Messages

That may just be me who suspects a slow decline then, from what I have seen number wise on Dwilight I think there has been a small decline, but I cannot say for certain. Not drastic whatsoever.

And thanks Gabanus, but I have made my peace with leaving the game. Maybe at some point I will come back, but I just don't really see much of a point right now. I am already only playing 1 noble and 1 advy, and I will retire both I think. I have handed off 9000 gold, and two items to people I have played with. I might not have fun with the game anymore, but giving away the stuff and resigning from my positions may give some fun to others.

Though to be honest, there is a certain allure in creating a whole new faith. However, for now, I will take my leave of the game, and it is not based on the people on here who I do not necessarily agree with. It is just based on I am not having fun with the game anymore. I wish the best for the game for certain, and all the nice people I have met through the game, players and admin alike.

I'm sorry, but who in all hell do you think you are, talking to someone else like you have? What makes you think you can speak to anyone, let alone someone you do not even know like that over a game. I have done plenty for the realm, and the game during my time, and have played for a couple of years now. In time I had never actually properly met people on this game who were directly toxic, but since it is just a game I can say that I am now happier than ever that I am leaving. A civil debate cannot be had it seems, and as such there is little point to stay.

While the concept may be lost on you, then things does change after all, and seemingly people, not only myself, have after a while said we think it is a bit ridiculous the amount, specifically after some changes made by the admins. Now you say the game has always had this and it is true, but not in the extent we have been facing right now, regardless, even if you argue it has always been like that, and the game slowly has been dying, yet you remain unwilling to change it.

It is this exact sort of "It's always been, so let it remain so forever" that actually made me ruler of a realm, because very little happened and a group of people were fed up, so we did what we could to get into power and reform the realm to try and better it, now we are facing an issue that we wanted to raise so that the admins were aware that people feel this way.

People are leaving the game, has been for a while - This could help people not leaving the game - You refuse because YOU like it like that.

People lose interest when the Ruler takes the position for the fame points and doesn't bother to work to keep things creative and fun.

You may be right. You may want to pause your character for a few months and see if you have lost interest in the game.

So across the board every single ruler in the game is in it for fame points? I mean, since all realms are losing nobles as time goes on

If you insinuated I am at fault for D'Hara and the general game's lack of players then I am sure that I am to blame for the lack of interest generally across the game. The 20% regression in noble numbers in Westgard I am sure is my fault as well. Before the sinking of Atamara D'Hara was actually one of the realms who grew the most, nobles coming in. Before that I had seen it going from when I joined at 33 to 15 nobles, then it grew back to low twenties, and to skimming 30 with the Atamarans and now back at 23. I could list a number of things I did alongside some friends to show that I have tried to make it exciting to be in D'Hara, but there is little point as we are back at nothing now.

The simple fact of the matter is becoming less and less populated, and from the looks of the post that was intended to try and help out it seems a good deal are more content with letting it stay as is.

Edit: I have now informed my realm I will be stepping down when I have the hours to hand off all items and coin.

You are the ruler of D'Hara, but I've hardly heard a word from you on the Rulers' channel , and when you do speak, you say very little.

Any player who wants to can take up a different role in the realm, and go travel.

Any player who wants to can simply switch to a different realm.

Any player who wants to can RP about ANYTHING that they want to; it doesn't HAVE TO BE about the monsters.


So I'll ask again - What is it you want to do that you can't? Because I've still haven't seen anything specific that should be blocked.

Yes, monster fighting can be a bit repetitious, and now that it's summer coming, etc, RP will be down - but nothing is blocking you from doing anything.

In the Ruler channel I have spoken relatively regularly in the past, the last month or more I have simply lost interest in the game due to these monster issues, and as such I have stopped really bothering. When a realm asked for aid, we could not provide it, so no bother piping out. I have actively in the past mediated between realms who were going to war, Westgard-Astrum for example. I have had plenty of contact with other rulers as well in the past.

And, yes. Once more I will say that I agree that what you can do on paper is not changed, this is true, you can hear it again, this is absolutely true, but all the same people are losing interest over having to do maintenance work against the hordes. People lose interest and stop playing and become gradually more inactive. I have proven this to you, whether you will it or not. The fact we fight these monsters is what makes people bored.

So let me run through it like this. You can have any role you wish, but it just so happens if we have to few warriors (which is almost the case) people would simply lose the realm they are trading for, or trying to maintain through diplomacy. Nothing is stopping anyone at all, except we are not able to hold onto the land they would do these things for.

They can simply switch to a different realm, and by all means I am not stopping anyone, but some people do not wish to leave the realm where they have already build their character's life in. They simply don't want to start over completely fresh with a middle aged character.

And they can, in the same way I can just RP I have a gun after all, nothing in the mechanics and text would stop me. But you must agree with me it would be rather strange that while fighting the monsters, they sit and have a tea party. RP is very much based off of the world that they live in, so the regions locale and situation is taken into account.

The issue is not what can or can't be done. Mechanically nothing changes with the hordes, but mentally people get tired of having to fight monsters day in and day out without being able to do much else unless willing to lose the region.

Now I'm sorry, but I am not going to bother explain it again if you have no interest in trying to understand it. I am not saying what is right or what is wrong, I am simply saying that the game suffers from fewer and fewer people playing it, and I offered one of the reasons why this might be. I am not saying the game is bugged or glitched out, I am saying the way it is working right now, while intended as such,could be bringing a few people to lose interest.

As for the second part, I think you are stepping into an area you don't really know about to be honest. I agree it is way more than collecting points in any regards, in fact that counts for any title in the game. I have done my part for D'Hara, but you wouldn't know being new to the political scene of Dwilight. You don't know what I have done in the past, and it is a bit rich of you to come and say "Well, just do it."

Though the ideas are fine, issues are multiple with them, there is not estates to house all of the young knights, and we very much do want to support realms in the West, however, except for Mayhem there seems to be little interest in going West, however, the Atamarans in D'Hara is looking to gain a realm at some point in the West. Not to mention, the whole point of the monsters are to create density on the Eastern Isle. I would venture the guess that success against the monsters initially would only lead to even more monsters to create the density to make up for the lack of players, instead of trying to cure the loss of players.

Perhaps you should entertain the option of abandoning the Isles?

I have considered quitting the game to be honest, doubt I would move because the frontier between the monsters and men would just be moved and someone else would have to deal with it. Granted it might be more spread out with more coastline and less concentrated on the same region day in and day out.

Why can't you do those things? The fights are all computer generated. The things you are talking about are all RP.

The fights don't take any of your real-life time. Your character has to sit *somewhere* - why not sit where monsters are?

How are you "busy fighting wars"? The computer is fighting the wars. You just read about it.

Int'l politics? Go be a diplomat or trader. No one forces you to be a front-line knight.

People here keep saying we're just trolling you, but all any of can see are people complaining that they can't do something that quite obviously they CAN do, and it starts to sound more and more like you miss the old ruling clique & game within a game that killed Atamara, and nothing more than that.

Sorry, but that's gone and good riddance.

Well, if you aren't aware then most people do roleplay their settings and situation. If your situation was a tournament, then there would be banter between the knights, if it is war with the monsters, then it would likely be the campaign that would be RPed, the soldiers in their lines and all the like, however, we did that, for a good couple of weeks, and the situation is unchanged, but people grew bored eventually. We have to fight, so people stop RPing, in fact, people stop logging in more or less. Your logic is why use the feedback of the world, it is just text on a website, but that is the setting that we have. To ignore all of that would mean that we might as well not play the game.

"Int'l politics? Go be a diplomat or trader. No one forces you to be a front-line knight."

The whole point that I have tried to get across, and apparently failed is that the game mechanics does not allow this for those in D'Hara, because we have to keep fighting the monsters. The only people who more or less ever leave the Isles are those who trade for food, else everyone else has to fight to retain the realm. Then again, your argument will be "Well tough it out, that's D'Hara." and we will start all over saying the same things again and again.

For your last idea that I miss the ruling clique of Atamara I think you step a bit off the mark. Firstly I was in Atamara for probably less than a month before the sinking, couldn't care less about who ruled it. I had just popped down a character there to get fighting experience. I then took him to Beluaterra I believe where I was in two different realms, one filled of people I knew from Dwilight, and the other one the most volatile and hostile I have ever seen. (Ever though that was fun in it's own way, as it was IC) In fact I do not know if any of the Atamarans who joined D'Hara seem to care, they just want not to be fully focused on fighting unending hordes.

If you want numbers to back up my ideas and theories, well your own realm in Westgard had some 40 nobles at the start, now they are at 32, a strong 20% of your people decided it wasn't worth it. 33% of D'Harans are gone. So whether you think it is stupid that people are leaving, it is a fact that they do, and I have offered one the things here that I believe is doing it. Of course, people might not care, but I think it is quite important to try and save what can be saved, and discuss it for the better.

The real point I wanted to ask was, What could he do on Atamara he is no loner able to do on Dwilight?

The players we had trouble mostly sat around doing nothing. So - sit around and do nothing if you want.

What is having lots of monsters to fight doing to suddenly ruin the game for you?

The increased amount of them, the unrelenting hordes of them that is attacking to the point that just to have a realm we must constantly fight them, meanwhile there is little progress in defeating them. That's the point. People are limited by what they have to do, rather what they want to do. After a while, such maintenance play will drive away inspiration and creativity of players, who in turn will not RP. We started out fighting the monsters, and RPed alongside it, but it died out as it continued. There is little room for political power struggles as everyone is just busy fighting the wars. There is little room for international politics as we cannot actually have any interaction with other realms except for 1-2 people who gather food for us, so we can't go for alliances really, or go for a war.

We are just pinned against the monsters who have been unrelenting and more or less non-stop for a good while, and whatever people think of that situation. When the monster fighting was increased (or made smarter) it very much f****d over D'Hara, because we have had hordes in our lands ever since. One thing is we fight them from the West, but occasionally they will come from the East as well, from the regions that cannot be held by the mainland realms. I thought it was a bit difficult to enjoy, and I raised it in our realm, in our realm there was a great deal who agreed. It is not about what you are able to do, as on paper you would be able to do, but by having people do maintenance on a realm constantly just leaves without any interest in doing anything in the game. Previously in the realm we discussed a lot of things and such, now due to the constant battering most people are just "Meh"

Amusingly enough, you're actually wrong about what this game is. It is largely a strategy game that is welded together via player RP. If this game were just about RP, then we wouldn't even need to bother with an interface and coded mechanics, but rather just a map. What you're talking about is basically Spellmaster, an earlier game by Tom that this game is a strategy spin-off of. War Islands (the game) is the opposite extreme, being strategy completely divorced from RP.

Dwilight, by the way, has always been a constant fight against Monsters and undead, despite what you may believe. Technically Dwilight was never any more RP focused than other continents, but instead focused on making said RP more serious and period appropriate. However, Dwilight's atmosphere influenced the other continents, so it is no longer any more an "RP" continent than East Island.

And by the way, RP-wise, as a refugee, he would head to the most secure realms, aka the North or Swordfell. Or do you not follow the refugee crisis, where refugees skip Turkey, Greece, Macedon, Hungary, and Austria because Germany is more wealthy?

Keep it up though, I can come up with rebuttals all day. Not least of which is the notice every player gets that not all realms are the same, and if they aren't having fun there, should feel free to go elsewhere.

I'm sorry in advance, but I really must ask, what has made you so prone to unrelenting condescension and generally just being bit of a (insert random expletive here). I have seen it a few times over in some realms where you have kicked off OOC because things didn't go your way, or you didn't agree with something, and you become rather nasty to play with or discuss things with.

As I have said, this whole post was there to point out the way that current mechanics work has slowly dwindled the interest of those playing in D'Hara, and possibly other realms. In a game that is already struggling with having players entirely that seems to be an issue. That however seems to be worked on and possibly solved by the devs and admins who I am sure, as I have said before, has the best interest of the game at heart.

Firstly, I would like to remind you that noble fugitives were different than fugitives we have today. They flee to a place where their stature and position could be retained quite well, and not in a realm where there was little hope of advancing their own position. At to that, that RP wise most of said nobles had family members in D'Hara which led to them wanting to go there after both IC and OOC discussion in Atamara. (One of the things I actually remember you kicking off about when it was discussed in CE on Atamara, before you emigrated after your little outbursts) In fact I do think you need to fact check a bit more, as Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt combined have taken in more than 4,8 million Syrian refugees to some estimates whereas Europe has less than these combined. Now let us get back to the game, shall we?

@Noone you Know

Thank you for a bit more civilized and adult post. While I agree there isn't a lot to prevent RP, there is little to encourage it. With the onslaught people are simply losing interest, and as such people lose interest in the RP as well, while you can argue that is the players' fault, and I do agree to some extent, it simply is also just up to the fact if the setting offers you only one thing to do in game as well as RP, then the RP will stop alongside it.

Now you mention the inalienable rights, which is true, and I don't think anyone is stopping anyone from playing as so, however, the issue is that, if you were to play a priest or a courtier you would really be losing your foothold in the realm as it would just slowly lose ground. People can play these parts, but there is very little to do with them currently. So it comes down to if you want to play that way, they would more or less have to leave D'Hara for it.

Again, I would also state that realms are, should and have been different, but simply denouncing it as that is false, as the gravity of the situation has risen so much due to the latest updates that we have not been able to defend our regions, there has always been fighting against monsters in D'Hara, but it was not previously that there would be a horde in our regions per day. Port Raviel has for example fallen due to not being able to rebuild the walls for months at a time. In fact the guy who was lord there eventually just said "f**k it" and gave up.

I must say that there was a tendency for this post to gradually derail a little bit as the tone became more hostile player and admin/dev between, and now some player to player which is not the intention for this thread to begin with. It was to raise awareness amongst the devs how many nobles in one realm felt, apparently alongside what many others felt in different realms.

I would like to point out that the choice should not necessarily be that it is the players' own fault if they are not enjoying a game due to mechanics, and regardless it should always be considered when there is complaints, that being said, some point out that Dwilight is in fact the RP continent, as such the logic should not be "Well, it's your fault for being in D'Hara, that's how mechanics work." Elegant came there with refugees from Atamara, and as such RP wise it would make very little sense to just pick up and go somewhere else.

Because the realm is in constant combat against NPCs then we are not allowed to do non-combat roles largely, only those getting food so we can sustain ourselves do not follow the routines across the board, the essence of what happens leaves little room for RP. We did have RP when we marched to take Paisly, but after a while, fighting the monsters left people uninterested in the RP with it, and again when people are saying constant combat, it is not combat with a purpose either, we are not fighting a war against another realm for this or that cause, we are simply fighting because the monsters are coming at us in waves. If you have not tried the constant fighting against NPCs I don't really think you understand how little it leaves you to do otherwise.

The game is an RPG largely, and we cannot really do RP, nor can we actually engage with other realms as we have nothing to offer them in terms of war or anything else because we are constantly doing this, that's the whole point of the thread and what Elegant said.

My first impression upon seeing Dwilight island is this is People fight against Environment. (PvE as some players may call it)

To watch the lands grow and ebb is part of the process. Of course those players who open dark portals causing more problems to humans, if many realms do not like those players, they can simply ban them or put bounty on their heads for their troublemaking activities.

Frontier realms should have some frontier feeling to it. Maybe frontier realms can seek other realms help; for you guard the front against monsters and undead attack on their behalf. In this way, both frontier realms and non-frontier realms can benefit from alliance, just saying one of the many ways which can benefit us all. It is up to our characters to solve the problems. If you think rogue problem is bad and your realm need help, ask other realms. Call it mutual benefits ;)

The question, or issue rather, is not whether it is meant to have a frontier feel to it, I do think there is a point in that, but the issue is that I think it is driving away players by not giving them a chance to otherwise play the game. If a mechanic is driving away a player base, then surely it should be reconsidered. I know that I have felt less inclined to play due to the ferocity and unrelenting nature of it all, and it seems from talks in OOC that a few other players have felt the same, which I am sure was not the intention.

As for the help you speak of, the issue is that most realms are pressured, and the amount of nobles in the realms are not that grand, with that add the distance some of them would have to travel, they would come, fight a few battles, have to retreat, and it would have made no real difference due to the continuous swarms.

I have told my realm about this post, and I hope that some will chime in. Hopefully some others around the community sees it and says their piece.

I don't presume to think I know the answer, however, I will be willing to spar some theoretic ideas. Could one be to simply sink the Western Isle of Dwilight?

Thank you for the replies, and whether everything is working as intended or not, I felt it was time to offer you this piece so that you at least were aware that these mechanics slowly have been driving away some players. We discussed it in the realm, and then agreed that we had to take it up so that at least you were aware that there was a situation. Only that way can we hope to keep the player base alive over a long period of time.

The idea that we were meant to stop monsters before they came to our land is simply just impossible as we tried to seize Paisly, which proved impossible due to the constant hordes. At that Port Raviel were being hammered by Golden Farrow. Meaning for us to stop the attacks of Port Raviel and rebuild (That was lost yesterday) we would have to conquer most of the immediate coast line, this not taking into account what might come from the East.

You mentioned that the loss of land was minimal which I would have to dispute in that 4, out of D'Hara's 9(Ugh, I hate our name.. xD) has been lost and continues to be in limbo. Simply put, we are going to have to decide whether it is worth staying where we are as players, because it is just one long series of monster fights.

However, I am fully aware that the game should not focus on making it easier for some than others, and I understand the reasoning behind the monster invasions, however, it is very self fulfilling prophesy that in fear that things will get boring without them, you are making many players indifferent to playing on the continent. More or less the entirety of D'Hara were in agreement that they were losing interest in this, because there was little we could do.

The thing is, that there is no point in fighting monsters at all, there is no end game, there is nothing to work towards. It is just unrelenting punishment and it is killing D'Hara slowly, the Refugee realm from what I have seen, and I can only imagine many more in the future.

It has long been on my mind, and I felt perhaps it was the time to raise this on the forums to see if I was the only one considering it an issue, since the update.

As some of you may or may not know, I RP the character of King Estion of the Dragon Isles (D'Hara) and it had all gone by rather easily and we were allowed to do politics, diplomacy, schemes and wars until the recent monster changes which has left our realm in tatters. There is simply too many monsters that we can do anything about it in my realm, and this is despite having rather many nobles for continent standards, and relatively few regions to defend. All the same we find us unable to defend them all for a variety of reasons that I will cover later. The main issue with all of this is that it does not allow us to play the game fully as we have to rush from region to region to do ''maintenance'' work more than anything else, against an enemy that has unlimited numbers, and that will keep coming. I decided to ask OOCly in my realm if it was just me who felt this way, and several have uttered that they are feeling the exact same way as I do. It is a shame as I have really enjoyed the game, but I find myself often logging on more out of duty than of wish to play, as there simply is little to do, but log in, check the military orders, and then start walking.

The Issues as I see them:
- The inability of players to play the game, or do anything but fighting monsters.
- Players losing interest in the game because of this.
- Hordes are too numerous and common.
- Region's fortifications are not possible to rebuild because the swarms keep coming, and you cannot rebuild within two turns of an attack.
- Monsters crossing on ferries. Seems a bit strange that mindless evil can just take the ferry man across the water, and even more so that there is seemingly no defensive bonus trying to defend that way. IRL islands are often considered natural fortresses, but unless you use ships, it seems as if there is no difference. On an RP continent, it seems strange that these beasts can use ferries and boats, as well as our islands and shores not being more defendable.
- There is no end game to it, they will keep coming, and slowly whittle away at our fortifications.
- It is an evil spiral, as the lack of opportunity leads players to lose interest, effectively punishing those who fight monsters, by not only having them focus on their fighting, but also losing people who wish to actually play the game.

Alexander the great would have totally been removed as ruler if he'd played BM.

Being forbidden from naming places after people makes no sense, it has massive historical basis.

Suppose the difference is Alexander raised cities and named them Alexandria. However historically there weren't Duchies that was called the Duchy of Robertia, then Duchy of Michaelia, then Duchy of Johnia. You wouldn't see the Duchy of Normandy, or Duchy of Lancashire suddenly be renamed to something else because of the holder having this name or that. If anything, cities and such should have an option to rename after a fallen hero or the like.

Swordfell joined before we did, actually, and still haven't declared war on HD. In fact I had to drop our relationship to neutral because it was messing up the diplomacy system for Antiqualia and us.

The more you know. A bit on the other side of the world for me after all haha.