Aetolia Q & A, IRC Edition

@(Vhardor) BAGPIPES!?
* Vhardor was kicked by Maghak (Vhardor)



@(Kaeus) Is there any chance of getting a level 2 weaponbelt so I can sheath all these damn weapons I have?
@(Haern) Ask Razmael.



@(Moirean) What is the time frame on instances?
@(Maghak) The instance is being finalized and polished in preparation for release based on the results on our last test run. Then we have a long event chain to run/finish running before it can be released, that ties in with the lore and story of the area.



@(Orus) Would Razmael be open to a "math" helpfile? For example, the exact formula used to determine health,how much certain stats impact speed/damage/accuracy? things like that? I know players have mostly figured it out but an "official" source would be handy for some people.
@(Maghak) I can't comment on that for sure, but I don't believe that would be possible or viable.



@(Moirean) re: instances - how is loot going to be handled? I worry that we can just run them over and over and flood the market with chest items, which will kinda devalue those as well as drop gold value
@(Moirean) are there going to be lockouts or diminishing returns on drops or etc
@(Maghak) Areka: it's certainly something being considered during the class revamps that are ongoing at the moment.



@(Everlong) What's going on with major leylines? Have we unofficially stopped doing them?
@(Haern) Everlong: Major leylines haven't panned out like we hoped, so they're currently in the revamp machine and being churned around like butter.
@(Maghak) Everlong: Major leylines had a ton of issues and are being thrown around in various forms.



@(Mich) Are you redoing Cabalist? Are there betas for class revamps?
@(dhar) Mich, yes
@(dhar) we let liaisons (and ourselves) play with classes before releasing them
@(Maghak) Mich: Cabalist is on the books, but there are least three other classes currently in the works before they're looked at.
@(Mich) Do you open them to people who are currently the class?
@(Haern) Mich: No, they are not open to public testing.



@(Moirean) Re: instances - how is loot going to be handled? I worry that we can just run them over and over and flood the market with chest items, which will kinda devalue those as well as drop gold value. <Moirean> are there going to be lockouts or diminishing returns on drops or etc
@(Maghak) Apologies. Severn has said that questions regarding instances can go to the forums. I am honestly not sure what I can and cannot say on the topic.



@(Demion) Any idea when the craft skills are going to follow suit as forging and concoctions/reanimation?
@(Haern) Demion: Those skills will follow in the wake of the class revamps, opening access to the entire playerbase rather than the original classes.
@(Maghak) Demion: I believe Enchantment may be up for that treatment with Ascendril/Sciomancer revamps roll around.



@(Moirean) slyphe: Who is your favorite liaison? *flutter*
@(Slyphe) I would definitely have to say Serrice



@(Belgarion) Is there going to be more of a push to have class skills that are more team/pair oriented?
@(Haern) That's a question for Slyphe.
! @Maghak pushes combat balance questions at Slyphe
@(Haern) Enjoy, Slyphe.



@(Everlong) Q: Can any of the Gods share with us a favorite quote heard over Omniscience? (Obviously nothing incriminating)
@(Haern) A: "Razmael sucks, but Galleus was cool."
@(Haern) (just kidding)



@(Vharen) Do you have any idea what skills will replace the class-based crafting ones, from a thematic perspective?
@(Maghak) Vharen: That's a bit far afield, honestly.
@(Slyphe) @Vharen, there isn't going to be a 1:1 skill tradeoff where we directly replace out the tradeskills
@(Slyphe) with the exception of sentinels, every other class with a soon-to-be mercantile is getting a full revamp
@(Demion) Sentinels aren't losing toxicology?
@(Slyphe) yes, they are
@(Slyphe) but we're not revamping all of their skills entirely
@(Slyphe) IE they're keeping dhuriv and woodlore, and receiving tracking as the replacement for toxicology



@(Draiman) Is there ever going to be done to make combat less automated? When I left Aetolia Xarian had just dropped a bomb it felt like on the PK world by making his system free and give non-coders a chance, but now it seems like you either need TW or Citadel and the knowledge to code an automated offense to compete, which felt like a step backwards.
@(Slyphe) We may be improving the firstaid functionality in the future, but there are no plans to implement something that would compete with the top level systems at this point
@(Draiman) Slyphe: I didn't necessarily mean making it easier to heal, but with the current way combat works you can code a system to work for you, which eliminates user error once the fight starts. If your system trips up and makes a wrong venom call or something, you can fix it later.



@(Moirean) Ok a legit question: Can you guys give a brief overview of how development works in general in Aetolia? Without revealing too much adminy secrets, of course. Like, how work is doled out, are multiple projects juggled at once? Do gods have different specialities?
@(Maghak) Moirean: it's pretty ad hoc for the most part. There's some structure when new Celani are taken up, and people are expected to work together when possible, but it's down to individual work ethic and project management style.
@(Maghak) Different Gods have different fields of expertise for sure.
@(Maghak) Slyphe is the combat guy, Haern is the lore guy, I'm the prog guy, so on, so forth.



@(Etrigan) Maghak, how many volunteers helping you guys?
@(Maghak) It's variable. Activity patterns change pretty constantly.
@(Maghak) I wouldn't really feel comfortable saying a solid number.



@(sprocket) do you have a projected date for the reworks of the classes?
@(Maghak) sprocket: at this point, when they're done.
@(Haern) No, projected dates tend to bite us on the proverbial butt.



@(Areka) will the linked shrine values be re-evaluated to allow noncoms to help more? 1 ylem per corpse is...not much impact. Maybe 1/1000'th of the essence the corpses are worth?
@(Maghak) Areka: the ylem system is under constant adjustment.



@(sprocket) what class is the next in line to get reworked?
@(Maghak) sprocket: Sentinel is currently up for rework, followed by Ascendril and Sciomancers.
@(sprocket) lycans are third?
@(Slyphe) lycanthropes are not bein revamped
@(sprocket) they said lycans were getting revamped on the ire webcast about 20 minutes ago
@(Haern) "revamped"
@(Maghak) Lycan mechanics are being revamped, the class itself is not.
@(Slyphe) I wasn't around for the webcast, but they're referring to pack mechanics



@(LadyAarbrokia_) FROM <Belgarion> Is this how I send you－questions? There is a large increase in the amount of－multi person pk that didn't exist back in the day, I－want to know if we will be having more skills that are－group/multi person based in the future?
@(Slyphe) it's a consideration but not an objective, regarding group-combat skills



@(Anfini) Q: Are there plans to convert old quests to the new quest system? E.g. the archaic/unclear chains like Scidve/Djeir, etc.
@(Maghak) Anfini: Yes. As you can imagine the scale of that undertaking is pretty prohibitive.



@(Demion) <LadyAarbrokia_>Are the craft skills like woodcraft and jewelry going to become like the others where you can only have 1 or they remain as they are?



@(fuogo) Any chance the essence gathered from offerings could be changed? 1 ylem\corpse is really, really miniscule
@(Maghak) It may be worth opening a discussion thread on the forums with your ylem concerns, guys.
@(Haern) Needless to say, we've got a lot underway for ylem.
@(Slyphe) the ylem input from shrine offering is likely not going to be changing right now, and i say that because we have several projects that will be involving ylem in the near future



@(Teno) is carnifex still getting the changes which was in the reports which was Advanced? the warhammer ones?
@(Slyphe) Carnifex has a fairly big set of changes on the way, yse



@(LadyAarbrokia_) FROM <Demion> Are the craft skills like jewelry－and woodcrafting going to follow suit as forging and－enchantment where you can only have 1 at a time or－ are they going to remain as they are right now
@(Slyphe) No, those skills are remaining as they are
@(Haern) Demion: They're remaining as they are.



@(sprocket) how soon can we expect the lycan rework of mechanics? Before or after the class reworks? A few months? A few weeks?
@(Slyphe) Okay, just to reiterate
@(Haern) Sprocket: we are not putting out finite dates.
@(Slyphe) Lycanthropes are getting a change to pack mechanics, nothing about the class otherwise will be changing. We're not giving a date on that, but it's high on the agenda



(LadyAarbrokia_) FROM LINFINI Q: Do we have any plans for new mercentile (not trade/talent) skills?
@(Slyphe) There are no concrete plans for new mercantiles at this point, at least nothing we plan on revealing
@(Maghak) Anfini: There are some ideas being kicked around, but nothing beyond the basic concept stage.



+(Aarbrok) From MICH <Mich> The plot with the－rifts yesterday was fun, how often do－ you guys run those sorts of thing?
@(Maghak) Mich: That really comes down to individual Gods deciding to put in the hours. It's a lot like mob possession in that there's no schedule for it.
@(Omei) We try to space things out a bit, but generally we run events as often as we can.



+(Aarbrok) FROM <Moirean> Question: How do the admin remain motivated and avoid burnout? What keeps you guys interested and engaged without personal storylined?－Divine retention has been something Aetolia has struggled with forever, I guess. Have there ever been ideas considered to help fix that?
@(Haern) Moirean: I remain motivated by thinking of your happy faces and perhaps drinking heavily.
@(Omei) Moirean: I remain motivated by running events where people get tortured, mutilated, and/or die. The screams and cries of the playerbase keep me warm at night.
@(Maghak) Moirean: Personally I try to avoid burnout by alternating events, building and progging. It's not the best plan but it staves off exploding.
@(Chakrasul) deathsights really help motivation in the Pools
@(Haern) Moirean: Truthfully though, Moirean, we haven't lost people to burnout and moreso to real life in the past year or so.
@(Maghak) We've had people move, people start school, people leave school, people get jobs, people lose jobs.
@(Omei) Moirean: Yeah, overwhelmingly it's real life getting in the way. This is volunteer work, and we can't realistically prioritize it.



+(Aarbrok) FROM <Teno> since paralysis gets 'spammed' alot in combat, is it going to get looked into, like how it works in imperian where its on a cool down to make－group combat a little more easier
@(Slyphe) No.



+(Aarbrok) FROM <Belgarion> Multi-person/group skills, like the mages cataclysm/templars protection?
@(Slyphe) multi-target/group skills are a consideration but not a direct goal, like i was saying... the new mage classes have some degree of group combat because that's their niche



+(Aarbrok) [02:01.24] <Anfini> Question was: Can we expect to see a continuation of Abhorash's involvement in the Dominion, or has he gone back into torpor
@(Haern) Haha.
@(Maghak) Abhorash is intended to be a fixture, but I believe the player ran into some RL preoccupations for the moment. He certainly hasn't been retired.



(zion) is bug reports ever going to be looked at
@(Slyphe) No, we don't fix bugs, we collect them



+(Aarbrok) FROM <Demion> Are you planning on doing more with the shadow realm? Maybe opening it up as a new area to explore and hunt?on doing more with the shadow realm?－Maybe opening it up as a new area to－ explore and hunt?
@(Haern) Demion: Well, well. This is something you'll see unfold in game!
@(Omei) Demion: We don't not have plans.
@(Haern) Demion: I can't go into great details, largely due to the fact that you players should have the fun of experiencing their violent , death-filled events.
@(Omei) (spoiler: You're all going to die at least once.)



+(Aarbrok) MOVING ON: FROM <Mich> Are you guys willing to let us design cosmetic items for RP purposes? I've been thinking of SCIENCE! theme stuff lately that would fit in well with－ the Cabalist RP.
@(Maghak) Mich, that is the purpose of the crafting skills!
@(Haern) If it can't be crafted via the system, it might not be possible yet, Mich.
@(Haern) Wink wink, nudge nudge, false information, etc.
@(Maghak) If you have something specific that doesn't fall under the purview of the existing crafting skills, you can try messaging your org patron.
@(Omei) Patrons are generally pretty good for special requests along those lines.



+(Aarbrok) <Belgarion> Next, I'd like to ask why combat, the numbers, percents, and what a lot of skills do, is so opaque? I can understand wanting flavor, but why－can't there be a way to see more information about ourselves, especially when there are changes. I believe this turns a lot of newer players off, its hard explaining－ how to get a penance/rupture kill
@(Slyphe) it's not always useful or reasonable for skills to be transparent - look to the reaction to audits being changed to reinterpret the actual resistances
@(Slyphe) it's also arguably part of the complexity



@(Anfini) Areka asks: Will we be getting a more consistent/present Becue? Are mortal-helpers going to be considered, akin to builders or guides, to help when requests/issues come up?
@(Maghak) Poor old Becue. :(
@(Maghak) As far as I'm aware, there aren't any plans for mortal crafter-helpers at the moment.



@(Anfini) From Vharen: Any plans for ways to allow classes like Bloodborn to customize their non-forged weapons? It falls outside of crafting and customization, and issuing for a response didn't get a really helpful answer.
@(Haern) Vharen: Maybe.
@(Maghak) Vharen, you would be better off directly messaging Razmael about that kind of thing. A lot of the time it's an oversight.



@(Anfini) From bakhtuh: Is it going to be possible to initiate interactions with Albedi divine or mobs? Set up some events in Delve or beyond in the near future?
@(Omei) Bakhtuh: WHAT A GREAT QUESTION. It has an even better answer. We just can't tell you what it is. :>
@(Maghak) bakhtuh: That would really be telling.
@(Haern) Bakhtuh: Fun stuff. Can't answer it.



@(Anfini) I'm sorry, I forgot who asked this one because I closed the window too fast, but: "Is there a surprise waiting for first person to hit level 200?"
@(Omei) Yes. Another Kerrithrim.
@(Maghak) Anfini: Possibly a frank reevaluation of their life.
@(Haern) Anfini: Yeah, you get a bag of cheetos delivered to your home with mountain dew.
@(Slyphe) The first person to hit 200 will win Aetolia, and the game will end
@(Haern) Horns.aiff plays when you hit level 200.



@(Anfini) From Moirean: Regarding bug reports - are you happy with the current reporting system, or is there potential to enhance it for easier sorting, searching, tracking and more indepth repos. Hell, any chance we could get a database like JIRA available for use?
@(Maghak) I'm not familiar with JIRA. At the moment, personally, since I'm only responsible for codertypos, my bug fixing approach is to literally grab one at random from the low priority category.
@(Haern) Moirean, that might be a better question for Razmael.
@(Omei) That question is a bit above our nonexistent pay grade, yes.



@(Anfini) Moirean also asks: With the newbie revamp and push for new players, is there anything being considered to help draw new players into RP, either mechanical or simply through suggestions to the community. If so, any sneak peeks? getting into RP and finding interactions can be really tricky for new players, but it's Aet's biggest draw imho; are there plans to highlight this more?
@(Maghak) Moirean: A lot of that ties into the faction and dialogue systems that are being progressively worked on at the moment.
@(Maghak) The endgoal is to make the world living and immersive by virtue of having NPCs and environments that engage players, rather than acting as static props.
@(Maghak) It's a very very big task of course.
@(Omei) Yes. It is always difficult to create realistic, engaging NPCs as opposed to furniture.
@(Omei) But it is definitely our goal upstairs.
@(Haern) Factions will hopefully draw people in and give them a lot of tools to engage in further guild roleplay, etc.
@(Haern) The lycanthrope factions, in particular, will hopefully be a first step forward with that.



@(Anfini) From fuogo: Whatever happened to the Espionage research tree and the other one alluded to back when Raz took over? And the collider posts, for that matter.
@(Omei) The Espionage tree is currently on a concept level. As for the Collider posts, we let them starve in the rain like an unloved, miserable, flea-ridden puppy.
@(Omei) The puppy is also adorable.
@(Maghak) The Collider specifically I think died when Galleus ended up stepping down. Razmael's monthly posts are another matter. I think that one is on his doorstep as well.
@(Haern) For the most part, the monthly posts stopped because we're still progressing on everything that was already addressed in the previous monthly post. We have a lot of stuff still being developed and whatnot, but "it's still coming" is all you guys would likely see for right now. However, you should see one this month!



@(Anfini) So, from Mich: Can you give us at least a hint of what will happen to the cities on Sapience?
@(Maghak) Nope.
@(Haern) Mich: What cities?
@(Omei) I know Ashtan gets bombed by Dreikathi.
@(Omei) I could be wrong there, though.
@(Haern) Who cares about those cities.
@(Haern) Laaaaame.
@(Omei) Those cities sound silly.
@(Maghak) Omei, that's a mega spoiler.
@(Omei) Maghak: Is it? Darn. I guess I'm a few years early.



@(Anfini) Aaaand on the same vein, from Belgarion: The event with the rift where Belgarion closed it... what was the original idea of how to stop it, cause him being there was kind of special circumstances, were you expecting to get a sciomancer?
@(Haern) No, there was no expectation for a Sciomancer.
@(Maghak) Belgarion: full disclosure as the person running it, yes, I had a massive brainfart and forgot that the Magi split.
@(Haern) (I laughed a little)
(Belgarion) haha
@(Maghak) But it all worked out alright thanks to the power of hopeful thoughts and convenient backstories.
(Xavderp) I lol'd when the mob was like CHANNEL AIR
@(Haern) Yeah, I did too.
@(Haern) I don't think Maghak did. ;(
(Belgarion) that had been eatting at me for days now
@(Maghak) Every event is a complete tornado behind the scenes.



@(Anfini) From Etrigan: Why is the timeout limit so low compared to other IRE games? In Achaea it can be up to 20 hours or more.
@(Maghak) Etrigan: I don't believe there's any particular reason for that aside from no pressing reason to change it.
@(Maghak) It may be a holdover from the very old AFK policy that is no longer enforced.
@(Omei) I think that is actually the case, Maghak, that it's a relic of the old policy.
(Mich) You guys don't care if we have an AFK timer?
@(Maghak) Mich, if you take a look at HELP AUTOMATION you'll get a good idea of what we don't like.
@(Omei) No, you can be AFK all you want. But whatever happens to you while you're AFK is your fault. That is our official administrative stance.



@(Anfini) Combat question from Taelin: Why are new reworks such as Templar, Teradrim and Carnifex moving into a deeper more complex mode of combat when it is possibly deterring the new younger players that may be coming to us. I know for us older folks its easier to understand but for them it may be a deterrent.
@(Maghak) That's one for Slyphe, haha.
@(Slyphe) with the evolution of system complexity and how well everything can be coded and tracked these days, it's kind of a natural evolution
@(Slyphe) tactics that worked a decade ago simply no longer do, like trying to balance around sheer damage or trying to lock someone up with straight up venoms
@(Slyphe) it just doesn't happen anymore. so to make these new classes worthwhile against the background of system complexity, we have to introduce mechanics that reward choice making and momentum
@(Slyphe) that's essentially where we're trying to drive these new classes. hopefully we can tweak them to make them more appealing for new players



@(Anfini) From Piper: What about Artisanals and Bardics?
@(Omei) I think they're pretty cool, actually.
@(Maghak) I agree, those are certainly things that are good.
! Piper SIGHS
(Areka) *SIGHS AS WELL*
! @Anfini executes TRIPLE-SIGH COMBO
(Areka) *andhnngh'salittlebit*
@(Maghak) A good rule of thumbs is that absolutely anything that involves credits is squarely on Razmael's door. Nobody else can touch them.
@(Maghak) Rule of thumb, also!
@(Omei) Exceptions being customizations, which all of us handle whenever we feel like it.



@(Anfini) From Setne: Have there been any events you've run where you've found yourself wanting to strangle the players involved?
@(Omei) Setne: That sounds like every event, ever, to me.
@(Maghak) Events are always a bit interesting in that they're very delicate things.
@(Maghak) You can preplan and make sure you have everything set for a smooth event - or you can leave it open ended and not have players yell at you for railroading.
@(Omei) Events are a bit of a science. And an art. Because you have to keep track of a herd of very stubborn, singleminded people, all with their own agendas and ideas, and funnel them into doing what you want instead.
@(Maghak) No method is perfect and you will always have players and Gods alike being frustrated, unfortunately.
@(Omei) This works with varying degrees of success.



@(Anfini) From Areka: Can the cuddle emote get deleted?
@(Maghak) You might need to IDEA that one. It's a controversial and critical change to game balance.
@(Slyphe) considering it forms the cornerstone of the new sciomancer skills, we will not be removing cuddle in the foreseeable future
@(Omei) Also, we are planning to have an event wherein you cuddle Ati to death.
@(Omei) Removing it would go against the plan.
@(Haern[afk]) Areka: I'll see about retiring the emote.



@(Anfini) From Demion: Can we ban callipso?
@(Omei) You're players. Of course you can't.
@(Maghak) We're not going to touch that with a twenty foot pole.



@(Anfini) Right! Moving on. From Moirean: How do you feel about this past report round? Successful? When do you think the next one will be/how often they will be?
@(Anfini) Sorry, Moirean meant to indicate that was directed at Slyphe.
@(Slyphe) i am pretty happy with it, I think removing the cap on submissions inspired a few people to be more creative with their suggestions. I'm also happy that liaisons were consulted and most of the baffling/nonsensical reports got enough feedback to fix their requests
@(Slyphe) we have a lot on our plate following this round, so I expect we'll have at least one class released before the next round
@(Slyphe) not including carnifex, which will be receiving pretty hefty overhauls



@(Anfini) From Taelin: Speaking of New Sciomancer skills, is there any random thoughts on a timeline of when we could expect the new mage reworks? Is this something in the short rows of completion or still a considerable ways away?
@(Maghak) As we've said a few times, issuing any kind of definitive timeline on these things has proven to be a very bad idea in the past.
@(Slyphe) all I can realistically say is that it's on the agenda and a lot of work has been done, but there's still a lot to do
@(Slyphe) the mage revamps are tied deeply into the lore of the game as well, so there are a lot of fine details we want to explore before we establish anything as canon
@(Maghak) Adding the seventh element, Love, is a tricky proposal that we want to make sure we get right.



@(Anfini) From Arca_Ire: Why is Aetolian lore and God RP always rewritten and remade? (Like Omei was about emotions, then nightmares, now She's the artist. etc.?)
@(Omei) She never stopped being about emotions and dreams. It's just differing interpretations of the same basic theme.
@(Maghak) On a purely practical level, cycling through godplayers and producers will do that to a canon.
@(Omei) Yes. Especially when people don't keep good notes, as is too often the case.
@(Omei) We do the best we can with what we have.
@(Maghak) In the past... year, maybe two years, we've been making a concerted effort to limit rewrites and total removal of lore, and to clean up existing lore to better fit together.
@(Omei) Making the lore fit in and make sense in a comprehensive rewrite/rework is one of our ongoing projects upstairs.



@(Anfini) From bakhtuh: Will auto-clotting be included in the Firstaid system? For those with the skills to clot, that is.
@(Slyphe) at the moment, no, autoclotting is something that we'd definitely need to allow people to set priorities for, and we aren't planning on expanding firstaid to that degree right now



@(Anfini) From Demion: Is there anything in the works to promote more conflict other then the current leylines and occasional order wars?
@(Slyphe) Yes.
@(Omei) Mmhmm.
@(Omei) Those, by their nature, take a lot of pre-planning, work, and caution. As previously mentioned, we run them as often as we can without overwhelming our poor, delicate playerbase.



@(Anfini) From Vharen: Any chance of having global arena events more frequently?
@(Slyphe) maybe. it would be more worthwhile for cities to use the arenas they have more often though
@(Slyphe) since we have all of those fancy mods you can use



@(Anfini) From fuogo: Any chance of making it so the playerbase has some form of retribution against theft? Phase makes it about impossible to catch someone that doesn't want to be caught due to the relatively low cost of usage and you have players, like Calipso, who have robbed multiple, multiple shops lately and for the most part 'gets away with it' because there's no consequenc
@(Slyphe) there's already a practical consequence in having the entire world at your throat
@(Maghak) Theft is already extremely limited in Aetolia, additionally
@(Omei) Yes. There are existing consequences. Theft in Aetolia is more strictly limited than the other IRE games, as well.



@(Anfini) From Arca_Ire: Are there any plans with reworking Havens and Houses, since it seems Havens are now considered the norm of a player-residence. Also Houses have frankly painful prices, so you can see why players are choosing havens.
@(Anfini) From Demion: Anything in the plans to make it so married couples can share a haven if both are 100+?
@(Slyphe) There are no plans right now, no
@(Omei) There are no plans right now to change the housing system.
@(Maghak) Havens have been discussed a few different times before. There are a few percieved issues with them that we'd like to address, but resolving it in a way that satisfies players and mechanical issues alike is easier said than done. They're on the books as a future project though.
@(Maghak) The second question falls under my answer there.
@(Maghak) There are not currently plans for that functionality.



@(Anfini) From Anfini: We interpret the Numerological primes as the operating system, if you will, of life, the universe and everything. If it's such a big hairy deal, why do we rarely see numerological references outside of the Cabal? (splinter religions, artwork, etc.)
@(Maghak) Until relatively recently Numerology was very niche RP restricted to the upper echelons of the Cabalists.
@(Maghak) You will likely be seeing more of it in new lore. No promises.
@(Omei) Furthermore, extant lore suggests that Numerology has been very niche, very obscure, for most of its history. You probably haven't heard of it.
@(Maghak) Eocik got into it when it was still underground.
! @Omei highfives Maghak.



@(Anfini) From Belgarion: Whats the chance we could have a 2 on 2 arena tourney like the delosion brawl?
@(Slyphe) Fairly high, we can probably do something like that at some point soon
@(Slyphe) everyone will get a random class of course, to keep it fair
@(Haern[afk]) You guys should look forward to the Year 400.
@(Haern[afk]) We have plans for some tourneys. ;)



@(Anfini) From Arca_Ire: are there any plans of expanding Aetolian city-states and giving them more flavor? Currently we have 4, divided down the line that is 2 shadow and 2 light. If a new city was being considered, what would the theme behind it be?
@(Slyphe) there are no cities being considered for Sapience
@(Omei) We're bringing back Ashtan. Its theme is pigeons.
@(Slyphe) new cities, I should say
@(Maghak) We are not planning for new player cities at this time at all, and frankly it's very unlikely it would even be considered.
@(Maghak) Assuming that a new city would benefit the lore, we don't have the playerbase to populate one.
@(Omei) At present, it is very much a stretch to populate the four we have.



@(Anfini) From Demion: what does IRE look for in volunteers? For those that aren't so much into the player experience but want to contribute with the game they have enjoyed playing for years.
@(Maghak) I can't comment on IRE, but for the Pools.
@(Maghak) Reliability, solid writing, imagination and willingness to work with others in a potentially stressful and moderately abrasive environment.
@(Omei) We want the best of the best. The cream of the crop. We want you to join up for no pay and less benefits and make your mama proud. Serve your game, for glory and honor.



@(Anfini) From Moirean (slightly modified): Any big thing for year 400, besides the tournament?
@(Slyphe) Yes
@(Maghak) Yes.
@(Maghak) The Celebration of the Stars is slated for the year 400.



@(Anfini) From Demion: Anything in the works for more neutral classes? Since the syssin is pretty much shadow side...
@(Maghak) Aside from the lycanthrope pack reworking, nothing at the moment.



@(Anfini) The most important question in Aetolia, from Arca_Ire: Why was Slyphe remade into a man?
@(Omei) Because Gods reject your narrow gender roles.
@(Maghak) Because at that time our code did not support being remade as a small porpoise.
@(Omei) Also that.
@(Slyphe) it's a precursor for something amazing
@(Slyphe) this is not my final form
@(Maghak) Something fabulous, as it were.



@(Anfini) From Meskhenet: For those like myself, who are new to the game - what is the best way to actually be able to learn the lore? Most frustrating thing for me as a player is trying to learn it, without looking silly from an IC standpoint for asking, if things are supposed to be general knowledge.
@(Maghak) Very good question.
@(Omei) Our lore is kind of a mess right now. Your best hope is to hit the libraries, find the books, and hope that nothing that has happened since they were written has been retconned. You, ideally, want to do a lot of reading and then check with players on everything you've read. ...sort of like being a real historian.
@(Maghak) All I can say is that we're working on making the lore accessible.
@(Omei) The reasons for this, as aforementioned, are because of high volunteer turnaround, and improper recordkeeping. So it's sort of a big, giant patchwork right now. We're working on it.



@(Anfini) From Belgarion: Why do the whisperers seem to get such a lopsided bypass of shield/lyre in the everyday combat? Is there something about those classes that would just break down if they couldn't ignore the same defense that stops most everyone else?
@(Slyphe) we're not going to answer questions on specific mechanical issues
@(Slyphe) that's always a matter of opinion and interpretation, and we already have enough avenues for discussion without having to subject everyone to it!



@(Anfini) We'll move on in that case. From Aldric: The Shadowplane Saga isn't quite over yet, is it?
@(Maghak) It's probably a bad idea to ever assume an event is over and done with.
@(Maghak) You'll find out.
@(Omei) Most lore arcs have an ongoing plan.



@(Anfini) From Moirean: How do you guys ensure each city/org is given attention? Like Spines atm has a lot of active IC divine - do you guys base your events, coding tweaks, mob possession, etc off IC alignments (eg Spirean gods fix Spirean stuff/host Spirean events) or is there like...a list of stuff everyone chips in on, or what?
@(Slyphe) coding tweaks are done completely independent of any org or god, so it's not based on that at all
@(Omei) We don't run strictly based upon IC allegiance. We do make our best efforts to give all player orgs a share in things, but it's more of an organic process than anything preplanned, e.g. "Oh, Enorian hasn't gotten anything in a while. Someone should do something over there."
@(Slyphe) the activity of the IC divine unfortunately fluctuates with the players interested in each role and how keen they are to do events
@(Maghak) There's always going to be a personal bias in volunteers, really, it's a matter of trying to spread stuff around while not forcing yourself to deal with lore and setting that you don't like to the point of burning out. I do a lot of work for the North, personally, but I try to make sure events have hooks for Enorian and Duiran.



@(Anfini) From fuogo: how close is the round 3 of liaisons to being finished?
@(Slyphe) fairly close, we have most of the legwork done and carnifex have a number of interesting changes on their way to the liaisons for testing soon
@(Slyphe) after that, we're going to be focusing on all of the teradrim reports as a whole and giving them a focused round of tweaks
@(Slyphe) which should wrap up this round



@(Anfini) From Setne: If you weren't playing your current role, what other role would you like to play?
@(Maghak) Good question.
@(Omei) Very good question.
@(Maghak) I've wondered what it would be like to run a Light-side arch-god once or twice, but for the most part working as a builder head and running Maghak covers all my bases.
@(Maghak) If I wasn't an active Divine I would probably like to be a lore manager.
@(Omei) There are times that I would honestly prefer not to play someone crazy. I know I do a good job of it, but sometimes it would be nice to just play a stable, reliable deity of some sort. It gets exhausting.
@(Maghak) Oh, that's not a formal term.
@(Anfini) Pardon my butting in, can we have a definition of 'arch-god'?
@(Maghak) I meant a God on par with Lanos, for example, a mover and shaker.
@(Omei) Meaning, Gods that are more vital to the narrative of the game, that organizations rally around.
@(Omei) Haern is a Duiranite arch-god, as an example.
@(Haern) I am?
@(Omei) Yes. You are.
@(Haern) Shucks.
@(Chakrasul) I would like to play a less hidden Divine, someone who can just walk up with a huge mace or something and smack some people around
@(Haern) If I was going to play another god? Hrm. I'd have gone for Dhar.
@(Haern) Slyphe would play no god at all. ;(



@(Anfini) From Vharen: What player suggestions do you hate the most?
@(Maghak) Oh man.
@(Slyphe) the ones that verbatim ask for something that someone else has
@(Haern) Ahahaha.
@(Omei) 'Why can't we be more like Lusternia?'
@(Maghak) An unnamed party who keeps suggesting I run Hashan events springs to mind.
@(Haern) I hate it when people ask me for great stuff and I simply can't deliver on it.
@(Maghak) Messaging a divine directly demanding events is a pretty lacklustre way to get them, for the record.
@(Chakrasul) Asking for new endgame races always irks me
@(Haern) Which, by the way, we have plans for.
@(Haern) Just being asked about it everytime the sun rises is a little depressing.
@(Omei) The thing is, some of the ideas we get are actually great. It is just frustrating to get great ideas when we already have great ideas of our own and are spending effort and manpower executing those latter ideas.
@(Haern) It's no lie that my workpile is literally a mile high.
@(Slyphe) we definitely have more ideas than hours in the day to work on them unfortunately
@(Haern) I really, really love the ideas that come in, but I'm already swamped.



@(Anfini) From Aldric: Why did you choose <insert God here>? What was the allure of that particular character that drew you in?
@(Haern) I was guilted into it.
@(Maghak) Razmael wouldn't let me play Severn. :(
@(Slyphe) there were already very low expectations for anyone in slyphe's shell
@(Omei) Because Omei was a fluffy, uninteresting dream goddess and I wanted to give her - and the game - some metaphorical teeth.
@(Haern) I really like the role now, but I wasn't very keen on surmounting several years of roleplay from previous players.
@(Maghak) Serious answer, I have always really enjoyed the frozen North style roles, and the barbarian god-king archetype.
@(Maghak) Pinstripes are also a selling point.
@(Haern) Haha.
@(Haern) No more pinstripes.
@(Anfini) You got those pinstripes from me thank you very much.
@(Maghak) Siddown!
@(Omei) Also, I have always enjoyed fairy tales, and urban fantasy, and dark, archetypal fantasy. Playing a dream goddess with touches of faerie queen? That really, really sold me on the whole thing.



@(Anfini) Ahem, breaking my own mod rules, beg pardon. From Demion: can you make Volcano not such a suicide run?
@(Maghak) No, the volcano is balanced for very high tier endgame bashing.
@(Haern) No, sorry, Demion. Volcano's difficulty is there for a reason.



@(Anfini) From Arca_Ire, to Maghak: Is there a reason you choose a troll and zoot suits and mafia as your God's general theme?
@(Maghak) I felt like Spinesreach could benefit from a push towards a different tech style and genre, and I felt like crime boss was the way to do it. The aesthetic is pretty appealing anyway, gotta say.
@(Maghak) Bokag being the new God-shell was spur of the moment.



@(Anfini) From Moirean: How does being up there influence your view of the game?
@(Haern) Uhhhh.
@(Haern) Good question.
@(Maghak) It makes it very hard to reintegrate with players.
@(Haern) Yeah.
@(Haern) It really does.
@(Omei) We have a very different view of the game than players do, obviously. We don't get an intimate sense of players, most of the time, not unless we go out of our way to do so, but we see a lot of content, generally removed from its context. Integrating with players is hard. Seeing things the way players see them also becomes difficult for us.
@(Maghak) You see a great deal of the nitty gritty things that you would otherwise not think about. Predominantly we're up here as dungeon masters and builders, so the distance is often beneficial, but at times it can be a bit disconcerting.
@(Haern) Yeah.
@(Omei) It's like watching a puppet show, and then suddenly being the marionette master, right? You see all the strings, and you weren't even thinking about the strings before, but now you have to learn how to untangle them, maintain them, and work the puppets.
@(Omei) It's just a very different experience.
@(Maghak) I would say that overall it's been a worthwhile experience either way, personally.
@(Omei) Oh, definitely.
@(Haern) Definitely, yeah.



@(Anfini) Here's a fun one from Setne: If you could have one feature from any other game that Aetolia doesn't have, what would it be?
@(Maghak) Ambient temperature, atmospherics and body heat loss.
@(Haern) A better weather and atmos system.
@(Haern) (I feel Razmael and Oleis staring daggers at me from across the internet)
@(Maghak) Can we say two? I would also like a lot more roguelike and procedural game elements for bashing and questing content.
@(Haern) Which you may see~~
@(Omei) I'd like more dynamic bashing. Something more than just hitting a command over and over.
@(Haern) Hence Omei's Nazetu juggernauts from hell.
@(Omei) Exactly.



@(Anfini) From Meskhenet: Describe a person/event/something that has refreshed your faith in the player base.
@(Haern) I've always had faith, but uhhh.
@(Haern) Moirean's interactions with newbies is honestly really, really fun.
@(Maghak) This might be getting a bit personal, but seeing Moirean come back from her hiatus and completely retake Spines, revitalizing it for newbies and oldbies alike, that was a very happy thing to see.
@(Chakrasul) I actually liked the vampire house cutdown, seeing the diplomacy that came about, the sacrifice from certain houses, was fun for me.
@(Maghak) Invested, active and capable players are always pretty inspiring.
@(Slyphe) every time i see people sit in clans for hours discussing combat changes and reworking their systems and trying new strategies, it makes me want to challenge them further and come up with newer, crazier things to try and work with
@(Haern) There's a lot of fun stuff from all of Duiran's guilds (and their guildmasters) as well, it's just hard to put my finger on any one event that is most recent.
@(Omei) Watching players do a lot with a little. Making their own events, their own plotlines, investing them with an epic, meaningful feel without admin intervention. It is possible and it is gratifying to watch. Watching people react to our events just the way we intended, as well... it's pretty rewarding.
@(Chakrasul) I love seeing the interesting combat strategies that you all come up with
@(Omei) For me, I live for that moment where the event happens, and people figure things out. That's really where I'm in my element - coming up with and running events. When people enjoy that, interface with it. That's where I get my kicks from.
@(Haern) Actually, when players suddenly click with my events too.
@(Haern) I really get excited from that.
@(Haern) I don't like to be right out there and "this is how it is", I want the players to explore and think about what is going on.



@(Anfini) That should tie nicely into this next one, from Orus: Have there been events that have changed outcomes because of players driving them off the rails either intentionally or unintentionally so? How open are the events to nudging from player input while the event is running?
@(Maghak) That comes down to the specific god running the event.
@(Omei) That depends, of course, on the event. Some are heavily railroaded, some have a few possible outcomes, and sometimes we just have something happen and let the players figure out what to do with it.
@(Omei) Though it has been the case, in the past, that a railroaded event has been thrown off the rails by player input and we have had to scrabble and improvise.
@(Haern) It's fun when they put my event off the tracks. I become a true DM/GM then. :V
@(Maghak) I find it preferrable to adapt on the fly to the players, but with events with heavily required points, such as the creation of Maghak for example, you can't afford to let the players warp the event overmuch.
@(Haern) (albeit I try to solve it with more than "kill the players")
@(Maghak) I recall getting a lot of flak in webs for railroading, but sometimes it's not really doable to make it open.
@(Maghak) A lot of prep has to go into the mobs and progs for complex events.
@(Omei) It's inevitable, really, that we overlook things, and so players find loopholes you didn't notice. I enjoy improvising around that when it happens, but sometimes, yeah, we have an endgame in mind, and the ideas we have are necessary to the betterment of the game, or its metaplot.
@(Omei) We can't afford to waste extensive preparation on stuff that might not even be used, either.



@(Anfini) From Piper: Nyan nyan nyan? Nyan??
@(Maghak) Nyah.
@(Omei) Woof.
@(Haern) You can't get nyan'd.



@(Anfini) From Orus: What can players do to get more involved in the plot of the game from the admin eyes. Lots of people complain about nothing happening, but don't seem to try and make stuff happen. Are there things that you feel like should be avoided for players as far as launching points for personal roleplay? Like, would it be bad for someone to claim to be a Drek spy or a person mutated by the aalen goo
@(Haern) Ahaha, Dreikathi spy.
@(Haern) ;(
@(Omei) I would say, offhand, that your character is probably not a Dreikathi spy. At best, they'd need professional help.
@(Maghak) There's no real existing policy for this sort of thing. You'll recall Tsvanni's recent RP arc that was smacked down a bit. The issue is really that we can't release the lore that's required for running a role like that.
@(Anfini) Throwing this one in because it works with the last question, from Mich: Is there an easy way to get involved with Ankyrean or Delve RP?
@(Anfini) Orus would like to clarify that his was just an example, he didn't literally mean claiming to be a Dreikathi spy (I think his second idea was more of the essence)
@(Omei) We would probably encourage our players to take opportunities as they come - it's not wise or especially prudent to presume upon lore that we haven't released yet, or attempt to advance said lore when we have our own, very specific ideas of what that's going to entail.
@(Maghak) If I'm around and you're chatting to a Spirean Ankyrean mob, you'll probably get mob RP. Usually just trying to interact with the mobiles, you'll stand a good chance of getting some attention. If you mean on a character background level, not particularly.
@(Omei) On a background level, on involvement level - that isn't something you can write into your backstory. It's something you can get involved with as part of the natural progression of RP, certainly, and in fact we encourage that. A lot of us like to possess mobs and banter with you. Take advantage of that, and bear in mind we don't always respond 100% of the time.
@(Haern) Well, in all honesty, Orus, it's best to not delve into roleplay that is lightly touched on right now, i.e. Delve, Albedos at large. There is still a lot of depth and history to Sapience and hopefully factions will jumpstart that for a lot of people. There's not enough hours in the day to really give players that constant push from a divine.
@(Maghak) I would say in regards to Orus' question that getting your teeth into an event should be done from an org perspective, rather than that of a single character. It makes it much easier for us to carry out events if we have an entire group to hook into, rather than having to try and shape the stories around individuals.
@(Omei) Right. One of the things about being a volunteer is that you see the game from a much more macro perspective. We do better when we can hook things into larger units, into overarching lore.
@(Haern) And, of course, some of the best roleplay comes from a little interior thought. Small character developments can sometimes be the most rewarding; not everything needs to be sweeping, dramatic changes.
@(Omei) Asking for individual focus is almost never a good idea.



@(Anfini) From Moimoi: What kinds of participation do you prefer from players during the big event scenes? Are there cues we can pick up on to "shh and watch now" or chime in with ideas, etc. What's a good way for us to know when an event is over (ie no more mob poss, etc) for the time being?
@(Maghak) Good questions.
@(Omei) Yeah, those are.
@(Maghak) Well.
@(Maghak) We have access to something called godstun if we really unequivocably want you to sit down and listen.
@(Maghak) So if you can act, it's sort of implicit that we're fine with you acting.
@(Haern) A lot of times we like to wait for responses, but sometimes players just sit there and I think want us to keep going. Or they don't realize I'm gesturing madly and going "LINE, LINE, LINE."
@(Omei) We also have something called cutscene mode, which we can enable on rooms to stop you from doing anything distracting. That is, however, rarer.
@(Maghak) We hate, hate, HATE it when people attack mobs or each other without allowing time for the event to play out.
@(Haern) Oh, and sometimes guys, stop smashing everything the second it comes into the room.
@(Omei) Yes. Otherwise you get disfavored.
@(Omei) As an org.
@(Haern) I understand you all get jumpy, etc.
@(Haern) 99% of the time, we're not going to make it a rolling-ball-of-death mob.
@(Omei) And if it is a rolling-ball-of-death mob? You'll know. Because you'll be dead.
@(Maghak) I think people will sometimes get a headlight stare going on, and sit silently because they don't want to interrupt.
@(Maghak) I can't speak for any other divine but I love fielding player interactions.
@(Maghak) One thing I would note is that if it's a widespread event, have some patience for the poor bugger behind the controls.
@(Omei) I also love roleplaying and possessing mobs. It was a large part of what motivated me to step up to begin with.
@(Maghak) Jumping back and forth across the entire continent trying to field three groups of RPers is really tricky.
@(Omei) You should also note that trying to run a widespread world event... is like trying to run a nuclear submarine with one, two, if you're lucky three people.
@(Omei) There's a lot to keep track of.
@(Haern) Yes, I've had players engage six mobs at one point and I was the only one running the event.
@(Haern) I could have wept.



(Text_Wench) A chance for Great Hunt style bashing event with personal bashing instances? Imperian ran one of these once and it was a LOT nicer than competing for all da mobs in the completely bashed out regular hunting areas
(Text_Wench) (esp with 100+ players bashing out 60+ areas)
@(Haern) Uhhhh.
@(Haern) Maybe.
@(Haern) I can't really make a call on that right now.