(Reposting this with some new content, since Shadowraith locked the original thread shortly after it was posted.)

I strongly object to a player wipe. It seems to me that any of these planned changes and expansions can be integrated into Darke mud without having to wipe out the current players.

I'd like to hear some solid reasoning for the *need* to erase other people's hard work in character development. Any person who feels like abandoning their own work and starting over when new changes go in has the same ability that they've always had: rebirth. Personally, i've spent over 3 years developing a character that i enjoy playing and continue to enjoy improving.

One of the advantages that Darke has reaped from extensive, competent coding work, and as a result of having a test server for working out kinks, is a stable foundation that allows for changes to be made without bringing the mud to its knees. Why ignore a huge advantage that having a test server brings? No instabilities will be introduced by merely expanding the current mud content, and allowing current players to continue playing, if everything is properly tested.

That said, i have no strong objection to an equipment and map wipe. I don't necessarily see a need for those, unless there's a concern on the part of admin that some objects exist on live that should not, and the availability of which will be culled.

So, again, why the *need* for a player wipe? High level players have put in a lot of time and effort to get there... i can say that holds true, at the very least, for my self, and i strongly object to watching the fruit of all that hard work just disappear.

The applicable reason i've heard so far is to make the dissolution of the tinker and enchanter guilds, and the creation of the new proposed crafter guild (a combination of the two former guilds), easier. If the new crafter guild actually did go in, it seems that chanter and tinker reincs into that guild be supervised such that former tinkers would have to train tinker skills within the new guild, and former enchanters would have to train enchanting skills within the new guild. Combat skills would be a moot point.

The mud is already on an even playing field, so arguments in that vein seem like falsely-rationalized or veiled desire to rip off people who have put the time in to get big.