Aging in different races

[Under the moon]

This concerns me deeply, and always has. Anyone who knows me knows how much my character\'s background means to me. In a realm where role-play is touted above all else, it seems odd to me that the largest part of a character\'s background is left out.

I have asked this very question many times before, but no answer ever comes of it. This leads me to two viewpoints.

One, it is yet another big secret we are not to know until it is time... which makes no sense at all. Age is nothing special. We all have it. It is also one of the first things you think of when you meet a person in real life. Think about it. It bothers me that I can not include this basic aspect of first impression in my character\'s description. Sure, you can put in place of age \"Wrinkled and aged, needing the aid of a stout staff to keep his bent form straight\" or \"Young and spry, even in standing still her movements speak of dancing\". But this is only a bluff. It gives you a general feel of age, but without a common ground, that feel of age means nothing.

The second view bothers me more than the first. It is that they do not know. I asked again just last week, but so far no answer. The silence on this subject is disturbing.

If you wish to know why this bothers me so much, it is because while other folks are testing the \'features\' of the game (combat, magic, training, movement, what-not), I am a consummate role-player, and test the story and viability of the settings. I find myself floundering at this time.

That is all I have to say for now.

*bows out*

[Irick]

hmm thinking and here my solution.
the Azure sun emits radiation.
radiation can have good or bad effects on the body offsetting the aging process.
each person ages differently and according to such a \"predictable\" life rate can not be given for each race.
 also sense we all came from different dimensions (except for the kran and lemurs) and we dont measure time the same way. also you could rp Time lag i.e. your character came threw the portal at set age and never aged or aged at a delayed rate.
aging is purely the whim of the player.
*remember this is just my oppenion*

[Einnol]

Originally posted by Under the moon
In a realm where role-play is touted above all else, it seems odd to me that the largest part of a character\'s background is left out.

In my humble opinion, this really gets right to the heart of the discussion.  If we look at sex, race, and age as a character\'s \'vital statistics\', then their physical descriptions and personalities are what bring the depth that distinguishes them from others with the same vitals and makes them \'special\' or \'unique\'.  Acceptable ages are the missing piece of these statistics.

Originally posted by Under the moon
Sure, you can put in place of age \"Wrinkled and aged, needing the aid of a stout staff to keep his bent form straight\" or \"Young and spry, even in standing still her movements speak of dancing\". But this is only a bluff.

I agree.  These are excellent examples of what to include in character descriptions.  Another character may not be able to look at you and then say \"Oh.  You are xxx years old.\"  These kinds of descriptions are good hints at an age.  But, the question is, what if your character wants to say \"I am xxx years old\" or \"Today is my xxxth birthday.\"

[ou8i8uo]

I agree that this is a very good topic and one that has been overlooked thus far but I believe that until aging mechanics are implemented (if ever),  that we are responsible for determining our age rates for the interim.
I thought about it and when I edited my Character description I was about to put an exact age and thought struck me, in real life we can only guess close as to someone\'s age so I ended up writing \"mid to late 20\'s\".
Now one could age his or her character in relation to the amount of hours in game, or real world time but I also think
that at this point, aging is not a great concern, after all it\'s all about the fun in RP and after all, I am in no great hurry to see my Satayne die of old age.
So, I will age Satayne as I deem necessary through his charcter description and look forward to growing old (or not) with the best bunch of RPers in the world.

[Under the moon]

Q: Are the lifespans of the varying races known at this time?

A: Talad: Has not been defined yet.

So, until those lifespans are defined, we will have to continue as before. For younger characters, I think it is safe to use ages from youth to 25 as young, and state that as your age. However, as age progresses from there, we come into a gray area of unknown early middle age, middle age, and advanced age.. Seeings how the year is 750+TR (Talad?s Year) right now, I am assuming that either the first of the races entered Ylaikum over 750 years ago, or that an even of great implications took place. Such as the creation of Talad?s temple, or the building of the Bronze Doors. This 750 number leads me to think that the ages perhaps should not be played as more than 150 or so. This is due to the generation effect. Much of the story behind the game is said to be in little known legends and tales. With few generations, simple word of mouth would suffice to keep the histories clear in the minds of all.

Anyways, if your character -is- ?middle aged? or very old, perhaps it is best not to state any clear ages at this time.

[Alvarez]

Originally posted by Irick
 also sense we all came from different dimensions (except for the kran and lemurs) and we dont measure time the same way. also you could rp Time lag i.e. your character came threw the portal at set age and never aged or aged at a delayed rate.

Correct me if I\'m wrong, but isn\'t this exactly the kind of confusion/doubt created by the lack of information about PS world? Until now, I always believed the races have come to Yliakum through these \"gates\" a lot of generations ago, at another \"era\" (wich doesn\'t necessary excludes exceptions, of course). So, I think that Yliakum\'s culture - including the calendar accounts - is the result of many generations of different races living together and facing common problems (they do have a commom society represented by the Octarchs, right?). A present-time individual that comes from another world would be really odd to me, though not impossible.

Originally posted by ou8i8uo
I agree that this is a very good topic and one that has been overlooked thus far but I believe that until aging mechanics are implemented (if ever), that we are responsible for determining our age rates for the interim.[...]Now one could age his or her character in relation to the amount of hours in game, or real world time but I also think that at this point, aging is not a great concern, after all it\'s all about the fun in RP and after all, I am in no great hurry to see my Satayne die of old age.

I\'d like to insist on the point that the game \"mechanics and engineering\" is NOT the question here. We\'re talking about improving the roleplay and understand our character\'s world, not seeing our characters growing long beards (although that would be pretty cool too   ).

To Under the moon:

Thank you for going rescue to us the god\'s secret, you\'re like Prometeus   . I also think you\'ve made a good point about how to deal with the issue.