I have read every single post in this thread and I must say that in my point of view all this OOC versus IC war (kinda) is thriving because of the fact that the implemented rules in the game aren't especially restricted to one or another's favor. Now, to solve this dilemma once and for all there is only one solution: Force all game-play (observe the "-play", chat should - and could never be anything else than - still be divided in both IC and OOC in my opinion) to be IC code-wise. As new OOC-related issues arise, solve them in favor for IC. I would definitely not disagree, since there already are plenty of IC+OOC-MMORPG:s, and a tough IC-biased one would be a fresh alternative for those who either wants to dedicate their computer-game-based spare-time playing a fictious role and for those who wants to do it for some time and playing WoW for example for the rest of the time.

As it is now, I still like the concept, but I only want to say that I personally miss an IC-dedicated MMORPG with advanced functions to let an alternative universe come to life. After all, this is an opportunity for a few to create/experience a world totally different to the real world. A saga. A neverending story. He has the tool. He has the power. We can only leave this decision to Laanx. Obey and He might listen.

Besides, the RP in MMORPG is something at least I do respect. A game is a game and a computer game can take the (former) board games a step further by forcing the players to obey the rules, thus making it even easier for the player to be a part of the community and to enjoy finding the possibilities in the restrictions. That's what it is all about. You can bring the simplest thing to life by pure imagination. Aren't we already stuffed with enough diversity IRL? Do we all need to be interested in politics (that is, unresolved issues) to get the most out of a computer game?

And here's some RP-favored suggestions from me:
* No quests. More events. Prevents massive cheating and makes it possible to implement further rules to make it even harder to cheat. Make it clear for everyone how hard an event is to solve and when it is over the solution should be official and bring something to the Planeshift history. "Boring", you might say, and "This will not appear frequently enough", but I say it is something that we have to live with for a deeper RP:ing experience. And, who knows, creating new events may be something mighty popular? A game in the game so to speak, with rewards (trias, xp, items etc) for the players who creates them?
* Weapons should still be allowed in towns but a warning box appears every time a player gets near the gates allowing the player to accept the possibility to become outlawed by some intricate game mechanics (I don't care to give any thought about) or to obey the rule and press an accept button that forces his weapons to become unwieldable while in town. Not realistic? -This rule actually increases the realism in-game by forcing the user to think about the act before running around waving his axes in the air at the plaza. As I mentioned before, I think a good game forces the user to obey certain laws, as in any board game, or at least face the consequences.