Tarquinus

[quote name='Elthen Airis' timestamp='1314709293' post='91057'] I would gladly participate in this endeavor, though it's not very clear what you would do when you find people that actually RP. [/quote] To me this is a question of common sense. I am always in-character unless the conversation involves out-of-game matters, which generally don't interest me. If politeness is a question, I will speak (in parentheses). Usually I will move away from regions where lots of RL-type stuff is being discussed. I play roleplaying games because I like to roleplay - I can talk about mundane stuff in lots of other places. After a while, you get a sense of who roleplays seriously and who does not. I sometimes have fun pretending not to understand characters who reference such things as MP3 players; but on the flip side, I have been known to ridicule people who completely ignore the 'reality' of the MD setting, be it by casting spells with asterisks, dictating changes to the scene displayed, etc. MagicDuel is a rich setting in many ways, and I don't have much patience for people who won't engage it. Lots of people don't know Grasans come from Loreroot, but they're willing to be cybernetic half-vampire chaos wizards who can fly. With the introduction of more and more items in MD, there is less and less excuse for roleplaying stuff that isn't reflected in the game - you can get drunk now, poisoned, and even lynched (if you're a fugitive). And I echo Poe - whatever else, have fun.

Very hard to lose someone so close. My deepest condolences to you and yours.

[u][size=5][b]About the Poetry Slam[/b][/size][/u] The Poetry Slam consists of three segments: the reading of pre-prepared works, including one by yours truly; the extemporaneous challenge; and the chain poem. [b]Pre-prepared works[/b] Anyone can submit poems already written. There is no restriction on the form or theme. Length is preferably fewer than 2 typewritten pages or thereabouts. This section is [u]not[/u] mandatory for participants, though entrants who submit such work will be given a little extra consideration. Poems written about segments of the Adventure Log will also be viewed preferentially. We will read these poems for the first half hour or so. If you can't attend, send your poem to Keith Moon (always at Storm Coast) or to me via Forum PM, and I'll read them for you. [b]The extemporaneous challenge[/b] This is really the heart of the poetry slam: how well can you perform under pressure? Each contestant will be assigned a specific section or series of events in the AL about which s/he must create a poem in a limited amount of time (usually 5-10 minutes, depending on attendance and general consensus among participants). This challenge will determine most of the prizes to be awarded. [b]The chain poem[/b] This part is really more for fun than anything else. I will start the poem with a line, and participants will add a line in turn until we get tired of the thing. Previous chain poems have been pretty funny. It's traditional to rhyme with the line before yours, though alternation is encouraged: for example, Participant 1 rhymes with my line, Participant 2 sets a new rhyme, Participant 3 rhymes with 2's line, Participant 4 starts a new rhyme, etc. [u][b]Award categories[/b][/u] I hate having to judge poetry, which is a very personal thing, really, but some criteria must be set for the giving of awards. These are: [list] [*]Best structured poetry (ie, uses rhyme, meter, or a known form such as haiku) [*]Best free verse (ie, no restriction on rhyme or meter) [*]Most original or striking imagery [/list] Be warned! I judge meter pretty harshly and free verse even more harshly. In short: feel free to break the rules, but give me some idea that you know what they are. Consideration will also be given to poets writing in their non-native languages. See you at 8:00 server time!

Tarquinus will sponsor a wish point. I request that the organizers think carefully where it should be awarded, so there will be no complaints of "wish-point sharing". Perhaps it can be an award for superior performance over the festival as a whole?

Happy birthday!

Belated wishes for a happy birthday.

Happy birthday, sláinte, and so forth to Darigan and my favourite monarch. All hail!

Don't be juvenile, dusty. What did Cutler do to improve MD? His astral plane was entirely deprecated. But anyone who remembers it remembers the amount of effort he put into it. He wanted to improve MD. He got too far from Mur's vision. So it goes: it's Mur's playground, and we play in it because he allows us to. Renavoid thought he could help improve MD, and for a long time he had Mur's support. Surely you remember that. MP1 ring a bell? He enjoyed many extraordinary powers for quite a while, and while you might not have liked the work or respect the considerable amount of research he did (as I did not, particularly), you cannot deny that what he did was significant and had a significant impact on MD. Some of the work Inno did was NOT deprecated, but if you want details, I suggest you take it up with Mur. You're the one with the problem over a courtesy title, a trifling remembrance. And as a character, Inno has had a very substantial impact, far more than you may be willing to admit. S/he is more than "just my friend". Inno altered the experience of MD for a sizable group of influential characters - just ask around. That is remarkable in its own right. Indyra - by my standards, anyone whose presence strongly impacted the experience of MD - for better or for worse - is a legend. Many characters come and go leaving only brief impressions, but some leave strong, lasting impressions on many players, giving the game experience a certain tone while they're in it. With huge charismatic personae such as Khalazdad, MRD, and BigC, there's no argument at all. It's the second-tier "legends" that seem to be at issue here. It is my feeling that, given the list MB put together, a very liberal understanding of "legend" should be understood. [b]LE: Touché, Rhaegar. I'll shut up now.[/b]

You can't have it both ways, dusty. If Cutler deserves recognition, and he does, then so do Inno and Renavoid. You don't want to talk about Ady or the AL? Good! You don't seem to have anything to contribute to the subject other than your dislike for it. People have spent long hours trying to contribute to MD, and sometimes their work gets rejected, sometimes it gets used, sometimes it is used and later discarded, and sometimes it becomes "lore". All of these contributors deserve to be considered legends. Anyway, you've had your say, and I've had mine. Shall we agree to disagree and move on? For the record, Udy, I agree with your list, except that everybody but Morrel and Glor (I think) were on the list I saw already. I give Fyrd a big thumbs-up, too - the guy has put a LOT of effort into MD.

[quote name='dst' timestamp='1308719607' post='86550'] What on EARTH did Innocennce DO? Apart for being your lawful friend? [/quote] Innocence did a number of things for which s/he received no official credit, writing chunks of the AL being among them. I honor Cutler greatly, and the fact that his Astral Plane was deprecated takes nothing away from his efforts. The same goes for Inno and Renavoid; their work might not be "canonical" - but then, neither is all of Ady's. You seem to think I merely want my friend to be in the "official in crowd". I don't. I want recognition where recognition is due; and just because you are unaware of a thing doesn't make it any less real, dusty.

[quote name='apophys' timestamp='1308511037' post='86487'] Regarding the mixing of humans, I am reminded of "Evangelion," an anime and 2 movies where at the end all humans are reduced to a liquid, which retains both their mind and body, and these are all mixed together in the ocean forming one consciousness. [/quote] According to Peter Gabriel, that is precisely what his song "[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0GcqYGv1AA"]Here Comes the Flood[/url]" is about. [i]When the flood calls, You have no home, you have no walls. In the thunder crash, You're a thousand minds within a flash. Don't be afraid to cry at what you see: The actors gone, there's only you and me. And if we break before the dawn, they'll use up what we used to be.[/i]

[quote name='Metal Bunny' timestamp='1308670359' post='86530'] Also, I haven't seen any posts regarding new legends.[/quote] If I may, I would like to nominate Innocence, the realm's only Intangible, a being of quirks, humor, and intellect in equal measure. Long-time Archivist (with the tag [b]Raconteur[/b]) and close friend, and sometimes adversary to MRD, Pamplemousse, Cryxus, Tarquinus, and many more. Still plays. [b]Edited to mention the Cap'n [/b]

Happy birthday, your elfness.

A bit late, but happy birthday, man.

Happy birthday, old man. I hope you can have a little fun. You are missed.

Ideas gain momentum, and there is a sort of 'survival of the fittest' aspect to any new idea. As others have said above, tenacity is really important - if you abandon your idea too easily, no matter whether the criticism is constructive or not, it didn't deserve to survive. Curry is right to say that people trying to effect change should be responsive to the public reaction, but some ideas have taken hold mostly because certain players wouldn't let them go. Bob the Tree is a great example: when I first learned about it, and the role inherited (I think) by Zleiphnir, I thought it was absurd. "He's guarding a squiggle on a backdrop!" I said. But though people have had varying opinions about the tree, its reality, and its relevance, none of it has broken Zleiphneir's dedication, and he built a very strong little community... around a squiggle. That's impressive. The Children of the Eclipse, mostly the brainchild (believe it or not) of players now long gone, are another example, though I've been fading out of the realm a bit as my work life has accelerated. If you pay attention to MD, you soon notice that there is no night (yet?). The Moon appears in a few places, but they're not easy to find and it is quite clear that the moon of MD is different from the moon of Earth. Moon Knight? Ridiculous! (and also the name of a comic-book superhero, which I later learned to my dismay) But the Eclipse is, though wheezing a bit and host to a number of semi-comatose fossils, still alive. Not necessarily because it is a good idea. Not necessarily because it is appropriate to MD (which could be a whole other thread). It lives because a few dedicated people still care about it, and some are even writing new material. Both Bob the Tree and the CoE can be and have been flashpoints for (or closely associated with) events in MD, and that's the beauty of MD. This is one of the very few games where players can change the scenery a little bit, and we should all be grateful Mur is open-minded enough to let us play in his sandbox. [b]Edited for autistic mistake[/b] [size="1"]P.S. What's with all the neg-repping on this thread? Geez![/size]

Since I placed the bet as Keith, I'd like the winnings to go to him rather than Tarq. I'm willing to waive any right to the spare silver, if that helps.

1 GC on Eon.

A very happy birthday to you.

I am sympathetic to both points of view. For a long time, I tried hard to convince people that they should stick to the setting as it is presented by the game itself, not RP magical effects they don't have in-game (something I still dislike), and stay grounded in the "fantasy reality" of MD. But even that metric proved inadequate when Mur himself posted that MD is allegorical and that roleplay in MD has a unique meaning in the frame of RPGs. If we go by "canon only", there not only are no non-humans, but there are no non-player personalities in the game. There is instead a multitude of personalities strained through the prism of MD to create something new, an idea that is kind of cool if a little hard to explain or understand. Conversely, that limitation is frustrating to me as someone who has been playing RPGs for over 30 years. I tried hard to emphasize that Tarq's "backstory" was all outside MD and that he is just an ordinary person, or was until he became the Moon Knight. Similarly, Keith Moon is pretty much an ordinary guy. But neither of these characters encompasses the whole of my personality - not many of you know Sebastian, the player. Tarq is not much like me but Keith is somewhat like me. Perhaps I can accept the premise that having two characters weakens both portrayals, but I have been roleplaying for a long time and am good at it. That will sound arrogant, but quite a number of players expressed frank amazement when they learned that Keith and Tarq were played by the same guy.* What I have done in constructing these characters is to create back-stories for both of them to use as foundations for playing the characters. I'm not willing to back away from that, really - you can view the character-roles as delusional (and Tarq, who is explicitly insane, invites that interpretation), but I am quite serious when I say that I am neither of these roles completely, and neither is exactly me. Does a long history of tabletop RPing hinder my progress as a MD player? Perhaps. But creating characters is what I do. You don't have to believe that Keith's mother was killed in a car wreck (my mother is very much alive) or that his brother died of a heroin overdose (which my brother did). You don't have to accept that Tarq believes himself to have been a liche once, and before that the last king of Rome. Your acceptance of those attributes of the player-character is [i]completely immaterial[/i] to me; no matter what you believe, these details inform my portrayal of the characters' personalities. There is among you at least one very, very good roleplayer whose alts are so convincingly played and thoroughly detailed that virtually no one has guessed they are all played by the same person. I cannot and will not view that fact as a bad thing: it is a credit to this community, and a thing of which we should all be fiercely proud. I do in the main agree with you, Yrth, and I would add that I think most RP in MD ignores the setting and therefore takes the concept of role-playing entirely too far. That said, the realm has been smudged, as you have it; despite my lengthy protests to the contrary, there are apparently pubs in Wind's Sanctuary and the Defensive Quarters; and as someone above has pointed out, if enough people agree with a character as it is presented and believe in it, it is effectively as real in MD as anything else. The challenge to us veterans is to take the game community as it exists, mesh it with what we know of the setting and the nature of the "game" itself, and see what happens. While some people have made good strides in this direction - and I would number you, Yrth, among them - it is my opinion that [u]no one[/u], barring perhaps Mur himself, can claim anything like complete success. [size="1"]*I want to emphasize that my only purpose in having done this was the challenge and sheer joy of presenting characters whose personalities differ in some way from my "natural" one. I have tried hard to avoid alt-abuse, and I have also tried to avoid concentrating political power in the hands of either character. Player-characters leaving or becoming less active - Penelope Lightmoon and [Dark] Mystic for the CoE and Yami No Sakura for the Legend Speakers - have put me in charge of alliances essentially by default. I don't care about power! Keith has wish points banked for the creation of rather mundane items. If you think I have ever wanted to "take over" any part of MD and/or brainwash its players in any way, you've got me all wrong. Keith and Tarq both speak forcefully and at times quite passionately, but there is often a meaningful difference between what the [i]characters[/i] want and what [i]I[/i] want. And if MD is more allegory than RPG, then these characters are just masks donned by a player for no other reason than to wear masks.[/size]

I play other online games (Batheo, Dragon Age: Legends) for a bit of mindless fun. I don't want to be challenged by these games. Some people play solitaire (my wife is a mahjong addict); I play simple Internet games with heroes and wizards and stuff. I play xbox games pretty heavily. I'm running yet another character through the Dragon Age: Origins series before I check out DA2, which has been sitting in my cabinet since the day it was released (I'm obsessive-compulsive; everything has to happen in a certain order or I melt down). Many of the Bioware titles have been favorites of mine, though I have played the most recent two Elder Scrolls games (Morrowind, Oblivion), Fallout (1-3), and the Assassin's Creed titles. My avocation is writing, and I would prefer it to be a paying gig. I write poems by the score and struggle ferociously with fiction, which in the postmodern/post-structuralist era challenges me quite a bit. I also create roleplaying settings and write tabletop adventures/investigations all the time. I read at least a little every day. I am currently wrestling with M. John Harrison, a cruel and very gifted writer of fantastic fiction. He is one of the main reasons I don't just happily tap away writing genre Fantasy: that's been done and I do it compulsively whenever I run a tabletop game. What hasn't been done is weird, recondite, and demanding, so that's what I read. I spend time with my girls, of course, because they like to go outside. It's difficult for one with my condition (multiple sclerosis) to go outside, so they are a positive influence. Were it not for them, I'd likely be sitting in a dark room all day avoiding human contact as much as possible. Finally my wife and I like to build things, from small models (often for use in RPGs) to basic animatronics to holiday decorations (I have dabbled quite a bit with styrofoam tombstones, for example).

[b]Name:[/b] Children of the Eclipse [b]Alliance Duty:[/b] Guardianship of Wasp's Totem and the Hidden Exit; shock-troopers of Lorerootian military forces; education of Loreroot in spiritual matters and mystic symbolism [b]Currently Active:[/b] Yes [b]Members available:[/b] 20+ [b]Active Members:[/b] Amoran (MP6), Tarquinus (often idle, but responsive to PM), Darrydabby, Phantom Orchid, aranna2008, Karak (mostly on weekends), Esmaralda, Marvolo, Spartiatis, Thomas the Titan (recently spotted), moephus, Caru, Jaco [b]Land Association:[/b] Loreroot [b]King:[/b] Firsanthalas [b]Brief Summary of Activities and History:[/b] Recently sponsored continuation of Loreroot Spring Festival, including "red" worship service, tournament, and poetry challenge. The CoE has hosted several tournaments, and from its beginnings with only four members and no badge has grown to be a large alliance. The CoE has been active in several wars, including the cold war against Golemus Golemicarum and the invasion of Necrovion by the Knights of the Bell. Though the CoE's activity fluctuates, its knights and priestesses are often on hand to mobilize in defense of Loreroot and tend to its "spiritual" well-being (morale, investigation of symbols, poetic scholarship, preservation of Loreroot history). [i]edit: active members list updated[/i]

Due to the lateness of the hour and numerous schedule changes, the Poetry Challenge was not well attended. Therefore I shall hold it again, still at Lore Manor, at 06:00 Server Time, Day 87.

Really sorry about all the re-scheduling, but there's nothing I can do. Tourney and poetry challenge re-scheduled for times listed above.

Damnation! My calculation of the time difference was off! Apologies all around. New times posted above.