Conquest of the Horde

Full Version: Elf Hearing.
You're currently viewing a stripped down version of our content. View the full version with proper formatting.
Pages: 1 2
Okay this is just a simple question, yesterday while I was roleplaying in the Catacombs, I was in one of the more small rooms that are in if you go straight in. I don't know how to explain it exactly but they have the big iron doors. Basically the room where the prison is in.

Anyway as I was saying, I was in one of those rooms. A night elf who I'll reframe from naming at this time start to randomly eavesdrop on I and a friend through the thick walls/gate. I asked not to and claimed the walls would be too thick to hear through. The response went along the lines that, the person was a night elf and she could easily hear and understand everything.

Is that allowed, are elves' hearing that good?
Well, Night Elves do have very good hearing. But I don't think they would be able to in this situation.

Mind you, this is why you use -whispers- and -party chat- when trying to convey something privately in the Catacombs. I believe Nexi stated something about this.
I also had a similar experience, while setting up a hit contract. The person to be killed gave me a note that said "Good Luck" said they had good hearing (using the big ears as the reason) to hear us across a bar, and despite the listener emoting that the bar was loud. In this case the elf was a Blood Elf.
I wouldn't think so.

We can all hear muffled sounds coming from the next room,
but it's damn near impossible to hear something through pure stone.
Perhaps if there were holes, which are possible, or maybe she was by the door.

To be honest, it just seems like too many people are using elf hearing as an excuse to meta.
Hearing is one thing, Elves will have good hearing due to the physical size of their ears. Yeah, I doubt they'd be able to hear through solid rock.

The second thing is understanding. Just hearing something doesn't mean you can understand it clearly. Hell, if you try to listen to people talk in the distance in real life it's still damn hard to understand them.
Jonoth Wrote:I also had a similar experience, while setting up a hit contract. The person to be killed gave me a note that said "Good Luck" said they had good hearing (using the big ears as the reason) to hear us across a bar, and despite the listener emoting that the bar was loud. In this case the elf was a Blood Elf.

Hearing through a thick stone wall is virtually impossible: if you're hearing noises through it, and someone is not using a battering ram on it, you're hearing them through the wooden door down the hallway, if you get my drift.

Now, across a crowded and noisy bar is a different story. In a classroom of 300 rowdy college students, I can pick my name out of a sentence halfway across the (very large) room. And just to note, I'm going deaf. If I heard my name dropped, and noted the person dropping it was someone who would have a reason to want me dead, I'd be on my toes too.

Now, they may have taken it too far, but also remember that if you're in a noisy bar, chances are someone might hear you say that you're looking to have a person offed. That someone might tell the target, or, if you're in Stormwind or the like, tell the guards -- which would have an infinitely worse outcome for you, I might add.

That's all, folks!
If you /say it or /emote it, assume people can hear you. That's Elves, Dwarves, Tauren, Forsaken, Bunnies, Dinosaurs, Ninja, and Mechanostriders. Everyone can hear you, if they see it on their screen.

If you don't want it to be heard, say it in /party or /whisper. If you insist on emoting so that people don't think you're erping or AFK or if you're in a bar, do something like, "Ernest mutters quietly under his breath to Algernon," after you've written the text out in /party.

Are we all clear on that?
Seraph that made absolutely no sense to me, honestly. So basically what I got from it is if I'm in a completely enclosed space surrounding me from top, around, and below are 6 feet sound-proof walls and I say something in say, they are allowed to hear me.
Quote:I also had a similar experience, while setting up a hit contract. The person to be killed gave me a note that said "Good Luck" said they had good hearing (using the big ears as the reason) to hear us across a bar, and despite the listener emoting that the bar was loud. In this case the elf was a Blood Elf.
Why would you set up a hit contract within the same room as the target? I'm sorry but, what?
Opportunity makes a thief, as well as a cheater and a metagamer.

As for you, OP, I would say a brick wall is a bit dense for an Elf to hear through. Not even my dog can hear through the wall.
The point is that some people are going to
abuse the fact you're talking in /say.
Not that they can realistically hear you ICly.

I know it's frustrating, but prevention is better in these cases.
Just use whisper or party or perhaps a custom channel.
Spiralin Wrote:Seraph that made absolutely no sense to me, honestly. So basically what I got from it is if I'm in a completely enclosed space surrounding me from top, around, and below are 6 feet sound-proof walls and I say something in say, they are allowed to hear me.

Yep!

HownDoog Wrote:The point is that some people are going to abuse the fact you're talking in /say.
Not that they can realistically hear you ICly.

I know it's frustrating, but prevention is better in these cases.
Just use whisper or party or perhaps a custom channel.

Couldn't have said it better myself.
I see, well if that's the case, then I guess that's it.
Seraphim is right. Unfortunately this server has come down with a case of metagaming, unintentional and intentional.

Still, though, I'd just like to say that the whole "elven hearing" thing is way over-used, and in my opinion just plain silly. It's a lazy excuse, like elven agility/elven speed being used to dodge bullets.
Well, Elves do have a -lot- of perks, seeing that they were the race empowered to protect the Well of Entirety, able to sense Fel and Shadow magic when being used, be able to bled into the night, have great hearing, one of the biggest races around, can still live a -long- life, etc.


In general, Night Elves are a bit OP compared to some of the other races, so it's the -players'- job to make sure they aren't abusing his characters powering all the time. Night elves can't hear everything going on in a bar, so have him only listen to a group or single person.


I dunno, just my two coppers. It's our job to stop meta-gaming I use /w a lot with Rogg in contracts, since I dunno who's gonna steal the hit from me, or tip that guy off.


Anyways, my two coppers.
McKnighter Wrote:Well, Elves do have a -lot- of perks, seeing that they were the race empowered to protect the Well of Entirety, able to sense Fel and Shadow magic when being used, be able to bled into the night, have great hearing, one of the biggest races around, can still live a -long- life, etc.


In general, Night Elves are a bit OP compared to some of the other races, so it's the -players'- job to make sure they aren't abusing his characters powering all the time. Night elves can't hear everything going on in a bar, so have him only listen to a group or single person.


I dunno, just my two coppers. It's our job to stop meta-gaming I use /w a lot with Rogg in contracts, since I dunno who's gonna steal the hit from me, or tip that guy off.


Anyways, my two coppers.

True and it isn't even as difficult as many think. What you can do is the following: Limit the abilities of your character and make the character already specialized in something. For example, if your elf has that elf hearing ability now, in exchange the elf could be somewhat blinded or at least not have the ability to feel / sense fel and arcane magic. Maybe the elf could have bad reflexes when it comes down to it or the elf isn't strong overall.

Same goes for classes. A character, who is specialized in a small hand of spells, but doesn't know any others can be much more interesting, than someone who has every ability possible by engine.

For example mage A and mage B. Mage A knows only four to six fire spells, but is really well skilled with them. Mage B knows every spell a mage can learn ingame. Both of them will use their abilities when it comes down to it. Just as a rhetorical question to think about: With whom of these two would you rather fight, talk, eat or interact in any other possible way?

Now, where I think about it, the principle of prestige classes are exactly that. But why would you need to roll a prestige class first, if you can develope your character in a reasonable way before? You can always think of some advantages and in exchange of some disadvantages to make your character more interesting and the disadvantages can be pretty everything.
Pages: 1 2