New to Dasaria, with questions.

[Krister]

As a recent addition to Dasaria I have a few questions pertaining to the lore and setting of the world that extensive digging via the search engine have not answered (though they are a minority to the ones that were answered).

Some of the questions pertain to Dasaria and other to D&D or role-playing in Neverwinter Nights 2 itself, as I am relatively new in those departments as well, though not to the Game Engine (that is to say, it's interpretation of D&D 3.5 rules).

Any help would be appreciated:

1.) In Dasarian culture/government/lore are Arcane Academies typically independent, controlled by the State or a mixture of the two?

1b.) For any one of the previous possibilities, is the the study and use of arcane magic centralized into one organization/guild/academy or is it more decentralized into a few or many factions in Dasaria?

2.) In Dasaria how are Warlocks typically viewed? That is to say, are they attacked on sight/on discovery of their origins, met with suspicion or other forums of indirect or direct hostility/prejudice? Is their practice illegal?

3.) How is agnosticism/faithlessness regarded in Dasaria and among the State? Is it for example worse than worshiping a false God? Is it typically accepted if for another example one keeps his mouth shut and his opinions to himself?

4.) I have seen that certain titles are restricted, such as King/Captain and so on, understandable, but what about epithets? Such as 'the Lion-hearted,' and things of that ilk. Is this acceptable or should we stick to more traditional last-names either involving a profession or clan/family/surname?

5.) How does one role play an opportunistic/cruel Chaotic Evil character without being considered a griefer and thus at risk to be thrown off the server?

Once more, any insight would be greatly appreciated.

[Peregrinus]

1.) In Dasarian culture/government/lore are Arcane Academies typically independent, controlled by the State or a mixture of the two?

The answer is... complex.

Considering the size of the Varanite Empire, there is really only limited central control, logistically speaking. In game there are two examples of arcane academies: the Tower in Cear and the Unseen University in Ravenwatch. The Tower is part of a much larger arcane order known as the Magnus Order, who not only act as a major trainer for arcane magics in the Empire, but also as a secret police. They're evil, bad news, and work closely with such groups as the Shadowmages of Coloth, and other such groups. The Unseen Univerisity in Ravenwatch seems more independant, but it has an enite wing dedicated to the Magnus Order, and the elite and top students (who don't visit the Temple of Ineania like Good Arcanists should) usually study there.

This is, of course, speaking mostly for wizardry. Sorcerery is much more varied. Some people get formal training (the Magnus Order actually likes to grab sorcerers) while others come from families of sorcerers who keep their own enclave (my main character, Phelan, is of that sort... though further details I tend to keep under my control as he's a legacy character, his family is descended from my main character in Das1).

1b.) For any one of the previous possibilities, is the the study and use of arcane magic centralized into one organization/guild/academy or is it more decentralized into a few or many factions in Dasaria?

Study is presently mostly under the Magnus, though there is a player run mage guild trying to get its leg in Cear. Most PCs are independent, and have no ties to the Magnus.

2.) In Dasaria how are Warlocks typically viewed? That is to say, are they attacked on sight/on discovery of their origins, met with suspicion or other forums of indirect or direct hostility/prejudice? Is their practice illegal?

Warlocks are not looked down on in Dasaria by most folks, and it is not illegal to be one, though most folks don't see a huge difference between a Sorcerer and a Warlock. For those who know the difference, it depends on how you play. My character tends to refer to a Warlock as a "Pacted" Mage, he doesn't look down on them, but he doesn't get them, no more than a Wizard truly gets a Sorcerer.

3.) How is agnosticism/faithlessness regarded in Dasaria and among the State? Is it for example worse than worshiping a false God? Is it typically accepted if for another example one keeps his mouth shut and his opinions to himself?

Agnosticism/faithlessness would be not considered heresy, it would be considered insanity, plain and simple. Some it's not worse, per se, the penalty would likely be the same. If you don't say anything, though, nobody would know, and so you wouldn't get in trouble. That said, the minute a person finds out your beliefs, assuming they're reasonable folks, they're going to try and figure out why you're batshit crazy. The gods are very real, and folks have seen lots of acts by them, people who can't understand that are nuts.

4.) I have seen that certain titles are restricted, such as King/Captain and so on, understandable, but what about epithets? Such as 'the Lion-hearted,' and things of that ilk. Is this acceptable or should we stick to more traditional last-names either involving a profession or clan/family/surname?

I don't think epithets would be a problem, but that's a DM call more than a Lore question (which is my specialty). That said, if you have an epithet and introduce yourself with it, expect folks to react appropriately.

5.) How does one role play an opportunistic/cruel Chaotic Evil character without being considered a griefer and thus at risk to be thrown off the server?

Once more, any insight would be greatly appreciated.

It is very hard to play that alignment... my suggestion for that is go read The Order of the Stick and study the character of Belkar, that might help you understand how to do a chaotic evil character. The basic hint: don't just randomly kill people. Make people aware you are only helping because you feel like it, charge them for your help if you feel like it, keep people at arms length and make sure you don't trust and are not trustworthy.

[Krister]

Good answers, thank-you.

[Greyshore]

Welcome to Das II, Krister.

[Wired]

Welcome!

[Mon-da-oth]

About playing a CE character. A lot of it is about attitude. You can be nice to people until you get what you want and then treat them like dirt or you can just treat them like dirt and then act like you don't understand why they don't like you. As far as killing other characters you can not do so without the other players permission. NPC, however, are open game, just be careful of which ones you go after. (Definitely don't kill the quest givers or shop keepers,etc. I was referring to the commoners. Sorry Wired and the rest of the DM staff.) Get caught by a DM killing a guardsman or attacking a Talon and you will be swimming in the deep stuff. Just remember that once you are declared an Enemy of the State it is assumed that you will be participating in PVP and it is possible that good and evil characters who have not run afoul of the law will be after you. (they might also help you)

If you decide you want to pick pocket someone please, please check with them first. If they don't want to be bothered then leave them be. Most I have run into are alright with it as long as you are honest with them with the OOC understanding that if you nick a valuable piece of equipment that it will be returned to the player it was taken from....possibly with an exchange for another item...once again this would be an OOC agreement between you and the other player. You can also use the DMI tool to simulate a Pick Pocket attempt with a success getting you the item you wanted. Also remember that a Pick Pocket is considered an attack on a character. That character as well as others around them can attack you if you are caught. What they can't do should they kill you is wait for you to respawn and then kill you again.

[Vahene]

Playing CE is possible, but a lot of it is pure attitude.

You have to be careful not to anger those of a higher level than you are, while maintaining that gentle balance between utter contempt for anything lawful and orderly. Although, you should also be willing to accept your fate too.

If you anger someone.. be prepared for the consequences.

K

[Alterity]

I find the easiest way to play CE is to have alot of friends to back you up if things go sour, it helps if those friends have similar attitudes to you, and with a group of people its hard for someone, even a higher level, to push you around.

[superpoweredchimp]

Oi. A big mistake that you could make would be to assume that there is a "level requirement" for playing CE. There have... been debates about this subject in the past. While from a player perspective, it may seem best to avoid higher levels, it is very unlikely that your character would be able to determine another character's "level" just by staring at them.

[Wired]

Don't waste your time killing NPCs. Those found randomly killing NPCs, particularly quest givers, may find themselves banned.

[Thralik]

How is agnosticism/faithlessness regarded in Dasaria and among the State? Is it for example worse than worshiping a false God? Is it typically accepted if for another example one keeps his mouth shut and his opinions to himself?

well, you could be like Uziel and believe that the entire pantheon are either aliens or heroes (and villians) who are manipulating dasaria

But then again, Uziel is CN and is certifiable

[Vahene]

Just as an addendum, I personally believe you can RP anything, no matter the level. So, with that said, as I stated before, you have to be willing to accept the consequences of your actions. If my level 11 CE Cleric insults or attacks Mordecai (a higher level mage) and he takes severe offense, she should expect to be turned into a torch. One of the things that I've always tried to do, while RPing, though is to try to talk my way out of it. In fact - I love it when people talk their way out of things.

K

PS - and as a note, in no universe would my CE cleric attack Mordecai.. she has a severe self-preservation streak..