Blade

Yeah, I dunno, I really hate all this preorder crap that all games are doing these days. When I'm flooring $50-$75 for a game, especially if I'm buying a collector's edition, I expect that I should get all of it. Basically they've tossed their fanbase a "Damned if you do, damned if you don't" choice between two items, which just seems like bad PR... but it's SE, I suppose. Might be something like an Empress Band with charges that you toss away although they seem to be hyping it up a bit, especially since once you register it, it will be there for every single character that you make in the future. But then again, SE does like to hype things up a LOT and then surprise you with something lackluster lol. Onion helm probably shaves 15 seconds off of a 5 minute weakened timer (but hey, at least you get to wear that wicked hat).

I am worried that they are rushing this launch a lot. That release date was obviously set up that way because that new wow expansion releases at the same time. They are trying to slap it together and have it ready by then (and sice wow is only a pc game, that's probably why they are only bothering to release the pc version and not the ps3 version until much later.... something tells me the pc release is really just going to be "beta pt. 2"... this worries me. FFXI was plagued with bugs and errors and an unhelpful interface, SE needs this launch to be the best it can be. Also. Really ticked that based on how its worded on the se site, the preorder bonuses are different depending on the version you purchase. Onion helm (reduces "weakened" time after KO) for collectors edition preorder, garlond goggles (increases rate of skill progression) if you get standard... wtf? Collector's edition gets the worse gift? What's up with that... I feel like they are trying to get us to buy both versions...? You can read all this on the us ffxiv site. One thing I do like about these preorder goodies is that unlike ffxi gifts, once you register these items, they will be available to all new characters you make... unlike in ffxi where you had to pick only one character. I'm just pissed that by already paying them more for the CE we get screwed out of an item...

I would be disappointed if this were to happen quite honestly, seeing as the idea is to bring roleplayers together so we can have a richer experience those people, I think would be shooting themselves in the foot. However as for dealing with them, we don't. I'm not saying we ignore them or pretend they don't exist, we just play up our strengths, we are trying to unite roleplayers and this will give any potential new RP a wider choice on what guilds they would like to participate in. Personally I can't see another group on another server having the numbers and diversity that we have, so we just focus on those qualities, at the end of the day people will do what they want to do, we just have to make sure our goal is clear. If we build it... they will come I think the most important way for us to avoid a situation where we get competition is to be accepting and humble, heck, even welcome competition even if it arises on another server. Because what will hurt us most is if we become too exclusive or get too proud. Rpers are a very personal bunch, we all have our own tastes and varying degrees of how serious we will take rp. I think that if another group were to start on another server, it would not be wise to respond to them by saying "well, since you aren't on our server you can't join the RPC or be recognized by us." That sort of invites competition, where instead we could try to incorporate them and see it as as an opportunity to expand. I've already read some posts on this board taking some exclusionist stances or talking about other non-Rpers in a negative way... thankfully not from the administration of the rpc, but regardless, I know people who have been put off the rpc based on some posts they read here. We need to be aware that there are many new people looking at these boards everyday and we all represent the rpc. With regards to server stuff, I definitely think we should go with an se designated one, given the option. It would certainly be a nod of support from se themselves, and if we basically went and did our own thing and gave se the cold shoulder, we probably couldn't count on their support in the future. If they put an rp server up, its a good thing, they are giving us a specific place to do our thing. I also prefer the se server since not all, in fact, maybe not even the majority of future ffxiv rpers know of this group or will at the time of joining, and like it was mentioned before in this thread, many would likely join that server without knowing of our group. It sets us up to lose people from the get-go and be fractured at our outset.

Hey there Promyvion. ^^ TalesOfVanadiel is still very much active and recruiting. Right now our schedule is based on how often people can attend sessions, this is usually twice per week, past couple weeks people have been busier than usual so it has slowed down a bit. I usually try to schedule in a social RP (none-mission based) at least once per week, usually on a Tuesdays or Saturdays, and a mission RP which moves our characters through the plotline. We had a back-to-back RP this weekend this past weekend (Social on Saturday, and Mission on Sunday). It has a side effect of being a mission static. This is not, however, a mission static that does some RP. This is an RP group that does missions, and the missions serve as a means for our characters to get to new places and explore all the details Vana'diel has to offer. We try not to rush these missions, and take the time to soak up as much material as possible. Although we adhere to a schedule, it is really only an attempt on my part to set a 'minimum' level of RP. People are able to and encouraged to start up their own RPs, and the shell is a sort of 'open forum' for characters. There is definitely room for people to do more outside of the two days I set aside for it, its only a matter of finding out when works best for people. I know one girl in our group who is only there for RP, lol, I don't see her ever leaving city zones unless its to go RP. I think we are a great group and definitely worth a look into. We have a lot of people here who are excited about RP, and excited about their characters. I'll be forward and admit that our shell is not without its flaws, as it originally emerged as just a story between three friends starting out their adventuring days until what it is now: a group of 6-9 working to stop the Zilart's plan. As we get more and more people (and have doubled and tripled the amount of people we started with), the rules have had to be adjusted and tweaked to help keep people on the same page. We are very much a work in progress, lol. Actually there are a couple new measures that I've proposed on our forums this past week, by all means if you join up with us, you will be able to (and encouraged) to give your say on these rules. That all being said, I'll let you be the judge of whether to pursue us or not. ^^ My forum signature should have a link to our forum website, check out the OOC for IC forum for information regarding our rules (as well as the proposals I am making). If you like what we have listed, feel free to join and post up a profile, and comment on things. Considering how particular RP groups to tend to be, I'd encourage you to make a mule on Siren and have my introduce you to the crew first, to see if this seems like the kind of people you'd enjoy RPing with, and maybe have you sit in on an RP if you want. ^^ Send me a PM if you need any additional info or have any questions (either on this forum or on our forum)

Still playing/RPing in Vana'diel.

I think that Option #2 should be incorporated into Options #1 and #3, since the definitions of #1 and #3 seem to deal primarily with character's powers in terms of lore, whereas Option #2 is just good RP conduct. For example, from the definition of Option #1, I could argue that it is well within my character's power to be able to stab another, in terms of lore. "actions which are clearly beyond the power of any player character" is sort of a broad statement, it assumes whoever is reading the rule has some know-how as to how RP works and that your 'powers' are not just what you can do by lore, but what you can do in interactions with other RPers. It's an area of confusion that I've run into with other RP groups in the past. The examples given explain it better though but I think it might be good for it to be clarified in the definition as well, particularly since the examples given all have APM doing some very minor physical action with enormous consequences to UG. But those are just my two cents, for now I think I'll go for Option #3. I like Option #1's simplicity a lot and maybe it should be included as a 'short definition' but I like the examples given as part of the definition in Option #3.

I'm definitely looking forward to seeing Chocobos make their return in FFXIV, although I would really like to see the XI version of chocobo raising expanded into more than it was as we head into the new game. A couple things that I hope are being considered by SE: * Again, being able to raise your own bird from growth and specializing it in certain abilities like before. * Better integration of chocobo racing with worthwhile rewards... lets face it, they did a really poor job of how they handled chocobo racing in XI. Forcing you to drag yourself through free-runs, and the Chocobo Circuit sorta became a waste of a zone. High levels of betting never really became popular, it just sorta paled in comparison to what they seemed to have hoped for. * I'd like more variety in how my bird can look. Maybe a couple more colors but I'm more concerned about physical characteristics. We got beak, legs, and tailfeathers in XI, but moving on to FFXIV they should step it up and give us a few more options. * More job abilities, but job abilities that could really add some additional gameplay. For example, according to lore in XI, Jennet chocobos (the small, green breeds) were used my Mithras to camouflage in the jungle. Palfreys (big blue ones) were better at handling the harsh climates of the desert. These were interesting pieces of lore but in the end they didn't really affect gameplay. I'd like to see more niche uses of certain chocobo breeds that would be really advantageous. *Tying into what I said above, I'd like chocobos to be expanded from simply just being diggers and runners. Perhaps there should be some areas in the game that are only accessible by having a certain chocobo breed. *And last thing I swear lol, but if they were to go with this system, make it so that players can rent out their own chocobos to adventurers. So that players could earn a reputation amongst the server as being a famous chocobo breeder who can rent you one of their chocobos depending on your needs. In a way it might be similar to crafting. I also like the implications that it has for an RP character... Most of this is all a lot of wishful thinking and I really don't expect to see much of these sorts of changes in FFXIV at all, sadly. It'd be nice though to see at least a couple of these things appear though.

Yeah, lying shouldn't be godmoding, but I think the character must have to have the intent to lie. For example, for the example given, if APM insults UG's feet stink, and APM expected them to stink when they don't, APM shouldn't explain it as a lie. In a way that is, first and foremost, a minor retcon that could've been avoided, and secondly, it makes APM's character perceived in a negative way they might not have intended for (a liar). An example of an 'appropriate' way to lie would be to have APM--in an effort to specifically slander UG-- spread negative rumors about UG's hygiene and claim his feet stink in public.

I definitely agree with Eltharian's position on this. I also like how Rikitiki described a (different, but somewhat related topic) My FFXI RP group follows a merger of sorts between these two I think. Our rules state, We've heard lots of horror stories on Siren about characters who developed powers that just weren't reasonable... like someone who could burn others with the touch of their hand. Some RPs might go for this kind of style, personally I don't. But yeah, doing "punches ____ in the face" as an emote without prior consulting with Mr or Ms. ____ is definitely a no no. You can't write in RPers taking hits or not being able to react to something you do, that's scripting their character.

I thought that I might also add that my group is by no means on the decline. In fact, we actually continue to get bigger and take on a new member every couple months (we have 10-11 now). Been talking to people and many of them are planning to be here for awhile, so yeah, if you do have some ffxi rp interest definitely check us out! I think we'll be going on for quite some time. still many adventures to be had!

Well anyone who has been interested in our RP has actually been able to get involved in our group, so exclusivity hasn't been an issue with us. Maybe you've just run into some bad groups, I don't know. We've even had lots of freelance RPers jump in here and there and it's gone fine, so I think it works from a community perspective. Anyways that's all I'm going to say in this topic. You seem pretty closed to the idea that something like this could work and be enjoyable and support community, and I'm not going to get into a mud-slinging fight over it.

Yeah, this is probably the biggest problem we run into, we end up having to do a lot of OOC catch up with some people in order to get them all caught up to speed. Or they just participate in the social RPs that we have, since we have strictly social RPs and mission RPs as separate sessions but all part of the same group. But as trying as it can be sometimes to get someone caught up with missions, one of the best things about this group is how hard we work together and how excited we are for new people. Whenever I tell them "We got a new one coming in" everyone wants to know the job, the race, the background, they start trying to figure out how they are going to jive with them in character... that's probably the best part of the group I think. And we work a lot with people, I don't just say "We're on this mission, fit in somehow" lol. We work out a lot of kinks... because its hard to join up with an established group already, whether or not they are doing missions. Forgive my rambling lol. I'm actually watching the dialogue pass through the LS chat (we're doing social RP now, although right now I'm just watching), between one member who has been with us a long time, one who joined half way through, and one who joined rather recently, and it just amazes me sometimes the kinds of things that they are able to turn out and the character interactions we get.

Well, part of my point of view is that its damn fun and more interesting for our characters to be the 'main' characters. There aren't any other active RP shells on Siren either as far as I know so running into another group hasn't been an issue, but if there were another group to start up, I'm sure the leaders would just discuss it and create a compromise. People can do that, you know. It's not like our characters parade through town and point out to everyone "oh btw we beat the shadow lord." I'm not attacking your preferred method of RP and I'd prefer you show me the same sort of respect. You talk of 'seasoned RPers' like we would struggle to come up with our own storyline, when the reality is that all the people in our RP love the storyline that is already there, however, the meaning of the storyline is lost and butchered when you are forced to blitz through cutscenes and whatnot. So we decided "Hey, lets go back through it all, slowly, using the storyline as a guide, and see how it goes?" Besides, our storyline is by far and mostly about the character interactions. Progressing through the story and saving the world just helps the group bond. Obviously you prefer something different. But we aren't using the story as a crutch like you seem to be arguing, this is what we have chosen to work around.

Not trying to be defensive here, but just wanting to explain why we use this definition of canon and why our RP tends to be based around the game's canon and plotline. I decided to make the game our GM for the most part. In other words, instead of having someone sitting back and calling the shots, let the game and it's included lore handle that. I have been in other groups in the past and managed groups in the past that allowed for lore and canon to be disregarded and the world was left completely in the hands of the RPers. Not necessarily bad, but what I found was that these particular groups I was in suffered from character power struggles... having implausible backgrounds, and everyone seemed in competition to make their character more awesome than the other, developing powers that others couldn't match... you catch my drift? As GM for that RP I had to make the calls on what was allowed to be done by our characters, which then incites anger when I side with someone but against someone else. For this group I wanted something different. Everyone has access to the game's rules and its canon and its lore. Why not use that as the rules for the RP and let the game balance itself out? No one can complain about another character getting powers they can't, etc. There's no snubbing of another person's canon since we just use what's already in the game. A common ground as it were. And the honest truth is that this has worked out well for most of our group. But I'd be lying if I said that it worked out for all, and we've had some people where our group hasn't worked out for them. I'll be the first to say that one of the drawbacks of this strategy is that it removes some possibilities to really get some unique ideas going simply because you have to work within the game's storyline and guidelines. But I also think it presents a creative challenge to make a neat character that has to fit into the world. In fact, I think characters end up being *more* interesting and more believable working under these restrictions, as opposed to writing whatever you want and not having to worry about whether or not it works. But our style is not for everyone, and I don't think we're better than other groups or anything. It's our style and our preference and other people have their own. But our group is certainly not "nothing but trouble."

Well this came as a surprise! As I told Castiel in an e-mail, can't complain about free advertising in a community of FF RPers Anyways, we are definitely active, and now we are closer to nine-ish active members instead of six. After seeing this here today I actually went to the forums and added a lot of info for anyone who might be interested in joining, even for just a short time (although our group is planning on continuing past FFXIV launch). Anyone who would join us between now and then would be welcome to stick with us past FFXIV launch, but we would not require it of you, we'd just ask that you work yourself out of the story in character. Thanks again for listing us Castiel and I hope to talk with more of you all soon.