:: The Seraph Chronicles: RealmWars Log ::

:: Monday, January 13, 2003 ::

~Realm Wars Character Update~

We regret to announce that “Sonny Crockett” will no longer be participating in the RealmWars Sim. Due to conduct unbecoming stemming from creative differences, it was unanimously decided by the RW gaming managers to revoke Mr. Crockett’s membership. We wish him all the best in his future endeavours and hope he’ll take the advice given him under advisement. This was all for the best and we maintain no hard feelings.

Below you will find a copy of the final decision as made by the RealmWars Grievance Council:



Dear Sonny:

As you are probably aware, the RealmWars Game Manager team met on Sunday night to discuss the validity of your grievance against Andrea and your request for a rewrite concerning post #1134: You And Who's Army? Pt II –– written by Thunder Child on 11/19/2002. Each GM was given 72 hours to read the post in question as well as your subsequent letters to some of them pleading your case. What follows are the results of that meeting.

To first address the matter of the rewrite, the GMs examined the contents of your Scorpio posts #1115: A Small Cut Of The Action submitted on 11/14/2002 and #1132:You and Who's Army? submitted on 11/19/2002. These posts served as a guide for your character’s general position and choices in courses of action prior to and during the post in question. They also served as a rule of thumb for the GMs in establishing a rational chain of events.

What follows is a point-by-point assessment of your allegations:

One of your claims was that Andrea’s post ‘lured’ Scorpio in by sending a SEC scout patrol to his location. Post #1115 clearly shows the procedure her characters were to follow in the event of confirmation:

--Andrea’s post--

"Do not approach. Units who come in contact with this suspect are required to maintain distance and notify 1-0-1 upon confirmation.”

*****

In your response which follows, it is you who have taken Andrea’s mention of the PC-5 SEC scout patrol and chosen to write the approaching vessel as being on an ‘Impact Imminent’ course with the Scorpius:

--Sonny’s response--

"I knew something wasn't right about that one," Scorpio muttered under his breath.

"Uh -- Boss?"

"Yes, Sidra."

"We've got Snake Eyes {OOC: Impact Imminent) -- on screen, sir," the helmsman replied. "That little ship is coming straight at us -- forward port."

*****

Further in the same post, you as the author make the decision to bring the PC-5 SEC officer on board without his being in any danger prior to being abducted.

--Sonny’s post--

"And another thing," Scorpio went on, "as to intercepting the local law enforcement? -- Would it have been better just to let you die, or to save your miserable hide? So for saving your life I guess I'm guilty --" He looked at Theo in all seriousness, but his next action belied that. With exaggeration he put his fists together palms down, and held them up and away from himself at the other man -- wrists bent downward. "Take me away, of-fi-cer," came his drily humorous remark.

*****

You assumed Andrea would write one of the patrol vessels as discovering the Scorpius but, instead of waiting to see how she played it, you took it upon yourself to take the course of events into your own hands. Not a problem but, like it or no, that means it was you who got yourself into this jam!

Why Scorpio felt Theo would have died had he not tractor-beamed him into the Scorpius, makes little sense since that would mean Scorpio would have actually sat there and let another vessel T-bone his pride and joy without making any effort to protect it, i.e. falling into evasive’s -- a command your character should have logically given considering his goal was to maintain anonymity.

Another of your claims is that Scorpio would have reacted differently had he known Andrea’s SEC character was going to draw a weapon in response to the group awaiting him in the landing bay.

--Andrea’s response--

indication that someone had very quietly and calmly walked up directly behind the man who was leaning against his small ship.

"Well if it isn't Theo E'Layon," Scorpio spoke right behind the man.

Theo spun around, weapon drawn and pointed at the new voice. A shiver ran up his spine and he did a little shake to rid himself of the spooky feeling. His eyes narrowed at the man who wore the same type of crimson uniform the others were sporting. "Do I know you?"

Scorpio stood camly at his full six-foot height before him. "What's got your muliebral panties in a bunch?" he paused.

"Look, uh, mister...." Theo began, leading the man before him on a verbal chase in his search for a name to go with the face. He lowered his weapon to a less menacing position but an equally deadly one nonetheless.

*****

In our opinion, Scorpio acted rationally here. He did not want to draw attention to himself -- at any cost. He seemed well aware of the thin line he treads with authorities there and was trying to look like the big hot shot he’s probably reputed for. Not a problem. Then you see Andrea’s post and decide you’d rather have Scorpio ducking and rolling out of the way, etc. –– such a change in behavior now implies your character is prepared to react aggressively –– when a few paragraphs earlier, Scorpio was adamant the muscle he positioned around the SEC vessel would be nothing more than a ‘show’ of force:

--Sonny’s post--

Scorpio smiled -- a glint in his ice-blue eyes. "Tractor it into the landing bay -- through the 'jaws of death'." He chuckled.

"You got it, Boss."

Scorpio looked up and around at his head of Security, who had just stepped onto the Bridge. "Ogre."

"Yes, Boss."

"Take Perdaris, and three others down there to meet our new guest," came the quiet order.

"Yes, sir." He paused. "Do you think that much is necessary?"

Scorpio grinned. "No -- but let's just put on a big show."

*****

This excerpt seems to indicate Scorpio is only too familiar with the fine line he is walking with PC-5, not to mention with the SEC service, and implies he is prepared to keep the untimely meeting with Theo on an even keel.

The new version of Scorpio’s reaction (rolling out of the way of Theo’s gun -- which was not firmly aimed when first drawn) would appear uncharacteristic and contrary to his original plans. You cannot maintain Scorpio would have expected Theo to be unarmed, nor can you claim Scorpio would be surprised to have the officer draw his weapon on him. He’s the one who has decided to hang around in a crime hot zone -- just how long did Scorpio think it would take for PC-5 to notice him?

To address the reaction of Andrea’s character, we find Theo had reasonable grounds to draw his weapon. In fact, he has not just one but four valid reasons to brandish some protection. He has been abducted, he is in foreign territory, he is surrounded/outnumbered, the head honcho sneaks up behind him AND signals his men to prepare. For what Theo can only guess but he has to think fast to stay in control of the situation and stay safe.

After an in-depth review of the aforementioned posts and excerpts, we, the GM’s, arrived at the unanimous decision that Andrea’s character Theo reacted reasonably throughout the post, considering his situation. Scorpio is a felon so one assumes he would prefer to completely avoid any legal entanglements. This can be difficult when he is orbiting a highly policed sector of space but he should expect PC-5's routine hassles, loopholes, etc. Most of all, Scorpio should expect habitual local officials to be in the area and either have some cheesy line to feed anyone who tags him so they’ll usher him on his merry way or have a plan for avoidance.

The moment that tractor beam came into play, Sonny, you as an author, raised the stakes for your character. You made a pivotal decision as to the level of involvement Scorpio would have with security officials. Instead of letting them snoop around while his vessel evaded, –– Scorpio freely chose to become directly involved with the local SEC boys by deciding upon the flight path of that SEC officer’s vessel.

While the above explanations served to satisfy the GMs decision to let the events of the post in question stand, what came under heavy debate, Sonny, was the manner in which you handled this entire situation. This is not the first time you have had to be reminded of the unprofessional tone you tend to employ when addressing other members of the group (the first incident being your complaint against Cricket’s character). You ignored standard procedure (which was to first send an informal and friendly e-mail to the group member in question regarding the problem before taking the first official step in lodging a grievance) but thankfully your aggravated letter was first seen and subsequently handled by the GMs.

In light of your first warning, you should have made every effort to rethink your approach when e-mailing other members and should have initiated your complaint through the proper channels -- an informal e-mail to said author. Most complaints don’t usually go any farther than this step as such trivialities are oftentimes quite easily resolved between players. You started out on the right track by e-mailing Andrea but you did not allow her sufficient time to respond nor did you stop there. You went a few steps further –– steps which had you crossing that line we clearly delineate in our game rules as being a line only GMs can cross. When a complaint is not resolved to your satisfaction, that is when you take the next step. You did not even wait for the conclusion of the first step before pestering other Gms with your pleas, which forces us to look beyond your qualifications as a writer and question your rationale as a person.

What you hoped to accomplish by sending letters privately to GMs, we would prefer not to even imagine. Every one of your notes were replete with snide comments and callous, unfounded accusations against another player -- both of which only deepened our cause for concern over your personal involvement and seemed to indicate your poor grasp of where the character realm ends and the author realm begins. Events which transpire in this Sim are not to be taken literally or personally by ANYONE. This is a game, nothing more...and certainly not a venue for unsolicited personal attacks.

Being the reasonable individuals we are, the GMs found your subsequent privately addressed letters to be acts of desperation that were in poor taste and deleterious to your grievance. If anything, they were considered as evidence to support our view that your actions resemble a poorly masked attempt at subversion.

Plainly stated, approaching GMs in the manner you did was unprofessional and served only to aggravate a simple situation which did not need to be blown out of proportion as you endeavored to accomplish. As we have repeatedly stated for your benefit, we are reasonable, rational people who make every effort to accommodate all members ideas, problems and requests but this standard mode of conduct must be reciprocated by all members otherwise the ‘well-oiled machine’ can decay and fall into ruin.

Because we found your methods offensive, unprofessional and deleterious to the amicable and nurturing environment we have established here in RealmWars, the GM team has come to the unanimous decision to revoke your membership and remove your characters from the Sim. Please be advised that our decision is final and is effective immediately.

While it is difficult to lose a creative mind, we hope you will take the criticisms outlined in this review to heart as they are intended to be constructive instead of injurious. Please review and consider each of our comments with an open mind. We mean you no personal affronts here, Sonny, we are simply trying to help you understand the need to be more sympathetic and flexible in order to be a productive member of an interactive writing group.

We would like to wish you every success with future creative endeavors and perhaps we will meet again under more favorable circumstances.

Battle well,




RealmWars GM Team




GENERALIZED COMMENTARY: We here at RealmWars take the working relationship between our authors very seriously. It is the job of any good game manager(s) to ensure all rights and privileges of those members in good standing are protected from wanton acts of maliciousness perpetrated against either an individual or the group as a whole. Any member of the RealmWars sim found to be in contravention of this mandate will be removed without hesitation or question. We cannot allow any member of our writing group to upset the co-operative and nurturing environment we have established at RealmWars.

As you can see by the adjudication above, we are not retaliatory nor are we vengeful in our decisions. Facts, not innuendo, rule the day.

Please note: In any interactive fiction writing group, co-operation between players is a must. The rules have been delineated for the good of all and no one, not even a game manager, is above them as was the case in the preceding incident.

Important to note as well is that in RealmWars, you play, you pay! We can’t stress this enough!! In other words, be prepared to allow others access to material you’ve introduced. Once you enter the gaming arena and put something into play, it becomes ‘accessible’ to the other players, (of course copyright still applies and you may withdraw your creation at any time but this is to balanced against your reason for being in the sim with your character in the first place!). Too many sims are restrictive in this element of game play and it flies in the face of what interactive fiction is all about.

For example, in real life, just because you buy a bar, doesn’t mean you have sole control over what goes on in and around it. The customers who enter could break out into fisticuffs at any time or some drunken kid running from the cops in dad’s stolen beemer could decide to create you a new entrance!

Either way, these ‘acts of God’ are out of your control. Same principle holds true in the RealmWars sim. You have no control over another player’s character whatsoever regardless if they happen to be in your beloved fortress, er sorry, that would be bar or, especially, outside of it. If you intend to open up a restaurant, bar, planet - what have you - be prepared for the members within the group to use it via their characters!! Since you made it tangible, it therefore stands to reason it is playable - providing once more the responding author adheres to what has already been stipulated as playable by the originating author. In other words, if it’s a 'members only' club, then not just any character can enter. That’s not to say the one deprived of entry can’t go ‘G.W. Bush’ on it after being turned away!

PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR ANGLES!!!!!!

It goes without saying, the character(s) utilizing your facility could very well be your character’s enemy and they could be planning on blowing up your quaint little pub up... or they might be legitimate customers looking for a fine meal. As a person of business, this is what your character signed on for in presenting such a venue. Now, that’s not to say any one author has been given free licence to inflict high levels of damage. There is the unwritten rule of ‘fair play’ to consider.

In short, like real life, if you don’t want the hassles of what comes hand-in-hand with your character’s business, or government, then do not bring such facilities into game play. Simple as that.

If you don’t want a million people bombing you out of existence, then don’t create so many enemies - better yet, put up the appropriate defences to counteract some of the possible danger - and for the love of reason, don’t introduce your character’s favorite hangout if protecting it at ALL COSTS is the case!! I'll say it again, by allowing your character’s particular establishment time in the sun, you open it up to game play. To turn around and declare your world inaccessible to others simply because you don’t want the hassles of dealing with your own character’s fallout is just in poor taste and is considered bad gaming manners.

What this type of scenerio defaults into is the idea that your character could conceivably run amuck elsewhere in the RealmWars multiverse and then take refuge back at what now becomes a ‘safe house’ rather than the bar or planet it was originally intended to be. If it’s a safe house then it should be listed as such and then we’d know, “Hey, can’t touch him there, my characters don’t know about that safe haven!” Again, that does not prevent the character priming itself to go after yours from setting out to find such a place and then attack it! But to have introduced something tangible to the other players and then ‘hide’ there when it’s time for a retaliatory measure is not only illogical but downright unsportsmanlike. It amounts to nothing more than childish behaviour. It’s like the kid in the playground who bullies everyone but when it comes time to taking his lumps, he runs to the teacher on yard duty for protection knowing no one would dare touch him there. PUL-EASE!!

Of course the above is said with the understanding that those who participate in any sim are reasonable individuals and capable of rationalizations. Far too prevalent is the idea that you ARE your character and this is of course wishful thinking in most instances, at least with regard to science fiction and fantasy. YOU are the AUTHOR of your CHARACTER - nothing more. And as the author, the onus is on you to behave independantly of what transpires within any given story arc. Taking something that has happened to your character into the personal realm of the author is borderline dysfunctional and is what leads to career suicide.

LEARN TO SEPARATE YOURSELF FROM YOUR CHARACTER! What happens to him/her/it isn’t a slight against the author and should not be seen as such. Even if you were to fashion a character after yourself (which is very Mary Jane-ish) it doesn’t make the character you. If doing an autobiographical character is what interests you then seek out the appropriate simming environment please. Using an autobiographical character in a science fiction/fantasy setting is immediately at odds with the very notion behind sci-fi/fantasy which denotes that all such characters contained within such a genre are, indeed, make-believe. Insisting you are some space cadet or a mystical god or goddess is tantamount to mental disillusionment and then your state of mind comes into question. Blinding oneself to this fact is to set oneself up for disappointment. Learn to love who you are and stop being a legend in your mind!

That said, please keep the spirit of the game alive and enjoy it for what it was intended to provide: entertainment.


The above commentary was made by Andrea Miminas and might not be the consensus of the RealmWars group as a whole.
:: The Seraph Chronicles 12:35 PM [+] ::
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