DF zombies.

[Ashkendor]

You have to understand that you are forced to run these damn dungeons for everything multiple times; furthermore any time you are talking in dungeons is time wasted not moving further in the dungeon, and also you will probably die if you are not dodging stuff.

And that keeps you from saying hello during the loading screen and thanks or goodbye once the instance ends? Personally, the only thing that keeps me sane during the relic grind (working on my second Zodiac weapon now) is talking to my fellow players. When I greet the party, usually I get at least 1-2 replies, which is nice. Sometimes I get none which leaves me feeling sort of awkward. I'm in Mumble for the majority of the time talking with people in my static/FC, but there's still something nice about chatting a little bit with the people I'm with. Yeah, we're probably from different servers but I wouldn't know that unless I asked. I always greet the party at the beginning of the dungeon and say thanks at the end at the very least. If people seem inclined to talk in between, I'm more than happy to chat. You never know, you may run into those people again in DF (it's happened to me before).

I've been playing this game since release and so far ran probably over 1000 runs in df. Long ago I used to say hello, bye and other things to keep up a conversation. But you know, after 1000 runs I just don't bother anymore. I don't even look at their names. To me they are just NPCs, not real players. There is no real interaction or teamwork required in dungeons. The tanks pull mobs, healers heal, dps burn stuff. Everyone knows the dungeon and how to do their job. It's just the way the game is designed.

This is profoundly sad to me.