Non-monster races in the underdark

[Alox]

Is it ok for a monster race PC to attack without warning a surface-elf/dwarf/halfling/gnome in the underdark (that doesn't wear a slave collar)?

What about humans?

Sometimes it feels that Andunor is becoming a surface town...

[ActionReplay]

Its never okay to attack without Warning, RP must always be initiated beforehand. There are exceptions to this rule for Assassins on a contract and someone stealthing or hiding while one of their mates initiate the RP.

But I would wait for a DM response on this, I might be wrong.

[Cortex]

Assassins don't have it any more different than anyone else now, there was a thread about this that already explains that:

Joe and Bob are in a party together, and Bob is in stealth. Joe does proper RP with an opposing party that warrants PvP, Bob is free to join in once PvP is a go.

[Iceborn]

ALL PvP must be preceded by interactive roleplay, no matter the characters or scenario involved.
There are some exceptions in the minutia, like the cases of stealth above-mentioned.

Generally, common sense goes a long way in the case of doubt.

[susitsu]

I always thought you pretty much had to reveal yourself and interact no matter what.

[Alox]

So my question were not so much on stealth. There is another thread for that:
viewtopic.php?f=13&t=18329

It is more in line with the announcement reminder:
viewtopic.php?f=23&t=12657

The announcement points out that monster race PC should be expected to be attacked in a surface town. Which I completely agree with.

However, I am seeing quite a bit of surfacers strolling around in Andunor these days and it is frankly a bit annoying that they can do so care free without getting challenged and killed in a similar fashion. A moon elf popping up there should be considered a free slave gift for the first one able to capture to her.

[Iceborn]

Definitely. Most surfacer races that walk around UD should expect the worst, and the denizen of the Dark should put some effort in giving the worst as well.

Not jump straight to PvP; the Underdark is full of intrigue and political connections tying it together, and unless your character does not understand this precept, you can expect Consequences (TM), but it's perfectly okay to hold a very open disdain, and outright hatred toward surface races walking around. You'll get a lot of opposition, and a lot of support for it.

Personally I'd rather if there were less humans in UD, but that's not something that I can do anything about OOCly.

[Dalenger]

The announcement points out that monster race PC should be expected to be attacked in a surface town. Which I completely agree with.

Even in this case, there would still need to be RP. Just because pvp can be expected doesn't mean you can ignore RP. The same applies for a moon elf in the Devil's Table. Yeah, they should pretty much expect to have trouble. But there still needs to be RP.

Note that RP doesn't need to be a really long conversation, you just can't pop out of stealth and gank them. Give enough time for at least one response from each party before casting your IGMS.

[cptcuddlepants]

Going straight to kill-on-sight “roleplay” is going to leave a lot of bad impressions. As always, ask yourself, “how would I feel if the tables were turned?”

PVP should not be used as a greeting or a means to impose your OOC desires on IC matters. IMO it’s a lot more fun trying to handle things through roleplay rather than jumping to PVP on sight! It means I can interact with other players and get to know their characters - which you completely shut off if you just go straight to killing them.

[BegoneThoth]

I find the UD is actually more inclusive to all races then the surface, and have yet to see anyone get pvp'd due to racial bias down there.

Also the UD is crawling with tieflings so before you slay a human might wanna find out.

[Sab1]

But as answered you can't simply see a drow or human and just attack with no rp. Now if they start to buff as you're are rping you can then attack They can try but it would be pretty cheesy if you had to talk and they could just cast away. Someone can't use you having to rp as a way to prepare for the fight. They are free to run or lense out, but it's my understanding if they run then you are free to chase and attack. The grey area is how much rp before pvp is needed. My guess is it has to be more than simply you're a human die. Also don't forget you need to turn them hostile before attacking. You would need to as ka DM but if you turn someone hostile and they out of the blue start buffing themselves, I think you can attack, but not 100% positive.

[Queen Titania]

Is it ok for a monster race PC to attack without warning a surface-elf/dwarf/halfling/gnome in the underdark (that doesn't wear a slave collar)?

What about humans?

Sometimes it feels that Andunor is becoming a surface town...

Question 1: No.

Question 2: No. For both, see ActionReplay's first post, a very accurate description of PvP Policy.

Comment 1: The best thing for you to do is alter your perspective of what Andunor is. It is /not/ a Surface town. House Freth and House Claddath are the two powers. It is better to see it as Skullport.

The other best thing is to keep in mind other's fun. Is being attacked without warning fun? Obviously not. But maybe you have reasons for being hostile. Make a story out of it.

Example: House Monster spies an adventurer from the surface, who is not a native. Exploring and studying the city in wonder for scholarly research, to report back to the milita it also supports. House Monster, being very behaved and reasonable people, decide to follow this foreigner until they have it cornered where it can't retreat.

House Monster starts asking questions about all sorts of sophisticated topics, being very high class and reasonable people. Maybe House Monster starts hurting them to get answers, then lets them go. Maybe House Monster demands payment. Maybe House Monsters wants to capture them as they learn they're a chef, so they can have delicious exotic cuisine, and of course, threaten to eat their chef if their cooking is bad. Or maybe House Monster ends up murdering them, because they, being very disrespectful foreigners, just start insulting them, although it was not their first recourse. In all cases, House Monster, very reasonable people, get across fear, respect, and an exchange beyond just PvP.

In line with the announcement, it is the same the other way. I chastised a player a few days ago for casting on a monster while forgetting the RP rule. By all means Surface Clan should be not friendly with monsters on a general basis. Perhaps they capture, question, and then kill them. Or they release them, to give a warning back to their masters, eliciting fear of Surface Clan. I did a mini-event with such examples.

The point is this: Treat monsters like monsters, foreigners like foreigners, and try to make it fun for all.

[Eters]

Basically, RP is needed before PvP, whatever the situation, would it be a gnoll on the surface, or a dwarf in the Underdark, you can't just hostile punch someone to the face without proper RP before, the RP itself doesn't have to be anything too deep, if you deem that the situation doesn't require it, for example , you can't always expect a zealous paladin to hold a 10 hours long conversation with a gnoll running around the surface with a bunch of undead, nor do you have to expect that a drow driven with hatred will always hold a 10 hours long conversation with an elf that found itself lost in the dark, but the RP must be there, a few words, with an emote that shows a display of hostility is usually good enough.

It's also preferable to wait for the other person's response to your RP , it's bad form to write "Hey you, shouldn't be here, time to die." and immediately hostile and attack them before they respond, that said, if after saying said phrase, the other person decided to start running, or use an item (Portal lens for example) the action of running away / attempting to lens in itself is a response to your RP, thus, you may begin the slaughter.

How long the RP before the battle should be is up to the players, there are situations where it's better to focus on RP, and there are other situations where delaying battle just doesn't make sense, it's up to you, as a player, to judge which of the two options, (Long sophisticated talk, or short RP with hostile intentions before the eventual battle) makes sense story-wise, and which one of the two possibilities is the most fun for everyone involved.