well, i was reading the original post and thought "this looks like fun... i can't wait to reply to it". then i saw all the replies, to see that most of what i was going to say was covered already. oh well, as you probably noticed already, i'm replying. so, sit back and get comfy.
>50 - 100 times in the last month
so that's 2-3 times a day... i'd say for playing only on god-mode, consider yourself lucky. you should probably be getting attacked closer to 5 times a day.
>by players who are 10 or more levels stronger
i could be mistaken, but i believe even on god-mode, the limit is 10 levels. so if a lvl 20, on god-mode, could only be attacked by someone lvl 30 or lower. so even though it seems they may be more than 10 lvl's higher, it is likely 10 or less. of course, if you steal from someone more than 10 lvl's above you, they can attack you, but i'll talk about that later.
>these players seem to think that they have some game given right to dictate how i play
regardless of how much you get stolen from, or attacked, no one can dictate how you play, but you alone. yes, even if you were getting harassed (which by what you said i don't think you are), it's still not dictating how you play. that's your choice.
>i have paid my subscription to be here, and i have the same right to play my character as anyone else
i am not a subscriber, but i have the same right to play as you or anyone else. subscribing doesn't give you any more right to play... it only gives you more features.
>upper-level characteres harrassing new characters
at times, this may be true. but if you came in chat for a few hours, you'd find exactly the opposite. for the most part, upper-lvl char's "harrass" char's around their own lvl, because they know them well... but i say "harrass" because it's all done in fun, and we know it's part of the game, to steal, rob, and attack others.
>wasting their time and money
well, wasting time, definitely. but even those not being "harrassed" are wasting time... after all, isn't that one of the main objects behind any game... online games especially? to let people have fun, and pass the time. as for wasting money, no one forced you to subscribe. i waste my time quite well without spending any money.
>they only earn 1 fame point for killing a character
1 fame is more than enough for most people to attack someone on god-mode. even though fame counts for nothing in the game, it's still just that... fame. the experience isn't really worth it, but the fame is just for fun. i admit, i do it often. i'll attack someone 5 or 8 lvl's lower just to get 1 fame and tell them in pvp chat "this is what happens when you rank as god". like others have said... it's part of the game.
>high level thieves hangout around the central square
someone explained that after lvl 200 stealing, thieves get no % towards their stealing lvl except by stealing from other people... drop-down stealing no longer counts for almost anything. and why run all around larki looking for potential victims, when plenty of char's will always come to city centre? thieves save many clicks by just staying there. and yes, you can do almost everything in larki without entering city centre, since all buildings except the palace are found elsewhere. so only to accept and report for missions, or buy a new house, do you need city centre. having said that, i almost never use any other building except city centre. i'm only lvl 32-35 (high compared to you, low compared to many, many others), and many who steal from me i can never win a fight against. yet almost every time i have to sell stuff, i sell in city centre, knowing full-well what i'm risking. if i lose something valuable, the thief is often in chat, and i can ask for it back, and most honourable thieves will give it back. that being said, you mentioned you only steal from people who can fight back and have a chance. first of all, that's unrealistic. if you think about it, wouldn't a thief prefer to get someone who can't fight back? this game isn't entirely about ethics, but more about getting ahead (as much as i don't fully like that). second, if you waste the time to check every char's lvl before you try to steal, you've wasted so much time that they're probably gone already when you click. for a thief, green symbol = steal, regardless of lvl.
>mechanism to either protect characters from attackers ... or ... penalty for such attacks
such attacks are part of the game, and have been for the over two years the game has been around. and some people are still around who have been playing for more than two years. these attacks will not cause the game to end, because people realize they are part of the game, and live with the benefits/concequences of them.
>boycott the subscriptions and the advertisers
this is not only unrealistic, i don't even know how it would be possible. after all, you've subscribed, and i don't believe there's any way to get your money back.
>the few arrogant players who are ruining the game for everyone else
i don't mean this to be taken personally, but the attitude you've given makes you seem like an arrogant player, and what you are trying to say is to ruin the game of people who have been around larki a long time. please reconsider the way you think about this game, read up on this post and a bunch of other ones (i suggest searching the forum for "ethics of fighting"... there was a big discussion on this about a month ago on fighting people who play on god-mode), and then come back and enjoy the game the way it was designed, programmed, and meant to be played. yes, there's stuff i don't like about how it works, but i live with it, and strive to move on, and enjoy my time playing.
well, i've put in my two cents now... or maybe quite a bit more than two cents. i anticipate your response, geoc, but please inform yourself by reading carefully and preferably even reading other similar posts first. your opinion seems to be a minority in larki, which is why when we play this way, the game doesn't get ruined, it is enjoyed.
--jason