Posted by Harlequin on November 3, 2000 at 11:16:42:
In Reply to: Thoughts of the day... posted by Shokai(IMM) on November 2, 2000 at 20:22:39:
I have to say, this post is far from rambling. The thoughts within are well thought out and well stated. I applaud you for addressing some of the concerns that seem to have plagued this forum over the past few weeks. I think more than a few should be appreciative of your honesty in this post and perhaps finally gain some perspective on their CF concerns. I know that perhaps my definition of "elite" is perhaps not that of others, perhaps of none, but since this post spoke of it somewhat, I would like to share my thoughts on the classification of "elite" as well. First let us begin by breaking elite into its obviously individual components... 1.) Elite player-killer - This may be one of the easiest elite statuses to attain, at least in other players' eyes, by hook or by crook. This of course meaning that new classes, skills, spells, items, etc. can be abused and those that abuse them can gain power quickly. The majority of these players will use "one trick ponies" until a bug is repaired, their "trick" becomes common knowledge thus nullifying its power, or some other event occurs to eliminate the advantage they have found. Once these advantages are lost, most of those who fall into the "one trick pony" category go back to a proven method of success, ie. class/race combos, until another opportunity presents itself. It should be noted, however, that there are those who become elite player-killers through hard work and knowledge of the different classes and their strengths/weaknesses. They do not "park" at a particular level with a particular class, preferring instead to hero and fight against more powerful opponents, taking their chances against people who may or may not qualify as elite themselves. These are what I consider the true elite of the player killer category. 2.) Elite role-player - I believe these players are most often overlooked or even ridiculed by those who consider themselves the elite of category 1. In my book, these are generally the most intriguing and interesting players. They let the events around them influence their roleplaying, adding to the overall experience of quests they participate in and even day to day play. This is perhaps the hardest category of elite to attain as it requires time, patience, and most importantly, imagination. 3.) Elite explorers - There are those among the player base who can be considered professional explorers. They are the ones who find items and their uses in new areas, read every room, mob, and item description, and quite likely can get to any room in the MUD from Galadon in one minute flat. This is harder than it sounds as it often involves memorizing every single room in an area. These are the individuals who could log on from a dummy terminal and still get where ever they need to go without the benifit of mapping functions or macros. Often, explorers will be mediocre player killers. This does not affect their ability to have some of the best equipment on the MUD simply because they know where to get whatever they want and how to get it. Well, that's about it for my classifications. You may agree and you may not but for me, anyone who can apply one or more of these categories to their method of playing qualifies as an "elite" player. And seeing as this is a response to one of Shokai's posts... "Hey Mr. Wingtip shoes Mr. Pinstripe Suit
Hey Mr. Always on the go
Well I know you got the answers
We all want to know"
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
Harlequin