I love Arx. It's a great game. I feel Apostate is an /amazing/ story teller and the vast majority of the player base is exceptional and of a quality that is stunning. I have been around the periphery on the game of some of the drama but have always been addressed fair and like an adult. I even respect the motivations of Hellfrog to keep the game and the nature of the game to their ethical and participatory standard.
It's a struggle to log on and play a character I love because of my growing dislike for Max OOCly. Max in terms of poses and running a story is exceptional. As a player he is very manipulative, temperamental, and he can’t separate OOC and IC. I have had a few players approach me OOCly about his shit-tallking about my player or character. I've had players tell me ICly how they feel he constantly manipulates and pushes OOC themed agendas. I just have done my best to avoid him at any turn while being polite and respectful.
During the siege plot Max kept trying to get me to teach him a skill so his rolls could be better is an example where I watch him cheat and passively manipulate things for his betterment. He wanted me to teach him a relevant skill being rolled (war or leadership I can't recall). I basically told him he should check with Apostate to see if it was okay to teach since we were in the middle of a scene/battle and he quickly dropped it because he knew it was unethical and cheating.
I've watched a myriad of new Thraxian players come into the game and basically say I'm out because of Max either from prior experience or not wanting to be in the House because of his presence after interacting with him. And I can't blame them. I have a major character in Thrax (Abbas) and I avoid public where he can go and when he arrives I find reason to leave or I just deuce out (log out, whatever).
I first went south of Max in game because I think I TS’ed with someone he was keen on. Had I known that this was the case I would have OOCly not done it and would have avoided that player because of the downward spiral that has created (from what I’ve heard) in past behavior. That player then let me know of some manipulative and disparaging statements made by Max. And that’s around when I noticed a ‘break’ in his behavior. For months I just avoided him. I don’t go to events he is at. I generally don’t enter any public room he is in and it limits my RP significantly.
It has gotten to the point in the past few months on the occasional times I do log on to play with others we go to private rooms to do our RP so we can avoid the possibility of the experience altogether.
I’ve started exploring alts to get out of Thrax in the process of seeing if I can find a way to bridge my game experience across spheres. It’s gotten to the point where in the Saffron Chain Gyre plot I avoided most scenes because Max was running and coordinating. I did my own actions and avoided participating with many others.
What sucks is I love Abbas and I love the course of the character. I have had to make some adjustments to make the character more game thematic but I’ve done them in stride. And I’m at the point where I’m looking for a transition not because of the character, or the game, but because I just don’t feel comfortable in an environment where he has a large role and influence. And I’m neither the first nor the last that feels this way.
I wish it was as easy as show a log and Max is dealt with. That’s the thing that makes him legendary though – it’s always just shy of or skirting the edge of abuse and manipulation. I don’t feel right asking staff to do anything about it. Our characters are too central to just keep avoiding each other so at some point I’ll likely retire my character and deuce out of the game or try and find a House with an alt I enjoy where I don’t have to interact with the individual as a player or a character.
And look – I have had my issues and we all have times where we are less than stellar. I’ve never witnessed someone be allowed to so directly influence negative experience for so many people though and consistently get a pass.
I’ll probably see if I can’t OOCly arrange a marriage out of the House and family. Or some other work around. But I feel the need to vent because it’s a Sunday morning and rather than being out and about in RP a player and I are role-playing in a private room ‘pretending’ it is somewhere else because we would rather not chance him dropping by.
This isn't a reflection on staff. I never have had an issue with staff and feel like I could go to them if I wanted and they would listen.. I hope other players who currently feel the same way will at least make it known and it's enough of an issue to do something about it but I recognize that my current solitary case is not likely warranting of action.
