So... what is CPK?

Chaotic Player Killing rooms (dubbed CPK) are red rooms in which when a player dies, any worn equipment or items in his/her inventory that are not flagged nouncurse have a chance to be left behind in the corpse. While CPK can be a scary thing, it's a natural part of what makes Materia Magica challenging, exciting and fun. At first glance, it seems like losing one's equipment and items in a CPK death is a terrible thing... and while it certainly stinks to lose items, keep in mind that without the CPK challenge, this game would get old, boring and way too easy quickly. If everyone could run around in their best gear, with their best items, all the time without a care in the world much of the challenge would be stripped from the game.

Don't be scared of CPK - just play smart... and remember, this only a game!

Is Playing in CPK inevitable?

Playing MM in CPK provides a unique opportunity for players to have to think carefully about what they're doing. If you play smart, and develop tactics or methods to surviving (or even being the aggressor) in CPK, the game can take on a whole new life that is otherwise mundane. Beginning at around level 180, questing does start to require players to venture into or through certain CPK rooms. Higher levels are asked to venture into CPK more often, but certainly not in every quest. Arguably, the vast majority of boss kills and runs are performed in CPK rooms - making killing bosses challenging, rewarding and exciting part of the game. Typically, quests and runs that have elements of CPK will yield high rewards, so you're preparation is not done in vain!

Why do people CPK?

Many players enjoy the challenge and thrill of CPK'ing others, or simply playing in CPK areas. It provides a break from the monotony of questing and doing runs. Many players use PK as a relief from the daily activities that we all perform, particularly for Archons and those of us who have been playing MM for a long time. Doing the same thing day in and day out gets boring - PK is a good alternative to liven up the game, and is in fact one of the aspects of this game that keeps players around for so long. Many people only play MM purely to PK. It's a natural part of the game, and an important element that keeps things exciting and challenging.

Why do high level players CPK low level players?

Hell, every story needs a villain, right? Only in MM, most PKers aren't really villains - they're typically nice people who enjoy the thrill of the hunt. Often times low level players stumble into CPK without taking precautions, so high level players will CPK lowbies in the hope that he/she might have something valuable out in their inventory (such as a ring of spell turning, or a good spell book). 1st and 2nd classers also do not have trunks, and therefore often carry all of their belongings with them (see our Trunk Guidelines page for more info.) Many high level PKers avoid pk'ing lowbies; should an Archon kill too many low level characters, they will become an outlaw and have to deal with angry, aggressive Enforcers in townes. However, in CPK most PKers will go for it because of that chance that the person is carrying something of value. Many high level CPKers will return standard low level gear if you ask nicely. Avoid getting CPK'd at a low level by not wearing anything of value in your daily game play.

How do I avoid CPK?

You don't. It's a natural part of this game, and something that every player needs to learn how to navigate in, through and around. Play smart and be tactful - that's part of the fun of this game, anyway!

How can I prevent myself from losing items in CPK?

All characters are immune to CPK up until level 45. At that point, it's fair game. Many of the game's higher level CPK areas are level restricted, such New Kolvir or the CPK down in Mandrake Woods where the fey pharmacist hides. These areas open up as you level up, starting during 2nd class.

Lockers: Keep your valuables in a locker. Unless you are using your bag of tricks, keep it lockered at all times. If you know you will be in or near CPK, locker the bag and all other valuables, such as rocking horses, carpets, brooms, spellbooks, rings of spell turning, old school items, etc. If you have a trunk, you can access your Rune locker anywhere.
Pouches: Consider purchasing a magical belt pouch for 50 reward units. This item is CPK proof, and will hold up to 50 items or 15 stones. It expires every year and a half.
Trunks: Holds 250 items, up to 54 stones and is CPK proof. Starting at level 120, begin questing in Maldra Keep. At level 121, you can purchase a Vandemaar's trunk from Lord Maldra, should he have one available. See our Trunk Guidelines page for more info about trunks.

Are some items CPK proof?

Yes, any item that has the nouncurse, nodrop flags on it will NOT drop in your corpse should you die in CPK. Some common items that have these flags include: magical belt pouches, trunks, a violin (quest item), palladium wing armor (quest item), a holly wand (quest item), etc. If you're unsure about an item, LOOK at it while it is IDENTIFIED and read the item's flags.

Quest Violin flags - the nouncurse, nodrop attributes means this item will NOT drop in CPK:

This level 185 item has the attributes: identified nodrop insulated wont-fuse nouncurse unbreakable nodecay nochange no-dispel

A Bracelet of Elements flags - notice the lack of any nouncurse, nodrop flags meaning this item MAY DROP in CPK:

This level 235 item has the attributes: identified no-auction insulated wont-fuse will-float

So I'm in CPK... How do I get out?

You walk back out the way you came... Unfortunately, you cannot word of recall, clan gohall or recall home from a CPK room. Take precautions before moving from the room, be sure to look before you walk.

I got CPK'd, What do I do?

It happens to all of us at least once, either by a NPC or a player. Whatever happened, avoid panicking and remain calm. The death will actually benefit you if you treat it as a learning experience, something you can gain knowledge from. Avoid trash talking on pktalk, or complaining, whining or otherwise badgering the player who CPK'd you. More often than not, if you're calm, cool and collected about your CPK death, the perpetrator will be respectable towards you in return. Your options include: looting yourself, asking your clan/alliance members to help you loot, walking away, or talking to the person who killed you and either offering to purchase items back or asking politely if he/she will return anything.

Some Common Misconceptions About CPK

Spooking: you cannot be spooked into a CPK room. To enter CPK, you must do so yourself. This means that you either walk in, your formation leader walks your form in, or flee into the room on your end.
Formations: If you were formed with a person within the same zone, and that person did not leave the zone for only the previous 30 minutes, that person cannot legally CPK you. However, if the person leaves the zone, and then returns to it, they can legally CPK you. If they don't follow these rules, report it to a guide or immortal, and log the event. As a general rule, always be careful in CPK.
All PKers CPK: No, many PKers do not CPK - however, just because they don't have a prior history doesn't mean they won't start... always be wary of someone whom you do not know.
All CPKers Are Evil, Vile People! Wrong - this is a stereotype. While there are jerks out there, MOST CPKers simply enjoy the thrill of hunting moving, intelligent targets. They have fun trying to anticipate your next move, deducing what your actions may be, what quest you are on, and what you are doing in an area. While the Immortals have developed advanced NPCs, no NPC equates to a moving, living, thinking target. It can even be fun trying to outmaneuver the aggressor right back, and watching them waste their time when you outwit them! CPK'ing is the game's most challenging activity, with the potential for incredible rewards or losses.
All Archons PK: Despite commonly held low-level misconceptions, most Archons are actually good people. Most Archons don't PK low level characters, and not every Archon partakes in PK. That being said, don't trust anyone you don't know! ^.^
"I'll Never be Good Enough to CPK" False - most CPKers use standard, common gear sets while CPK'ing other players. You might be surprised at the junky gear that some of the best players CPK with. Once you max your vitals, and get a solid CPK gear set built, you too can partake in the thrill of hunting others in CPK. It just takes practice, knowing the strengths and limitations of your character, sharp reaction speed, and above all, nerves of steel!

GENERAL TIPS FOR CPK

RULE NUMBER ONE: DO NOT FLEE Fleeing is commonly our first instinct when we get attacked in PK. But, unless you are absolutely positive that you know exactly where you are and that you are far, far away from any CPK, rule number one in PK is DO NOT FLEE. Should you get blind or panic, and then flee out of the fight, you might find yourself fleeing into a CPK room. This is a very common mistake in places like Maldra Keep, particularly west of Lord Maldra (there is a hidden CPK north of Lady Maldra.) Resist the urge, and don't flee! This mistake gets lowbies caught all the time.

TURN WIMPY OFF If you have not done so already, enter this command: WIMPY 0 <-- this is a MUST! Wimpy sounds like a great idea, but it's really not. If you keep wimpy on, you might find yourself fleeing uncontrollably into a CPK room nearby!

CARRY CURE BLIND POTIONS If you know you're heading into CPK, we advise carrying some cure blind potions. Many CPKers will either cast silence on you, or cast Anti-Magic Sphere, making it so that you cannot cure blind yourself. Once they blind you, you cannot trunk any of your items, forcing all of your equipped and inventory items to be subject to dropping in CPK. Silencing then blinding is the most common CPKer tactic.

ALWAYS CHECK YOUR GEAR!! Every player needs a standard, daily wear & tear gear set. It's easy to forget, get lazy or even get a bit cocky before going into CPK... but if you don't want to lose anything expensive or rare, then don't wear it when going into CPK! Simple as that. See our Level 240 And 241 Gear Guide for some ideas on building a CPK gear set.

LOOK BEFORE YOU LEAP! "But I didn't know it was CPK!" If you are relatively new to an area, move slowly. Avoid spamming commands or directions. Look into a room before you move into it, especially if you are unsure about CPK being present. The rooms might have a trap in it, such as circle of fire or quicksand, or there could be a room shield nearby blocking your escape. Be careful, not careless. EX: look west <-- it seems tedious, but it can be a life saving tactic.

ROOM SHIELD: an area effect spell that hides those underneath it from WHERE, blocks any NPCs and PCs from passing through the Room Shield wall.

Featureless White Room - N - (-------------------------------------------------) W <---(M)---> E WARNING: You are in a LAWFUL PLAYER KILLING room. - - - Surrounding the area is a shimmering shield, distorting everything you see.

WHEN ATTEMPTING TO MOVE INTO A ROOM SHIELDED ROOM:

You attempt to move east, but a shimmering force blocks your passage.

QUICKSAND: an area effect spell that acts similarly to snare, makes it difficult but not impossible to leave the room.

Featureless White Room - N - (-------------------------------------------------) W <---(M)---> E WARNING: You are in a LAWFUL PLAYER KILLING room. - - - You are mired in an unpleasant greenish-yellow mass of mud and stones.

You are restrained from moving to the east by a sludgy tendril of mud!

CIRCLE OF FIRE: an area effect spell that will show anyone sneaking through a room, scorches players doing a mild amount of damage (can be life-threatening to low level players), chance to blind a player who passes into/through the room

Featureless White Room NW - - (-------------------------------------------------) W <---(M)---> - WARNING: You are in a LAWFUL PLAYER KILLING room. - - - Surrounding the area is an intense wall of flames, smoking and sparking.

You pass through a wall of intense flames, scorching yourself!

CIRCLE OF THORNS: An area effect spell that shows anyone sneaking into/out of the room, it also deals damage to those who enter/exit the room, as well as a chance to poison them.

Featureless White Room - N - (-------------------------------------------------) W <---(M)---> E WARNING: You are in a LAWFUL PLAYER KILLING room. - - - Surrounding the area are thorny bramble bushes about four feet in height.

You pass roughly through the wall of sharp thorns, scratching yourself! You feel poison coursing through your veins.

GAME SETTINGS If you plan on venturing into a new area, try: set show-exits on and set show-color-alternatives on so that you can see if a room next to you is LPK, NPK or CPK. This setting can be helpful for exploring new places.

READ A MAP Having a map open for a difficult, PK, or unfamiliar area prior to entering can save you if you get caught in a difficult situation. Places like New Kolvir, Hellbent and Maldra Keep are good examples of areas where an already open map can be a real life saver. Access our database of maps here: Maps

CHECK YOUR INVENTORY! Many people make the mistake of leaving something out in their inventory, such a bag of tricks, when they go into CPK. Avoid this silly mistake by getting in the habit of checking and double-checking your inventory prior to moving into PK areas.

COLLECTIBLES Be careful not to keep random plates, plushies or stamps in your inventory outside of their respectable containers (stampbook, toy box, armoire), as when you attempt to "trunk all" your no-container collectible items will prevent you from trunking all items in your inventory!

DETECT INVISIBILITY: Be sure to wear detect invisibility when trunking items, in case the item is invisible! If you have a "trunk all" alias, make sure you keep your detect invis item on last, so that expensive items such as symbols, yeti leggings and souls don't get left behind in your corpse!

USE NOTIFY Ask your friends who some of the common CPKers are, and place them onto your NOTIFY. Always check your notify list for Active CPKers prior to moving into a PK zone. Be forewarned, some players try to feign being idle, so if a player is only idle for a few minutes, be cautious of where that person may be idling at.

TRACKING Using tracking is a great way to check to see if someone is in your immediate area. After checking all relevant WHO zones, try to track for potential threats. Be careful though - you will not be able to track someone who is hiding under a Room Shield, or in a no-track flagged room (some do exist in the game). It can also be difficult for players separated by a large level difference to track a player much higher than themselves, so try tracking numerous times in a couple of different rooms.

WORD OF RECALL Got snared? Trapped in quicksand? If you are not priest, carry word of recall scrolls in your trunk and create an alias to: get textured trunk; wear textured; use textured to quickly recall, even while you're webbed or quicksanded. Note: you cannot recall while cursed, from a no-recall room, or after an NPC or player attacks you. Additionally, this only works in NPK; you cannot recall, clan gohall or word of recall from a CPK room - the CPK floors of the Proving Grounds are the only exception to this rule.

RECALL LIST Check your recall list, and know where you are recalling to before you do so in order to avoid a sticky situation.

FLYING OVER SNARES If you drop and sit on a broom, carpet or rocking horse, you can successfully "fly over" any rooms that might be snared. Be careful though, don't fly straight into a CPK room... only do this is you're positive you know what you're doing, and where you will wind up!

NEW KOLVIR CRICKETS When entering New Kolvir, there are several NPC Crickets in the entrance hall. These mobs will aggro you if you are not invisible. You cannot flee from the crickets, and they hit pretty hard on low level characters. When venturing into NK, be sure you have multiple sources of invisibility and calm so that you can exit the area, even if you get CPK'd. Note: all of NK is no-recall, the first room is no-trap (no snare, so do your tracking check in that room) and the SAFE room will boot you out into CPK after 15 minutes!

KNAVES Knaves have the ability to disguise their who and where location. Be sure to enter the command "who nosocial" and scan the list for anyone with a ???? next to their name. That person may be lurking in or nearby your area, and will not be visible on "where" or "who <area>".

Know where you are, and who is near you Prior to moving into CPK, be sure to check the WHO area for that zone, as well as all of the WHO zones that are attached or near by. For example, for CPK in the Tower of Art, I check who tower, who wilds, and who pkable nosocial... I monitor who wilds and who tower while inside the tower to keep an eye out for people. Always look into a CPK room before you enter it to check for area effect spells such as circle of fire, which can blind you, or quicksand, which can trap you.

 If you're unsure what who area you are in, or nearby, check out our Zones sorted by who list locations guide.

WHERE vs WHO

The commands "where" and "who" are quite different, and cannot be used in the other's place. Using the "where" command as your sole method for checking the area for other players is NOT a wise move for the following reasons:

A person who is using the command hide (aka "hiding") will not be visible on WHERE.
If a person casts a room shield in a room, and stays in that room, (see: help room shield) that shield will block them from appearing on WHERE. Note: the luminous egg item, called a pulsar, can grant a person the skill who does not otherwise get access to the spell Room Shield; therefore, we cannot assume that because a person is not a wizard or ranger, they don't have access to a room shield.
Any person who is shape shifted will not appear on WHERE.
If you lack detect invisibility, anyone who is Invisible will not appear on WHERE.
A Knave may appear sometimes on where as ????, but might also be completely hidden from view - this depends on checks and saves for your player compared to that person.

Therefore, use a full combination of the two commands WHERE and WHO, along with attempting to TRACK suspects within your area and the various WHO <AREA> with its sorting features to scan for potential danger in your immediate and nearby areas.

For Sight-Impaired Players

Use sound triggers that alert you to tells, form talks and even nearby CPK rooms. Always look into a room before you walk into it when you're in an unfamiliar area, and allow your reader time to catch up before moving forward. Avoid idling in PK, especially in Maldra Keep, and never flee from a PK, you could find yourself in a CPK room suddenly!

Playing MM In CPK