Returning: revive or start fresh?

Macian

Hi all,

I'm thinking about playing Aetolia again, and have a few options. I'd like to get people's opinions on each of my options as I'm really struggling to decide how I should start playing again. What I'm looking for advice on falls into two categories:

1) Role-wise, how you view my established characters (I realize they're both old an inactive) and their RP potential in the future. I get that my nostalgia over a character may not mean that there's RP potential ( have afterall been playing IRE games since I was 14) so that's why I'm asking for your opinion: i.e. "I hated Macian, he was super meta" or "Sissfus is a name I hear, it would be cool to see old school Duiran names with actual RP this time." More detail than that appreciated, obviously.

2) Mechanically, if I don't want to invest a whole lot in lessons or credits, what paths I might need to take to get the the characters to stack up in 1v1 and group scenarios. Realistically I can probably wrangle enough to get all of these characters up to a level where they have high enough audits/curing to survive against most people, and good enough offense to compete at a decent level.

3) Just in general, a new experience (Our three main weapons are fear and surprise!) I'm quite willing to take one of my more experienced characters and figure out some kind of scenario to account for my lack of knowledge that upends their world. So, if you have any ideas there, I'm open to those.

Ok, so that said, the rest of this is kind of a stream of consciousness post, so stick with me while I give you background/my thoughts, then let rip. Or, ask questions if I'm being unclear. In advance, I appreciate the help...

a) Revive Macian. Mac has endgame and eagles wings, along with random old school arties: a snowglobe, celesmas stocking, and starchart. However, after many skill changes he has barely enough skills to fight at a decent level (Trans spirituality, piety in devotion, and heatwave in Illumination, along with minimal miniskills and trans survival). I know that this is a pretty minimal set of skills, but Luminaries were always designed for survivability, so I can make this work with some additional investment.

On the plus side there's heaps of history there both RP and ooc. OOCly as Mac I came up with and helped develop the core skills that make up the shield skills Luminaries now have (so lots of nostalgia/ownership there), and he's a Luminary still. He has the absolute basics to fight at a decently high level as Luminary. (In terms of enjoyment probably #3 of classes I have across chars. Lots of random knowledge there though).

Mac was heavily involved in Arion/Lanos/Damariel changes (killing that undead mob was honestly an accident. sorry!).

Mac was also heavily involved as a Bahkatu (not sure if good or bad) and was GM of Bahkatu and ClassLead/Liaison from the time Irruel stepped down until just before they returned to Duiran, so I know a good amount about core skills and RP if I wanted to focus primarily on Ursanthrope (which seems like the lycan class with the most survivability). Mainly, though, there's nostalgia for the class itself. I quite like it (probably #2 of the classes I have across chars. Again, lots of random knowledge).

I don't mind the Enorian/Illuminai RP, but I enjoy Duiran more.

I'd need to find a limb tracking system or revive my old system, which was OK. I generally prefer limb damage over herbal routes due to experience as Luminary and Bahkatu.

I'd need to bash a lot and earn gold as Macian to replace skills. Not sure if the snowglobe has value as a credit generator these days. Mac has a mostly unbuilt house (from a chest). RP wise he's always been really split between Enorian and Duiran, jumping around between cities a lot and somehow getting exceptions for those moves.

If I could get enough lessons to trans out Bahkatu again, I'd seriously consider that route, because it feels like no one fights as Shapeshifter 1v1 much these days, because I love the skills (and had a lot of input into them) and there's so much history there.

Overall, Mac probably needs the most investment to make him useful at higher level combat, but has the deepest history (though those who knew him/me from 10 years ago might argue there's not a lot of RP there. I'm not sure).

No access to braindead lessons packages (not sure why, because I never brought those. Maybe someone can explain that one). Access to braindead credits packages.

2) Revive Sissfus. Siss is my original character from when Aetolia split from Achaea. He's the original Sentinel type character, and has the basics needed to fight as a Shaman. Sissfus has always been heavily Duiran focused, so more consistent than Macian but a lot less active. He's only level 80 or so, which means there's enough development there to get a few more lessons, and he also has access to the brain dead lessons/credits packages.

Sissfus was one of Haern's first champions, has access to the Ta'Ros Manor in the Morgun (probably the only remaining key), and a few random mobs that recognize him from special quests we completed back in the day. Was once a Benandanti so has that honors line. Even more "back in my day" available (totem wars, original war system etc.), but achieved less than Macian when it comes to leadership etc.

I like the Shaman RP and area control a lot more than I like Luminary at a group level, but prefer limb damage routes over herbal in 1v1. I'd need to find an aff tracking system. Overall, probably the #1 class I enjoy out of Luminary/Bahkatu/Shaman. Could also earn Bahkatu and benefit from that due to bashing. Maybe. I'd still need to bash and earn gold to rebuild skillsets.

Random: sissfus is married to my wife's character. We met on Aetolia.

c) Trade in an Imperian char worth about 1k credits and start completely fresh.

d) revive an ancient (300 Aetolia years) character that no one knows who has 5k lessons at level 70, along with 60k gold and two chalices (from winning Delosian Duel event years and years ago). This would give me the most flexibility (undead or not undead), but endgame will take a while.

Overall I kind of feel like c) and d) are the best fresh start, while Sissfus has some serious nostalgia and more consistent crumudgeon RP, and Macian has the most "high achiever" RP.

Anyway, long post. Let me know your thoughts, whether from interacting with my characters over the years, or a general "I'd probably do this" perspective.

(I didn't proof this well, so hopefully it makes sense.)

Also, what the heck is a bedrock technique scroll, and is it worth credits or lessons? At least three of my characters have these.

Thanks!

Sigmund

I remember you. I remember Macian. I was in the Bahkatu for a long, long time, and when they left Ashtan my character stayed behind for as long as possible despite the move. I also remember me bringing that up to you and you not having an issue with it.

I would say bring Macian back, despite being ancient, and just rebuild. As quickly, and as carefully as you can.

Good to see you again - Enjoy the game.

Xavin

You have a couple choices, actually, depending on how many credits you actually invested in your characters. If you would rather start over, you could look into the RETIRE command, which after the whole process is completed give you a good portion of your investment to use on any character across IRE that is 30 days or newer.

Edit: Ahh, you mentioned trade-in. I don't know if you would want to trade in all your characters. There's definitely some sentimental reasons to keep a character that actually ended up being involved in something so important in real life. Honestly, if I were in your position I would probably be looking at the trade-in options.

Aishia

It's only as hard to come back with an old character as you make it for yourself. No one is going to call you out on like a completely reinvention of yourself NEW DELOS NEW ME etc.

Macian

@Xavin thanks for the tip. I knew about retirement (what I was referring to as trading in) but I didn't think about trading in multiple characters. Looks like I can get about 1500 credits from characters in others games, which would be a big boost if starting fresh and let me leave characters with sentimental value alone.

Eowyn

Solaria here. Retired a few chars, started over. Been great to not deal with the baggage. So, just end up being what sounds more fun.

Macian

@Eowyn thanks for the response! That's kind of where I'm leaning, and for the same reasons. It's been a good 4 years since I played actively (maybe longer). It sort of feels like even being a newbie again is going to be interesting, given how much has changed.

Tiur

I've come back from numerous times away, so what I've learned... starting over always feels better. No baggage, new things to do. I've found that people I disliked were more interesting and nice when approached from a new player, as I set aside my preconceptions. I especially enjoy doing something, not opposite, but tangent. If I was an evil guy, going good was too jarring.. but going neutral evil or neutral good was a great change.

Macian

Thanks to everyone who has jumped into this discussion. I realize my initial post was super rambling, and I appreciate you sticking with it to give an answer.

@Tiur thanks for the response. I really like the idea of a fresh start. What you're describing about a starting over really resonates with me, especially if I'm careful not telling anyone who the new character is.

As a long-time player, part of this is about trying to recapture the excitement of that first IRE experience. For me that's the feeling I had at 14 on Achaea, when I spent my day wondering what would happen to my character after he got out of Azdun after escaping those goblins.

Kalak

Could be late to chime in, I always prefer to keep the baggage of the character. Because to me that is what makes the game unique to begin with. Though I should state that, I follow "one char for one game" rule always which allows me to keep immersion intact. Instead of characters with differing personalities, that is more enjoyable to have a character with shifting personality.

Maybe I do have a high tolerance towards negativity attached to the baggages. But when some player says "I did not know you were like this" upon a chance-encounter or something else. That makes me smile, because that means the role was successful. The baggage which makes you boogeyman, opens up other possibilities.

In your case, I would go with the oldest one or the one with the most baggages, then fiddle among those baggages to find a way out. Playing a man which has to deal with a problem (reclaiming grandeur, trying to fight with his inner demons due to some past events, trying to be someone new against all odds) within the baggage can be more enjoyable instead of being an extremely-gifted blank-slate. Take it from the perspective of someone who likes to play a character to the fullest i.e. soldier on mode.

Macian

Kalak said:

Could be late to chime in, I always prefer to keep the baggage of the character. Because to me that is what makes the game unique to begin with. Though I should state that, I follow "one char for one game" rule always which allows me to keep immersion intact. Instead of characters with differing personalities, that is more enjoyable to have a character with shifting personality.

Maybe I do have a high tolerance towards negativity attached to the baggages. But when some player says "I did not know you were like this" upon a chance-encounter or something else. That makes me smile, because that means the role was successful. The baggage which makes you boogeyman, opens up other possibilities.

In your case, I would go with the oldest one or the one with the most baggages, then fiddle among those baggages to find a way out. Playing a man which has to deal with a problem (reclaiming grandeur, trying to fight with his inner demons due to some past events, trying to be someone new against all odds) within the baggage can be more enjoyable instead of being an extremely-gifted blank-slate. Take it from the perspective of someone who likes to play a character to the fullest i.e. soldier on mode.

@Kalak that's quite similar to the role I've tried to take when I've tried to start playing again as Macian or Sissfus over the past 3-4 years. I've never really managed to get into it with either Character for some reason.

I agree with what you're saying about immersion and baggage. Since I can't seem to get into it as an old character, I've decided to try it with a new character, who has some retirement credits. My plan is to not to share who the new character is, and focus on things I've never been part of before. So far I'm really enjoying it!

Kylan

Hey Mac,

I might be a bit late to this one, but here goes:

Personally, I find it hard to re-engage as an old character. (I didn't disappear for a massive amount of time without logging in, mind) however, with an old character, people will typically assume that you are alright, or that you have things on. If you find a place where you can engage with people, it is worth it from the "I won't lose out on past investment" view.

On the other hand, your old character has history/baggage and might impede you engaging in other experiences. (I personally have this with Kylan.) In your situation, I think the Bahkatu being gone could either be liberating or introduce uncertainty. For me with the Daru being gone, it left me feeling a bit unsure where to take Kylan next (Thus, lowering how much/often I engage with the game at large). I am in a somewhat fortunate situation where there are still some people that remember Kylan and won't hesitate to contact him.

I don't know the state of play with guilds right now, but if you decide to become a complete newbie, you might hit a barrier with timezones (I can't remember which country you were from, sorry!) which can be immensely frustrating (I found this in Lusternia when I tried playing there - the guild I played was dead).

If you do decide to revive an old character, my advice would be to go somewhere where you have some connections. In my experience, connections for older characters are harder to form unless you have some sort of starting point (A guild, individuals, etc).

If you go for a completely new character, don't let anyone know who you are. Try to avoid the old hands (in so far as reasonable) and engage with some of the newer players/characters. It is easy and tempting to get pulled towards familiar names/places, but the new experience can be so much more rewarding if you avoid the feeling of having done all of this before.

That's my take on it at least, while I must acknowledge that I have not satisfactorily answered some of my own questions for myself/Kylan.

If you want to talk, don't hesitate to give me a shout.

EDIT: I should also add that starting anew has the benefit of giving you plenty of time/room to adjust to changes.

Sibatti

Speaking as a somewhat old character who came back, I've had a fair amount of difficulty re-engaging. Navigating around the history and such can be a trial. It -can-, at the same time, be a springboard for other things, if you want to take your character in a new or different direction. Avoiding those preconceptions is very hard starting out - there are characters who never met my own, and couldn't possibly know Sibatti, who know things about her due to "reading history books" or something else along those lines. If that doesn't bother you, then you should have no problem reviving Macian. If the sound of that frustrates or discourages you, you might feel better retiring him and starting fresh.

Just my two cents!

Dzekk

Hey Mac, glad to see you're looking into coming back around!

I'm speaking from the position of a retiree who started anew - it was honestly the best decision I made in my IRE career. Being able to approach the game from a fresh point of view without the baggage I left behind on Tahl was largely refreshing, and I have since been able to succeed on so many fronts. The best part of playing Dzekk as a new main character for me was just that, establishing himself on a variety of levels.

Sometimes I find myself thinking 'what if', and I wonder about what I might have been able to do for the Ascendril, or Enorian, as Tahl and not Dzekk, and just as quickly as the thought came to me I forget it, simply because it'll never happen. You know, since I retired him. Sure, there's a lot of sentimental value with the character, and a lot of things I invested heavily in such as his custom mount, or his wings, or his other plethora of trinkets, but in the end I've found the new connections I've made with the fresh start to be far more enriching and wholesome.

That'll be my two cents! I say do what your heart desires. Mine wanted a fresh start, and it has worked out splendidly.

Alevi

I just made a new character. Some people may find it easier to revive their old one, but it only stresses me out to hop on to an old character because I tell myself that people expect me to know what I'm doing, when I've forgotten most everything, and I'm always afraid to ask. OR I feel guilty for going on such a long hiatus, and I never know how long it'll be until my next hiatus.

So if those concern you like they do me, I'd just make a newbie. Much less stressful and you get to experience new people.

Kelliara

Alevi said:

I just made a new character. Some people may find it easier to revive their old one, but it only stresses me out to hop on to an old character because I tell myself that people expect me to know what I'm doing, when I've forgotten most everything, and I'm always afraid to ask. OR I feel guilty for going on such a long hiatus, and I never know how long it'll be until my next hiatus.

So if those concern you like they do me, I'd just make a newbie. Much less stressful and you get to experience new people.

Really, though, I think the important thing is:

WELCOME BACK!

Macavity

I have come back to my character time and time again. I have never done an alt, personally, so I have never started over. For me I have spent way too much credits on Macavity to give him up. hes worth like 20k credits, I think I over did it a bit there! haha

But what I have found coming back, yes some will remember your character, and some may hold it against you, but the game is a bit forgiving in that way now that it was back when we were playing. Now if you show up and start working on things and interacting you will see people will begin to drop their guard a little and such.

As they have said in this string already, new times new you!

Welcome back as well, get ready for a whole lot of changes to understand and get up to speed again! haha But I am sure the rest of the people think this as I do, if you need help understanding some new stuff, let me (us) know. We will help you! well in an OCC manner for the mechanics. ICly we will see what side you are on! haha cheers!