Privileges Versus Rights

One summer Saturday, a few years ago, a buddy of mine, named Joe, and I were hanging out, spending a day together bowling, talking about our high school band days, and our current directions in life.  The original plan was to hang out in the day time and later depart in the evening, but we were having so much fun that we decided to extend our small reunion.  Having done almost "everything" else in the city between the time of this day and back when we were Juniors and Seniors, we decided to try something outside of our scope of fun.

Joe and I aren't clubbers or urban-nightlife type of people (yes, even, despite my experience with glowsticking; I actually practice just for fun, but don't venture to raves that often).  We were your average college guys that strayed away from doing anything too mainstream.  But, because of other businesses closing up for the night, we agreed to check out a dance and bar venue nearby.

As we approached the club, a bouncer gave us a quick up-and-down look and shook his head, stating, "Sorry, no shorts allowed, and you need some shoes" (I was wearing sandals at the time).  We weren't permitted to step beyond him, and had no idea what theme or event they had going on that night.  So, we said our "thanks," and drove off to play some billiards.

Now, let's take a step back and ask some questions about this scenario.  Because I drove a long way just to arrive at the club, I at least deserved some fun, or a few minutes just to take a peek inside regardless of the dress code, right?  Heck, gas isn't inexpensive.

Am I allowed, then, to claim that the bouncer denied me my natural rights to have fun, and my rights to be myself?  I mean, it's just not me to glamour myself up with spiked and gelled hair, cologne, an open collared shirt and dress pants (unless the occasion calls for it) just to dance and socialize.  This bouncer, in my theoretical opinion, violated my rights to enjoy the party...right?

No, he didn't.  He is only doing his job to ensure that the club's environment stays in tact, that if a dress code is present, then all participants must follow those rules per its culture.  Maybe some people don't want to see casually dressed college people crash their sophisticated environment, but it doesn't necessarily imply that they don't want Kevin and Joe at the event.  In fact, the bouncer just gave us a hint to what we need in order to enter -- he didn't tell us "sorry, we don't want you here."  There was nothing personal in this meeting.

Let's say that I don't understand that concept that there's nothing personal.  Let's say that I feel like he did deny me entrance because of who I am, and that I'm stuck on the idea that he took away my rights.  This bouncer doesn't know anything about me, and I (theoretically) work 7 days a week at the soup kitchen, distributing food to the underprivileged.  I (theoretically) tutor homeless students, work at the YMCA, etc. etc.  I've (theoretically) done all these great things for humanity.  Is it okay for me to strike up a public rally against this certain bouncer?  Certainly not.

First, I should have talked to management -- this bouncer is not laying out the rules, but he is enforcing them.  I mean, who would want a bodyguard who doesn't do their job?  He does what he does because it's his duty and his implied nature.  He isn't a rude, unreasonable draconian.  For all I know, this man could have also been a Boys&Girls Club volunteer or mentor who has a side job at this bar.  Thus, given that he is not management, I should not be focused on convincing him to let me in, but I should take my concerns to the overall organization.  I am sure that he would be happy to allow me in if it wasn't a formal night.  There is no sense in reaching out to the other people in line and asking them to verbally shoot down this specific bouncer for not letting us have our fun or be ourselves.

Second, if management finalizes a decision that parallels the bouncer's (i.e. declining me access until I put on the right clothes), is it time to spark up a movement?  No, of course not...  I cannot conclude that it's personal on these bases.  I can't say they're specifically denying Kevin and Joe because we're Kevin and Joe...unless there's a contradiction.  That is, are there common exceptions?

My next direction for research should be looking for inconsistencies.  In other words, have they allowed ANYONE with shorts (or no shoes) in, ever?  Does this rule apply to everyone, too?  Until there is a concrete, solid example of a random stranger with shorts and sandals allowed into the club, I cannot say the bouncer did this to me because it's me; I cannot say he took away my rights.

Rights and privileges are two different things, by the way.  Rights are something that you are born with, but are not always specifically written down (they're written down when there are people who don't use common sense, or want to take advantage of humanity).  I have a right to the freedom of speech, freedom of privacy, and freedom to protect myself.  These rights exist so that no one can randomly or spontaneously violate you.  This implies that you are doing nothing, that the situation for these rights to exist is when you are a passive, static target (in other words, when you did not make any decisions to led to this event).

However, there are some limitations to these rights when you participate in anything social, when you make a conscious decision to take part in a gathering or perform an action.  Limited rights include privileges.  When you want to do something, you actually have to give up some rights if it is necessary to protect the rights of others.  For example, you can't take sharp utensils when you want to fly, for safety purposes.  You can't yell "bomb" in a crowded stadium, even if there isn't one to begin with.  If you create a disturbance, you are then throwing away your privileges in effect, such as the privilege to live in a home versus a cell, or the privilege to fly.

Thus, I do have the right to have fun (I can have fun elsewhere), just not at the club.  The bouncer didn't chain me up and say I wasn't allowed to do anything that night (THAT would be a violation of my rights, then, because it would affect me even if I didn't make a decision at all).  If I want to take part at this event, I have to abide by a rule that everyone else is following, or else lose the privilege to have fun at the club.  Debating the issue would probably deny me access for the rest of the night, or maybe a temporary lockup when they call the cops for "disturbance of the peace."

This entire concept applies everywhere.

Yes, it applies to the Spiral.  I'm talking to those people out there who argue that "cursing" is a natural right to have in Wizard101.  Just like people of the club scene, players of this game do not want an environment of hostility or discomfort, hence the Report button.  If someone is acting against the Terms of Use (which is the contract every player automatically signs when they sign up for an account), there is no need to feel shamed or discouraged to flag them for KingsIsle's review; you are only doing your job as a community member to keeping the Spiral a safe and fun place.

Yes, it applies to game contests.  When you fail to follow the rules or directions, you lost your privilege to have a chance at winning; you weren't denied "rights" for making a mistake (again, you had the chance to enter, you made the decision to, and you are then subject and responsible to following the rules; when you break them, you lose the chance; i.e. you were not denied them in the first place).

It certainly applies to social gatherings, as I mentioned a bit ago.  You still have the right to not conform, and the right to be yourself, but remember, by keeping or holding onto certain rights that others give up for the sake of allowing the convention to exist in presence AND in essence, you are giving up your privilege to be at the meeting in spite of your desires and preferences.

What If...?: Survivor Mode

Happy Holidays, all!  Now that I'm done with finals and picking out my new classes for the Spring at the University, I'm ready to return to Wizard101-based activities!  I'll admit I've also been looking into a new game recently...which I'll have to share more about next time; it's called Cardmon Hero.

There was an exciting instance/dungeon in this game (one of many, actually) that required a different technique than the ones I used from Level 1 through 20.  Instead of standing around and casting spells like in most MMO-grinders, a solo player in Cardmon is required to run around this specific boss, because his hundred minions are all chasing you at the same time.  If I stood in one spot, they'd surround me, and I'd be taking 100 hits per second...  Ouch!  Thus, to combat from being surrounded (and to finish the instance in the time limit they allowed me), I had to summon my own minions and run circles around the mob, avoiding their attacks while letting my creatures knock them out one-by-one.  My creatures also had to stay within a certain range of me, or else they'd stop attacking; hence the circular path.  Slowly, the enemies diminished, and I could resume a stationary position to take out the boss next.

Having run around nearly 30 or 40 times, an idea sparked for me for Wizard101.  What if we had something similar to what other games call a "Survivor Mode"?  Now, the thought of a tower comes to mind, where you must extinguish a set number of monsters before you arrive at the boss (without the ability to freely refill potions and return to the instance).  That can be considered a type of "Survivor" style, but what I'm looking for is one that's a little more restrictive.  In other words, how about a battle that doesn't end until you slay a certain amount of creatures and a boss before you receive its rewards?

Imagine an old scroll unrolling to reveal a number in Shermlock font (bright red), indicating the number of Wooden Golems that must be destroyed before an upgraded, shinier Smogger appears.  Oh, he also cheats; you're not allowed to use single-target abilities on him (that goes for attacks, utility spells, etc.)  Something of that sort.

The challenge here is that short decks (Zerg/Blitz/Rush decks), usually built for a full team of wizards to end a battle quickly and effortlessly, become obsolete along with the strategy of building up a titanic attack that destroys everything in one hit.  Survivor Mode would require full decks of heals, shields, blades, globals, and, of course, Reshuffles.  In essence, you're no longer segregating different decks for different situations (short decks for farming, specially built decks for Storm bosses, etc.), but you're building an all-in-one deck...almost like a PvP deck, I suppose.

I'm certain that this is doable by KingsIsle.  In the Trial of Spheres, Tower of the Helephant, and Briskbreeze, we see bosses summoning allies for help, either as support or as distractions.  Even if you kill the first boss in the Trial of Spheres, there's a chance his minions will show up after his death, due to a structural rule within the coding.

Thus, let's have a counter in the corner of the screen that requires you to kill 100 Golems (that's 25 strong AOEs within your team) before Smogger 2.0 shows up, and you're allowed to keep your Pips, Health, and Mana from the last turn.  Deck Status stays the same, meaning discarded or used cards remain in the discard pile until Reshuffled.

Of course, there're slight flaws with how enjoyable Survivor Mode can be:  you might run into teammates who permanently AFK the entire time, or who don't have the right deck set-ups...but these are pretty general issues that can be found anywhere else.

So, what are your ideas to add, take away, or modify this proposed "Survivor Mode"?  Or, have you thought of something similar that's different in context or content?  Let me know down below!

How We've Truly "Transcended"

Why I think this title is a perfect fit for us as wizards AND as gamers...and a little info on the Pet Buffet Survey and small update to the Petnome Project:

"Next World" Leveling Preparation

Ever reach the level cap and feel like you've accomplished everything, and end up ignoring the side quests hiding around the Spiral?  Or, if you are a hardcore "completionist," ever feel the need to clean out your Quest Book?  Here are some tips on how changing those impulses may be beneficial for the long run:

Test Realm: Acquiring the Level 68 Ice Spell, Woolly Mammoth; Testing Mend and Berserk Star Spells

The lovely Cassandra Hexthorn and I quested through Zafaria to finally reach Level 68. This video explores three new spells from Zafaria: Woolly Mammoth, Berserk, and Mend.

Test Realm: Acquiring the Level 68 Fire Spell, Rain of Fire

The lovely Cassandra Hexthorn and I quested through Zafaria to finally reach Level 68, and she had to go to sleep. So, I took over to visually document the fight to obtain this spell and analyze its capabilities.

Test Realm: Zafaria (Day 1)

Review of the new updates released today, and a new extended project for the Petnome Team.  A careful look over the new Pet feeding system, and a short glimpse into Zafaria!  More to come this weekend!

Contest Etiquette (Part 1: For the Taker)

Hey all,

The past few weeks have been mighty grueling with the compilation of duties and responsibilities of the truncated summer school class (finally completed!), work, broadcasting and commentating for the United We Stand tournament held by Cassandra Dragonheart, unraveling some miscommunication, relaxing up on a fantastic community-focused game called Fiesta Online (which Thomas Lionblood and Amber Rosepetal have openly sponsored in the past), initiating a new personal PVP-based project (which is secret for the time being, for the sake of my -- and others' -- sanity), guest-judging an official fansite contest, and preparation and execution of the Petnome Project contests.

While operating and administering the events for Petnome over the past year (along with other activities where I've guest-judged), I found myself surprised, concerned, and contemplative with the overall culture of contests within an online community.  In other words, I saw (or heard) things I couldn't believe I was seeing (or hearing)...and this goes beyond just erroneous or incorrect entries.  So, here are some contestant guidelines and personal advice from yours truly for enhancing your chances of winning contests from any event, from blogs' to fansites' to the official company's:


Don't Beg
After Day 2 of the Petnome Birthday Week, I lost count on how many entries were direct requests for the prizes.  Examples of this include "I want the 5,000 Crowns...now!"  "Give me the Black Cat!"  "Can I please win this?  I need it really, really bad!"  While begging may not disqualify entrants from winning (unless the rules specifically state that it does), it does become a nuisance for the contest holders.

Imagine if you were holding up $20 in cash in your hand and proclaimed you would give it to the person who painted the best portrait of you.  Then, along comes someone without any artistic skills, asking you for the prize.  You were trying to narrow your pool of players down to someone with creativity -- not someone who goes up to you and begs.  So, keep in mind that when you're in a contest, you're in a competition.  You have to show some work that follows the requirements to be eligible for the goodies.






Follow All Directions (FAD)
Read everything...literally!  While it may be advantageous in the sense of time to skim for keywords such as dates, rules, times, and any second-party applications or programs, not reading everything thoroughly can hurt your entry via disqualification.

For small-pool contests (contests with few seats available for contestants), paying attention to details is important, since the rules will be enforced strongly when the judges are allotted enough time to be picky with their selections or ruling.  If a contestant, for example, has the wrong version of an item required by the rules, it may not transition to the next judging phase, no matter how similar or "close" it is.

For large-pool contests (contests available to over hundreds of people), judges may not be as lenient when there is a factor with at least 3/4 of the contestants following the directions correctly.  Chances are, the other 1/4 of entries aren't even looked at; entries could be manually OR automatically screened.  For example, failure to include a key piece of your information could count as disqualification, like omitting a word; automatic screening may delete any emails with the wrong subject line or message!

Sometimes, judges or contest holders may allow for re-dos when a mistake has occurred that you've caught (truly, it depends on the format of the contest; i.e. trivia vs. riddles vs. feedback vs. media production, etc.).  If you happened to omit something, like forgetting to add your Wizard name, try to send the exact same entry (with the missing piece of information included) so that it has uniformity, AND matches exactly what the contest holder asks for.  In other words, treat it like a second-chance entry, rather than a follow-up message!

So, hand-in-hand, ALWAYS double-check your information and submissions.



No Trolling
While this concept may seem intuitive, it's both a surprise and an expectation when some contestants don't understand "no trolling."  The simple truth is that there is always at least one threat (or worse) or a profane remark thrown at contest holders when the results don't turn out in the violator's favor.  Here's another fact: this community is very tight-knit and cohesive, and no contest holder will tolerate malicious contestants within their own contest OR another's.  The same goes for those who try to cheat with multiple entries or submissions -- once discovered and marked, violators will have trouble finding eligibility or success with future or other contests.  There aren't simpler rules than (1) no harassment and (2) no cheating.



Too Much Information (TMI)
Believe it or not, sometimes contestants will provide more information than we ever need to know...like a phone number or home address.  NEVER send any personal information other than an email address that will help the contest holders contact you.  Though Official Fansites may be trusted entities, you never know if someone's correspondence email may become hacked (or is already hacked) or keylogged.  Also, you never know who someone really is behind the computer screen or keyboard, no matter how nice or considerate they are.  NEVER tell someone where you live, or where to call you, or what your real name is, or (Frost Giant forbid) anything that shows up on your birth certificate.  True, sometimes birthdays are required for age verification, but other than MMO-based sites like Massively or Beckett's, that information isn't relevant for Wizard101-based contests held by Wizard101 players.  And, to reiterate something that seemingly hasn't gotten to all players, yet: NEVER tell anyone your Wizard101 password.  The only time you should be using it is if it's at http://wizard101.com or the Game Client.  Also, keep in mind that Official Fansites are not KingsIsle.  Then again, even THEY ask you never to send your password, even in emails to them!



Have Fun
This isn't redundant, is it?  Contests, in my interpretation, are merely windows of opportunity -- privileges, if you will (not rights!) -- to attain some tangible or intangible commodity or benefit for the exchange of minimal (or competitive) work!  Know that there will always be contests flowing out of this wonderful community, and that you're hardly missing out if you aren't a winner!  "Oh well, Susie got the 5,000 Crowns."  That doesn't mean that Susie will also take the 10,000 Crowns that you may win in another contest.

The important fact is that you tried in a contest, and that you didn't have a 0% chance of winning -- not participating is the only way to guarantee a loss.  Sometimes the die (or Random.org) doesn't roll in our favor, just like when cards don't come up the way we'd like them to.  As long as you didn't troll the contest or contest holders, you'll always have a chance to win!

Cheer on and congratulate the winners -- I'm sure you'd like to be cheered and congratulated yourself when you're a winner someday.  Look at it this way: thanks to the contest, your Wizard101 community is populated and full of energy and action. Someone's interest in Wizard101 was enhanced with the prize, and most likely, they'll continue to play and contribute their presence to the game.  I haven't seen a barren MMO that's fun to play...heck, it contradicts the concept of it being "massive," "multiplayer," and "online."  When you see other wizards running around, you know that there's someone behind another keyboard enjoying the same game you're playing.  That makes us feel less isolating, less alone.  And heck, at least there will be other players to show-off to when you win a prize in future contests.




(to be continued in Part 2: For the Maker)

Vlog #13: Saturday's PVP Workshop

Topics:  How PVP has changed since Wintertusk's arrival, and an analytical review of  the new spells!

Vlogs #8-12: Wintertusk Adventures

PVP: Countering the Bladestackers #1

Watch in Full Screen and 720p HD!  Perfect Catch fights a Triple Ice + Life team attempting to blast us away with heavily Stacked Ice attacks.