Is Dragon Realms still a roleplaying game?
It would be helpful if the GMs would make a decision on what DR is now. Sometimes it's a role playing game as long as you roleplay in between a VERY specific frame. Other times you're damned if you do and damned if you don't.
I will use Mazrian's latest event as an example, and its far from the only one. I won't use any other names to single people out. I only mentioned Mazrian because it was his event. Mazrian is usually an exceptional roleplayer, and I doubt he had any effect with what happened at his event.
So roleplay is about... playing a role... acting .... filling a niche.... good or bad.
There are tons of "Player ran groups" and others that are more official "GM ran groups". Lets just call them team good. What is absolutely ridiculous is that this seems to be the only 'acceptable' role play now in DR as there is not the same support for "team bad" groups, understandably so as they can not be "official."
I play a character in one of the designated "team bad" groups. Plenty of people seem to think it takes little effort to be so called "team bad" and that we are nothing but griefers looking to pvp. Absolutely 100% wrong. It takes as much if not more work and planning as "team good" for "team bad" to be involved and not just mindless pvp. We know if we show up it may lead to pvp. We know some people will just jump on discord and see if their 'big friends' will come take care of their problem without any other interaction. It comes with the territory and we accept it.
In order to play a quality "bad" guy we have to put in more thought to how we approach storylines and events to try and avoid the VERY thin ice most DR players stand on in order for them to not take things personally. Sometimes its very rewarding. There are many players on team good that play along, that grow the role play of their character and mine. However the majority cannot separate their character from their personal self and its frustrating to see some "Game Masters" allowing this to happen.
I enjoy playing on 'team bad" meaning having to play things off the cuff, coming up with storylines and directions that go against the grain. 5-10 years ago people respected this and played into it. They saw it as an opportunity to expand their role playing with their character.
Today, each and every time I or others from "bad team" groups show up to events its usually met with toxic and offensive OOC whispers and Warnings. Whispers that I know if I sent, would immediately get me pulled up and slapped on the hand, yet this behavior is allowed. The bigger characters just show up and just try to kill us with no words said. Which is accepted as being "team bad" as bad guys are supposed to die. However, we know we cannot do that to others and we know that WE are the ones watched under a microscope.
A few people showed up to Mazrian's event. The plan was just to show up and listen, maybe make a few comments here and there. That's exactly what happened. However a certain player on "team good" appears 30 minutes late to the event and demands we leave. We simply say "No." He then starts buffing up and pulls out his foci and demand we leave again.. No thanks.
So what happens next? A send from a GM telling us that we had our fun and it was time to "Act like adults and leave". Immediately after this player throws out warn interacts.
There was no roleplay involved by this player or the GM. It's just lazy and a clear message that 'you people' are not allowed to be involved here. 5-10 years ago they would have at least made a role playing attempt to resolve the situation by deported us or something.
This is absolutely 100% anti-roleplaying behavior from both the player and the GM. We did not show to interrupt the event. We didn't throw it off the rails, in fact we barely even talked because WE ALL KNOW how easily people get offended if role play doesn't go 100% how they envision it.
The favoritism between specific GM's and specific players is grossly obvious and there are 0 attempts to even hide it anymore. We all pay for a sub, we all play within the bounds of policy, we all play with consideration for other players.
Bad guys are not supposed to be liked. We try to be villains. We do our best through whispers and interactions to let characters we encounter know "Hey this is role play." Yet both the GMs and a large group of players cannot differentiate between role play and someone being mean to them as a person. It's ridiculous and there USED to be effort to enforce role playing, to keep things IN CHARACTER.
If you don't want the bad guys at your events fine, put a disclaimer in your events. However getting personal attacks as whispers and GM's booting you out with 0 effort put into interacting in a ROLE PLAYING GAME is absolutely absurd. Especially when we are literally just standing around and watching the event.
It's either a role playing game or it isn't. Make up your mind.
CATHULU3
TEVESHSZAT
Re: Punishing Roleplaying in a Roleplaying game.... nice
06/10/2021 08:33 AM CDT
>>What is absolutely ridiculous is that this seems to be the only 'acceptable' role play now in DR as there is not the same support for "team bad" groups, understandably so as they can not be "official."
It sounds like you're overly emphasizing Orders, which are IC, and have part of their whole "thing" be that they're officially recognized by the government (so they can't exactly be steepling their fingers about murdering all the local dirt farmers), with everything else players can organize under. GMs definitely support team evil folks gathering together and provide assistance at times to make whatever they're doing all the more enjoyable (for both themselves and others!).
That said, it would be neat if there was a way to be recognized as a group OOCly despite not being able to be a group ICly. Given the "official" OOC supports that Orders provide, it is a very odd distinction/line to draw that they also follow certain IC rules, and honestly if things were developed today I assume it wouldn't have the same type of rules.
I think the IC rules that Orders, as an IC entity, must follow make total sense, but the OOC concept of Orders and the IC concept of Orders shouldn't be so explicitly tied together. It would be like requiring someone to get endorsed by the leadership of every province before becoming a GM, Host, or joining ALAE.
>>There was no roleplay involved by this player or the GM. It's just lazy and a clear message that 'you people' are not allowed to be involved here.
As players, I think it's worth recognizing that a lot of stuff is sometimes determined on the fly, and sometimes that determination factors in, "How can this get resolved without it becoming either the main focal point of the event ICly or OOCly, or just become a major distracting/disruption to getting resolved." I'm definitely not saying the GMs made the right call here, but I get why that call was made. It's not like a GM can just pause an event in the middle of it to resolve a player disagreement/dispute.
I think when situations like this come up, it might be gracious/helpful to accept the call (be it good or bad), then reach out to the GMs to ask them what the heck it was about once things resolve and they can actually have the ability to focus on addressing the situation. That does, admittedly, mean you kinda get screwed over in the short term if what you see as bad call is made during an event, which i sympathize with.
Uzmam! The Chairman will NOT be pleased to know you're trying to build outside of approved zones. I'd hate for you to be charged the taxes needed to have this place re-zoned. Head for the manor if you're feeling creative.
It sounds like you're overly emphasizing Orders, which are IC, and have part of their whole "thing" be that they're officially recognized by the government (so they can't exactly be steepling their fingers about murdering all the local dirt farmers), with everything else players can organize under. GMs definitely support team evil folks gathering together and provide assistance at times to make whatever they're doing all the more enjoyable (for both themselves and others!).
That said, it would be neat if there was a way to be recognized as a group OOCly despite not being able to be a group ICly. Given the "official" OOC supports that Orders provide, it is a very odd distinction/line to draw that they also follow certain IC rules, and honestly if things were developed today I assume it wouldn't have the same type of rules.
I think the IC rules that Orders, as an IC entity, must follow make total sense, but the OOC concept of Orders and the IC concept of Orders shouldn't be so explicitly tied together. It would be like requiring someone to get endorsed by the leadership of every province before becoming a GM, Host, or joining ALAE.
>>There was no roleplay involved by this player or the GM. It's just lazy and a clear message that 'you people' are not allowed to be involved here.
As players, I think it's worth recognizing that a lot of stuff is sometimes determined on the fly, and sometimes that determination factors in, "How can this get resolved without it becoming either the main focal point of the event ICly or OOCly, or just become a major distracting/disruption to getting resolved." I'm definitely not saying the GMs made the right call here, but I get why that call was made. It's not like a GM can just pause an event in the middle of it to resolve a player disagreement/dispute.
I think when situations like this come up, it might be gracious/helpful to accept the call (be it good or bad), then reach out to the GMs to ask them what the heck it was about once things resolve and they can actually have the ability to focus on addressing the situation. That does, admittedly, mean you kinda get screwed over in the short term if what you see as bad call is made during an event, which i sympathize with.
Uzmam! The Chairman will NOT be pleased to know you're trying to build outside of approved zones. I'd hate for you to be charged the taxes needed to have this place re-zoned. Head for the manor if you're feeling creative.
FAMEBRIGHT
Re: Punishing Roleplaying in a Roleplaying game.... nice
06/11/2021 02:01 PM CDT
I have confusion: Where was the fun supposed to be in this complaint's event anecdote? What was the enjoyable outcome here that the GM sidelined?
How would this roleplay have gone as you 100% envisioned it?
"Warrior Mages don't bother covering up their disasters.
They're proud of them." -Raesh, on history
How would this roleplay have gone as you 100% envisioned it?
"Warrior Mages don't bother covering up their disasters.
They're proud of them." -Raesh, on history
KROONERMANREVENGE
Re: Punishing Roleplaying in a Roleplaying game.... nice
06/13/2021 09:03 AM CDT
I haven't played in...years really, I guess. I'm just sort of puttering around.
But honestly, the description in the original post didn't sound particular engaging? It sounds like 'Team Bad' was going to show up and hassle people with no particular interaction, in which case being asked/told to leave is pretty reasonable - it sounds less like RP and more like it was actively disruptive to the event, especially with the 'Team Good' guy who showed up and decided to try and play hero.
Was TG in the right? No.
Was TB in the right? Also, honestly, no.
If your presence makes the event diverge the focus from the event, onto interacting, or not, with you, it's disruptive, and it sounds like that was a case here.
Best example I can think of is years ago, I showed up to some event where the NPCs were very 'no necro', during the whole peak hounding thing. A necro also showed - and it was a very...open...one. Just being there, doing nothing, derailed the event to the point that it had to be rescheduled by the GM running it. Sucked, because I didn't have time outside the planned slot.
I'm a badger, I be badgerin'
But honestly, the description in the original post didn't sound particular engaging? It sounds like 'Team Bad' was going to show up and hassle people with no particular interaction, in which case being asked/told to leave is pretty reasonable - it sounds less like RP and more like it was actively disruptive to the event, especially with the 'Team Good' guy who showed up and decided to try and play hero.
Was TG in the right? No.
Was TB in the right? Also, honestly, no.
If your presence makes the event diverge the focus from the event, onto interacting, or not, with you, it's disruptive, and it sounds like that was a case here.
Best example I can think of is years ago, I showed up to some event where the NPCs were very 'no necro', during the whole peak hounding thing. A necro also showed - and it was a very...open...one. Just being there, doing nothing, derailed the event to the point that it had to be rescheduled by the GM running it. Sucked, because I didn't have time outside the planned slot.
I'm a badger, I be badgerin'
