Apollos_Will

So what are the rules?

The rules are not many, but therefore should also be easy to follow if you are interested.

Rule no. 1: Thou Shall Be Role Playing.
Many MMORPGs turns into a race of getting stronger and better in form of stats and numbers, and of course CoH is so. We won’t prevent that for the players that want that, neither flame them. But this community will at all times, influence the world of CoH, to become a great role-playing experience for its members. Don’t try to force other non-members to do the same, but you shall role-play a character, and hopefully open others eyes to the beauty of that.

Rule no. 2: Thou Shall not Meta-game.
Meta-gaming is to use information that you as a player has, but not the character you are playing. E.G. from you former character you got the knowledge about who the leader of the 5th column was, but you decide to make a new character (or maybe just start up in the Association of Marvelous Role-players, which also make you start a new character), and now you new generated character shouldn’t know it. You will have to role-play that, both in your actions, but also in your replies to other members of this community.

Rule no. 3: Thou shall not seek power before role-playing.
Most RPGs have a level system that will increase the talents and powers of your character. We all seek glory and recognition, but we have to make certain it is not on the cost of role-playing. We have made a set of rules, which prevent to advance to quickly, so you therefore can lean back, relaxing and instead of worrying that everybody else is getting flight before you, can role-play. The system will hopefully also make the playability for the game last for a very long time. This doesn’t prevent you to make another hero that is not part of this community. A hero you can use to advance as quickly and fight as often as you want. Sometimes all we need is just some kick butting action. The advancing system is based on how many weeks you character have been used. You will in the following table see what level you max can have reached based on number of weeks you have been played with that specific character. You can past that with one level, but do not make that a habit, because if it get know, that you have reached two levels over what you are allowed, you will have to leave the community, not because you are not a role-player, but because we want to make it fair for everyone and for what I have just covered in this rule. The system is as following and will be updated as needed.
<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>Week 1 (the week you start your character): Max level 4.
Week 2: Max level 7
Week 3: Max level 8
Week 4: Max level 10
Week 5: Max level 11
Week 6: Max level 12
Week 7: Max level 13
Week 8: Max level 14
Week 9: Max level 15
Week 10: Max level 16
Week 11: Max level 17
Week 13: Max level 18 (Note the jump of two weeks. Is set on purpose).
Week 14: Max level 19
Week 15: Max level 20
Week 17: Max level 21 (another jump)
Week 19: Max level 22 (jump)
Week 20: Max level 23
Week 22: Max level 24 (jump)
Week 24: Max level 25 (jump)
Week 25: Max level 26
Week 27: Max level 27 (jump and from now on)
Week 29: Max level 28
Week 32: Max level 29
Week 34: Max level 30
Week 36: Max level 31
Week 38: Max level 32
Week 41: Max level 33
Week 43: Max level 34
Week 45: Max level 35
Week 48: Max level 36
Week 51: Max level 37
Week 53: Max level 38
Week 56: Max level 39
Week 59: Max level 40
</pre><hr />

Yes, you are correct when you noticed that to reach the max level in CoH, you will have to play for over a year, but again, this community is for role-playing not for gaining levels. The system also make certain, that players that have a lot of real-life issues to attend such as family, job and so on, can still be part of the game, without seeing themselves, being left hopeless behind in form of levels, because their game-time, is not as huge as some other players. As said, that no one will stop you from making another hero and advance as fast as you want, that hero will just not be part of this community. This system is of course not supported by the game, so to keep this system fair, you will have to be your own judge, but remember that other members can also see you level and check up on the following player-list. But let us try to have fun instead of keeping track of each other.

Rule no. 4: Thou shall speak with the right tongue.
The speech of your character is the best way to use the tools of role-playing in a multiplayer visual game. So what tools do we have?
First, you should always try to speak IC (In-character). What you are writing in the chat-box, should be something your character is saying. But now and than nature calls or your aunt is calling, and you will have to either leave the game, and be AFK for a moment. You can do this two ways. You can find an in-game reason to leave the group you are part of, or you can also make a quick OOC (out-of-character). OOC is whatever you are saying as a player, not your character. Show the rest of the players that it is you (the player) speaking, by starting the sentence with “OOC:”. Try to keep it down, because it do put a small stick in the wheel, but again, it is often necessary and polite to notify the others that you will have to turn of your PC to deal with real-life.
On the Internet, users have over a long time of use, invented their own language. Everybody knows what :-) and LOL means. Try not to use that as the language for your character. Make a real sentence instead. Imagine if you were reading a book with the use of that instead. Not real fitting, right? You can use that language in an OOC sentence.

Emotes: In CoH we have some emotes that are usually pre-set dialogs with an associated animation. Be free to use those. It does look nice to see characters pointing, sitting down and so on. But it is a game, and of course CoH don’t have every possible action you would like to do. So for those actions do the following: Write your action and in the beginning and end of your sentence add a * . That symbolized that you are emoting something, e.g. *He lay down, rolls up in his own cloak*
Whatever you write this in 1st or 3rd person is your own preference.

Thought Balloons: As in a comic book, in CoH we have thoughts balloons. It’s a cool little tool you can use to give your character more personality. Use it for your characters thoughts. Now of course, the other players can’t possible know what you are thinking, so they can’t react on the thoughts, but still, they (the players, not characters) can see that there is reasons behind how you role-play.

In CoH we have different channels, and the rules for these is as following:

Request: Should never be used. We can’t stop every player on a server to use it, but for role-playing it is really irrelevant. If you want to join up with a group or member from this community, try to find them, and when then speak with them. Again, remember every member of this community can role-play the denying of such request. That should not be because of you as a player, but either because of your character or theirs. When a player can’t see past the liking or dislike of another player it is no longer role-play.

Broadcast: Should only be used in very rare circumstances, and never for something your character say. There is still no power called “the voice of God”. But you can use it for the following: You see or is part of something that makes such a high noise that everybody on the server should be able to hear it, such as an explosion of a factory. Use this channel for that, but remember to use the * to show that it is not speech but an action. E.G. *A deafening sound as from multiple explosion can be heard from the northern part of King’s Row*

Local: The main channel. Everybody near you can hear what you are saying, or if emoting can see what you are doing. Not the ones far away from you. Even use this channel when in a team (see Team channel), so other players that are not part of the team can see and understand what is going on.

Team/Super-group: A nice channel to have, because everybody on your team, can see/hear what you are saying, but not really fair for the rest of the players that is close by. But sometime the use of it can be needed, as for assembling your super-group. First emote in the local channel that you are speaking into a device (cell phone, walkie talkie, radio or the device of your choice), so players around you can see you are communicating with somebody afar. Than flip to either team or the super-group channel and write what you need to say, e.g. “Amazing Man calls all member of the Beyond Team to come to the Monorail station in Atlas Park.”

Friends: All the members of this community should be under your friend-list so use this channel for questions or other relevant community communication. All talk in this channel should be considering OOC.

Tell: A message to one specific player. Use this for OOC that is only meant for that player. A good way to tell another player, that the reason your character is a punk, is not because of you as a player, but just the way you had chosen this character to be. Another thing this channel is good for is to find each other. Yes, it is a little meta-gaming, but is useful when you are bored and can’t find a member close by. Send the “tell” to one of the other members, asking where your character should go, to have a chance to bump into his/her character. But when you do it, don’t forget to role-play the meeting.

Rule no.5: Thou Shall Be Informed and inform.
Keep an eye with this thread at least once a week to see if new members have been added. Those players have to be added to your friend-list and also give them a good welcome with whatever help they need. Also when you end your gaming day, and you have reached a new level, please send me a Private message here on the board, with your new level, so it can be posted in the member list.

Rule no. 6: Thou Shall Be Courteous.
Last rule, but certainly not less important. It is a simple rule. Be polite to all members of this community plus all other players of CoH. Just because we a part of a role-playing community don’t make us better compared to all other role-players and players out that. Please keep this in mind, or else we will soon attract more flaming than new role-players.

The Association of Marvelous Role-players

Greetings Superhero of Paragon City.

For long the crimes of the city have been fought and defeated by masked heroes and heroines. Long we have praised their deeds and long we have saluted their flight. But with time going, time often get nothing else than routine. The routine of being closed to get your purse snapped by thugs for only to be rescued by a quick cape, only to lose sight of your savior again. Now it is time for knowing, what drive those heroes and heroines. It is time for role-playing.

The 4th July this association will launch, all depending on how many will be interested.

So what is the association of Marvelous Role-players?

It’s an organization that will help you in finding players, which first priority is to role-player and not just advancing. It’s an organization that hopefully will attract players that never let the role-playing aspect get in second row.
It is not a super-group/clan or anything equal to that, but more a community where you will be able to find players with the same style as you, with whom you can form super-groups (if the story and role-playing leads to that).

How are you planning on doing this?

The Association of Marvelous Role-players will set up specific rules, which are not control by game-mechanisms, but by the community. Those rules will hopefully attract players which interest is not levels, but storytelling. If you find the rules fitting for you, and can see that they don’t restrict you, but instead enhance role-playing, this is the community for you. The rules are set, so the members don’t fall into the pit of hunger for the extra level on the cost of role-playing.

What is role-playing?

To role-play is to sit down in front of you screen and not only clicking the next villain to defeat him, but to imagine what you character will do and act in a specific situation. It is to acting a role, not be the one that is just sitting equipped with the mouse and a keyboard. Many discussions have been about what it is, but it is as simple as that. Play a superhero with a personality, a person with traits and flaws that is not covered by the game.
Many want to do this, but do not dare, either of fear of being flamed by other role-players or laughed off by players that do not prefer this style. This is the charm about the Association of Marvelous Role-players. First you will know who wants to role-play and avoid the laughing, and second the role-players in the community will offer you any help you need when you try to role-play. You do not need to be an excellent role-player (the author of this thread is not), trying is all it takes. Hopefully you will see the charm behind role-playing.

On a multi-player system such as CoH, you will also encounter players from all over the world and many of these are not born with an English tongue (if you haven't noticed already, I'm writing with a thick accent ). Therefore correct spelling is not a need to be great role-players. Both accept and/or do not be afraid of your incorrect use of English grammars or spelling. Others will still understand what you are saying and act after your sayings not your spelling. But do not use the common Internet chat language in your role-playing, such as LOL and AFK, except when you start a sentence with OOC (Out of Character) which mean it is you as a player that talks and not your character. See more about that under Rules.
If you have questions about role-playing or even a better explanation of what it is, be free to PM me with it, and I will update this paragraph, so other players can gain from it as well. Credits will be given to writers of such if wanted.

Could be true. But I'm of another believe (based on being member of so many RP communities that think the same), but it's really not up to me is it ?

Still hope it will happen. If not, I will not despair. Still have the free servers to play on, and my own to DM. Was just trying to show that there is many people out there, that would want that, but hard since those people are not playing these MMORPGs, and therefor don't have a voice inhere (not seeing this). To many payment's MMORPGS (read: all) goes for quantity instead of quality. And the quantity they have to share with the rest (is it at least 25 new mmorpgs that comes out this year?) where the quality for role-playing would be a monopol for the first MMORPG that do that.

Again, I have stated my point. If I had the base resources ($$) and skills to start such I would be more than happy to start that, but I don't.
Now I will return to the shadows, use CoH as a light RP game, at least until my subscribtion runs out, and than keep an eye with what path they will take .

I don't want them to change a server (like the Virtue server) in this case. Not at all. It is kinda relaxing. When I have a couple of hours to play, I can go in and find some players to role play with, and if I only have 30 mins, I can go in and reach next level.

But I would like an extra server, and honestly in my small world, I believe a server as I suggested would be a success ( I know the replies to my posts in here say otherwise), maybe not in a huge number of players, but in enjoyable game-hours for the ones that do come in. As I already somehow have said in my above post, I belief (I know ), that by adding an extra server with all those restrictions would add a whole new group of people, that lately (actually since trying Diablo online and EQ (sorry, just had to mention those two, since they are used as cursewords where I am...like you are such a Diablo player)) have avoided all paying MMORPG, because they are not exclusive roleplaying.

I'm not going to say "what would it hurt to try, and see what happend" because I do know that changing a mod to that, plus the addition of another server plus moderator do have a price, but one MMORPG hopefully will take the chance, just for seeing what would happen.

I don't know how many of you know the Neverwinter game that was made and still is breathing with a huge community. But the beauty in that game, is that you can make your own mod and restrict it as soft or hard as you want.

Many players actually prefer the tough server, where you will be look down upon if you don't role play or even get banned. When you die, you have to go back to the drawing board and make a new character, and your advancement is so slow, that if you start to do the calculation for seeing when you will reach the highest level, you soon find out, that it looks almost impossible. But a lot of players is joining. And having the blast of their time. Those are the people you also should try to steal (of course not from the world I'm making :-) ), and at the same time not getting rid of the old playerbase. They would still have their own servers.

I know, I'm just yapping trying to convice each of you, that what I'm saying is the truth of life. And I'm just doing it here, because the world "City of Heroes" is so well made and refreshing, that I hope they will just add the last piece in the puzzle that would do it for me plus attracting all the players I have been having a blast with the last couple of years.

Not trying to step on anyones toes, just want to add an extra color. Is there really no other playes in here that would like to see such a server?

Now to the men with the design glasses on...:-)...do you have an answer I can bring back with me to these players I want to talk into coming over here. You have following options
1) Will never happen
2) Of course Gung-Ho Jane. We will add such a server right away, and send you a big bag of money.
3) Of course. But we will delete this post, so it seem like we got the idea.
4) Hey...we are thinking. That's how we came up with such a great game. Figuring out the cons and pros. So be silent. And we will soon return with an answer (if taking option no. 4, be aware that I will stay here, and when time have gone long enough, make a *bump*)
5) We don't have an answer at all, because what you are saying is ignored, and not very believeable. Now instead of making up a fantasy world here on the board, Jane, log into the game and play. Like....NOW

At least just show me you are reading the post

Alrighty I'm back. Not to defend, but also to tell where I'm from and that it is just not rules graped from the air.

I too have also been very active in Bioware's fantastic and until now best media for roleplayers on the PC Neverwinter Nights. Been DMs on a couple of different servers, and the last one I believe is the one with the highest quality of role play. Right now, for a month again, I started my own work, and have gathered a team of 8 scripters, DMs and builders. Now, I would gladly give out names to the servers, boards etc, but for me to do some commercial for a 3rd party's product, I want to be allowed by the administrators here.

So my abive rules is based on that. On what will attract the highest quality of roleplayers and make certain that the ones that is not that interested in such, won't come near it.

Yes, it don't take a high IQ to see, that what it does it to decrease the power level and advancement. And yes, that seem more to decrease powergamers than attracting roleplayers. But that is what I have experiend is the way to do it.

Roleplayers no.1 rule is to avoid places with to many, if any powergamers.

Now I didn't say that the Virtue should be gone. Is good for players that want both. Now we just need one where it is roleplay 100%.

Now honestly, I know my chances for getting something like that throught on a MMORPG such as this, is close to none. But at least I tried. If it not come through, I can already now, just say, that you are missing a large group of very loyal and people in the 4th decade of their life (based on just the sizes of the communities I have been part in). And as it is now, all CoH do, is to fight with the rest of the MMORPG for the same kind of gamers. Why not go another way around, and attract some others, that haven't found a MMORPG that is close to have the RP in-game. People can only afford a couple of MMORPG monthly payment game (both in time and dollars).

I must honestly say, that I wish to hear a word from some of the developers to hear what the chance is for such, so I either quick can move on or start to announce this world for like-minded people such as me.

Hey to all of you. First post, so let me just start with griping or hopefully the more positive of you will see it as suggestions and ideas for the creators of this game.

I have tried a few other MMORPG monthly payment games out there, and honestly never been satisfied. Why? Because I’m one of those that like the letters R and P a whole lot, and rarely have that been seen on these. And of course it is like that. People are paying for the game and should choose how to play it…but what about us poor souls that have paid for it, just to role-play, without being disturbed by the more action-orientated players.

Now on City of Heroes I entered the Virtue server after a few clicks here on the board, because it seem to be the most role-playing wised server. And I have to say, with my fear for what I would see I was pleasantly surprised. A lot of players, like me, seem to enjoy the art (for those that don’t agree, the geekiness) of role-playing.

But still not completely satisfied, since it was still not the main part of the players on the server. My game time, could still be spoil by the suddenly and from no where, let’s join and do missions or something like there, where I prefer the more (for some, boring) style of a RP introducing of each other. So here are some ideas for the creators to satisfied players as me (or at least just me, I don’t care), and make us stay for a whole longer time, than taken a path to the next new MMORPG in hope of finding what we want.

You have a bunch of servers. Make one just role-playing. That way, people that really don’t like RP can stay away and join the other many servers that fit their style more. Oh…that is what you have already done with the Virtue server. Hmmmm…not agreeing. Can I be allowed to add some suggestions? What do you mean about no? I don’t care. I will do it anyway.

1) When a player click the role-playing server, warn them, that they are getting ready to enter a high-heavy-lessAction-roleplaying server. That way they have a chance to find out, before they use time to make a hero, and use some later use-less hours of game play. That should be the first sorting.

2) Second one should be in-game. Less experience/Influence. People that just want to see the highest level, will than pick one of the servers, where it is more available. And role-player wants time to develop the more artistic skills of their characters.

3) Fewer mobsters. Aye. You will actually have to look for enemies. Maybe down to 25% of what it is now. I believe that is fitting. But what do I know? And the mission, more dangerous (a way to make people need to join up in groups, and in groups, is where the role playing happens). Not saying role-players don’t like a little bit of action now and than, but I believe many of us, prefer the hunt compared to the kill, because it’s easier to role-play while running the pavement than when swinging a fist.

4) A higher penalty on getting knockout and (something I really would like to see) a chance for a permanent lost of the character (the medics failed, lets see what the coroner can do). The chance should increase for each time you take a trip to the hospital. Like 10% first time, 20% next time, up to 90% (just numbers. I have no idea what would be reasonable). Edited: Forgot to say why. Even the most experiend role-player, have the chance of forgetting to role-play the trauma of being defeated and/or killed, if they just without any real penalties, can return from the "death". It also add to the role-playing when a companion of war falls to the eternal darkness. The tears and the revenge wanting feeling is just not there, when you know, in a moment, you friend will come walking out the hospital, whistling and with a coke in his hand.

5) Last but not least…moderators, that have the power to ban the ones, that is not up for anything else, than to tell all of us geek, that we are…hmmm again…geeks. Banning from a server is of course dangerous, since you will have to listen to a lot of “You can’t ban me. I paid for this game *calling the lawyer*”. But again, you could add a warning about that, in the sequence I also suggestion when players first log into the server, and honestly, if you get banned, you have, is it 9 other servers to play on, where you can’t get banned (or at least, you would have to do something illegal). Moderators cost money, yes I know. But I’m certain you have a few that know exactly what role-playing are, and can judge fine. After a few weeks, they also know who of the players, that seem to be excellent examples and mature enough to have powers to moderator and ban (advice) the ones that don’t fit on a heavy role-playing server, and than spank them to work for the great fee of 0 $, yen, influence or whatever currency you prefer. The problem can be, that it go to the head to those players with these powers, that’s why the skill of being mature have to be high with those.

Just a few suggestions, that I believe can give what many of us role-players have been missing since the phenomena of MMORPG got popular.

So Cryptic/NCSOFT, walk the path before your rival companies, and make certain, that I will stay for a very, very long time (Role-players have a hard time giving up on their characters. You know, we are a little nutty and afraid of real-life).