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Author Topic: Ravenloft review - opinions?  (Read 15609 times)

APorg

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #50 on: September 01, 2012, 05:27:53 AM »
Pffft. Overrated. :P
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Crimson Shuriken

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #52 on: September 01, 2012, 06:57:33 AM »
I wrote a blurb, it had been on my to-shouldhavdone list for a long time just never got around to it.


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Somma

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #53 on: December 12, 2020, 06:36:40 PM »
Started playing three days ago. This is the closest I have ever seen to quality role play online. I am DM/GM with 38 years of experience and I didn't think it existed online in this type of game.  Real role play ... very impressive ... with that being said. It appears very cliquish and nearly impossible to survive alone or with an occasional friend you meet. After three days of constant RP and trying to make a level I died in a dark hole in the ground I could not seem to get out of ... realism ... yes ... three days of effort worth it hmm ... I suggest if you bring 5 other RL friends or a known group from online you would fair better than I did. Going solo here is not recommended in or out of the game.  Bravo to the DM/DM's that managed to get a 20-year-old game to have such a following and to actually keep people role-playing. Roleplay has been perverted into kill collect for years by online games where as in this server it actually exists.
« Last Edit: December 12, 2020, 06:39:07 PM by Somma »

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #54 on: December 12, 2020, 07:01:57 PM »
Started playing three days ago. This is the closest I have ever seen to quality role play online. I am DM/GM with 38 years of experience and I didn't think it existed online in this type of game.  Real role play ... very impressive ... with that being said. It appears very cliquish and nearly impossible to survive alone or with an occasional friend you meet. After three days of constant RP and trying to make a level I died in a dark hole in the ground I could not seem to get out of ... realism ... yes ... three days of effort worth it hmm ... I suggest if you bring 5 other RL friends or a known group from online you would fair better than I did. Going solo here is not recommended in or out of the game.  Bravo to the DM/DM's that managed to get a 20-year-old game to have such a following and to actually keep people role-playing. Roleplay has been perverted into kill collect for years by online games where as in this server it actually exists.

Hope you aren't too discouraged. Not easy to get off the ground here cold and alone indeed, but there are inclusive players.  Finding them and breaking through may take more than a few days.

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JustMonika

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #55 on: December 12, 2020, 10:41:05 PM »
I read half of this thread before I realised almost everything is eight years old.

Survival alone in Ravenloft is unlikely for anyone, even high levels alone in low level areas will risk horrible things happening.

You don't need a clique or ooc friends to survive though, rather your character needs to learn to form those connections in character and doing so is a vital part of their journey.

Wandering off alone into the mysts will get you killed, particularly as a we low level.

However, the server really sings not when you're dungeon crawling, but when you're involved in plots and worldbuilding and factions and events with fellow players. If you find death discouraging, immerse yourself in the RPXP life!

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #56 on: December 13, 2020, 07:17:01 PM »
This is my own experience coming to the server:

I had a friend who played here that tried to get me to play for several years and I finally decided to give it a try. They didn't play with me at first and I was on my own. Another friend did decide to play with me and abandoned the server after the first day because they were unhappy with the leveling system. So, Day 2 I was completely on my own. I roleplayed my character, she met like minded individuals and made friends, none of whom I knew OOCly. The one person on the server I knew OOCly decided to take a break so on an ooc level, I was totally alone.

I really enjoyed the roleplay of various individuals I saw and, after a month of being on the server, the NCE hit. I made a new character and joined it. The NCE is by far my favorite time of the year on POTM, I have enjoyed both NCEs thoroughly. I made my character with another player who I didn't really know but it turned out amazing. My character met a lot of people that I roleplayed and dungeoned with, and I eventually made a lot of friends on an ooc level as well. I've made several characters since then.

One character I had that I did differently on was Juliette Germain. She was not a very social character and upset far more people than she made friends with, up until the very end from some very persistent Ezrites. She's the character I have not had as much fun on because I felt very limited (self-imposed, I admit).

My advice to you is, make a character concept that is at least somewhat social, especially as your first character. They can meet others, hang out, dungeon, etc. Maybe even join a faction since factions are IC and not OOC. I think you'll have far more fun.

Just like on every server/game, there are going to be groups of people who enjoy playing with each other. That doesn't mean they won't play with others or that you have to join one to be able to enjoy the game. I like to think I play with everyone, especially people I don't know. While I do have people I love playing with most, I ABSOLUTELY love playing with people I oocly haven't interacted with before and I've found that this server is extremely friendly on an ooc level, especially to new players.

Sometimes concepts don't pan out ic the way you want them to and that's okay! The great thing about POTM is that it's so big and full of unique spots that just about any concept you have will be accepted somewhere. You only need to look. I hope you make friends IC so you can enjoy the server as much as I do and I look forward to seeing you in game, Somma!
« Last Edit: December 13, 2020, 07:22:16 PM by Banshee »

Naiad

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #57 on: December 13, 2020, 08:21:29 PM »

A bit of advice for the cliquish nature, or that feeling of exclusion/needing to be in a certain crowd or a group in order to engage with the server. This is an old thread but perhaps this may be helpful for some newcomers.

First things first, you are not alone in this feeling. I have been here for over a year and still experience it every so often. When I first arrived, I had people I knew, but rp didn't give me a 'group' so to speak. I combated that feeling by finding small activities I enjoyed doing and using them to 'show not tell' my character's story. They were small tasks, but I liked making my mark on the world, and it was evidence of me being there. I focused on these things, and players noticed and it began a slow integration into the world that felt natural. All the while, I had fun with it--which is the point. You will find people your rp meshes with eventually. It's a large server. If your feeling lonely, give yourself a task to complete or something your PC would do, and do it in such a way that people can see what happened, and follow up.

I hope this helps. Large servers are a struggle to get into, but they also have the benefit of a large world to work with.


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Alan Hunter

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #58 on: December 15, 2020, 08:42:38 AM »
I agree with Naiad. Some of the challenges vs cluiqish and factions does grant you advantages but only if you are ready for that kind of roleplay. I can atest snd time approved that I havr majorly solonplayed with occasional group venturing. The road to 14 solo isnt as easy now as it were then but its possible though ardious. There is an @lfrp command that can help you find people genuinely looking for groups or people to rp wiyh that you can send a msg to. I generally stick by Vallaki for this reason to help or assist in an indirect way for some of the new players to get involved in the immersion of Ravenloft.

But that is thr challenge of the game. Their is an action orientated server which I recommend fplks to try to help get orientated in the server and help to expect in game as a prep course to the roleplay server. I believe there is a test server as well from time to time and thats a good time to test things and get familiar with the system with assistance. Though I have my own opinion I won't deny that we do have a Community Council and they can also provide assistance for quires and concerns. Overall most the staff is also accessible if not preoccupied for assistance as well. Well either way I wishbyahbluck and hope this helps.
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Maffa

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #59 on: December 17, 2020, 03:56:49 AM »
I still get the "everyone is having fun but me" feeling, and i'm mid high level and in a faction :lol:

I personally do not like the fact that the whole server concept has little room for "rewarding" solo fun which isn't crafting/grinding, and of course your character can only be just as social as you are, including personal affinities and skills, and any awkward language barrier that can happen. I decided not to take part to the NCE and had great fun in a suddenly crowded Mist Camp, but now the result is multiple NCE-born cliques of characters i dont know :lol: So ive passed from the mentored type of character to the mentoring, and i have to learn everything from scratch and introduce myself to new people again!

Funny enough, i have my own clique of OOC friends in the action server where we basically play "diablo style": that's where we scratch that itch, even if there are other huge limitations there.

Time zones and huge maps on multiple locations are but a few of the issues that can prevent people for to team up. The advice is can give is to loiter in the outskirts and try to capture any "what's new" or "here's my backstory" kind of chat happening and break the ice there. Alternatively, just bend the character and try to fit in a faction: even if it isn't a perfect match at the beginning, edges can be smoothed, new people will be introduced, and even if it weren't meant to be, leaving is just another chance to RP and carry the character on.
« Last Edit: December 18, 2020, 07:30:24 AM by Maffa »


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RedMoney

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #60 on: November 30, 2021, 08:50:40 AM »
Regarding the original post, it's important to remember you're responsible for entertaining others as much as they are you. If you're not putting in an effort to be interesting, make friends and generate roleplay, you'll never get far. Saying DMs are biased is totally right. They aren't going to waste time on people who just make demands and complaints but don't put forth an effort to contribute to the entertainment of others in a meaningful way.

A lack of permadeath is absolutely necessary to protect the server from falling to pieces as a hostile pvp drama nightmare. A revolving door of characters doesn't make for fresh RP, it makes for shallow and repetitive RP that stagnates and takes a backseat to spending weeks grinding back to mid-high levels. If doing that is what entertains you great, but don't force that view onto the server as a whole and say that you're right about something that is purely opinion.

Complaining about cliques is also pointless. People make friends and communicate with each other ooc on discord because they like playing together and want to organize that. If you're not part of a clique or being approached oocly, that's on you for not presenting yourself as someone entertaining to play with.

In short, you get out what you put in. There's plenty of good RP if you bother to actually make friends and do things without worrying about DM presence. I've gotten my character to 12 and enjoyed myself without ever having interacted with a DM ICly until yesterday.

Good luck stepping up.



ObsidianOrb

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #61 on: December 06, 2021, 06:16:40 PM »
Duuude this thread is dead, it's 10 years old, let it rest in peace :GRIM2A:

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Anarcoplayba

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #62 on: December 07, 2021, 12:30:08 AM »
Duuude this thread is dead, it's 10 years old, let it rest in peace :GRIM2A:

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This post was SO 2008.
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SardineTheAncestor

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Re: Ravenloft review - opinions?
« Reply #63 on: December 07, 2021, 12:13:59 PM »
A lack of permadeath is absolutely necessary to protect the server from falling to pieces as a hostile pvp drama nightmare. A revolving door of characters doesn't make for fresh RP, it makes for shallow and repetitive RP that stagnates and takes a backseat to spending weeks grinding back to mid-high levels. If doing that is what entertains you great, but don't force that view onto the server as a whole and say that you're right about something that is purely opinion.

Ignoring the thread necro, this isn't true. Yeah, slapping permadeath on the server as it exists would be horrible because it's designed to be a 20 level cap server where it takes months to get into the mid-high levels and character development takes place typically over years. Ironically, attachment and stagnancy are natural consequences of this "long game" environment. But exceptions exist.

The post you're replying to is from many years ago and his new player experience could not have possibly been similar to yours. Unless...
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