I am rather sure armor looting itself is not so much the problem, only the nexus scripts where all gear is safed on log out and stuff doesn't disappear on the weekly server resets (since kept in player database) is what cause the frequency of this issue (I would agree that robbing/murder as main source of income is too wide spread).
The other issue is caused by, again, the bank, since the circle of "loot wargear- sell wargear instead to actually use it- deposit money in bank- repeat and never lose anything on death since you constantly bank every coin you make" is only disabled by banks.
In the original mechanics of PW, a person who had, as naked guy, took a tincan from someone, would either:
-fight in it and eventually lose it
-have to find another player to sell to if it was rare armor
-or, don't go out to rob anymore, since now they would risk to lose their own stuff
As I have ranted at countless times the past months on nexus forums mostly, it is in fact their scripts that break the game balance (armor looting, stand alone with NO item saving on log out, is actually a PW feature, not one of nexus).
Just to sum up what a bank does to a robbery scene:
-I rob some dude (no matter of what or if I let him live or anything, actually)
-I got some cash or items I will sell for cash
-I put that robbed cash in the bank- effectively preventing me from falling victim to people who are the same assholes as I am
GG, Nexus.
oh and, @Ocelot, of course it is misused by the playerbase.
As I pointed out already in the past, the automatized bank is basically an admin tool given in player hands. Without any limit or supervision.
This can work out with a 20 people dedicated rp community (for which it was originally designed by Salva).
This can -never- work out on a full server with factions actually competing for domination, since in this scenario you need balance, not player comfort, to make everyone happy.
Nexus has managed to achieve the ultimate perversion of the competetive scenery, where winning does not feel like winning anymore, and losing does not feel like losing (since no matter how a war ends, you and your men are ready with fresh gear 5 minutes after, purchased by banked money, if you really want to).
The result? No one actually being satisfied (I recommend supervizing Lannisters in particular, I have not ever seen a faction who was this successfull in what they did, and yet that unsatisfied with the outcome- since the bank prevents them from actually beating people down to a point where they can not act as big Lords anymore)
And Nexus, well, sadly prefers to give some people comfort. (I might add, basically not to those playerswho would need it, but usually to people where you would think they'd be able to get along themselves as veterans of the game!)
Oh yeah, err *cough*
@topic:
-You will need admins, as was mentioned already simply to handle stuff like stuck players, organizing events, resetting boats, deal with trolls occasionaly where swords are not enough
-what you do NOT need is a list which in detail defines certain strategies as "legal" or "illegal", gives clear guidelines when it is "legit" to kill someone else and so on.
If you reach a point where players do not actually take crime as crime anymore, but only differ between "legal" and illegal" robbery (murder, etc.) instead, congratulations, you have played on nexus for so long that you saw everyone completely losing their civil courage since it is randoming helping a helpless woman on the road who is attacked by brigands, unless she explicitly cries "help" over local chat (sic!).
The third important part besides no bank/item saving and less rule enforcement from admin side to worry about is the map.
I can highly recommend reading Eragon's statement regarding Lowlands, he pretty much sums up what differed it from most other maps (and if you take a closer look, you will find out that ever-popular Valley of Swamps has a similar pattern- lots of taverns to rp in everywhere and not get horsebumped all the time, one big city to make cash, if you can hold it, mines not everywhere, but only at key location in village and mountains, thus, trade).
. You will be hard pressed to find this kid of server in my opinion, that has anyone playing on it. Avalon NA, HCRP, Nexus EU, or Avalon EU and a couple of other Eu servers are the only ones that have a player-base at the moment.
