General help file for Houses
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Table of contents:
1 a. Houses: Briefly
1 b. What are houses?
2. Population register
3. Members and Commoners
3 a. Eligibility
3 b. Members
3 c. House representatives
3 d. Commoners
4. Graduation
5. House command
5 a. House channel
5 b. Secondary characters
6. House cycles
6 a. Growth Cycle
6 b. Forced disband
6 c. Tax Cycle
7. Point accumulation
7 a. Growth points
7 b. Class points
7 c. House points
8. Bonuses
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1 a. Houses: Briefly
If you don't want to read the entire document, read this chapter for a very
brief description of the house system. For more information, read the entire
document.
House system provides an alternative community, similar to secret societies
with certain exceptions. You can be a member of only one house.
Houses have their own channels, and two types of memberships (regular
members and commoners). If you're a new player, you should look into
joining a house before you reach level 50. This benefits both the house
and you as there are limited slots in each house but you can get around
this limit by graduating from a commoner to a regular house member.
Houses need new players to prosper. All members of the house gain
additional bonuses. Houses are not free and there are taxes that must
be paid in order to keep the house. For this reason, some houses
may have membership fees. Players under level 50 may not found
new houses.
1 b. What are houses?
The house system is designed to give players a chance to found another kind
of community besides guilds and secret societies. Joining a house requires no
free levels and has a designated member slot system which means that players
may join a house only if the house has slots available. The slots are divided
to two different kinds of members; full members and commoners, but that topic
will be addressed later.
Each player may be member of only one house at the time, but players may leave
a house any time they wish to join another house, provided there are free
slots and you are allowed to join.
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2. Population register
There is a population register office located at the government district of
Arelium in Laenor. This is the place to go if you are interested in joining
or even founding a house. Some actions (such as joining) are available also
in the guildhouse of Dortlewall.
Population register office is the place where you can do all kinds of actions
that are connected to your house. Go visit the office for more information.
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3. Members and Commoners
There are two kinds of membership statuses that have their distinctive
differences. Membership status determines what status you will get when
you join a house and it will also determine what kind of points the
member will contribute to the house. Members are also sometimes referred
as full members or regular members for the sake of clarity.
3 a. Eligibility
In this chapter we discuss what makes a player eligible for full member and
as commoner. Every new character is eligible to join as a commoner. When a
new player reaches level 50 for the first time during their game career,
they become eligible for full membership status. The eligibility doesn't
reset in reincarnation, so once you've reached level 50, you are no longer
considered a commoner and you may not return as one. The only notable
exception to this rule is rebirth (help rebirth).
3 b. Members
Members, or full members, get the full advantages of a house. In fact, player
needs to first reach the eligibility of a full member in order to be able
to found a house. Player must also become a member before they can have any
house representative rights. All full members are entitled to full bonuses
from bonus packages that the house purchases.
Full members contribute class points to the house through their activity.
3 c. House representatives
A full member who has been given any rights to modify the house settings is
called a house representative. The house founder is a house representative
with full access to control the house and may share rights to other players
if he/she so wishes.
3 d. Commoners
Commoners, or common members, are regarded to be the lower caste in some ways
not enjoying all the perks, but they do have some advantages too. The negative
side of being a commoner is that they may not be house representatives and
they get only half the bonuses from the bonus packages that the house has
purchased. The better side of being a commoner is that a commoner may join
any house without an invitation if the house has chosen to toggle on
the automatic recruit mode. An easy way to check joining rights is to seek
the population register office and type 'houses' in that room. Commoners
also have the possibility to graduate from commoner to full member (see,
chapter 4 about graduation).
Commoners contribute growth points to the house through their activity.
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4. Graduation
In order to take advantage of graduation, a commoner must be member of a
house. If a player reaches level 50 and has not joined a house when they
do it, their eligibility is changed from commoner to full member, but the
graduation is no longer possible.
Therefore, player must be a common member in a house. When player is a
common member of a house and advances to level 50 their eligibility is
changed to full member and the house graduates the commoner.
All graduated members of the house may stay in the house without occupying
a member slot. Therefore graduation frees a commoner slot and the house
may grow.
If the graduated player ever chooses to leave the house or is banished,
the extra slot is lost as well. Rebirth will also clear the graduation
slot.
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5. House-command
First of all: help house.
Testing the command will probably give more information than this chapter,
but here this chapter is anyway. The command can be used to receive
information about houses of the realm. With the command you may view
house news or view the ranking table of the houses. You may also get
information about a specific house. You can get more information of your
own house than others that you're not member of.
5 a. House channel
House channel will automatically be given when the house is founded. It
is the same name as the house. If your house is called Dawnlight, the
channel will be operated with dawnlight- say
You may turn channel on with dawnlight- say on.
For more channel information, help channels.
5 b. Secondary characters
In the house system primary and secondary characters are treated as their own
entities, but there is a small exception. If the secondary character is not
member of any house, (s)he will be allowed to chat on the house channel of
the primary character. Primary characters on the other hand may not access
the house channel of secondary characters (unless being member in the same
house itself).
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6. House cycles
There are recurring cycles that are both important to you if you are to run
a house properly. These cycles are growth cycle and tax cycle. Both cycles
follow real time (with the exception of additional maintenance reboots or
unexpected crashes) and you may view cycle information with 'house cycles'
command. This command may be handy when you want to know when the cycle
updates occur.
6 a. Growth cycle
The name of the growth cycle comes from the fact that during the cycle the
house may grow its influence. But it can also lose it! During growth
cycle all the accumulated class points and growth points are calculated
to determine if the house gains influence, loses it, or maintains its
position.
In order to gain influence, the house must accumulate class points to meet
the requirements of the class. For example if house wants to raise its
influence from yeoman class (3) to working class (4), it needs to gather
enough points to meet the requirements of social class 4.
If the house would gather enough points for yeoman class, but not enough
to reach working class, the house will maintain its yeoman class.
If the house fails to meet the required amount of class points for its
current social class, the house will lose influence.
During growth cycle the house may only raise or lose one level of influence
at maximum. This means that even if an underclass (1) house would gather
points to reach working class (4), the house will be promoted up only
one level to peasant class (2).
It is important to notice that any unpaid taxes that the house would have
will automatically negate any growth that the class points would bring.
If there are taxes due during growth cycle, the house will lose influence.
If the house has tax warnings, the house may lose even more than one level
of influence.
The difference of house points, class points and growth points will be
discussed in chapter 7: Point Accumulation.
During growth cycle, all purchased bonus packages are also reset.
6 b. Forced disband
All new houses enjoy 60-day period during which house is given a chance to
recruit new members and grow so that it will not be disbanded by the House
Officials due to lack of activity. This protection will not apply to houses
which lose social class due to unpaid taxes.
Normally a house will be disbanded when it loses so much activity that it
can no longer maintain its social class. This means that if the lowest
social class house (underclass) house fails to maintain its class, it
will be disbanded by the House Officials.
6 c. Tax Cycle
During every tax cycle, the house must pay its taxes. The house will
automatically pay its taxes during the tax cycle if there is enough
money on its account. If house doesn't have enough money, the taxes
are marked as unpaid. At this point the house needs to address the issue,
because during next growth cycle the house will be facing loss of social
class. If house has unpaid taxes when the next tax cycle occurs, the house
will be given additional warning for unpaid taxes. Any additional warnings
will cause social class to drop even more rapidly during growth cycles.
Any membership fees that the house sets will also be recorded during tax
cycle. Money is not taken from house members automatically, but they can
visit the population register office to pay their debts.
Any money transfers (transfer, membership fees) to the house account
will be first used to pay unpaid taxes. Same applies to withdrawals from
the house account. Warnings will become automatically removed once all
unpaid taxes are paid.
Any membership fee and house issues are regarded to be internal business of
any house representatives, but there's a rule addendum: unpaid membership
fees may not be used as grounds for equipment destruction, player killing,
extortion or other harassment. The house is expected to handle their affairs
in more civilized ways and may use the powers given to them by the house
system.
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7. Point accumulation
In this chapter we will look into different points that are important to
the house system. There are three different kinds of points: growth points,
class points and house points. There are many things that award growth points
and class points and the best way to gain them is to just keep playing and
try to do something else if it looks like you're not gaining any.
7 a. Growth points
Growth points are generated by commoners. Growth points have an important
relationship with class points because growth points are required so that
class points would make a difference. During a growth cycle, house needs
one accumulated growth point per class point. This means that if house gains
15000 class points, but commoners generate only 5000 growth points, then
the accumulated class points will be diminished to 5000 as well. For this
reason it might be worthwhile to help out our commoners by giving them
hints or perhaps even join their parties to help out.
During growth cycles, the growth points are added to the existing growth
point total. In each growth cycle, the amount of growth points is taxed
a little bit, so in the long run the house will always need commoners.
7 b. Class points
Class points are generated by full members. Class point has two purposes.
First purpose for gathering class points is that class points are needed
to raise or maintain house's social class. The second reason for class
points is that house may set a housetax on class points to convert class
points into house points.
During growth cycles, class points are not added to the total amount.
Instead, the accumulated class points during this cycle will become the
current total.
7 c. House points
House points can only be gained by setting a housetax on class points.
House points are added to the current house point total during a growth
cycle. Conversion to house points is done before class points have been
calculated to see whether the house raises its social class or even
maintains it, so be careful not to cause yourself trouble by converting
too many class points. House points have a designated maximum amount
that the house may have which is defined by its social class. To see
the limit, visit population register office and type 'classes'.
House points are used as currency to buy bonus packages for the house.
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8. Bonuses
The Houses offer different kind of bonuses to the members. During each
growth cycle the bonus packages available for the houses are generated
and the houses may purchase bonuses for their houses with house points.
All the purchased bonus packages will remain active during the growth cycle
that they were bought. Higher social class gives a broader selection of
available bonus packages, some of which could be also more powerful ones.
Each house may buy up to two full packages. A full package is called as
powerful package. You may view other power levels from the table below.
Power levels:
+ infrequent (25%)
+ sporadic (50%)
+ strong (75%)
+ powerful (100%)
Buying a powerful package (100%) means that the bought bonus will be active
12 hours during every game day (=reboot). In order to have some bonus active
at all times, house needs to have packages that amount to total of 200%
(2x 100% bonus packages, or 4x 50%, or any package combinations that total
to 200%). Houses may also choose to split purchases between bonus packages.
House could have purchased one powerful package, one strong package and
one infrequent package for example.
Buying a bonus package only ensures that the bonus would be active the
promised time during the game day, but house does not have any power
to decide when or which bonuses become active.
Whether a member may receive full benefits of the bonus package is determined
by loyalty. Commoners may get only half the bonuses so their maximum loyalty
is automatically 50%. Recently joined members of the house will also need
to spend the length of a growth cycle in a house to be eligible for full
bonuses. You may view your loyalty with house command.
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