It's just a game. Most the time I hear this used in reference to players raging about issues personal to themselves. With my not being much of an anger guy I generally agree however I do think there are aspects that are missed.

I first started playing dragonrealms after my father was killed in an accident. I was looking for some nonsense to fill my brain and I picked this game out of the blue. (This is not supposed to be a dramatic moment, when I sat down to write this I had forgotten why I started and when remembering I felt bad so it's now here as context and as a form of penance.)

Despite tiny issues like my not being able to type (I still don't have that one down) I dove right in. I picked a Paladin because I liked the idea of being the hero, the good guy, saving the day, rescuing the maiden. My friends were Warmages and dudes that for some reason both rolled up female characters. I thought, huh and just rolled with it. I was amused in that it didn't take long for them to find out why that might not have been a great idea (he tried to do WHAT?!?) I'll also add they were not fond of things like my early tendency to call all women "Dear". Oh well.

In line with my idea of being the hero I joined the mentor society. Paladins were supposed to be teachers and leaders and while I wasn't a leader type I was patient, and that was good for helping new players. Before I joined I was doing things like hanging around the armor shop watching for new folks who obviously didn't know how to armor up. Back in the 1,000 people days it was common. The mentor society gave me an easier path to helping than being Mr Armory Stalker.

The society fit me well. I was able to outfit folks and get them rolling. I set up something akin to a squire program. By tenth circle they were armored up, had forged weapons and were blazing their paths. Aside from the standard stuff I was also a big fan of the fun flavors of DR. As an example each new person would also get taken to Arthedale to be shown things like a free buffet and the the dance floor. For a while there was a list of Guy Paladins out there that would not have liked it known that Leucius was their first dance partner. This trend stopped when I found out bringing new gals dancing was sometimes sending out a vibe I wasn't actually shooting for. I showed off my early stages of delegation by instead making my male squires show them the dance floor from then on.

One of my very first new people was a Paladin named Matalynd. Matty was challenging in that she was not only brand new to the game but she was brand new to the genre. While teaching her skills I also found myself having to explain things like what a scimitar was. It was very different for someone to be playing this game with no background in fantasy settings whatsoever. She took to things quickly though and despite an early oops, (I used to grab folks and pull them to quieter spots to talk things out. One of those spots was the first room in the bath house as Sonjaa liked it for the mana . A few months after we had been working together Matty mentioned that my dragging her to the bath house and basically telling her to strip was kind of an odd way to get things started -DOH!) we got along well.

One day she logged in and I could tell something was wrong right off the bat. It had been a few days since she was around and she logged in and immediately wanted to talk to me. She told me that she was having a tough time, her husband had lied down on the couch for a nap and never woke up. She was completely distraught and had no idea why she was even here. I didn't know what to say I stammered out a sorry and asked her what happened but that was basically it.

A simple reality with me is while I would love to be the guy who say's the perfect thing at the right moment to make things better, I'm not. I'm the guy that maybe says what everyone else says but is equally likely to not say anything, go off and spend time thinking about what might be the great thing to say only to realize it's been four weeks since whatever happened and I did nothing.

Fail.

She said that she had to go shortly and that she still wasn't sure what she was doing there. I asked her if she had some time later and she said maybe she could clear something. She logged off and I started planning. If she returned I was going to have a game plan of things to do to keep her busy and engaged. By the time she returned that evening I had come up with two different plans and I blitzed her right off the bat. The first plan was a trip to crocodiles.

One things to know about Matty was she was a total worry wart. She hunted in an area until every last exp point could be gained before moving on to the next. Each step up was a dramatic endeavor in which she needed be pep talked since she was convinced she'd walk in and just die.

She had never been to crocodiles but knew it was a busy spot for the older paladins. Many a paladin camped out in crocs working armor (this was just after the laying down in there days) and she was sure she wasn't ready yet. I gave her warnings on what to expect, told her what to do if she got in trouble, made sure she knew to face just one while I was right beside her. Basically I lied up a storm, I knew she'd be fine but I wanted her all focused. She had a great time. I played up being all shocked and surprised that she could handle such a difficult place and she went to town on crocodiles handling everything with ease.

After about an hour of that I checked with her to see that she still had time and when she said yes I launched plan two. She was high enough circle to go for the Glyph of light and I told her that was our next goal. Again playing on her nervous nelly side I told her stories of how hard this particular quest was. I told her about how I had failed it my first time and in fact had lost all my items, I was so distraught I didn't attempt the quest again for 20 circles(I neglected to tell her I failed because I was a moron who had never been to Ratha, didn't know DR had maps and I had no business trying it alone at 3AM under those circumstances) I spent the whole trip over there telling her she needed focus on what was quest and that she'd fail for sure if she missed any of the clues they would give her. While I was there to help her in case she failed, I wouldn't just do it for her.

For those of you who do not remember this quest the actual only issue is that once you accept the torch you can't say or do anything because you may drop it. You basically have to Lady of Liberty it back to Crossing, staying silent. Once we got back on the boat I pulled out my Jr High school sense of humor and went through pretty much every annoying thing I could think of. The entire trip back was her enduring slow to build up noogies, wet willies and the like. Once she turned in the torch she screamed bloody murder at me, punched me and I think gave me a wedgie in retribution.

After a good laugh she thanked me for the time. She said it had been a horrid week full of meeting people about town and having to retell the story of her husbands death over and over. She had reached a point where she felt overcome and I had suddenly inserted a couple of hours of laughter in between her horror. The Funeral was the next day and while it was terrible, she felt a little better about being able to face it. After years of not being able to help folk like I wanted DR had given me the tool I needed to be the person I had wanted to be.

Two weeks ago Matty sent me a letter saying it had been eleven years since she started and her time was up. I was sad but share some of her issues and understood her reasoning's. I asked permission to use her story for this message and she granted it. While I have a list of stories that could go along with this (I'll always remember Mistigrave) few are as poignant examples to me.

Yes, it is just a game, but sometimes it can be much more.

Leucius

Never argue with an idiot, they bring you down to their level and then beat you with experience.

I always like matalynd. And I always thought you were an important game contributor, but this post gave me more insight into the kind of dude you are than anything else you've ever posted. You're a good dude. Not just a boring good guy.

<<I'll also add they were not fond of things like my early tendency to call all women "Dear". Oh well.>>

I used to call women, "My dear." I thought it was charming. No one ever reacted negatively. But when my best friend died, I got to really know his girlfriend. For months, whenever we went out, she surveyed every single girl I came into contact with and asked how they felt about being called "my dear". The survey had disappointing results. But it went on and on and on and on. pretty sure I'll never say it again.

thinking of switching to sugar or tootsie.

<<That was a nice read. Thanks for sharing, and thanks to Matalynd's player for allowing it to be shared.

+1

Madigan

You sense the Clarity spell upon you, which will last for about seven thousand eight hundred thirty-six roisaen.
You sense the Anti-Stun spell upon you, which will last for about seven thousand eight hundred thirty-five roisaen.

The game is just ones and zeroes but the people pushing them around can be pretty fantastic. Great read.

- Starlear -

Being a player in DR has gotten me through the death of a parent, a divorce, sale of a company I started due to said divorce, and countless other horrid grief.

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<<"earning too little skinning experience for a day or so isn't nearly as bad as having a spell that breaks your wings."

Thank you Leucius. I'm speechless beyond that, so just thank you.

Nikpack

Fairly unique (in my opinion) this game has the potential to be as much as you want it to be.

Sometimes that's good, sometimes that's bad.

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Weapons for Sale:
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