Why are we disgruntled and jaded?

I'll say this briefly. I've spoken to a total of (3) players who have given me a metric fuck TON of stories/info about their troubles and past insane shit that staff has done but I can't post it because I don't have permission from them and most of it would out their accounts. It's really bad guys. It really is.

It's not even necessary. Let word of mouth do its job. If we (as in concerned Armers here) are going to do anything it should just be to continue talking about the problems and getting serious discussion here.

If we stoop to the level of spamming their boards we are no better than a Nyr that wants to ban everybody posting here. It's petty, vindictive and counter-productive to making any real change come about.

Going to have to agree with you here, Delerak. There's no need to resort to a cry for attention somewhere else. This board sees as much activity as the GDB at this point. That clearly speaks to the word of mouth and the massive amount of curious and/or disgruntled players.

Stooping to trying to garner attention on the forums before the posts get deleted (as we all know they will) will just make everyone here look desperate and petty. Posting a link to a video or the like is one thing but spamming the boards specifically to try and get attention is a bit different.

I'm not jaded or disgruntled, really. I tend to ignore staff, ignore the GDB and play the game on my own terms.

However, it's obvious to me that the game has atrophied over the years. Most of the great players have either been run off, or have gone staff and quit due to whatever reason.

The trick to keeping your love of the game alive is to play in a relatively insular group of intelligent, talented players. Start a family with your favorite players, or take a sponsored role and only hire people you know are capable of play at the level you want.

Priorities man.

In time everyone will know about it. Trust me on this. Do not under estimate the literal horde of players that talk on aim/icq etc.

To me, Armageddon is just a game that never gets any better. There's a very active element of opposition to change amongst both players and staff, which manifests not only as a disinclination to change things of their own accord but also a forum hivemind that tends to veto any and every proposed change that goes beyond minor code tweaks that have no consequences. Anytime anybody has suggested anything that would make a difference to how the game is played, the staff and the old veterans gang up to shoot the idea down. It's a game that looks almost completely identical now to how it looked ten years ago. Really, while there have been cosmetic changes and some code polish, the way you play the game is utterly identical. Armageddon is the epitome of stagnation.

As a result, it has completely ground to a halt. Nothing happens anymore, nobody bothers to do anything, and the game is totally permeated by this paralysing apathy. Armageddon's heyday was around 2002-2005, after the game was modernized but before it stagnated. Since then, it has just grown increasingly bland and - despite a stable playerbase size - empty. Ten years ago you'd see so many characters, characters of great variety and style. The taverns were full, there were plenty of nobles and templars, the clans had enough members to be relevant, and things actually fucking happened.

Then they stopped improving the game. They stopped making significant changes to the archaic code, they stopped taking care of the plot scene, they stopped giving people reasons to do the things players used to do. Little by little, the game was allowed to fall apart until it got to a point, probably about three years ago, where it was just about dead. People still log in, largely because it's the only RPI that seems to stay open, but almost nobody can find the inspiration to do anything or even make themselves available. Look around the game, look how empty it is and how little goes on. Look how few there are of any given type of character accessible for interaction to normal players. If you're part of the clique you can probably find things to do and ways to interact in relevant ways, but the game outside these veteran cliques has simply been allowed to decay.

The merchant houses are utterly irrelevant. The militia clans are largely empty and tend not to have a reason to exist anyway. Almost nobody hires the Byn, nor have they any reason to do so because there's nothing to do that warrants hiring them. The noble houses have no role to play, the tribes are being culled one by one, the criminal clans haven't done anything noteworthy in years. There's no foundation for any memorable roleplay because staff have been so hands-off for years, and even when they do throw the rare token HRPT, it's just some visual spectacle that doesn't impact how the game is played. Since the liberation of Tuluk, what event has made a serious and lasting change on Zalanthas? What has happened that actually mattered for real? What can an ordinary player actually do at this stage when it's difficult to even encounter enough characters to make the roleplay feel believable and immersive? Armageddon's anti-progressive stance has completely killed the playerbase's drive and ambition, its inspiration and desire to create things, and has turned the game into a boring socializing sandbox where nothing interesting ever happens.

In 2005, there would frequently be 10+ people in the Barrel and/or the Gaj. There would be 3-4 templars at a time in Allanak and at least twice as many nobles who participated in public life. The clans had a lot of members and did things that mattered. Actual crime took place and the role of a soldier had some substance because there was stuff to do and a fertile platform for that form of roleplay. Things happened out in the open where it could be seen and joined, people were proactive and accomodating, and the game felt like an actual society instead of the inert ghost town that it is now. The worst part is that it would have been so preventable, and the cause has been so glaringly obvious all along, but the personalities behind the game - both staff and veteran players - have hamstrung it and hindered its evolution.

great post, should be at the top of a page.

If I was King of Armageddon MUD, I would set the game through cycles. Emphasize Allanak for a year, work plots there, try to get as many people involved playing in the different clans to offer a better depth: rivalries between the noble houses because both are filled with players, a good number of players in Arm of the Dragon vs Guild/c-elf Rinth clan, etc. I wouldn't 'shut off' the rest, but I would make it pretty clear if you really wanted to play in the north it wouldn't be anywhere near as supported as Allanak. After a year, focus on another part of the world like Tablelands and nomad clans. The game is spread too thin, and staff are trying to combat it by reducing roleplay in areas to 'force' players to be together, rather than actually trying to draw them in.