Why I Choose Kami
 

Rushin entered Atys among the first misty eyed refugees, with no preconceptions, no expectations. Just an adventurous, somewhat wide eyed Zoraï girl. She had gained scant knowledge of the races and powers that made up her world; but the nature loving Kami, with their profound sense of balance and love for all the creatures of Atys gave her a clear direction to follow.

Arriving in Sheng-Wu she found herself surrounded by fellow Zoraï, all seemingly with a thousand tasks and running constantly around. Her first days were spent in quiet contemplation of her new surroundings, as she sought to explore and discover order in the chaos.

After some weeks she left for the mainland, to find herself in Zora. A few friends became constant companions, the companions became a guild, the guild was clear on its role in Atys and watchful for the conflict that was surely to come.

She has travelled the world, fought bravely against the Kitin, learnt to survive in a kitin infested PR, made good on her promise to aid the Kami and seek knowledge from the tribes of Atys. Guilds have come and gone, dear friends have vanished, more continue to come her way, but all in all she is Kami. Treading the path of Ma-Duk, wishing nothing more than to find peace, balance and enlightenment. Sadly a peaceful end may require a more violent creation, and her sword blazes in combat with the minions of the false goddess jena.

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

wow those are some sweet pictures Rushin, brings back so many memories of when i was a young homin...ahh the good old days, and all such part of the reason I went with Kami also :D

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

“Why I choose Kami.” Wow, if that isn’t a loaded question. And, I probably shouldn’t post it, as I am opening myself up to all kinds of emotional stress just remembering, but there are some radical things that I believe should be known, so sue me.

Now, read my sappy long story.

Keiko is a Matis character. When I started the game I immediately joined the same guild as my real life uncle Trindle, Out of Cavern. Out of Cavern was apart of the HOPE Alliance (an alliance that tried to stay neutral in conflicts), but when the fame patch came in, Out of Cavern decided to become a Karavan aligned guild only for access to the teleports. When Out of Cavern members finally ended up being 3 or so people, me being the most active, I decided I needed another guild. So, I joined Reapers of the Dark (was probably the second time I joined them, the first time I don’t even remember why I left OoC =) ). Reapers of the Dark used to have members that decided to leave Out of Cavern for whatever reason, so I figured I would be welcome there too. I was, for a time. But, Reapers of the Dark ended up joining with the Karavan Alliance, and everyone got so serious about the faction stuff.

I made the decision to be friends with both Kami and Karavan players, because I honestly thought the whole faction thing was stupid (This was when faction tags were being implemented). Apparently you cannot heal a ‘ganked’ Kami crafter. So, after my current guild fussed me out for that, I took a break from Keiko to play on my Kami avatar. The Kami players were very nice to me, and accepting of me, even though I told them I had a high level Karavan alt, in a Karavan guild. They didn’t seem to care, and I was allowed to join a guild. When I let Reapers know that I was just playing on another alt (even told them it was a guilded Kami alt) so that they wouldn’t worry where I was, I was practically harassed by my Karavan guild. They didn’t trust me enough to keep the stupid secrets they talked about in guild chat. Heh, silly me. Thinking a guild was about trust, friendship, and understanding-not faction. It was told to me by a member, “You shouldn't be surprised if people think that you can't be really our friends and play an alt on the other side of the game.” As if faction should play a role in friendship.

Anyway, after all of that drama, I left Reapers and went back to Out of Cavern where two other guild members of OoC continued in a way similar to mine, rezzing ganked Kami and Karavan players (I think maybe that heal bug was around-the one where you could heal without being tagged :P). Anyway. After I-Keiko (whatever, one in the same for me) ended up being called things like a Kami Slut and traitor, etc. I finally decided to join the Kami faction, where people seemed to enjoy my company a bit more.

In effect, I have decided that all avatars I make from now on will be of the Kami faction. Not due to lore or anything like that, but because I found only cruelty from people I had known since I started the game, and found, generally, kindness and understanding from people that I had only started to know-and still find that same kindness from most of them. I think it’s kind of ironic that I found cruelty towards me from a ‘family guild’ and ended up finding some pretty decent friends in a guild known for ganking and PvP (the previous Kings of Oblivion).

So yeah, that's why I went Kami =)

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Wow....... I went Kami cus AP(Atys Paladins) were Kami, And I loved that guild... So w/e it did, I did... However... After some time...AP began to fall apart... the people (Not all, There are still some of them around) Began to leave... Then the veiws of the 'new' AP, didn't totally match mine anymore...

I concidered going Kara... But, I looked at how Karas (NOT all but KA -->mostly<--) Played, And veiwed the OP situation... And I thought about it... after many invites, And turning them all down... Someone came to me, and would not leave me alone, He kept saying I could make a real difference, In a new guild... But the guild wasn't new... It was an old guild, that had died many times... He told me "This time its different" ... I told him I would be no part of a guild that ganked... and he assured me, the guild was different then before...

Finnaly, I agreed... And I joined... The Kings of oblivion... Since then, I have been able to openly PvP freely ( I was the only AP member to tag up often... and was told not to plenty of times :p)... And I have been the patience of the guild lol, When Lewy and LT started acting up I had to try and keep them strait :p...

And thats how I stayed Kami :p

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

I'll only say, there's two sides to every story, things went badly between the guild and you, and I think that quote isn't really that accurate, but respect it as how you felt about it.

Hopefully, my fellow guildies just let that slide, and keep this to a peaceful thread, as I will.

Slightly offtopic, but I once had a boss who used to ride my butt a lot, I since realised I had immense respect for the man. Our jobs were all soon to be lost, as any that knew what was going on realised, and it was a really bad time, as I stupidly decided to move 1600 miles away from everyone i knew to accept a transfer from them, and knew the economy was terrible in the area i moved to for IT people. My point in mentioning this is that sometimes people have a falling out, in retrospect, somethign positive can always be learned from the experience.... for all involved.

I think as you, that for a lot of us, we join the same faction a lot of our friends joined, unfortunately, things get a little serious, it's good when we can get so immersed in a game's rules/lore that we take it seriously, it's bad when it hurts people's feelings, that's the bad thing in all that ;). Hopefully, we all live and learn as I try to do and know that i have a hotheaded side to me :P

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Really enjoyed reading that rushin, brings back sooo sooo many memories of when i started playing (sami was a toon me and a friend created to see if we liked the game, ive never looked back since)
I think i enjoyed those times so much was because there was so much to descover, i get that same excitment each time something new gets brought into ryzom

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

This thread could be very well complimented by stories from kami people that are going kara (quite a few of them too...) even from my own guild...

just my two cents. :)

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

lol, and that couldnt be said for all those karavan who turned kami?
(quite a few of them too...)

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Well Keiko already told us about that :)

And you Yaffle, aren't you a member of a Karavan tryker guild Nexus now? after all your kami years eh mate?;)

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

As i have always said, faction comes second to me after friendship, i fight against the karavan alliance and yet are good friends with many karavan.
If nexus where kami, neutral or karavan i would still support my guild as they are a great bunch of people who i get along with, maybe its just me who can remeber past the patch where faction became important...

just my two cents

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Originally aligned to the Karavan faction and member of Evolution since my first day on the mainland, I finally decided to join the Kamist initially for two reasons :

1) After many OP fights against people of my own faction, it occured to me that maybe I wasn't on the right side anymore :p.

2) I wanted to be able to kill/gank (I have been told that I have no sense of honour when it comes to faction :P and I agree) people of the Karavan Alliance which were most likely my best enemies at the time (you still are ;), thanx Ma-Duk)

Then, after a one week fame hunt and a few others guildless, I joined The Team Spirit, my friend Faa had offered to enroll me which I first refused (a few times) because I knew that my new behaviours wouldn't match TS's sense of honour, I was to be proven right a few weeks later (Faa could tell you :P) ; Indeed As an Evo member I never had to follow any guild rules (such as no ganking for instance) so I guess I couldn't adapt to Team Spirit's ways (Too bad tho ! They are a really fun bunch of muffins).

So I decided to leave my guild once again, for its reputation not to suffer from my psychotic doings ; I created Gankers (the guild), I choose this name because it makes things pretty clear to everyone. I never planned on recruting, and I m more interesting to see if people (going crazy) would want to join (which I doubt, because of the community views on PvP mostly).

Now, I m out of OP matters even tho I joined the Kami Alliance. I only kill Kara Alliance members (no matter what they are doing at the point) and people who would first aggro me :). However I am always flagged (no matter what I am doing) so this way people I ganked can always try and gank my lily butt when they feel the urge (makes things even).

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

hmmm, why did i choose Kami.

well this is a two part story for me.
first OOC, even befor i started playing, when i was still considering if i should play SoR,
i DID read the lore on the HP and the forums extensively and dicided to, if i play, i would play a Zoraï/Tytonist(Homins first) with strong Kami(save the nature) leanings.

Second, IC, i did that till EP2 with temples and OP´s hit us all. in EP2 i tryed to stay neutral and dig for the Tryker Kami temple,
so that at least they can get both Temples and stay neutral that way...
but that didn´t work out and after OP hit us and as we Zoraï lost some of our best OP´s to the KA Fanatics i had to choose... staying "neutral"/trytonist or help in keeping the balance between Kami and Karavan which meant choosing Kami... and thats what i did.

IC i´m a Zoraï Kamist now, but still with strong leanings towards Tryton´s Hominists and OOC, if Tryton returns and it becomes a Faction you can choose, i may choose them again, but for now i´m Kami to keep the Karas in check ;)

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

OOC: I read all the info I could find on Ryzom and swiftly realised that I would feel most at home with a Zoraï character. The Zoraï were supposed to be the "spiritual" homin nation, and they had aligned themselves with the Kami.

IC: I always wanted to be a wise homin, one who knew the mysteries. So as far back as I can remember I tried to get my elders (Zoraï npc's) and the kami to give me tasks to complete. When I felt I was ready, I took the kami up on the offer and he sent me on to Zora.

There I saw my first sages, and how I wished I could get them to give me just one little mission! Alas, they never did. I figure I still haven't become wise in their eyes. After having been asked several times to join other groups, I met a fair Zoraï woman I simply adored. Her name was Lien Chang and asked if I would like to join with her guild MoV, and I accepted with pride.

Later when the temple wars was waged I lost my faith, and went neutral a while. But my heart refused to let the old dreams die, and I turned back to my old ways. Hopefully a little wiser

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

As the "Why I Choose..." threads could prove useful lto newer players I'm going to Sticky them. Try and keep the comments and posts in these constructive and at the least non abusive. Go on, I know you can do it.

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

I don't really remember... for some part it was because the Kami learned us how to use all kinds of magic, and all the Karavan ever gave us was some knowledge about mostly weak range weapons, which is something that really shows us who doesn't trust us.

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

when i Started Ryzom i choose a Zorai cause i like Mystical things and so and a Friend from me(Marax) started 1 month ealier than me Ryzom and i joined his Guild( Merchants of Void ). at this Time i didnt knew so much about Kami and Karavan and i didnt really cared about that cause we had no Faction war at this time.I Choose Kami cause my Guild was and my Friends i started to play with but after so 1 Year in Merchants of Void ( was a very very good time ) i left MoV and stayed Guildless( when remember it was in the Temple Wars ) cause i didnt liked Faction wars and i still dun like it now. i stayed Kami and i fought for the Kamis in OP Battles(Outpost Battles) against the Karavan alliance and i still didnt liked the faction War.i joined a few other Guild to see if the Guilds are good for me,but after a while i saw again and again that the Politics dun fit me,so i created my own Guild ( totally 3) with my 3rd Guild i stick now cause i can decide myself what i do and if its good for me or not,i can make my own Politic and so far its good for me.my Guild is still a Kami Guild and i am Still a Kami ,but only for TP´s ,my Playstyle is now Neutral but i am still a kami and Hope for peace on Atys 1 Day...

Thats why i choose Kami when i started

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Why I chose Kami...

For many moons I was neutral and it all seemed well until the guild I was in increasingly became more and more influenced by the Karavan and basically went against all the pillars of the Fyros's beliefs in the end, leaving me no choice but to leave.

The first act I did after freeing myself was to become Kami, the reasons werent for religious matters, but that the Kami give me life when dead, magic to fight and to heal with, pacts to move around the world with speed.
The Karavan offer the same, but as a Fyros, It would have been criminal to my race if I had aligned myself by following Jena, but I imagine even I were Matis, I would find the whole Jena story disturbing, it is a very creepy religion. *shivers*

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

OOC: i chose a Zorai by chance, and for some reason stuck to him(had rolled a Tryker girl before that, but that silly cow kept falling on her nose... stupid breast slider). When i stood somewhat lost at Zora tp in my noob rags and a set of Matis sleeves i had aquired at merchants, ganked for the umpteenth time by some turtle shell carrying animals (had insisted on taking wrong city exit) a noble and friendly Zorai dame wearing a tryker hat took pity, gave me some amps and a guild invite... rest is history :) (Alegra, missya still :))

IC: I dont trust the Karavan. They are clearly not from this planet. They have superior technologies and materials unknown on this planet. They do apparently have a lot of power, but not enough to meet their plans, so they recruit homins for that. But what do homins mean to them? Do they have the well being of atys and hominkind in mind, or do they have other plans? their motives remain unclear. I dont trust the Karavan.

The Kami represent what i feel is right: preserve the planet so it stays a good place to live for all hominkind in peace. Homins are part of Atys, not the owners of Atys. Not all that *can* be done, is *good* to do. Profit, power, dominating others is not the goal to follow in life. Thats what they teach.

Thats why i'm Kami.

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Why Kami ?

Quiksilver was first created in April 2004 in the Open Beta, I created a Fyros character and has been the same ever since. After some fantastic months playing the beta ( the bomb heal / bomb ele sessions killing Kiban/Kincher by the bridges to Thesos ) I became addicted to Ryzom.

I pre-ordered the retail release in Sep 2004 and started leveling like crazy, I met a good friend called "Fly" (Flyaway) who shared the mad addiction to level elemental magic. Through Fly I joined "The Gladiators of Fyros" lead by Mikelaw. After a month or so Oct/Nov 2004 we were already running around with Fire spells zapping everything.

After deciding the TGOF was not the Guild I wanted to pursue I spent 2 days walking through Prime roots ( max DP ) on my own to reach Zorai lands where I met "Lonewanderer". He often teamed with me while I was leveling my melee outside Zora. He introduced me to "Myna" and they offered me a place in their guild called "Merchants of Void". They had a passion for adventure and exploration and the ways of the Kami. We trained hard in Void and leveled my elemental way beyond the available amps. Luckily I knew "Petej" well who was the only crafter able to make the amps I needed.

I met a young homin called Kye who was new with low levels but a fantastic healer. Little did I know that he would become one of the greatest Kami players.

The Kitin were becoming a constant threat so the challenge became clear, I understood my destiny from that point was to protect Fyros and Zorai and follow the ways of the Kami.

Big shout goes out to Myna, Lonewanderer, Lienchang, Uma, Sumsum, Karm, Kye(yaffle), PeteJ, Rushin, Pinsao, Marin, Fasinus, and Fly !!

~Quik~

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Why do I choose to breathe? Why do I allow my blood to flow through my veins? Why do I choose to stay on the surface of Atys rather than flying off into space? I choose Kami because there is no other choice if I choose to live on Atys.

My people have long been the protectors of Atys and have aligned themselves blindly to the Kami. At first, I rebelled. I was disgusted by the Kami and the Karavan declaring themselves protectors and overlords of this world and keeping us "protected" from our own history, technology and heritage.

Time has mellowed me, though. In a battle of titans, neutrality simply means that you have two enemies, no allies and you're a nice easy (but somewhat squishy) rock for one side to toss at the other.

Anyways....with time, I have come to the conclusion that, while we are closer to the Karavan in form, we are the true Children of Atys and our survival is far more closely tied to that of the Kami. In protecting the world that sustains us, the Kami protect us (whether by intent or by coincidence.) I don't pretend to understand the Kami. Since I can not understand them, I can never be sure of their motivations. So trust is not something that I give blindly. But their behaviors are towards goals that I share (namely, keeping the planet alive and thriving)

The Karavan, on the other hand, seem much more like us. The altruism of the Kami is replaced with all of the Homin frailties of character and questionable motives of greed and self-preservation. Most that I have spent time with seem put upon to be here and do not share our love for Atys. Instead, they seem to long for a world where they don't need armor and breathers to survive. (a world where, I suspect, we could not survive). Yes, they are very much like us, but will never be able to share Atys with us. How, then, can their motivations align with our own?

We were once like Gods. Our history before Atys is clouded, but the legends speak of how we came here from another world. Surely, we didn't journey here on the back of Kitins or in ships made of bone and zerx leather. The Kami and Karavan both know our history and, yet, keep it from us. They know we had technology, yet instead of helping us to regain it, they teach us to impale one another with sticks and shells. There are times that I beleive both races would be happier if we simply killed ourselves off as a species and left them to their battles.

So.....do I choose Kami out of love and blind devotion. No. I choose them out of a sense of shared goals. There may be a time that our goals no longer align. But...until then....

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

most common why did i choose kami?

the welcomers are so cute :p

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Ahem! my goodness everybody's gleaming with great uberosity. I've been gone too long. But I'll be back soon, with a brand new pick!

Anyway thought I'd just reply to an interesting thread here. Kami are the protectors of Atys, and the Karavan are just an advanced form of cannibals in the guise of greedy indutrialists that are secretly in pursuit of fine delicacies that involve magically infused homin flesh. The Karavan easily lure power hungry homins into their factions by offering them a place at their side, until the Karavan have gathered enough of us (which they seem to be doing a pretty damn good job) to take us away and feast on our bones while they travel to the next world in pursuit of a new flavor.

Pretty simple no? Anyway, I'd rather stick to my 'roots' and not be food for the gods.

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

>The Karavan easily lure power hungry homins into their factions by offering them a place at their side

There also seems to be a lot of metal-like shine on those nasty wheels spinning in the main cities. Another Karavan plot to deprive homins and keep them in submission? Hmmm...the tokens have that shine of metal about them, as well.

They're evil, I tell you. I know that I will do my part to deprive them of thier stuffed yubos and fireworks so that they won't lure any other hapless homins into thier evil grip!

Rhaenaan - "Let's Chance it....you lose"

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

I read all the lore, or at least 90% of it on the website back in Jan. 2007 when a first tried the game out. I also re-read some of the sections now that I have come back.

Based on my interpretation of the lore, the Kami (whether harsh or not) seem truly dedicated to preserving the planet Atys. The Karavan have always struck me as suspicious in their black suits that cover their entire entity. Also, they have their ships and technology which are quite foreign to our world. The fact that they show up, claim to be our guardians and ask for offerings of our natural resources to worship the "Godess Jena" seems pretty fishy to me at best.

In my opinion the Karavan are foreigners that are a more advanced biped race (It's not that amazing that they have a similar shape to us.) from another world with more advanced technology than us (due to the partial destruction of our civilizations). It would be/is so easy for them to impress us homins with their advanced technology and make us believe tales/lies about a Godess Jena that we must worship and give offerings so that she might save us at the end of our world. I think they are here to stip mine our planet of it's resources, but even with their technology they are not powerful enough to do as they please with the ever watchful Kami presence. (As for preservation; I would make sure I built good supports and took care of my coal mine too ...till it was out of coal.)

When I weigh the evidence, I am convinced for myself that the Kami are the true guardians of the planet Atys, and I intend to ally with them and aid them however I can. That does not mean I will abandon or refuse to help my fellow homins that follow the path of the Karavan, but I will stand in the way of harmful actions against the Kami, Kami Guilds, or other Kami followers.

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Why I chose Kami?
Because I started in a time where it didn´t make any difference. And gasmasks are uncomfortable.

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

But they sure came in handy during the Great Zorai Chili Cookoff.

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Very interesting thread here. I can see where people are coming from, on both sides of the issue, and it all seems an extension of our RL beliefs. As I am still a neutral, I hope that when I do chose a faction, I don't lose the friends from the other....that would be a shame if it were to happen. As a neutral, I have fought for both sides in OP battles and have had the pleasure of going out for hunts with members from both sides afterwards.

Keep the posts coming, interesting stuff and good for reflection.

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Anyone called friend who abandons you was never a friend.

(Sorry for invading the Kami thread, I'll leave now. :p)

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

Not all of us! When I first joined the game and read all the lore, I concluded for myself the Karavan were the more evil faction. They demanded offerings from their followers, they were intolerant towards other religions (Trytonism in particular) and they discouraged or even outright prohibited homins from recovering information about their past. It all strongly suggested they were holding homins back to keep them subservient. The Kami just imposed a few rules to preserve the environment, and apart from that seemed fine with allowing homins to develop and explore as they choose to.

Magic also appealed to me more than technology. Had I lived on Atys myself, I would've chosen the Kami. That's why I made a character who followed the Karavan. ;)

My opinions did change over the years though, partly because playing a Karavan character made me see their good points, and partly because the Kami have become more evil and hypocritical since I started playing. Now I pretty much see them both as equally good and equally evil. But then, now I also believe that if as a player I ever consider one faction to be more evil than the other, that's a flaw in the lore. :p

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

In my opinion, I did not choose Kami. I just am Kami.

But also i do find it worrying that the Karavan choose to conceal their appearence. I know they wear bio-suits to be able to stay on atys but they dont have to conceal there faces imo. (if they conceal there faces what else are they concealing) And yes i know that there are also certain things about the kami which cause doubts. I dont see either side as evil or good both are a sort of grey area in the middle. and tbh i do not think it really matters which side we "choose". i dont limit myself to only playing with kami and i hope i dont get excluded just because i am kami(which i am pretty sure im not :) )

Re: Why I Choose Kami
 

I choose Kami specifically because (although I am Tryker) I think that the preservation of Atys is the most important thing to believe in over all, and it does align with my real life beliefs of planet preservation. Go Green :D I am currently neutral faction, but that will change with time.


Cendharia