Topics

1

BM General Discussion / The Humanity

« on: March 03, 2014, 03:45:21 AM »

Since the freezing events have begun, there has been a deluge of discussion and argumentation over the merits of the events, the motivations behind them, and what effects the changes will have on the game as we know it.

Thesis: The most pertinent problems Battlemaster is having stem from an identity crisis: namely, that it has lost some of its humanity.

What do I mean when I say 'Battlemaster'? Do I mean, the players, or the devs, or Tom, or the game itself (even though it is not a living being)? Well, this being a social game, I mean the people. All of the people, including me. Because that's what it is: it is people interacting with people, and through the dehumanizing buffer of the internet, it is easy to forget that. It is easy to treat people as just facets of the game, but they aren't.

I have spoken often about the fact that players don't all play for the same reasons, and that that should be tolerated (even powergaming). I think this is a central part of the problem: you play the game a certain way, for a certain reason, and invest a certain amount of time and emotional stake in it, and then assume that everyone else plays it the same way. But that is a logical assumption- you never see the other players or devs, and, unless some of you know each other IRL, you never meet them, interact with them; you have no stake in their existence whatsoever. Therefore, we need to remind ourselves often that everything in this game happens because of your humanity; our differences and similarities, our virtues and flaws are all expressed in a sum total of worldbuilding.

Tom said something I found really interesting (and which obviously sparked a lot of comments from other players):

This is the part of the community I don't get. As soon as something - anything - happens, everything suddenly becomes all peacenik. Why? Why stop fighting and do some peaceful migration? Why not throw everything at them now that you have nothing to lose?

This is the one area where BM could never match real life. In real life, when the going gets tough, people get more aggressive, not less.

What's interesting to me here is that Tom seems to be assuming that there is no real life component to Battlemaster. No, I don't mean to say the game is "real" in any way, but that the players are real people that make decisions to play the game a certain way. People will play the game the way they want to play it- I'm not saying it's good or bad, or even that I understand it, but it is, by definition, human. And that is pretty real to me.

To sum it up:

-the devs seem to have forgotten that the players are humans, and rolled out a fixer event that, while it may be mathematically and technically sound, is demoralizing and psychologically jarring to players.

-the players seem to have forgotten that the devs are humans, and that any "fix" they come up with will not be anywhere near perfect. A lot of players were expecting some kind of neat, tidy solution that would be fine with everyone. But development is not part of the program; it's not going to compile in the most efficient way possible, because it's people. People making a guess at what will be best, and then having the balls to go for it.

I've given my reasons why I don't agree with the way this was done, but I'm still glad they did it. Now we all just need to remember that we're humans, and that the game is about humanity, and that it will succeed or fail depending on that principle.

2

Feature Requests / Declare "Enemy of the Realm"

« on: January 24, 2014, 01:55:27 AM »

The idea is simple enough: grant either the Ruler or Judge the ability to name a foreign Noble as an "Enemy of the Realm", and therefore prevent them from joining said realm. Instead of having to ban Nobles that join the realms of their enemies with malicious purpose, it would prevent them from doing so at all.

A few possible caveats that would make it interesting:

-Could only be done once per day (every two turns), or have some time-based restriction.
-The Noble invoking the ban loses points of honor and/or prestige by doing so. The higher the honor and/or prestige of the Noble being declared as an enemy, the greater the loss on the Ruler/Judge who does so.
-Could only be done against Nobles of foreign realms that are 'Peace' or lower in diplomacy, or some other diplomacy-based restriction.
-Could not be done against Diplomats.

3

Questions & Answers / Player asking for IC information OOC

« on: November 18, 2013, 12:32:47 AM »

A player in my realm has been continuously pestering other players to discuss IC information with him OOC, despite repeated requests from other players (including the ruler) that he stop. His OOC messages are starting to flood the realm channel, and it is making it difficult to play the game. The difference between IC and OOC has been explained to this person multiple times, yet he persists, insisting that he is doing nothing wrong.

I am not sure how to proceed at this point. I don't want anyone to get in trouble, I just want everyone to comply with the Roleplaying guidelines.

4

Helpline / Player asking for IC information OOC

« on: November 17, 2013, 10:00:39 PM »

A certain player continues to pester the realm to discuss In-Character information Out-Of-Character. It has gotten to the point where IC interaction has mostly halted. This person does not seem to want to play In-Character; it is very frustrating. I do not want to ignore them completely, but I would like to find a way to stop the constant flood of OOC so we can get back to playing the game. Any suggestions?

5

BM General Discussion / Who would you cast to play your character(s)?

« on: September 09, 2013, 05:28:49 AM »

What actor would you cast to play your Battlemaster character(s)?

When I read a novel, I tend to automatically cast the most vivid and interesting characters using actors from real life. For instance, if a character in a story has a sort of gruff and quiet demeanor, I might imagine that character being played by Tommy Lee Jones or Clint Eastwood. If a character is kind of mischievous or roguish, I might think Edward Norton or John Leguizamo, or possibly a comedian like Jim Carrey. If a character is English, I would cast an English actor or an actor whom I imagine could pull off an English accent (so not Clint Eastwood).

So here is a little exercise: Who would you cast to play your Battlemaster character(s)? Would the older eccentric and fun-loving Erik Eyolf be played by Michael Caine? Would the young Emperor Velax be played by James Franco? Would the steely and ruthless Atanamir be played by Daniel Craig?

I find that if you can picture an actor playing your character, you can learn things about your character that you yourself only know subconsciously. Our brains tend to associate actors with certain character achetypes (particularly if they're often cast in the same kind of role: Bruce Willis is usually a Police Officer, Ian McKellan is usually a wizard, etc.)

This was included in 'The Bendix Perspective' in lieu of article #3. I have decided to include it as a separate post because I am interested in seeing what more people come up with

6

BM General Discussion / The Bendix Perspective: A BM Editorial

« on: August 22, 2013, 01:51:45 AM »

It is an arguably dark time in BM History. A shrinking player base, realms full of stagnant characters, and unfortunate incidents between players all point to a general decline in atmosphere. Whether these be the latter days of a once-grand gaming experiment, or simply a natural recession in the larger scheme of things, remains to be seen.

My objective will be to cover the current issues in the form of a journalistic editorial. Though I have my own opinions, I will do my best to prevent my own bias from getting in the way of what is essentially an anthropological analysis.

I am not a certified expert in anything I am talking about. It is not my intention to blame any player, group of players, realm, organization, devs, magistrates, Tom, Dick, Harry, what have you. The purpose is illumination, not condemnation.

Article The First:

Power Games

First, let me start by addressing the stigma of the term 'power gamer'. This is commonly thrown around as an insult in Roleplaying communities, and it is basically used to describe a person who is seen as placing technical achievement above playing in character.

Psychologically speaking, games are most often used as an outlet for either one's frustrations, or their ambitions, or some combination of the two. To put it simply, games are usually a 'power fantasy'; they allow the player to imagine that they are greater, or at least more interesting, than they are in reality. It sound all very juvenile when put in those terms, but the reality is that those power fantasies actually serve a meaningful purpose in our society, both on a pragmatic and aesthetic level! Art imitates life, and for many, life means the acquisition and use of power.

This is especially true in a game like Battlemaster, which is more a game of politics and diplomacy than its name would suggest. Noble characters in BM are a reflection of how the player views the concept of power. I won't stray too far into Nietzche here, but my basic point is that, whether conscious of it or not, many players play the game of power. But when you're playing a Medieval Lord in a Dark-Age setting, that's essentially right in-character! The motivation of that character archetype is well-aligned with the motivation of the players themselves.

Now, I am not saying all players play for this reason. There are plenty of players who just want to write a good story, create an interesting character, and add their personal literature to the collective environment. So some play for power, and some play for literature. The Gamers and the Writers. I'm sure there are other, more specific motivations you can pull out of the collective player base, but for the purposes of dealing with the issues at hand, these are the two motivations that should be examined.

I am not here to make a value judgment on which motivation is better, both in terms of by-proxy morality or in terms of which is better for the game as a whole. What I am here to do is try to create an understanding that 1.) People play for different reasons, and 2.) In this case, no reason is more 'correct' than the other.

 Most people would say that Gamers and Writers, as I have just described them, are diametrically opposed. But the truth is that they actually support each other in a symbiotic relationship. The game needs ambitious players whose goals are to run things right and grab everything with both hands (like the classic Noble). It also needs players who are willing to take the time to translate those technical achievements (or lack thereof) into setting and story. 

If I were a betting man, I would bet that our current rash of problems is at least partially caused by an imbalance in these two motivations: one has begun to eclipse the other. If we are to view the recent changes to BM with any objectivity, it should be done with the perspective that the goal of those changes is (or at least should be) to correct an imbalance. 

*   *   *

So there you have it. Next week on The Bendix Perspective: Player Characters Divide and Conquer

Feel free to leave comments if you like, but I will not be personally answering any questions with regards to my articles. It is what it is, and I feel no obligation to defend or explain it further.

7

Feature Requests / REJECTED: Stat-based 'Nickname' feature for Hero class

« on: April 07, 2013, 05:29:41 AM »

Pretty much what the title says: 'Hero' Class characters receive the option of choosing a 'Nickname' to appear between their first and last names at a certain level or prestige or honor or battles fought or whatever seems like the most suitable criteria.

The 'Nickname' could appear everywhere the character's name does, or only the on letters written in-character (not on the login screen).

It could even be continent-specific; the nickname could disappear when the character emigrates to represent starting a new life.

8

BM General Discussion / Duke Retiring/Duchy Renaming

« on: December 30, 2012, 08:32:30 AM »

So, the player of the Sarracenia Family, Jan Koomen, is leaving BM. His character in Armonia, Barzelli, has been a long-time influence on the Continent, and I would like to honor that by renaming the Duchy to reflect that.

I would like to rename it "Duchy of Sarracens". It wouldn't be the exact same name, plus the name change wouldn't occur until after the player has left the game, so there would technically not be a character or family to name it after. Would that be appropriate?

9

East Island / What do we call Eponllyn people?

« on: July 11, 2012, 01:57:53 AM »

Now that there's a war on, I'm havin' trouble figurin' out what to call Eponllyn's people. I mean, I'm no etymologist, so maybe someone could present a historically-supported term that would be correct for the spelling?