The Emerald Circle

Etiquette… who’d have thought that manners would matter in a game, especially a game who’s primary purpose is to maim, kill, and destroy?  Well, I’m not talking about things like saying “please” and “thank you” (although those are helpful!)… I’m talking about game play manners. These are those unspoken “rules” that if you violate them, your gameplay enjoyment will be reduced.  You might even get shot at… or killed!

First and foremost, DO NOT sit in the middle of the portals. When you jump through, MOVE out of the dang gate already, will ya?! Sitting in the middle of the port is a good way to get yourself shot or even killed.  You see all those big bad Goli’s sitting around the gate, appearing to do nothing?  Well, they are guarding the port. So when an enemy ship jumps through, they can immediately target and begin to attack the bad guys.  If you are sitting in the port, you not only make it difficult for the portal guards to target incoming enemies, you very likely will be targeted by mistake! Yes, it’s a neutral zone, but you can still be targeted there!

Do not bid against fellow clan members in the Auction/Trade. This should be obvious, but it is amazing how often people will bid against their own clan members!  Yes, I know you want that elite LF3 laser now, that waiting another hour is just simply impossible, but when you bid against your own clan members, you are in essence stealing from the clan. You have cost that clan member the credits that they bid.  That clan member’s ship will now be less strong, because they lost the bid to you, and will now have to spend time earning those lost credits – time that could have been spent helping another clan member earn credits.  Also, avoid bidding against pact member clans. Those clans have a pact with us, and as such, will do whatever they can to avoid bidding against us.  Do not bid against them.

Avoid bidding against other company members. We are VRU company.  Every time a VRU member bids and wins an auction, they are now a stronger player.  When you bid against other VRU members, you are slowing down the growth and hindering the strength of all of VRU.  Granted, sometimes it is unavoidable, and quite often it is not obvious who is VRU or not.  When in doubt, ask one of the senior players.

Follow the “My Kill Your Cargo” Rule. When larger players help you kill an alien, you should tell them to take the cargo.  If you get the credit for the kill, it’s their cargo.  This is particularly true while you are a small, weak ship – the larger ships are using four to ten times the amount of ammo you are using, plus taking all the damage from the alien, saving you from certain death by alien.   Whenever someone helps you with a big alien kill, offer them the cargo. Very often, they will tell you to keep your own cargo anyway – but you should always offer. This doesn’t hold true so much when equal or near-equal players assist on kills, especially in Uppers.  Then, you should take turns.  I kill this BK, you kill the next…

Avoid attacking other companies in mutual enemy territory. I know that sounds confusing… what I mean is this:  If you are hunting in MMO territory, and you see an EIC also hunting the MMO, don’t attack the EIC guy.  In this case, you are both after the same goal: killing MMO players.  Same thing is true when hunting in EIC territory and you see an MMO player also hunting EIC – don’t attack the MMO.  Now, if they start to attack you, and do not break off the attack almost immediately, then you should, of course, fight back!

Be sure to negotiate configurations when doing one-versus-one’s (1v1′s)! For the most part, it is assumed that when you do a planned 1v1 that both ships will be using a “standard” battle config and a “speed” config.  It is generally considered unfair, if not even “cheating,” if you go to an agreed-upon 1v1 with two “tank” configurations.  We usually remember to negotiate things like no whites, or no greens, or no smart bombs, things like that, but we often forget to clarify whether or not “any” configuration is acceptable or just “standard” configurations.  If in doubt, discuss this with your opponent before you go off to the battlefield.  By the way, if you are going to a battle map to watch a 1v1, be sure to announce at least twice in global chat that you are on the battle map solely to watch the 1v1, although it is not unusual for all the “watchers” to end up battling it out after the 1v1 is over!    Also, be sure to always say “good fight” or something along that lines in Global if you lose.

Announce Name Changes to ALL members of your clan! Imagine this:  You have 48 people in a clan, and 27 of them changed their name two days ago; yesterday, 14 changed their names (of which 6 had changed their name the day before), and tomorow 11 other people – 3 from the first group and 4 from the second group, have all changed their names.  Now, who is who??  And you wonder why people bid against you all the time, or attack you without provocation?  It’s because they don’t know who the heck you are!  When you started playing Dark Orbit, you also began to build your reputation, for better or worse   People got to know you for who you were, so everytime you change your name, you are now a stranger to the entire universe.  Even worse, you are now a stranger to those you are closest to: your clan mates.    Regardless of the reason, if you change your name, send a message TO ALL in your clan saying what your old name was, and what your new name is.   

Never forget this is an all-ages game. You might be 35 years old, but the person who just saved your butt from getting killed by an enemy might be 13.  They might even be 8!  Try to keep your language and behavior appropriate for all ages.  There is nothing wrong with venting about getting killed, moaning about the loss of a boss alien kill, whining about home base invasions … sassing and back-talking in the game chat is a part of the game!  Just do it in a manner that is appropriate. You know what is appropriate and not appropriate.  If what you are about to say would make a sailor blush, don’t say it.

Now go out and kill something already, will ya?

Recent Edits:  Added Announce Name Changes and One-Versus-One (1v1) sections.