Can we please go back to an absolute ban on revealing who you play/who others play on the forum until after deletion? Since I've come back I've noticed a brilliant amount of e-peen waving and plenty of borderline ooc interaction both on forums and in game. I've also seen some incredible RP, but it's almost impossible for people to not bring things from forum to game and vice versa.
I don't know why the ban was e
repealed, but I vote we go back.
I know what you mean Grishnak-I've felt it in my own development as a player here. I feel it's a simple matter of ego and maturity. I had to ask myself at one point, why do I play this game? Am I here to enrich FL's environment with a deeper sense of RP and PK then I did with my last creation? Or is it to simply to power-game, build a god suit and have the other forty-something faithful users that exist in this community stroke my mudding ego?
I enjoy having the freedom to identify myself as 'so-and-so' on the game, here on the forum. I also enjoy helping new players with PK tips/advice, TO KEEP THEM HERE! These forums are FL's most valuable resource in my humble opinion. Quite a few of our new players have PM'ed me for advice, knowing I was playing a necromancer, or a thief for example. Sure they could get that advice from me AFTER I post a deletion thread. Though I rather give their character advice on HOW to beat mine while he/she is still around. This helps other players to feel FL for what it is-a game and not some personal vendetta. (and hey, I might improve my tactics by having to brainstorm a new set 
)
I've had the same feeling recently.
I log in FL and what i see is:
Jibber
Totenkopf
Mindflayer
Emp Newb
Mya
Hit&Run
Tassin
.
.
.
so on...
I would like to see characters instead of that. I know it is my own fault partially, since I can guess pretty accurately who plays who (especially the good players), but still there are a lot of people who reveal their characters too soon. Then there are those who make deletion threads and KEEP playing their characters which irritates me... but my love for FL is too big 
Then there are those who make deletion threads and KEEP playing their characters which irritates me... but my love for FL is too big
On this side-note.. Shyntril won't be coming back. He was the 'male sacrifice' needed in the recent plot! Normally when I kill them off with a deletion post, they stay dead! :eek:
The problem is that there aren't that many playing. And we have different time zones. I agree with Foxx that it's usually more fun not knowing who it is you interact with. But you also can't help trying to figure out who plays some people when they do something special in the mud 
See to a point I understand what you mean, but there is a line you yourself can create. In my time here, over the years, I have interacted with a GREAT many people. Some people have always been allies, some people are ALWAYS enemies (thats you H&R) but whenever I know who plays them, I don't really draw an OOC aspect from it, I like to compete. Like anything a bit of competition makes victory sweeter. I mean hell Anister blew my poor syndi blm to ****ing pieces thanks to fireball being fixed. I still like (kind of) H&R.
Mindflayer was Kurvikhel, well **** him (obligatory smiley face).
On a side note I see common things between chars that are too easy to identify most of the time. Little things that players do that is common between all their chars. For example:
Rping while mercying someone
Running patterns (I really think this is the biggest identifier of all. If you can chase me consistantly, your a good chaser. Because my runs are always random ALWAYS)
RP style. Alot of people will make a new char, and it has very similar RP and thought process as their previous. Out of lazy, or they are just so used to char X, they struggle to transfer to char Y.
There are more, but you get the idea.
I think if you want to reveal your own character, you should suffer the consequences of doing so.
After playing with you people for so many years, it's easy enough to at least guess who is who, without having to have that confirmation.
LOL - the biggest load of crap is how people "guess" who plays who. Remove every FL player from your IM client or Facebook and then see how well you "guess." Not saying this applies to everyone, but I'd bet it is a majority.
I am fairly accurate at 'guessing' without any IM communication. At least for Jibbers, Mindflayers and H&R's characters. Philantees wasn't revealed for at least 6 or 9 months until it came a point I didn't know where I'd be back, so I thought it'd give everyone a heads up. I don't (generally) play more then one character at once. I also don't allow OOC to affect my action in game behaviour. I talk to nekky and have done for many years now. If you think this affects my in game behaviour with his characters, go and ask him
Oh, and one thing I am pretty sick of is these 'shelving' posts. Delete your $*(!ing character please. I could have 'shelved' Philantees. I don't think its fair for the game or other people. I do miss them though, and haven't played since 
Its actually pretty easy after you make it through the first couple of days of withdrawals.
I never have any idea who anyone is, but I honestly don't care, since it doesn't effect how I play. Even people I used to talk to over aim or yahoo, I'd still fight their characters if my RP said so.
Either way, I don't care if people know who I play or not. If someone wants to hold an OOC grudge, it makes me feel good that I'm not that petty.
I don't have to tell anybody who I am. It's an OOC niche' that's going on, that I'm unfortunately pulled into every time. I'd be lying if I said I didn't talk on AIM, but over the years I know who not to talk to, and who to talk to. But what's funny, is the people I talk to, talk to other people, who spread rumors that 'so and so' is jibber!
Funny thing is, most of the time they're wrong. Such as a lot of people thinking I was Ghashabul for a time.. or whatever his name was.
Jibber, in my opinion, is the single easiest player to identify here.
No flame, no good or bad connotations, just sayin. 
edit: And I would never 
mistake Ghashubal for someone played by Jibber!
I agree that it should be banned again.