Shattered Kingdoms

I already said I don't care about specific examples of characters who did this or that. The problem is that this happens at all, not who does it. It never works to the benefit of the game as a whole no matter who it is, their motives, or their RP ability.

The sun does terrible things to shut ins. Turn your computers off and go for a walk outside.

Afterwards, come back and deal with your problems IC and quit bringing all your garbage to the forums like 7 year olds crying to the babysitter. Ya'll just feed on drama.

Personally, Gailehn's enjoyed the interactions he's had with various Talon leaders, especially when it comes to 'dealing' with the hellion judge. That people see a reason to quit a character or go off OOC on the situation without even to try to understand the situation, or affect it in a way that makes sense to what your character should do seems kind of silly to me.

I'd would say at least 50% of the problem is the player base that wants to come and complain instead of RPing/affecting the play themselves. If you have a complaint, yeah, log it/submit a request to staff to look into it, but keep the drama and the nonsense out of the eyes of other players and stirring up the drama pot - especially in places new players can see. Is this really the sort of laundry to be airing?

Back into my confusing and confused elven corner. Perhaps it's just easier for all this kind of 'crap' to stay over my head.

Styles: I was mostly addressing Forsooth's whining in that post. You have yet to show how any of it is a real detriment to the game. All I see are more opportunities for RP and storytelling. I'll make myself a broken record of it: got a problem? Handle it in character or file a complaint.

Pook: I think Gailehn's approach was great. OOCly, I almost felt bad for him since he was being opposed by a handful of people at one time during the IC arguments. Always a pleasure RPing with you.

I already explained this, but I will restate it for you. Certain characters that would be appropriate to join given factions cannot because their alignment RP forbids it. As has been stated by an IMM in another thread, alignment trumps everything else. If the IMMs perceive alignment problems being somewhat widespread right now to the point that they have to intervene (haven't they been?) then they should start by examining poor alignment/faction combinations, especially among leaders, that lead to this sort of problem happening, where characters are forced to push the boundaries of their alignments or abandon their character concepts altogether. I would say that leaders of factions being out of sorts with the faction's ethos and OOC purpose is the number one contributor to alignment problems, and it is a systemic problem not limited to a specific case here or there. It always creates a problem and could easily be dealt with by implementing tighter restrictions both on who can join factions and more especially who can lead factions.

Styles: Except that I have yet to read any alignment file that explicitly prohibits a character from joining a faction because of the alignment of one of its leaders. If someone places such a restriction on one's character, that is the person's conscious decision, not a restriction of any chosen alignment. Obviously, I have to repeat myself from my posts as well. Until I see definitive proof that such prohibitions are the intent of the alignment system currently in place, then you've got no one to blame but yourself. Furthermore, the help files of Zhenshi, Nerina, and the Talons have been posted, and there's nowhere that states a conflict with their "ethos" and "purpose" with that of an aberrant alignment. Your argument is invalid.

I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt and just assuming you're a troll and not, well, imbecilic. Carry on, mate.

Poe's Law up in this b*tch

I want to say that when it comes to the Talons, I don't have a problem with the occasional hellion in their ranks. I just think that a Sargas or Ain hellion fits better. Also, I would prefer to see said hellion, intimidate/dominate her way to highest leadership fairly quickly and rule with an iron fist, but restrained completely by her vows to and laws of the Council.

I still stand by my opinion that the hellion class is the hardest to arpee properly. My two cents..

Sensible RP will prohibit people. When someone leads out of type he blocks people who engage in sensible RP and adherence to very standard character types from joining factions where they find his leader objectionable. They have to ignore alignment to join a faction that is appropriate for their character. You may not see this in a help file, but it has been repeatedly stated that characters must RP alignment. This is especially the case the way the oathbreaker system works. If I am playing an dogmatic or unprincipled character and I join the Druids, but they have a diabolic character asking me to do this or that diabolic thing, it's only a matter of time before I either have to quit or I get thrown out for refusing to help (or working against the leader). Now my entire character is jacked because not only could I not participate in the faction I wanted, I am now an oathbreaker and can't participate in any faction without some IMM intervention.

You are arguing this "creates opportunities for RP." Yes, it does. Tedious, annoying RP that has happened a thousand times before that squeezes the life out of SK. I don't know anyone who wants to spend time on SK constantly at odds with his faction leader, feeling like his character is going to have to leave the faction any minute. Factions do not exist for this reason; they exist to give every character type a chance to join a group, get some extra abilities, and have an opportunity to engage in PvP against factions with opposing goals and ethos. Internal strife will still happen even without leaders of inappropriate alignments being around to screw everything up.

You will not find any of this laid out succinctly in a help file, but it's just common sense. If it's to be found anywhere, it's in "help rules" right in the section on the golden rule:


When you lead out of type you are, in fact, disrespecting the fact that other people are here to enjoy the game by making it difficult for people who want to play totally standard characters to join factions that would be totally appropriate for them were it not for the leader being of an inappropriate alignment. If you roll a character whose alignment is out of type for a faction, then if you join that faction it should be with the knowledge that you will not be the faction leader. That would be adhering to the golden rule. If you must play a grey MC or lightie Druid or dark Guardian or whatever, do it and accept that you won't be the leader. What's so hard about that?

Since the players have proven themselves incapable of following the golden rule over and over in every imaginable context, I brought this up here to ask the IMMs to more tightly control who gets leader flags based on alignment. Especially since the IMMs themselves have made it clear that there have been problems with players appropriately playing alignment lately; almost all of that stems from people leading factions out of type. If you allow this to keep happening, you will just keep getting the exact same problems with alignment over and over. Fix the problem at its root, I say.

Yes.



Your conclusion.