Sandy

I think you missed Bloodseeker's actual point by going into the details, Red. I don't agree with everything that Bloodseeker said either, but he made some good points as well. Let me tell what I've learned from my school (I actually study this very subject, social care for children and youth): A child's personality is formed from several factors: their genetic heritage, their upbringing and their environment. Bloodseeker concentrated at the latter two while seemingly forgetting the first, while Red emphasized on the child's/youth's own free will. It actually comes down to all three of them. Now I don't believe that one can be born evil and malicious, so that no upbringing or good environment can change that. There are, however, those children who are mentally unstable and need therapy in order to learn basic social skills etc. Then upbringing, it's actually quite a crucial part considering child's development as an independent, responsible, social adult. But as my own past has proven, a child can be born to the most incapable parents but still become a normal, mentally stable adult. It's up to the last piece of this puzzle. Environment is basically everything outside the child's head and home: siblings, relatives, kindergarten, school, friends, hometown etc. They have their own effect on the growing individual, wether it be good or bad. Of course the best possible outcome will come if all these three are in good shape - a child has a good "platform" to grow up from, so to say. Unfortunately there are those cases where none of these three things are in sufficient condition. Here in Finland, where the social care is in top-notch shape, the ultimate option to this is to change the environment and the upbringers, ie. the social workers will take the child into care, to a foster home. Of course that process can often be traumatizing to the child, so it is the absolute final solution if everything else fails to help the family and especially the child. So here's a future social care worker's point-of-view to the discussion. Upbringing is a serious matter, but I wouldn't really call it the [I]biggest[/I] problem in the modern society - just because it is dependent on so many other factors. ;)

[B]To Brazil:[/B] Honestly, I have nothing else to say about this issue because everything was answered, but is it so f-ing hard NOT TO HURT MY FEELINGS?! This is my freaking thread, and it would've been all decent and polite if only Rai, Shy and Lore had replied! Nothing in my initial post was offending or rude towards anybody, but Goddess made it sound like it was! That caused me to go on defensive mode, and of course a bunch of other asshats like yourself had to come and mock me some more! Why couldn't have you just shut up yourself?! I have a right to give feedback in this section BECAUSE THIS IS THE FREAKING FEEDBACK SECTION! I didn't ask for any ridiculing or bashing, I just wanted an answer to my concern! I got it, and I'm satisfied on that part (as I clearly stated in my previous post), but NO, you just have to come and twist the knife in my wound! Of course I'm acting as a victim here BECAUSE I AM ONE! And I seriously can't believe you can get away with posting one rude picture! You didn't even contribute to the topic at all! If that is not spam then I don't know what is! And IF I'm not making myself clear enough, that JUST might have something to do with the fact that ENGLISH ISN'T MY FRIGGIN NATIVE LANGUAGE!!!! Now I'll shut up before I say something I'll regret. *boils* [B]To Imi:[/B] I didn't have any opinions in my first post!! This thread wasn't based on my opinions, it was based on my observations with the rules of this place! This was never meant to be an offensive thread, or one that would invoke so much discussion! As for why I said you twisted my words: you said I called Goddess a kissass, even though I clearly pointed that I was the one who was writing deliberately exaggerated, "kissassy" posts, just to avoid from offending anybody. Goddess made my post sound like I was, even though I didn't mean to. As for the condescending thing, you guys bashed me by practically saying "we know the moderators/rules better than you, so back off!" Or at least that was the feeling I got from it. Honestly though, I have no idea why this thread went into this! I just wanted to ask about the rules...

Okay, I guess that as good as the "Gay-Straight Alliance Club" sounds in theory, it might not work that way in practice... But I disagree with you Godelsensei on that it's comparable to clubs based on races. If there was like a "Black&White Club", it would be comparable to that. I don't know if in practice the B&W Club would be just Black Club, though... But again, I admire the people who found these clubs so that they can spread tolerance and show that us homosexuals are normal humanbeings just like everybody else - it really sounds pathetic that we even have to proof that, but what can you do? :P

[I]Of course[/I] the Gay-Straight Alliance clubs raise resistance, because tolerance and acceptance is such a hard thing to many people. In my opinion the people founding those clubs are extremely brave and should be given full support. People opposing them are oblivious to the fact that the clubs do no harm and much good. Of course I understand that homosexuality fights against some people's moral values, but morality - in the frames of legislation - is a personal thing, and it's wrong to push other people your own values by force. We have no such clubs in our schools here in Finland, here homosexuality is a personal issue that is rarely put into a public issue. In my experience most people come out of the closet only after the high school level - I did, my boyfriend did, all other homosexuals I know did. So instead of blaring battle between the homosexuals and homophobes, we have silent tolerance and intolerance, and I actually prefer it this way. But again, this is just my experience as a gay in Finland. We homosexuals aren't equal to heterosexuals here either, but we're getting closer and closer to getting there. ;D

[I]All I needed [/I] was an answer to my frigging questions, and I'm extremely happy that I got them from people who know what they are talking about! I did not ask for insults, I did not ask for bashing, and nothing I said in my starting point made me deserve them! I've reported Brasil's offending and spammy post, [I]because I have a right to say my opinions [/I] despite being such a whiny bastard as you seem to think I am! I'm glad that Rai, Shy and Lore are such good people that they gave me decent, polite answers instead of diminishing and ridiculing like the rest of you! Gawd I hate your condescending attitudes! This goes to Goddess, Imi, Brazil and Boo, btw. I have no idea what I did to deserve this, because I tried to write as politely as I can about this issue. :( At this moment I feel extremely hurt and offended, just to let you know, although I reckon none of you really cares...

For gripes sakes!! I wasn't calling Goddess kissass, I was calling MYSELF a kissass, because apparently everybody has to be one in order to have their opinions voiced out in here!!! And I'm SO SORRY for using excessive exclamation marks and capitalizing some WORDS, oh [I]I do hope[/I] I will not get banned due to my misbehaviour and unwanted opinions! [/sarcasm] Honestly, some of the ordinary members here are worse nitpickers than all the moderators combined! [I]Again[/I], this isn't an attack towards James, I'm not demanding that he changes the rules at this very moment, I just wanted to know why the rules were lacking and why there was old information in them! [B]Raiyuu[/B], you answered my question, I thank you for that. I actually did a search for a similar thread before posting this, and found nothing (although I too remember that something like this was discussed in the past too), so of course I thought it wouldn't hurt to create this. Apparently it did, for I seem to have been labeled as the leader of the Official Resistance Against OB movement now! Geez, why do you people have to be so hard to discuss with?! EDIT: [B]Ozy[/B], if the Arena Ratings aren't in the rules because they are section-specific, then why are the rules for posting Anime Lounge and Play it -sections included in the core rules then? I honestly think that ALL rules of the boards should read in one place, or at least the core rules should have a link to the sticky threads. Oh, and I'm calming myself down now... *huff puff* I just get anxious when people twist my words and use them against me...

But these things I've pointed out [I]aren't[/I] impossible to add to the rules in few hours! I think you're blind in your faith towards the staff: they're only human too, not infallible holy creatures that think/know everything in advance! I say this with all due respect, as James and many other staff-members are very good online-buddies to me, and they know I'm not trying to offend them. Also, I'm no newbie here either, and that's why I was so amazed that these things I've pointed out are missing from the core rules, even though the moderators are enforcing them. Nevertheless, I want to wait for an administrative opinion about this issue, with all due respect to your opinions, Goddess. (See, I'm rehearsing my new kissass -style of posting that seems to be a requirement here. ;P )

[QUOTE=Angelus_Necare][COLOR=DarkRed][FONT=Garamond] [I][U]Sex[/U][/I]: There will be [B]NO[/B] sex between the characters. I repeat, [B]NO SEX[/B]. These are Priests and Nuns we're talking about here, they lead chaste lives and most likely will not be straying from that path.[/FONT][/COLOR][/QUOTE] Oh, if only you knew... ;D This has nothing to do with your game, but I just had to comment on this. Despite their vows of selibacy and chastity etc., life of the monks, nuns and priests in the monasteries and churches were and still are some times far from that. The thing is that they keep it in secrecy. They have to, or else they are banished. In the middle-ages the vow-breakers faced execution. As you said, churchmen and -women are only human, and because they are denied one of the basic needs of humanity, they have to satisfy their needs in secret, at times perverted ways. But enough about that, I respect that you don't want that in your game. Just wanted you to know this... (Oh the things you learn from history books! ;D )

Why are you being so offensive? I didn't say that I'm against the rules or against the moderators, or even against the way this forum is managed. This is the best frigging board on the internet, I have yet to find any forum that could even compete with the OB! This is, however, a [I]feedback section[/I], and I'm entitled to give feedback on things that I find erraneous on this board [I]here[/I]. My point was that the moderators enforce reading the rules and the FAQ, yet those two have outdated information and even lack some. What good does reading them do to the new members in that case? And about "playing mod" being self-explanatory: so what if it is? It should still read in the rules, along with other things that are considered spam. In my opinion the fact that flaming others is spam is self-explanatory, but still it reads on the rules. New members will keep on breaking the rules unintentionally if they aren't clear, and in one compact pack (instead of springled around the forum in the form of sticky-threads). If the admins or moderators don't have the time for such "trivial" things as the basic rules, I for one can sign up as a volunteer to edit the rules to a more up-to-date version - it will only take few hours away from my life. *huff puff* Sheesh, maybe I should get that chilling pill you offered me... As I said, this thread isn't an assault against the staff or the rules, I just wanted to notify how the rules are lacking. And again, I reckon that the admins know this already, but I just wanted to be sure... Why does it seem that in every thread I make - no matter what subject or what I say - I get attacked? Perhaps I should take a course of "How To Write While Licking Everybody's Behind" so that my posting style doesn't offend anybody...

Oh, I see... so the colors represent the dragons' ranks or something like that. But isn't that confusing, really? Imagine this dialogue: [SIZE=1]"I have a Black Dragon." "Oh black! It's my favorite color." "No, he is actually green." "But... you said black." "Yes, he is a Black Dragon, but his color is green." "Err... right."[/SIZE] So, perhaps you should replace the color-ranks with something else... How about metals? Brass Class, Bronze Class, Silver Class, Gold Class, etc.? Or elements? Air Class, Fire Class, Ice Class, Shadow Class, etc.? That way you could keep the color and the rank separated. ;D

Like the good little OBer I am, I just reviewed the Board Rules and FAQ yet again, just to keep up to date what's allowed and what's not. I have to say that althought the rules are fair and reasonable, I find them somewhat lacking and out-of-date. Here's the defects I found: [B]1) Introduction threads:[/B] Moderators close them all the time, saying they are agains the rules and aren't allowed, but either I'm blind or there wasn't a [I]single[/I] mention about introduction threads anywhere in the rules! How are you supposed to demand that people don't post them if it isn't stated clearly anywhere that they can't? I'm not sure but I think I remember James admitting the lack of this section from the rules once, but I thought it was fixed already! How hard could it be? [B]2) Playing Mod:[/B] I know this should be self-explanatory, but why wasn't this listed in the "spam"-list? Also, it should be clearly defined what exactly is "playing mod". Again, you can't discipline people about things that they don't clearly know is against the rules! [B]3) Moderator Teams:[/B] Weren't these ditched a long time ago? Why does the FAQ still include them then? Honestly, what good does it do to tell new members to read the Rules and the FAQ if they contain invalid and outdated information? [B]4) Arena Ratings:[/B] Aside from the issues discussed in the thread I created about these earlier, I found that the actual rules don't mention these at all. So the whole system is dependent on that new members read one sticky thread? No wonder so many new members don't know the ratings are a must... *** So, to summarize things, I'm amazed that the Rules haven't been updated, apparently for quite some time. Yes, I may sound whiny again, but this is really a serious matter. You simply can't expect new members to abide rules that aren't written into the actual Rules! Also, if things change, like the moderating system has, it isn't unreasonable to assume that the Rules and FAQ are changed accordingly, is it? Hope I'm not offending anybody, and I honestly hope that the admins have noticed/acknowledged these errors before this thread and are about to do something about them. ;)

This game sounds decent, if a bit clichéd... I was wondering what color is the "normal" dragon? Green? And I suppose there can be other colored dragons besides that, to make it more original... All in all, I think you ought to concentrate more on the originality factor here. I haven't played it, but this sounds a lot like the videogame Drakengard (or just about any game with "Dragon" in its name.) Also, try to put some originality to the human classes if you will. Like that, they're just like in every other game out there. It's a good thing that you are avoiding the "good-neutral-bad"-alignments, that's a big plus on the originality factor. Of course, these are just my opinion, or what I personally would change. It's your game and you can do whatever you want. ;D

[QUOTE=indifference] I guess I am curious to why you are primarily singling out America when I am quite sure that many other countries do not give a second thought over the many tragedies that have occurred due to terrorist attacks in the many nations of the world.[/QUOTE] But... I haven't singled out USA. I've given examples of my own country, Finland, and I've blamed ALL the wealthy, "civilized" nations for ignoring the troubled, poorer countries. As for why I'm basing my opinions on the media, it's because that is the only way I know of America. I haven't visited USA, I don't know people from there in real life, I have no ties to there. But I'm not actually attacking USA here, I'm trying to point out that there is so much suffering around us that it's selfish for "the richest country in the world" to expect that the world will annually mourn with it for it's relatively small loss. Okay, I admit that I've been rude and blunt with my wording, but you can't know how hard it is for me as a foreigner to try to speak my opinions with a language that's not my native! So please don't cling onto every word I say but try to understand what I mean with them... :/

[QUOTE=ChibiHorsewoman][color=darkviolet]To me Sage is comparing natural disators to a terrorist attack- hardly the same thing. [/color][/QUOTE] No, I wasn't! Please read my posts more carefully before flaming me. And thanks Ilium for clarifying my words, it really was the point I was trying to get through. For the last time: I haven't once told that Americans shouldn't mourn the victims of 9/11, but I tried to point out that [I]no other great disaster/terrorist attack has ever gained a world-wide mourning date or silent moments[/I]! 9/11 is not the only major terrorist attack that has happened in the world, so that's why I'm asking you Americans not to make it look like it was! Oh and Jamesy, USA is not the navel of the world, at least not to me. It doesn't dictate our laws, our society's rules, our economy, our media, nothing. I for one still live in an independent country, and the navel of my world is me myself and the people close to me.

I am still amazed how so many seventeen year old people seem to have not heard of Mr. Period and Miss Comma... :rolleyes: Anyhow, I don't think this is an appropriate place to discuss fetishes, as fascinating as they might at times be. The internet is filled with more suitable boards for you to announce and enjoy your sadomasochistic pleasure, so I'd advice you take this discussion there. ;P PS. hope this doesn't look like I'm playing mod or anything, I was just voicing out my opinion on the matter. If the moderators deem this thread suitable, I have no say in it.

[quote name='Imi][COLOR=#FF374C][SIZE=1]So all the help the West sent to Thailand after the Tsunami doesn't count, then? [/SIZE'] [/COLOR][/quote] Actually, it doesn't. Over two hundred Finnish people died in the December tsunami, so we sent lots of money and resources there to help the people rebuild. If no Finnish people had died, I reckon the amount of aid would be greatly diminished. Same goes to all foreign countries who lost their inhabitants then. If it isn't about us, we tend not to care. I truly wish it wasn't so, but unfortunately world isn't that good a place. I still believe that the amount of help that USA got from foreign countries after 9/11 exceeds that which many other, poorer countries get. For comparison, I heard somewhere that if the amount of money USA has wasted on the Afghanistan and Iraq wars would've been given to the poor countries in Africa, there would be no famine anymore. Of course this might just be a wild legend, I don't know how true it is. But it's a worthwhile thought...

Okay, I [I]think[/I] I have a good suggestion to this problem now... Perhaps the fact that people overuse [M-VLS]-tags is based on the letter [M] for Mature! Everybody wants to have a "mature" rpg, as opposed to childish, right? And Parental Guidance? Who would want parent's guidance in their rpg (to put it simply and overly exaggerated)?! So what if the [PG] and [M]-tags would be replaced with something less symbolic and age-oriented, and more practical? I suggest this: Rating [B][E][/B] for a game that suits everybody despite age and sensitivity. Rating [B][Mild V/L/S][/B] for mild language, sexual themes and/or violence. Rating [B][Heavy V/L/S][/B] for excessive language, sexual themes, gore and/or violence. Sure, you'd have to type a few letters more in this case, but would that be a problem? In my opinion this way the ratings would be more clear and useful, and people would be more couraged to put a "lighter" rating for their games without the fear of sounding childish. I know that the [M] and [PG]-ratings are more familiar in the English speaking countries, but frankly they have too much side-value in them besides the suitability.

Umm, I'm not sure if [PG-13] is an answer to the problem, as to my knowledge there is quite few members here below that age. So I would see it the same as [PG]-rating, they have no symbolic difference at least to me. The point is that the ratings aren't so much age-oriented as they are feeling-oriented. If one thinks that the [M-VLS]-games are only created and played by people over 18 or even 16, one is very naïve. I still keep my opinion that people over-use the [M]-tag just to be cool, or just to have a successful game. It's completely understandable, but it really negates the purpose of the tags. The thing is that the ratings shouldn't be made such a big deal. I'm honestly bothered by the fact that ratings are mandatory. What if only the [M]-tag was mandatory? Or perhaps only the [LVS]-tags were mandatory, meaning that [I]if[/I] your game would include some of the following, you should put one into it. I still can't quite grasp the idea of [E, PG, M]-hierarchy, because obviously the player's age isn't a factor here.

There you go again, Retribution! My point was not to be disrespectful towards those who died at 9/11, but you don't get it that [I]it's not my grief[/I]. The whole event has had very little effect to me, living on the other side of the world. This is not the single-most destructive thing that humans have caused to other humans, and [I]that's[/I] why I'm so annoyed that even us foreigners are almost forced to have "silent moments" and think about it annually. America is not the navel of the world, even though you living there seem to think that! I apologize for being rude and coming to flood this thread with my frustration, but I really did it [I]out of respect for those billions of dead people who [B]do not[/B] get an annual memorial thread here[/I]. Oh, and SunfallE, I wasn't saying that America doesn't send any foreign aid, I was saying that all the western "civilized" countries seem to have money only for the tragic events that occur in the west.

I still am not sure if I got my point accross, so let's try it again: Currently, nearly all threads at the Adventure Arena and Inn contain the [M-LVS] rating. Now, if the rating is there to guide people away from games they feel are too mature for them, where will they go at this situation? To the few and far between games with [PG] or [E] ratings, even though the game's theme wouldn't interest them one bit? There are countless games hidden behind the [M-LVS]-rating that should have a lower one, but the aforementioned people aren't going to find these, thus they have no way to participate in roleplaying asides creating their own games. I know it's the gamemakers' "fault" if they put an excessive rating to their game, but ultimately the problem lies within the system itself. It's flawed, it doesn't work like it's supposed to - to put it bluntly, it wars against its own purpose! Another problem is that in my opinion the rating system has also lowered the quality of the games in general, as people think they [I]must[/I] have violence/gore/sex in their games in order for it to be cool. The rating system seems to [I]enforce[/I] the mature themes, not restrict them! Even the rating rules say something like "Carebears the RPG would be rated [E]"! So people seem to think that if they put [E] as their game's rating, it'll be lame and childish. I'm sorry that I have no other suggestion for solution than to put the system on ice for a while and see how it affects on the quality of the Arena, which to my experience is pretty low at this point. Anyways, thanks for even considering other options, admins! This isn't a question of life and death to me, but call me a "worried citizen", if you will. I'm sure everybody in the staff and most of us members want the great quality of these boards to maintain its level.

Sorry if I sounded blunt, but I was really trying to make the same point as you, Jamesy and shadowofdeath13. However, I can't help to feel a bit ticked by the arguably American way of blowing things out of proportion. When 9/11 occurred, we heard about if for months and months in the media, and the consequences are still visible. The headlines blared "World Grieves" and "World-wide Sorrow", and all the countries sent consolences to the States. The fact that the number "9/11" has become a "thing" reveals something! There have been many incidents for example in Indonesia where terrorist bombings have killed many more people, but we (referring to us western "civilized" countries) don't know the dates, we don't hear sobby stories from there, we haven't send any massive amounts of aid there, we haven't even thought about it! Why? Because they don't have the capacity to make it big news. USA has, and it has used it to it's own advantage - quite ruthlessly, I might add. The whole "you're either with us or against us"-mentality is something extremely wrong, and it all boils down to the events in 9/11. [I]Of course [/I] it is an important date to the Americans, [I]of course [/I] they have the right to mourn, but why does America (in general) keep rubbing it in other countries faces after four years?! To comment on James's question if Helsinki (the capital of Finland) was to face something like 9/11... Of course we in this country would be devastated, but I frankly don't believe other countries would think about it much - we aren't a part of NATO, there are only 5 million people living here, we are located to the northernmost corner of Europe... I just don't think others would care. We wouldn't certainly get our own, world-wide date of mourning!

I of course noticed the date of yesteday too. I can't believe it's been four years... Although so much has happened since then. Honestly and frankly speaking, four years is quite enough time to stop wallowing in self-pity. Of course it was a catastrophic event that touched millions of lives, but seriously, worse has happened before and after that! Last Christmas, anyone? [I]Hundreds of thousands [/I] of lives were lost in a sweep of a tidal wave. Last month, anyone? An estimated [I]ten thousand[/I] people died because of a single hurricane. Last century, anyone? [I]Millions and millions[/I] of lives ended in two world-wide wars, hundreds of smaller battles, concentration camps, floods, storms, fires, bombings, accidents, homicides, genocides, crashing cars and planes and ships, at their homes and outdoors... My point is, **** happens but people get over it. I'm not saying people should forget 9/11, just don't make such a big deal out of it!

Ha! I knew it! A guy who claims to be an ALCHEMIST studying the elements sounded too fishy to be true. Alchemy is a science of the middle-ages, nowadays it's [I]chemistry[/I] that studies the elements. Besides, nobody who is an academic researcher writes like that! I can only wonder what makes a person cheat others with sobby stories. Do you get pleasure from making people believe them, Tyler? If so, then boo to you! Nice job, ForgottenRaider, for exposing the troll. I had a hunch but I didn't dare to say anything because I lacked proof.

Very interesting, I thought Tira, Zasalamel and Setsuka were the only new characters in the game, plus the ones created from the character creation system. Oh yes, Charade [spoiler]wasn't a person, just a personification of the particles of the Soul Edge. I'm glad he's not in this game, as he was quite fugly and useless...[/spoiler] ;P EDIT: [url]http://www.soularchive.jp[/url] now has profiles for Maxi, Xianghua, Yunsung and Seung-Mina!! :D Plus three new stages. ;) The hype is increasing, definately...

Why did you put Setsuka under the spoiler-tags? She's a completely new character and HAS a profile in the official site. I know about [spoiler]Li Long, Rock (aka. Berserker) and Hwang (aka. Assassin)[/spoiler] even though they didn't appear on SC II (in their own original forms), but who are [spoiler]Amy, Arthur, Abyss, Revenant, or Ocadan[/spoiler]? And where are Seung Mina, Yunsung, Maxi, Xianghua and Charade? I better go check the new, awesome official site again, in case they've added them there...