I think it would be particuarly unfair if the people who were willing to sacrifice their chars/old guilds created a reasonably successful community, then were forced to share their creation with those who wanted to benefit from a centralised community but sacrificed nothing for it.

If one was created, you'd be forced to exclude pre-existing characters from 'free riding' off the activity of the new community through interaction. Otherwise there'd be no real benefit in being one of the pioneers and so no one would be willing to go through with it. This is especially so if you wanted a community where your characters rank, ability and equipment was earned through constant participation over time. I certainly wouldn't want to make dirt poor and unskilled character, have him gain a reasonable position in the community from hard work, then have someone waltz in from a pre-existing guild claiming to be some immensely wealthy, influential and powerful character who was going to buy us all out. If we started the community with slim numbers, and people realised it was actually a good idea, they'd have to start a new character themselves if they wanted in on it.

I'm pretty sure I said that about half the thread back. *Grins*.

Really, this isn't a huge, 18 page thread kind of issue. If people want to roleplay closer together, just fookin' do it. If a couple of guilds move closer together and start broadcasting the fun and roleplay they're creating - others will get involved, bit by bit. It's that simple.

Rome wasn't build in a day. Stop filling this thread with ideas and just start implementing them. It really isn't that difficult.

Agreed, guess when one wishes to be part of this new town one has to make a new character.

But!!! Will you then refuse to rp (pretend they do not exist) with people who will visit your new centralized rp city to roleplay with this new place/people? Will that not make centralizing rp impossible? I can imagine that even a new town receives visitors from outside town?

I wouldn't mind if outsiders came to see how its getting along on occasion, and were treated as such (I.E. people didn't treat them really well IC due to OOC friendship), but if they wanted to become a regular feature, PvP or have any kind of influence then they'd have to make new chars.

Most importantly, all IC authority from the old guilds would have to be meaningless in the new community. An outsider noble would be treated as lower than a peasant from within.

For goodness sake,lol, just use existing characters then. Skara are prepared to move to another town [Vesper] so let it start from there.

Then work out reasons to go to Vesper ie the 'our town /area has a plague ' idea.

I bet though already some are saying to themselves

' well I wont be going there if thats where they choose,because of [ any 1 of a zillion reasons ]'

This is why roleplay is so limited amongst the community.

Folk wont make a new start but neither are they willing to rp with their main out of their areas... not even for a short time storyline.

*shruggs*

I have stated previously that I don’t think a centralised community will work. I think it’s too contrived for one reason and just papering over the cracks for another. In saying that, however, that’s just my view, it doesn’t mean I’m right. To those who support the centralisation view and believe it to be the right way forward I say, like others throughout this thread, get out there and do it! Stop posting about it and get on with it. You don’t need my or anyone else’s approval just get on with it.

I’m afraid though, therein lies the real problem. There are too many with accounts just sitting around waiting. Waiting around to be told what to do, that treat GM’s as personal entertainment managers, that won’t do anything off their own initiative or use their imagination. I’m sorry if that sounds harsh but I am not singling out any individuals. This is purely my own general perception of the way things are just now.

It can all be summed up in the constant moan; “ I log in and there’s no one on” Translation; “I log in and none of my guild mates are on”. This is nonsense. Between the hours of 8pm and midnight, there will be someone on somewhere, be it Yew, Vesper, Trinsic, The Rose, Swaggers, L’Cress or Cove. All you have to do is log and go find someone to interact with. Why does it have to be a guild mate? There are things going on between individuals or small groups all the time, all you have to do is find out and get involved. It’s not that hard really; just needs a little effort and you don’t need a GM to tell you to do it. Time to stop talking the talk and start walking the walk.

I don't think it has to be contrived. I've skim read a lot of the last few pages because it's mostly repetition, but I noticed someone mentioned natural disasters or the spreading of disease.

That's actually a fantastic idea. You could claim, I dunno, bubonic plague (or the UO equivelant) forces the 'survivors' out of Vesper which gets burned to stop infection. The Vesper based guilds could uproot without "losing face."

Or an Earthquake could collapse Trinsic, a forest fire could ravage Yew. Anything. I don't think these are necessarily 'contrived' ideas, at all.

I don't mean an actual event causing it but rather the overall concept. For example, the suggestion of a new "superguild" or several new guilds all with new alts. The last thing we need is a flood of alts. There's too many of them around at the moment, yet another part of the problem I think.

It's extremely easy to criticise the ideas of others. It's a lot more difficult to put one forward yourself. The problem certainly isn't going to be solved by some vague assertion that we should 'Get in game and create interaction with other guilds!!!11" as if no one has ever thought of that before. It's the most obvious and utterly banal suggestion one could make. As has been pointed out time and time again it doesn't happen for a reason, and even if the reason itself is an unjustified one, constantly saying that people should interact isn't going to make it happen.

I suggested that we give the single guild consisting of alts a one week trial because I think it's the only way to artificially ensure interaction and help make more of a single RP community rather than a collection of independent entities. I explicitly said that it's unrealistic because people probably won't go for it, but that if people were really serious about trying to keep UO rp alive then it's the most feasible option, and if one week is wasted on a doomed project then it's not the end of the world.

As it turns out, I was right - people aren't going for it. Or at least not enough to make it workable; it would need a large playerbase to get off the ground. If we were to set the community up now, we'd get like ten people involved, it would quickly die as a result and the nay sayers would gloat in the face of the failure. That's why i'm not going to 'get out there and do it!' - I wouldn't want to waste my time on a project which requires widespread support to work when it's not got said support.

Edit: Nevermind.