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Etiquette in Dominion Online

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Cave-o-sapien:
(After threatening to do so several times, I finally wrote down some of my thoughts on this. Let me know what you think. Feedback is appreciated).

Dominion Online Etiquetteor How to Not be Mad Online

Years ago, in a game of Carcassonne on Xbox Live, I played a city tile with a follower on it near my human opponent’s unfinished city. This is a standard move in Carcassonne – indeed it’s the whole basis of the game. Apparently he didn’t like that. In fact, he was so upset he unleashed the most profane, vulgar tirade I had ever heard directed at another human being. Over a game of Carcassonne. I was shocked, stunned. I subsequently muted all people who weren't on my friends list.

Online gaming doesn’t have to be that way. It can be as civil and courteous as face-to-face gaming1. With feedback from others, I’ve compiled here a list of dos and don’ts to hopefully help make Dominion Online a pleasant experience for all. I assume a 2-player game. Most of them apply equally well to multiplayer games.

Do Assume good faith. You've come to play a game of Dominion, and you're hoping to have a good time. In the absence of other evidence, assume that your opponent is in the same position.

Do say something at the start of the game. This doesn’t need to be a lengthy introduction, just a brief gesture that acknowledges that you are playing against another human. You can say ‘hi’, ‘gl hf’ (good luck, have fun!) or even offer an emoji handshake 🤝.

Don’t be offended if your opponent says nothing. Some people are playing on clients that don’t allow them to easily type in the chat window. Some have a limited vocabulary in your language. It’s also true that some people simply don’t like saying ‘hi’ to other people. Maybe they’re afraid of a chatty game?

Don’t chat your opponent to death if they don’t respond. Some people like chatty games, some people don’t. Try to figure this out and act accordingly.

Do let your opponent know if you need to step away for a moment. A simple ‘brb’ (‘be right back’) is almost universally understood.

Don’t try to change how quickly your opponent plays. If they are playing slowly in a deliberate attempt to force you to resign (‘slow-rolling’) then you should resign, blacklist and report them. If they are playing at a natural pace that is slower than you’d like, it’s impolite to hector them.

Do blacklist players you would rather not play against again.

Don’t whine about luck. A simple ‘ugh’ every now and then is certainly forgivable but claiming that your opponent is only winning because of unbelievable luck is not very respectful and probably a sign you should take a break.

Do acknowledge your opponent’s bad luck and your own good luck. You pulled Locusts and trashed their Overlord? “Ouch. Sorry. That’s harsh.” Be humble. Sometimes you are winning because of your unbelievable luck.

Do acknowledge the awesome or interesting things your opponent does. “Wow, good call on the second Raze!” or “That’s the best Pixie engine I’ve ever seen!” Again, not everyone likes a chatty game, but it’s a rare person that doesn’t like a compliment.

Do acknowledge your opponent at the end of the game, including when you resign. A common expression here is ‘gg’ – shorthand for ‘good game2.’ If you think your opponent played particularly well, a common shorthand is ‘wp’ for ‘well-played’.

Don’t say ‘gg’ before the end of the game unless you are going to resign immediately. In some gaming circles, ‘gg’ is interpreted as, “You’ve got this. I concede.” If you don’t follow a ‘gg’ with a resignation, your opponents may see it as taunting, poor sportsmanship, or a meta-gaming tactic3.

Do end the game quickly if you have the win in hand. Of course, you should make sure you have the win, but needlessly prolonging your turn to squeeze out a few more points is not very sporting.

1Because no one ever gets mad in person, right?
2Nothing is more awkward than complaining all game, pseudo-conceding and then winning. With your IRL gaming friends this might be an endearing foible (at least I hope so); outside the context of friendship it’s just annoying.
3There is a lot of debate about whether the winner should say ‘gg’ first, or if that is considered a form of poor sportsmanship or even taunting. Unfortunately, this can lead to a silent standoff at the end of the game where neither player says anything. Personally, I’d rather something be said, even if there’s a small chance of it being misinterpreted.

JW:
Another reason why some people are not very chatty is that they may not know much English. Hard to respond to someone chatting in English if you don’t know the language! I don’t find an opponent resigning during my turn to be a problem- if I want to see how the turn would have gone, or even the turn after that, I can continue against a bot.

Skumpy:
For the last "Don't", I feel that sometimes, it's faster to play some cards to be sure you have sufficient resources to win than it is to carefully count your hand to see if it's exactly enough for a 1 point victory. But really good overall, and it would be nice to see more players of all skill levels follow that point in particular; same as in sports, chess, etc, when the game's over, it's classy to end it quick  :)

Awaclus:

--- Quote from: Cave-o-sapien on October 31, 2017, 01:40:59 am ---Do: acknowledge your opponent at the end of the game. A common convention is for the losing player to say ‘gg’ (good game) first, and the winner to respond in kind. The winner saying ‘gg’ first is seen in some circles as taunting or poor sportsmanship, especially if it’s prior to the end of the game. If you win and your opponent says nothing, a simple ‘thanks for the game’ is fine.

--- End quote ---

However, "thanks for the game" is probably going to be interpreted as "I'm not going to play another game".

Polk5440:
Do: Blacklist players you do not want to play against again.

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