A solution that would work for me would be an ability to create 2 kinds of characters. The current regular, and an RP only which gets player assigned stats and skills during creation, within limits, which will remain forever unchangeable. Possibly an option to assign a character as RP only and set levels could be made sometime after entering the game so as not to add confusion to the initial process.

While an interesting idea, I don't like it myself - because there's already an apparent separation between role-play and game mechanics. I'd like to see that separation become smaller and not larger.

I don't mind people RPing outside of the game mechanics, mind you, but allowing characters completely outside of the game mechanics doesn't seem like a solution to a game mechanics problem.

If the game mechanics problems were addressed, maybe this idea wouldn't be as appealing to some. In short, it seems like treating a symptom instead of the disease. "Yes, your cough is gone, but the lung cancer is still there."

This is an opinion based on what I've experienced after a 5-6 year absence. It's meant to cause a re-evaluation, it's not a condemnation. Planeshift has evolved quite nicely and I would hope that what is written below would be taken on board for future evolutions.

I've been gone for some time and, as such, have been able to see some of the great changes that have been made to the quest system as well as other things. Overall, the game has come a very long way in the last 5-6 years while my character was dormant.

Because the character has been dormant, I've had to redo quests as if I were almost, if not completely, new. This, I think, has been a good thing because I've had to redo things as someone who is new. And there's really two aspects that are annoying for new players, though I have been recently reminded that the weight of plate mail is also prohibitive to those who wish to use it when they first start.

The NPCs wandering around, as they do, has been apparently widely accepted by players experienced with the game. It is, however, a problem when a new player comes in and cannot find an NPC related to a quest - because they don't know if they're in the right spot, they don't know if they have the background bug that they need to contend with, and because there's little want for spoilers in game, other players aren't likely to help. It's annoying, especially when you factor in that despite the ingame clock being shorter than the real world clock, people from different timezones who may play 2 hours a day will almost never encounter an NPC that they want/need to encounter.

Trainers make it even more interesting.

Now it's not a bad idea, this wandering around - but as I made mention to Venalan with respect to Todas, it's uncertain when something is bug to be reported or not. Maybe the NPC is supposed to be gone, maybe not. Should I file a bug report when they are absent? No, that's by design. Will I fill out a bug report when they are there when they aren't supposed to be (at the top of the stairs in the case of Todas)? Unlikely; the potential 'bug' is more useful to the player than the feature.

I've yet to see a NPC camping issue, and maybe it's because the NPCs are wandering around, perhaps flushing toilets or making little characters. But for approximately 40% of the quests, I've encountered this issue because it combines with the travel issue.

Yes, travel. By the time you get a mount, you've already run to Bronze Doors at least twice - and for a new player, it's not that interesting to stay on a path and keep running (back in 2007-2008, there were more NPCs that made the run much more interesting. The whole Ulbernaut invasion).

Some quests take the running thing too far.

The Pterosaurs are awesome, the rides make a fine addition. Why isn't there one to Bronze Doors?

In all, great additions.

The disappearing NPC issue is charming if you don't need to see the character. I've sat in game for an hour waiting for an NPC to pop into the game. It's a good thing I know where they are supposed to be. A new player wouldn't.

That's my 2 pence. I don't enjoy forums. It's an opinion of someone who plays the game and, while it may not be popular amongst the veteran players... it's not the veteran players that need be worried with this. If we expect new players, perhaps we should make things more workable for them.

Honestly: It is very difficult to contribute. I wonder how many already gave up trying to contribute because of this 

++;

What if every member of the community donated $5 to a project to build a back-up server?

Pay for a backup server with the same level of service? No, it would have to be more than a backup server to pay for - and therefore, it would be more than $5. But if someone made a plausible case, I wouldn't have a problem paying. How much I pay for what  is really the question.

Quote from: Zontick on January 16, 2009, 08:40:55 am

Quote from: Prolix on January 16, 2009, 01:02:19 am

not necessarily an inconsistency but gardr keck trains armor and weapon repair, is involved with quest repairs but doesn't sell repair kits of any kind.

He did sell weapons repair kits, but no armor repair kits. I haven't bought from him lately, but it seems the powers-that-be thought it amusing to take repair kits and place them under Smith tools. This, I am sure, was done for the General Good, and we should all be adulating. Or something. 

Kra sells both.

I don't think so. I will check when the server is resurrected. It takes 3 days, right?

Sheesh.

Yes, someone - be they volunteers or the volunteer's cat - should probably have something on the site that says, "Server's down. Our magic 8 ball says 'outlook not so good'. Go help us with the wiki documentation in the interim, please."

Or something like that.

It really isn't that hard to do something like that. Yes, volunteers, I understand - but a simple statement like the above, as vague as it is, at least tells people "Go do something else and quit slamming the server".

There was a point where I would have been upset about the lack of such notices - in fact I was - but I have come to realize over the months that this is just the accepted practice by the PlaneShift team - lumped all together since it really isn't clear who does what and blah blah yakkity schmakitty. So I don't get upset.

After all, it isn't a user's place to care more about how PlaneShift is implemented than the team. So you can care a lot and be disappointed, or not. I choose not. And that I have reached a point where I procrastinate about bug reports among other things...well, if I felt I could affect the project, I would. But I can't, so I don't.

Apathy. Coming soon to a tavern near you.

Apparently, Zontick is busy doing something (and he wasn't in battle that I knew of!)... but I can't login because... he's busy doing whatever....

If anyone sees Zontick, let him know his player misses him... (snap! Reboot Zontick...)

 

Resolved. Oddly, the Planeshift client wasn't showing in the taskbar.

 

First off - really happy with this discussion for a variety of reasons. Thank you.

One thing about mining that seems odd to me is that the distance you have to move to defeat the 'you can't mine twice' message does not seem to be consistent. I wonder if there is some kind of grid where this location is in this box and that one is over there. This would mean that if , say, you were on the left side of the box you would have to move further to the right to get to the next viable spot than you would to the left. Is there such a grid system or something else?

I've noted a similar inconsistency. I'm wondering if the terrain has something to do with this; if distance is calculated in 3 dimensions (why wouldn't it be?) this could account for the differential I have noticed.