it is said that Zera drank from it after successfully defending the original temple. There are no other artifacts or any important items at this time. EDIT: Please give feedback and how we could further improve this, playerbase. We want to hear your opinions.

I petition we remove OOC interactions on the forums entirely or minimize them. Kill the infamous idea section and replace it with a suggestion box (besides lore), the "Your View" and "Feedback" section, lock all news posts so no argument happens. Remove statuses and privatize ban reports. Make the admin's word be final, get rid of this cocky ass idea that any player can change the server by arguing pointlessly on the forums. We should have a forum so that bans can be resolved, apps finished, and RP done in a place where it is easy to access. We have a forum which is just a massive ground for bitching endlessly and shitting on other people's RP. This is a goddamn role-play server, I don't understand why we're bogged down by an ocean of micropolitical drivel. Edit uno: I'm not really talking about off-topic per se, because that's friendly and fully OOC. But hostile OOC just bleeds onto the server and makes things unfun. (I can make this slightly more tame if you'd like, pls tell if offended)

Before we begin, I'd like to just mention that I'm not sure whether my Cliff Dwarf idea would be considered a subrace or a culture, but I'll let the community give their own opinions on the matter. ~=~ Cliff Dwarves ~=~ In the early days of The Fringe, a selection of ancient dwarven legends were rediscovered by the Remembrance Guild. One legend, which many thought to be mere fiction, described the story of one of Urguan's lesser known sons. Aumi Wakebeard, a son of Urguan, was strange compared to his other brothers. He was intrigued by water, and loved to wade in the cool shallows of a river nearby his mountain home. He earned his name from the way his beard grew: curls reaching down like waves crashing on distant shores. Urguan often scolded his son for his "exotic" behavior, but Aumi refused to listen. He relished the feel of river-smoothed rocks beneath his feet, of the refreshing water lapping his knees. One day, as he wallowed about in the shallows as usual, he smelled a strange thing. It was salt, borne down the wind from the sea far away. Even though he had never heard them, Aumi imagined the cries of gulls over the bays and beaches on the coasts. His blue eyes sparkled with delight as he pictured the beautiful scenes by the sea. He took a step eagerly towards the tangy, salty smell, but his foot caught on a loose rock. The unfortunate dwarf was soon fully beneath the water, floundering like he was stark. He could not fight the mighty power of the river, and before long, was being carried along on the current. Urguan heard the young dwarf's wails and ran out of his underground home to locate him, only to see his son as a black dot in the distance. He sobbed and begged Yemekar to save Aumi, but it was too late. His son's terrified screams filled the air as he was cast over the edge of a thundering waterfall. The Father of The Dwarves fell upon his knees, tears streaming from his eyes and becoming entangled in his beard. The legend ends here, and was originally thought to be a warning for the dwarves against the dangers of water. Little did anyone know that it was actually a true story, until Aumi Wakebeard's descendants arrived in Kal'Arkon. ~=~ Introduction ~=~ What are Cliff Dwarves, and what do they have to do with this legend? As you read above, my idea is to have Aumi Wakebeard, a long-lost son of Urguan, establish a new kind of dwarf. But he must have died Soggy? Wrong. Aumi was carried by the river down to the sea. What happened then? Well, Aumi was immediately in love with the sea. He built his home into the side of a cliff (The first Cliff Dwarf), with windows opening over the water. He became an excellent fisherman and swimmer and, over time, his lifestyle and that of his descendants adapted to life on the sea shore. Nobody is sure how his children came to be. Some say he met a female dwarf on one of his rare travels inland, others that he fell in love with a beautiful sea creature. Though Aumi is long deceased, his kinsmen continue his way of life. ~=~ Appearance ~=~ Cliff Dwarves are quite different to their cousins. They have broader chests, which house larger lungs that developed to allow them to hold their breath longer underwater. They also have much larger arms, used for swimming against the powerful waves of the sea. Cliff Dwarves generally have black hair, which becomes snow white in old age. They often die it a deep navy colour by using the juices of berries that grow on bushes on the edges of their cliff homes. Most male cliff dwarves are bald on the top of their heads, probably because of the long years their ancestors spent working with the hot sun beating down on them. Their beards are shorter than those of their cousins, which stops them from interfering with swimming. They are very curly like Aumi's, and years of contact with salty water has left them stiff and wiry. Their eyebrows tend to be very bushy, which keeps the salt water from stinging their eyes. Their eyes are usually light blue, deep blue or sea-green, because they prefer to marry dwarves with these characteristics, as it reminds them of the sea. Their skin is tanned from exposure to the sun, and often tough and care-worn because the salt has dried it out. Cliff dwarves are shorter than mountain and cave dwarves, which is thought to be because of their diets. They live mainly off fish and bread, into which they add seaweed and sea salt. Their ale can barely be stomached by the other dwarves, because it generally contains an immense amount of salt. ~=~ Architecture ~=~ Cliff Dwarf architecture is a sight to behold. The wealthier dwarves burrow into the inland sides of cliffs, opening windows overlooking the sea. Poorer Cliff Dwarves build homes on the land above the cliffs, using sandstone and oak logs as their main materials. ~=~ Occupations ~=~ Cliff Dwarves tend to stray towards jobs as fishermen, brewers and bakers. As mentioned above, into their food they incorporate the characteristics of the sea; most of it containing salt and sometimes seaweed. They also make very talented sailors; their experience as fishermen and swimmers allowing this. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Well, that concludes my lore idea for Cliff Dwarves. I'd be happy to hear your opinions, positive or otherwise. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I know this lore is quite short, but hopefully I can add your suggestions and beef it out a bit. Thanks for reading, -Soggy365

Qaranka ga Djian ~LORE~ Deep in the swamps and marshes down south, where diseases consume prey and predator, there was a people who lived in the murk. The Djian people inhabited a large swamp that they named Qaranka ga Sooraan. How they came to be is stranger and more alien than any species indigenous to the land. . . Oquul Gandana was the first. He was born to uncertain parents on an uncertain night, and was stolen the day of his birth. Who could’ve stolen such a worthless baby? Moreover, what could’ve done this? A bahal. The Zahaste word for crocodile. Yet, there was a spiritual aura of this bahal that restricted it from eating the infant. The bahal took her little Oquul in. ‘Twas what truly started the Djian people, trust between animal and man. From then on, a people lived amongst the marsh creatures, a people helped the marsh creatures, and a people loved the marsh creatures. Their spirits were said to transcend into a Nagaano, a marsh creatures’ body. This did not mean that the marsh creature was forever controlled, it meant that the marsh creature forever had a friend. Djian people hold no strategical prowess in the art of war, except for being unique masters of guerilla warfare. They would defend the borders of the Qaranka ga Sooraan until the Zwe forsook them. Ashishe Zwe was the Night of the Burnt Land, when their Nagaano were destroyed, and their Nagaan ran with fear. Fire consumed the marsh, and there is now nothing there but ash and soot. The cause was unknown, but what is known, is that the Djian needed to flee. Their current leader, Uku Ophete Bahal, (Named after Oquul’s crocodile-mother,) fled with his remaining Djian family to the deserts of San’Orka, where they would hope to find sanction. ~Beliefs~ Uku Ophete Bahal has heard nothing but religious boundaries in Oren, thus he bids his people away from there. Djian worship their own Gods. However. . . they aren’t quite Gods, moreover they are spirits of fallen Djian. These spectral beings are known as Nagaan. The Nagaan are found in the animals of the lands. However, certain people go into certain Nagaano, or host bodies. Here is the list: Sikhe Nagaan - Swans, cranes, jays, quails, hawks, and other majestic birds. Gandana Nagaan - Crocodiles, bears, alligators, wolves, and other mighty beasts. Thengisi Nagaan - Monkeys, mice, foxes, frogs, hares, and other clever species. Umholi Nagaan - Cows, deer, sheep, chickens, and other domestic animals. Ophete Nagaan - Hippopotomi, elk, bulls, falcons, cobras, and other leader-like creatures. ((I know, many of these creatures are not of the swamp, but they are still what a Nagaan would occupy.)) ~System~ The Djian have a government consisting of a few big leader types: Uku Ophete - This is the leader Ophete, who governs all, and whose word is final. He is the only one who may convene meetings and moots, and he must be a man. Kwesibili Ophete - This is the successor of the Ophete, usually related through blood. This one must also be a man, and must advise the Uku when he deems it necessary. Sehli Ophete - Speaker of all women. She advises all on what is fair for the women of the society, as they are just as important as their men. Sehli are usually in relationships with the Uku. Amancu Ophete - Chieftains of their Udenas. They work together to situate the military and to suit the common needs. ((Take note that this system is small, as the population would be small too.)) ~Language~ Salaanta - Hello Nabeylo - Goodbye Aad - You Aay - Me Ga - Of Tah - Yes Dah - No Ophete - Leader Sehli - Woman/Girl/Lady Kwesibili - First/Next in line Amancu - Father Sancu - Mother Lancu - Sister Mancu - Brother Udena - Family Gandana - Fight/Fighter Qaranka - City/Nation/Home/Place Zwe - Nature Ashishe - Burn/Burnt Nagaan - Ancestor Nagaano - Host body. ~Accent~ Most Djian people are deep toned, both in skin and in voice. Therefore, they cannot always pronounce words as thoroughly as they would please. Here is an example: “That was far better than we’ve been doing it.” “Taht be fah beddah dan we’ve ben do’in et!” Here are the tips. With a word that consists of TH, move the H a letter ahead. (Just, move the H somewhere else, remove letters if necessary.) Example : “Threat.” “Treht” If words end in -r- or -er- then it is best to replace it with -ah-. Example: “Runner” “Runnah.” Replace the letter -g- with apostrophes if it ends a word, and replace most -i’s- with -e’s-. Note: This does not apply to the language itself, as Zahaste words should come naturally to a Djian. ~Names~ Naming is simple, take an animal, and rename the species. (Weird, right.) Then, grab a prefix for a profession, which originates from these titles: Umholi - Commoner Sikhe - Pastor/Priest/ Gandana - Warrior Thengisi - Merchant Ophete - Leader ~Features~ Djian people are much like Southerons. However, they are typically darker, and if a Gandana, they’re typically larger. Djian are made to climb and vault over objects and wade through murky, thick waters. So they should appear to be physically fit at all times. Whereas women hold long dreadlocks, men are known for being bald. They dress oddly, usually covered with crocodile pieces. (Yes, Djian kill Nagaan for their resources, as they believe that the Nagaan will find a new host.) ~Applications to be a Djian~ MC NAME: DJIAN NAME: PROFESSION: BACKGROUND: ((Now, this is just a rough idea of a culture that I am trying to create. At the moment, there are no Djian people, until this idea is perhaps accepted. I thank you for reading this, and if it is not ready, then I will make revisions.))