sywren

I looooooooove it! haha!

OK, you have the right actress (some of you ), so here's another shot. This one is from the opening credits: And again the original post:

Yes, paper cups rock. Paper cups with scissors rock.

I love this idea and am all for it. When I read Ent's first post, my concerns immediately went Acelon's thread about how to get some of the C2 maps more frequented, but if done right, I think this creature could in fact be the answer to the problem. Imagine this: What if he/she/it drops something completely unique (my first thought is a feather used in the upcoming arrows) every ten minutes or so rather than as a death bag? Since there is no other way of collecting this item, and many are needed, hunters would be required. What a great guild project! Also, since it is a rather regular drop, hunters can actually track him. It would also serve as a warning to the lone harvester. Personally, I think the creature should roam all of C2 if the above scenario were to be used. The more maps used, the more hunters are needed since he would be rather elusive. I think he should even wander to the insides such as Dra Se or other various caves, temples, and schools. I am very excited about this idea.

I love it! But, of course, a couple technical points since archery was my undergrad PE elective (go liberal arts schools!): 1. I imagine that this image is during the "hold" (the second or two during full draw), so her right arm should be straighter. 2. The bowstring has to come up to her face so her thumb is just under her jaw. Also (on a personal note), I think finger guards look pretty badass. Could she wear one? Edit: Whoops, didn't see Peino's sites. Here's another as well: http://www.stavacademy.co.uk/mimir/archeryessentials.htm Scroll about half way down for stances.

Even as more than just a backstory for Peino, I don't think it's a bad choice. Irsis has only one other usable boat, but was obviously designed as a port-city, as was Portland. Anyway, I also agree with Piper that I will stay on C1 for a very long time mostly because of wine, leather, wraith, and accessibility. When I go to C2, it is for very specific purposes that I know will take longer than a day (HE for example) and are worth spending the money either for the ring or for the boat fare and that long walk. The other reason is beam. I know it was mentioned already, but I'd love a second beam spot (ie the cemetery in Idaloran) for when you are on C2, but this should probably be voted on if enough people are interested because I'm sure there are many who would disagree with me. C2 really is beautiful and lot of fun to explore, so I'm glad you've opened up this discussion, Ace.

Thank you, Piper. I've thought about writing your exact post, but didn't get around to it. I think there are a lot of myths about the PK server, and some who might be hesitant to pay the $5 for the unknown, but I agree. I think it is better as well. Three other aspects of the PK server that I'm really enjoying: 1. Yes, you will get killed, but that is what adds to the excitement to the game. You have to rethink your strategy. You have to think of alternate places to train or mix. You have to think about what you're carrying at all times. You can't play the game the same way or you're just going to die, lose your stuff, and get frustrated. The new challenges have added a lot of spice to the game. There is this great moment when you step into a map or go around a corner and are faced with another player. Sometimes you die, sometimes you get a new sword, and sometimes you both walk away. Any way about you, you remember that name and that person, so there is far more interaction with other players. 2. There is very little bitching and moaning when someone gets killed. If someone attacks a manuer while mixing or harvesting, they simply take note of that person and refuse to sell to them later, and sometimes they will warn other manuers who also add them to their notrade list. It's almost an interesting social experiment. 3. The economy! If you make something, you actually get what it's worth. There are fair, agreed upon prices and people are respecting them. It was agreed upon early on that no one would go 1 gc below NPC price for essences, and the prices stand. Most items are a little more expensive on the PK server, but it means that you can make gc doing something other than picking lilacs. I know that there are many players on the main server who don't like to PK and hate the idea of possibly being attacked when trying to work. That's fine. But there are also many people who are curious about what the PK server is like and it would be nice for those people to hear.

I love the poem, and I love that it was done in limericks. It was a good choice because it keeps the lighthearted, silly tone of the poem. Nice job!

I did hire a bodyguard actually. I call him "Mr. Bear". Who really wants to stand around watching me harvest while they can be training? Even SyAnide gets bored when she has to watch SyWren, and SHE'S ME.

Gone Baby Gone

Summoning stones ARE NOT just a few gc since if they are your primary defense, you have to buy many. It could take four or five stones to produce a creature, and then you also have to have some on reserve for the guy who comes after you fifteen minutes later. As players get stronger, mixers get richer and can afford better stones. It's a fair ratio. Summoning stones are not for fighters, they are a means of defense for those trying to be successful in other skills, and they DO WORK HARD. Just because you are working hard training, doesn't mean the manuer isn't working just as hard and doesn't deserve a means of defense. Removal of the stones means SyWren HAS to train rather than alch. It's her only defense. SyAnide is a completely different story since she does train. I agree that SyAnide should not be carrying stones because it defeats the idea of a decent fight, but if SyWren can't carry them, she is defenseless. Some people allow mixers to mix in peace, but for others, there are stones. Edit: typo

Like Learner's ants. I like it. Gives even more motivation to get strong, and would make the bullies look silly when beating up on the little guy. As long you got to full size around a/d 40 or so, it would help give new players a chance, but after 40, all is fair (and by that time gives players an opportunity to learn strategies).

I agree. None of these are really problems. Many players have already moved on to other money-making ventures and are training higher/other creatures, or have at least figured out new places to train. These are all issues that will work themselves out over time. One of the greatest aspects of the PK server is that it forces us to think about these tasks differently and come up with new solutions. You can't level these characters the same way you did your char on the main. Be creative. Find new places.

I'm sort of surprised you don't like it. It would require a lot of teamwork and sounds perfect for *CO*. Only a large group could get that much gc and do the planning. Then you'd have to have someone standing by to jump in to catch any DBs left by those without rostos. Ultimately it would take a lot of strategy to determine when and where to use it to make the most use out of it. I don't think it's a bad idea simply because it really wouldn't be used all that often, and when it was used, it would add fire to any forthcoming guild wars (which I see as inevitable).

Awesome! Indeed. Thank you, Ent! I would love to see a ranking page without stats. Right now there is a lot of fishing around for "who can make...?" so seeing ranks would let you know who to go to for certain items. I know there are some players who are trying not to pk manuers, so this would help them too. This could also be a Gossip item ("rank alch" shows current top five alchers, etc...). Maybe instead of stats, we could get generic a/d/p/c groupings? ie "noob" for the obvious, "low level" for those 20-30, etc.... While I can see that there are obvious drawbacks to knowing everyone's stats and knowing if you are in a higher grouping, there are still many players who attempt a moderate nobility about whom they randomly choose to pk. Some kind of indication that the person is an easy kill might actually deter a pker since there are no pk points or exp to be gained, but rather the general social standing within the rather small community as someone respectful of new players. Ultimately it is in ALL of our benefit to get new players to join and let them train a bit before we go around smacking them. It would also help those new players know whom they can randomly smack without getting slammed (*cough* St. *cough*). I say a little knowledge goes a long way.

I know it really added to my anticipation for the PK server. Hopefully it inspired a couple more people to join it. Considering the timing since the PK server had just been announced for character wipe today or tomorrow, could this have been a clever ploy on Ent's part to round up more players?

In North America we have a holiday called Groundhog Day on February 2. On that day we sort of determine whether we're going to endure winter over again. I think that if we have this special day, it should be *very* rare, and I rather like the idea of it being on a particular holiday. That way, if peeps don't wanna deal with it, they can go watch a movie, like Groundhog Day. scaf I think it would be fun, but part of what made this so much fun was the "walking dead" element. Everyone who took off their CoLs and lost all health became invincible unless a mod stepped in and made them PKable. Ultimately it is unreproducible and simply a day that we all have to say, "Gee, that was fun, but it is never really going to happen the same way again." Well, for those of us who still use the word "gee" that is.

No, I completely agree. I don't know why, but I seriously think this helps. I tell people to do this too! If we're wrong, at least you and I have reduced our chances of double poisoning since we're paying attention. At any rate, whatever the chance of getting poisoned, it seems about right to me. It's high enough to make us think about toadstools as a danger, but not high enough to deter players from using them completely.

I'm wondering if the cloak is the "something else in store for you" that Ent was talking about during the breakable NMT debate.

I have to agree. Today's update was a long list of \o/s for me, but this one threw me off. It seems as if it may have been implemented (and please correct me if I'm wrong) to deter people from using remote heal as a quick way to level magic. If this is the case, I have to wonder why this spell was chosen rather than cast shield, since that really is the quick and dirty method of leveling. The remote healers are a well-loved, but under-rewarded group and it would be a pity to see many of them decide that the cost outweighs the social/fun/exp benefits. The mage/warlock warrior idea is fantastic, but perhaps there are other more self-serving spells that could have taken the grunt of the cost. Remote heal is an essential element of what many people love about the game: the community. Thank you my beam healers and storage saviors!

Fun! Edit: changed to .jpg (sorry Peino)

I tried the pvp/pk and no problems. We didn't get any exp. HOWEVER, I've run around killing a few creatures (deer, woodsprite, beaver) and I'm getting attack experience, but no defense. I really hope that doesn't delay the the update!

I was thinking about this recently as well, and personally I like the idea of keeping them. Obviously they'll have some different meanings on the PK server, but I love how even the challenging #days on main means everyone has to rethink their plans and work around certain issue. Peace day could be very useful simply to get things done. Acid Rain day means the wealthy can't rely on that pretty set of armor and might change up some of the fights. Who wouldn't want a Sun Tzu or healing day? Certainly some days are irrelevant on PK server, but there are #days on the main server that don't really affect what I do either. I hope they stay in.

A few very minor PK server notes: 1. When I first log on, I have full cooldown on everything I'm carrying. 2. We probably don't need warnings before entering a PK map. 3. On that note, I think most of us could do without the "Warning! PK map" every time we change maps. After a while it just turns into spam. 4. I'm crashing a LOT, especially with map changes. I'm sure this is one of those things Radu identified from the last update, but wanted to throw it in there. I have to say, I am having so much fun. Even when there are only 12 characters online (who knows how fewer actual people), I still find myself tentatively peeking around corners (as it were) and almost jumping out of my seat when someone does appear. There is no afk harvesting, and little, easy tasks on main now require thought and strategy. So fun!