Shattered Kingdoms

A notice to our players:

Numerous complaints have been lodged against the Harlequin Court and the characters within for unsportsmanlike gameplay. We have taken each email, prayer and private message into consideration. This should be considered a verdict on all past submissions.

- Despite insistence that the Harlies have been relentless in PvP, no evidence has been found to support accusations of excessive PK or "griefing." The most extreme accusations have been proven exaggerated or outright false. Repeated hunting or multiple deaths over several hours or days do not constitute excessive or unsportsmanlike behavior, particularly when supported by role-play reasons like faction wars.

- All factions at war with the Harlequin were given clear terms of surrender in-character. The leaders of those factions have responded in-character. If your characters take issue with those decisions, then you should address them in-game. This is role-play. Sometimes you lose. Role-play it. We find them without fault.

- The leadership of the Harlies have communicated in and out of character with their members about decisions along the way. This model has worked well for them. Faction leader characters are free to rule a faction with an iron fist, but a faction leader player should consider the other players in that group. As players, let’s try to keep people involved. Be inclusive. It's okay if some characters are miserable, but all players should be having fun. If you make a declaration of war, you should be around to fight it. Especially the losing battles. Absent leaders who start unpopular wars can expect subversion or dismissal. Pass along leadership roles to active members when inactivity is inevitable: The newest code update penalizes loyalty tokens for those who lose their leader flags based on insufficient hours.

- We have observed “blurred" lines on both sides of these wars when it comes to IC and OOC information and verbiage. We will be cracking down on this. Please keep your player knowledge separate from your IC character knowledge, lest you find yourself subject to punishment as outlined in a recent announcement posts. This includes posting information from the private faction forums to other players outside of your group and referencing relevant information your character has not come into through in-game interactions.


Our reminder, given recent events:

- Find a peaceful path. If you do not wish to participate in PvP, build pacifistic characters or, at the very least, characters who are not known to affiliate with any faction. Tribunal members in particular are publicly known from the time they take oaths until the moment they break them, and PvP should be an expectation of faction membership. Characters associated with any faction (and some religions) should also expect to encounter PvP. Shattered Kingdoms is an RP and a PvP MUD, and there are appropriate avenues for both built into the game. Play it with appropriate expectations. If you want to be a pacifist, then RP that route. If you want to be a badass killa, then be prepared to back it up in PK.

- Learn to accept defeat and compromise. We're all playing a game that is interactive. You can influence, but not dictate the actions of other players. You can only choose your own actions. There is a person on the other side of the screen who has invested time and effort into crafting a persona in Shattered Kingdoms as you have. Often we are genuinely invested in these characters and the lives we want them to have. But sometimes role-play means admitting that somebody else “beat" you. An acknowledgement of “loss” is often needed before the “winner” can reasonably end the current hostilities. Leaders on both sides should role-play their part in a conflict while allowing one another the dignity of their character investment.

- Take a break. If you are seeing red over an in-game interaction, it's time to step away from the keyboard for a while. Banging your chest in rage isn't going to fix anything, and it's likely to make things much worse if you say or do something that carries even further IC or OOC consequences.

- Report issues to the staff honestly. If you make false claims, you tarnish your word and call your own credibility into question. We are a small community here; let’s all treat each other with respect, please.