UsernameMDM

Hoke turns back to Lawrence, guessing the elf had lost interest in the dragons.

Hoke accepts the drink, and laughs. "A king? Twice now? I know so little about the first time, but here's to hoping the second time is the best," he says, holding his tankard up to clink in a toast,"As for me, I feel like I've been around the world several times now, doing things I am proud of, and some I'd rather forget." Hoke lets out a sigh. "So, what did the library's books teach you about being a king that life and experience did not?" he asks, taking about drink.

"Dastan. Last time I as there, there were many of them, including 2 of my friends."

Thanks for the hard work WBD!

You could always remove the gem in the Marketplace for 50 gold I think.

Handheld.

"I do," Hoke called out as he sat down next to Lawrence.

If you're an active player, what level is your PC?

Hoke awakes from his pondering only to see a face he hadn't noticed before. "Aren't you a little old for this?" he asks with a smile as he walks up to the bar.

I would have tried being 'softer' if someone would have asked. I always have a PC only PM going during a quest, and, to my recollection, not once did any other PC say anything about toning Hoke down. It's something I will take into consideration for future quests, but, at the same time, I like breaking PCs in.

Good.

I failed to mention that I removed the Coat Hanger and other armor from Hoke because I didn't want to punish the other PCs with fights they couldn't win because of Hoke's stats. I think a GREAT way of balancing this out was the Hero? battle with reflective enemy levels. I hope to see this more often with extreme level differentials in questing parties instead of multiple maxed out enemies focused on balancing for 1 maxed PC.

Is there a class completely missing?

I would be something completely different than what I am used to playing.

Yeah, see, that needed a bit more narration. I had no idea what was going on. I'm glad you tried to do something different though. Keep at it.

I have a few ideas, but I may change it. I now kind of want to fill in any roles that aren't being filled. Do we have any active Clerics?

Who's fighting? I'm laughing. And no, not pulling the "Im experienced". Just saying we are on different levels, and there's going to be a difference in role play, style, etc that comes from playing a game for 6 years vs 2 years. 15 quests completed vs 6. There's a difference, and that's ok.

Yes, exactly. Because you're Swedish. 'MURICA! Someone, please help me out. No, it's not because your Swedish. I think something is being lost in translation.

And that is quest #15 for Hoke (FoG counts, correct?)! Time for a second character!

So role play it out! Don't expect another player to stop their style because you object to it or don't understand it. Hoke didn't stop Ezeran from being a liar when it suited him, or Germ from being KO'd and playing that out. I'm not going to get into it with you. I don't know if it's a language or cultural (just saw you're tagged in Sweden) or age thing, but you can have your hurt feelings if you want and focus on that. I've played fine this way with other PCs who could roll with the punches and have fun with it. Scuba, Flipz, WBD, Zepher, etc. So play the game, have fun, focus on making your PC the best you can.

Hoke continues to watch the former barbarian's lesson with a bit of amusement. He chuckles to himself, remembering when it was him, and looks about the Hall a bit, for the first time in a long while, really looking around, and wonders where everyone has gone off to: Guts, Arthur, Dyric, Lawrence, Althior, Hybros, Atramor, Skrall, Tesni, all of the faces that he saw when he first walked into the Hall. People that he had quested beside, some more than others. Where had they gone? He leaned back in his chair, the smile easing slowly off of his face. There weren't any quests, as far as he could tell, that they were on. Had they moved on? Had they found another cause, another purpose? Hoke settled into his chair a bit more, uncomfortable with the idea that maybe it was time to move on. He had stayed longer than he needed to. He could have returned home, a long time ago. Maybe it was time to do just that. Hoke sat back in his chair, thinking, the noise of the conversations, and the clattering of the bar dimming out of his consciousness.

You admitted you lie in character, so there's the sociopathic part. Could Hoke, or anyone else, trust you since Ezeran admittedly lies on a constant basis? And no, again, for the 100th time, Hoke wasn't threatening anyone at anytime. He was merely saying if he really wanted it, he would have just taken it without asking any question. Part of learning is asking questions, and who is Ezeran to tell Hoke how to handle a culture they have never encountered before? Did you write the Wikipedia entry with scholarly citations on the Harpy culture? Why not just let WBD or the QM handle how the NPCs react versus guessing for him and cutting off another PC's role playing? Again, I think it's the ~lvl 60 vs the ~lvl 20 & below mentality of the game that mirrors real life: the experienced vs the inexperienced. The vets & the greenies, etc. As a PC, Hoke is there to get a job done. Ask every other PC and QM that has dealt with Hoke, and you will see it has been that since day 1. Then add to that a couple of PCs who Hoke perceives to be counter-productive, so he acts. Just roll with it. Play it out. It's like Guts & Hoke in the Bridge quest (59?). It's ok to butt heads. Don't take it personally. Don't fold your arms and pout in the corner. Not everything is sunshine, rainbows, and hi-fives. Maybe I (UsernameMDM) used Hoke and poked you (Ezeran) about to see how you would react. Neither I nor Hoke know you as a person or a PC. Play it out. Role play. Have fun.

First of all, thanks again for the quest WBD! I always appreciate it when you take Hoke along for the ride. This is was a good puzzle. It was challenging, but could be figured out if you tried. For this portion of the quest, and every quest when there is traveling, I'd suggest a 'random encounter'. It breaks up the monotony (role playing) of traveling for those who are interested in action. And let's be honest: every PC is interested in action. I honestly still underestimate the amount of damage Hoke can do. I enjoyed the harpies and trying to figure out what they were about. They came out being sympathetic characters, especially given their backstory. This scenario was COMPLETELY awesome. I loved the opportunities to role play, and the tavern scene was a blast. I purposely chose not to coordinate this via PM with the other PCs because I wanted an organic, free flowing role playing experience, and it was really enjoyable. Although we traveled all over the town, I have a feeling we missed out on something (Glass blowers??? ). I didn't feel justified starting a brawl with the merfolk, especially so when we found out about Madame Mihm's. Having to drag Germ around the town was kind of a bummer as we the PCs, at least in the group message, had no idea what he was doing. Did something come of that ST? Zombie Demom? I really enjoyed the challenge of this battle, but was a bit miffed whenever the penguin didn't drop the Tiger Balm for us to use. Would have been super handy in this fight. Would we have been able to track down the enemies? Hoke wouldn't mind coming back to finish the job. I know IRL we spent a lot of time here, but it felt like an afterthought in game. I would have liked to flesh this scenario out a bit more, and I really think we should have got that random encounter with the jungle animals you mentioned. Could've sworn we were in Xu!!! I thought there were 2 separate conversations going on at two different places between those last 2 posts. This part kind of miffed me because I wanted Hoke to develop a deeper relationship with Umbra and the Shadeaux family as a whole. I guess me not realizing the geography made Hoke fall flat on his face. Again, thanks for the quest. I am hooked on WBD & Zepher quest, if anyone can't tell. I honestly wasn't trying for this to be the Hoke show, but I think the roleplaying experience of a level ~60 vs the level ~20 & below really showed here. To be honest, I was annoyed when some of the PCs refused to role play, asked for this to be sped up or that to be skipped, etc. It's a role playing game, ROLE PLAY! I tried to encourage the other PCs to act as if they were there; it's exactly what I was doing and do with Hoke. However, I try not to fall into the 'Arthur Trap/Wall of Text' and role play mainly through narration. I wish more players would do that on a consistent basis across several posts, in and out of battles, and not just once in awhile, and especially not in a page long post. The bossiness was me just trying to keep things rolling when some PCs were KO'd outside of battle, or sulking around, not working on advancing the story. That's a mix of me AND Hoke really. Thanks again!

Hoke's interest was piqued as he over heard the magic user's conversation. He sat back and watched the former barbarian.

"Thanks much." Hoke walks over to the high backed cushioned chair by the fireplace, his usual spot, and consumes the Level-Up Mushroom. As he chews, he fishes through his pack and pulls out the mushroom he acquired at the Whaling Wharf, wondering what it would do...