Just wanted to vent my frustation and disappointment with the way player killing and the game mechanics are geared heavily to favor more experienced players (not characters).

I spent many, many hours exploring Thera, interacting with some friendly players and attempting to seek out and solve quests. However, the majority of the time was spent running and hiding from players seeking to PK me. Even though most the time there was no legic roleplaying reason to kill me, other than they see my name pop up and they chase me down. Being new to the game, my knowledge of the world is not so good, so I have no chance of running or hiding from more experienced players. This frustration has caused me to seek out another MUD for my entertainment as well as several of my friends who I introduced to the game.

I highly recommend that if you want to grow your player base past the several regulars you have playing the game, you restructure the PK rules in some fashion. For example, have some sort of power score for each player that takes into account not only their level/XP, but also their equipment as well. I found it virtually impossible once losing my equipment to get back on my feet, as players continually PK me and chase me all over Thera. Also, something needs to be done about indiscriminate PKing when it's not in line with role playing at all. I am all for PKing when the situation warrants it, but too many players enjoy just hunting down anyone and everyone who is in PK range.

I will miss interacting with the world of CF, as I found it rich and enjoyable, but the bad experiences related to PKing and the frustration of not being able to bounce back easily from it have caused me to no longer waste my time with this game. Shame...

- Eldras

I've been playing about a year and a half. I've had several times over the first year+ where I was feeling exactly the same way--why am I even trying when it's so difficult and clearly everyone else knows so much more than I do? It beats you down, at times.

I started with a warrior and got destroyed after I got above level 30. The hidden enemy thing was very difficult to deal with and I nearly gave up after countless assassinations. But after keeping with it (I then tried an assassin and learned how to deal with them, then heroed for the first time as a shapeshifter), I can say you do get to a point where you'll be able to survive most fights. You may not pk others a lot, but you can definitely make a character that will survive pretty well, to a point where you can focus more on RP and exploring. That's the start- then you can really learn your way around, find gear and preps, and learn the strategy of different classes, fighting in different locations/situations, how to RP well, get a better understanding of cabal politics, game history, etc.

In addition to assassins and rangers, I'd suggest trying a defense major shapeshifter (you really don't have to worry about gear much, can learn wand locations). Nexus or Fort would fit well. Rank up quick, try to hide out in more obscure places (not just sitting in your Galadon guild), and always be ready to run.

You could also try a thief- gentlewalk and steal make thieves pretty good for exploring, peeking at others inventories and stealing gear has major perks. Just don't expect to kill a lot of people.

Races like drow, duergar, and elves will put a target on your back. Mages will always be hunted by villagers, so just be aware and always have a plan to get away. It won't always work, but usually it will. Spam your teleport and word spells until they are perfected, always be flying, etc.

I'd highly suggest getting into a cabal that is pretty active and flexible- Nexus or Fort (or maybe Battle, but it can be tough to not have the escape options you get from potions or spells). That will plug you into a network of friends who will help you get gear and can give you guidance along the way.

Most of all, just keep in mind that we all go through this frustration early on and that every class has it's weaknesses. This game has a very steep learning curve, but keep at it and you will find that there is some great RP and that with the right knowledge and character design you can definitely get to where you will survive pretty well. Then comes the really fun (and hard part)--being able to pk well and developing some great RP.

Take a break, think about your next strategy and an appealing role/class/cabal combo...and come back and try again! If you have friends to learn with, you're better off than I am and will likely learn a lot faster.

Good luck and hope to see you in the fields again.

+ Play the right class:
Warrior is not a beginner class, too many variables and complexity.
You want either Assassin or Ranger. I'd suggest Assassin.
For race you want Arial or Human or Felar.

Assassin will allow you to hide and see enemies approaching easier.

+ Try and join the right Cabal.
I would strongly suggest you be of good alignment and try to join
the Fortress. Playing with others (allies) will allow you to learn
things much faster and you'll get help with regearing/preps and
exploration. You will also get an idea of cabal dynamics and cabal
wars.

+ Try and interact with others in game.
Approach obvious good-aligned players (elfs, dwarves, paladins, Fort
members), let them know of your intentions to join Fort, ask for
help etc. The bonus of playing good is that not everybody is going
to want to murder you. If you play evil, you can have the whole mud
gunning for you.

+ Find information outside the game. The unofficial forums and wiki
(you need to sign up for the forums to access it) @ www.qhcf.net
are full of extremely useful info. There is also an IRC channel.

+ Most importantly as daevryn said, learn to enjoy dying. CF has
permadeath either due to con loss or age death or you deleting.
No char is permanent, so take advantage of this, play a couple
of chars and con die them to get the hang of PK. View each battle
as a learning opportunity. Lost equipment/coins can be replaced
very fast if you learn how to do a basic regear.

CF _is_ challenging but if you follow these simple recommendations
you will have a lot more fun as you learn the ropes.

Neutral Herald Assassin exploration enthusiast generally has the fewest enemies.

Goodies wont bother you unless you're in the middle of performing an evil act.
Neutrals have no particular motivation to hunt you.
Evils might try for you, but the classy ones will pick up on your newbie-ness and ignore you for the most part.

Being a Herald means your interactions with other players will generally be of the RP variety, giving you a chance to explore the MUD and figure things out.

This isn't to justify what you experienced or change your mind so much as about my curiousity about some gameplay aspects.

1) Did you ever take advantage of the 'outfit' command after being killed?

2) Did you use the 'barter' command at all? If so, was it intuitive?

3) Did you ever deposit any coins in the bank (if your role allowed for it)?

4) Did you find hunger/thirst to be a significant impediment to getting around?

5) How disorienting did you find your first death (either PK or by mob) after, say, level 5? Did you wake up at the pit with an idea of what you should do?

6) How did you get your best weapon or gear? Finding it on the ground? Killing the mob either solo in a group? As a gift from someone? Buying or bartering for it?

7) How well do you feel you knew the layout of your hometown?

Any feedback is appreciated!

Thanks.
Q

I have a coworker who's been browning helpfiles and forums some, and is looking at giving CF a shot (so long as we can get it past his gf). If he does try, would you like feedback?

Also, you still around? I miss me some Qaledus.

>This isn't to justify what you experienced or change your
>mind so much as about my curiousity about some gameplay
>aspects.
>
>1) Did you ever take advantage of the 'outfit' command after
>being killed? Yes, it was better than nothing, I agree, but not good enough to stand up to a fully equipped player who had a few levels on me. I was PK'd on the spot again.
>
>2) Did you use the 'barter' command at all? If so, was it
>intuitive? I did not. While I've heard of it, I didn't fully understand it nor look into how to use it.
>
>3) Did you ever deposit any coins in the bank (if your role
>allowed for it)? Lots, I had 30k+ copper in the bank, which was all taken away when I was accused of dropping link to avoid a PK (which I debated with an IMM to no avail). Added to the frustraton...
>
>4) Did you find hunger/thirst to be a significant impediment
>to getting around? Nope, plenty of both around.
>
>5) How disorienting did you find your first death (either PK
>or by mob) after, say, level 5? Did you wake up at the pit
>with an idea of what you should do? Not too bad, it didn't take long to realize you were in the temple of your home city.
>
>6) How did you get your best weapon or gear? Finding it on
>the ground? Killing the mob either solo in a group? As a gift
>from someone? Buying or bartering for it? A combination of finding stuff on the ground and killing mobs solo.
>
>7) How well do you feel you knew the layout of your hometown? Very well, though tended to shy away from it as I gained levels as people were seeking to PK at every turn.
>
>Any feedback is appreciated!
>
>Thanks.
>Q

If you're new and not, as eluded to earlier in the thread, an assassin, you might want to take your time and slowly rank up. Once you hit 25 it gets pretty dangerous

I'd suggest either an arial assassin or human forester explorer if you decide to stick it out. Ask plenty of questions over newbie channel, this forum, qhcf.net (though be careful, that Dio's crowd is vicious), and in game with your RP.

I for one have done my damnedest to try and help anyone with their characters in game (even occasional enemies).

Assassin was how I learned the game back when I was a newbie.

You get:

+Class-based Detect hidden, Detect invisibility, and Darkvision.
+The ability to hide in 'civilized' and 'wilderness' areas. This means you can dictate the terms of your fights, for the most part.
+Excellent defenses (Dodge, parry, AND shield block)
+Broad weapon proficiency
+Excellent utility skillset (blinding dust, poisonsmoke, bindwounds)

I suggest you roll up an Arial (perma flight means you wont get tripped to death) assassin. Pick a neutral alignment so you have fewer restrictions on what you can kill for regear/ranking. For a Cabal, you can try Nexus (Neutral/Neutral alignment), Herald (Any alignment), or Tribunal (Lawful).

The Village can also be educational, but you lose access to all magic, such as recall/teleport potions, which will significantly impair your ability to get around the game/survive a PK. Villagers get some pretty neat abilities depending on the path you choose, but the mages you will be warring with have some skills that you may have trouble dealing with, as a new player.

Assassin tips:

Dodge is CRUCIAL. Dodge is based on DEX, and is hampered by a high carry weight. Try to keep below 50% carry weight if at all possible.

Parry is also crucial. Parry is based on STR, and is modified by the weapon you are parrying with. Swords, Staves, and Spears parry well, while daggers do not.

For equipment, look for items that give you HP, Damroll, -Saves Versus Spells, Dexterity, and Strength.

+Dex and +Str gear will help to mitigate the effects of maledicts which drop these stats, reducing your defense/offense.

I strongly suggest you go to QHCF.net, and register an account on those forums so that you have access to the item list/maps on the wiki (http://diku.qhcf.net/cgi-bin/wiki.pl).

The fact is that one of the unspoken truths about playing CF is that you must have a certain amount of masochism in your character to play this game.

Once you accept that, and the frustrations that come with it, you can truly begin to appreciate the game. No matter who you are, whether the newest of the new or the most elite among us (look at Zynzyn) these frustrations will be there. Managing the sting of frustration is one of the things that must be done to enjoy this game.

However, if you are able to overcome this, you will find just about the richest fantasy world ever created and you will come to realize that you can have a hand in changing that world and leaving your mark on it.

My advice to you would be to, if you wish to come back, do some things to mitigate the frustration:

1. Play an assassin. They have detect hidden and detect invisible, but more importantly they can hide in the wilds to foil thieves and hide in civilized terrain to foil rangers.

2. Join a cabal. Fortress and Nexus are the go-to new-player friendly cabals, but there are pros and cons to joining pretty much any cabal other than Scion. I'm a big proponent of newbs going Battle, but that is a matter of personal preference and definitely requires more masochism than average.

Every single one of us has thrown up our hands in frustration at getting PKed/dying to deathtraps/getting looted by mobs/the list goes on and on and on, but we all keep coming back because the world is just that rich.

I'd invite you to come back, play a N/G human assassin and apply to The Fortress. I think you'll find a whole different experience. You'll still get frustrated, but in the end I think you'll find that the good outweighs the bad.

You need to understand, first off, that this is a pretty violent and conflict-driven world. If you see someone who's a citizen of the Empire coming at you (as in the encounter that was the straw that broke the camel's back for you, if I'm not mistaken) and you haven't sworn the blood oath of allegiance to the Empire, you probably should assume they're there to beat you down, kill you, and/or force you to take that oath.

And that's not so much a distraction from what the game is as it is a large part of what the game is.

There's a kind of person who finds that kind of hostility engaging and wants to rise to that challenge and/or revenge themselves upon the people beating on them, and there's a kind of person that's just discouraged by it, and I don't know that this is a game that will ever really be able to accomodate people in the latter category. PK ranges based on equipment, honestly, would not help you; that you're outgeared by your opponents is a symptom of your difficulty, not its cause.

It's possible to make a character that's very hard to kill; it's also possible to make a character that has less built-in enemies, as well. These are things you can try, if being killed too much is your major obstacle to enjoying the game -- but it's easier, probably, to just try to not take death so seriously or personally, if you can. Get into a cabal, make some (in-game) friends, and really try to learn and improve and in less than the span of a character you'll stop being a punching bag.

>You need to understand, first off, that this is a pretty
>violent and conflict-driven world. If you see someone who's a
>citizen of the Empire coming at you (as in the encounter that
>was the straw that broke the camel's back for you, if I'm not
>mistaken) and you haven't sworn the blood oath of
>allegiance to the Empire, you probably should assume they're
>there to beat you down, kill you, and/or force you to take
>that oath.
>

I agree with that strategy except most everytime I have been killed, it's been by someone hiding in shadows or invisible, so I can't spot them until it's too late..

A friendly IC question will net you 3 locations that someone at your level could have gotten detect invis magic (pills or potions) that you can buy/barter for. There are also some that are free, if you're willing to spend the time gathering them.

The hiding in the shadows thing is definitely difficult to deal with, but shouldn't really be an issue if you're in a wilderness area (though then you have to deal with camoflaged folks).

FWIW, often I think when someone gets killed they presume that there's no RP reason for the character to do so. And sometimes there maybe isn't. But I know for a fact that this morning your character (a dwarf) was killed by a member of a cabal that has, as one of its idealogical points, a severe dislike (even hatred, on some members) of the dwarven race.

Just one example.

I agree with your strategy, except I had 3 silver pieces and limited equipment as I had just been PK'd when I was logged on last time, so didn't have a chance to start to acquire anything. I find it akin to killing people in a game when they respawn.

No matter, I've found another MUD which should be more suitable to the style of game I prefer to play.

I for one played a more "RP-centric" MUD before this and I find CF much better.

Once you can get comfortable with your PK skills, you'll find most of the higher echelon characters/players have good to superb RP, better than what you'd find most anywhere else.

In your defense, this game is brutal on anyone who isn't prepared to die a lot of times

Good luck in the future.

If you're a quick learner, you can get relatively comfortable with your ability to pk or at least run away, within a couple months I would say. You won't be a 'pro' but one thing that speeds the process along is taking advantage of the rest of the gamers willing to RP with you.

Carrion Fields RP is superior to Hollywood's RP.

A defenseless dwarf dies in the forest to an Imperial, his next move should be to seek out his kinsmen and other friendlies, either in the Fortress or Village and ask them to teach him to fight. Most of them probably would. But instead, new players tend to isolate themselves and try to master the game on their own like they were able to do with every other game.

Sorry, this is Carrion Fields.

The Eastern Road demands your blood.

>I agree with that strategy except most everytime I have been
>killed, it's been by someone hiding in shadows or invisible,
>so I can't spot them until it's too late..

You might consider playing something with more detects or more stealth.

An assassin has detect hidden and detect invis as class abilities, so it's easy to keep them running at all times. It also can hide, which really limits who can attack them while they're hidden.

Or you might consider a ranger, which only has acute vision as a class ability (meaning you'd probably want to find a regular source of detect invis), but can camouflage and while camouflaged can be seen by almost no one.

Warriors (I think you said you were a warrior elsewhere in the thread) are a great class for what they are, but, they have less utility in the sense of abilities to let them see enemies coming, conceal themselves from enemies, or quickly escape from enemies than pretty much anything else. They can handle fights, especially at lower levels, better than a lot of characters but I'm not sure that's always a great trade for a new player. There's a lot to be said for being hidden as a thief or assassin and knowing that only a pretty short list of characters (other thieves or assassins, duergar, magistrates in their cities) can see you and that everyone else (there's one or two rare exceptions but they won't be relevant to you) is guaranteed to NOT be able to see you as you're trying to learn your way around and figure stuff out.

FWIW...

Most of the advices on how to learn the game (play a hidden class, ask around how to fight, join Nexun, Herald or Fortress, etc) given to Eldras are true.

About the no apparent RP reasons to kill, I agree with the vets and Imms: you can alway have a good reason to PK. I remember how impressed I was when I red the PBF of Paraloit. This wonderfull RP ranger was restraining herself to eat only the steaks of the people she pked.

But on Eldras side, between the learning of your ways around, the general tactics of each class, the knowledge of the enormous amount of preps & gear and the ferocity of the pk, I think CF is really not beginner friendly.

But it could probably more significantly be by getting rid of the gear fact (I still don't understand why a warrior can use a hero armor at level 15 while a wizard of the same level is not aloud to use a lvl hero wand?). Unfortunatly, it looks like the oldies prefer their brutal domination to a larger pool of players. I mean, would CF loose such a big "swing" by limiting the use of gear to 5 lvl above your current level? Guess it depends on what kind of "swing" you like: lot of people around or total domination by a few.

CF is hard enough and I think it would make a huge difference on new players retention if newbies could not be pked in 3 rounds because of the gear advantage and could count on the " balance " between the classes to be able to pk themselve in less than a year. The vets would still have their knowledge of the game as an advantage (ex: knowing the best weapon for your rank and being able to put all the chances on your side to be able to pk to get it) and yes the learning curve would be less steep and yes there would be less total domination. If you cannot see yourself playing without that midnight dragon gear, good god... just level up.

The majority is not all genius (or old timer) like the best players of CF. But every time I see 50 players online instead of 12, I remember it's still the more, the merrier.

> If you
>cannot see yourself playing without that midnight dragon gear,
>good god... just level up.

The game isn't meant to start at or near hero.

>> If you cannot see yourself playing without that midnight dragon gear, good god... just level up.

>The game isn't meant to start at or near hero.


That was so not the core of my comment.

Anybody can get elite hero eq in less than ten hours even at level 11 (it was doable in a hour or two before the corpse guard . It really doesn't take any skills other than stand on east road and watch/follow big hero groups/raids. Just have enough patience.

The worst thing about this plan is that someone who is really skilled will be able to pk you anyway ... even in standart reequip gear.

How much you depend on the gear yourself shows how skilled you are.

I don't think this change would make a huge difference, but noone knows it for sure of course.

I've been playing like 10 years here. I'm still not elite. Sure, I tend to take some breaks and I've realized only recently why. Do I know where to get some good gear? Sure. Do I know how to get to Galadon from Seantryn blind? Sure. Do I know where to find pk's and where to rank at any rank? Yep.

One thing though, I can't pk for ####. I don't know when to leave, I'm too lazy to prep and I'm not always thinking 'Ok so that guy's X class and X race, what can I do to beat him?' Nooooooooo...better just bash his brain out and die because it was dumb.

I've realized I want to win the game too much and on my own. Something many wants to do but only a few can.

Just played a shifter to hero, had all A/B/S to easy spots and yet I've deleted him. I tried to kill mobs impossible solo and wondered why I bothered playing that game...heh.

Even with ABS I get owned solid by some people...I guess that's life and that's how tactics are needed.

You shouldn't quit dude. You should continue and con-die your first characters. You won't be deadly, you won't have a pk ratio elite...but geez, you'll learn a whole lot. Hero, get into fights, follow some cool people, learn, repeat. I swear sooner than later, you'll have fun.

Sorry, that's just the way it is. Most people that have been playing a while had to learn when there were many, many more people to chase us down and kill us. These days you're lucky to see more than 4-5 people in your pk range before hero. Suck it up or move on. Not hate intended. This just isn't the game for you.

You look like someone who used to like when there was a lot of players online...

Why not trying to change something instead of simply suggesting new players to go away?

I care more for playing CF how it is than having a ton of players. There are plenty of MUD options out there that have 100+ players still. Those MUDs are not suddenly fun just because they have a lot of people. I choose CF because it is CF. Dumbing it down even more than it has been over the past 5 years or so just to bring in/keep more players would be a tragedy. I'd rather play CF by myself than have that happen.

As far as trying to change things, CF changes all the time. Lot's of things have been added to be newbie friendly: fine leather from academy, newbie channel, improved outfit commands, anti-gank code, improved wikis, improved website info, constantly improving help files, and on the side of the playerbase: increased sportsmanship. To name a few. I could do without that last one, but I can't argue that it doesn't help retain players.

I don't think more players would necessarily be good for the game. One of the best parts of CF is when Gods exert their force upon the world and when game admins bring the game alive by controlling NPCs and such. With the lower playerbase people are much more likely to get caught up in actual events and not just toil away their years in capture the flag cabal wars. It's like asking 1 Dungeon Master to oversee a group of 25 players. I'm sure it can be done, but everyone would have more fun if there is 1 Dungeon Master per 5 players.

Finally, I don't think much of the problem getting and retaining new players comes from poor administration. I think most of it comes from grumpy old coots that make up the playerbase (to include 1 or 2 imms I'm sure). Imagine if everyone actively participated in making the game more like a jaunt through a fantasy world and less like an arcade game where you desperately try for the high score. Instead we have said grumpy old coots constantly worrying about conspiracies and favortism.

I'm all in for a serious conversation about it:

>I care more for playing CF how it is than having a ton of
>players. There are plenty of MUD options out there that have
>100+ players still. Those MUDs are not suddenly fun just
>because they have a lot of people. I choose CF because it is
>CF. Dumbing it down even more than it has been over the past 5
>years or so just to bring in/keep more players would be a
>tragedy. I'd rather play CF by myself than have that happen.

I admit huge numbers like 200 do not necesary mean more fun but I visited a mud where I was alone and believe me, you don't want to play by yourself only.


>As far as trying to change things, CF changes all the time.
>Lot's of things have been added to be newbie friendly: fine
>leather from academy, newbie channel, improved outfit
>commands, anti-gank code, improved wikis, improved website
>info, constantly improving help files, and on the side of the
>playerbase: increased sportsmanship. To name a few. I could do
>without that last one, but I can't argue that it doesn't help
>retain players.

I wasn't clear enough about it but I wasn't saying there has been no changes in CF. I'm just suggesting that there could be more improvement (see my comment 'the more the merrier' to Daevryn about the gear fact).


>I don't think more players would necessarily be good for the
>game. One of the best parts of CF is when Gods exert their
>force upon the world and when game admins bring the game alive
>by controlling NPCs and such. With the lower playerbase people
>are much more likely to get caught up in actual events and not
>just toil away their years in capture the flag cabal wars.
>It's like asking 1 Dungeon Master to oversee a group of 25
>players. I'm sure it can be done, but everyone would have more
>fun if there is 1 Dungeon Master per 5 players.

I agree.


>Finally, I don't think much of the problem getting and
>retaining new players comes from poor administration. I think
>most of it comes from grumpy old coots that make up the
>playerbase (to include 1 or 2 imms I'm sure). Imagine if
>everyone actively participated in making the game more like a
>jaunt through a fantasy world and less like an arcade game
>where you desperately try for the high score. Instead we have
>said grumpy old coots constantly worrying about conspiracies
>and favortism.

Maybe, maybe not. I don't have enough info on this to have a serious opinion.


I'll finish by saying thank you for your comment well elaborated. It changed my views on the value of numbers.

The only part of cf where that happens really is levels 15-25. After that most people want to join cabals which put restrictions on it.

Are you aware of all the cabal ideologies?

Everybody has the same learning curve. When most of us who have played for years were learning the mud it was much harder and steeper.

This isn't a game problem. This is you being a wussy quitter problem. You and your 'friends' should just stick it out and learn pk dynamics instead of trolling/quitting here.

I'm not familiar with the Cabal system at all, no. Perhaps I should look into that.

I said I understand PKing is part of the game, but seriously, is there any role-playing at all in here? CF advertises that role=playing isn't just encouraged, but required. I understand it's hard to enforce, but still.

In response to just "learning to PK others". I still find it hard to PK someone as a warrior with little more than basic equipment when going up against someone 3 or 4 levels higher than you. The getting back on your feet part is what's frustrating. I've been PKed several times before now, but was able to regain most if not all my equipment, which makes getting back into it easier. It's hard to run around Thera trying to reoutfit yourself when people just hunt you down and kill you right away.

I guess when it comes down to it I'm just disappointed in the lack of role-playing and indescrimiate PKing. I'm looking for a world I can immerse myself in and role-play my character. If I want to go around killing as many people as I can, I'll play any host of shooter games for PS3 or Xbox.

>I'm not familiar with the Cabal system at all, no. Perhaps I
>should look into that.

Honestly, cabals are *TYPICALLY* where you might find a bigger concentration of roleplay focused, and are also quite useful for having allies and people to help you out.

>I said I understand PKing is part of the game, but seriously,
>is there any role-playing at all in here? CF advertises that
>role=playing isn't just encouraged, but required. I
>understand it's hard to enforce, but still.

As mentioned elsewhere, the hardest part is that not KNOWING why someone killed you, doesn't mean they don't have a valid reason to. Did anyone know why Timothy McVey blew up the OK City building, or did it seem like random terrorism at the time? It's only later that the WHYs came out. Now always, but often, I feel you can learn more the why's afterwards ingame as well, since after you're dead, you know they're your enemies, rather than them advertising it beforehand and giving up surprise.

>In response to just "learning to PK others". I still find it
>hard to PK someone as a warrior with little more than basic
>equipment when going up against someone 3 or 4 levels higher
>than you. The getting back on your feet part is what's
>frustrating. I've been PKed several times before now, but was
>able to regain most if not all my equipment, which makes
>getting back into it easier. It's hard to run around Thera
>trying to reoutfit yourself when people just hunt you down and
>kill you right away.

I wonder how many people, if anyone, are really aware of the outfit command. If you're a ghost, you can use outfit in your guild and get a basic set of armor. I've been playing 15yrs and my last hero I still used the regear armor for half of it.

>I guess when it comes down to it I'm just disappointed in the
>lack of role-playing and indescrimiate PKing. I'm looking for
>a world I can immerse myself in and role-play my character.
>If I want to go around killing as many people as I can, I'll
>play any host of shooter games for PS3 or Xbox.

Anyways, it sounds like you're moved on either way, but the game *IS* definitely PK intensive. Heralds tend to attract more of the RP-less-PK characters, and to some degree I think Fortress and even Tribunal is good for starting out.

>I guess when it comes down to it I'm just disappointed in the
>lack of role-playing and indescrimiate PKing. I'm looking for
>a world I can immerse myself in and role-play my character.
>If I want to go around killing as many people as I can, I'll
>play any host of shooter games for PS3 or Xbox.

Why would my evil bastard human necromancer do anything other than put you to sleep from invisibility and then spell you up and let you rot to death if I know you are (as an example, I don't actually know) a good aligned dwarf?

Does the CIA sniper debate philosophy with a dictator before he blows his brains out? No. The kind of RPing you are looking for sounds like the kind of thing where everyone runs around declaring their intentions before attacking someone. That works in some games, but not in one with competitive PK like this. First you kill, then after you've made them into a corpse, taken your richly deserved rewards from their cooling corpse and made off for the hills with your new toys, you might engage in some philosophical banter.

If you played a character to con death or age death you would quickly see that it is a much more immersive RP environment than you first thought, but that RP sometimes take the form of murdering your enemies to death instead of talking to them, which frankly more realistic in this type of fantasy world.

No, the CIA sniper doesn't debate morality with the dictator before pulling the trigger.

But that's not what this game is about. None of our characters are CIA snipers.

Robin Hood might have been more effective if he simply climbed into the castle and slit The Sheriff's throat, but where's the story in that?

We are larger-than-life adventurers in a fantasy environment. We should act accordingly.

So in the CF world, yes Robin Hood would have climbed into the castle and pumped him full of arrows. Then the Sherrif would have gotten his gang of empire lackey's and gone into the forest and used his Piercing gaze to murderize Robin. Then Robin would have laid a deadfall trap the next time the Sheriff came and call insect's on the Sheriff's ass. Plenty of opportunity for story there.