[Malifax]

Wow. Am I sheltered.

I played and ran a game for over a decade and a half, not a RPI but a heavily RP-oriented game pretty much without restriction, and this issue only came up one time. It was part of a storyline. The PC involved was played by a staff-member, and the "rape" was more of an allegorical impregnation that was never actually played out. It was a great story, by the way, and the "rape" was an integral part of it. The game did include half-elves, who were seen as loathsome by everyone and impure beasts worth less than a decent plow mule by their elven brothers and sisters. Per game lore, in vast majority, half-elves were the product of rape. Now that I think about, I'm surprised rape never emerged in RP at all on the PC side.

I realize this isn't exactly what the thread is about, but it's where I'm coming from. So...

@Acacia: This is one of many reasons I hate permadeath. The threat of permanent character deletion can be leveraged in so many ways, and it sounds like a player being forced to choose between having her character raped and losing it all together is one of them. I can understand such a scene being played between consenting, adult-aged players. Not my cup of tea, but to each his own. I cannot, however, think of any instance where allowing forced character rape would be constructive company policy. There's a point up to which a character has to keep his mouth shut and toe the line so Barny Badass doesn't stick a sword through his head, but I can't see any player base lying down for sanctioned bullies to throw their weight around. And that's what this sounds like to me. Am I wrong?

Almost all games humans play are based on battle in some way, and MUDs are definitely not the exception. There's all kinds of violence in MUDs. Some of it is the very heart of our games. After all, much of what is achieved in MUDs is a direct result of killing. Players come in expecting swords and sorcery, hacking and slashing, "murder and maiming," if you want. It's on the website. It's in the manual. Fast-paced swordplay where your life's on the line is fun, and it's part of everyday life in a MUD. In my mind, rape is different. I doubt very many players enter a game expecting to be raped. It's not a central part of the game. I've never read a rape how-to in any game anywhere. I've never seen a "Sexual Assault" skill anywhere either, or read any developer touting the excitement and intensity of his new rape system. Why is that?

I don't know the answer. I could say that rape is a personal violation, that lots of rape victims wish they were dead and some end up committing suicide. That rape is more distasteful than other types of violence. But murder is pretty personal and distasteful too, eh?

I agree with Acacia and can't understand the fairness of a policy that says, this is a role-playing game. If Barny is preparing to molest your character at gunpoint--choose. On the other hand, it takes all kinds, and as a bystander, I'm not about to pass judgement on people who fantasize about that kind of thing. They're out there, and if consensual rape role-play gets them what they need, I say have at it. As a game administrator, though, in this day and age, I think I'd have to say have at it somewhere else.

To answer the original question: Consensual rape is allowed in MUDs because these are fantasy games, and to some people, raping and/or being raped is a fantasy. It happens in reality, so it can happen in virtual reality too. I can't say why an administrator would choose to let players use characters with high mechanical skill force other players to let their characters get raped on penalty of deletion. It makes zero sense at all from a pure fairness and balance perspective. Makes me think there has to be more to it than this.