To begin or to not to begin, that is my question?

[Strider Dowding]

Greetings All

I have to admit that I am flummoxed!

We  moved last year to a remote area 60 miles from nowhere and for the first time in over 20 years I have not been able to RP with my old group.  DSL became available last  month to us in the hinterlands of Missouri  and I started researching on line RP.  Which lead me here.

Everything I read sounded great.  Just what I wanted to get in to if I could not  sit at my old table.
So I down loaded the Gig of files needed and started doing background on a  PC.

And find that there is going to be a major change happening in Dec - OPPS.

Should I hold off on getting a PC started now?

Strider Dowding

PS  I usually get grief on  the Hubris of using Strider as a moniker.  It was given to me by my Cross Country coach as my team nickname in 1973, 3 days after I read the  long run in LotR.

[Nagash von Ritter]

As I understand, how long it continues depends upon donations from members? Correct me if I'm wrong.

The major change will be a new game.

[Skywatcher]

Looks like your post got cut off.  That happens if you paste something from word or such with special characters like ...'s.  Welcome to Layo.  There is a transition coming some time in the future but no one really knows when that will be.  I say get started and see where it goes.  The December date was given notionally but it could be a long while before anything actually happens.  See you in game

[Strider Dowding]

Thanks for the quick responce.

I have not been able to find any due date other than Dec.

From what reading I have done of the background of this world I would expect it will take me 2 weeks or so to have well founded PC drawn up.

With this in mind do you think I would be well recieved with a poorly done PC that meets the basic stuff, allowing me to get a feel of the place and to get conected to people.  From what I read, the earlier version was simmilar enough that the experiance would be worth while and to be honest, my dice are cold.

Strider

[Strider Dowding]

Great
Is the new version going to have a new back story, meaning should I spend time reading something thats going to be outdated.  The reason I press this point is that I usally have detailed background on a PC and would not like to find it not needed.  Would a poorly done one suffice today?

[Dorganath]

At this time, there is no plan to discontinue the NWN game world in December. That was given as a minimum time which would depend on other factors. I cannot and will not guarantee how long NWN will stay running, but it's not currently in imminent danger of being shut down.

As for starting a character, I'm certain you could have one drawn up in less time.  One option would be to get a passing familiarity and then work with the Character Approvers to fine-tune the details.  Having said that, it would be perfectly acceptable to have a character that did not have every detail thoroughly mapped out, as long as it stays within the lore and spirit of the world, in order to get the feel of the place.  My first character was like that and I'm still playing him.

So welcome, and I hope you enjoy your time here!

[Strider Dowding]

I am really impressed, I am getting responces faster that I can read and resond to, so if I sound disjointed, sorry.

I will start a basic fighter and see how long he lasts.

[Dorganath]

Great
Is the new version going to have a new back story, meaning should I spend time reading something thats going to be outdated.  The reason I press this point is that I usally have detailed background on a PC and would not like to find it not needed.  Would a poorly done one suffice today?

The new game is going to build upon all existing lore and backstory that we have right now.  I will say that we are overdue for an update to the player's handbook, which includes a lot of expanded/updated/corrected lore and history.  While some changes will be significant and others will be minor, the overall picture will remain the same.

Over the past year (give or take), we've been striving to divorce ourselves from Forgotten Realms lore and content as much as possible in preparation for the new game.  As a result, the Layonara setting is quite unique.  Many of these changes are already in effect.  Many are not.  Any inconsistencies due to the changes which are in effect can get cleared up when you submit your character.  The Character Approvers are there, in part, to help you through issues like these as long as you can remain somewhat flexible.

The only thing I cannot guarantee at this time is the possibility of transferring characters to the new game.  While the character itself may not continue, the background knowledge will remain and there will be no wasted effort in learning the world's lore and history if you plan on continuing.

[Stephen_Zuckerman]

Welcome to Layonara. Just tossing that one out there.

I don't think it would be a wasted effort at all to start up a new character. You might not make level 20 (or even 10, if you gain XP like me ), but learning the world lore, interacting with other characters... It's still a lot of fun. A lot of effort, yes, but a lot of fun.

The best place to find information is the Layonara Official Resource Encyclopedia, or LORE. It can be found at lore.layonara.com. Not ALL the data therein is accurate - for example, some references remain to Port Hampshire (rather than Hempstead), or Drow rather than Dark Elves... However, the majority of the things you'll find there are accurate, particularly all data pertaining to game mechanics in NWN.

Tied for best place to find info is the players and DMs, like myself and Dorganath, respectively. Most of the players will gladly take time out to help a new player, and some will actually help you build a bio - though final approval goes through the Character Approvers (who are also there to help you make a character that fits the world!).

Don't feel pressed to make an extremely detailed bio - "Farmer's son from Hempstead, decided to go out to make his fortune" usually suffices as a basic idea (though a bit more body would be nice), for example. A generic character to get a feel for the world usually ends up being a primary character for a long time.

That's what happened to me, and, apparently, to Dorganath.

[Xirion]

Hey,

Hello and welcome to Layo, it's allways good to see a new face (and hopefully a new PC) appearing. I think sofar all issues have been addressed so besides the welcome there is nothing left from myside to add.

If there is anything left unanswered don't hesitate to ask, staff and community are, as mentioned before, allways glad to help a new one out!

oh... and one pint I want to srtess is, the effoert you put in is cleary not wasted, the fun, the depth of the worl and the players and DM's creativity pay it all back more then twice!

>Xirion>

[Strider Dowding]

Everyone thanks again for the fast responces.

RE: Xirion
Been there, done that, want to know the mothers maiden name of the PC I played in the late 80's, or the shaft lenght of the archer from the 90's

[Leanthar]

Not sure where everybody is talking about "December". We are working on a new game yes...December...not sure where that came from.
 
 What Dorganath stated above in his posts are spot on. Create a character and join the world, still plenty of time to get used to the world and community.

[Xirion]

RE: Xirion
Been there, done that, want to know the mothers maiden name of the PC I played in the late 80's, or the shaft lenght of the archer from the 90's

er... pardon?!
maybe I'm just too tired...

[darkstorme]

He's referring to the fact that he knows no end of details about his past PnP characters.  And the latter is a joke related to an unintentional double-entendre.

er... pardon?!
maybe I'm just too tired...

[Acacea]

Not sure where everybody is talking about "December". We are working on a new game yes...December...not sure where that came from.
 

Because December is the last 'hopeful' month mentioned in your FAQ...beyond that seemed 'who knows...'

If the donations continue and are enough to keep the servers running (it is not there right now btw) and the community is positive and remains active then the NwN version of Layonara should be around until at least December.

Emphasis mine.

This and the seemingly 'conditional' status of even this month's hopefuls also led to the other troubled questions later in the thread if this was still looking like uncharted territory beyond December, and that asked about how much warning we would receive, etc.

For those that read only the FAQ and haven't seen the full thread and answers to those questions, they were answered in October.

Yes, things were still progressing at that time, no, they certainly won't shut it down without a good degree of warning, they can't possibly give timelines on how the new stuff is progressing because for many of them it is their 2nd or even 3rd job so anything they say could be proved immediately inaccurate... and more to the point, "It is not our intention to take Layonara down before the new game is available. There are things that could cause Layonara to come down before though, but they mostly rest on the shoulders of everybody in the community-- as a whole. The world hasn't gone down in 5.5 years...why would we do it now?"

I hope that these summaries and direct quotes help some in deciding if any amount of fun time we have before moving on for those of us that do, is still worth the effort, as well as clarifying the reason why December still has a magic name. Welcome to Layo, regardless.

[Xirion]

He's referring to the fact that he knows no end of details about his past PnP characters.  And the latter is a joke related to an unintentional double-entendre.

Thanks, whiskey has seemingly blurred my mind

[Strider Dowding]

Again thanks to everyone for the responses.

In particular, thanks to Leanthar for not only this response but for it all.
I think I have a vague inkling of the work involved in what you have done over the last 5 years, having done a "startup" while working fulltime. I hope you are able to get some sleep and family time.  Whith out having played yet, just having briefly read old posts and from the responses of the thread, it seems you have pulled together something that you and yours should be proud of.  

Last, to Darkstorme and Xirion, thanks, I was not trying to be obscure, but having spent years at the same table, I assume too much and include too little.

A question on etiquette?  What is the best way to respond to multiple people at one time.  Is what I wrote above sufficient or is the quote function clearer?

[darkstorme]

What you wrote above is more than sufficient.

If you wish to address a particular portion of a longer statement, quoting usually works best.

Myself, if I'm addressing multiple people, I usually precede their name with an @ symbol.

Example:

@Strider - You have an inkling now.  Wait 'til you see the world.

[Leanthar]

The teams rock! That is all I can say.

[Strider Dowding]

Xirion, your instights into my poor sense of humor were all correct, except for the use of the "un" qualifier.