>Crazy as it sounds to you, I kind of think that IS the main
>balancing purpose of the current system. :p

Possibly. I didn't design it so I can't speak to the intent of the designers. Though, if that's the case, then I think it's a bad way to attempt to "balance" the "unbalancedness" of a mage who has found all of his sleek wands.

If mortals having the "slay" command would be unbalanced, then it would be unbalanced even if it were only given to 10% of them randomly and then only for the last 50 hours of the character's life.

>I mean, let me know if you played
>one and disagree with me - it'd be nice to hear a different
>view from someone who can PK.

None of my mages ever find their wands, so I can't comment. Your description sounds pretty accurate. Players who aren't that good at PK will still die with ASB. Good players will still (rarely) die with ASB (usually up against a huge gang). But it makes a huge difference. I'm not disputing that.

>I agree your way maintains the exploration element and I wish
>it wasn't buried in tongi's thread, but I think it makes
>full-time ABS even easier.

"Easier" is the wrong word. It makes it less likely that some mages will be without ASB because they just can't find the damn things. It makes it less likely that players will roll mages, find their wands, then delete because they perceive their locations to represent a severe disadvantage (relative to other mages w/ easier locations).

If you think "mage who has found ASB" is too powerful, then consider upping the repop timers on sleek wands so that even mages who have found their locations are forced to use the charges judiciously.