Another "feel good" story - sorry ;)

[Lling]

I jokingly call him my "pet warrior". A thirty-something (now 40th) level warrior has been farming acrylia for my tailoring while he gets some exp. He gets some money and exp, I get acrylia and save time - we are both happy.

I gave him a good inspecting one day and he is obviously NOT a twink. He has a couple decent pieces but otherwise his gear is appropriate for his level. He's very polite, he is NOT a beggar, and he works hard to earn stuff for himself. He asks lots of questions about gear - but never asked FOR anything. That earns big points with me. He was so proud when he saved enough to buy himself some haste gloves.

I ran off to check something on my Qeynos mule and found that I had just enough stuff to try a cultural bracer for him. Lord Mithaniel Marr usually hates me, but I think he sensed my good intentions and was kind. The combine was successful.

My pet warrior had no idea I am a smith. He thinks I'm a tailor. He once asked me what I am making and I told him. He asked what I did with the masks I made and I was honest. I drop them on the ground. They have no value and I don't have the room to keep them to vendor them. He seemed a little horrified, so I asked if he wanted to sit with me for a while and grab the masks when I dropped them. He could vendor them or try to sell them in the bazaar - whatever he chose. I think he got about 40 masks out of that session.

He sent me a tell last night to let me know he had some more acrylia and I asked if he might take something other than PP this time because I was running a bit low on cash. I assured him it would have some value but said he'd be doing me a huge favor if he did this trade. He said "I trust you".

He piled on the acrylia and I put the bracer in the trade window. You would have thought I gave him his epic of something based on his reaction. I got all choked up. I also forgot that the bracers provide a light source, and he is a blind human like myself, so it held an unexpected bonus.

The best part came later, though. I was off raiding and I got a tell from him. He was taking the books to various newbie zones and handing out those acrylia masks and "feeling like Santa Claus!".

Days like that reinforce why I love trade skills.

[Velurian]

Thanks for the reminder, Lling.

Had been dreading making up another big batch of Coldain Velium Temper for my next set of Arctic Wyvern, staring down the barrel of another 36 points of this, but I think it'll be a little easier now.

[Lilosh]

*sniff*

I just regained the tiniest bit of faith in humanity.

I still hate them all, but just a smidge less, for the next few seconds.

Thanks.


-Lilosh

[Lothay]

Ling -

Thank you. Your story reminded me of what it was that made me keep playing "back when."

There is nothing that compares to the feeling one gets when you've done something genuinely nice for someone else. I'm glad to see the tradition is alive and well. Thank you.

~Lothay

[Serenya]

*sniff*

I got all choked up and teary eyed reading this. Sometimes the 'little things', aren't.

[Unmei]

I -miss- honest newbies. I'm glad you found one. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.

I remember a little halfling (I'm sorry I forgot your name fella =/ ) who I bought a couple of ten slot backpacks off of a few months ago. Fella was like a level 16 druid, and was impossibly thrilled to be -making money- with his tradeskill. What's more he -cancelled- the trade when I tried to give him a few extra plat. Boy. I hope he's doing well.

[Sylphan]

That's a wonderful story. Thanks for sharing it.

[Maesembra]

That's a wonderful story.

It's the occasional things like that which keep me playing after 3 years.

[Zyllen]

That is a great story!

I think the most refreshing thing about the game are the true newbs, they are so rare anymore.

[Morani]

Definitely a good story. Every now and then, I head back to G-Fey and sit on the hill by the newbie lift and buff the "young ones" as I call them. Sometimes, I'll get some stuff like pelts and patterns or fine steel weapons and watch to see who seems to be having a rough time of things (usually the sign of a new or honest person). I love that feeling and I love the thought that I might be influencing someone to do the same thing when his or her character "grows up".

One night I was working on greyhopper armor and saw a level 4 bard getting kicked around by wasps and skeletons. I walk up and asked if I could inspect him. He had about 4 pieces of dropped armor and still had the starting weapon. I congratulated him and told he's won. When he ask what he'd won and how he managed to do so, I game him 8 pieces of armor and 2 tailored back packs. He was thrilled. Thanked me and ran to the guards and sat down. About 3 minutes latter, he started to /OOC an Ode to me. I was half crying because I was touched and half laughing because it was funny. And I was a bit embarrassed too.

It only needs to happen once in a while, but it's definitely the people that make this game for me.

[Kirstin Thornhill]

I usually have to leave a zone after giving a newbie some equipment, because if/when thanks come on a public channel, it is only a matter of moments before the tells from beggers start...

[Reflan]

Cool story, Lling. It's a nice feeling to do that kind of thing sometimes.

I remember when my first character, a druid, was in Faydark, and I barely knew how to do anything at all. There was no way I could kill enough bats to pay for the food and water I was eating. It was all strange, and it was so easy to get trained by people or get lost on the way to the newbie lifts so I could maybe escape a death.

I sent a /tell to another druid I saw...I think he was something impossibly high, like level 35 or something. I was awestruck that he was in wolf form. I was kind of intimidated to even talk to him, intimidated by a lot of things in the game, really, but I gave it a shot. I asked him some questions, because I really didn't know how to use my spells very well yet, or where many things were. Turns out he was very nice. I had so many questions I probably could have half-killed him with them, but after he was nice enough to answer many in a row, I was pretty thrilled at having found out so much more than I knew, and in a good mood at having talked to a nice helpful person willing to waste some of their time helping me out. As we said our goodbyes and separated, he called me back and put a fine steel mace in my trade window. I said that's very nice, and it was, compared to my newbie club. He told me to click trade, and I finally realized he was actually giving it to me! It blew my mind. That was a huge upgrade for me. My friends I had made over the past few days were pretty impressed too!

When I hit my mid-20's, long before Cazic Thule was turned into a high-level dungeon, it was the place to go to really learn how to play well to get ready for the scary hazards of dungeons. It was also where my druid elder told me he got fine steel.

Well, whenever I got enough fine steel to be able to afford my spells and food, I took the leftovers to Faydark and /ooc'd that low levels could come have one for free. It was great to see them as thrilled as I had been.

When I later created my shaman, who has been my main for years now, I used to love to run through oasis using my mana-free Kunark armor buffs on the noobs. I was in no position at 45 to really use my own mana for long, but the armor buffs I could do all day. Often I made special trips there and just buffed everyone till nobody was asking anymore. When I got my group spells, I would invite strangers into groups and buff anyone and everyone with those. Can't do that anymore now with the level restrictions on group spells, but it was fun at the time to see newbies awestruck at all the hitpoints they got, the speed, regen, SOW, and stats. It's always fun to remind the younger ones that the haste and regen don't last long, so they should start chopping mobs right away instead standing around too long. Off they went like bullets from a gun!

It's always fun to do those things. Even now, I still get the occasional kick by doing MGB focus over at the POK bank. The nice thing is, announcing to the zone that a big MGB is coming often makes other people feel like running up and doing their own MGB's. So sometimes I put out focus, another shaman puts out STA, a cleric will put out one hitpoint buff or another, a druid or ranger will do this or that, a chanter will chip in or whatever, maybe even a pally will give Brells...and suddenly everybody is piled high with great free buffs. Can't get the lowbies that way anymore, but it was great fun while it lasted. And it's still fun seeing all the higher level people tripping all over themselves to be in range when the MGB's start up. I've almost gone LD a couple of times when everyone fired off almost at once.