The World of Layonara
The NWN Persistent World => Layonara Server => Topic started by: Rowana on May 15, 2010, 08:39:01 PM
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Hello Layonara Community!
Without preamble, I will just get right to the purpose of this letter. It has been mentioned in several places that there are impending changes coming to the server. This letter is with regards to the character submissions process and related details. The changes are posted here (http://forums.layonara.com/character-submissions/225662-character-submission-approvals-policies-new-players-start-here.html) in the guidelines, edited into the main document and outlined at the bottom.
I wanted to write something longer and more explanatory then the short bullet points that accompany the spliced and edited in information spread throughout the generous document. I'll break them down, point by point, for clarity.
The first note is in regards to the problems we've had in the past where creativity and lore have clashed. The best advice we can give here is: before you spend time working out the details of personality, of history, of anything, check the overall concept in the Ask A GameMaster forum (http://forums.layonara.com/ask-gamemaster/). For most class/race/deity/alignment combinations that people seek, the guidelines and lore are well defined. For anything else that seems unique or on the threshold, it is best to ask before investing the time and heart (and even play time) creating something that is incompatible with lore.
The second is a short note on obtaining new classes beyond level thirty (30). It's mostly a solidification in 'writing' of existing policy so that everyone is aware of the terms. Adding a 'job' at level thirty or after is highly unusual for most people. This should be something like learning a whole new skill set at the age of 60, maybe 70 or beyond. That is not to say it cannot be done but it should be considered very difficult and roleplayed accordingly. The character approvers will look at this on a case by case basis but will expect a great deal of tangible development. Tangible development would include the usuals: logs, P/CDTs, quest development, GM testimony, and other methods.
The next point relates to power level of initial submissions. We have had this issue from time to time, and consistently enough that we are simply putting it in documentation. Because the world is a submission 'controlled' world based on substantial lore and accurate roleplay of the same we request that characters enter the world with the background that supports them existing as a level one character. Does this mean that great things cannot occur in the character's history? No, but it does mean when the player slips into the shoes of the character the first time he or she needs to be on the same starting point as all the other first level characters. There are many ways to have this work out and still be very flexible, so many that I can't begin to list them all. This has been a long standing requirement and we are simply putting this into publicized format so that it is available to all equally.
The fourth point is the answer to the question of characters per player. This is often a question asked by new players and a few have thought that we only allow one per player so it has been included up front in the submission guidelines. We will not be raising the cap on allowed numbers, it will remain at six per player. This is being done for many reasons. I will emphasize that the primary reason is concerns about quality of roleplay, not just with the CA or GM staff but also concerns out in the community that have been communicated to us through various channels. There is a large concern by many out there that allowing players to carry more characters then six will further dilute the quality of roleplay available on the serve and encourage a more 'hack and slash' style of play as everyone vies to raise those characters to what is seen by most as tolerable ability levels (20+).
The other big reason for this decision is the already thinly stretched Character Approval Team. In the reasoning for choosing six characters per player was the concern that people (collectively) would submit a great many 'cool concept' characters that would require due diligence by the approvers. These would likely not see much, if any, development as a character. While this sounds like more to do with the above reasoning it comes down to, there already isn't enough time for the character approvers to go around and we can't see spreading them any more thinly by raising the cap. Especially when dealing with volunteers, time is a precious commodity, one we are chronically low on.
To assuage some concerns out there. We are aware that initially when this came up it was not clear to even some members of the GM team and there may well be those out there who have more then six characters spread out over several accounts. The approvers are largely aware of these (though I won't go so far as to say all!) and again, due to confusion in the rules and reasoning allowed this to occur. Those people will not be punished by being asked to remove cherished characters. The only 'action' that will result of the instituting of this policy with clarity is if a player submits for a seventh or beyond numbered character, we will not approve it until such time that they move to have their excess characters deleted. We will not knowingly approve more then six characters per player from this time forward.
The fifth point is the use of Graceful Plea for the rebuild of characters. Dorganath has explained this in his post here, but the character approval guide had similar wording so it was removed from this place as well. As it is stated in his post, there will be no more granting of rebuilds through use of Graceful Pleas. Rebuilds are rare for many reasons, one of the primary reasons of course being time investment. There are still times when a rebuild is logical and will be supported. These situations generally result through roleplay reasoning such as WLDQ outcome, quest outcome, deity shift for clerics and things of this nature. Clearly these will be supported without the use of Graceful Plea.
In our sixth change, we reverted Shifter and Shadowdancer PrCs back to a CDQ only approval. This may seem counter intuitive when we talk about making things 'easier' for people to progress. In truth it was taking twice and sometimes more the amount of time to get these PrCs granted through P/CDTs alone. Misinformation being spread through out the community and the time investment meeting the P/CDT entry requirement was taking more in the amount of months when CDQs are actually more reliable for information and quicker then the entries. We make this shift for the betterment of the use of lore as well as to more smoothly transition players to their desired classes.
The next point that has been edited in the guidelines is an extensive note on resubmissions to explain that process. There are many reasons for this and I'm not sure I can accurately articulate them all but I will make the attempt here anyway. Layonara, first and foremost, is a roleplay server. Clearly there is plenty of an action element but roleplay remains the focus. This includes dealing with lore accurately and correct reasoning behind a resubmission. Under no circumstances should any request be made purely for mechanical reasons. We know full well this decision has been not as firm in the recent past but we are returning to our roots. All resubmissions will require ample roleplay justification.
I can already guess that some people will feel that this is more prohibitive, and looking at it on the surface maybe it is. To counteract that we have opened up new avenues for support when attempting to meet the qualifications of 'ample roleplay justification.' In addition to citing logs, P/CDTs and CDQs as reference we are now accepting direct GM commentary/testimony. This, realistically, was available in the past but we are solidifying the extension to erase concerns of favoritism, ever a murmur on this server. If GM testimony is being used as sole support we will require hearing from no less then three GMs about their personal experience as GM (not as players) with the player in question. We are also offering a 'mix and match' solution for those who can't, for whatever reason, quite reach the minimum needs for such a shift with just one method. Players will be able to use whatever combination of the above listed methods to support their request. Realistically, this solution was already available as well but is being presented to the server populace in clear and succinct terms.
The eighth point, a note on arguing policy with the approver staff. Many, many of these arguments are sustained by the applicant using very old and irrelevant applications. Very many of these situations use applications that came from before Layonara even instituted it's copyright and permissions policy. We will not acknowledge arguments cited from further than nine (9) months prior to the application in question. Additionally, applications that are cited from before a recent guideline change (such as the one we are putting in just now) may or may not be applicable and is up to the various teams to decide at that time. Our policy changes may stem from anywhere from mechanics (i.e. balance) to results of a quest (Roleplay reasons) or issues resulting from lack of manpower just to name a few possibilities. This is by no means is an extensive list of reasons but given for possibilities in explanation.
In an upcoming letter we'll discuss some more updates that are coming. These are efforts that are mostly on the Team side of things in order to make the character approval process easier on the community (no new requirements, changes to policies or anything like that). We aren't completely ready to unveil things there but hopefully will be soon!
~row