Heralds. Why none plays them, and what can be fixed.

We all know that Heralds is the least played cabal.

Why don't players join Heralds?

I no longer join heralds because:

I cannot PK while being a Herald. This is my main limitation.

Everything you can do in Herald, you can do better in Merchant.

Notes can be sent to all, by a Bard or an Elder. (Notes should not be the core of a Herald.)

With RP points, most of the RP tools are outside Heralds.

You don't need to be a Herald to be a Noble or Royal.

With so few new players, teaching classes is almost nonexistent.

You can be a better teacher in Merchant. Language teacher or stuff teacher.

Cabal Powers are irrelevant in PK, because you won't be PKed.

What can we do to fix it?

Find a new role for Heralds.

How?

Perhaps merge Merchant into Heralds. As they appears to be part of the Syndicate, with all inherent limitations. For example, you can't be a good aligned merchant or lawful, which makes no sense.

Have Heralds cabal have two subcabals. One is Heralds(Teachers/Librarians) the other is Merchants.

Update Heralds skills.

Give them "Arcane Herald Gate", aka Old healers gate that teleports to Players.

Have Heralds increase the Group XP when hunting.

New skill "Ancient Knowledge" that allows them to increase damage by affecting creatures with phisical vuln or like +500 AC.

Now Heralds can work in Tanden with Merchants.

EQ gathering groups. Heralds can empower stuff, and merchants can sell.

Why not? (My 2c as 2nd in charge @ KBS)

I think the merchant cast of the Syndicate does not fit into what Syndicate tries to achieve.

To be honest I would like to see the Syndicate cabal changed. 

They shouldn't be allowed to ally with anyone... They should be the hunters of all. The best of the best - Why would they want to ally with anyone? They are the slayers of men - not the friends of men.

Thulgan should feel at RISK from them. Everyone should. Contracts should be a real part of this game.

If I remember correctly, there have been a few Heralds that PK. I played one, and I remember two others in the past. While killing Heralds is generally frowned upon (since those that roll one generally don't do so for PK-oriented characters), it only becomes a problem when done repeatedly for no other reason but to kill them. 

Heralds running the Merchants makes no sense. The Cartel Clan is supposed to have a strangle hold on all business in Aabahran, it's part of the RP behind the clan. Taking the largest source of income in the world away from them defeats the purpose.

Herald skills, in combination with certain classes, are already quite decent for PK advantages. Avatar Ogre Warrior/Zerker with access to Tuo's Scrolls, sanc relics, missile immunity scrolls, and all the other fantastic scrolls/staves in the game is a pretty deadly force.

If anything in Herald needs work, it's the cabal items.

I would certainly like to see a separation of Church and State... meaning Syndicate and Merchant as two separate Cabals. that being said, they go hand in hand far more than Herald and Merchant would... cabal skills aside. 

The Cartel Clan going with the Merchants. (cartel: an association of manufacturers or suppliers with the purpose of maintaining prices at a high level and outmaneuvering competition. - historically speaking- a coalition or cooperative arrangement between political parties intended to promote a mutual interest.) 

Syndicate have always been murder for higher to me... Contract Killers... the true Assassins Trade... they could be multifaceted in the sense that they could kill for more than just gold/cps and with more rp... a lot of rp could come from bounties. I've always thought that placing a bounty should mean contacting a member, haggling over price, making a contract... etc... a lot of rp can come from political assassinations yada, yada... not to mention, how this would put their finger on the pulse of Aabahran... certain members, if they want to run the risk of losing business, may offer the intended victim opportunities to buy out the contract... everything through rp... then backed by the coding that's already in place. 

**just had to add my pov on that, but on to Herald! **

few people play Heralds because there is a lot of tedium involved and the rewards from it are slow going... (I think Volg covered this in another thread) however, having played every cabal but one, Herald is the most rewarding in the long run. all it takes is some commitment and rp. Herald and Merchant are the alternative options for people that like to focus more on rp than pk... though, you can rest assured... it doesn't matter who you are in Aabahran... someone will always want you dead. 

of the list of things to do, Herald cabal is the next among cabals... so, I'm sure the issue of making it more appealing is undoubtedly being addressed. like with any cabal, perhaps more so with Herald/Merchant, the lore needs to be rich. (Savants certainly come to mind) if you have an atmosphere and an engaging experience being part of a Cabal/Organization... then you'll find that in and of itself rewarding, perhaps even more so than those fancy skills/spells you got for joining. 

that is an interesting approach, Mya, making them a go-to party member, though, I don't see that as making anything more appealing... it would just be the added tedium of helping people reach pinnacle. (which I think would be quite useful for a Herald, always good to make friends and get to know the future leaders of tomorrow... ) somehow, I doubt that approach would work for anyone that isn't already drawn to Herald as is... 

thanks for sharing, Mya. sharing ideas is always good in my book.

An Ogre Warrior with scrolls, staves, and wands is definitely a beast. I don't see where much change is needed on this topic. The Merchants are a critical part of the Cartel as a whole especially concerning rp. As to the Heralds and Academy, I would just make it more new user friendly. When I do introduce people to this game, or try to get someone back into it, The Academy is highly recommended to them, to try and grasp a bigger picture first hand of the events that take place at lvl 50. So that they may not become discouraged by becoming the fodder of you.

So if the problem is boredom you say, perhaps lets make their hearts beat a little faster, slap them around a bit. Make their palms sweat and cheeks burn.

Or merge them with Tribunal and force these scholars and librarians to be witnesses to crimes, or jurors in a death penalty case since they are rp-ing to be such upstanding individuals anyway. By giving the Heralds tough choices along the way as to their public views, would definitely create the occasional friend or foe along the way.

Zoichan has set the execution of Sylf to be in 12 hours.

Dilorry has granted a reduced sentence.

Jail time has been set at 250 hours.

Keep on scribin on.

As it seems to me, the heralds cater to warrior classes much better than caster classes. Just that first rank gives a huge boots to anyone who want better access to consumables. However it does become more important to explore later on and their skill set has helped me get to know the lands in a very short time here.

Also having a note forwarding function would help a lot! Syntax: note forward

This could then copy the subject and the note into the editor but leave the recipient blank. For notes that don't come from Sofie and require tons of editing, this would save a lot of time.

As far as merging Merchant and Herald, the two are not at all compatible. Remember heralds are there to help everyone. Merchants are there to help themselves, or at best a small group of people. The RP of both would need to be rewritten obviously and existing characters might find themselves lost in the change.

that bit about note forwarding for Heralds sounds like an idea that should go in the Spooky Morlhach section! 

Also having a note forwarding function would help a lot! Syntax: note forward

This could then copy the subject and the note into the editor but leave the recipient blank. For notes that don't come from Sofie and require tons of editing, this would save a lot of time.

Brilliance. It would at least solve part of the note issue. Still, though, it's a band-aid. I'm thinking of dressing down the Heralds entirely and starting from scratch, but currently have no end-game. Should they be advisors? In that case, ow? Can they join other cabals as a special 'Herald' that works as an advisor? How does that asauge the tedium that being a herald is? More politics? How? there's no solid political spectrum for them to fall into, we'd have to build one to make the cabal work. More PK oriented? how? Army trainers? What about those who aren't interested in pk?

So help me out! We need an organization that keeps to it's roots of Aabahran's keepers on knowledge (Savant deserves a kick in the pants for stealing our thunder!), that is more RP centered, but just NOT BORING! Feel free to think outside the normal cabal scope. With Morl on staff we can do anything, so as long as it fits the rp and players like it, let's hear it.

Why not have the Heralds be able to join another cabal? I think thats a great Idea. Maybe they can join but only achieve a position two ranks below their herald rank. So a herald (L) could get to lets say Nexus (T) but a herald (T) could only get to Nexus (M). The joining should be of course also restricted to the align of the second so to join nexus the herald would still have to be evil and should have to be voted on by both cabals. From that point on, they would act as a diplomatic adviser to that cabal. Also only one Herald per other cabal.

Perhaps (E) and (L) (of all cabals) could take CP out of the cabal coffers and give it to their members? Perhaps the Heralds of other cabals (a knight herald) could drain CP from a captured standard (nexus) to refill the coffers or ransom the standard back to the other cabal? A skill or spell that boots the strength of their cabal above what it normally is for a limited time but returns the standard. Maybe even a caviat that to cast the spell there cannot be an members of the captured standards cabal online. So it penalizes them for not being able to reclaim the standard but still gives them a fare chance at being able to recover short of logging in while no enemies are present to recapture.

Maybe even that would be a Syndicate Herald thing and a Tribunal Herald might provide a different diplomatic service to the cabal. Something like, if Sylf was in jail, a Tribunal Herald might be able to change his sentence to something else in exchange for 2000 CP from the knight coffers into the Tribunal coffers. Each cabal could have a different service provided by their herald.

Alternatively maybe all Heralds could provide these services to their second cabal. The herald may be able to negotiate the return of their standard for a fee of CP after a certain amount of time or spring someone from jail in some kind of diplomatic trade.

I love some of those ideas, just so much. Keep thinkin people, no limits.

Heralds acting as Advisors to other Cabals, great... though, they shouldn't be part of that Cabal... Heralds are their own entity and loyalties shouldn't be divided... that being said, this could be added as the premise of one of the Herald sub cabals... I think individual liaisons would be perfect, something added to that Heralds title... Soandso the Vengeance of the Forest, Watcher Liaison. maybe be connected to that cabals' chat?

I'm working on something... this may be added in the mock-up.

On line with what Clavo suggested and dewaholic, I have thought the Idea of "Civil Service" the cabal.

It would work as a Umbrela for sub cabals.

Then we could put as subcabals: Heralds, Merchants, and Public Servants.

Heralds, would be bards, and notes and artistic performances.

Merchants, would be merchants.

Public servants, would be diplomats and lesser nobles, who would be attached to some Cabal or cause.

For example, the Illithiad Ambassador from the hive. The Knights ambassador... etc.

And we could also have servants of the Empire , doing the stuff said before. Influencing captures, reducing sentence times, appealing death warrants, working as privileged  testimonials (counts as 2 lawful witnesses for crime reporting notes).

Hell, why not just mangle it all in, and mix Heralds with Public servants, give them all these perks, and have them be ambassadors to a cabal.

Stuff like access to Cabal chat and note system.

Allow them to do allied standard retrieval for the cabal they are ambassadors.

Access to their chosen cabal area.

Of course, the cabal would have to vote on allowing them to become ambassadors. And also have an option to vote to kick ambassador (for RP reasons).

Ability to owner self non rare equipment.

RP points get multiplied by 2.

They should be decked in custom named stuff.

I wouldn't want the heralds to loose the Identity, but what is the point of having a liaison to a cabal? I mean, if there was some benefit to it great, otherwise we just have someone of another cabal listening to our business and there is already a cabal that does that. Perhaps have them added as a faction. So the Herald may gain a taste of the cabals powers, and the cabal gets the services of a herald who can diplomatically retake a standard, bargain someone out of jail, or maybe even negotiate a temporary ceasefire between two cabals that have vendetta. Maybe something like diplomacy, but it only appears to the two cabals members for 24 hours.

Perhaps under this tennet, the Herald would be under the protection of the other cabal (their faction). While not directly in the line of fire for PK but the syndicate may see an attack on their herald the same way they see an attack on a merchant. The warmasters might teach them to fight and allow them to have a record as another example.

the point of a Liaison is the Herald in question gets the inside scoop (interesting rp opportunities) while the Cabal gets the expertise and insight of the Herald... this would be particularly awesome if we had more Cabal politics. however, if it's some hard coding that you feel would be more beneficial... maybe a Herald Liaison could become an Honorary Member of another Cabal (pending mortal/immortal leader compliance of intended cabal) as an Honorary Member... you will become more known (the special alteration to title), be privy to their Cabal goings-on (such as cabal chat), be able to enter their Cabal, gain the cabal abilities up to Member status -no further- and be able to purchase from their shops (gear/pets/consumables)... their shops being able/willing to accept your quills as payment. 

I think this would be an interesting addition for a sub cabal in Herald. a sub cabal that focuses on sharing knowledge, public relations and resolving global concerns (Advisors, Strategists and Diplomats)... where the other sub cabal would be focused on the preservation of knowledge, record keeping and information gathering (Historians, Scribes and Scholars)...

though, being an Honorary Member shouldn't mean you retrieve standards... reason being, honorary herald of Knight goes to retrieve Knight standard from Nexus... why, especially if Nexus doesn't have their own Liaison, wouldn't Nexus just wage war on the Herald cabal and obliterate them while they're whooping on the Knights? (this would be the Great Library in Alexandria all over again!) it's SO easy drawing Heralds into war where the unpredictability of the players are concerned... the Heralds should provide info to everyone, being impartial... though maybe with their own individual preference of favoritism... however, taking part with any of the warring cabals through a medium other than providing insight/knowledge/advisement would be a hot mess! 

I agree with changing heralds, but I would prefer an addition rather than just merging Merchant to them. Merchant should never leave the Syndicate, it is an integral part of the RP and I think it fits quite nicely.

Perhaps give Herald a subcabal of it's own in order to give them a few perks. I have been wanting to suggest a new cabal for a while but couldn't come up with any really good ideas, something like an adventurer cabal. I think it could take the place of Journeyman since I really don't think there is a place for such a thing in FL.

It could give boosts vs mobs perhaps grant a map making ability and be all about exploring and helping other people gain eq, learn areas and at the same time grant nothing to pk, give them a form of immunity but give it a timer that could increase with the amount of rares you hold, maybe multiplied by rare level.

I've had a few more ideas but can't really remember them all at the moment.

My big idea: (Melt your face blue for Volg)

So.... How about we turn one branch of the Heralds into a questing branch/learning branch.

What does this mean Aulian? 

Well it means that one branch of the Heralds are in some way incorporated into the idea (similar to clan/guild quests) that they are sent out on either automatic or immortal guided quests which will reward them with CPS (and obvs knowledge) when they are completed.

Quest example:

Quest master dude: "There are three sockets of power within the lands for blades and weapons alone. And you % are going to find them, catalogue them and bring me that information."

"Bitten by cold, shaper then a barbers blade and a spike of crystal alone. Touch all three and return for your prize - if you wish to keep them then keep them you may although if they turn out to be dangerous be it on your own head."

Quest: Find the three sockets mentioned to you by Quest Master Dude - Bitten by cold, shaper then a barbers blade and Shard of Crystallised Star.

**Quest result: **A trip to steel (after figuring out one of them is the ice crystal and starshard at the end of the gauntlet). A trip to magic for the Razor crystal.

1. You'll learn that winter exists! YAY!

2. You'll learn how to navigate winter (2 factions at least)

3. You'll be sharing the knowledge of others because you'll be asking people in the know what the hell these are.

4. You'll make friends because only a very select few people can complete those three things alone. 

You  could also have imm quests - similar to what Volg achieves with the Q&A but on a smaller scale. Making your people collect ridiculous things like 'salt' (the  flying citadel) or pond water (escimer es'gal) would be very amusing.

**People could then publish tomes on the properties - request a written submitted report on their findings? Add it to the tomes. Grow the library. **

Have the Cabal Leader/Elder able to give out quests too - it could be a leader/elder skill:

Skill:** The Master of Quests**

Description: Whilst knowledge is wealth, sharing it is freedom.

You are enriching and freeing your underlings by providing

them not only death defying challenges, but complex quests

for their benefit and your simple amusement. 

Syntax: Quest

Difficulty Scale: 

Easy simple quest - 20cps

Medium  - long quest - rare items possibility it may not be able to be completed quickly. - 60 cps

Hard - Long quest, multiple rare items to form a collection  - 120 cps

Very hard - Long quest, multiple rare items to form a collection and include a written tome of the experience and details on the items - 120 cps - 5-20 rp points

Disclaimer: realistically this could be incorporated with whatever other changes or even be a 'minor part' of what is going on.

All great. Lot's of fun and interesting ideas.

I think we need to find a way to turn Herald from a reactionary to an actionary (made up words suit my purpose) function.

We need them to be bibliophiles or atleast have some sort of goal. I've had 2 Heralds (boom! What a waste of 2 qclasses you say) and there was kinda no point beyond getting involved in peoples RP. 

I also found that there was not enough freedom with what I could achieve without getting a higher rank in Herald. I was being 'cock-blocked' by Khranin (sp) with what I wanted to kinda achieve.

Volg has some very wicket ideas here. Will make things more interesting for EVERYONE.

Volg has some very wicket ideas here. Will make things more interesting for EVERYONE.

Uh oh!! Changes??? Academy here I come.