Resolutions To The Cons: A Follow-up Post To The Massivecraft Yay Or Nay Post.

[Hiddenmonkey10]

On the Massivecraft Yay or Nay post (http://forums.massivecraft.com/threads/massivecraft-yay-or-nay.21616/page-2#post-292157) I posted my views on the cons of the Massivecraft server. These cons include:
1. Growing social chasm between the two extremist sides on the server (pure-RP and pure-PvP).
2. Regalian mapping "mess".
3. Issues with lore and character creation.
4. Ease of gaining nobility.
5. Unused/unwanted PvP arenas.

These issues have varying importance to each person, yet I see them all as rather valid issues and things that need changed in order to make more of the population happy. As such, I have come up with solutions to each of the listed problems.

1. The growing chasm exists due to each side being forced to do things that they do not wish to do. Perhaps a way can exist for each side to be able to do the things enjoy doing without the worry of being forced to do something else. One of the possible solutions I have for this issue fits better as a solution to the fifth con on the server.

That being said, the solution that I have for this problem is simple. Perhaps the faction plug-in could be edited in such a way that factions could set their preference to PvP or RP. The PvP factions have PvP enabled and costs the current amount of faction power per chunk. The RP factions have PvP disabled and cost slightly more faction power per chunk, this is so the entirety of the wilderness does not become a PvP-free zone. The factions CAN change their preference. However, if they change their preference, they will not be allowed to change it back for one week, or more perhaps. Players leaving factions to join others will also still be allowed since it would be akin to a soldier leaving their homes in order to join a military and they will also be allowed to return. Factions cannot be allowed to be flagged RP and support only one side of a conflict, they can however, supply both sides as an unbiased market. This idea is still incomplete, and I am open to any possible ideas that could better complete this idea.

Another plausible solution will likely be instantly shot down, as it has so many times before, would be to remove the MCMMO plug-in entirely, or remove only the PvP skills.

2. The issue with Regalia is a simple one to fix. There are many houses, yet only about a quarter or a third of those houses can be rented out. I realize this is likely due to the Build team being either indecisive about whether or not they like the houses where they are, or it's perhaps just something that's been overlooked. My solution is to possibly quadrant the city off and work ONLY on a quadrant at a time until finished. Constantly evolving a city is pretty nice, but note that constantly evolving an area that many people use becomes taxing to the players as well as (imaginably) the build team.

3. The lore of the server is amazing, and the character applications are outstanding ways to introduce a character to the world of Aloria. However, there is a line that has been breached where character creativity is actually being hampered by the set up of the lore. Since the lore is in the middle of a rewrite, the lore can also make characters that were previously compliant, non-compliant. To some, this isn't a really big deal, but to those that took a long time to make a character that they felt was "perfect" it is both frustrating and annoying. The application to create characters also has become unnecessarily complicated. Yes, it's nice to have details about a person, but having an over abundance of details makes some players (myself included) discouraged from making new characters to play as.

My solution to the hampering of characters due to an overly-detailed lore is to possibly remove a dated timeline and make only a "cumulative" timeline, where there are no dates but only lists of events that happen in a certain logical order. The issue with character applications is to simplify it slightly by removing some of the "unnecessary" details. I, myself, am unsure of what other people consider "unnecessary," but I find that giving heights and weights and a completely detailed appearance are mostly unnecessary.

4. Nobility was once a thing that people had to strive for. It used to be based off of merit and being well-known in the community. Now, it seems like new nobles are added every day (I could be wrong, but it certainly seems that way). I actually used to strive for nobility, giving me a reason to RP more frequently. Now, with how simple it is to become a noble (or be written into an existing noble family) I no longer have a major "goal" in RP.

My suggestion is to decrease the amount of nobles that exist and make the requirements for nobility more strict. Perhaps make a requirement for nobles to have a set amount of Regals as one of the requirements.

5. The PvP arenas in the minigame hub are silent. Nobody wants to go to them since they have a more appealing form of PvP in the Faction-based PvP. The arenas have often been criticized for being too small and very unappealing to the hardcore PvP community.

If you remember from the first suggestion, I mentioned something that would be better suited for this particular issue. That certain something would be to create battlegrounds that players can create pseudo-sieges using faction walls (or perhaps faction capital cities themselves) as the battleground. Players would have a set amount of lives and once they run out, they will be teleported out of the battleground. Victory would be determined by reaching either the center of the capital, or perhaps the "home" base if you are attacking or if you are defending, victory would be achieved by burning through all of the enemy lives.


Anyways, that just about sums up all of the suggestions I have for solutions to what I see as some pretty big issues within the massivecraft community. If you have any logical comments or feedback, please leave it, I'd love to hear what everyone has to think about these suggestions. If you have better suggestions yourself, don't be afraid to post them as well! Once again, thanks for reading through these, and I will attempt to keep future posts slightly shorter than this!

 

[Sebbysc]

Insight on noble thingie bby? @Ben_2025

 

[1002713Alex]

You think not making players do what they don't want to do will lessen the gap between the two player bases, but you want to charge for nobility?

 

[Alj23]

Just going to throw this out here. The pvp'ers of this server are rash, abrasive, and harsh at times, and that's the just way we are. I've come to see RP'ers as being quite the opposite, albeit the ones that can both RP and PVP. I just personally think that both sides are so different, that it is natural for them to be distanced from each other. I don't think any amount of plugin change, rule change, or anything else will ever bring the two together, because at heart, you are either mainly a PVPer, or a RPer, and you have to choose. Sure, you can blend the two, but in most cases one takes prevalence over the other.

 

[Joshy54100]

I personally think a minigame or separate training PvP server could be made (located in the /mspawn or whatever) that allows you to customize your kit, use MassiveTraits, and uses your McMMO from the factions server (Or everyone has the same McMMO). This would make the minigames much more interesting to the PvP community in general.

On a side note: Siege. I'm 100% certain the the damage dealt and received in Siege is not even close to Vanilla, which I think is supposed to be a Vanilla PvP map. If it isn't, then pls dun bash meh

 

[1000phoenix]

My personal problem as a faction owner is the pvp side on the factions. I started my faction for an rp reason and have since been paranoid of attacks from other factions and spies that want to steal my stuff. It is for that reason I have refrained from using my faction for the purpose I made it for. Next thing is I enjoy rping. Its nice and peaceful but to be pulled away suddenly because I have to "attempt" to defend allies and my own faction against players that have trained endlessly just for the sole purpose of faction pvp is a pain. I am completly under powered because of mcmmo because I cant train it like the pvpers who use it for faction pvp because I want to rp instead of train. I agree with his faction setting idea because there is a huge gap between RPers and PVPers

 

[Deadfoe51]

I shall give my opinion on this, so sit back, and relax.

I agree with @Alj23 somewhat, as PvPers, and RPers are generally different; However I used to mix the two together, and didn't have a strong preference for either or. As time passed my opinion changed, and PvP kinda died down in my faction, and I stopped PvPing, and I now mainly RP, the most PvP I'll have is every now, and again when I decide to have a quick fight; with a friend in Aqua, or something. PvP, and Roleplay, are both different, however this server has both, and I don't feel as either side is really getting forced into anything, unless you're in a faction of course, but that can be solved, by simply ignoring the attackers who are attacking your faction, and just simply stay away from them (if you don't wish to PvP) they'll go away, do to boredom. I believe if you wish to PvP go ahead, go attack an enemy or something; if you wish to RolePlay, go ahead, go talk to the bartender at the tavern, or something(Considering that a bartender is actually there.). Mixing the two, is generally difficult, especially if they don't want to be mixed, if you do both PvP, and RP, Great, but that doesn't mean others will be like you. Just let them do their own thing, as I said.

Now, Regalia, ever changing, and such.. I believe the houses being un-rentable; is that the build team is working on other projects, in the area, and they'd like to get that finished, and make certain, that there aren't any errors, or something like that. Don't take my word for it, because as you probably know, I am not part of the build team. I also don't know the workings, of the build team, or any of the staff, for that matter.

Character applications, and lore; fun.. Now, the lore is brilliant, and lore staff, and the like, work really hard, to make top quality lore, that is interesting, unique, and suited for the players, but obviously, they're humans as well, and need to take it a step at a time. Lore staff, aren't gods, and they are not robots, they need food, water, rest, Etc.. So it is good to have patience, and be patient with them, they're working on the lore, as best they can. Now character applications, Detail is really good, because it helps understand the character better, and it is more REALISTIC. Everyone is different, and a lot of people have different shapes, sizes, skills, opinions, ETC.. So having a lot of detail, you may think it is a hassle, or is annoying, or whatever, but if you think about it, it is quite realistic; I mean if they really wanted to, they could request more detail, but generally that is up to the player, I mean, if you really wanted them to, they could request more detail, like "What color is your nose hair, and how much of it do you have?". However, they generally leave explicit detail, to the players. So in my opinion, I don't believe it to be so unnecessary, however, that is just my opinion.

Now, Nobility.. I generally don't pay too much attention to it, but I shall give my opinion. You still have to strive for it, to you it may seem easier now, because they flushed out some of the noble roleplayers, to make room for new ones, but you still need to strive for it, and it is something you really have to be interested in. You can't be like "can I haz noblez? gimme noblez noaw plz!"; They need to know you're a good roleplayer, and are ready to take up the responsibility of being a noble (or in my opinion, an arrogant snob.). If I am correct, recently they wanted to make nobility a bit more appealing to players, and the like, to spice up roleplay, or whatever. That is why some nobles died off completely, and new ones rose, to add to roleplay, and sort of, refresh noble roleplay.

Now, the arena's, and such.. I still use them, every now, and again, for a quick match with a friend, in aqua, or something. However, they've been there, and haven't really changed since I first joined the server, which was, about a year, and a month ago. However, they were quite a bit more active, back then, than they are now. I believe the reason for that, is they're too old, and have almost been forgotten, because why go to an old arena, when you could go, and raid someone's faction. However, maybe a little renovating, or something like that, could change that, and maybe add new arena's, or simply replace old ones? All I know, is that they're a bit outdated now.

That was my 'small' opinion (more like not-so-small), anyway, I hope you enjoyed, and I did put a lot of effort into it.

 

[1000phoenix]

The ideas i saw were not forcing anyone to do anything. Its to keep pvpers and rpers seperate so each can enjoy it in their own way with out the other part bothering them (although I dont know how rping can bother pvpers). These ideas in my opinion seem like good ideas.

 

[SkyDragon256]

Maybe there could be two copies of each world. One allows pvp, and the other doesn't. The pvp factions could go to the pvp version, and the rp factions could go to the non-pvp version. And when you claim land, it gets claimed in both worlds.

 

[Oxoman]

As for the point on nobility, the key recently has been the introduction of tiered nobility. This means that there are more nobles and arguably there is less of a constant quality amongst them, although I'm not convinced on the second point. The introduction of tiered nobility allowed RPers unable to attain nobility previously to become noble but in a lesser extend. We have barons, counts, dukes and lords. Becoming a duke/duchess or a lord/lady is very similar in difficulty as it was beforehand.

 

[TheTerrawr]

Maybe there could be two copies of each world. One allows pvp, and the other doesn't. The pvp factions could go to the pvp version, and the rp factions could go to the non-pvp version. And when you claim land, it gets claimed in both worlds.

Click to shrink...

Yeeeeeeeaaaaa.....no. Not at all. That would kind of kill tht entire RP/PVP vibe of the server. Being raided? Quick, to the non-PVP world!

 

[Alj23]

Being raided? Quick, to the non-PVP world!

Click to shrink...

AKA Regalia. As stated by a lot of leaders of mainly RP factions, if raided, go hang out in Regalia.

 

[TheTerrawr]

AKA Regalia. As stated by a lot of leaders of mainly RP factions, if raided, go hang out in Regalia.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, his idea would just give them more places to go hide to avoid surrender.

 

[MonMarty]

I'll reply to the individual points. I think it's good you put a lot of effort into them, but some of them may not be relevant anymore.

1. Growing social chasm between the two extremist sides on the server (pure-RP and pure-PvP).

I don't feel like this is growing or decreasing, but the gap is definitely there. I feel it's more of a problem how PVP is geared nowadays though. The general ethic of PVP is a "versus" situation over personal possessions. I personally feel a lot of the bad blood that is created during wars is because the losing party loses something of their own, instead of something they metaphysically own, but isn't really theirs. I have started working on a concept recently that could remedy this, I cannot reveal too much out of fear that I will be unable to deliver and disappoint people like with the magic plugin, but I take a lot of inspiration from Guild Wars 2 Battlegrounds.

2. Regalian mapping "mess".

The mapping mess has been a big headache for a long time. I think currently though, the end is in sight. There is only 3 areas left in Regalia with considerable world edit mess, which should be gone in a matter of small amounts of weeks. We are currently restructuring the world department, previously the "Regalia crew" existed of 3 people, we hope to triple this within a matter of 2 weeks.

3. Issues with lore and character creation.

I have to be fairly honest about this one, the character creation was set up with a "standard" in mind that in hindsight, is brutal. I had never roleplayed before taking up Massive's lore and RP department. In fact, the lore department didn't exist before I picked it up with BloodBaron, Ben_2025 and Posidem. Ulumulu was the only "lore admin" who didn't conduct himself particularly well in the role either way, so the entire thing had to be set up from the ground. I had no experience with character write up's from other servers, and was quite /shocked/ to find out other servers had such pathetic character write-up expectations.

The character write-ups reflect our view of character creation. We feel character's aren't throwaway cardboard boxes and require some thorough writing to actually make interesting. The most important factor to remember is that character applications are not mandatory. We don't have a white list and everyone is allowed to roleplay. We just elevate "extra rights" onto those who put the effort into actually writing such an application. Character write up's aren't just registering a character though. Ultimately the RP staff work not only to improve the character, but also the lore knowledge of the subject writer, and even their literary abilities. The RP staff is mostly filled with people who have a good grasp of English, and even a few college degree English majors who can help write good quality content. Character applications are more of a privilege than a burden, at least in my opinion. Character creation to me is the most fun thing before the roleplay even happens, sometimes I find character writing even more fun than role playing itself.

4. Ease of gaining nobility.

It's easy to get into a "low tier" noble family. The Ducal and Lordship families are still tightly controlled by the Rp staff. I cannot recruit Kade members without getting the RP staff to agree for example, and it's my own family and I am the lore staff leader. Even to staff, it's still hard to recruit new members. Forming new families is also quite hard, have you seen how many applications BabaManga has rejected on the thread?

5. Unused/unwanted PvP arenas.

The way I feel about unused content is as followed: If it doesn't detract from the quality of game play, there is no reason to remove it. It's quite as simple as that, just because they are unused now doesn't mean they will forever be.

 

[Suzzie]

I can agree with MonMarty's point on three, with character creation.
Before I came to Massive, I honestly /haaaaated/ writing. Hated it. [But I will admit I had a soft spot for fantasy]
But soon, after discovering Roleplay, and character creation, I took up a sudden interest. At first, my way of writing things was horrible, but thanks to Lore and RP staff, it slowly improved. Honestly, it improved my vocabulary too. I use words that I would have never used a year ago.
Character creation isn't that hard, when you put your mind and heart into it. :^D

 

[1000phoenix]

Antinico my first character was the only application i put in. and since i was rping with him before the application was finished...he died before it got accepted. So i see nothing wrong with the current application process...just dont die before being accepted

 

[da_CamelQueen]

My suggestion is to decrease the amount of nobles that exist and make the requirements for nobility more strict. Perhaps make a requirement for nobles to have a set amount of Regals as one of the requirements.

Click to shrink...

Do you even think about the people Who are good rpers, But Don't get any kind of income and are poor? JUST BECAUSE you or any other person has a lot of money, DOES NOT MEAN THE POORER PEOPLE OOC CANNOT APPLY AND BE APPROVED. I think if they made it say you have to have a certain amount of Regals to be noble, I would give up, because I can't make regals easy, I can't maintain a shop, let alone supply it, I can't draw or anything because I have a faulty scanner and no tablet. The conclusion is, People that are poor like me should not have to obtain what they can't get in order to have character of a higher rank.

 

[Hiddenmonkey10]

Thanks again to everyone who's given some insight! I'm glad that I've been able to see your opinions on this! I'm planning on making a new character soon, and hopefully I can get someone to work through the really difficult parts with me! I used to love RPing on the server and lately I've had quite a few issues IRL, including work and a load of computer issues, seeing as the first is unavoidable, I'll have to RP around work and hopefully it will work out!

 

[Hiddenmonkey10]

I shall give my opinion on this, so sit back, and relax.

I agree with @Alj23 somewhat, as PvPers, and RPers are generally different; However I used to mix the two together, and didn't have a strong preference for either or. As time passed my opinion changed, and PvP kinda died down in my faction, and I stopped PvPing, and I now mainly RP, the most PvP I'll have is every now, and again when I decide to have a quick fight; with a friend in Aqua, or something. PvP, and Roleplay, are both different, however this server has both, and I don't feel as either side is really getting forced into anything, unless you're in a faction of course, but that can be solved, by simply ignoring the attackers who are attacking your faction, and just simply stay away from them (if you don't wish to PvP) they'll go away, do to boredom. I believe if you wish to PvP go ahead, go attack an enemy or something; if you wish to RolePlay, go ahead, go talk to the bartender at the tavern, or something(Considering that a bartender is actually there.). Mixing the two, is generally difficult, especially if they don't want to be mixed, if you do both PvP, and RP, Great, but that doesn't mean others will be like you. Just let them do their own thing, as I said.

Now, Regalia, ever changing, and such.. I believe the houses being un-rentable; is that the build team is working on other projects, in the area, and they'd like to get that finished, and make certain, that there aren't any errors, or something like that. Don't take my word for it, because as you probably know, I am not part of the build team. I also don't know the workings, of the build team, or any of the staff, for that matter.

Character applications, and lore; fun.. Now, the lore is brilliant, and lore staff, and the like, work really hard, to make top quality lore, that is interesting, unique, and suited for the players, but obviously, they're humans as well, and need to take it a step at a time. Lore staff, aren't gods, and they are not robots, they need food, water, rest, Etc.. So it is good to have patience, and be patient with them, they're working on the lore, as best they can. Now character applications, Detail is really good, because it helps understand the character better, and it is more REALISTIC. Everyone is different, and a lot of people have different shapes, sizes, skills, opinions, ETC.. So having a lot of detail, you may think it is a hassle, or is annoying, or whatever, but if you think about it, it is quite realistic; I mean if they really wanted to, they could request more detail, but generally that is up to the player, I mean, if you really wanted them to, they could request more detail, like "What color is your nose hair, and how much of it do you have?". However, they generally leave explicit detail, to the players. So in my opinion, I don't believe it to be so unnecessary, however, that is just my opinion.

Now, Nobility.. I generally don't pay too much attention to it, but I shall give my opinion. You still have to strive for it, to you it may seem easier now, because they flushed out some of the noble roleplayers, to make room for new ones, but you still need to strive for it, and it is something you really have to be interested in. You can't be like "can I haz noblez? gimme noblez noaw plz!"; They need to know you're a good roleplayer, and are ready to take up the responsibility of being a noble (or in my opinion, an arrogant snob.). If I am correct, recently they wanted to make nobility a bit more appealing to players, and the like, to spice up roleplay, or whatever. That is why some nobles died off completely, and new ones rose, to add to roleplay, and sort of, refresh noble roleplay.

Now, the arena's, and such.. I still use them, every now, and again, for a quick match with a friend, in aqua, or something. However, they've been there, and haven't really changed since I first joined the server, which was, about a year, and a month ago. However, they were quite a bit more active, back then, than they are now. I believe the reason for that, is they're too old, and have almost been forgotten, because why go to an old arena, when you could go, and raid someone's faction. However, maybe a little renovating, or something like that, could change that, and maybe add new arena's, or simply replace old ones? All I know, is that they're a bit outdated now.

That was my 'small' opinion (more like not-so-small), anyway, I hope you enjoyed, and I did put a lot of effort into it.

Click to shrink...

Thanks for the insight! I'm glad you took the time to speak your mind on each of the subjects! I think of myself as mixed PvPer/RPer leaning more towards the RP side though. I like PvPing every once in a while, and once my bloodlust is sated, I go back to RPing.

 

[Hiddenmonkey10]

I'll reply to the individual points. I think it's good you put a lot of effort into them, but some of them may not be relevant anymore.

1. Growing social chasm between the two extremist sides on the server (pure-RP and pure-PvP).

I don't feel like this is growing or decreasing, but the gap is definitely there. I feel it's more of a problem how PVP is geared nowadays though. The general ethic of PVP is a "versus" situation over personal possessions. I personally feel a lot of the bad blood that is created during wars is because the losing party loses something of their own, instead of something they metaphysically own, but isn't really theirs. I have started working on a concept recently that could remedy this, I cannot reveal too much out of fear that I will be unable to deliver and disappoint people like with the magic plugin, but I take a lot of inspiration from Guild Wars 2 Battlegrounds.

2. Regalian mapping "mess".

The mapping mess has been a big headache for a long time. I think currently though, the end is in sight. There is only 3 areas left in Regalia with considerable world edit mess, which should be gone in a matter of small amounts of weeks. We are currently restructuring the world department, previously the "Regalia crew" existed of 3 people, we hope to triple this within a matter of 2 weeks.

3. Issues with lore and character creation.

I have to be fairly honest about this one, the character creation was set up with a "standard" in mind that in hindsight, is brutal. I had never roleplayed before taking up Massive's lore and RP department. In fact, the lore department didn't exist before I picked it up with BloodBaron, Ben_2025 and Posidem. Ulumulu was the only "lore admin" who didn't conduct himself particularly well in the role either way, so the entire thing had to be set up from the ground. I had no experience with character write up's from other servers, and was quite /shocked/ to find out other servers had such pathetic character write-up expectations.

The character write-ups reflect our view of character creation. We feel character's aren't throwaway cardboard boxes and require some thorough writing to actually make interesting. The most important factor to remember is that character applications are not mandatory. We don't have a white list and everyone is allowed to roleplay. We just elevate "extra rights" onto those who put the effort into actually writing such an application. Character write up's aren't just registering a character though. Ultimately the RP staff work not only to improve the character, but also the lore knowledge of the subject writer, and even their literary abilities. The RP staff is mostly filled with people who have a good grasp of English, and even a few college degree English majors who can help write good quality content. Character applications are more of a privilege than a burden, at least in my opinion. Character creation to me is the most fun thing before the roleplay even happens, sometimes I find character writing even more fun than role playing itself.

4. Ease of gaining nobility.

It's easy to get into a "low tier" noble family. The Ducal and Lordship families are still tightly controlled by the Rp staff. I cannot recruit Kade members without getting the RP staff to agree for example, and it's my own family and I am the lore staff leader. Even to staff, it's still hard to recruit new members. Forming new families is also quite hard, have you seen how many applications BabaManga has rejected on the thread?

5. Unused/unwanted PvP arenas.

The way I feel about unused content is as followed: If it doesn't detract from the quality of game play, there is no reason to remove it. It's quite as simple as that, just because they are unused now doesn't mean they will forever be.

Click to shrink...

Thanks for posting! I know that you're a really prevalent figure within both the community and staff, so your feedback is much appreciated. I'm happy to get feedback from anyone honestly, but it's nice to hear from someone who's dealt personally in each of the issues that I've seen/had.

1. I'm interested in what you have in mind for the new concept! If you can't deliver, it's no big deal, it's all about trying to do what you can in order to make things fun for everyone, right?

2. I'm really glad to hear that the issues with Regalia are close to being resolved!

3. I will be perfectly honest, I got really confused for a while since I took a mild hiatus during the entire RP rewrite, I am pretty sure that a lot of my issues are because of this! Would you have any suggestions on how to get through the tougher sections of character creation (essentially the description and keeping from contradicting the lore timeline)?

4. Thanks for clarifying the Noble situation! The "lower-tiered" nobility still seems a bit odd to me, but I suppose it's something that I have to just get over.

5. That's a very fair point! Has there been any thought in changing/adding any of the battlegrounds?

 

[Hiddenmonkey10]

Do you even think about the people Who are good rpers, But Don't get any kind of income and are poor? JUST BECAUSE you or any other person has a lot of money, DOES NOT MEAN THE POORER PEOPLE OOC CANNOT APPLY AND BE APPROVED. I think if they made it say you have to have a certain amount of Regals to be noble, I would give up, because I can't make regals easy, I can't maintain a shop, let alone supply it, I can't draw or anything because I have a faulty scanner and no tablet. The conclusion is, People that are poor like me should not have to obtain what they can't get in order to have character of a higher rank.

Click to shrink...

Lol I feel your pain as I'm poor as well on the server and I just can't draw at all! I once made a stick person and someone complemented on how nice of a dog it was.... ANYWAYS, when nobility was created, it was created with the thought that not everyone should become noble, nor should everyone WANT to be noble. I, personally, wanted to strive for nobility, since it seemed like a pretty interesting lifestyle. After talking to a lot of my noble friends, however, I quickly realized that nobility really isn't everything it's cracked out to be. I just haven't really found another end goal for my characters, which is mildly annoying honestly. Anyways, there are other ways to get a character of a higher rank than just becoming a noble, this much I know, perhaps you could have a well-liked and respected character? Or maybe you could have a super-infamous vampire or murderer or something? However, if being a noble is what you're wanting, then work for it! It shouldn't be too difficult to become a lower-tiered noble (though, I suppose it might be tougher than I had originally imagined.) and if you keep working on it, you should be able to become a higher-tiered noble with time! (I was highly doubting that actually adding a regal requirement would actually be considered by the way, I was just giving ideas)

 

[Hiddenmonkey10]

I can agree with MonMarty's point on three, with character creation.
Before I came to Massive, I honestly /haaaaated/ writing. Hated it. [But I will admit I had a soft spot for fantasy]
But soon, after discovering Roleplay, and character creation, I took up a sudden interest. At first, my way of writing things was horrible, but thanks to Lore and RP staff, it slowly improved. Honestly, it improved my vocabulary too. I use words that I would have never used a year ago.
Character creation isn't that hard, when you put your mind and heart into it. :^D

Click to shrink...

Thanks for the boost of confidence! Do you have any staff that you'd recommend to help me out?

 

[Suzzie]

Thanks for the boost of confidence! Do you have any staff that you'd recommend to help me out?

Click to shrink...

@Ryciera , she's nice [she processed my first character app. ;w;. She's also the queen of goth]. Oh and @Feykronos , the sweetest person in this galaxy.

 

[Feykronos]

Oh and @Feykronos , the sweetest person in this galaxy.

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Darn you want those cookies, don't you? :3

Would you have any suggestions on how to get through the tougher sections of character creation (essentially the description and keeping from contradicting the lore timeline)?

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For description, add as much as you think necessary. Don't search for ways to extend your writing because often it will lead to rambling. Write what you think is relavent and worst comes to worst, the person reviewing will tell you what to add in. Protip to anyone writing an application: Don't be afraid of review! It's there to improve your app, and I can guarantee whoever is reviewing you is hoping to help out with their suggestions.

In regards to keeping from contradicting the lore timeline, the easiest way to do this is make the big events in your characters life personal. Not only does this keep from accidentally crashing into the set lore, but it also gives you more room for characterisation and development. If you do want to have a big event that's more general (say, a war for instance), I recommend searching the wiki. Typing 'war' will give you a bunch of pages to check out, and you can see when, where, and how major wars took place.

Of course, if in doubt, feel absolutely free to start a conversation on the forums with a nearby lore/roleplay staff. Everyone should be pretty happy to help!

Aaaaannnddd that's my rambly off-topic-self done for. Go ahead and contact me, or anyone else, if you would like help/advice/critique with your app. Best of luck~!

 

[Suzzie]

Darn you want those cookies, don't you? :3

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You know me so well. *grabby hands*

 

[Hiddenmonkey10]

Darn you want those cookies, don't you? :3



For description, add as much as you think necessary. Don't search for ways to extend your writing because often it will lead to rambling. Write what you think is relavent and worst comes to worst, the person reviewing will tell you what to add in. Protip to anyone writing an application: Don't be afraid of review! It's there to improve your app, and I can guarantee whoever is reviewing you is hoping to help out with their suggestions.

In regards to keeping from contradicting the lore timeline, the easiest way to do this is make the big events in your characters life personal. Not only does this keep from accidentally crashing into the set lore, but it also gives you more room for characterisation and development. If you do want to have a big event that's more general (say, a war for instance), I recommend searching the wiki. Typing 'war' will give you a bunch of pages to check out, and you can see when, where, and how major wars took place.

Of course, if in doubt, feel absolutely free to start a conversation on the forums with a nearby lore/roleplay staff. Everyone should be pretty happy to help!

Aaaaannnddd that's my rambly off-topic-self done for. Go ahead and contact me, or anyone else, if you would like help/advice/critique with your app. Best of luck~!

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Thanks! I'll probably start my application tomorrow or maybe later this evening, not sure yet. I noticed there are now two different reviews for character applications, what are the differences between the two?

 

[Feykronos]

Thanks! I'll probably start my application tomorrow or maybe later this evening, not sure yet. I noticed there are now two different reviews for character applications, what are the differences between the two?

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There should be sticky posts in either section to give you more explanation, but basically peer review is where your peers can comment and make suggestions (your character can not be approved here), and staff review is where you'll get the good-old review from a roleplay/lore staff member (this is where your character will be approved). Hope this helps!

 

[Hiddenmonkey10]

There should be sticky posts in either section to give you more explanation, but basically peer review is where your peers can comment and make suggestions (your character can not be approved here), and staff review is where you'll get the good-old review from a roleplay/lore staff member (this is where your character will be approved). Hope this helps!

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Thanks!

 

[babaMP3]

4. Ease of gaining nobility.
I've never really liked nobility. To me, it felt a lot like alcohol. ("You're only allowed to have it when you're grown up and mature. Sure, it might be bad at first, but you'll get used to it. There might have been some accidents in the past, but nothing bad will happen to you.") I've always considered it a project doomed to failure. Even today, when I see a noble in the streets of Regalia, I can't help but picture them as a living corpse on the brink of death.
However, I've learnt my lesson about going against nobility. I'll stay neutral in my decision, but that doesn't mean I personally wish for that karma to settle in.

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4. Nobility was once a thing that people had to strive for. It used to be based off of merit and being well-known in the community. Now, it seems like new nobles are added every day (I could be wrong, but it certainly seems that way). I actually used to strive for nobility, giving me a reason to RP more frequently. Now, with how simple it is to become a noble (or be written into an existing noble family) I no longer have a major "goal" in RP.

My suggestion is to decrease the amount of nobles that exist and make the requirements for nobility more strict. Perhaps make a requirement for nobles to have a set amount of Regals as one of the requirements.

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Actually, nobility is under heavier lock than it was when it first became a project on the server. Previously, the system was mostly dictated by @MonMarty and what he's seen and heard of you, which is quite the contrast as of now. Well, the concept of being passed through RP staff still remains, the idea is that just because we've opened the doors wider doesn't mean it's any easier to enter.

You still have to roleplay actively and maintain a nice reputation among the roleplay community before even having the hope of your application to be accepted in the noble application thread. You still have to form IC relationships with present nobility if you hope to create some name for yourself. You still have to have to present yourself as an appropriate person to to be given the privilege of nobility. In short, you still have the same hoops to jump through if not more.

As for individual family recruitment, you must realize that most of the noble family heads maintain the same standards if not higher. I mean, if you accept a someone who's begun roleplaying about a week ago, they're likely to make mistakes, and those mistakes can risk one's nobility. If a noble family accepts family members willy-knilly, then there's already a sort of unsaid, translucent stigma surrounding them among the rest of the nobility. I mean, we could go on further to having all nobility process their new recruits through roleplay staff like it used to be, but that's way too time-consuming and just impractical.

As for your suggested requirement I'll already go on and say no. Heckiddity deckidity no. It'd be rather silly tot ry and connect a family's wealth with a player's actual wealth, not to mention that would almost shut off any amount of recruitment for noble families going into nobility. Whether it's a huge extravagant sum or just a meager lil' clutch, equating the OOC value of player-held Regals to IC interaction just simply wouldn't work and prove woefully impractical.

Beyond all this, I'm quite pleased you've made a proactive attempt to try and help the errors in nobility along. I'll take your suggestions into consideration, and I really appreciate your feedback!

 

[Hiddenmonkey10]

Actually, nobility is under heavier lock than it was when it first became a project on the server. Previously, the system was mostly dictated by @MonMarty and what he's seen and heard of you, which is quite the contrast as of now. Well, the concept of being passed through RP staff still remains, the idea is that just because we've opened the doors wider doesn't mean it's any easier to enter.

You still have to roleplay actively and maintain a nice reputation among the roleplay community before even having the hope of your application to be accepted in the noble application thread. You still have to form IC relationships with present nobility if you hope to create some name for yourself. You still have to have to present yourself as an appropriate person to to be given the privilege of nobility. In short, you still have the same hoops to jump through if not more.

As for individual family recruitment, you must realize that most of the noble family heads maintain the same standards if not higher. I mean, if you accept a someone who's begun roleplaying about a week ago, they're likely to make mistakes, and those mistakes can risk one's nobility. If a noble family accepts family members willy-knilly, then there's already a sort of unsaid, translucent stigma surrounding them among the rest of the nobility. I mean, we could go on further to having all nobility process their new recruits through roleplay staff like it used to be, but that's way too time-consuming and just impractical.

As for your suggested requirement I'll already go on and say no. Heckiddity deckidity no. It'd be rather silly tot ry and connect a family's wealth with a player's actual wealth, not to mention that would almost shut off any amount of recruitment for noble families going into nobility. Whether it's a huge extravagant sum or just a meager lil' clutch, equating the OOC value of player-held Regals to IC interaction just simply wouldn't work and prove woefully impractical.

Beyond all this, I'm quite pleased you've made a proactive attempt to try and help the errors in nobility along. I'll take your suggestions into consideration, and I really appreciate your feedback!

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Thanks baba for your rather entertaining insight! XD

 

[Laach]

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At least try to hold back your comments if you don't have anything nice or constructive to say.

 

[babaMP3]

At least hold back your comments if you don't have anything nice or constructive to say.

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Actually, nobility is under heavier lock than it was when it first became a project on the server. Previously, the system was mostly dictated by @MonMarty and what he's seen and heard of you, which is quite the contrast as of now. Well, the concept of being passed through RP staff still remains, the idea is that just because we've opened the doors wider doesn't mean it's any easier to enter.

You still have to roleplay actively and maintain a nice reputation among the roleplay community before even having the hope of your application to be accepted in the noble application thread. You still have to form IC relationships with present nobility if you hope to create some name for yourself. You still have to have to present yourself as an appropriate person to to be given the privilege of nobility. In short, you still have the same hoops to jump through if not more.

As for individual family recruitment, you must realize that most of the noble family heads maintain the same standards if not higher. I mean, if you accept a someone who's begun roleplaying about a week ago, they're likely to make mistakes, and those mistakes can risk one's nobility. If a noble family accepts family members willy-knilly, then there's already a sort of unsaid, translucent stigma surrounding them among the rest of the nobility. I mean, we could go on further to having all nobility process their new recruits through roleplay staff like it used to be, but that's way too time-consuming and just impractical.

As for your suggested requirement I'll already go on and say no. Heckiddity deckidity no. It'd be rather silly tot ry and connect a family's wealth with a player's actual wealth, not to mention that would almost shut off any amount of recruitment for noble families going into nobility. Whether it's a huge extravagant sum or just a meager lil' clutch, equating the OOC value of player-held Regals to IC interaction just simply wouldn't work and prove woefully impractical.

Beyond all this, I'm quite pleased you've made a proactive attempt to try and help the errors in nobility along. I'll take your suggestions into consideration, and I really appreciate your feedback!

Click to shrink...

 

[Suzzie]

If you value your precious IC and OOC life, avoid the evil Kade God.
Just do it.

Actually, nobility is under heavier lock than it was when it first became a project on the server. Previously, the system was mostly dictated by @MonMarty and what he's seen and heard of you, which is quite the contrast as of now. Well, the concept of being passed through RP staff still remains, the idea is that just because we've opened the doors wider doesn't mean it's any easier to enter.

You still have to roleplay actively and maintain a nice reputation among the roleplay community before even having the hope of your application to be accepted in the noble application thread. You still have to form IC relationships with present nobility if you hope to create some name for yourself. You still have to have to present yourself as an appropriate person to to be given the privilege of nobility. In short, you still have the same hoops to jump through if not more.

As for individual family recruitment, you must realize that most of the noble family heads maintain the same standards if not higher. I mean, if you accept a someone who's begun roleplaying about a week ago, they're likely to make mistakes, and those mistakes can risk one's nobility. If a noble family accepts family members willy-knilly, then there's already a sort of unsaid, translucent stigma surrounding them among the rest of the nobility. I mean, we could go on further to having all nobility process their new recruits through roleplay staff like it used to be, but that's way too time-consuming and just impractical.

As for your suggested requirement I'll already go on and say no. Heckiddity deckidity no. It'd be rather silly tot ry and connect a family's wealth with a player's actual wealth, not to mention that would almost shut off any amount of recruitment for noble families going into nobility. Whether it's a huge extravagant sum or just a meager lil' clutch, equating the OOC value of player-held Regals to IC interaction just simply wouldn't work and prove woefully impractical.

Beyond all this, I'm quite pleased you've made a proactive attempt to try and help the errors in nobility along. I'll take your suggestions into consideration, and I really appreciate your feedback!

Click to shrink...

At least hold back your comments if you don't have anything nice or constructive to say.

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[Laach]

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I meant your comment towards me, not the feedback towards Hiddenmonkey10...

 

[Ryciera]

I don't have much time before my lunch break ends, but I did wanna throw in a brief two cents before I went back to work. XD

The lore has been changing a lot, admittedl. Especially as of recent. However this is done for long term interest. A lot of the lore staff, or at least the higher lore staff, have very little experience writing for such a big group and creating such a big universe. Things come up frequently that we realize don't work well with so many people referring to it. As a result, we're constantly middling the lore to be the best for everyone. At the same time, it is a bit of a learning process for a lot of us. It's unfortunate that people's characters have to become incompliant for that to happen. However, we usually try to make the transitionsas painless as possible. With the race testructure, all that really changed were some names. With magic and vampirism, we made it do people could stick with what they were used to, or expand upon it and go even further. Any huge dramatic changes (such as removing the amphi, for example) were done with the knowledge in mind that while it would affect a few people nrgstivrly, it would positively affect even more people in the future. In this case, it would take out some of the race clutter and mitigate a bit of an outlier that otherwise seemed a bit strange in the lore, or that wasn't played save one or two people.

As we continue to work and learn, the big changes I the lore will begin to diminish more and more. But we really appreciate your guys patience with this, and your ongoing enthusiasm for everything we implement!

Also, sorry about the terrible grammar. Rushed iPhone typing isn't fun.

 

[RadonDragon]

Any huge dramatic changes (such as removing the amphi, for example) were done with the knowledge in mind that while it would affect a few people nrgstivrly, it would positively affect even more people in the future.

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Oh god. My butt hurt just came back.