First, of course we welcome feedback and suggestions! Thank you for taking the time to type up all your thoughts and share them with us. And thanks for appreciating the site and being active on it <3
1. Luck - Odd has already pointed this out, but with increased Prowess a character will increase their odds at protecting themselves. We are also working out the different skill options earned at each Prowess level, which likely will have options of better protecting characters. Additionally, when herds are introduced, the odds will favor protecting those in herds.
However, I do recognize and agree that this is more luck-based than target-responsibility when compared to the Helovian system. This is for two reasons: (1) we did not want to create or have a stat system and (2) we did not want any over-powered or nearly unbeatable characters in the Rift.
2. OOC/IC issues - There is always the uncomfortable possibility of OOC bleeding IC, be it with Challenges, Stealing, or just plain plot threads, regardless of whatever rules we impose on systems. Thus, I don’t see the rules as being a foolproof safeguard against this. It is the responsibility of players to ensure they address their OOC issues and the duty of admin to ensure that the site isn't abused as a tool to get revenge on other players.
3. Weighting dice - This seems like a rather one-sided suggestion to me. Similarly, an argument could be used to suggest the opposite: It would be more realistic for a thief to have a 70% chance at stealing something in the super dark/creepy Rift compared to a 30% chance of a character keeping track of all their items all the time. (Heck, I lose my cell phone in my house on a daily basis.)
4. Stealth Opt In/Out - We actually discussed this option for a while when initially creating the site. So, I entirely understand where this suggestion is coming from! That being said, it was decided for ‘safe slots’ rather than ‘opting out’. The reason being that stealing and fighting are both parts of gameplay (like magic). Furthermore, if one could ‘opt out’ of stealing because they’re never going to steal things, then they should be able to ‘opt out’ of Challenges because they’re never going to fight. (And does that mean one could 'opt out' of being affected by magic because their character is never going to want magic? D: oi vey)
I dislike the idea, because I feel that active characters should be apart of the entire game (otherwise, it makes it rather boring). However, I am still open to the idea of ‘opting’ if it’s something a large majority of players want!
That being said, with just thinking a few scenarios off the top of my head, I think that opting out of only one one system will create unfair situations by removing the ability of a character to use their strengths they’ve worked so hard for.
So, perhaps an all-or-none option for opting in/out would be most fair?
5. Skill Based Stealths - This is a very interesting suggestion, and I really like it! However, the purpose of this new system is to make it less labor intensive for admin. BUT if we made it the thief’s responsibility to log all their steps, then that would alleviate some admin burden! Hmm, I’d definitely be open to hearing this more fleshed out as option to adapt into actual coding and rules! :]
6. Judging - I'm torn because I do agree with you that stealths (and fights) could benefit from judging writing. BUT one of the main focuses of this new site is to reduce admin work of running the site. Judging battles (and by proxy these thread-stealths) was one of the more time and labor intensive parts of Helovia. SO judging stealths defeats the purpose of everything we’ve done thus far with designing/running the site :/
An alternative option: We could abolish item stealths entirely. (And, by proxy, item challenges—though these are more rare). It seems that item stealths have resulted in the most hurt feelings.
Neo has brought this up a few times to me, but I’ve been 100% against the idea because I feel like this is a writing game and things should not be taken quite so personally. But shinies are shinies and bring out all kinds of reactions.
This leads me to another question: why is there so much knee-jerk negativity surrounding stealths? Is there anything we can do that will reduce this negative connotation but still encourage stealths?
1. Luck - Odd has already pointed this out, but with increased Prowess a character will increase their odds at protecting themselves. We are also working out the different skill options earned at each Prowess level, which likely will have options of better protecting characters. Additionally, when herds are introduced, the odds will favor protecting those in herds.
However, I do recognize and agree that this is more luck-based than target-responsibility when compared to the Helovian system. This is for two reasons: (1) we did not want to create or have a stat system and (2) we did not want any over-powered or nearly unbeatable characters in the Rift.
2. OOC/IC issues - There is always the uncomfortable possibility of OOC bleeding IC, be it with Challenges, Stealing, or just plain plot threads, regardless of whatever rules we impose on systems. Thus, I don’t see the rules as being a foolproof safeguard against this. It is the responsibility of players to ensure they address their OOC issues and the duty of admin to ensure that the site isn't abused as a tool to get revenge on other players.
3. Weighting dice - This seems like a rather one-sided suggestion to me. Similarly, an argument could be used to suggest the opposite: It would be more realistic for a thief to have a 70% chance at stealing something in the super dark/creepy Rift compared to a 30% chance of a character keeping track of all their items all the time. (Heck, I lose my cell phone in my house on a daily basis.)
4. Stealth Opt In/Out - We actually discussed this option for a while when initially creating the site. So, I entirely understand where this suggestion is coming from! That being said, it was decided for ‘safe slots’ rather than ‘opting out’. The reason being that stealing and fighting are both parts of gameplay (like magic). Furthermore, if one could ‘opt out’ of stealing because they’re never going to steal things, then they should be able to ‘opt out’ of Challenges because they’re never going to fight. (And does that mean one could 'opt out' of being affected by magic because their character is never going to want magic? D: oi vey)
I dislike the idea, because I feel that active characters should be apart of the entire game (otherwise, it makes it rather boring). However, I am still open to the idea of ‘opting’ if it’s something a large majority of players want!
That being said, with just thinking a few scenarios off the top of my head, I think that opting out of only one one system will create unfair situations by removing the ability of a character to use their strengths they’ve worked so hard for.
So, perhaps an all-or-none option for opting in/out would be most fair?
5. Skill Based Stealths - This is a very interesting suggestion, and I really like it! However, the purpose of this new system is to make it less labor intensive for admin. BUT if we made it the thief’s responsibility to log all their steps, then that would alleviate some admin burden! Hmm, I’d definitely be open to hearing this more fleshed out as option to adapt into actual coding and rules! :]
6. Judging - I'm torn because I do agree with you that stealths (and fights) could benefit from judging writing. BUT one of the main focuses of this new site is to reduce admin work of running the site. Judging battles (and by proxy these thread-stealths) was one of the more time and labor intensive parts of Helovia. SO judging stealths defeats the purpose of everything we’ve done thus far with designing/running the site :/
An alternative option: We could abolish item stealths entirely. (And, by proxy, item challenges—though these are more rare). It seems that item stealths have resulted in the most hurt feelings.
Neo has brought this up a few times to me, but I’ve been 100% against the idea because I feel like this is a writing game and things should not be taken quite so personally. But shinies are shinies and bring out all kinds of reactions.
This leads me to another question: why is there so much knee-jerk negativity surrounding stealths? Is there anything we can do that will reduce this negative connotation but still encourage stealths?
go back to the beginning.
