What keeps you coming back to EFU?

[xxWhisperingWindsxx]

A similar thread may have been started before, but not recalling one I figured I start one.  

Time and again we see threads pop up in the forums about what's wrong with EFU or what needs to change.  And if you've spent any time at all in IRC, you're well aware of how some of the discussions in there go. There are days it surprises me that anyone plays at all with all the yipping I see in there.   Some days I'll sit and watch chat and think, "Dear gawd, to watch this it seems if everyone wants either a snuggle fest or a free for all FD party constantly.  If they're so flippin unhappy with it, why the hell don't they go find a server that's like that?"  Or we'll yip about how this needs to change or that needs to change.  And we'll see DMs make all sorts of changes, and yet more complaining happens.  There too, it sometimes makes me wonder why the DMs haven't yet told us all to go piss up a rope.  I know if I worked to give the players what they wanted and heard a bunch of yipping in return, I'd likely give us all the finger.  I'm sure there's a few that are going to say, "But WWind! We've seen you snip in IRC too!"  And you're right, you have.  Generally it's because I've seen a long string of something that's one of my pet peeves, or chat's moving just fast enough that I can't get my thought out coherently in a linear fashion.  And once it's out there, trying to explain what you meant sometimes ends up digging yourself a bigger hole.  Such is the ways of IRC.

We're seeing almost record consistently low player counts and DM involvement.  Not that it particularly surprises me.  But it's a self-defeating cycle.  I would dearly love to see EFU flourish again.  We've been around a long time, and I'd like to think we have bones to be around a long time still.

So ... I figured I'd try a different approach at this.  What is it that keeps you coming back to EFU?  What is it that you find right about EFU?  What is it that makes you think, "Yep, this is where I want to play."


For me ... I think it's that there's the possibility of there's a niche for everyone in the server.  We have good guys, bad guys, rabble rousers, snuggle bunnies, short lived bright burning stars, laid back long lived constants.  There's a place for those that only want to dip their toes in adventuring and a place for those that like constant excitement.  In the grand scheme of things, the only limitations are the hard boundaries of the story (which, when you think about it are pretty vast) and your imagination.  When I look at EFU, I see it as this huge over-arching story.  Akin to what you see in GoT or LotR or Wheel of Time.  Many books, many mini-stories, many characters.  They all tie together, they all make one huge story, but within it, there's endless possibilities.  I think that to work well, we do need the individual components.  The RP, the PvP, the questing, the factions, the hubs, the DM plots, the player plots ... all of it.  Each piece has a part to play.  If there's too much or not enough of something, the balance gets thrown off.  Obviously we go in cycles.  All good stories do.  If we were static all the time, we'd lose our oomph.  In the years I've been here, I've seen factions built, places built, things built, surprising concepts rise, all player and DM driven alike.  I've watched and participated in things happening that no one expected, but *BAM* there they were.  And for a time were a major, or at least a constant known, thing in the server.

And, I'll admit, it's the community too.  Even on days when I think we're all a bunch of whiny brats that need to be spanked and sent to our room without supper.  There's even more days when I think, "Yup.  That's our crazy EFUers.  Gotta love us!"  The best way I've found to describe us is that we're like a huge dysfunctional insane family.  We have good days and bad days.  We have people we adore and people we'd love to smack.  And sometimes it's the same person!  But again, we've got our "spot" in this insanity and it makes up the whole dynamic that's our community.  We're a tough nut to crack sometimes, but that's okay.  

I sometimes think that there's a strange sort of magic that's EFU.  And once you're hooked, you're hooked.  Admittedly, EFU was my first experience with online gaming, so everything else is measured against that standard.  EFU will, to me, always be "home" in its own way.


So ... you tell me ... or perhaps more accurately ... tell the rest of us and the DMs ... what keeps you coming back?  What do you see that's /RIGHT/ in EFU?   I think if we have a pool of "YUP! This is the thing!" it's a better spot to work from to keep us kicking.

[Kinslayer988]

What always brings me back to EFU is how immersive the setting is and how friendly the community can be. I do not play these games to play alone. I enjoy meeting people and their creations. I enjoy our interactions from threatening their players to offering alliance for a price. With Johan I had many heartfelt moments with players IC and it was extremely rewarding whenever I got OOC tells from players about how Johan made them feel. I find it fun at times to go into IRC and listen to 'late night efu'. From the salt between players which turns into playful word wrestling.

Every time a player says that they want my PC to be involved it brings me right into the excitement and ready for fun. The same goes whenever I do the same for others.

EFU is RIGHT when the setting is being explored, players are conflicting with one another, and when their characters have awesome objectives.

[Knight Of Pentacles]

I'm sure I'm supposed to say something like "Because of immersive story, close ties to the community, etc etc", those things are true, but really my reason is considerably more about self-gratification than that. Truthfully I get a high off the feeling of accomplishment that comes with having affected the world in some way.  The quality of EFU is so high that when you do something, it feels like you've really done something special.  Those times when it feels like you can't do anything are times I often find myself being burned out.

[Random_White_Guy]

For me it's the storytelling capabilities of PCs.

I know we don't like to talk about it often and aren't supposed to talk about it but to me, on CoA from where I hailed, it was at a not so great time for me that lead me to EFU. On CoA they really didn't like my particular style of live fast die hard PVP at level 6 and get your head blown off in a week. As a result I found myself hamstrung on applications and on more than one occasion blatantly pushed aside and ignored for DM type events and activities. Some of my PCs I was able to last longer and do cool stuff but on the whole they had a lot less tolerance for it than on EFU. As a result myself, MithrilDragon, and a bunch of others prided ourselves on how well we could RP amongst one another and keep ourselves entertained telling stories and pushing plots on an entirely PC level. Hiring high level PCs as thug enforcers, hiring PCs to spy on other PCs, having shady meetings, RPing out card games and dice games, Rping out gambling of fight nites. We turned that slums tavern in CoA into our wonderland without a DM anywhere near it. We got really good at it and eventually we got to the point where we felt we didn't even need DMs for a server.

Translating that into EFU it helped me personally in cultivating PC factions. I love PC factions and to me a good day is when my PC buddies come back from Questing and they're like "Hey boss, job's done, what you up to?" and my PC can rant about the day's affairs or some new enemy coming up and I need them to take care of another side job for me, etc.

It's an easy way to help newer people get involved in the server, it's an easy way to make things fun for people, but most importantly it satisfies my urge to go "Okay I'm bored what kind of shit can I stir up today".

So TL;DR version is I guess you guys are cool with me just being a crazy man on fire running through town screaming and flailing his arms at the top of his lungs trying to recruit everyone. So I stick around and keep trying to make things better and better for you with every next attempt.

[Spiffy Has]

I play to murder Mortui, DrDragon, and Zango PCs.

[das-good-yah]

This ->

For me ... I think it's that there's the possibility of there's a niche for everyone in the server. We have good guys, bad guys, rabble rousers, snuggle bunnies, short lived bright burning stars, laid back long lived constants

The fact that EFU accommodates hard core FD PVP from creation type monster PC's, as well as cooperative, lore seeking/exploring PC's and everything inbetween, is why its so good.

Also the finesse of the scripting/build of the server.

[NothingGoldCanStay]

Ninelives exemplary scripting content.


No, that's a joke. What keeps me coming back is the way that there is enough of a hard drive in the story that keeps it moving forward, but enough leeway for your PC to be something that is truly incredible; A chance to make your PC remembered in the annals of the server history. EfU is both cooperative, and you versus the world. It doesn't matter what PC you're standing next to, that PC has his own goal, agenda, life -- and it's one that might not end well for you. There is a true life to EfU, a breath of chaos among the well ordered storytelling and it pleases every sense.

[Paha]

It's the people and fun in the end. Despite my angst towards public behavior, I appreacite people here, though I step in when ever I see the Trol rising up, or if emotions get too heated up. This is actually something that I expect, not because I feel people are rude, mean or childish (We all are at times, and that's given from this kind of community of people). I recognize that anything you do in efu easily gets one invested, and therefore any issue multiplies because it affects one that much more. Yet on other hand we are a make-shift game, build on make-shift pieces and technology, that by no means are perfect, and can't be quite modified as one could if it was their own game fully, through the source code and all.

So in the end - the people and fun, that comes from the peculiar charm and quirks of the game, systems and story, with it's rough and harsh rules and emotions it stirs, both good and bad. The small faults and aspects of old nwn that have funny charm, and the feeling RP brings to the settings of this old game that is so well suited for something like this.

[TheShadow]

A few reasons, but mainly it can be summed up as.. Nostalgia. Ever time I think about the amazing, server impacting events, the awesome characters that changed the server, the absolutely thrilling RP at times, I want to come back for more. It might be a few months before I look back on EFU, but I always eventually want to go back. Also.. the immersive game world. I'm not sure about you, but I don't know a single person who likes having the server stay the same despite world changing events, like, if the sun was just there after the darkening and the dm's said "Deal with it."

[Ryan]

What keeps me coming back is the deep sense of mystery that permeates every fiber of the setting - essentially that there's a story out there larger than oneself.

Also, the sense of constantly being tested. It can be a rush at times.

[Bouquet of Roses]

It's a combination of several things for me.
I'm hardly a "veteran", having only experienced EFU:M and EFU:R, but I've been here long enough to have had multiple breaks of varying length.

The hard work of the DM staff, in both scripting, events, and minor flavourful possessions. They make it a new experience for every character. Even if this is a low-activity period.

The PCs. They do the same. One of the main things is how effortlessly it seems for the EFU community to come up with a concept and stick with it. Even if I don't necessarily agree with the concept, it's that feel of people being 100% into their character I absolutely admire and adore.

The players. Yeah, I know I don't know all of you, but those I do, I adore talking to, be it IC'ly or OOC'ly, in PMs or on IRC. I might even enjoy it a little too much! Though, to be fair, I generally just really like talking. Even with people I don't know!

The mystery. As has been said, there's so much on the server I barely know about, and even more that I don't. I love learning new things, and I'll admit, I do get a little proud whenever I discover something "rare".

But more than any of this, I -love- knowing I help you guys have fun. Be it as a background PC or a plot-pusher, knowing that I'm able to contribute to the server (and the community), brings me more satisfaction than anything else here.

My two cents!

[xxWhisperingWindsxx]

I'm sure I'm supposed to say something like "Because of immersive story, close ties to the community, etc etc", those things are true, but really my reason is considerably more about self-gratification than that.

There is no "supposed to" for this.  What each of us get out of EFU is different.  

Aside from the more "esoteric-ish" stuff I was saying in the first post, it's more than that too.  It's the little (and big) things as well.  Some examples of what makes EFU for me.

• One of my first big Howland quests, we were swarmed with goblins.  One of them emoted "throws himself off the cliff in despair" and jumped off.  (I chuckled then, and still do)
• I've had deer stop and play with me when walking through the forest. (I giggled like a little girl for a good 5 min after that)
• I've had NPCs walk by during a private-ish convo, emoting and mumbling.

Those sorts of things I love.  It's the little moments when the server unexpected "breathes" for you.

There's the things too where the server shows it's personalization for you.  The Hammerhand Brewery in the Delving, complete with a Barkor Ale.  The cat-head earrings that were made for Salix.  Some of my most cherished pieces of loot weren't powerful, but they were unique to that PC and her story. I've had some pretty nifty loot too that I was too scared to use, but what endeared it to me was the flavor and what it meant.

As far as self gratification ... that's part of it too.  I still remember how proud of myself I was when I got to open The Purple Key in EFU1.  It was an empty room that I had plans to turn into a bar/thieve's den.  It never actually took off, but I was so proud of myself that I actually got the sign up and a key to it.

Something that hits both the "self-gratification" and "endless possibilities" button ... Getting an app passed to play a half-drow monk/wizard.  I didn't realize until much later, as I was way too much of a noob and new to the server to understand, just how rare of a thing that was.  TBH, I'm still a bit in awe that I was entrusted with such a thing.  She ended up being so damned cheesy, it makes me cringe a bit.  But through her, I ended up being another player's first experience with EFU.  Yes, both of them were cheesy as hell, but it was fun.

I love the random, spur of the moment, mini-DM quests.  The ones that pop up not necessarily to kick your butt, but just to throw a curve ball at you.  Though if they do whup ya and you make it through, there is a sense of accomplishment

I play the softer side of EFU.  So for me, it's often the little things that make the server pop.

[xXCrystal_Rose]

I keep coming back because I'm accustomed to it. There are other places to rp, but nwn is one of the easier ways for an overreaching storyline to be presented and for DMs to have customizable control, and efu does it well. It has for many years and I've been along for many years. It's kind of like family really, for good times and bad. I put a lot of time, energy and creativity into helping build rp for others here and developing storylines. It's been a big investment, an enjoyable investment, and I'd like to see it through. There are certainly other options which have their own benefits greater than efu, and also their own problems worse than efu, but I've made a nest here and called it home already.

[Moonlighter]

When I first started playing it was during the Workmill Revolution, and every time I logged in I wasn't sure what was going to happen and that got kind of addictive. When my EFU experience gets too predictable it becomes considerably less exciting and fun. But when I have good people to play with and no idea what's going to happen, it can be like crack.

[CaptLars]

Because this server is amazing, as are the DMs who run it and the players who helped mold it. Also because its extremely hard and its fun to be good at things that are hard. Also because I can enact all my sick/twisted/really funny fantasies here without limitations.