I like the ylem type blessings where you get % increase in gold drops or exp gain or whatever.

Estarra:

What if one could collect 'dharma' for your city/commune (sort of like organizational karma). The city/commune could then purchase temporary blessings that affect all members of that org. Yes, folks, this would be our Dharma Initiative...

(Haven't really thought this through, just an off the cuff idea.)

I'd really like to see the tech tree style with upkeep costs and a system to generate it.

Estarra:

What if one could collect 'dharma' for your city/commune (sort of like organizational karma). The city/commune could then purchase temporary blessings that affect all members of that org. Yes, folks, this would be our Dharma Initiative...

(Haven't really thought this through, just an off the cuff idea.)

I like this. I'd make the blessings minor for combat purposes, but more utility buffs and things that younger players especially would appreciate.

Ideas:
Extra dross power draws (stacks with Harmony domoth).
Celerity effect (extra movement before 'hasty' message) and/or resistance to weather effects.
5% extra gold/exp/esteem.
50% faster teleporting to players of your org and nexus.
Extra gold/power from org-specific power quests.
Stuff.

I really like the idea; the only thing I can think of that'd be a downside is that if it keeps its current name I'd need to shuffle around some vocabulary in a guild project I'm working on!

While the system sounds rather exciting, 'dharma' means 'universal law' and has a much stronger tie to certain religions than karma (since, for better or worse, 'karma' has become used for other purposes IRL than its religious meaning), basically, so I'd really prefer a different name for it.

50 d(harma) - TESSERACT TO (bubble)

Yay, domoths. For those too lazy to build a small fleet of ships for travel purposes.

Near:

While the system sounds rather exciting, 'dharma' means 'universal law' and has a much stronger tie to certain religions than karma (since, for better or worse, 'karma' has become used for other purposes IRL than its religious meaning), basically, so I'd really prefer a different name for it.

I'm torn. On the one hand, I totally agree with you. On the other, well, we already have a whole Wiccan archetype with flying brooms and magic cats and toadcurse, and the Wiccans among us deal with it.

Sylphas:


I'm torn. On the one hand, I totally agree with you. On the other, well, we already have a whole Wiccan archetype with flying brooms and magic cats and toadcurse, and the Wiccans among us deal with it.

I was having this discussion with my roommate, who I got to play Lusternia! Anyway, you're right, and it's not a huge deal or immersion-breaking, but I thought I'd at least bring it up.

Estarra:

Following up on a previous thread that discussed how to help regulate raiding, one idea we are considering, going for simplicity, is that if you enter an affiliated plane where you are an enemy, you cannot return to that plane (once you leave) for one hour unless you are killed on that plane (in which case you can return immediately).

Is this a good idea? Bad idea? Would people use heartstop to game it? Any better ideas? Would like to hear your thoughts!

I think this would be a good idea if the demigod essence cost on death was dramatically reduced.That would achieve two things:

1. Encourage more people to go raid because the cost of death is less.
2. But allow a cooldown for the defending org by preventing the person from returning for a time. (This would cut down on repeated hit and runs)

I wonder if this very thread has inspired a lot of "going out of business" petty-raids the last few days, people getting in their tantrums in case they're about to be limited in how much they can.

People say raiding isn't worth it, but we still see raids with fair regularity. If we're going to encourage more raids, there definitely needs to be a point/balance to it.

We still have plenty of imbalances in the game, many related to the raiding, such as how shrines are placed and sanctified, how melds are more difficult to use or break, how discretionary powers are free for some, etc. Then, there's also the raids that happen when one side has ten people and the other side has one or two. And, some skills are just much more geared towards raiding/griefing. The list of complaints could go on and on here, but I personally don't feel raids need to be encouraged all that much.

I'm pretty sure the recent series of raids was due to a nice raid three days ago.

Hint: we were the defenders. ;)

It's quite nice. It's been a while since the two sides have actually raided each other (except Munsia, but that's Munsia). It goes to show that the cries of 'oh my internets, is so down and griefed and we can't do anything' are just, well, cries.

It's funny how the one time one side finally decides to raid, the side that has been raiding nonstop and "encouraging" the other side to raid more themselves for the past few years used it as an excuse to step up the raiding even more. It's almost like the first side hasn't said it would happen every time it was pointed out that they should retaliate.

Zarquan is right. I personally don't see how encouraging more raids in general will make the situation any better. If there is a point to raiding, the winning side will find a new way to "win". And they will push it and push it until a year later the admins will finally realise what a terrible decision it was to even consider this. It has been shown many times that the Lusternian playerbase has no self restraint. They're not going to start showing any just because you made their raids worth their time.

Each side will ALWAYS say the other side started it. The most interesting thing to get out of the situation, I think, is that orgs rarely know what their own side has done recently. I hear nothing about us raiding until the other side is about through taking their 'revenge.' It's a giant RP hole, it is.

Making raids have a purpose will be a bad idea unless they also have a limit. What we have now is a bifurcation that comes from fixing both the "too much raiding" and "too little raiding" problems in opposite directions. Killing smobs has an automatic cooldown so that when you either win, or don't win, it's over, which is good. But because it's also very punitive, it becomes a terribly dispiriting thing for the losers. Instead of making it less punitive, though, we just made it way too hard. That means the very smartly designed cooldown mechanic doesn't really get to do its job. And on the other side, there's way too many targets for pointless raids that do nothing, really, but which you can do all day long; and to encourage raiding for those who got bored, those were made too easy to do, but as a sop for those who suffered them, they were made to have no real effect on the game. All the pieces of what would make raiding exciting, purposeful, and limited, are in there, but they're all separated from one another. Something like an smob raid with its cooldown, but with its effect less punitive (that is, more like "cookies for the winners" and less like "whipping for the losers"), and made more possible, would be what we'd probably have done in the first place if we didn't keep trying to solve the same problem different ways on different days, and what we probably would benefit to move towards.

Raiding smobs is, what, 5000 power? That's 1/400 of the total power in the nexus, considering you only have 2 000 000 (and I'm pretty sure Serenwilde has more than that).

Um, not everyone has that much power. Halli is only at 1.1 mil right now, and our power generation is not that great. If you think you have too much power, you could always stop worrying about things that bring it in, but leave the rest of us alone.

Lilia:

Um, not everyone has that much power. Halli is only at 1.1 mil right now, and our power generation is not that great. If you think you have too much power, you could always stop worrying about things that bring it in, but leave the rest of us alone.

HELP HALLIFAX indicates that Hallifax would be at 3.1 million; we know Hallifax also raised (and descended) someone else, so that's close to 5 million.

That's not shabby...

Using current power levels is kind of silly in this discussion. :P

The biggest part about hitting smobs is really the fatigue on people needing to get the essence to bring them back. Even worse if more than one org got hit. And you can be sure you aren't going to be left alone to get the essence - you'll be harassed constantly on all planes from roving gank squads.

edit: Nvm, misunderstood.