AMIA ARCHIVE • View topic - Dream Coin and Role Play: How can we make it less difficult

Okay im not trying to say that the way we get dream coins is bad but i think we can make it easier to get some. I have looked at may forums concering the DC's and i think it could use some changes.

Currently the only way i know how to get DC's is through dm wathing me do RP if there is another way let me know.

Now i know and i have been told so many times over again dont rp for Dream Coins I GET IT. but i feel left out and weak seeing all these people poping them out and getting all this stuff while im barely able to get more then three or four total.

Perhaps the dms could let us take screen shots of really good and i mean really good rp we are in along side the DM rp requests and watching that way we dont have to bug dms so much or having to wait for so long to see one come on. Cause we dont all live in the same time zones and im sure for many its really hard to get on cause they have real life things to do as well.

Well there are the Green Wands in your inventory to announce good rp. What I would suggest is have everyone in the group or party use those Green Wands and keep using them eventually, if a DM's on you, should get there attention with so many notices from one area. I think you can only use them once per reset. So I would suggest taking turns go abc as far as who uses the wand the more people in the rp and the more 'hits' the more likely your going to get someones attention. The eventual outcome of this 'Free Rebuild' change on characters is it -should- free up DM's to do just that, be DM's, and hopefully more dc's can be given out to hopefully balance out the loss. I've been here off and on since Amia started way back and I've only had a total of 50DC's given out to me, so yeah I hope DM activity will be free'd up from this idea.

On an unrelated note, I'd love it if there were a way for shifters to use the DC wand without having to unshift. Extra creature ability, maybe?

Ya but still thats complicated in a way its hard to get into a party seeing as there arnt alot of ppl that might be your lvl especially for me seeing as most if not all of the people on Amia are in their lvl 20's i just think if we can take screen shots of good rp our chars are in it would help a bit i should know ive been in some rps with my friends and there was no dm on and the rp was so good my friends agreed i should have gotten at least 20 DC's the big problem i see is the fact that DM's arnt on alot if at all as i said Time Zones.

Master_Sarevok wrote:

Ya but still thats complicated in a way its hard to get into a party seeing as there arnt alot of ppl that might be your lvl especially for me seeing as most if not all of the people on Amia are in their lvl 20's i just think if we can take screen shots of good rp our chars are in it would help a bit i should know ive been in some rps with my friends and there was no dm on and the rp was so good my friends agreed i should have gotten at least 20 DC's the big problem i see is the fact that DM's arnt on alot if at all as i said Time Zones.

This post neatly illustrates why players should never be allowed to hand out DCs in any capacity.

In any case, this is Yet Another DC Topic. We Get It.

Master_Sarevok wrote:

Perhaps the dms could let us take screen shots of really good and i mean really good rp we are in along side the DM rp requests and watching that way we dont have to bug dms so much or having to wait for so long to see one come on. Cause we dont all live in the same time zones and im sure for many its really hard to get on cause they have real life things to do as well.

the problem with that is what is good RP, some peoples RP makes me think they took the shortbus to school and it was covered in lead based paints and they wanted to taste yellow.

lets say we set up a chart with what good RP is, well then you have a bunch of people using this screen shots for DCs as a quick way to get DCs because they tell people what to say and its all actors with scripts to get cool stuff.

also if DMs have to go sift in the forums to look at screen shots to hand out DCs less time for them to think of and do plots, I remember when DMs would spice it up at random like you were hunting and out of a blue they would do something, one time a DM placed a bunch of boxes and crap in a hallway and the monsters sniped us abit not just us running in to do a RAWR DEV CRIT RUSH

I do not mean to be an arse, but if you use the search engine or even scroll down the first page of this forum you will find a topic about it.

Check it: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=47472.

Your not going to get twenty dc's for one rp. I don't care if your character is starting a new religion lol. There was one time the rp I was in was 'Epic' at an event, I recieved 2 dc's for some rp I did. It was a first that I -ever- got more than one dc for rp. I myself think after 20years+ or so of DM'ing and playing both PnP(pencil and paper) campaigns and online RPG that I'm a fairly descent rp'er complete with character backgrounds interesting bio and little idiosyncrasies(quirks lol) that makes a character detailed and fun to play. But even considering that I still manage to get one DC when I rp barring that one specific event in which I got two. Screenshots is good idea to the base notion of it but consider, If the DM teams is busy going over screenies that again is going to take away from there actual in game time. DM's want to play too and of course there people just like us...well mostly lol some may argue that fact.

With some ideas you really have to think of the load it's going to place on the DM's. As far as DC tool "Green Wand" there arleady in game and I don't think it's to hard to jump from one area to the next. I basically lead a faction there is a -lot- of forum work that needs to be done in doing so and I can relate to degree. DM's have events they have to monitor in the forums, come up with ideas as to where it's going if there 'playing by ear' or if the events preplanned and outlined they still have to keep up with it. Check the requests forums and basically keep the natives happy. I think giving them more work would just make it worse myself.

Lets say you send a screenshot in, thats one post...does it need to be transfered to the dm's forums for review. Thats two posts if they have to do that. Then there also the checkups *bumps* and eventually pm's. I myself think it would add to the problem than come up with a solution.

There is a 'Party Tool' you can use to add your name to a list and look and see who else has used it seeing there name and level on the list too. Honestly it's a really nice item to have if people would use it more. I Hope this helps.

There was very recently a topic about this.

TormakSaber wrote:

Master_Sarevok wrote:

Ya but still thats complicated in a way its hard to get into a party seeing as there arnt alot of ppl that might be your lvl especially for me seeing as most if not all of the people on Amia are in their lvl 20's i just think if we can take screen shots of good rp our chars are in it would help a bit i should know ive been in some rps with my friends and there was no dm on and the rp was so good my friends agreed i should have gotten at least 20 DC's the big problem i see is the fact that DM's arnt on alot if at all as i said Time Zones.

This post neatly illustrates why players should never be allowed to hand out DCs in any capacity.

Seconded. We all think our friends are great...that's why we RP with them.

Got to agree with that ... probably is a good thing that players don't give them out.

But they do... those players just happen to be DMs, logged into the DM Client.

So it would seem being a player does not preclude the ability to be trusted with giving out dream coins...

However, seeing as DMs do give out dream coins, and no other players can, it seems that the DMs enjoy a higher level of trust than other players.

Which is probably why they are DMs in the first place.

Thus, no. If a player is not trusted enough to be a DM, that player probably should not be trusted enough to give out DCs.

We play, but we are not "just players". Your comparison doesn't really work.

Yurell wrote:

There was very recently a topic about this.

I posted the link in my post above.

The only suggestion I have on this is to have the DC wand send a recommendation to a database for the DMs to view. Biggest hit is when a DM is not around to watch the player RP, this way they can see the log of the Dc request and when on can then watch that players RP to determine if they should get a DC.

Why does it have to be the RP that is going on at the moment? If we all RP all the time then it shouldn’t matter when the DM watches you and your RP to give out the DCs.

Allot of times I have had great RP with others but use the wand at the end of the RP, which doesn’t do any good. It is hard to tell if some RP is going to be good at the beginning of it.

Quote:

Why does it have to be the RP that is going on at the moment? If we all RP all the time then it shouldn’t matter when the DM watches you and your RP to give out the DCs.

Because I'm not interested in Dcing you while you chit chat about the weather, but I am interested in DCing you when you're plotting and scheming or etc because that's the sort of RP I want to encourage with rewards.

TormakSaber wrote:

We play, but we are not "just players". Your comparison doesn't really work.

I believe that's what he was implying without directly coming out and saying it.

Don't let a lack of DC's get you down. I don't think I got my first until I had been on Amia for about 3 or 4 months and only got about another 2 or 3 over the next 6 months. The key I've found is to create dynamic characters that are more action and less reaction. Make things happen around you. Give people a reason to get involved with your character... and above and beyond all.... use that silly little green wand on people whenever you can.

You get DCs when you don't aim to get them. Don't think about it and they'll appear.

Galenson wrote:

You get DCs when you don't aim to get them. Don't think about it and they'll appear.

Then I'd be swimming in them by now

No no, unequivocally no. There are too many DC's being tossed around as-is right now as I see it.

Being able to get DC's poured into your hands will make you lazy and just make the price of DC items/modifications and such go up.

I've been on Amia since December and I think I've been lucky enough to get around ~20 DC's for all my characters combined. And there's not a single DM on the team (I believe) that would state those DC's weren't well-earned. I spend countless hours RP'g without a DM and without getting (or more importantly -expecting-) rewards such as DC's. You should RP and enjoy the reward of the RP itself.

If you're just RP'g for other reasons (such as DC's or items), then your RP is invariably going to wind up being extremely shallow and without good purpose or consistency. I've seen a lot of people say "Man I wish I would get a DC for that. That was awesome RP." and my only reaction has been "... No, it really wasn't. That was actually less-substantial than I've seen on some OOC servers." The quality of RP is subjective however and you should feel -lucky- if a DM decides to grace you with such a reward as a DC. You shouldn't -expect- it just because they're watching you.

Half the time I get DC's, I've requested a DM just to be able to interact with an NPC or to be able to do something cool in-game that we, as PC's, cannot do. I didn't -expect- DC's from these situations because I thought the DM taking the time to even spend a little time on my plot/RP was reward enough in itself.

So, with that, I wanna send out a thanks to the DM team for all that you do and don't let the beggars get you down. To the OP, I will say this: RP 24/7, don't let up. You'll get what you deserve.

Jyro X wrote:

RP 24/7

The DM team does not condone this action. We like the fact that our players have lives outside of Amia. Because we sure as heck dont.

Jyro X wrote:

No no, unequivocally no. There are too many DC's being tossed around as-is right now as I see it.

Being able to get DC's poured into your hands will make you lazy and just make the price of DC items/modifications and such go up.

Agreed. Dream Coins should be *harder* to get, not easier. As soon as the DMs start defining the minimum level of awesomeness required for a piece of RPing to deserve a DC, then they will immediately be deluged with comments from sniping whiners: "But my RPing was WAY better than <arbitrary standard>! My friend Timmy said so!"

There should not *ever* be a publicly known "standard" for handing out DCs. The methods by which a DM judges DC worthiness are, and must always remain, a complete mystery to the players. It should *always* come as a pleasant surprise to receive one.

Just my $0.02...

-Lizzie

All I ever use DCs on is xp. They're not all that important, so I fail to understand why so many people hold them in such high regard.

DerkDerkistan wrote:

All I ever use DCs on is xp. They're not all that important, so I fail to understand why so many people hold them in such high regard.

Items & reskins

i.e. requests in general

Yurell wrote:

DerkDerkistan wrote:

All I ever use DCs on is xp. They're not all that important, so I fail to understand why so many people hold them in such high regard.

Items & reskins

i.e. requests in general

Well, yes. I know that. But my point is that my roleplay is not affected by them.

What are DC's? I've never understood any of these topics. I Have no idea.

Poorvincente wrote:

Jyro X wrote:

RP 24/7

The DM team does not condone this action. We like the fact that our players have lives outside of Amia. Because we sure as heck dont.

"Always remember, your character does not need to eat, you the player however, has to."

The DC system is perfect the way it is. DC's are suppose to be exclusive. There're a nice lucky extra you sometimes get. It's not the sole purpuse to RP. RP is there because you joined this server to have fun RP-ing. Not to farm DC's so you can get more stuff. Go play WOW if you want more stuff all the time easily.

hadeismetirion wrote:

The DC system is perfect the way it is. DC's are suppose to be exclusive. There're a nice lucky extra you sometimes get. It's not the sole purpuse to RP. RP is there because you joined this server to have fun RP-ing. Not to farm DC's so you can get more stuff. Go play WOW if you want more stuff all the time easily.

We'll have to agree to disagree there.

The system is probably as good as any system is going to get, but it's far from perfect. The fact that it depends on DMs being around and actually observing and judging the RP introduces an undesirable element of randomness and a strong dependence on timezones. Then there is the fact that the DMs themselves are only human, and can only do one thing at a time, which means that established RPers are more likely to get their attention that newer ones, regardless of the quality and volume of the actual RP.

Would you stop playing amia if the whole Dream Coin system and all its rewards where removed?

hadeismetirion wrote:

Would you stop playing amia if the whole Dream Coin system and all its rewards where removed?

Nope.

Still, I've always had mixed feelings when it comes to token systems. On one hand it's a lightweight, easy to understand system for both players and DMs but on the other hand it is very limited in how far it can go to encourage actually meaningful RP.

One server I have played on in the past had a request system based on DM quests. A player would request something, and a DM would then decide what the player would have to accomplish IC in order to get that something. The little plotlines could vary from something as light as "find an elven blacksmith" to intricate and long-lasting storylines depending on the magnitude of the request. This had the major advantage of providing an immediate IC reason for the item's existence. If you wanted an item betowed upon you by your God, you were going to have to do major work to gain his attention and his favour to such a degree that he'd listen to the wish.

The problem with that is unfortunately that it wouldn't work for Amia because of the sheer number of players. DMs can only accomplish so much in the limited time they have, and running these intricate request quests for so many players is impossible.

The point I'm making is. This is an RP server. RP shouldn't have to be encauraged for those people that play here. It should be a matter of fact thing to do.

The DC are just a fun little thing you can if you're lucky. They shouldn't be the end and all of it. So one shouldn't whine if one doesn't get them. I've been playing for.. I don't know two years? Maybe more and I have 35DC and never done anything with them till now. I'm going to use them all up in one go and having them or not won't affect my role play in the slightest. I'm here to role play, when I'm online I tend to roleplay and I couldn't care less if a DM is online at the time or not.

All I am going to say, are two thing. Timezones stink, but that's what being in round piece of dirt means. And the second, rebuilds are the most thing I am concerned. I dislike the idea of only once a year being able to make free rebuild. I mean come on! Once in 6 month, should be it, not once a year.

Just my two cents, so meh.

The 1 /year rebuild is a GOOD thing. Because the Dms got SWAMPED with requests and it distracted them from their other tasks..

mainly, they want to inspect and watch Rp.

instead they have to rebuild some bloke, which is quite UN-FUN.

Im going to be blunt also. Expect an upkeep in DC's and Dm's online if they don't have to mess around with Rebuilds nonstop.

Besides, you can rebuild manually for free as much as you like, and beyond that you can pay to be relevelled with DCs. I don't see why there absolutely needs to be more free rebuilds than what the DMs are willing to give.

Yurell wrote:

Besides, you can rebuild manually for free as much as you like, and beyond that you can pay to be relevelled with DCs. I don't see why there absolutely needs to be more free rebuilds than what the DMs are willing to give.

Quoted for emphasis!

hadeismetirion wrote:

This is an RP server. RP shouldn't have to be encouraged for those people that play here.

All that needs be said on the matter.

We know, we know, we know.

TormakSaber wrote:

Quote:

Why does it have to be the RP that is going on at the moment? If we all RP all the time then it shouldn’t matter when the DM watches you and your RP to give out the DCs.

Because I'm not interested in Dcing you while you chit chat about the weather, but I am interested in DCing you when you're plotting and scheming or etc because that's the sort of RP I want to encourage with rewards.

Granted and I agree with you, those more exceptional RP like that is what needs DC, not the chitchat. My point though is that it shouldn’t have to be just because a DC wand attracts the attention of a DM and I am not saying that’s the only times a DC is rewarded because its not. My suggestion to have players that the wand is used on to be sent to some log so the DMs know to watch that character a tad more while they are on, should be able to catch them in such RP as you described then even if they do not get the wand put on them.

We do have a log. Said for the billionth time in the billionth topic about the 'issue'.

I really do not appreciate your sarcasm there Tormak, it was totally uncoiled for.

Another DM told me that they can only see whom the wand was used on while they were online then they could watch the RP. Since apparently you do have a log then how about use it more to keep a eye on those that was recommended so you can see ongoing RP and possibly get them rewards for being recommended when a DM isn’t around.

I can understand doing such can be overwhelming so perhaps just watch those who have gotten a certain number of recommendations a little closer.

Yurell wrote:

Besides, you can rebuild manually for free as much as you like, and beyond that you can pay to be relevelled with DCs. I don't see why there absolutely needs to be more free rebuilds than what the DMs are willing to give.

Because bad starting skill/feat/attribute choices with the char, that don't support the RP in the game which he would havme and you can't remake the char completely without DM's help, and I don't want to start from nothing all over again with my chars IC friends being higher level, who I have hunted with ever sense made the char and they made theirs.

I'd just like to remind you hat we are basically the only server in existence that offers this silly idea of "rebuilds" and any other server today that does has their roots here.

You ask for a rebuild elsewhere you you are waved away.

'Hire' more euro DM's! Not just for DC awarding purposes but for keeping peace, doing whatever the DM's usually do, events etc.

I believe we have as many Euro dms as any other. If anything, the Australian zones need more.

That comes up alot and other than Ron who would suggest would be a good DM that covers the Asia/Oceania timezones?

I can't think of anyone I know off the top of my head. Better to have insufficient DMs than substandard ones.

*Cough*

*Looks around*

Weeellll...

On topic: Amia has it better than most any server. It's a luxury that you get what you get as is, so I don't think there's any need to fix things.

Standards and practices and whatnot. They need special people for DM shoes. Just being a good RPer is not adequate.

Not being crazy is one of those. Which precludes a lot of folk. (Myself included.)

Dream Coin and Role Play: How can we make it less difficult

Who is online