A
Axuk
Guest
As a total noob to DAOC (four weeks and its my first ever online game of this type) I'm only just starting to learn about the game - from the technicalities and strategy of play to the customs and etiquette of being part of the community (which includes players from all three realms.
Today my trial free month is up and I have to decide if I'm enjoying myself enough to stump up a subscription and continue.
Last night I read with interest many of the posts here and the sometimes warm threads because people have wildly differing personal opinions about what is 'fair' and what is the 'right' way to play.
It's obvious some of you have played for a long time in various reincarnations so some of you might be interested in a tiny reminder of what it is like to be the total noob who quite often still can't even hit the right keys at the right time
and to see the game through fresh eyes again.
First off, I've been impressed with pretty much everyone I've come into contact with. And that means people from all three realms because of course most of you have characters in more than one realm.
Yes (like life) there has been the odd person who has been rude, the odd argument between players, the occasional tantrum thrown when things aren't going the way someone wanted. But on the whole I've had and seen nothing but kindness, help and advice, good manners and a ton of laughs.
The first few times I died in BG I confess to spontaneously feeling quite hurt when my slayer laughed or made a rude gesture because it was unexpected after all the pleasantness. (And yes that does mean that it is not just Albs who make those gestures by the way)
Then I realised I couldn't possibly know the SPIRIT in which that gesture was made because communication between ' enemy' realms is limited to half a dozen emotes. For some, that gesture will simply be meant as an acknowledgement within the limitations, and, just as in life, that gesture will occasionally be made in a genuinely spiteful gloating way...
Several times I've logged in to Darkness Falls right in the middle of a group of Mids or Hibs... sometimes they will escort me to the door... other times they will hack me down even though they are too high level to even get anything out of it except pure spiteful pleasure, but isn't that just like life?
The player who seems to take perverse delight in continually stabbing ME in particular surprises me (because of the way I am in real life). Equally the player who spent the night picking off everyone around me while hugging and kissing me surprised me and made me laugh out loud as well as very frustrated at my inability to communicate how hard I was chuckling.
But, for me at least, it is precisely the unexpected nature of pvp... that when dealing with people of all sorts anything can happen, just as in life... that makes DAOC the fun that it is.
There are going to be people in BG who are in there, like me (for now at least, make the most of it, some kind soul spent hours answering my questions late last night AND took me shopping mwuhahahah), with the measly and inappropriate weapons and armour they have managed to scrape together so far.
There will be those who have studied stats etc and worked hard and used what they learn to continually refine their new BG chars to make them the best they can be.
Equally there are going to be people in there exploiting bugs or tweaked to the gills with uber items they pass down from one char to the next which clearly gives them an 'unfair' advantage over greenhorns... but isn't that just like life too where people will use whatever they can to get ahead?
Just as in life, there are people who want to work as a team and those who are natural loners who don't want or need to co-operate in order to survive.
The game makes characters designed to solo and pick off victims one at a time then run like buggery, and others who can't survive for one second unless they are working as part of a team, which indicates to me that the designers don't feel there is a 'right' or 'wrong' way to play... just something to suit everyone, just as in life.
For me BG isn't just about getting rps, (IT'S ALL ABOUT REVENGE NOW, DAMMIT - joking ;P) or learning what just my character can do, its also about learning how other types of char have to play and being aware of how you can help or hinder them. But there are going to be other people in there who just have to get that one extra rp no matter how they get it... that too is like life.
As to zerging, as far as I can see all the realms do it and I'm not convinced it is something 'wrong' anyway because of the way the chars are designed.
Is it 'right' for a gang from one team to swarm a lone player? You could equally ask is it 'right' for a lone player to get all their hit points from doing nothing but continually running in, stabbing any wimp in a frock and running away again. Is BG about killing individuals or fighting to take the keep? Right or wrong both are going to happen.. it's just a fact of life.
As a caster wearing tissue-paper I'm a one-hit kill to a gnat, I haven't a cat in hell's chance of duelling one on one a nightshade or any other melee char as far as I can see so far.
I've been itching to try out my wizz during a raid on the ck which is what it appears my char is meant for and it's never happened because my own realm mates are all out there at mb or mpk preventing anything from getting within casting range of me... but (shrug) hey that's life.
Imagine my horror last night when it did start to happen just as I had to log... damn your timing but hey, oh yeah, that's just life too .
Just like life you can't control the enviroment or the people in it, all you can do is act accordingly depending on how you feel at any given time.
When im fed up of eating grass or getting piles from sitting on the cold concrete pad, I stay in the keep and chat and laugh till I get bored of scanning the horizon and come out to stand with other players for the nanosecond I'm alive, then I lie on the floor for a while looking up people's skirts (some of you REALLY need to go buy some new undies btw ;P.)
Being dead all the time has, yes, occasionally made me want to sigh in exasperation because (just like I suspect it will turn out to be in real life) being dead can get kinda boring.
But it's also done what it was designed to do.... pushed the revenge button I never knew I had and I'm getting a kick out of joking and cackling evilly about my growing 'hit list' for when I'm bigger.
At the end of the day, to use a cliche, all is fair in love and war and at the end of the day DAOC is just a game... just like life...
So on this, decision day, I just want to thank EVERYONE.
Those who have taken me under their wing (I hope to be able to return ALL the kindnesses in due course).
Those who have laughed WITH me and AT me (I hope I'm already returning the favour.)
Those who have killed me (enjoy it and come and see me when I'm 50 ;D).
Now where is my credit card... and I'll see you all in the trenches. XXX.
Ax
Today my trial free month is up and I have to decide if I'm enjoying myself enough to stump up a subscription and continue.
Last night I read with interest many of the posts here and the sometimes warm threads because people have wildly differing personal opinions about what is 'fair' and what is the 'right' way to play.
It's obvious some of you have played for a long time in various reincarnations so some of you might be interested in a tiny reminder of what it is like to be the total noob who quite often still can't even hit the right keys at the right time
and to see the game through fresh eyes again.First off, I've been impressed with pretty much everyone I've come into contact with. And that means people from all three realms because of course most of you have characters in more than one realm.
Yes (like life) there has been the odd person who has been rude, the odd argument between players, the occasional tantrum thrown when things aren't going the way someone wanted. But on the whole I've had and seen nothing but kindness, help and advice, good manners and a ton of laughs.
The first few times I died in BG I confess to spontaneously feeling quite hurt when my slayer laughed or made a rude gesture because it was unexpected after all the pleasantness. (And yes that does mean that it is not just Albs who make those gestures by the way
)Then I realised I couldn't possibly know the SPIRIT in which that gesture was made because communication between ' enemy' realms is limited to half a dozen emotes. For some, that gesture will simply be meant as an acknowledgement within the limitations, and, just as in life, that gesture will occasionally be made in a genuinely spiteful gloating way...
Several times I've logged in to Darkness Falls right in the middle of a group of Mids or Hibs... sometimes they will escort me to the door... other times they will hack me down even though they are too high level to even get anything out of it except pure spiteful pleasure, but isn't that just like life?
The player who seems to take perverse delight in continually stabbing ME in particular surprises me (because of the way I am in real life). Equally the player who spent the night picking off everyone around me while hugging and kissing me surprised me and made me laugh out loud as well as very frustrated at my inability to communicate how hard I was chuckling.
But, for me at least, it is precisely the unexpected nature of pvp... that when dealing with people of all sorts anything can happen, just as in life... that makes DAOC the fun that it is.
There are going to be people in BG who are in there, like me (for now at least, make the most of it, some kind soul spent hours answering my questions late last night AND took me shopping mwuhahahah
), with the measly and inappropriate weapons and armour they have managed to scrape together so far. There will be those who have studied stats etc and worked hard and used what they learn to continually refine their new BG chars to make them the best they can be.
Equally there are going to be people in there exploiting bugs or tweaked to the gills with uber items they pass down from one char to the next which clearly gives them an 'unfair' advantage over greenhorns... but isn't that just like life too where people will use whatever they can to get ahead?
Just as in life, there are people who want to work as a team and those who are natural loners who don't want or need to co-operate in order to survive.
The game makes characters designed to solo and pick off victims one at a time then run like buggery, and others who can't survive for one second unless they are working as part of a team, which indicates to me that the designers don't feel there is a 'right' or 'wrong' way to play... just something to suit everyone, just as in life.
For me BG isn't just about getting rps, (IT'S ALL ABOUT REVENGE NOW, DAMMIT - joking ;P) or learning what just my character can do, its also about learning how other types of char have to play and being aware of how you can help or hinder them. But there are going to be other people in there who just have to get that one extra rp no matter how they get it... that too is like life.
As to zerging, as far as I can see all the realms do it and I'm not convinced it is something 'wrong' anyway because of the way the chars are designed.
Is it 'right' for a gang from one team to swarm a lone player? You could equally ask is it 'right' for a lone player to get all their hit points from doing nothing but continually running in, stabbing any wimp in a frock and running away again. Is BG about killing individuals or fighting to take the keep? Right or wrong both are going to happen.. it's just a fact of life.
As a caster wearing tissue-paper I'm a one-hit kill to a gnat, I haven't a cat in hell's chance of duelling one on one a nightshade or any other melee char as far as I can see so far.
I've been itching to try out my wizz during a raid on the ck which is what it appears my char is meant for and it's never happened because my own realm mates are all out there at mb or mpk preventing anything from getting within casting range of me... but (shrug) hey that's life
.Imagine my horror last night when it did start to happen just as I had to log... damn your timing
but hey, oh yeah, that's just life too .Just like life you can't control the enviroment or the people in it, all you can do is act accordingly depending on how you feel at any given time.
When im fed up of eating grass or getting piles from sitting on the cold concrete pad, I stay in the keep and chat and laugh till I get bored of scanning the horizon and come out to stand with other players for the nanosecond I'm alive, then I lie on the floor for a while looking up people's skirts (some of you REALLY need to go buy some new undies btw ;P.)
Being dead all the time has, yes, occasionally made me want to sigh in exasperation because (just like I suspect it will turn out to be in real life) being dead can get kinda boring
.But it's also done what it was designed to do.... pushed the revenge button I never knew I had and I'm getting a kick out of joking and cackling evilly about my growing 'hit list' for when I'm bigger
.At the end of the day, to use a cliche, all is fair in love and war and at the end of the day DAOC is just a game... just like life...
So on this, decision day, I just want to thank EVERYONE.
Those who have taken me under their wing (I hope to be able to return ALL the kindnesses in due course).
Those who have laughed WITH me and AT me (I hope I'm already returning the favour.)
Those who have killed me (enjoy it and come and see me when I'm 50 ;D).
Now where is my credit card... and I'll see you all in the trenches. XXX.
Ax