[Chaos]

Buckle up kids; this is going to be a long one.

When it comes down to it, what Dev or the GMs say are the rules. Below are simply guidelines that will help you avoid trouble.

People really need to remember this; Dev can certainly bring the hammer down on whatever I do, but otherwise, the rules are just a pamphlet of what you can expect, and not there to shackle me like you seem to think they are. Not phrasing yourself like you can command the guard about it would also help.

Additionally, If you believe there's something stupid going on with the Guard, you should be contacting me or Sly about it, instead of whining everywhere else.

Anyways, as for your topic:

1. 'Oh I'm outside of a town, so the guards can't touch me at all here' isn't correct. The Badlands Arena has guards around due to the high traffic and a number of incidents that occurred there. The Nameless Shrine definitely has guard presence since Fort Ajrav (read: the current, player house-based jail) is located there. The forest separating Cellsvich from the rest of the continent has the occasional guard due to people living there, as well as a certain incident. The roads connecting the various settlements of Sigrogana have guards patrolling them here and there. If you are spotted in any of these areas, backup can and will happen. If you wanted to be safe from the guards, you would be far enough out of the way, somewhere that no one could see you if you were quiet/stealthy enough (I.e. A room in an Inn) in a dungeon or locked up in a house. (Chaturanga and Oniga have little else besides the main cities. Lispool has the Hyoyains, which are apparently threatening enough to most)

For the record, I have not seen any situations where this seems to be contradicted, beyond the Law's End incident. If anyone has evidence to the contrary, please contact me and we'll see what's up.

2. Ideally, Guards would be around in pairs, so that if one was caught in trouble, the other would be capable of either assisting them or getting backup. However, unless the guards were all around at the same times (which wouldn't be a good idea), it's a very inconsistent plan. In light of this, there's a system used by the Guards that involves LaplaceNET requests. (I've mentioned before that me and Sly monitor this to prevent people from doing it wrong; the Law's End incident was a issue that I already spelled out in said topic, yes, but regardless) There's also the guard presence that would have to be accounted for where due. Not everyone can be on SL2 at the same time.

3. Town-to-Town distance.... The Mage's Guild pretty much confirmed that they work with the law.
Criminals trying to use their facilities? They sell you out in the blink of an eye.
Authorities want the portals shut down? They'll do it.
Guards need to get from Cellsvich to Dormeho quick? The line can wait.

Now, if they had to run to the middle of the road from the Arena to Dormeho? It'll take a while; one guard might show up in time unless it's a very lengthy fight.
Old Iron Mines? There's a little distance from Tannis to the Mines.
Dungeons? Not happening.
Law's End? Out of the question.

4. I'm quite aware there's a good bit about how guards react that isn't realistic. While distance from certain areas is a problem, realize that you're trying to put Guards in a completely different time frame. Your fight happens in what should ICly be minutes? If a guard is alerted at the start, are you assuming it takes them a minute to take five steps? No, in an IC minute, if the Guard in Cellsvich was just alerted about a fight in Dormeho, they would be over there and looking for the fight by the time that minute is over.

The main point about avoiding the Guards isn't how long it takes to get from Point A to Point B; it's not letting the Guards know to begin with. If you're fighting out in the open in Dormeho, you shouldn't be expecting guards to not show up. For gods sakes, the place is loaded with them due to the Black Beasts; someone would at least hear the public beatings!

tl;dr The guards are restricted, yes, but not as restricted as you think. Also drop the attitude.

P.S. If anyone has any questions, please contact me.