Player Killing, Incentives & Disincentives

Disclaimer: This article reflects the personal opinions of CAT, and should not be held to represent that of any other WIZ, or of WIZZES in general.

(Beginnings, Development of an anti-killer culture, Neccessity forces killing skills for self-defence, Temptations, Serious Killers, Anti-killers, Pacifists, Wizards & Witches, In Passing, Conclusions)

Beginnings

New players, familiar with first person shooters, and eager to test the bounds of the MUD environment often attempt indiscriminate killing sprees. These invariably go poorly for them as new personas are created deliberately weaker than those of existing players. Additionally new players lack the knowledge to make the most of their capacities.

These early failures have a long term and powerful impact. Some players leave MUD entirely, distressed at the perceived unfairness of the environment. Those that do stay move towards less dangerous strategies of making progress.

Development of an anti-killer culture

As players improve enough to gain some awareness of other players they realise that some people do manage to make a success of killing other players (their own failures not withstanding). Attempts to emulate these killers will still generally fail dismally.

Further, as the player has become known by others in the MUD, the consequences of being 'anti-social' can be severe. The emotional investment of building up an adequate persona leads to a marked disinclination to engage in killing.

Killing will still occur, but usually for 'feuding' reasons, rather than as a lifestyle choice.

[An occasional player will at this point discard any attempt at playing for 'power' and will throw their life away time and time again merely to irritate the others in the game, but this too is an indication of a fatalistic attitude. For if they believed they could achieve results within the 'normal rules' of the game, they wouldn’t be opting to play by their own 'unofficial criteria']

Neccessity forces killing skills for self-defence

As the player becomes worth killing in their own right (through long hours treasure hunting) they are obliged to acquire some means of self defence. Often these will involve banding together with other like-minded individuals in the hope of deterring killers through sheer weight of numbers. This often works quite well. However, it is not a reliable defence. Good friends will often be just that little bit slow in risking their lives to defend one another. And sometimes good friends will turn out to be killers in disguise...And so the player must actively study what the killers are doing in order to defeat them.

With some application the player may become good enough to beat off killers, or at least to realise that they are not inhumanly skilled, that the player may in time come to reach such heights themselves.

Temptations

Here comes a strong moment of temptation. Although the player is still not so skilled as the better killers, the player realises that there are plenty of players who are not nearly so skilled...who in fact 'do not know what they are doing'.

Many succumb to this lure, often with secondary personas so as not to offend their long-standing friends in MUD. Most do not stick at this form of killing however, as it is intrinsically risky, and playing in a 'good' manner means much faster progress in terms of points and levels gained. The player does however put these illicit skills to good use in self defence, and in time may come to be respected as a power in the game in their own right.

Serious Killers

After a considerable time, the player may come to feel that they have achieved everything that is achievable within the game. They are moderately confident that they know everything that there is to be known about MUD, and they come to see the mere accumulation of points and powers as unimportant. If they are killed they can easily build themselves up again within a few days. The emotional attachment to character thus becomes less important as the player becomes more skilful. What can they find within the game that is exciting and new...?

And so they may come back to killing. Not with any great malevolent intent (though to be sure there are some like this), but because killing becomes a new way of measuring skill, and gaining kudos. Killing is perhaps a meta-game, a game within the game. A game with its own aims, which are nonetheless despised by players who still have to invest many hours in building up.

Anti-killers

Some players, seeing that killers have a negative impact on the less experienced (though providing plenty of excitement in the short term, constant attacks produce 'battle fatigue'), take it upon themselves to kill the killers. These contests provide the ultimate in excitement, though it must be said that most players prefer to attack those they are pretty certain they can defeat. But one cannot boost the ego all day long on easy victories. Occasional bouts of really dangerous combat are what really get the adrenaline going with these players.

Pacifists

There are some players, who despite all the assaults (verbal, emotional and physical) upon their person, steadfastly refuse to be drawn into the deeds of killing themselves. It is very rare for these players to avoid all fighting activities, for they will be called to assist in repelling the killer of the moment, but they will not initiate these events. (While a complete pacifist may be admired theoretically, in practise both killers and victims despise them.)

Wizards & Witches

Wizzes represent the epitome of skill and power in MUD2, from which happy position they can look down upon petty mortal affairs with benign objectivity.

Wizzes view killers with a combination of exasperation and pleasure. It is certainly necessary for there to be killers, since otherwise the most haplessly inadequate people would become Wizzes. However killers just do not know when to stop. They certainly harry the mages who roam the land, but lacking these high level targets, they happily stoop to preying on lower and lower levels, until all meaningful activity in the land ceases, and the killer completely dominates MUD - thus killing the game.

In Passing

Some Mud's deal with this problem through such artificial methods as 'Killer-switches' and 'killer-free areas'. These Mud's are those where the management is afraid to allow players to really suffer in the game. They are happy to allow any fool to eventually stumble to the hights of the game, but in the process they kill the spirit of risk and adventure that makes a game great. You need to fear losing everything you possess in order to feel the full thrill of danger in the game.

The real solution IMO, is to provide channels for those who appreciate killing to compete with and against one another, while leaving them free to attack anyone they chose.

Conclusions

Killing other players is an activity to which most MUD players initially aspire. The depth of knowledge needed to be successful, and the social pressure from other people, deter nearly everyone from continuing with it, though with experience many suffer relapses and succumb for a short while. Everyone eventually comes to appreciate that killing is a phase through which players grow, and will pass out of as they become mature players and ultimately Witches and Wizards.

Important as killing is to the game in providing spice, too much of it spoils the players taste for the game. Wizzes might like to explore methods of clamping down on killing without alienating those that engage in it, perhaps by providing alternative activities in which they can demonstrate their prowess.

----*Cat

Disclaimer: This article reflects the personal opinions of CAT, and should not be held to represent that of any other WIZ, or of WIZZES in general.