Mystere incident on Wikipedia

[Harlowe]

I don't know if I ever ran across this before, but its kind of amusing to see our little old EQ server and drama actually in an entry on Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mystere_incident

[Alluveal]

I still talk to "Mystere" and we recently had a discussion about the wiki page.

we couldn’t tell the real story, which involved one player accusing this banned player of something that, if true, would have crossed major real-life moral and legal lines. I personally spoke with the person accused and there was enough that made me uncomfortable to decide the right thing to do was to keep this person out of our games altogether. The "fan fiction" story this player wrote certainly was a part of this decision, particularly when combined with the accusation made in-game..

Total bullshit according to Mystere who remembers that phone conversation in a completely different way. Smedley is just covering his ass. There used to be a comments section on the page (can't find it now, but that doesn't mean it's not there) where a few people tried to address Smedley's comment above (calling it incorrect).

In other news . . . I thought for sure that the whole "Page 8" debacle would make it to wiki . . . apparently not!

[Harlowe]

I remember people correcting the original Smedley article! Those comments are gone? You just can't make drama in a game today like old EQ drama.

[Alluveal]

Oh boy, the drama! I definitely got caught up in my share, but I like to think I've got my big girl underpants on now. Hahaha.

The whole Mystere thing happened after I really got into playing EQ. As a matter of fact, I don't think I was on Brell when it happened. Or, if I was, I hadn't really discovered the message boards and such. As a parent, there is no way I would allow my child to play a game like that w/o supervision nor would I let them join an RP guild. Adults should be able to act (and write) like adults on a private forum.

But, ahh well! Wasn't Mystere in Evoluxa? Am I remembering that correctly?

[Kulaf]

Never read the actual story......but wasn't using the term "seasons" an RP way of saying "level"? So if he described a female of 14 seasons, wasn't that like saying she was level 14 in the game?

[Alluveal]

I think so, yes. That was the questionable part, I believe (even though the stories were on a private message board). Even so, George R.R. Martin details the marriage and seduction of a 14-year old bride (Dany), and I've read other stories that have had sexual and violent situations perpetuated on their characters at that age . . . or younger.

It wasn't like Mystere was running around begging for RP sessions with underaged people, she was RP'ing from the POV of someone who had experienced these things in backstory. Again, all shared in a private forum, not in the game itself.

[Freecare Spiritwise]

Seemed like there were some people that were definitely north of crazy town with some of that RP stuff. I play games for a small break from the real world, not as an alternative to it. Some people we met in game ... uh, yeah.

[Ddrak]

It's all on the talk page (link at the top): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Mystere_incident

[Harlowe]

Yep Mystere was in Evoluxa. I loved the crazy RP stuff and some of the great writing that went on. Brell was the unofficial RP server, so you'd find a lot of it in the early days. It was amazing how in-character a lot of people were. There are people I played with for years and have zero idea who they were, if they were a guy or girl or what kind of person they were in real life because they were 100% in-character. There were some fabulous (and crazy) storytellers on the vnBoard. I didn't really see any interactive material between multiple people on the main board, those were primarily personal background stories. But the vnBoard was like a subculture of the game, lots of cooperative stories (not to be confused with people cybering). Morrigu the Redhand (who sadly died in a car accident) was a fabulous storyteller and amazing in-character.

I think I loved the RP folks so much because they made the game more fun imo and also it was two co-workers that got me into the game to begin with and they were both old school table-top DnD guys that were great writers too. I wouldn't say for the most part RPers were escaping real life. That's just how they enjoyed playing. I'll always have a soft spot for people that do a good job being in-character.

[Taxious]

The incident also led to the removal of a quest in the game which requires the player to murder a pregnant halfling

Must have been before I started playing, because I think I would have remembered a quest like that.

Ahh the "MMO Hardmode" days, where nothing was instanced and people were more attached to their characters. The dramz.

[Freecare Spiritwise]

I didn't mean to say that all RP'ers were doing it to escape reality. It's just that I met a few who seemed to have no connection to reality. I did a little light RP myself and usually enjoyed seeing it.

[Alluveal]

Holy bleep, thanks DD! Magical net powers. I read what Mystere said in response. I don't think I had seen that until just now. It sounds like a lot of drama! Geesh. Harlowe, did someone really try to get into the guild leader's account or such? I saw that on the wiki site. Evoluxa was a great place. I'm embarrassed that I got caught up in some (other) drama myself while in Evoluxa and because of immaturity or whatnot, had no idea how to properly handle that. I probably acted like an asshole too. I'm sure we all have moments like that . . .or I hope (so I'm not alone in my pathetic jerkishness).

Still think about that sometimes. It was the first guild in any game that I joined. I didn't even really know WHAT a guild was until that point. But, geesh, I'd never think about hacking someone's account or going to this extent to make someone suffer online. This person (Jadeleaf?) sounds, uh, I don't know. It makes me wonder if that person ever thinks about what he/she did. Maybe I shouldn't judge, but I'm close to Mystere. Hell, he's on my Facebook and we've shared some amazing parts of our lives with one another. A truly beautiful soul (and a wonderful RP'er). I pester him frequently when I have "dude" related writing questions for the novel.

And yeah, I knew that he'd created a new account and also remember him telling me that Verant gave him a "flagged" account that would basically let him play EQ free for life. I gamed with him for almost a year before he told me who he was, and even then, I responded with, "huh? What's the Mystere thing?" If I remember, he joined Violent Harvest, a truly awesome RP'ing guild, then joined us in VC before he left the game for EQ2 and WoW.

I have to echo what others have said here, I knew some folks who were so amazing at the RP thing, but they never took it too far and always had a lot of fun with it. I believe that after PoP came out, the RP thing kind of fell away. Perhaps we all became more interested in the end-game by that point. Not sure. I feel like EQ was a "rite of passage" that took me from twenty-something crazy person to thirty-something adult. I'm pretty lucky to have made the friends I made. I get to continue coming here and chatting with folks.

Anyway . . . one of my fondest RP'ing memories was when I joined a Violent Harvest PvP "battle" in Eastern Commons. I don't remember what guild they battled (some goodie-goodie non-dark elf guild), but that was probably the "RP fun" I ever had.

On another note, I can't remember if I ever "cybered" with anyone as Alluveal. Haha, isn't that terrible? I dated a few people (IRL) from the game, but never got into the cybering thing. I did get married in game. Alluveal married Quemn, then he left the game and I changed the name back (with his blessing). I don't think she ever "remarried," but the guild did change her last name to "Hasselhoff." (HAR). I just never got into the cyber stuff. I was more interested in the content and didn't want to be pestered with the social aspect.

I remember sitting in one zone, (Kaesora?) with Minute who helped me get an item for my enchanter epic and everyone in my guild kept asking if we were "cybering." Minute had quite the reputation. Little did they know he was educating me on how to get a good credit score by getting a credit card, buying a pack of gum with it every month and paying it off. Seriously! He went into detail then told me how he got his first house at some ungodly young age. (HA!)

[Taxious]

Minute who helped me get an item for my enchanter epic and everyone in my guild kept asking if we were "cybering." Minute had quite the reputation. Little did they know he was educating me on how to get a good credit score

ahaha

[Harlowe]

Yep Allu, the person hacked the leader’s account, deleted all his stuff and his character I believe.

I think almost everyone in game that was invested in it (playing multiple hours most nights) was a dramatic asshole at some point over something we'd find absolutely ridiculous now, I’m no exception. It's embarrassing to think about some of it, but it was intense for a year or two and we were a lot younger/immature then. I think adding the RP aspect definitely made it even more over the top, because you were super attached to your character and their storyline/reputation etc.

Kind of amusing that I went through a lot of the gaming fun, drama and weirdness with the same guy I’m with today though. It always feels weird to tell people we met through a video game. Depending on who the audience is, sometimes I just say through co-workers, because it’s mostly true.

[Freecare Spiritwise]

The game was interesting socially because at the time I don't think there was any frame of reference for it. What are the social boundaries and etiquette in an imaginary world? That doesn't justify any of our behavior, but it helps explain it a little. And being mid-30's at the time didn't stop me from making an ass of myself on occasion. But I would like to think that being out of my comfort zone with no frame of reference made me a better person. I ultimately hated being a guild leader, but I think it did make me a better leader as well. We as humans don't really grow without some sort of adversity. I think that this game contained lessons and forms adversity that no one ever anticipated. So, we were pioneers. EDIT: We ARE pioneers.

Feeling a little philosophical today ... but I like to look at some of that drama and bad behavior in terms of where I am now and how that experience helped shape my beliefs and even my life today. No regrets for me.

[Alluveal]

Harlowe, that is so amazing! Someone who's grown with you in a sense. And it goes along with what Freecare said, that we were all pioneers in a sense. EQ not only changed video games in general, but changed how people interact and changed us in the process.

On the topic of the chode who messed with the guild stuff, good grief. VC never had anything like that happen, though I do remember some in-guild drama (which happens in all guilds). Also, I meant to say this before, but very sad about Morrigu. Sad how these things happen so suddenly. We lost two guildies to cancer, one a young man and the other older. There might be more out there gone, but eesh. It's hard to imagine them gone when these people were so vibrant in-game. Very memorable.

Free, well-spoken! I do have regrets, but feel that because I actually learned my lesson I can bring something positive away with it. It's funny, I never got so "into" another online game. Perhaps it was because I grew along with the game itself, from expansion to expansion. I don't know.

Anyway, if I ever get this damn book (and subsequent books) published, I'll have to thank EQ for giving me the chance to roleplay and build my uber character-building skills.

[Garrdor]

On another note, I can't remember if I ever "cybered" with anyone as Alluveal

I thought this whole time our conversations about 'sand worms' and stuff was all code for sweaty passionate cyber. Allu, you've wounded me!

[Freecare Spiritwise]

What were the nude photos code for?

[Alluveal]

On another note, I can't remember if I ever "cybered" with anyone as Alluveal

I thought this whole time our conversations about 'sand worms' and stuff was all code for sweaty passionate cyber. Allu, you've wounded me!

While you murdered otters in Cobalt Scar . . . with the otters being a metaphor for bloodied innocence.

[Garrdor]

Omg I totally forgot about my month-long conquest against the otters.

Curse that homosexual Paladin. He put a taste for blood in my mouth, that of the otter.