PK Mode

PK Mode is the system Vortex Legends uses to settle competition over field MVPs. Instead of letting the first party that arrives tag the boss without opposition, an MvP map turns into contested ground: only players who have declared themselves as competitors can hurt the boss, and those same players can be fought by anyone else who has done the same.

MvP maps

A map becomes an MvP map while an MVP boss is alive on it. Every player standing on that map receives the MvP Map status icon, which marks the special rules described on this page as active. The icon is informative: it applies no penalty to your character.

When the MVP is defeated, the map stops being an MvP map until the boss respawns. The status icon is removed from everyone on the map, the list of competitors is cleared, and player versus player combat is no longer possible there.

Turning PK Mode on and off

PK Mode is controlled with the @pk command, which toggles it.

Action	Where it is allowed
Enable PK Mode	Almost any map. It cannot be enabled on PvP arenas, Battleground maps, WoE and GvG maps, or the Training Room.
Disable PK Mode	Only inside a town.

PK Mode always starts disabled when you log in, so relogging turns it off. That is not a way to escape the rules: if you return to an MvP map where you were already competing, the system recognises you and switches PK Mode back on.

PK Mode is also switched off automatically when you enter a PvP, GvG, WoE, Battleground or Training Room map, when you join a Battleground queue, and when your character goes idle and enters AFK state in a town. Characters do not go AFK on MvP maps.

Recognising a PK player

A character with PK Mode active carries a pair of swords floating above the head, visible to everyone. On an MvP map the mouse cursor also switches to the attack cursor, the same one used in free PvP zones.

While PK Mode is active, automatic target lock is disabled for players. To attack another character you must hold Shift while clicking, or use the /ns command. This prevents accidental attacks on allies during a boss fight.

Damaging the MVP

On an MvP map, a player without PK Mode active cannot damage the MVP at all. Attacks and skills resolve normally on screen but deal no damage to the boss.

Damage dealt by your homunculus, or by creatures you summoned, counts as your own damage and follows your own PK state.

Damaging the MVP with PK Mode active registers you as a competitor on that map. The map keeps that record for as long as the MVP is alive, which is what lets the system restore your PK Mode after you leave and come back or relog.

Automatic activation

Some actions declare you as a competitor even if you did not use the command:

Situation	Result
The MVP attacks you while your PK Mode is off	PK Mode is switched on and you are registered as a competitor on that map.
You land a support skill on a player who has PK Mode active	You are considered to be helping in the competition, so your PK Mode is switched on.
Your song or dance affects a player who has PK Mode active	Same as above: performing support for a competitor switches your own PK Mode on.
You return to an MvP map where you were already registered as a competitor	PK Mode is switched back on, whether you left the map, disabled it, or relogged.

Player versus player rules

Fighting another character requires all of the following:

Both of you are on an MvP map whose MVP is still alive.
Both of you have PK Mode active. If either side has it off, no damage is possible in either direction.
You are not in the same party. Party members can never attack each other under these rules.

Outside MvP maps, PK Mode grants nothing: you cannot attack other players on a regular map even if both of you have it active. Dying on an MvP map carries the ordinary death penalty, the same as dying to a monster anywhere else.

Dispell follows the same restriction. On an MvP map it only affects another player when both sides have PK Mode active, or when the target is a party member.

Commands

Command	Action
`@pk`	Toggles PK Mode. Enabling works on almost any map; disabling only works in a town.