For many ages, the professional thief has been regarded by many to be a player without honor. This misconception is perpetuated by a handful of thieves who do not understand honorable conduct, and those players who remain ignorant of what it truly means to be a thief in Utopia. I have been playing the game since the early days of it’s existence. In the many rounds I have served as a regent, monarch, and professional thief I have discovered that some of the most honorable players come from the ranks of the professional thieves of Utopia.
With this in mind I would like to take a few moments to discuss what honorable conduct is. Honor has been a topic of hot debate for centuries. Historically speaking slights against ones' honor have resulted in the deaths of thousands over time. Yet, honor is also something that is difficult to codify. It is said that the knightly virtues are Strength, Courtesy, Humility, Honor, Prudence, Temperance, Faith, Justice, Charity, and Hope. Honor has many aspects. To be honorable, you must be true to your word. You must also be fair and just.
It is the responsibility of the stronger players to look out for and defend the weaker players. However, it is equally important not only to defend them, but also to teach them. This does not mean that the honorable thief should retaliate for every attack made against the smaller provinces in your kingdom. Only that we are responsible for defending our kingdom mates against those attackers who are without honor. (Those too large to be attacking a province, those who gangbang a province, etc.)
The honorable thief need not forsake his own needs, but should remain mindful of the needs of his kingdom as well. Any honorable player whether they are an attacker, or thief serves his kingdom. Personal growth is simply not the object of the game despite what some of the more competitive players claim. When personal advancement becomes a driving goal of the player, it opens the player up to becoming a dishonorable player.
Lately there has been a great cry about how the so-called “black ops” should be removed from the game, or how they are dishonorable, but the “black ops” are for the most part no more destructive than land grabs. Like any weapon the missions are not in and of themselves dishonorable, but how honorable they are is simply a question of how they are used.
For the most part, the spying and stealing missions are considered fair play by one and all, but the so-called “black ops” are often called dishonorable and cowardly by the general public. The problem does not lie in the mission itself, but how it is used. Those few who would abuse the game for their own egos are no different regardless of their tactic, be it gangbanging, newbie bashing, or trying to “black op” someone to death.
These missions can be used honorably to retaliate against an honorless target or a land grab, to send someone a warning, or even to steal fame when there is nothing better to take from an opponent. When fighting an honorable opponent, it is equally honorable to do what you must to win the fight without causing your opponent undue damage. To retaliate against a successful land grab with a series of arsons is honorable in that BOTH attacks cause disruptions to the others province without likely causing the destruction of the target. When someone uses excessive magic against you, it is perfectly honorable to kill a few of his wizards, and send a warning that if his attacks continue you will do greater damage. Neither of these attacks will actualy cause irreparable damage when used properly.
On he other hand when fighting a dishonorable opponent, “the gloves come off”. A dishonorable opponent deserves to be hit as hard as possible and as often as possible with every effort being made to maximize the damage done. Kidnap his peasants, followed up by fireballs, storms, and night strikes to trash their population, and force them to release troops to keep afloat. Steal his food, followed up with drought, vermin, and explosions to starve him out of house and home. Combine arson and night strikes with your kingdoms attackers doing land grabs to trash their land development. These are destructive tactics intended to deal with the dishonorable opponents. When used in this fashion they are honorable, but if such destruction is unleashed on an undeserving target you prove yourself to be honorless.
As, I hope, can be seen by these last two paragraphs, honor and dishonor are not set by the mission used, but rather by how the mission is used. Thieves, like attackers, and any other portion of Utopia can be dishonorable, but they can also be noble and honorable depending on how they play. If everyone plays honorably the game will be a better and more enjoyable place for everyone. In a free game victory and defeat have been made too cheap to taint a victory with cheating or honorless conduct.