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Old 02-12-2013, 01:21 PM   #1
dark acacia
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Join Date: Dec 2012
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RPI and PC power: can vs. should

In RPI games with permadeath, how much should player power be checked when they have the ability to easily kill another player? Is just having an IC reason for killing someone enough justification even if all IC rules are followed? Should the ability to PK someone (when the attack is believed by the attacker to be very likely to succeed) be used for skipping other ways to get through conflict even if the letter of the law is followed?

Here's an example to illustrate what I mean:

Players A and B are arguing over something trivial. Players C and D manage to convince Player B to back off and let things cool down, but Player A is determined to shut up Player B once and for all. Player B apologizes profusely for the conflict having reached this point and insists on refusing to fight back, dropping his weapons and telling Player A that he would be killing an unarmed person. Instead of backing off, Player A appreciates Player B's refusal to engage in PvP because this means there is now no chance for Player A to lose.

In this situation, A was not normally a murderer and was someone who would start bickering with B and make snide comments to him, and C and D actually killed A before A could kill B--their reason being to protect B from being murdered. A's reason for wanting to kill B was motivated only by A's contempt for B.

Another question: in some RPI games, I see in some games that non-combat PCs who are nobles have NPC guards follow them around to protect them from attacks, but in other games the NPC guards are reinforcements. Is it really a bit much for someone with some rank to have the ability to summon several NPC soldiers and then just threaten PK as a substitute for IC discussion or roleplay and as a way to guarantee their survival in PvP, even if the letter of the PK law is followed?
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