Yes think of it like a television show, now think of it like a television show that puts out 15 min episodes every few months, sure people may love it and spend tons of time watching the previously released episodes but you can only watch or do something so many times before it gets boring. As I said the admin can't release the story and the other stuff fast enough to keep everyone constantly entertained so people get bored of it.



Yep just like I said.

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Oh and you should just generally forget about the more vs less conflict arguement really. The people who want less conflict want less conflict because they find the current conflict uninteresting or boring, don't reduce the conflict just make it more interesting and involving in what ever manner appeals to the most people because it has gotten pretty stale over the past few years.

Solution to the conflict problem is to make off-prime zones to matter as much as prime ones... and make it so that nobody is coerced into getting involved in off-prime conflict. Then make prime very close to being a safe zone. If necessary, create an organization with no off-prime ties, for players who don't want to be coerced into defending anything.

I'll ask her, but I don't think she will like that name.

167 days from now according to my google homepage.

I don't see how that makes it more interesting? Prime dosn't matter much anyway its just a higher risk to raid prime than off prime.

Then of course you need conflict that is interesting and engaging on top of that... but a good first step is making it possible for players to choose whether they want to be involved or not.

choosing your inovlement in conflict sort of negates the purpose of conflict.

In MMPORGS where you can choose to be in conflict or not, you aren't playing wit the same people. PvP servers don't interact with PvE only servers.

If everyone has to be involved in conflict, people who don't enjoy that will quickly leave.

If there are no mechanics for conflict, people who want it will quickly leave.

If players can choose their own level of involvement with the conflict of the game, they can enjoy the game in their own way at their own pace.

To be honest, I have been at the verge of going inactive again too (playing wise at least), but now that I'm Avatar I'd feel bad about it. :/

The reasons I wanted to leave are still here though and it's mostly the athmosphere in Lusternia created by the players that sometimes just pisses me off. It's a very very negative one. Everyone plays to have fun, but sometimes (or often actually) fun for the one is -only- if it 'griefs' another player on an ooc level, IE doing things that you -know- will piss people off and destroy their fun.. and you do it for that very reason. Like for example, shieldsmashing someone's shield -constantly- or -always- (each day) raiding when you know that no defender is around to defend.. Similar things can be found on the forums too. Let's take choke for example. It's not important if the skill is balanced or not, a lot of people (mostly Seren's) are just weary of having to deal with it all the time.. they don't want to and it destroys the enjoyment they get out of the game. If that is brought to the forums though the best you get from everyone else is 'learn to deal with it'. That leaves you with a choice: Either play a game that is not fun for you anymore.. or quit. And since it's a game you can't blame people for quitting.

I think Lusternia could attract a lot more people if just the stance of players towards each other would change to one where destroying the game for someone else just because -you- maybe hold a grudge and feel justified to do so or simply because it is fun for you is not the most important thing. But that it's rather important that those you raid, attack or basically anything else have fun too, whether they die or not.

There are a lot of skills that can be used in ways that make them OP or 'unfair' in certain situations, or even if not it is perceived as such by a majority. Just because it -can- be done however doesn't mean you -have- to. This is still a game where people play with each other, if you act a total jerk towards others eventually they will do the same.. and create an athmosphere that destroys the enjoyment not just for them but for you as well.


On the topic of the administration.. I do think we have a good one, however the one of Imperian just 'seems' better. The one thing I've noticed they do differently is that they actually let people -know- what they are working on or what they intend to do Of course not details for new features, but people know that something is getting done, and they know aprox in which timeframe. I just think this helps a lot.

For example they posted on the forums that for a few months they are going to focus on fixing all the bugs, then moving on to classleads. That's fine and doing it that way people -know- that bugs don't just get ignored (which is often seen that way by many here) and they know -when- classleads are going to be worked on so they don't feel that the admin are slow about it either. Likewise, they can raise concerns about it. I just think a bit of information (and possibly even teasers about new features) can go a long way in keeping people interested and satisfied and attracting new players.

Lets say I want conflict, and so does the rest of my commune. Lets call us the warmongers. We as a unit want to fight "others". however, the people we want to fight, don't want to be invovled in conflict. Lets call them hippies.

Warmongers: Kill the Hippies!

Hippies: No, don't.. infact you can't!

Warmongers: Darn! Ok lets kill eachother!

Hippies: Oh look they are divided, lets go taunt them!

Warmongers: Die Hippies! Oh Darn we can't!

I think the major reason for inactivity is timing. It is March, classes for students are getting a lot more serious. For those of us who work, taking care of taxes is a constant reminder of other things we have to do.

this is kind of an insult and a compliment...if i could find a game that was as good as lusternia i would have left a long time ago

i did write a reply but then i accidently removed it so ill leave it at that..

because some guilds make you get permission to even contest and even then if you lose you get gdf'd to hell an back. All i am sayin on that subject could rant for hours

I have to say I agree a lot with what shadow says in his post. The player culture in Lusternia is rather drab at times in how others treat one another either poorly, or like strangers when they shouldn't be. I'm not entirely sure how to voice what I mean to say in regards too it, but the atmosphere from a lot of people is far more angsty and emo then I think most people would prefer it be, and not in an RP way. I think the overall mood of Seren/Glom conflict right now is a pretty good example. I think perhaps people forget that though they are RP'ing and playing a role, their own drive and will directs where the RP leads, it's as if people feel contained in the same shell of how they're supposed to procede and act as an org ICly as a whole wether or not anyone is enjoying it.


Please don't let this turn into a silly seren/glom argument.

Then you are not contesting properly and need to learn a few more things about politics. I am happy to give lessons to anyone who likes.

Of course, this assumes that there is in fact stagnancy in the guild/city/commune.

Nonetheless as Estarra said they do try to please everyone, but different lusternians want radically different things. Take you and Verithrax here.
That is exactly what the admin are already doing with nexus worlds and nexus constructs at the moment. Which seems like a fairly big project that they've been working on for a few months now. Heck, they've been trying to steer conflict hot-spots in that direction since the implementation of Wild Nodes.

It's small because it's getting off topic:
As for the implementation of an organization that has absolutely no inherent conflict with any other nation, I don't see it happening, and I'm glad I don't see it happening. You can be quite the non-combatant in any of the nations, it's when you make your character a violently outspoken pacifist that it just doesn’t ‘fit’ well anymore, like a toddler constantly trying to put a square block in a round hole, you but up against other members in that nation. (wow, look at that, you just chose to start a conflict, to erm, end another conflict…) In the serenwilde at least, this imo has caused more people to become inactive then physical conflict, it's more insidious, it's your news boards, and it's standing with you at your nexus.

Nations are content to let their members do what they will on a personal level. It's when those people start leading a campaign against -insert principle here- that others oppose them in that nation. Generally they then scream about how they're being oppressed and then quit that nation, or take it to a more broad level: ‘it’s the admin’s fault!’ When, in fact, they weren't being opposed until they chose to get involved in a conflict. (Yes I consider the politics contained within a nation to be a form of conflict.) No, don’t bring the ‘it’s the gods against me’ thing into it, there are, and have been, peaceful gods. This is a mortal vs mortal conflict I’m talking about.

People already choose their level of involvement.

For that reason I don’t see the difference between what we have now, and a nation with no inherent conflict, other then there would be even less self-contained conflict between that nations members, because they would all agree on not having physical conflict. What a boring place, at least until some people start CHOOSING to get involved in some other sort of conflict(what you said they should be allowed to do), you end up having a nation like all the others, just with no interesting back story. I’d rather lusternia not be sullied by GenericNation5. (Dagenev already sort of mentioned this in his little 'hippies Vs warmongers' bit)

For those reasons, I don't think making a new generic nation would solve this issue, other then maybe temporarily as people guild-hop there, find it's just like the others, and guild-hop back to a more culturally interesting nation.

I am not running it is just the guild rules. I can not see myself being a great leader because I have anger problems and mood swings out the hineyhole. I do see other suitable leaders that would be better but yet we are still stuck with the same crap.

You are in an even better position than most then, because you want someone else to run. That gives you quite a bit of leverage if you use it properly.

Shayle for example, was forced to run for guildmaster by quite a few evil people.

Then teach me oh wiser one. Show me your ways so I do not have to spend 300k getting un enemied to places and leaving my current guild and city! Pm me if possible actually.

I know what you mean but it isn't the players fault totally. The game is designed with conflict between some places. Conflict between serenwilde and glomdoring (has been/still is) a built in part of the game, not sure which quests are still active. There is only so much the players can do with that conflict, do the wee quests, do a bit of almost pointless raiding, kill a mob or a player or two, right thats it nothing more everyones bored again, rince repeat.

Reasons Why People Leave Lusternia:

1. Real Life (school, work, other issues).
2. Irrtation with other players and their behaviour.
3. Lack of hunting grounds, especially during PEAK HOURS (seriously, every area DOES NOT need to have a backstory! It can be an extension of an already existing area! WHY IS THIS PART SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND.)
4. Special Quests are either made too hard or HAVE NO POINT AT ALL. (i.e. Ladantine)
5. Influences should NOT LAST AS LONG as a typical workschedule for the person's day (6-7 hours). That is ing ridiculous. 4 hours max - influences are a major turn off for a day's worth of playing.
6. Nil/ Celestia and Ethereal raids get monotonous - if you were to add another plane or extension belonging to a fourth, even fifth party, that could make things more fun.
7. A conflict between four orgs can only be interesting for so long.
8. A feeling of Divine playing favorites - doing that little extra that's not exactly right, but not passing the line of wrong.

Everything above is mostly why I am becoming slowly inactive, though I don't think I'll leave this game completely yet until I get demi-god. As for 8*, before you all flame me, these are just feelings from things I've observed and heard, which may or may not be true, but it still leaves a strong impression in my mind. Afterall, sometimes there's a little bit of truth to some rumours. Although, the biggest reasons for me are mostly 1, 2, (and 8). Things keeping me staying are: demi-godhood (as mentioned), working on my manse, and my friends. Friends who are slowly leaving....

Pretty much, it can be summed down to the players and the game itself driving people away. Not everything can be perfect, but there are things that can be improved by everyone (self included).

Also, Kitty, if you leave Mag Reiha will hunt you down

* = Don't derail this topic into a "This divine does abuse their power" thread!