Community: How to Increase Activity

Joined: Jan 11, 2002 Posts: 3061 Location: USA

(While this is aimed at the Community group, as with any thread, this is also up for anyone to post and suggest)

How do we increase activity here? How do we encourage both OOC and IC activity? While I see some people posting in the IC forums, others haven't. I have a place to post character profiles, but no one has done that yet either.

Ideas?

Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2005 1:18 am

Well, I started up an RP on the IC boards to help test things, and to get activity going. As for the OOC side, no clue.
Concerning posting a profile, I'm not going to until I finally create my new character. SJ is a well known quantity, and since I'm not going to be playing her officially anymore, I don't see a need to post a profile for her. Unless you think I should because it helps with the overall history of the game.

Green Joined: Jun 30, 2005 Posts: 69 Location: Hutt Space

I think what we need is some rules. For example we should have a post where all things that have been decided are posted (yes, I know I´m repetin g myself). At least we should decide on the timeframe so that everybody knows what is happening in the galaxy. It´s not possible to make everybody happy but a decision must be made.

For the MG´s I guess the Rebelgroup is probably working rather properly thanks to Uliq. The Imperialgroup is rather isolationist and has a leaderproblem, for the Syndicate somebody is needed who takes up the job and validates all characters and takes care of the forum so that gaming can begin.

Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2005 4:21 pm

Thanks, but the reason I didn't show up on Kuat so far is, that the CoreWorlds have this nasty thing with their alien safety zones Wink

I admit not having a good idea of what to write on NarShadaa or Ord Mantell either right now, though Rolling Eyes

Character profile ... um, the background story I once wrote is over 13 pages, guess I have to shorten that a bit before posting it on the IC board, hehe.

EDIT: it's not that much, but a little laugh now and then won't hurt and maybe animate others to look for something likewise or come up with their own. So, look at the funstuff thread Wink

Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2005 8:20 pm

Most of the Imperial sectors also had this thing concerning known Force sensitives and Force users as well, back in SWS. I chose Kuat for a variety of reasons. Bring on the non-Humans, please.

Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2005 8:51 pm

It appears Sirius has gone MIA within the IC boards. I'm about to break off and do something else if he doesn't post up any time soon.

Yellow Joined: Jan 01, 2006 Posts: 42

I think coding features into SWCIC is going to win the whole debate on getting people to play. Designing rewards that are tangible like ships, credits, planets, that sorta thing.. will inevitably alter the interest. Although it is important that we clearly design how things work, and what are the effects for doing them.

Edit: I think rewards should be given for activity, even writing a profile. However, a clear line of moderation has to be involved. < We don't need people abusing a activity system for the purpose of rewards. We just want to entice them for being active.

Ultraviolet Joined: Sep 29, 2005 Posts: 353

If you are here for getting assets then this is the wrong game for you. Go play SWC. If you are here for the roleplaying then welcome onboard. People are here for there own fun, not to get rewards out of it.

Yellow Joined: Jan 01, 2006 Posts: 42

Tobias Arranax wrote:

If you are here for getting assets then this is the wrong game for you. Go play SWC. If you are here for the roleplaying then welcome onboard. People are here for there own fun, not to get rewards out of it.

Assets? I could rather care less. I didn't join this sim to become a millionare. I'm not a very good roleplayer, I'm not sure what having assets and "own fun" are about.

In any case, personal wealth is apart of every game I've ever played that had a roleplay element. Even fps's that are not directly revolved around roleplaying a character, or dialog decisions has abilities, tactics, inventories, and weapon types. Some fps's go so far as having classes for different types of players. (Most notably Battlefield, and Starsiege Tribes) This is again, not apart of a sim though, nobody is interested in a frag-fest. But there is equipment that every character in a game has assigned to them, and making it completely based on roleplaying with no tangible interface is somewhat primitive, and below the standards that can hallmark a "true simulation".

When I join a faction I want to get issued equipment, and be readily aware of it. I don't want to have to memorize the things I have. Or imagine that the equipment I get assigned imaginarily is given to me, then imaginarily goes away while I'm deep in some scenario. These things can be automated, and confirmed into inventories. I haven't at all suggested a market system, or for that matter a potential gain in owning stormtrooper armor in any way that it wasn't already intended. All that I'm saying is we have a site, we have some groups. Why not add in these things?

The same thing applies to ships. Without reading a report, or annoying a gamemaster, I have no idea of my ships damage, what things are working, or what things aren't. Or even what ships a MG might have allowed me to use. A system has to be designed, and implemented. The question is always where we draw the line between programmed features, and roleplayed elements. And that is definitely a controversial topic. The same as telling MG's what ships they will have in a simulation.

Should we allow people to steal ships from MG's? Are MG's allowed to assign who uses a ship, and who doesn't? How do they enforce that? Where are the ships located? What happens when a ship is destroyed? Are we going to have production? What sorta production will we have? The best way I can think of is to define each level needed to get the whole system completed. The ideal of pausing the game, and rebuilding it completely different for a scenario seems a little unbelivable, and underlies the severity of scenarios.

I'm aware that long ago it was decided that people in this game should have nothing other than levels, and what their factions give them. I don't quite agree with this, but I did drop it long ago. I don't think personal wealth has to be implemented immeadiately, but rewarding people is apart of enticing users to play. Otherwise this is no different than going to a local game store, and playing a pen and paper adaption of the Star Wars universe; there's a reason why web technology has progressed so much over the years.

If you want to drop the idea of getting monetary rewards for joining there isn't much you can do argue over that many dozens of sites already have. The point of rewarding, and enticing users is to create an active community. If you have a better idea of how to do that, I'm all ears. For right now it seems pursuading people is no different than finding a link of the many that you'd find on a site like this.

Ultraviolet Joined: Sep 29, 2005 Posts: 353

Simulation.....?

I think you're in the wrong game. This isn't a simulation, but an Online Roleplaying Community.

Having no monetary rewards already set us apart from those games you mentioned. Currently I have no need for needing to know what ships, equipment, etc. I am assigned. Basically cause I don't need a ship, or weapons, or....but I can see how some people do. In regard of ships, which you already mentioned in another thread. This is been taken care off and a shiplist for each MG is being formed. In regards towards equipment I don't like seeing 'starting equipment', cause there are always people complaining about them, cause either they want a different gun or other specific equipment for there character (and sometimes with valid reasons). It also has been previously discussed.

Yellow Joined: Jan 01, 2006 Posts: 42

Tobias Arranax wrote:

Simulation.....?

I think you're in the wrong game. This isn't a simulation, but an Online Roleplaying Community.

I see. Maybe I was misinformed of the purpose of SWCIC.net, I need to confirm this.

Tobias Arranax wrote:

Currently I have no need for needing to know what ships, equipment, etc. I am assigned. Basically cause I don't need a ship, or weapons, or....but I can see how some people do. In regard of ships, which you already mentioned in another thread. This is been taken care off and a shiplist for each MG is being formed.

I did post in the ship list already, my only concern that I wrote was that the syndicate should have more mercenary ships instead of y-tie/tie-wings, as I've never seen a mercenary in those death traps before.

Tobias Arranax wrote:

In regards towards equipment I don't like seeing 'starting equipment', cause there are always people complaining about them, cause either they want a different gun or other specific equipment for there character (and sometimes with valid reasons). It also has been previously discussed.

I don't see it being discussed anywhere, could you please redirect me to that thread?

Ultraviolet Joined: Aug 15, 2005 Posts: 237

Not to hijack this thread but the shiplist is still in progress and most Fringe-type groups use uglies and after some R&D, new uglies can be constructed that can be equal to standard, factory-assembled ships. As far as I know, the Syndicate isn't just mercenaries. It's an underworld organization that has access to various types of ships, capital and starfighter. An organization would have a governing structure of some sort that could and would decide, somewhere along the way, that cheap, cobbled-together starfighters are sufficient for some jobs.

Ultraviolet Joined: Sep 29, 2005 Posts: 353

Vin/Talin, can you turn this guy to the 'Starting equipment' thread, cause I don't know where we left it...

Ultraviolet Joined: Aug 15, 2005 Posts: 237

Raiden: The Starting Equipment discussion starts on page 2 of the "Asset Management" Thread.

Tobias: Happy to oblige, sir!

Ultraviolet Joined: Sep 29, 2005 Posts: 353

Sir?

* observes his rank and finds out he still doesn't have one *