The following is addressed to the entire Layonara community. It is not directed at one person or any specific group of people. Please read it and understand it.
As a recent post has highlighted, there have been some ugly and hurtful rumors flying around recently. This kind of thing, though different people and different circumstances, seem to happen on a regular basis. Sometimes the target is one person, other times it's a group of people. There are back-channel whispers, finger-pointing, and accusations flying around. The GM Team gets reports of this-and-that but rarely does anyone have the evidence or guts to back up the claims. Some rumors fade, but there are always some waiting to take their place. It's a continuous cycle, and it is getting really, really old.
I urge everyone to hear what I'm saying here and take it to heart. Rumors are almost without fail caustic and poisonous to the community. You may interact with electronic representations, seeing only words and artificial avatars, but there are people behind those things. Real people. Not all rumors are false, but most rumors are not nearly as true as some would believe them to be. Whatever the case, they're bad...bad for those who spread them, bad for those who are the targets of them, and bad for this community.
Without going into specifics, the most recent batch of rumors ranges from annoying to very serious with implications that stretch beyond this little community of ours. And so I ask you all...
If you are involved in spreading such rumors, stop. If you have proof, then present it to a Gm. If not, then stop. You're hurting people and you're hurting this community.
If you are engaged in activities in the game world/forums/IRC channel(s) that are the center of one or more of these rumors and those activities are contrary to what we have established here, stop.
If you are involved in or complicit in sewing the seeds of discord among all or part of the community, stop.
At this point, I am not overly concerned with what the "facts" may be in the case of the most recent events. There will forever be three sides to every story: "Yours, mine and the truth." Since the last is often difficult to obtain, we're left with the word of one against the word of another. As I said, it just needs to stop.
I want everyone to realize that these things are harmful, and they affect more people than just those at the muddy end of the stick.
In the thread about Layonara's future, there's a comment in there about the NWN servers and how long they'll stay up. To quote Leanthar:
The NwN servers will stay up and running until it either a) gets to expensive for me to keep it running, so keep donating as this is important for NwN or b) the world or community becomes to much of a hassle in terms of time, effort, or headaches for the servers to stay online or c) we make it to beta testing of the new product which is still a ways away. Layonara is not going away, nor is it fading away; but much rests on the communities shoulders for how long the NwN servers remain online.
It is petty and dramatic things like rumors that are most likely to bring down the Layonara NWN community. This kind of thing really drains the GM Team and Leanthar himself. It is frustrating, mentally exhausting and time-consuming. In some cases, it has taken hours of research and checking in on people, logs, actions, reports and so forth just to prove or disprove the allegations...time wasted and time not spent interacting with the community.
I don't want this to sound like a threat, but the fact of the matter is, there have been times, more than most of you realize, where the fate of the NWN servers has been close to a complete shut-down because of petty bickering, factional rumors and divisive words and actions.
It all needs to stop, people. I can't stress that enough.
Now, please...understand what I have written here. Read it over, again if you need to, and really see what I am saying. And then just think about it and remember it.
And also, please understand that when we take action as a result of things that go on here, be it a banning, a reprimand or some other kind of administrative action, that we do not do so lightly or on a whim. We are not targeting individuals because we don't like them or because we just feel like it. The GM Team has, among its many duties, an obligation to protect this community. It comes along with the job, and whatever people may believe, it is not a particularly enjoyable part of the job to ban someone who is acting contrary to the spirit of this community.
I do not really wish for this to become a discussion. I don't want current or past rumors brought up here and presented with explanations, accusations or justifications. I don't want people to post their opinions on the situation, be it the one most immediately at hand or any number of such things that have occurred. Do not use this thread to confess or confirm. I do not seek a string of "I agree" posts, nor do I particularly want any "Thanks" either.
I want people to read this and understand it.
I know a lot of people love this community and have developed very real and lasting real-life friendships as a result. Keep that in mind please in all your future actions. Friendships are not formed of bickering and rumormongering. They're formed of a commonality of purpose and philosophy. If you find, however, that you cannot continue to be a supportive and positive influence in this community, then consider stepping away from it before you contribute to events that may end up hurting those you call friends.
I generally have a lot of faith and respect for this community as a whole. I sincerely hope that is not misplaced.
Regards,
Dorganath
