Generally speaking I have to agree with Thelenian's views on this, but something I'd like to expand on (which was also touched on by Dionae) is that, from an IC point of view, players should not treat mobs/NPCs any differently from other PCs. Thus, killing a PC so that you can take their nice leather boots should be no different from killing an NPC and taking theirs instead - yet in many RP muds, the two are treated very differently. In fact, in many "RP muds" the only way to get decent equipment is through murdering dozens of creatures, many of which don't even initiate the fights, while at the same time killing a PC results in punishment.
So why should the player be punished for treating other PCs in the same way as s/he does an NPC? You're punishing good roleplaying - a player cannot treats PCs and NPCs differently without using OOC knowledge.
There are several reasons why you might want to restrict PK, but don't try and justify it as innately "bad roleplaying", because it isn't.
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