Merry Christmas 2012

Take some time out from your busy, pre-Christmas schedules and join us here on Fate of the Republic. For a few minutes or a few hours, it's a great way to wind down from all the hassles of this time of year.  Trust us, we know these things. Teams of investigators have spent hours and hours verifying this important fact!
It's a great time to make a new character, or 5 if you prefer, and get yourself ready for the changes coming in 2013.

Tactics for Longevity Revealed

Okay, for all you new and some of the old players out there, here are some things you can do to help ease your life on Fate of the Republic.

1. First and most important. DON'T PISS OFF THE EMPEROR!  You'd think this would be common sense, but it seems Emperor baiting is alive and well, and despite said Emperor having some patience with new players, it isn't a guarantee you can rely on. So you know.. Star Wars, rp the way you should and by all means, plot to kill him and destroy his Empire, but don't expect applause if you are standing there calling him names.  Which leads me to the second point...

2. Don't open fire on Star Destroyers. This is not a survivable tactic. Trust me. I know. But before you move onto point three, that also applies to TARGETING STAR DESTROYERS!  It will be taken by all but a manned ship as an act of aggression and you will be ordered to surrender or die.

3. I know you've played MUD's before, but DO take time to read the newbie page on the website, and the FAQ page. These can help you.  Commands change from MUD to MUD and often cause confusion. There is a long list of commands you can call up, or check the help files or just ask for help on ooc. Everyone was new once and we all had to learn them.

4. Do as the Belsra warnings say 'Clone often'.  The hints as you start levelling in Belsra do actually contain information that can help you. They disappear after level 10, and are worth taking note of.

5. Do explore. The best way to survive situations is to know the layouts of planets.  Especially if you join a faction, this point alone can save your life.

6. Do explore. For those looking to increase their armour level, trying out different items found on different planets can build your AC to a great level.  Buy the item, check your AC level using the score command then switch out for the new item to see the relevant increase or decrease.

7. Do remember your exchange command to convert your AP to QP or vice versa. This will help you earn armour pieces and other in-game items.

8. Do read room descriptions carefully. Some give hidden hints to places you may want to investigate. More importantly, some give WARNINGS usually in red, about dangers in the area. Do take these literally. Tatooine is one of our most dangerous planets and has killed more veteran players than new players. Do PLEASE heed the room descriptions of where you are, it will keep you alive.

9. Don't assume all mobs can be killed.  And don't assume mobs won't kill you.  There are some that will keep attacking your character till it dies.

10. Do remember to have fun! There are other things you can do to live a long and happy life on FotR, but working those out for yourself is half the fun.

The FotR Team hope you all have a safe and happy Christmas.  See you all in-game, and don't forget it's Christmas on FotR too, the trees will be up soon and Hapes is the place to be for gift giving and receiving. :)

Well.. it must be BLOG time again!!

General News

For those of you who missed the mail out, the MUD has moved. And now has it's own dot com.  Better facilities and less fees prompted the move. So thank you to all of those who have joined us on our new server. Hope to see more players as we re-establish ourselves.

Also, a big thank you to the players who have kept us going for another year. Without your generosity, we would not be able to continue.  Server fees are something our players contribute to voluntarily each year.  And the few who continue to support us each year and keep us open are keeping more than just a game open, they keep a community open.  Time and again players come back to play, socialise, recall old times or just chat. Fate of the Republic has been here for old and new players for many years now, and it's good to see the family keep growing.

In-Game Changes

Once again,  Action Points have been the focus of many changes these last few months.  More quests have been adapted to pay out in AP as well as credits.  The package delivery system also pays out AP and while some comments have reflected people's concern about how many AP, packages earn them, it is worth noting that some of the aims of implementing AP is to allow new characters/players to earn a reasonable amount without a large risk.  Pirate hunting is not for players who have little experience in our unique flight-combat system.  But as is bound to happen, if acquiring AP is too easy, then it is farmed and quickly becomes a worthless  or worse, inflated currency. Keeping the balance here is something we will be watching closely.

Of note, also, is the AP associated with levelling a new character. It is now possible to come out of Belsra with a good start towards your first starfighter, or a profession. Credits and AP are now a reward for each citizen level you gain. With the 'exchange' function, of course some people are choosing to do other things with their AP such as make their characters more unique for their particular style of role playing.

With our coder being accepted to Microsoft in Seattle, the administration of FotR are cracking the whip and trying to get as much work out of him as possible before he leaves. We have had a degree of success with this. Planetary ship spawning rates are now increased. So factions fighting to take planets will have a more interesting encounter on their hands.  And he has been busy tweaking some other systems on the game. So go carefully out there people. Things are not what they once were. :P

Oh.. and I guess we all congratulate him on getting the job, etc etc...

With multi-play launched recently, many people have taken advantage of being able to earn AP on several characters at once. Inevitably that also means some people have skated a little close to punishment with their characters benefiting each other. Please make sure you read 'help multiplay' and don't lose your hard work for a lapse in judgement.

Competition Time!

A small competition for our new Immortal. Iselka would like some ideas for her 'arrival and departure' when she appears to help players.  She is not quite up to the 'hot, buttery' presence of Asher, but she is hoping people will have some ideas for her. QP or AP reward available for the best entry and please use colours as well. It can be as long or as short as you want. All options will be at least 'considered' . :P We'll give it a couple of weeks, and then announce the winners on the MUD and forum competition page. So post your entries on the forum and see what you can come up with.

Soapbox!

Please remember, your characters don't have to be 'perfect'. They don't have to have a great level of armour. And they don't have to have acquired all the benefits of the game, that AP and QP can buy. The aim of being here is rp. And I continually hear people wanting rp and not finding it because many players are idling, and earning AP to make their 'perfect' character. By the time you have a character you want to use... our eager rpers have moved on.  I really want to encourage you all to get out and rp with whatever level of character you have.  Have some fun, rp a struggling character if you must. Roll with whatever you think suits the situation. Some of the most fun rp has been random meetings. I believe we used to have an Imperial Emperor who would disguise himself and pick up distress calls. Get out there and have fun guys. :)

Personal Stuff!

Lastly, in a few weeks, the home of FotR will change. Oh the server will still host us, but the man who makes this game run, will have to learn how to string up a couple of wires and some sticks and get him that magic internets and run the game from Down Under.  He must brave the spiders and the snakes and the goannas and the drop bears and build an intricate web of computer stuff so he can still reach the rest of the world. And I just want to say, I have a whole army of locals standing ready to help him.  Cousin Dave has even offered a couple of his sheep. Thanks cousin Dave!!  Asher will be safe with us. We'll treat him as if he was one of our own.  So none of you need to worry. It will be business as usual on FotR. So stay with us, and enjoy the ride. I'm sure you'll hear his screams er... his yelps of joy from there.

Oh, and GANBATTE KUDASAI SKAR!!! Microsoft is lucky to have you!

Happy 2012!!!

Contests:

We ran a couple of contests recently on the MUD. For those of you who missed it, they can be viewed on the Forum. One was a 'Who-design' contest, to come up with some new ideas for your own or the MUD's 'who list'. See help whodesign to have a go yourself.

The other was for a new write up on our MUDConnect page, the first thing people see who browse that site for a new MUD to try. It was very well supported despite a slow start. The aim was to look for something different to represent us, since we have had that particular write up for about 6 years. Entries are posted here.

It will be a combination of entries that will finally represent us, and Asher will advise us when it is completed. The other entries will be used on the Fate of the Republic website on a testimonial page. If you want to add your testimonial to these, please do so under the 'Testimonial' thread on the Forum.

I know it was a difficult thing to decide, as I personally liked all the entries. Each one touched on an aspect of our MUD that I wanted everyone to know about. Casting my one vote was so very hard. >>

For new players and old:

I wanted to touch on something people have asked about recently.

"Why do we have to spend time here to Profession, and why can't I do all I want, right now!!?"

I would like to counter with, "Why does anyone play a game? And why in particular a role play game, if you just want to log in for a few minutes and then go again?"

It seems ridiculous, but honestly, when did any game give instant gratification? They all use hooks of varying kinds to keep people playing.

In a role play environment it is vital to have players on the game to actually rp. It doesn't work without them. Mechanics are nice to play for a while, but rp as I've said in a previous blog, is what brings people here. Time and again we are asked 'are you an rp enforced MUD' and when we say yes, they say 'Good!'.

About AP:

The other big discussion it seems, these past few weeks has been about AP and the use and viability of it as an automatic in-game reward system.

AP is a new system that is still being implemented. The quest point system was NOT an automatic reward, and relied heavily on participating Quest Masters who were at times being treated like vending machines.

AP is exchangeable for many items. See 'exchange rate' for some options. It is also available for use in ship upgrades, and for that you need to contact an Immortal.

As I said it is still being implemented and code changes are being looked into for the future levels of AP rewards that will be available to players.

Pirate Hunting is one of the main ones at the moment (see help phunting) and it has been said it only benefits pilots. This is not the case, we have players who are not pilots, using the system, and several starfighters with cargo space. Again this can be upgraded with AP for those serious about asteroid mining. I should also point out not all systems have pirates. :)

The bright side:

It is worth noting that AP has allowed a few other things to emerge in FotR. The restring command has meant a lot of players can diversify not only their looks but their role play props as well. With many people using it to make items to assist their rp which previously they couldn't have managed without an Immortal's help.

Shipbuilders are also using AP to sell pre-modified ships, an attractive option to a lot of players.

If anyone has anymore ideas they have used AP for, please share them in the comments section on the bottom of the blog, so other players may benefit. :)

Christmas:

Finally, Christmas. We had a rather active Christmas here on the MUD and it was so good to see the Christmas Tree on Hapes, laden with presents that were donated by players. Anyone can donate and anyone can take from the Tree at this time of year. What many didn't know, I suspect, is a lot of players used their own Quest Points and AP to put high level items under the Tree.

Thank you to all those players on behalf of the staff of FotR and those players who benefited from your generosity, for the selflessness and Christmas spirit you showed.

PS

Lastly, and by no means the least of how we feel. :P

Asher and I would like to thank all of you who have sent us your best wishes. Our family on FotR is very important to us and we are overwhelmed by your support. For those of you still asking about a Wedding date, I'm afraid it will depend on when we can get a Marriage Visa approved. God Bless America. :P (I've been watching far too much West Wing…) Anyway, we'll keep you posted as to a date and style of wedding. Thank you for all the suggestions…. a Star Wars theme being the most common. Who knew you were all such fans. :)

PPS

Don't forget to look at the FAQ page and Newbie page on the website for information for new players. And ask lots of questions, and remember Have Fun!!!

Sound Pack

Click here for the link to the sound pack on our Forum.