Saving Yourself From Yourself

[myxomatosii]

Today I compressed my Sony folder into a ZIP file and had it delete the original file. In order to play now I have to go through a 20 minute unzip process, that way I won't impulse log-on and can get some work done.

This could be because I only starting playing again two weeks ago and binged over spring break but I'm having trouble breaking off. I think staying in labs, away from my house, along with compressing the files has broken the cycle of 4am nights up at 8am.

Anyone else have issues like these and how did you solve them? Eg: Short term addiction on return.

It was easier when I came across the game at 14 years old, logon for 36 hours, play, passout for 9 hours and let brother play, wake up, play with dogs, brother passes out, take over. Continue. All on AOL, no one could call the house for days.

[Barkingturtle]

I got married and now none of my time is my own.

Works like a charm. Highly recommend.

[myxomatosii]

I got married and now none of my time is my own.

Works like a charm. Highly recommend.

I've lost many a man to a wife camping my group members. The woe is great and I shall avoid this quest as long as possible.

[Phased]

Hey what's that cool yet obnoxiously large picture in your signature from?
That looks like a cool game.

My trick is summoned mage bags. Before I log off I leave a corpse to keep the bags, this makes it so I only log on if I have a longer period of time because I have to go through the hassle of getting back to the corpse and if I loot the bags I then also need to find someone to duel me again. Although, this fails because lately I've been playing without the bags haha.

[Goraith]

Lol when i first found 1999 I would take out my 11.6 inch laptop and tether it to my phone and play during my lunch break

[mefdinkins]

When I played in classic I was ~12 years old and remember sneaking downstairs after "going to bed" when the rest of my family was asleep. My family heavily regulated my playing time in those days, so it resulted in a decent balance.

Since then no game has had a hold on me like EQ. Sure I've put in my hours on other games - DOAC, Shadowbane, WOW, Rift, and most recently SWTOR, but it was nothing like EQ. In all those games I gave in to my 'addiction' to reach my gaming 'goals' and then played less after.

In many of those games it was reaching max level or a different benchmark (like getting a certain rank in PVP, or camping a rare item). For instance in SWTOR - which I played just a few months ago I played pretty hardcore until I hit level 50. However, it only took me about two weeks to hit 50, and about 5 days /played. After hitting 50 I did some PVP and daily quests but significantly reduced my play time, and eliminated any marathon (all day) sessions.

When I learned of P1999, I knew that I couldn't play 'full throttle' straight from 0 to 60. So I tried to set some benchmarks I could hit and then reduce my play time. I thought I'll play a lot, then once I hit 14 and have SOW, I won't care as much and will slow down. Then I thought, well I loved wolf form, so once I hit 24 I won't play as much. My next benchmark was 29, I thought once I hit that I have group teleports so I can play less, hang around EC when bored then port people and casually level up later. I have just hit 29 after about ~2 weeks and ~5 days /played.

Well, now I realized I get specialization at 30 - so I need to hit 30 quickly. Also 30 is a hell level, so that will take forever, it's probably better to just bang it out ASAP. Then 31 isn't a hell level, so that won't take long, I should do that soon too. At 32, I'm so close to new spells, so I can't stop there....

Crap. How do you ZIP the file?

Mefdinkins
Level 29 Druid

[Messianic]

30 isn't too bad.

Off-topic, but I find that when things RL are going really well, I stop playing EQ. So my only advice is to be really honest about whether or not you're just escaping into a convenient fantasy and what under the surface is a feeling of a lack of accomplishment in RL. If you're not honest about it, no one could help you anyway.

[Advisor]

I just throw my laptop out the window when I die, then I have to buy a new PC to play again.

[myxomatosii]

30 isn't too bad.

Off-topic, but I find that when things RL are going really well, I stop playing EQ. So my only advice is to be really honest about whether or not you're just escaping into a convenient fantasy and what under the surface is a feeling of a lack of accomplishment in RL. If you're not honest about it, no one could help you anyway.

Well in 3 months I graduate with a degree in Electrical Engineering and a dual degree in Physics, so really I'm just trying not to jeopardize my last semester so my GPA, which I am happy with, doesn't decrease.

Not really sure about escaping real life other than I have cut myself off from gaming completely for the past 4 years to work on my degree so this is really the only game I've played, I think its just the sudden rush of nostalgia combined with being close to the ability to game again.. (senioritis??).

Thanks for the suggestions~~

I just throw my laptop out the window when I die, then I have to buy a new PC to play again.

Yeah but I'm perfect. Its a burden I know. Also I lol'd at this, always awkward working next to someone in a lab.

[mefdinkins]

Haha I was kidding around but I have to agree.

I am currently in law school which has its benefits and drawbacks for a gamer. Academic calendars give students a lot of flexibility. Since I have just started playing and was in position to do so - I have taken a few liberties with my play time, but I am keenly aware of my obligations and responsibilities.

As my semester continues and I begin preparation for finals, I will have to dramatically cut back on my play time. If I am unable to balance my playing time with my other obligations, or find my pixel goals (I really want a damn lumi staff haha) are interfering with my real life goals (do well in school) -- my usual solution is to just uninstall.

I know I can re-install later and usually found after uninstalling that I'm not missing much.

[myxomatosii]

Hey what's that cool yet obnoxiously large picture in your signature from?
That looks like a cool game.

My trick is summoned mage bags. Before I log off I leave a corpse to keep the bags, this makes it so I only log on if I have a longer period of time because I have to go through the hassle of getting back to the corpse and if I loot the bags I then also need to find someone to duel me again. Although, this fails because lately I've been playing without the bags haha.

I find that when I browse forums I tend to locate people's post by their over-sized signatures, such as Rainbowdash's. So when I searched Everquest kunark in google images and that picture came up I was excited. On my original Kunark fold-out box (which I still have in perfect condition) that was the main photo on one of the fold-outs so it musters up a lot of nostalgia.

This is another one, it was the box art and I must have analyzed it a thousand times staring at all of the details and wondering what the creatures were (was a level 7 wizard in freeport). Oh, the photo..

http://www.cheatcodesgalore.com/pc/games/EverQuest_Ruins_of_Kunark/EverQuest_Ruins_of_Kunark-s7.jpg

[Phased]

Haha yeah I kept the boxes for the original game and the first 3 expansions for quite some time. I was just being facetious in regards to its size.

[Darkwulf58]

Fate has seen me to the P99 Server. I simply have no choice in the matter, I must play as much as possible. Its what I was born to do. I'm ok with it....really.

[myxomatosii]

Fate has seen me to the P99 Server. I simply have no choice in the matter, I must play as much as possible. Its what I was born to do. I'm ok with it....really.

A hesitant squire accepts his task.

[Barrier]

I used to go home at lunch so that I could move my warrior on the boats to Kunark/Firiona Vie.

[Barrier]

By the way, that picture from Kunark is awesome.

[stormlord]

Today I compressed my Sony folder into a ZIP file and had it delete the original file. In order to play now I have to go through a 20 minute unzip process, that way I won't impulse log-on and can get some work done.

This could be because I only starting playing again two weeks ago and binged over spring break but I'm having trouble breaking off. I think staying in labs, away from my house, along with compressing the files has broken the cycle of 4am nights up at 8am.

Anyone else have issues like these and how did you solve them? Eg: Short term addiction on return.

It was easier when I came across the game at 14 years old, logon for 36 hours, play, passout for 9 hours and let brother play, wake up, play with dogs, brother passes out, take over. Continue. All on AOL, no one could call the house for days.
1) Learn about health. I've never had trouble getting 6-7+ hours of sleep. I always knew I needed my sleep. Work is sloppy without sleep and I feel miserable too. Maybe you're just the type of person that can go without sleep because: a) ignorance is bliss b) your body is not as sensitive to lack of sleep.
2) Play EQ before going to work, not before going to bed. I did this for a while because I hated waking up only moments before having to work. (wake up late = unhappy boss) It allowed me to sleep in on occasion too. And more than that, I was encouraged to go to sleep asap when I got home from work. And when I was playing EQ I could not overdo it without losing my job. The worst I could do is wake up early, but that was rare.

This is real-life advice from my days when I played EQ full-time in 2001-02.

Bottom line, I think playing EQ before going to work is my best advice. For me it was easier to go from EQ to work than from sleeping to work. But people's bodies and habits can be different.

Lastly.. I played anywhere from 4 to 5.5 hours on a workday in my peak. On weekends I would usually go out to buy sh** and get groceries, so I don't think I played anymore on weekends than on weekdays.

For people who have families, you obviously have less choices than I did.

But I can honestly say that playing more than 5 hours in a day has NEVER felt good to me. There's a certain activity level that the body needs so that you feel good. Too much sitting just makes a person sluggish.

[bluejam]

I got married and now none of my time is my own.

Works like a charm. Highly recommend.
So you let them cut off your balls? Cool.

[Odeseus]

It is all about what makes sense to YOU. Personally, I just really tried to separate "work" from "play." If I needed to study, I'd be in the library with the school's shitty internet. I literally *couldn't* play even if I had wanted to. If the library was closed, or if I had to pull an all-night paper writing session, I'd claim an unused classroom and stay in the building all night. The doors would lock, but only from the outside. I just had to be careful not to lock myself out.

When I was back in my apartment/door room, it was "play" time. I tried not to study there just to keep things separate.

The exception was when I wrote my master's. Quite a bit of that process was simply writing, re-writing, and re-writing some more. Literally hundreds of hours with no clear "finish" lines because of the way I write. I would spend an hour on a paragraph if it didn't feel right to me, and you just can't write endlessly for hours and hours and hours. At least I couldn't. What I did is find a camp like AC in OOT where you kill 1 (trivial) mob every 6 minutes or so. That way I'd write for 6 minutes, kill the PH, write 6 more minutes, rinse and repeat.

The problem is that you'll want to go camp something more involved. I just had to be disciplined enough to not do it.

[NenshouStar]

"All on AOL, no one could call the house for days."

LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLOLOLOLLOLOLLLLLLLLLLLL hahahahhahaha,
oh my, hahahahahahhahah, that's my laugh for the night,
also, yes. the whole GF aggro thing is true, just gotta find a clingy one.