All right lads, it be time for a debate or a discussion if that rolls with you.
This threads topic is to discuss ways on how we, as a community or as an individual, deal with people who break the rules, or borderline the rules heavily with a broken RP, if any. We have to find ways to lower sanction reports, while increasing correct and legit game play. This will not only make the administration (ARD - Admin Room of Doom) happier and less work, it would lower the hassle in-game to an extent and likely draw more people in with a less Left Wing approach to things.
Now, and issue we have, is that most new players I come across, do not always read the server rules, or even if they have, understand them.
Let us discuss methods that we as a community can get together, and solve the problem ourselves, and not rely on bans, that lowers our chance to get good members into the game.
Here are some methods that spring to mind, whether they work or not, is up for question.
Rule Lawyering - This generally, while scares an individual, leads to more trouble than it is worth, never, please, never go "Your breaking the rules lolz", or "I reporting you!". This is both negative, and puts you in trouble as well, never do this, not even in private chat. The admins can find logs of all chats, and the other guy has a Print Screen button, just like you. This is generally accepted as the most negative way to approach things to me.
One on One Council - If memory serves this is what the Angels, Factions, and general players with time on their hands do. They talk to the people in question of breaking, or confused about the rules, and show them the ropes. To me this is the best method, and for factions, could even give them a new member. While this is a good method, finding the time to do this can be annoying, and its disheartening to find that despite your efforts, you find them a way down the road, repeating their mistakes.
Teach them the ways, and give some money - While this is good to get the 'beggars' out of the system, and teach them what to do with the money. This to me, is a negative approach. This is actually fuelling the problem, your giving money to a person who puts little effort into RP'ing, or learning the area by their selves. If you roam around doing missions when new, you learn the environment gradually. That is how I did it, and learnt to stay the heck away from Mon'Star.
Get revenge via PvP - Most OORP or lol'wutters look for a fight, and sometimes, we fight back with RP and occasionally numbers on our side. But this could also fuel the problem, we're giving them what they cam here to do, look for a fight, with as few words as possible. Most OORP's tend to come from other servers, or PvP servers. I've been there many a time, its not pretty.
Place bounty on them - This is an ok strategy to me, but is still doesn't take the PvP out of the equation.
Hire the player - This is a good way to do things if you are a trader. Hiring players can give them new equipment, and learn some trade routes, and maybe get a chance for some PvP. This is one of the best options if the player can hold his/her end of the bargain when hired. Convoy hiring while cuts into your profits, can help things along in the long run, and give you someone to RP with along the way. Which is nice on those long inter-house routes.
That is the list I can think of at the moment, feel free to add more, or criticize what I've written. Hopefully we can all pool our knowledge and experience to make a good list, and guidelines in how to help players.
As much as I try to guide other players, it is not my responsibility to school every single player on the server. The rules are there - they are available quite easily on the internet by clicking on a link. If you or I could read the rules, then I can't see why the very many newer players, and "confused" veterans can't. The responsibility is theirs.
Aside from all that, I don't like breaking character ever in game - it makes playing a role-playing game pointless when every halfwit spouts rubbish in game about "engaging notices" or whatever poorly understood rule they latched onto in their moment of crisis because they were faced with a situation where they might lose or where you have to tell some moron to not re-engage for the fifth time despite being killed all those other times.
Some people deserve bans. If you act like a child, you get treated like one. I don't like getting sweared at. If someone did it in real life they wouldn't get a helping hand from me to show them the error of their ways unless they were actually mentally retarded. How hard is the rule about swearing to understand?
If you can work a computer and a mouse and figure out how to install Discovery, then you can follow a set of pretty reasonable rules without assistance from the many players who know better than to act like a complete nubtard in a game that is essentially a hobby. I'd rather spend my time talking to people who want to role-play, not run a special needs school during my free time.
There are plenty of good new players in game. One group of them left today, and not because of sanctions, but because of an adolescent inability to shut one's complaining trap on the part of various nubs who can't handle a game where there might be actual consequences to choices you make in game.
Smuggle drugs? Expect people to try to take them off you. Be a criminal? Expect the forces of law and order to come after you. Don't want to be part of a particular group? Then don't whinge cause they won't let you play with their toys.
The game has been equally damaged by people who spend far too much time wrangling and hand-wringing over rules on the forums, demanding "re-balancing" because they lose the odd fight, demanding regulations, not because they are warranted, but because it's a convenient tool to ham-string an opponent.
Warnings for the grey areas. Sanctions for everyone else who can't behave. And bans for the social retards.
As much as I try to talk to people in PM, before resorting to adding ANOTHER thread in that god forsaken hidden forum, there are times where you simply need to weed these players out.
They are killing peoples fun while not really braking rules, and even if they get sanctioned they will continue to keep lolzing around just because it is FUN.
My idea is this: If you beat a dog long enough, it will understand, that actions which are the reason of the punishment are bad and won't do them again.
I know PVP is not usually the way out, but I must admid, that shooting someone senseless, depriving them of ANY ingame fun, other then lighting up in flames and the respawn screen has it's effect.
It worked with some of the people I have bountied, people who are around my Keeper, people, who I can shoot for "Odd code transmissions" within the engagement rules of my ID.
Don't be elitist and say that PVP is not a way out, it is the last course of action to take, to simply force a player into submission, but it does work.
Frankly 'I didnt know' or 'I havent read the rules' doesnt wash for me
They are easy to find and easy to follow
I personally find the quick PM to point out someones error often does the trick if worded the right way. Unfortunately there will always be those who for what ever reason do not want to listen or deliberately break the rules. In those instances I dont see any other way other than sanctions or bans. As above Installing the MOD and overcoming the numerous issues If you have Windows Vista is nothing compared to reading and understanding some basic rules.
Giving people cash is not the answer and you generally find those asking on system chat for cash are the ones who are making no effort to RP and have made no effort to read the rules or check out the forums. There are several quick and easy ways to make a few quid and tons of advice on the forums about how to do it. Blimey when I first started I stumbled across a wreck in Magellan with 5 or 6 transport turrets on it and way hey 500k straight away, dead simple
As for swearing there are no excuses. Forgetting yourself in conversation in real life or getting annoyed can result in swearing, but you have to make a conscious decision to type it into chat and press enter.
Quick PM for silly mistakes, no ID etc, warnings if they dont get the message and Sanctions Bans for deliberate rule breaking
I have been forced into PvP with a 'lolwutter' before.
I believe I told the story elsewhere briefly, but here in full it serves as a good illustration.
So a fellow comes along in an executioner with a police IFF and no ID.
He is quite well loaded out with class 8/9 guns.
I am in a lonely little Griffin with two Furies and two civillian anti-shield guns.
(and only a mark-I armor upgrade to boot)
I noticed his inconcistency and was about to PM him and tell him that the dealer he bought his ship from stole his ID, when he simply began engaging an LPI player with no prior contact whatsoever.
Well a Patriot Vs an Executioner didn't go so well for the Patriot. In any case, I did PM him and ask him to stop.
He obviously got the message because his next action was to lock weapons on me.
Oh fun.
I PM'd him again. Twice.
No response whatsoever in any form of chat.
What did I do? I let him take my shields down (as per engagement rules) got a screenshot, announced my intentions to half the system ("Kid you had better lay off, you ding my paint job and I *will* flush you out your own airlock... ok thats it. Safeties off.") engaged my shield batteries, and kicked his butt to within an inch of his life.
He ran to Manhattan, and I let him. Since he then logged off, I didn't feel like posting a sanction report.
I figured that would be between him and the LPI player he blew up.
But my point is; it was alot easier, faster, more elegant, and still within rules for me to teach him a hard lesson with my Griffin than to file a report against someone who might not even have ever seen the forums, who infact never said a word in or out of RP but simply shot at people.
The other moral of the story? Your big guns won't always save you from someone who knows how to use a light-fighter's agility to his advantage. :laugh:
In closing, If I see someone who clearly doesn't realize they are OORP, I will PM them some tips and the forums address, and tell them that they can get help, explanations, rules, tips, and find wingmen there.
If someone shoots at me, I don't care what the situation is. *I* will RP the situation as the applicable character would act. If that means running then I will, and if that means blowing the guy to pieces, then I will.
And if for some reason I loose, then despite the other guy's OORPness, then I am still at fault because I consented to the engagement and I will let the next person he runs afoul of file the sanction.
It is seriously fine line between rule lawyering and teacing people.
I tried it for so many times to "insinuate" to people that they are mistaking, yet most of them don't really care for rules, they become rude and then I just let them be knowing I'll see their name in the Sanctions thread very soon.
Only once I posted the sanction report and that guy didn't even get a sanction.
It is always a last resort for me, I believe that everyone deserves the second chance but with some people it is just best to ignore them.
And if you get all others to ignore the rule breaker it can be efficient in-game sanction. Once ignored by everybody they begin to care.
Instead of telling thejm 'you can't do that', try pointing them to the rule they are breaking instead ("Please read rule 5.6 again, as it deals with what to do if you lose a PvP fight". After reading it for themselves (and maybe picking up a copy of the rules from Manhatten, that little commotity needs to be sold at all major bases), they can make their own choice on if they should follow it or not. It also elimiates any possibiliy for rule-lawyering, as you aren't telling them the rule, and making them look it up themselves.
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