I was in Avery's Court yesterday when a max-level Privateer made an unusual announcement. He said 'KI is getting rid of the gift button due to the high density of beggars'. I asked him how he knew this, and he said that his uncle works for KI.

He went on to say that Polaris is coming out soon! He said that the next Windstone would be red, and that we would use it to enter Valencia from the Port Regal Stormgate.

I don't know if any of this is true, can someone give a yes or no on this? I am very confused and am wondering if it was just made up.

Ahhhh, the old "my uncle works at KingsIsle" routine, eh? If it doesn't come directly from a KingsIsle employee, I wouldn't trust it. Make sure you've read this page on KingsIsle Support.

One-Eyed Jack on Jun 30, 2014 wrote:

Ahhhh, the old "my uncle works at KingsIsle" routine, eh? If it doesn't come directly from a KingsIsle employee, I wouldn't trust it. Make sure you've read this page on KingsIsle Support.

Isn't it a reportable offence to claim to be a KI employee or associated with Ki in anyway?

I'm glad to hear that it isn't true that the Gift option is leaving because I occasionally like to extend a gift to my in game friends....but that being said, you would not believe how flooded the Spiral has become with flat out demands/requests for gifts from random players. I was in Avery's court the other day moving around gear from my bank in the bunkhouse & then running over to the Free Trader to sell some of it. It was pretty crazy how so many players out there seem to not have a lot of etiquette or respect for their fellow pirates. It's almost as if some just hang out waiting to heckle players for Gifts.

I couldn't believe how many times I heard things like- "Dude, I bet you have a lot Crowns, get me something", "Come on help me out, I need so-an-so from the Crown Shop", "I just ran out of Crowns and it's my birthday", "Why want you gift me?", "Can you buy me something and then I'll stop asking" or just simply "Gift me!". And these were just players throwing out chats & not talking directly to a specific player.

I don't mind helping others out all & I consider myself to be pretty generous, but it seems that there has become an overabundance of demands without consideration for the fact that other players with Crowns may have had to work very hard to earn those Crowns- someone surely did. You also get those players that ask for in game help because they say they're stuck & have tried so many times. It appears that they truly just want a helping hand but sure enough, once you get in a dungeon with them the begging/demanding starts up.

So, my point is- let's all show a little respect for each other. If someone wants to gift a friend whom maybe has helped them out or just been a good buddy in the Spiral- then they will on their own accord. It is pretty disrespectful to go around demanding gifts from other players without giving any thought to the other player.

Yes we are pirates, but it doesn't mean that we can't still show a little courtesy to one another.

ValkoorTheVictorio... on Jun 30, 2014 wrote:

I'm glad to hear that it isn't true that the Gift option is leaving because I occasionally like to extend a gift to my in game friends....but that being said, you would not believe how flooded the Spiral has become with flat out demands/requests for gifts from random players. I was in Avery's court the other day moving around gear from my bank in the bunkhouse & then running over to the Free Trader to sell some of it. It was pretty crazy how so many players out there seem to not have a lot of etiquette or respect for their fellow pirates. It's almost as if some just hang out waiting to heckle players for Gifts.

I couldn't believe how many times I heard things like- "Dude, I bet you have a lot Crowns, get me something", "Come on help me out, I need so-an-so from the Crown Shop", "I just ran out of Crowns and it's my birthday", "Why want you gift me?", "Can you buy me something and then I'll stop asking" or just simply "Gift me!". And these were just players throwing out chats & not talking directly to a specific player.

I don't mind helping others out all & I consider myself to be pretty generous, but it seems that there has become an overabundance of demands without consideration for the fact that other players with Crowns may have had to work very hard to earn those Crowns- someone surely did. You also get those players that ask for in game help because they say they're stuck & have tried so many times. It appears that they truly just want a helping hand but sure enough, once you get in a dungeon with them the begging/demanding starts up.

So, my point is- let's all show a little respect for each other. If someone wants to gift a friend whom maybe has helped them out or just been a good buddy in the Spiral- then they will on their own accord. It is pretty disrespectful to go around demanding gifts from other players without giving any thought to the other player.

Yes we are pirates, but it doesn't mean that we can't still show a little courtesy to one another.

It is the # 1 way to lose my friendship to ask me if I have crowns, or will I gift them; within 10 minutes or less of getting my yar of friendship! Who wants to be used like that? I'm not so lacking in friends that I need to buy one, either!

ValkoorTheVictorio... on Jul 2, 2014 wrote:

I hear you, any that appear to be the using type- must make a swift farewell from my friends list. And I agree that there is no need to "buy friends", especially online ones. I too have met and friended a whooooole lot of great pirates. I only gift to ones that I know don't get a chance to procure Crowns of their own, and only occasionally. Sometimes just helping someone out (even in a game) can be it's own reward.

Like you, I absolutely don't use Crowns as a means of "buying a friend". Sometimes though, it is just.....well.....nice to be nice for no particular reason and with no ulterior motives. If you are fortunate enough to have the means to have a bunch of Crowns, why not occasionally share with those that may not be as lucky as you are and are your true in-game friends. But, absolutely only to those that are on your friends list because they are actually friends.

There's more than enough greed and selfishness in the world today, so just little ways of giving can at least help try to even things out a bit....even in a virtual world. Sometimes gifting can just be a way to show appreciation for others. Like the times I have gifted at the Marauder pirates, it was just a way to say "Thank you" for coming, for showing support of a fellow Marauder and for just being great members of the P101 Community.

Yep, any who have shown that they are there to try and take advantage or to demand/request gifts, surely must walk the plank!

Yes, a friend on my list asked for a gift last year, it was during a special offer and it wasn't very expensive, so I did it. He was appreciative. I have also gifted a friend for coming to my rescue in the Hydra cave, usually an item like class furniture or a tribal pack.

ValkoorTheVictorio... on Jul 2, 2014 wrote:

I hear you, any that appear to be the using type- must make a swift farewell from my friends list. And I agree that there is no need to "buy friends", especially online ones. I too have met and friended a whooooole lot of great pirates. I only gift to ones that I know don't get a chance to procure Crowns of their own, and only occasionally. Sometimes just helping someone out (even in a game) can be it's own reward.

Like you, I absolutely don't use Crowns as a means of "buying a friend". Sometimes though, it is just.....well.....nice to be nice for no particular reason and with no ulterior motives. If you are fortunate enough to have the means to have a bunch of Crowns, why not occasionally share with those that may not be as lucky as you are and are your true in-game friends. But, absolutely only to those that are on your friends list because they are actually friends.

There's more than enough greed and selfishness in the world today, so just little ways of giving can at least help try to even things out a bit....even in a virtual world. Sometimes gifting can just be a way to show appreciation for others. Like the times I have gifted at the Marauder pirates, it was just a way to say "Thank you" for coming, for showing support of a fellow Marauder and for just being great members of the P101 Community.

Yep, any who have shown that they are there to try and take advantage or to demand/request gifts, surely must walk the plank!

Very well said, Valkoor.

Since I have both the tiger and the lion mounts (which I purchased for gold!) on Wizard101, many people friend me and ask for gifts. I am now to the point where friend requests are blocked on both Wizard101 and Pirate101 so I do not have a bunch of begging friends! My only exception for friends is if I know them in real life, or a person proves that they are not going to beg for Crown items and they are willing to help me out in the game.

MistyDragon13 on Jul 7, 2014 wrote:

Very well said, Valkoor.

Since I have both the tiger and the lion mounts (which I purchased for gold!) on Wizard101, many people friend me and ask for gifts. I am now to the point where friend requests are blocked on both Wizard101 and Pirate101 so I do not have a bunch of begging friends! My only exception for friends is if I know them in real life, or a person proves that they are not going to beg for Crown items and they are willing to help me out in the game.

I don't even accept random friend requests simply because of this issue. I do my level best to say out of Avery because that's where most pirates and most beggars are hanging out. I do not love being popped back into Avery every time I do a practice pet sparring match and about every third time I morph pets.

ValkoorTheVictorio... on Jul 8, 2014 wrote:

Thank you.

I can certainly understand the feeling of needing to block new friend requests. I was hoping not to have to go that route so that I could extend a hand to other "new", random pirates out there, but I can't deny that it has not been tempting to do so with the most recent barrages of demands/requests for gifts. I'll still remain open to accepting newer, "unknown" friends (although I think I am about full anyways) and will just have to give them a chance until they prove they are not the using type. If needed, I will have to remove them individually and give someone else a chance. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt, but will absolutely keep a keen eye on new friends and their possible intentions.

Oh, and I have never really played Wizard101, but those mounts sound pretty incredible...now I know just who to try to find to friend if I ever do decide to play........care to turn friend requests back on and do some gifting?I kid, I kid, of course!....

Hahaha! Well, if you do decide to play Wizard101 I'll make an exception and friend ya! I always like to help out other Wizards when I can.

The Hoodoo Master on Jun 30, 2014 wrote:

I am not not not a Kingsisle employee(though,I am determined to get every badge in-game, even the kingsisle support,one.That's going to be hard), but here's a reason to tell you why the story wouldn't make sense if we were to go through that stormgate.

Notice how every marleybonean privateer has a violet windstone,yet we have to rob the heavily guarded fort Basset to get the yellow windstone?Windstones are an ancient finite commodity in the Spiral.They produce an artificial atmosphere( and a bunch if other stuff) to keep the ship safe in inter-world voids( places with no air).They work based on the colors of a rainbow.A violet windstone,opens stormgates that require a violet windstone.An indigo windstone opens stormgates that require indigo windstones AND stormgates that require a violet windstone.A red windstone would keep you safe through virtually any stormgate!As such they are probably rare,one of a kind,expensive...so odds are you won't get your hands on one!And why would Blind Mew take away the plot device of having you collect windstones?

Hope that helps,and as always,thank you One Eyed Jack for taking the tine to read this,and to post it.

I don't think that's exactly how windstones work, regarding to which stormgates they open. Violet windstones can only open violet stormgates, indigo windstones can only open indigo stormgates, etc. Only one windstone is capable of opening a specific stormgate and once we collect a windstone, we keep it forever; so we'd be using our indigo windstone to get to Valencia but we'd still be using our violet windstone to get to Monquista. A red windstone would still only open one or two specific stormgates and probably wouldn't be any more rare than any other winstone. Blind Mew definitely can keep us on the lookout, possibly infinitely, for more windstones wherever the windlanes take us. The only windstone I think will be the most extremely rare will be the one that takes us to El Dorodo, but even that windstone would only take us through that one stormgate.

I don't understand why players beg for gifts in the first place. Are they unaware what a gift actually is, that is, something given freely, without coersion? To ask for one kinda negates the term "gift", does it not?

I would unfriend any player who asked for a gift.

MistyDragon13 on Jun 29, 2014 wrote:

I was in Avery's Court yesterday when a max-level Privateer made an unusual announcement. He said 'KI is getting rid of the gift button due to the high density of beggars'. I asked him how he knew this, and he said that his uncle works for KI.

He went on to say that Polaris is coming out soon! He said that the next Windstone would be red, and that we would use it to enter Valencia from the Port Regal Stormgate.

I don't know if any of this is true, can someone give a yes or no on this? I am very confused and am wondering if it was just made up.

What the flipping heck??? Lies, lies lies lies. Don't listen to that guy lol he is a liar