Inactive Users and Death

[Crim 0]

So i think we are settled on this one then?

response times for AFK members only apply in field (Due to dangers of PK/Monster) Following places have there set time.

OP-2 weeks (because there are others waiting)

SP-1 month

PP- No less then 2 weeks but up to the rest of the party.

If you are in a Town, you are safe as long as your in a Inn or a Safe Location. However, you will not gain any levels and will continue from where you left off at.

[Nevina 0]

Still posting via phone and break almost over so can't address all points yet.

I guess the issue I'm having is that me disappearing irl doesn't mean I wanted my character portrayed as afk in game. I wasn't looking for full immersion, I was looking for story. If I wanted a survival game I'd go with zombies. My character isn't me here,she is someone who I want to grow and see how she reacts to her life as the game makes it. If I went afk and wanted to return and found out my character was killed, I really don't think I'd rejoin is the thing. I don't want to be punished for real life taking me unexpectedly away. Mind you I'd probably give warning or just not start new rps if I knew something was upcoming but not everything is predictable.

[Crim 0]

Thats the thing, with what i said, you CAn have your character live, however, it has to be done in a safe area. It only makes since in the RP because there is no AFK or idling. If that happen, it be like..

"hey guys, brb, need to pee" *takes off helm and dies, game over* XD...

So taking into consideration that life happens sometimes and we all have some kind of means to get on to make a simple post. All you would have to do is insure your character is back a town.

In town, you will be safe from the deletion rule because you are safe and there are no PK'ers or Monsters that could kill you. Its the principle of the Manga/Anime. The whole story is based off of the fact you cant leave. However we understand this and allow you to live as long as you are in a safe area..

[Namine 0]

In your case Nevina, your character would be considered safe since we'd all be well aware you're busy in life at times. You'd be fine because I know you'd give ample warning if not here, you'd inform someone I'm sure. I don't see any issues with your side of things if we stuck to how the game works.

We don't have the issue of Chaos Gates and what not, if you need a quick teleport to town, bring a teleport crystal.

Also Crim if you take off your Nervgear in this part of SAO you will die :P.

[Nevina 0]

I dunno, I guess I'm just failing to see the benefits.

Death due to inactivity:

• Makes the one or two people they were mid-rp with "feel better"

• Teaches them for leaving?

Purgatory due to inactivity:

• Their chara awaits their return

• Past relations can be resumed if others are accepting of it

• Don't feel bad about a lame non-death death

• Encourages return because they're not having to start over from square 1

I didn't list "more accurate" under death-inactivity one because I just don't see it as all that accurate to the game. If their player was a real person, they wouldn't just hang out in a danger zone staring at the dirt waiting for someone to come kill them. If they lost the will to "play" they'd retire or suicide, and suicide would need to be a choice they actively make.

Edit: What about as a penalty for leaving, the player has to write up a history explaining their absence? Like detailing their fishing excursions or their mental break down or something?

[Crim 0]

@Namine, i know, it was just an example :p

@Pi: There is no benefits for being away from the RP to long XD.. Also, Death due to inactivity will only happen under certain conditions

• You are in a RP Field [doesn't matter if its OP/PP/SP]
  Currently in a fight with someone/monster
  Only happens after a long period of time, 2 weeks minimum, 1 month max

yes people might get upset over it but also remember 2000 players died in the first month of SAO launch before getting passed floor 1. So we can expect a lot of people to die at first XD.

However, if a player is in a safe area [Town, Inn, Player House, Safe Area in Dungeon(yes they do have them)] Then they are excused from this rule. However.. i do think if they are gone for more then a year, then its safe to say they there character probably is dead XD.

We can go along with what Nevina said and as long as they write a good back story detailing why they haven't been in the fields. Then i dont see any problem with it

[Mythee 0]

It's true that with a system in place allowing for unwanted deaths of characters, it will not look as attractive to people who seek an RP where players come together and make a commitment to telling a story. Not playing a game. At which point do gaming elements hinder our creative liberty, and at which point do they enrich the experience? If the goal is to enjoy a storytelling experience between friends, their OCs and your own OCs, gaming elements should be kept as an accessory to the RP, not some kind of death trap/rule system waiting to bite us at every turn. For anyone who's played tabletop RPGs, we know that the DM's attitude toward rules will either make or break the game for the players. A good DM manages to give direction and tell a story without forcing anything on the players- rather, they manage the playground in a way that makes said players to feel at ease.

But what is the vision this RP's creators have in mind? What purpose are the rules serving? Do they encourage good things to happen in the community, or bad things? When introducing a rule at the expense of player comfort and risk of drama, is the gain really worth it?

In the end, I find it hard to agree with anything that will deny a player a continuation for their character's story for a reason as simple as a period of inactivity. It's like tearing apart someone's unfinished drawing. I can imagine that relations following such an action may not be so good, especially if the person returned expecting to be able to continue that very same drawing.

[Sieg 0]

The problem with that is you're assuming we're denying them anything. We're setting a restriction. We're not saying if a person leaves that they can't come back to their character, we're saying if they're in a field and not in a safety area, they'll be subject to the basic rules of the game we've based the role play to which you want to build a community with. SAO isn't a game where you can idle and not face consequences in a dungeon/field, so why should we be any different in that aspect? We are saying that if a person leaves they can leave their character in a safety zone or in a town and be fine and not be subject to 'death'. Doing different is like telling the same artist that their drawing can only be mediocre and they can't improve.

If you don't put a little pressure no one will get any better. This I think, from my experience as a Game Master on other sites, will put that pressure and make people realize we're not just a site, we are a community, but we're also a game which we are. A role playing GAME based off a story about an online GAME.

And I do like Nevina's idea about requiring a person to be subject to writing up what happened and why they left as far as IC, like describing in detail their fishing experience.

[Crim 0]

Standards and rules are needed for any good RP. Give you to much freedom and everyone is a god player, give to much, the Admins/Moderators are arses because we make up rules. Rules are there because someone in the past abused it one to many time and we had to make a restriction. It is how all rules are made.

Here, we are using the basic rules showed in the SAO universe, which is, in any place that isn't safe, YOU CAN DIE. Plain and simple. This isn't a restriction set forth by us, but by the series itself. In one episode, Kirito watches Asuna sleep in a field and makes sure to watch out for anyone looking for an easy kill. You sleep in a field for to long or near monsters, your asking for it.

[Mythee 0]

I like the idea of getting short stories to gobble up whenever someone returns from a long absence, but wouldn't quite phrase it as a punishment. Maybe it could be worded in a sugarcoated manner to be unscary. Must... get... short stories... ohohoho. 8'D

As for people having to AFK in a zone of safety for whatever RP they have latest in the timeline, I guess it's a kind of middle-ground compromise where the artist has to at least not leave their paint out to dry so that it's fresh and useable when they return, or something.

(About the timeline thing- sometimes people start an RP that takes place after they've already left a danger zone, but they are still RPing in the past in the danger zone at the same time, yanno? In which case, the storyline accepts the danger as already canonly passed and evaded.)

[Guest]

Conclusion on this?

[Namine 0]

I think the idea of purgatory for inactive users was the decided plan, I'm not entirely sure myself though. I don't think we ever came up with a solid solution.

[Crim 0]

I think i have mentioned that if your in a Field Topic and you go inactive for to long (2 weeks or a month) that your character should die as it would be the same thing as sleeping in the Field in SAO. Never know when a PK'er will wonder by/Monster spawn so that amount of time should be long enough.

However, if you are in a Town or a Safe Area inside of your Field Topic, then you can be there for as long as your heart content, but a member should attempt to write a post when they get back as to what they did during that time (in character of course)

[SorrowTheEternal 0]

I think i have mentioned that if your in a Field Topic and you go inactive for to long (2 weeks or a month) that your character should die as it would be the same thing as sleeping in the Field in SAO. Never know when a PK'er will wonder by/Monster spawn so that amount of time should be long enough.

However, if you are in a Town or a Safe Area inside of your Field Topic, then you can be there for as long as your heart content, but a member should attempt to write a post when they get back as to what they did during that time (in character of course)

I agree, however, if you go afk in a safe zone or town and you do not post within a given time, there should be some kind of penalty. Some exp loss or something.

[Crim 0]

Well the penalty is that you dont earn anything either so making them lose more wouldn't make sense. It would be like if i took a break from SWTOR for a week when i was level 49 and came back to find myself at level 45.. it would be even more disheartening.

Also, if the fall below the bump up level (if we decided to do this) they can not be advanced up.

[SorrowTheEternal 0]

Disheartening yes, but it would keep some motivation within the player base to be active.

[Guest]

In a safe zone, you could also get PK'd which was called 'Sleep Pk', another person moving your hand while you slept to hit the accept. Is that something we'd want to allow or not.

[Namine 0]

I think something like that would have to be arranged by the two people involved IMO.

[Sieg 0]

I agree on that one, within a safe zone it should be agreed on, considering that's a safety zone and it's meant to ya know, ensure safety.

[Guest]

Okay, so "Sleep Pking" will be allowed, as long as its in an agreement amongst the two. Which I personally think there should be a mention somewhere in the post, either before or after it that its been approved by both parties to do so, so we the GM's don't have to run off and PM to make sure it was ok.