After my worst experience joining a PSO world game last night, I came up with, what I think, is an excellent idea. A way to return a sense of honor to the world of PSO.
Bear with me first and let me share a little background as to how and why I came up with the idea. Last night, I joined a PSO World Puck 9 game, which typically lends itself immediately to an awesome experience. This game was already in play in the caves with a RAmar (I myself am a lvl 76 RAmar) and a HUmar. I greeted them and immediately joined in on the carnage. I started off using a Spread Needle, recently acquired through trading with a friend I trust, but I noticed that I was doing 3 times the damage of the other RAmar, so I switched over to a shotgun that I tote around with me, just to level the playing field a little bit. Soon, the HUmar leaves and another RAmar joins. This new RAmar is level 57 and is toting, guess what, a Spread Needle. So the elder RAmar blows up.. He's apparently pissed off about how many people have a Spread Needle and how much he hates dupers and he starts running for the lobby. I stop him on the way and ask him how he can call me a duper since he doesn't even know me. He made it clear that he was certain the level 57 RAmar who just joined the game was a duper, since there was no way you could get something that rare at such a low level. I asked the elder RAmar, why don't you just ask our new friend here (who, btw, joined the game with a very cheery PSO World attitude) if he's a duper and where he got his Spread Needle from. We went back and forth a little while with him arguing that there was no need to ask and me arguing that dupers aren't ruining the game, it's jerks like him (who have succumbed so low as to accuse everyone he meets of duping) that are ruining the game. He said he was just out to avoid dupers (completely missing my point that he didn't _know_ the new guy was a duper) and I told him to just go ahead and leave the game then. The other guy, who probably in fact was a duper, never said anything in his own defense. It just really ticked me off to see that kind of anymosity towards someone who just joined the game with such a nice attitude.
I was so upset at arguing with this guy and thinking about how every time I brandish a rare I'm going to be questioned now, that I decide to do a solo quest to ease my tension. I enrolled in Endless Nightmare #3, in the mines. I have to tell you... I've never been so terrified in my entire PSO career. There were times that even after my mag had granted me the gift of invincibility, that I still ran around like a turkey the day before Thanksgiving. Even with the rapid fire of my Spread Needle, I was casting Shifta, Deband, and Resta like there was no tomorrow. I had two scape dolls on me when I started... and I used both of them. I barely made it through by the skin of my teeth.. But man was it fun! And that, my friends, is what the game should be about...
So, now my idea.. I think this is something that could work well, especially in the context of the PSO World games. From now on, if you see someone with a rare that you think they didn't earn, instead of name-calling and leaving the game.. How about a Running of the Gauntlet? Challenge the person to a solo quest, any level of the Endless Nightmares depending on the absurdity of his rare ownership, and if he wins a return to honor is necessary. His name will be plastered on billboards as one who was wrongly accused, yet in the face of worst opposition, restored his name and deserves the title of Hero! If the loses, the rare that was called into question will be voluntarily destroyed by the owner and the owner will be given a chance to fight along Heroes (who he can learn from) so that one day he can really earn it.
The technical details can be worked out on a case by case basis. For example, the challenger may stipulate that Endless Nightmare #3 is to be done with no mag and a handgun (two stipulations that are easily verifiable by a 2nd party).. But, obviously that would be a very, very hard quest to complete. So the challenger would, after the accused failed, have to show that the quest could be done by the right kind of Hero. The right kind of Hero need not be the challenger, if he himself isn't up to the task and at the same time also admits that he doesn't deserve the rare in question, but he can produce a Hero who meets both requirements. If he cannot produce a Hero (himself or otherwise) who can complete the quest demanded of the accused, then he himself will now be the wearer of the Shroud of Shame and should, out of a sacrifice to show his diligence to restore his own honor, destroy his most precious weapon so that he can have the chance to earn it all over again..
Well, other than a few technical details, that's my idea in a really big nutshell. I think it's a great way to weed out the dupers and to silence the whiners about the dupers and get back to kicking some DF a$$!
John Galt, lvl 76 RAmar
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