i know some people have been quiet of late

[Falonthas]

after L with the future announcement

but what we are all forgetting is we have a wonderful world still open to us and there isnt any need to panic thinking its going to leave us anytime soon

they made the announcement to give us a hey gang this is whats going on behind the scenes

not a heres whats going on the rest is dead now till then

yes some people didnt care for not be told
but as a whole this will only be much better

the announcement let us as a community know why maybe we havent seen some faces for a bit
and now its understandable

i know everyone is still reading the forums i have seen 25 to 50 people online from time to time when the server counters read 7

dont get sad
look at the new as ascension from the old
a layo without someone else saying what layo can be

but until thats ready and L and the teams have said it
we have many months ahead of ourselves to play just as we always have been

so go log in remember why you love layo so much
you love it because you can escape from the real world into the realm L has layed down at our feet to wander roam and help shape

so throw off your meloncholy and go log in
go see your friends
and remember
even after the switch its the people you log in to interact with inside the big sand box
not just to play alone in the sand

[Interia_Discordius]

That was poetic

[Lynn1020]

Yes there are always so many reading the forums. Why not stop reading for a while and just log in and play?

[Shadowblade225]

Originally Posted by Lynn1020

Yes there are always so many reading the forums. Why not stop reading for a while and just log in and play?

Life's too busy

I do however miss many players who, if logged on, would coax me on more. Sadly, many of these folks have left (many moons ago way way prior to this future of layonara announcement). Also, there's the fact that I've grown abhorrently sick of NeverWinter Nights and all its limitations. While the community is top priority when judging the merits of a game world (and there are none better with NWN than layonara), I've just lost interest in the game in general. Not the world of layonara, but the NWN game itself. I just find that I gain more enjoyment by working my character from the forums and logging on, on occasion. Never thought I'd ever say that. I know of others who have said it prior to this, and for a while I wondered why. Now I partly understand. Perhaps it was the future of layonara announcement that drove many away. Though I hadn't noticed any fall out. I certainly hope none occurred.

I have to say thank you for posting this thread and while many probably have no idea who I even am or what character I play, the camaraderie that occurred with many characters as they weeded through a strongly defined world, was the one defining thing that kept me here, the only game I play, for almost 3 years now.

[Falonthas]

we know you mich dont worry

[Stephen_Zuckerman]

Even through all the years, all the time constraints, all the drama...

I'm still here.

Why? Because it's the best darn place to Roleplay that I've ever, ever found.

The players, DMs, and the world that was built for us all... That's what makes it possible.

Layonara. Still going strong.

[miltonyorkcastle]

I wondered why so many seemed to think the announcement was the end of the world... Because literally, it's not. For that matter, it's not even the end of the NWN version for at least a year. That's a freakin' long time in the life of a character.

There are a ton of adventures still to be had, and the main storyline is still going on, still happening in the NWN version of Layo.

[jrizz]

Originally Posted by Lynn1020

Yes there are always so many reading the forums. Why not stop reading for a while and just log in and play?

So well said!

[Acacea]

Hey, I even submitted a new character. People still trying to play, here :P

*Squints.* Actually, never mind - I think that may actually give weight to those saying it's the end of the world.

[darby snails]

Honestly I'd love to see a "everyone plays a new character" week or something like it... Encourage us all to try out the one that's been rolling around in our heads and maybe introduce some new life to the server..

[Skywatcher]

I agree with you Milt. There is still so long to play on Layo NWN. As a matter of fact I have seen more DM interaction in the last week than in the past couple of months.

[gilshem ironstone]

Dream BIG everyone

[jan]

Originally Posted by Skywatcher

I agree with you Milt. There is still so long to play on Layo NWN. As a matter of fact I have seen more DM interaction in the last week than in the past couple of months.

You probably saw more DM interaction -because- there are less people on line so they get less spread out among large numbers of characters.

I'm not on much but always have the forums open to stay up to date , work and the un-desire to play keeping me from logging in .
Too many friends have left and too many little things have happened that have made me cut my playing time here from daily 4-7 hours to 4-7 hours a week now .
Nothing to do with the announcement and certainly nothing to do with the bulk off the players.
Things just happen *shrugs*
I'll keep popping in from time to time to work and gather for my guild and hopefully for some rp , but not many are on in my time-slot .

Layo isn't dead and i hope that it will continue for a long time so others can find the fun in this world like i had found.

Peace all .

Barion A.K.A. Jan

[Pen N Popper]

I think I should chime in here.

I really, really enjoyed Layonara. From day one I found the staff kind, respectful, and open in their dealings with the community. The game systems were beyond anything I could imagine (I would often suggest something only to be informed it was coming out in the next update). Hlint was bustling with PCs and RP was everywhere.

That was then, though, and this is now. For myriad reasons players have moved on and the server numbers are down. I am OOCly a loyal person. I tried to "fit in" here on Layonara but often I came across as trying to make Layonara fit me. I don't know which is true but suspect that I was in the wrong more often than not. (See my "Salty water" post.)

I don't fault the Layonara team for moving on from NWN. I have stated that I support this move and in fact welcome it. The result for me, though, is that I need to find somewhere else to play in the mean time. I like NWN, Faerun, D&D, and especially RP.

I would just like you to know that just because some of us move on to other servers/things/life, doesn't mean that the community here is any less significant in our minds. I tried very, very hard to "stick it out" here but as has been said so many times before: RP is its own reward. I've just moved on to where RP is rewarding. ;-)

[Joyrock]

I just read the forums when I am looking for something to read not play, and it the same for many, I have been told many left after hawk got banned, and the announcement was not the end just things before that were going down that did things here and there for each different person.

I honestly never saw to much in Layonora but folks talking about how great it was and that no RP server could match it when there's servers out there that still get much higher counts then it, I am not saying this to put layo players players/DM's/project team down, but respect peoples choice to move on to less headaches, because sometimes less headaches make the better RP server. for those I have talked to layo became a personal thing like the banning with hawk, and then feel being betrayed by the DM team leaving them behind with the new engine, etc.

the fact is to alot that left it was not a out of no where heart breaker but the final straw on the camels back.

If layo is great no matter the player count ( which new servers start up ever day with no players and rise to get them) then layo will continue.

Take it from a guy who server was the same thing a big name top of the RP listing and went through the same thing, you can't keep assuming your the best server because it was your first server and you looked at others and they were nto as fun, nor that it the best because you been playing it for 5 years. MANY servers have come along way in 5 years, you want to be the best you got to constantly keep pushing it. but layo does not offer alot of basic things that come standard with NWN like evil chars, etc. when you got to do so much time related things to earn your basic NWN, rights on a server no one is sure will last a few more months it really saps one's energy. That standard will never change, people don't want to fight it, it is less work to just move on.

Nearly ever server out there can offer you everything Layo can, and that basic right which equals out to offer more then layo, the only thing they don't have are your friends, which many seem to now be dragging with them. This far into NWN only the best are still around or even make it. Does layo still hold up the the standard of being the best in NWN servers? the Project team does not wish to be one of the best NWN servers they wish to be something else, a different goal then some of the NWN players have in mind for the server they play on. Alot of factors come into play, be it fear of valuable time playing NWN1 in the end of it's days or just different goals then what the ones in charge have, have caused folks to pack up and move. No amount of cheering will fix that.

I like layo but the "GO TEAM LOGON AND PLAY!" Cheer does not help it, I logon then what? What I am saying is this, you want players to logon, do more then just ask in Cheers that spout joy and everything is ok, push RP like you did when you first found out about this thing called RP. When word gets around that the RP is REALLY good even with 7 people on, people will logon for it, when that happens more will and more word will spread.

Because to be honest, when I see pleads to logon, it just tells me. "I am loyal but I am bored on this server with seven people" If I logon will that change?
So I logon to the same boredom and I share because with 8 it has not got any better. It not easy, but your own actions must draw players not cry's for help.

I know I posted something that is not postive, and many don't want to hear but it is realistic. Some times you put up a good fight and you don't always win. Sometimes you fight hard and you do. If you really care about Layo you got to carry some of the needs of others on your back, and there's alot of needs.

Good luck to all those willing to fight for the NWN version of layo, the Project team is making a bold move that is all or nothing for the future of Layo, it only fair those willing do the same for the NWN version.

[miltonyorkcastle]

Hmmm.... seven people on each server at a time? Sounds like the perfect quest party size. =)

That's why I stuck with Layo, and that's why I'll stick with Layo. Quests. Genuine story adventures. Player-run (like story-telling nights) and GM-run (like CDQ's). And even better, Layo has an over-arching world plot that affects and is affected by us crazy adventurers.

Honestly, I'd only ever log in for the quests (and have before in the past when my time was even more limited), if it wasn't that I need to go through the tedium of crafting and business to get my characters' hands on the gear they need to make them better adventurers.

Sure, you can find RP on other servers, other places even than NWN, but I have yet to find any online presence that has the depth, quality, and number of quests offered here. The NWN version of the world, indeed, the whole DnD construct is just a platform upon which to run adventures, to run quests. Truly, I care little about the platform so long as the quests themselves are quality and interesting.

Just for clarity, here's my definition of "quest," as it pertains to role-playing games:
A quest is a plot (a selection and arrangement of events), complete with story and characters, but missing that final and unpredictable piece of the puzzle known as the player character. A quest is planned in advanced, and carefully constructed like any work of art. The best quest designers know how to incorporate the classical dramatic forms (tragedy, comedy, and melodrama) and fill their quests with recognitions and reversals. A quest is a free-form drama, not unlike modern comedy improvisationals. However, a quest holds much more meaning for its audience and its characters, and includes more dramatic elements than a comedy improv sketch. These are the quests that make role-play fun and what makes RP a work of art.

It's that definition that has kept me from applying for a quest GM position many times, as I feel I must have the time to really develop and plan each quest I run. As it stands, I've been GMing pen and paper RPG quests for years, and I barely have the time to do that anymore.

As long as Layo is built around story and quests, I will be here. I hardly care about the community drama, the platform (NWN) issues, or how Layo's custom NWN enhancements compares to other NWN worlds.

I'm here to create stories, to be told stories, and to have adventures. The only drama I care about occurs in-game and in-character.

My only hope is that there are others like me (and I think there are) who stick around to keep the story going.