Better Bashing in Gorean Sims Could Hurt Role Play
by Pixeleen Mistral on 26/11/06 at 9:18 am
[editor’s note: Take-a-Gorean-to-Lunch day is this thursday. To prepare, our Gorean-theme week continues with Heartun Breaker's report on the combat systems of Gor. After reading this story, even noobs can sound like experts on fighting in Gor -- in case taking about slaves over lunch feels awkward.]
by Heartun Breaker
Mykael Goodman has a better combat system in mind
Believe it or not, Gor is not all about the subjugation of women. Combat is actually a pretty important aspect of Second Life’s most monolithic role playing culture. And the combat system used there right now — SafeZone — is just not cutting the mustard, according to some Goreans who want a more nuanced method of bashing one another.
SafeZone is easily cheated, not very versatile and is very minimal… It’s easily duplicated and has absolutely no securities at all, head slaver of Port Rarir Mykael Goodman told the Second Life Herald. It allows hidden weapons, HUD-attached weapons in combination with a visibly worn one… (and other abuses) I made, for example, a SafeZone repeater that listens to the SafeZone channel, looks for the ‘attacker name’ (field) and if that name is mine it repeats (the attack) again causing it to attack the person twice at the same time instead of just once.
According to Goodman, the SafeZone combat system was invented by Kain Talamasca (Talamasca was IM’d for comment but did not respond in two days) and is used throughout the Gorean culture, across many sims like Port Cos, Esalinus, Tarnburg Woods, Laura, Prison Moon and the Island of Tyros. It is a comma-delineated attack system where the attacker types in three fields, separated by commas. The first field in the chat window is for the weapon to be used: sword, punch, kick or flip. The second field is the name of the attacker and the third field is the target being attacked. Avatars engaged in SafeZone combat have their health statistic regenerate pretty quickly; one percent per second in most cases.
I’m proposing to make (a combat system with) three stats: health, defense and stamina where health regenerates about two percent per DAY on its own, Goodman said. Regeneration would increase with medical aid from a Gorean physician. Physicians in Gor right now have only role playing value. In this (proposed) new system you get bandaged by a physician and suddenly, for a short period of time, the bandage helps you regenerate 1 to 15 points every 15 to 30 minutes, until the bandage expires.
Goodman has not coded anything this complex before, but he has some coding experience, having made Port Rarir’s combat meter. He claims it is SafeZone compliant and causes less lag than Talamasca’s own meter and incorporates a ‘defense’ function that mitigates the damage done in an attack if the defender has sufficient defense stat.
Physician Ivelise Corleone worries about damaged role play
Seeking comment from an accredited Gorean Physician this reporter traveled to Port Cos and sought out local constable Hanze Melnitz for a referral to a good physician. He pointed out Apprentice Physician Ivelise Corleone, who consented to a brief if disjointed interview.
To lengthen the (combat recovery) time might not be a good idea but working in the recovery procedure along with it sounds interesting, said Corleone. With (role playing) so much can happen in the blink of an eye or within days. The recovery of a wounded (sic) if we used a healing salve of the Priest Kings would heal in a matter of minutes. To extend (healing) to hours would not co-exist with the (role play). Through our (role play) we ‘listen’ to how the person emotes to figure out how to handle (a wound) properly… if something diagnosed for us it would get a bit boring.
Corleone was rather equivocal in her response, lacking both more specific information and a developed imagination. The new system would help to keep track of healing times, she said. So that’s a plus.
soultane
Nov 26th, 2006
I love this game
Artemis Fate
Nov 26th, 2006
We’ve replaced this gorean’s sword with a thermonuclear weapon, let’s see if he notices!
kaBOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
humanoid
Nov 26th, 2006
The consequence of making a 3d game engine that is useable for everything is that it isn’t particularly good for anything. Having said that, I think folks have done a pretty good job of working with what few resources the SL engine affords.
Hanze
Apr 2nd, 2008
I Would like to protest this story.
I Am Hanze Melnitz and i am NOT From port cos, and have never been. Please correct that to port KAR
Abel
Dec 2nd, 2008
“Gor is not all about the subjugation of women”
Actually, you are completely wrong. Are women allowed to participate in combat? Most often no. So yes, it is always about the subjugation of women.
Its a sexist pig’s wet dream.
Chaz Maz
Mar 20th, 2009
Second Life: Land of the WEAK home of the BROKEN
First of all, I have been there, have done that. Had clubs, owned land, made friends, money, and fell in love. Second life on the surface, especially for the newbie and Entrepreneur/artist is a fun and cool place to make some friends, and make some money. It is looked at as a supercharged chat room, a video game. But the nature of its name is where the insidiousness is. As much of a second life (SL) as it might be, in order to operate you still have to use your Real Life (RL) abilities. You do not follow a different thought and emotional pattern when in SL. You can only use what you know in RL. But kidding yourself is one of the appeals of SL. You eventually get lost in it.
At first it is new and exciting. Like a new video game. Learning the functions that move your avatar around, visiting places and socializing with the natives. You are perfect, and you can fly. No sickness, no need for money (well not as much) and people don’t have bad breath and, as a “normal”, “intelligent” person, it is an interesting place to explore and learn. But it eventually becomes one of three things. 1. Boring, like a video game you have played over and over. 2. An environment to explore your creative ability to design and sell things. Or, 3 it consumes your psyche.
The first two are what they are; the third is the meat and potatoes of SL. This is the one that is more consistent. Do you really think the folks at Linden Labs are spending their free time on SL.? No, they are spending the money they are making in RL (SL is a business so it is RL for them) on RL things.
There comes a saturation point where you walk away or get sucked in. I will say this for the last time and it does not apply to you newbie’s, or the smart ones that are making money off the lonely. It is a place to hide from reality. It is a place where weak, lost souls go to escape from the depth and breadth of life. I will allow some latitude for you shut-ins. Some people have nothing else but the four walls of the room they are in. SL can provide a form of “human” entertainment that they otherwise would not be able to get. But, that just causes the shut-in to let go of their emotional self being even more. This is a hard pill to swallow, no one wants to take a good look at them selves and most do not. But the covert nature of SL allows you to cut loose. Sort of the absolute power corrupts absolutely theory. People that stay too long get lost in it. And yes, justifying all the way, that it is just a game. For the predator, and a predator is weak by nature, it is a place to be free of thought and persecution. To dominate the weak that makes SL their home. And, it is a place for the weak to not be judged, a place that they can feel and accept that who they are is ok, even if it is with the few. Some people can handle the trials and tribulations of life, some can’t and they end up in SL. You start to see a symbiotic circle of relationships in SL. For the people designing objects to sell, they may not interact totally and directly with the person/s and, their sales may come from across the board. The newbie that is playing the “game” to the obsessed, but, the obsessed is a long term customer. Theses business individuals usually get in, add new product, convert their lindens to dollars or pounds and get out.
The tragedy is the weak and broken. Don’t roll your eyes, In the Real World we are always conned with flashy marketing to get us to buy something or believe something in order to be more acceptable. Magic creams or potions. Don’t kid yourself; Second Life is about making money. Making money off of what? Our loneliness and our lack of self worth in the real world. HELLO, McFly!! It is called Second Life.
It might be simple, you build a club, people come and visit or create a group, and you solicit for members. People get together and boom, you feel wanted and needed. Building your dream home in the clouds and littering your lawn with cool things like jets and swimming pools. That can make you popular. Walking in a park with your perfect Avatar girlfriend/boyfriend, no RL issues so it is a perfect relationship. That leads to good puppet sex. Mmmm nice. All this is accomplished by tugging on your weakness, your emotional frailty. Either you are not getting it in RL or are too afraid to face the truth of how to exist in RL. You can’t handle the truth and if you are a long term SL puppet, you just can’t handle life, Real Life. Don’t get me wrong, we all like to escape from time to time.
In some places it is much darker, like I said before, predators hunting the weak. The Gorean Master and the slaves that he takes control of. This one is unusual, in that the Master has total control over the slave. The “slave” giving not only total control of their Avatar, and who can communicate to them, but also, control as to when they will or will not talk to what they can wear. Believe me this does carry over to real life. Imagine the fun of kneeling next to your Avatar Master and saying nothing. Second life being nothing more then a place to be told what to do, serving fake food and ale. You want to call it guided, or taught? Hey, what ever floats your boat? I know just a video game, right? This setup just allows the predator to get in that persons head and develop a false sense of security. Tell that to your husband, wife, girlfriend, or boyfriend. Why you are glued to the PC instead of enjoying life, REAL LIFE. And, couples also get on there too, as couples, this is a nutty one. Worked hard all week, beautiful weekend, and, you both are on a computer, every free moment, building and designing that special home, having that child you never could have. (Yes, people do play the part of the child.) I find it unhealthy when instead of developing a better real life and real relationship in RL. You take that precious time and waste it. Yes, ok… You are free to do what you want. But there are plenty of damaged people on SL. And your fantasy could be causing them to loose sense of reality, along with your lost sense of reality. Their marriages, get funky, destroyed, their children get neglected. And you get a ridiculous God complex that makes you anti social in the Real World, which just plummets yourself deeper in to SL. Cha Ching! Sweet business you got Linden People.
You have the 50+ couple that spends every “free” moment in SL being the King and Queen. Oh, and so good to their obedient subjects. At their beckons call, at their total command. Or, the sexual perverts. Ok, my opinion….. That can now live out the fantasy of doing it with a farm animal. Or, kneeling down and being the public toilet. Sex is rampant in SL. The anonymous nature of your avatar is something too. You really do not know if the man is a woman or the woman is a man, plenty of men that are living out their desire to be a Transsexual, or a woman. Plenty of women that want to love another woman, so she hides in the body of a man. I guess what you don’t know won’t hurt you. Hey, no one is getting hurt, no aids. Nicey nice. The soul is willing but the flesh is weak. So, the wall that SL provides, allows for an easier transition to experiment. Sad part is as your getting deeper and deeper; you are getting more lost in fantasy then reality and they start to blend. Actually, you probably were lost between the two to begin with. Now you go out into the real world. Take a break; meet one of your SL friends. Break the rule, cross that line; remember SL and RL are supposed to be two different places. People meet up, some get married, the rare few. But mostly it is a letdown, disappointment, and harm to others. It is a dirty little secret. Who wants to tell people that you got into that trouble because you decided to meet your “make believe” friend?
Lips stay sealed, people get hurt. And in the end, the only place they feel right, the only place that people understand is right back on Second Life. CHA CHING!