What does it mean to go OOC...?

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May 2012

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May 28 - Memorial Day

[Mercy Riiser]

I know what it means when you usually go OOC. Recently, I got my back up over an event held on BTB Gorean sim where I rp. The event was a slave dance competition. A sign was put up at LM that sim was OOC and there would be no raids.  People were asked to take off their meters to reduce lag and told that sim was OOC. There was a great turnout but there was also two people present dressed in Earth clothes.

I IM'd them very politely and said that while the event was OOC it was still a Gorean event and I asked them to respect the sim and put on Gorean attire. One responded that he was there to see a friend dance and did not have Gorean clothes. I asked him to please respect the nature of the sim and event and I gave him a Gorean outfit to wear.  He would not respond but the slave he was there to watch dance told me that it was an OOC event and it was perfectly fine for this guy to wear earth clothes.  We went back and forth - I said his clothes were a distraction to the event and she said I was being rude.  I asked whether it would be OK for people to attend wearing Star Trek uniforms. She responded that no one was wearing a Star Trek outfit. 

I then got into a back and forth with one of my "peers" who told me to "lighten up" as it was an OOC event.  I replied that it was Gorean event and that going OOC was to avoid raids and not wear meters. I could understand wearing earth clothes if we were hosting an OOC tango competition but that was not the case.   

Was I out of bounds for pushing the issue? If a BTB sim goes OOC for a Gorean event like this does "everything" that is Gorean become optional? 

[Delaynie Barbosa]

Well, what is the sim rule on this matter? Did you ask an admin? If it's just roleplay the nwhy would it matter what people wear OOC if it's an OOC event, when no roleplay is taking place? This is a tough one Mercy, I hope you get a good answer, it's an issue I' mconfused on myself.

[Xaz Elephas]

I think all OOC events a sim does should be done in a sky box setting. Or they can make the sim private for one day and do the invite thing. Its rare I go to OOC events anyway. I am here to role-play not attend ooc events. When we ran Kaz'ahr all ooc events were done in a skybox so who wanted to role-play there time was not intruded upon. Also it keeps ooc and ic seperated.

[Alaria Voss]

I am with Xaz, I prefer that IC and OOC are separated. 

Dance comptitions (generally) are OOC, in that they (usually) have linden prizes and anyone from anywhere can port in and out of the event without needing any plausibly excuse.

I don't think it is unreasonable for people to be expected to be dressed per the genre.  A lot of sims ask observers (also an OOC thing) to be dressed according the theme, simply to not kill the immersion of it's players.

The Star Trek outfit (if indeed someone had worn one) could be plausible....going where no man has gone before?  might be stretching it...but just imagine Captain Kirk and Spok in a paga den...."it's life Jim, but not as we know it!"  *sniggers*

But back on topic, I do think, if attending an gorean event, even an ooc one, dressing per the genre in "freebie free clothing" is not too much to ask.  Would I have IMed them?  probably not...i think i would have directed my camera away from them though.

[Nigaltwaddlesworthiii]

Well..I hate to be the squeeky wheel here.. but I don't agree that people should have to be "immersive" in an event labeled "OOC".. it means just that.. OUT of character..

If the OOC label was only meant to take off meters and have no raids.. you could just label the event a Temp "sim wide safe zone" event.. that keeps everyone IC and immersed.. and dressed like you want.

[Carter Ebbage]

As soon as the term OOC is said, published, announced.. then that is exactly what it is ... Out of Character

I think if the requirement was to stop intrusions re: raids or captives etc.. They should have said "they are NON Combat".

Its a minor thing.. but as usual, if you arent clear and very specific.. then expect confusion and misinterpretations

[Kail Lefevre]

Okay, time to saddle that fence....


OOC and IC don't mix. That said you ever have to be 100% ooc or 100 IC. You can't have it both ways.

If you are IC and the sim is IC then yes, and ooc visitor checking out your sim has to be dressed correctly. Unless you are staging a Star Fleet visit to Gor......


Kirk: Captain's Log, star date 1376.4. The star ship Enterprise and it's crew has taken orbit around a strange plant discovered in Earth's Orbit. The plant was hiding behind the Earth's sun, some how cloaked from view until a few weeks ago. Scans of the surface show a primitive word where women are enslaved, men rule, and the strongest thrive. I am leading an away team down to the planet surface. The members of the away team will consist of my self, Spock, Dr. McCoy, Lt Uhura, Yeoman Janice Rand, Nurse Christine Chapel, and two female security officers in red shirts. I am leaving Lt Sulu in command of the bridge while we are away. He has standing orders that if we don't report back in after a hour to leave us for dead, leave a warning bowie out warning other ship away. Captain out.

one hour later....

Lt Sulu: Captains log, star date 1376.5 Lt Sulu standing in for Captain James T Kirk. It has been over two hours since the away team transported down. In direct conflict with my orders I have sent a 2nd away team down to the surface after repeated scans were unable to locate the Captain and the 1st away team. They reported finding the torn clothing of the some of the away team at the beaming sight. Strangely enough it only seemed to be the womens clothing. After that tracks were seen heading toward a strange mountain range. Before they could follow the tracks they were set upon by strange feline like animals with six legs and reptile shaped heads. we saved who we could by beaming them up and now make ready to set the warning bowie and leave. Sulu out.

One year later....

On a high building over looking the grandness of Ar a group of people can be seen taking their evenings rest. A strange green skinned man lays back while a dark skinned woman sits nude and tending to the mans pleasure. Her head quickly bobbing back and forth. The only other men in the room sit next to each other being waited on by two other beautiful and equally naked women while two others in red camisks fan them.
Kirk: See Bones, I told you this would work out well. Star Fleet will never find out." Kirk pauses to caress Yeoman Janice Rand's ass.
Spock from the other side of the room speaks up Spock : Yes Doctor, you really need to relax and enjoy the morning air..... Faster Uhura.
Doctor McCoy drains his paga. " I am relaxed. I am young again and am surrounded by naked women with my best friends. Life could not be better"


But hey if you are doing an ooc event, then by God, yes chill out. I held a dance in Venna once, and had a guy get pissy over a panther and her slave showing up. It was not BTB for a panther's slave to dance in a city, but it was also ooc. If some one shows up in say.... As Starscream from Transformers, or God forbid Iron man, then yes, I can see you giving them a polite im about what they wear in the sim. A dude in jeans and a wife beater at an ooc dance or contest is not really much to get your ass hairs in a twist about. At some ooc dances I take the moment to shift over to my neko shit for shock value. it's ooc. Have fun as long as it is reasonable. Some one coming in a full dragon AV would not be for example. To big as are the transforms Av's. Eh that's my two sents. Have fun.

[Rhylee Resident]

If it is an OOC event, then it should not matter if they are dressed in Gorean attire. OOC is out of character.

Like Carter said, if it is only to keep raids at bay...put Non Combat in land description until said event is finished.

Mods have enough to deal with on a daily basis, modding an OOC event of what type of clothing someone glues to their pixels is really something I wouldn't be bothered with. Out of Character is just that.

Seems a bit petty and tedious to me, and what a big job it is to dictate how someone dresses at an OOC event. No thanks. I will pass.    Choose your battles wisely, both IC and OOC!! As long as they are not disrupting the event, I see no harm in it.

My two cents 

[ramond lax]

most Sims want people who travel to the IC areas of a sim to be dressed appropriate. This is for IC players, corpses, observers and the like.  The basic premise to that is if you are going to be on the ground (ic level) then you do so looking properly.  If you aren't, you are often asked to either change or leave. 

I would liken it to walking into someone's house with muddy feet, treading across the carpets and onto the furniture.  It's rude to do, and basic common sense not to, no matter what reason you have for visiting the house.  Same goes with appropriate dress on a sim

[Syndel Daviau]

We just had a dance exhibition event at Imperial Ar and it was fully IC. We have gifted the participating girls equally with voucher from a merchant so they might go buy clothes. We merely posted that Taurentians were securing the perimeter and disarming people for safety sakes. Then we asked people to disarm and remove the GM in the region notice. After it was done, we roleplayed the weaponry being return as people exited the theater.

It's absolutely possible to run events without being ooc.
If you must do something really OOC, then yeah, skybox and Earth wear.

[Xaz Elephas]

We just had a dance exhibition event at Imperial Ar and it was fully IC. We have gifted the participating girls equally with voucher from a merchant so they might go buy clothes. We merely posted that Taurentians were securing the perimeter and disarming people for safety sakes. Then we asked people to disarm and remove the GM in the region notice. After it was done, we roleplayed the weaponry being return as people exited the theater.

It's absolutely possible to run events without being ooc.
If you must do something really OOC, then yeah, skybox and Earth wear.

I agree 100%. We had IC events in Kaz'ahr about every 3-4 months and did as you did. Ask people to check weapons, they were returned... ect ect... The Sul Festival and Carnival we did IC, role-play coins and prizes... You don't have to have ooc Gorean events like these dances. Meaning they can be IC.  About evey 6 months I might go to a ooc gor sim dance... in skyboxes... in earth clothes and thats the time to cut up with goreans, chill out for some ooc fun.

[Bara Mayako]

most Sims want people who travel to the IC areas of a sim to be dressed appropriate. This is for IC players, corpses, observers and the like.  The basic premise to that is if you are going to be on the ground (ic level) then you do so looking properly.  If you aren't, you are often asked to either change or leave. 

I would liken it to walking into someone's house with muddy feet, treading across the carpets and onto the furniture.  It's rude to do, and basic common sense not to, no matter what reason you have for visiting the house.  Same goes with appropriate dress on a sim

On the one hand, I don't think the analogy you've given holds water; if someone walks into a house with muddy feet, they leave the mud still lying there when they leave.  That is not the case with dress.  I might compare it to taking off your shoes before entering a house in Japan, but even then, it would all depend on the circumstances in which the house invited people, and who they invited; in some cases it might be appropriate, in others not.

Where I see the ambiguity here is in the nature of the event itself: an OOC Gorean slave dance competition.   How each of the three adjectives are interpreted changes the meaning.  Is it "OOC Gorean slave dance competition" or "OOC Gorean slave dance competition" or "OOC Gorean  slave dance competition", etc.  For example, is it a competition in which only players currently playing Gorean slaves may take part in?  Or can any player, also players not in Gor anymore or playing panther girls or free women, take part in (assuming properly dressed, probably).  If the sim does not allow panther girls normally -- or even if it does, but the competition is within the city gates, does it allow panther girls to enter, whether to participate or to observe?  And if panther girl dress within the city walls does not break immersion, why should non-Gorean dress?

The two solutions offered so far, either hold it IC and define the rules clearly, or hold it in a skybox, are good ones, and a possible third would be, in announcing the event, put in the invitation that a dress code is required.  But I definitely agree -- don't bother the mods about it; they are for IC issues, not OOC events.

[thyri Carver]

I think a LOT of these OOC events its VERY confusing.

On one hand we have sword tourneys and slave dance competitions.  For the most part at these events, the slave avatars are all kneeling (I was booted and am still banned from one sim for standing), the slave avatars still say "greeting master, greetings mistress"  And for the most part the free people keep quiet.

But you dont see FW saying "disgusting!" when you have a sexy slave dance.  I think ICly that's 100% appropriate when you have a slave's dripping love petals glistening all over the dance sands.

So these are very dicy circumstances that have their own codes of OOC/IC mix

1.  Slaves pretty much MUST remain in character during slave dance competitions.  Should a slave be competing and does not remain IC, this will be taken out on them by the judges

2.  Slaves pretty much MUST remain in character during sword tournaments.  Failure to kneel on demand can result in ejection and banning (especially from one sim)

3.  Free People dont really need to be IC.  In fact for FW, its pretty much insisted that they're NOT 100% IC.  They need to be dressed for the character, but pretty much a FW needs to be handing out candy and praising the slaves for jobs well done, and commenting on how handsome the fighters are. 

4.  No raiding during contests.  This might be one I can actually agree with.  The lag can get so fierce.


To me going OOC still means respecting the environment I'm in.  If somewhere lists something as OOC and its a gorean sim, i'll still dress gorean unless the OOC states another form of dress is appropriate.  I wouldnt dress as a wookie just because something stated OOC.  To me, that's rude

[Mirella Menizah]

Syndel I really like the way that was handled and I am taking notes!!

We ask observers to wear gorean dress, when visiting a gorean sim (on ground level) I would hope that all visitors follow suit if within the gorean environment i.e the City/Port/encampment

I tended to follow the basic premise of :
OOC - keeping it out of the City (ground level), to allow those that did not wish to attend the opportunity to role play in peace (OOC Dances/OOC Meetings)
RP Only/ No Combat - GM removed, all remain IC, less lag. This had the benefit of everyone being able to enjoy an IC based event/meeting lag free and uninterupted. (slave dances/city meetings)
IC - What it says on the tin!

Perhaps a simplistic view but these days I do try to K.I.S.S than over analyse, saved me a fortune on headache tablets.

[Adoveea Rau]

OH Excellent topic to post about!! thank you Mercy!

Have to agree the ooc events ARE confusing and that more guidelines/labels to help us all are great.

Summarizing from all the posting:
IC- full sim roleplay/combat activity
IC/NO Combat-full sim roleplay, no combat/raids- remove meter
OOC- Out of Character means all sim rules of Gorean roleplay/combat are suspended, remove meter