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I'm earning kismet slowly since I want to play a drow.

I read 'Drow Alignment Policy' and while I understand 'no good drow' rule, I wonder why CN is disallowed too. It costs kismet just as the evil alignments do... and on that topic, if I do make a drow character in future, do I pay 400 kismet (200 drow + 200 alignment) or just 200, since all drow are supposed to be evil?

While I understand what you mean about chaotic neutral drow in a canon sense - you may as well also wonder why we don't allow lawful and true neutral characters as well. Chaotic neutrality isn't a free license to be almost-evil-but-not-quite! In terms of morality, they're far more closely related to one another than they are to their evil cousins.

In essence the MUD policy isn't so much about 'no good drow' - it's more about 'only evil drow'. Especially with drow permitted on the surface (a relatively recently development. Historically in FK they've always been restricted to the Underdark), we've not wanted to encourage a swathe of Drizzt-like drow characters with a moral code designed to let them coexist peacefully with surfacers.

It's clearly a good question, all the same. Did you have a character concept in mind specifically built around a chaotic neutral mindset, or were you just asking hypothetically? Were you asking with the intention of having them exist largely on the surface, as previously described? Is it necessarily a bad thing to have neutral or even good drow both permitted and encouraged to live on the surface in FK? While policies always exist for a reason, that doesn't make them exempt from critical deconstruction and development. If you've ideas on the matter, we always welcome discussion!

On the matter of kismet, it's my understanding (though feel free to correct me if I'm wrong!) that the 200 kismet requirement for evil characters is not a cost (ie, is not deducted from your standing kismet), however it IS calculated based on your current kismet amount - therefore you will require 400 kismet to make an evil drow (200 cost to make the character, then 200 requirement for the alignment - as you pick them in that order), but will be left with 200 after the character creation process.

I wanted to be able to play my pen and paper character, who is a CN drow warrior female (well, she had some rogue levels too, but FK doesn't support multiclassing...).
CN is my favorite alignment due to the freedom it embodies and not having the word 'evil' in it - I mean, I'd find it difficult to play an evil character due to the fact so many people think evil = indiscriminate killing. Of course, if FK players do not make the equation, then I'd probably manage to play a CE or NE character. NE, probably.

EDIT: CN was chosen due to the fact she doesn't enjoy neither killing per se nor the norms of the drow society, especially those that want females to be clerics. She does venerate Lloth, though, so she's not a rebel and she'd certainly be a mostly Underdark character.

P.S. 400 kismet?! I thought I'd rack 200 and get my favorite race rolling... (((

Trillarel wrote:P.S. 400 kismet?! I thought I'd rack 200 and get my favorite race rolling... (((

I am not an admin, but have been around FK for a while, on and off. FK is a RP MUD, the reason why we have kismet is to encourage RP. Kismet requirements are there for certain races and alignments because it is deemed that it is not easy for a player to RP those races/alignments without some prior experience on the MUD.

I think another advantage is that, with some time on the MUD, you can then decide for yourself if you really want to play those races/alignments, given the mechanics of the MUD and the rest of the player base.

The admins and other older players can probably share more behind why the kismet system was implemented. What I can say is that the system was not meant to keep people from playing those characters.

Jharthyne wrote: I am not an admin, but have been around FK for a while, on and off. FK is a RP MUD, the reason why we have kismet is to encourage RP. Kismet requirements are there for certain races and alignments because it is deemed that it is not easy for a player to RP those races/alignments without some prior experience on the MUD.

That sounds about right to me. Kismet is to allow a player to accumulate some hours before undertaking far more difficult rp situations. Kismet can also be rewarded to players from their fellow players for good rp. Its all about gaining the game experience and interactions before tackling challenging rp. Drow are in my opinion the most challenging roleplay subjects in the game, the world is always against the drow, they're an inherently evil society with delusions of superiority in a world that kills them on sight.

CN is always tricky. I don't really think it could be utilized properly by full drow without them taking the path of Drizzt. In my opinion I could only ever see it be effective and fair if there were ten-twenty active evil drow players to balance out the minority of other alignments.

Sorry, but the hits keep on coming. A Drow female warrior will cost you another 100 kismet to create - seeing as how they are out of the norm. This is the same for a male priest, female wizard and any rogue.

I believe the evil kismet requirement goes off of your accumulated kismet. May want to double-check me on that, though. So, in my theory, you'd need the current kismet of 300 and the accumulated of at least 500. :/

Hope to see you down there soon!

I think it's nice that people are focusing on the RP aspect of the kismet requirement, but they're missing the more important part of it: limitations.

Drow are not the most open race in the game. Orcs, even, have more freedom as the surface is completely built out. Getting to the surface is very difficult and it will be quite some time before a Drow warrior will make it there without a decent amount of assistance. To add to the difficulty of being a race in a mostly-closed group of areas, you are playing in the Underdark where there are a LOT of powerful enemies waiting to rend you limb from limb - these aren't like the bandits you've faced in the past, either. And, if you die, you may have difficulty finding assistance with being returned from the dead, much less having your corpse retrieved.

It's not just about RP, but Underdark is a very challenging place; it used to be the most challenging place in the game.

Don't forget the ecl aspect as well. Make sure you read up on that!!

Aunala wrote:Sorry, but the hits keep on coming. A Drow female warrior will cost you another 100 kismet to create - seeing as how they are out of the norm. This is the same for a male priest, female wizard and any rogue.

I believe the evil kismet requirement goes off of your accumulated kismet. May want to double-check me on that, though. So, in my theory, you'd need the current kismet of 300 and the accumulated of at least 500. :/

Hope to see you down there soon!

Looks like I'll have to stick to Alienor and my two elves for some time. However, I know I'll be able to hold onto the hope of playing my favorite character in FK...

This intrigues me...

Maybe one day when my Paladin is more or less settled, I'll come down there and join you guys, but you won't like my evil characters. nobody does.

anthalas wrote:This intrigues me...

Maybe one day when my Paladin is more or less settled, I'll come down there and join you guys, but you won't like my evil characters. nobody does.

I know someone named Shenton who would love your evil character.