Lack of Events

[RobRoy]

I feel terrible for wanting to start this thread, but i must. I do try to keep to myself and enjoy the game how i may. However for the last several months(i don't mean just 1 or 2) events have been little to nonexistent. I can totally understand "the staff needs vacation time" just like the rest of us. But don't you think this is abit much. We are now back into October. I don't claim to be the smartest person out there but it seems like common sense to me to let your presence be known(i.e let us know whats in development). This helps to build excitement and stops people from spreading speculation that you guys aren't doing anything for us. If it is a fact of their efforts slowing down, don't you think its time to promote someone to be more hands on for the players. There are bad whispers on the server between people that think you have abandoned your vision for the server and just harvest donations now. We all need to contribute to the survival and the prosperous future of the server. You set up stones for us to help keep our server as recognized as one of the best to draw people in. Many of us do that. We the players have come to expect a certain level of service/ excitement and when that slows down and is no longer being delivered unrest begins. Moral is down please help get us moving back in a better direction. I personally enjoy it here so much and hate to see it all come to an end because things explode on themselves. Just my opinion but +colibri you need to start addressing the bad moral because its messing with our special place!! On a positive note all you soldiers out there keep doing what your doing because we need to stick together during tough times. Just remember we can go anyplace and play a game by ourselves, your events are what stand out and keep people coming back.

[+Nyx]

From June:
http://www.uoex.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=5847

From August:
http://www.uoex.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=6040

Also from August, scheduled for this weekend:
http://www.uoex.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=6061

Not to mention a lot of our events are impromptu and don't get forum posts. Onslaught, monster bash, etc. We've run several of those in the past few months. +V and I took just over a month 'off' from event-making - I was still here answering pages almost as much as any other day - and those are the only times we've been away the entire year. Other than that, we've been present, and working on events. The larger scaled ones we've had to wait several months for certain functions and items to be added by +C in order to even continue development on them. (Example: the fel brit / +V's storyline big events, those are all held up awaiting things we have no control over.)

Drama-thread is dramatic.

[Namorah]

I've been gone for awhile, but last I heard the big events are awaiting certain things being added in by +Coli, something the regular GMs can't do. There will be events, be patient Rob.

Then again I could be completely wrong lol.

Edit: Nope, not wrong. It appears they have been working on the major events and are indeed waiting on things to be added by +Coli, as posted by +Nyx. So yea, be patient.

Edit2: Perhaps +Coli is working on bring more staff in so that events can be run more often when the higher-up GMs are working on the bigger events. Monster bashes, onslaughts and so forth.

[anarchy]

there is another option. players need to be putting on player run events. i have one in oct and feb that i put on every year i've been here.

want more excitement put on an event. instead of hording your gold buy eds and put something on for everyone

[Asmodean]

I believe the events Robroy is speaking of were the near weekly (sometimes more) smaller events we used to have. A grab all, a monster bash, triple champ, hide n seek for prizes, story time, etc. The big events are cool, but so are the littler ones

[Melkor]

I personally liked lots of little events over the big events/quests we have nowadays.

I don't think Rob meant any harm in making his post. It is a touchy subject though.

+V and +N are what's been keeping the shard going for the last 6 months to a year, if you don't know that now you do. For that I am extremely greatful to them.

People and shards go through phases, we've been blessed with +V and +N to keep us going, and we've seen more of +C in the last little while, I'm confident we are moving back to an up-swing with the shard.

More than anything, I think +Colibri needs to allow himself to trust one or two people to join the ranks of staff. Even if they mostly just answered pages to allow the more advanced staff the opportunity to do what they do best.

[JimTheDM]

there is another option. players need to be putting on player run events. i have one in oct and feb that i put on every year i've been here.

want more excitement put on an event. instead of hording your gold buy eds and put something on for everyone

I agree with Anarchy, Vara and I have also done something like this last year for the new players. We did a trick or treat event where we gave bags of tricks and treats. Now granted we had only been on the shard about 2 months so we didn't have high value items but sometimes its not always about the value but the fun aspect of it. I think if we could get a few player run events that would help fill the void until the major ones are complete. Oh an by the way Anarchy I look forward to your fishing events.

[anarchy]

make sure you register. i know vara did.

[JimTheDM]

I did already this is Jamkul.

[anarchy]

ah cool so you did

[RobRoy]

Yes I did not intend this post to be negative like i was complaining. I believe in this server and love it more than some i am sure. I was mearly pointing out the little things make a huge difference. +Nyx u know i think u do alot i even defend you in [c when morons are stepping out of line with that crap. For example the little things, I participated in storytime last year i think i have all the sashes from the ones i went to 8 in a row 1 each per month(may thru december). At these events for example you really get to know that certain people are players just like you, even though they may have language barriers. I think thats a great thing for the social aspect of the server. The Auctions lets be real those aren't hard to make and act as a money sink to help stabilize the economy. The hunting thing event is a recycle. Hunger games personally excites me thats a hell of an idea i will give you that one. But i mean lets finish the bottom of a certain dungeon thats been under revamp forever, lets smash more umbris, help the economy maybe make item sinks for crafting items to help " support the invasion resistance" for a certain upcoming britain event. Anyway lets not turn this into a rant. My main purpose of the post was to perhaps inform the gm's that people have had a negative undertone and wispers of bad things the last few months. I like to think i am social enough to say i talk to a fair share of folks around the server. I just wanted you all to know that you would be doing the addicts a service if you are indeed working as hard as usual, to make your presense known. Maybe try to be alittle more 50/50 when it comes to interaction so you don't seem so "behind the scenes" like it has seemed lately. I can't tell you how long its been since +V has smashed my face into the ground for a good hour or 2. We need more random carnage in our lives, see i sound deprived I love you guys.... any comments?

[Draconomicon]

I have seen many an event in my 2 years time.

Every time, the events have been constructed carefully and with the players in mind, I've noticed.

Although we may not see them, the immediate Game Masters are working towards a better working of the intergral system that makes the shard a "Better Place".

Events in the past few years since I've been here have consisted in specially crafted areas (takes time I am sure),
carefully created scenario (when areas need to be triggered) and player gifts (depends on Game Master).

All these elements have to be carefully measured or else they will not be fun and will result in fail.

I haven't determined a single event that was fail from what I have seen so far...albeit slightly and then corrected.

All in all, I think events are getting better, in general (if I may), and heartier (with more heart).

We'll see what happens next...

(my 2 cents)

[Draconomicon]

I have seen many an event in my 2 years time.

Every time, the events have been constructed carefully and with the players in mind, I've noticed.

Although we may not see them, the immediate Game Masters are working towards a better working of the intergral system that makes the shard a "Better Place".

Events in the past few years since I've been here have consisted in specially crafted areas (takes time I am sure),

carefully created scenario (when areas need to be triggered) and player gifts (depends on Game Master).

All these elements have to be carefully measured or else they will not be fun and will result in fail.

I haven't determined a single event that was fail from what I have seen so far...albeit slightly and then corrected.

All in all, I think events are getting better, in general (if I may), and heartier (with more heart).

We'll see what happens next...

(my 2 cents)

[+Nyx]

The Auctions lets be real those aren't hard to make and act as a money sink to help stabilize the economy. The hunting thing event is a recycle. Hunger games personally excites me thats a hell of an idea i will give you that one. But i mean lets finish the bottom of a certain dungeon thats been under revamp forever, lets smash more umbris, help the economy maybe make item sinks for crafting items to help " support the invasion resistance" for a certain upcoming britain event.

It's nice that you want to give your input and that you stick up for the staff when given the chance. However, it's a bit of a slap in the face for you to then in the same post snark the events we hold. You may think that an auction is a no-time-at-all thing to throw together, but it isn't. We have to spend time looking at what was sold in recent auctions, what we will sell this time, try to think what will be exciting and interesting. We have to determine if any specific items are too good and might unbalance or upset the players. We then have to schedule the auction, around our real lives (which we have, btw.). We have to show up, hold the auction, document everything, and then handle the 4-dozen pages that come in about auction items / because people know we're on. Simple steps, yes, but just for an auction you're looking at probably 15 hours of work. The hunting event, which you call "recycled", reused the hunting lodge from our original hunting event - which was always meant to be a seasonal event, especially when it was so well loved. The tallying of scores takes hours. All told for this "recycled" event, we spent about 30+ hours of work.The original hunting event was almost triple that. For the hunger games, which is not even finished yet, we had to wait 6+ months for some script items to be added by +C. This was stuff we wanted to run in January and are only just now being able to develop and complete. The event is not yet finished, but to this date we have spent at least 70 hours working on it. There are another 30-ish hours left to go including the running of the event and passing out rewards. Storytelling events? Those took about 5 hours of my time, every time I ran them. And that's if I didn't need to redecorate or design new rewards. Redecorating that space can easily take upwards of 8 hours. I spent about 10 hours decorating it for Halloween last year. +V and I both work more than full-time hours with our RL job obligations. Stop and think what that means for our "free time".

Here you all are being concerned about the economy, consider what it is like for us. In developing an event, that requires rewards, which we have to give thought to making them worthwhile. We do that so we don't get complained at incessantly, which we *did* get a few times when the rewards were nonexistent or otherwise not "good enough". We can't just ignore repeated pages and griping, so it adds a lot of time and hassle to our staffing. So, we have to make it worthwhile, and we also have to make sure it isn't TOO good, either. Otherwise we're part of the problem with the economy.

On top of all that, keep in mind this is a hobby. We are unpaid, under-appreciated, often harassed staffers who do this for FUN. We often have to wait a long time for approval on ideas, or for things we need to get added. We spend what time we can staffing here; but at the end of the day this is our hobby and now that the summer is over and the end of the year is fast approaching, +V and I are particularly busy with RL. If +C decides to start paying a fair wage for staffing, so I can cut back my hours elsewhere, I will happily hold an event every single week for you guys. Until then, we give you guys what we can and hearing folks snark that it isn't enough just kills our drive to create. It isn't only the morale of the players you should be showing concern for, it's the morale of the staff as well. We're already on an uphill battle with that, giving us grief for not doing enough is insult to injury.

My main purpose of the post was to perhaps inform the gm's that people have had a negative undertone and wispers of bad things the last few months.

This is always going to happen, because there will always be negative nancies and drama queen cathies in the world.

I just wanted you all to know that you would be doing the addicts a service if you are indeed working as hard as usual, to make your presense known. Maybe try to be alittle more 50/50 when it comes to interaction so you don't seem so "behind the scenes" like it has seemed lately.

We've been posting updates with the event progress, and I'm active here on the forums. I've been keeping up with my usual page load, but not as active with chit chat in global. While I can take time from my schedule to reply to pages - which is the primary function of my 'job' as staff - it's not as easy to take time to chat when I really should be working on things in RL. It's nice to hear that our banter is longed for, but it would've been much nicer to hear it in a less passive-aggressive way.

[anarchy]

i've been a GM before and an admin. when she says she works 30+ hours on an event that's only the min. i remember putting in 30+ hours a week and holding a job of 45+ hours a week. it's not easy and the grips make the 'fun' of being a gm really erm.. suck. trust me when i say being a gm is a job. a thankless job.

like i've said before if you want something to do put on an event. donate 135 usd's and give away all the eds for the event. i'm sure that will keep you busy

much lub
anarchy


ps. thank you staff for everything you do. you give us players a purpose to continue playing.