I do not like the 'I'm an Evil Character, so I can do stuff against the rules' line of argument, because I think it is silly and immature. Going agains the rules does not make you evil, it makes you stupid, and your experience in WoD extremely short-lived. When I am 'evil' my characters simply have a moral outlook beyond the 'I am heroic' and every variant thereof.
I can understand that people don't like evil characters, because they don't trust them. You can never trust evil characters, because they're never understood. It's a sort of the defining point when meeting up with a villain.
You mentioned that playing an evil character involves not hurting or offending anyone. Obviously, at least to some degree, someone is going to be offended by the evil character's actions. While you don't have to be uncharismatic to be evil (think of con artists, who you really like until they run off with all your money) you definately end up upsetting someones sense of values.
I'd like to think, though, that people could diferentiate between characterisation and the real world. I am happy to have Marius called all manner of things and for Marius to be upset. But I, as a player, am not Evil, and would not like to be called thus. I play Marius because as I was in WoD, I found that with no PvP, I could quite happily be evil, provide the proverbial 'brooding, evil char who is questionably evil and does good things from time to time' into a world that seemed to picture-perfect.
Now, I understand that some might read that as 'I made Marius to wreck WoD'. I didn't. I made him to enhance it, to give it the flavour it was missing. What I think is important is that people define evil too easily and too simply, making it a loose net of all the values that [people] don't like.
Marius, if you put him in a basket of Values, is Neutral. He doesn't care about other people, he only cares about himself. He wouldn't directly harm another [player], but he's not exactly Mr. Chivalrous.
But;
He's labelled 'Evil' because he wants to rule Britannia, and the Evil theme comes along with being 'I'm the smart Wizard behind the throne guy (this is a metaphor, don't get upset by his title) who wants to take over the world, because he thinks he's better' - which is fine by me. He'll never actually rule the world, unless by some bizarre reasoning the Seers do some sort of quest with it, but otherwise, it's a goal long lost. He's estentially the Mr. Burns of the game world; the 'tyranically evil' man who is really weak and pathetic. I mean, he gets wealth, sells treasure, helps out new people, goes on hunts, is nice to people, etc., etc.; all for the reason that it helps him 'get closer to the throne'.
I don't see why this is unacceptable. Surely Order Guards don't brand a player evil when they join the Chaos guards, and so on, so why mark a person who wants to play a character with different values?
I would say that Values are a very personal thing, and some people aren't ready to have their own put into question by someone else who is doing things contrary to their beliefs, which is fine.
It is also the reason I desire putting up a 'Role-Play section', for those who want to be nearer the buffet` of that type of interaction, rather than sitting in the 'Non-Role Play' section. Again, I emphasise that I don't want to split up the community, just give it another option.
WoD should by all means be a collective group. But that shouldn't mean everyone has to do the same thing and if you do something different, you're ruining the game. The reason we play is because it's a game, and we can be whatever we want. Some people just play for fun, but others use it as creative expression.
I can understand that people play 'evil' as a justification of doing things that are wrong. And I can see how the history of that (though I was never a part of it) would put a blemish on the evil characters trying to make 'good' in WoD. The important thing to remember though is that there is Marius, but there is a collection of a lot of other characters who I play, who are not evil. In fact, one is aiming to be a Virtue Guard! In any case, I understand that playing 'evil' is a taboo to some people, but I'd like to think that given the chance and opportunity, I could prove that I'm not out to ruin the spirit of WoD, but flourish in it.
I can't stress enough how important it is that other people have fun. I've been a role-player for some time now, and the best days you have are the ones where everyone is having fun. The same can be said about WoD.
In any case, Marius is away in the cupboard for awhile, until a time where he can be played without a blemish to his name. If anyone was personally offended by him, feel free to drop me a private message and explain why, and I'll attempt to not do what he did in the future.
In closing, I'd like to say that I'm happy in WoD, and would never do something to ruin the great community we have here. It's a very special place that I treasure, and I would hope that it continues to last well into the years.
-M