I’ve thought about this subject often over the last few weeks and it came down to just two questions really. What is the honor system and why do we use this instead of referees?

Simply put, the honor system is a system put in place by which the players referee their own battles and quests. The players are responsible for their own actions in the Myth Wood so too are they responsible for reporting those actions to the officials. The key to this system is the honesty of the players involved. Without an honest accounting of what happened, things fall apart at the foundation.

Dishonest players assume an unfair advantage over other players and by so doing, they encourage other more honest players to fall to dishonesty in order to combat them. It’s a terrible cycle that we’ve thankfully only seen a few times. Most likely, the player in question is referred to as an ‘Immortal’ as no amount of fair clean hits will take the player down. They just refuse to acknowledge that they have been defeated. Sometimes a dishonest player will attempt to question every battle or every hit when it involves their defeat in an effort to confuse the issue and either void their last defeat or ‘redo’ the fight. Sometimes though, redoes are necessary, it’s only when it becomes a primary battle tactic that it falls into the realms of dishonesty.

I’d like to stress as well that there will be confusion out there too, especially in large scale battles, so please try not to jump to conclusions about another players motive for questioning a hit or asking for a redo. Like I said, it’s when it becomes their primary tactic that it becomes a problem. Confusion causes the most trouble on the battle field as the majority of players are honest and wish for a fair accounting of the activities that they are involved in in the Myth Wood.

Now I believe that confusion is the biggest culprit of battlefield accounting errors. You may ask  ‘how do we take steps to combat this?’  Well, I believe with a few easy steps, that’s how!

1. Be friendly and have fun. It’s just a game and everyone is here for the entertainment of it. Competitiveness is encouraged, however, don’t neglect your character’s story for the sake of their numbers. Some of the most entertaining players have little to no kills per scenario.
2. Your defeat is inevitable. Everyone gets defeated. Accept it when it happens and congratulate your adversary on their prowess in battle. It adds more flavor to your character’s story and should be celebrated almost as much as a victory. If you see your defeat coming, do your best to make it as entertaining as possible. Be it a glorious death or a bitter defeat at the hands of your characters rival on the very walls of your own keep. Have fun with it. Other players will have nothing but respect for you if you add to their stories in this way with your own personal flair.
3. Practice good communication. No one likes a Mage that mumbles out their spells or a player that doesn’t register hits. Try to do your best to call out what that red arrow you have nocked or what that spell ball is in your hand, especially if you had it out before the battle started. That way, the other players around you will have and easier time dealing with the effects of your attacks when they know what they are. If a player doesn’t know what spell a spell ball is when it hits them, how are they supposed to know if they’re dead, under your control, or if they need to drop their shield? The same thing applies to magical weapons, shields and armor or if you’ve acquired more armor points than you normally would have. Also, do your best to call out clearly when someone takes an armor point from you. That alone will cut through much confusion on the battlefield. Players should also watch out for injuries. If someone says they are injured or you personally took a stout strike to the head or genitals (or accidentally perpetrated the strike) it is honorable to stop the battle and let the player recover. A good example of this is getting your glasses knocked off and stopping the battle to find them. Once recovered, let the battle start anew. If the player so wishes, the battle can continue without them if they feel that they need more that a few minutes to recover.

So, why don’t we use referees? Simply put, it would just take too many people to pull off. There you have it. Some guidelines to go by as you carve your bloody path through the Myth Wood on your way to glory or folly! Stay safe, have fun and enjoy!

Sinisterly, Vigo Blackhart

(Lance Bachmeier)