William Antrim
Well-known member
- Location
- UK
I was having a conversation with someone in TS last night, whos opinion I have come to respect over time and we were discussing the issues of accountability of the player base and ways to combat the "emotional" issues that inadvertently crop up sometimes when an RP situation gets a little heated. I believe that the interactions are exacerbated due to people not being able to articulate their thoughts and feelings at times due to rules and constraints placed on them. Sometimes its a general lack of maturity on one side or the other.
It led to the thoughts I am about to post in this thread. Admin staff are volunteers in the server to keep order and discipline and stop rule breaks. There are lots of people doing this but they cannot be in all places at all times. I would argue they do a pretty good job but when they number less than 10% of the total player base i would say they are not omnipotent. However unfortunately as an admin your job is to deal with the shitlords AFTER the fact. The rule has been broken, the action has happened, the cat is well and truly out of the bag.
This is the cure for the problem, ban the person and hope its enough to curtail the behaviour. Its a tough job, especially as a volunteer.
However what if there was a system that could help to prevent the issue in the first place. A mentoring scheme could be adopted whereby people would get a different forum badge perhaps or some other identification to show their status. This would obviously be a voluntary role with no additional benefits other than recognition of their contribution to the community. However it would be staffed by people who genuinely have an altruistic nature and are able to conduct their business in the server whilst contributing to an inclusive and welcoming culture.
This type of role needs a cool head and the ability to see things from different viewpoints, it has already worked effectively in the judiciary as some of the judges there are some of the best people I have met. Yes i am biased of course. I wonder if it could be expanded in some way for those players to hold some sort of position in the various factions. Not the judges per se but others with a similar mindset.
If each faction had some people chosen from it (the gangs could have their own person/people also) then these people could bring the gang's beefs up to management/devs/etc to be resolved without the need for the report forum getting weaponised.
Everywhere I speak to people who are p'd off with other people and the hearsay and reporting that comes from a growing community. I sit and idle in TS and listen to the disappointment and anger shown by different sides to others. I dont make too many comments publicly suffice to say i will support anything that sounds positive for the community. It goes beyond gang or faction loyalty. There is no us and them, we are simply players but the toxicity of the report forum is horrendous.
If people could be re-educated within the realm of RP then it may prove beneficial to the server.
For example in the Police this role falls on the Police Sgts. As a Sgt you are a leader of people, you are held to a higher account. You are respected because the 3 stripes on your arm mean something. I can attest to this firsthand. As a civilian you are middle management, its the same thing. You need those people to have some backbone and punish poor behaviour, not cover it up. If it persists then this sort of thing should be passed up the Chain of Command (CoC) to be dealt with by seniors. However it should negate most issues at the point they happen because people can calm down and learn from their mistakes and be better next time. If they dont then they get removed from what ever role they held. Simple.
The gangs can have a similar rank. Its called a Capo in the Italian Mob - lieutenant/captain basically. A consiglierie if you want to go one step higher. I held this rank in my first criminal family on the server and I absolutely loved it. For the right person it is a very rewarding chance for RP.
Natural leaders will thrive in this role but the key is identifying them and teaching them to be leaders or helping them to understand how they are leading and making it tangible. I think it would go a long way towards helping people to not be so salty.
If all of the major factions had these kinds of people embedded within them, who were able to help steer the RP to a positive outcome/conclusion for more people and had the greater good in their minds then i think maybe it could go a little way towards helping the server become better.
I am 100% ok with people downvoting this if you dont agree but please say why you dont like it. I am not here to start a flame war or the blame game, i just want to hear mature and reasoned arguments for how to help people and take the burden off the staff and have the community regulate itself so to speak.
W
It led to the thoughts I am about to post in this thread. Admin staff are volunteers in the server to keep order and discipline and stop rule breaks. There are lots of people doing this but they cannot be in all places at all times. I would argue they do a pretty good job but when they number less than 10% of the total player base i would say they are not omnipotent. However unfortunately as an admin your job is to deal with the shitlords AFTER the fact. The rule has been broken, the action has happened, the cat is well and truly out of the bag.
This is the cure for the problem, ban the person and hope its enough to curtail the behaviour. Its a tough job, especially as a volunteer.
However what if there was a system that could help to prevent the issue in the first place. A mentoring scheme could be adopted whereby people would get a different forum badge perhaps or some other identification to show their status. This would obviously be a voluntary role with no additional benefits other than recognition of their contribution to the community. However it would be staffed by people who genuinely have an altruistic nature and are able to conduct their business in the server whilst contributing to an inclusive and welcoming culture.
This type of role needs a cool head and the ability to see things from different viewpoints, it has already worked effectively in the judiciary as some of the judges there are some of the best people I have met. Yes i am biased of course. I wonder if it could be expanded in some way for those players to hold some sort of position in the various factions. Not the judges per se but others with a similar mindset.
If each faction had some people chosen from it (the gangs could have their own person/people also) then these people could bring the gang's beefs up to management/devs/etc to be resolved without the need for the report forum getting weaponised.
Everywhere I speak to people who are p'd off with other people and the hearsay and reporting that comes from a growing community. I sit and idle in TS and listen to the disappointment and anger shown by different sides to others. I dont make too many comments publicly suffice to say i will support anything that sounds positive for the community. It goes beyond gang or faction loyalty. There is no us and them, we are simply players but the toxicity of the report forum is horrendous.
If people could be re-educated within the realm of RP then it may prove beneficial to the server.
For example in the Police this role falls on the Police Sgts. As a Sgt you are a leader of people, you are held to a higher account. You are respected because the 3 stripes on your arm mean something. I can attest to this firsthand. As a civilian you are middle management, its the same thing. You need those people to have some backbone and punish poor behaviour, not cover it up. If it persists then this sort of thing should be passed up the Chain of Command (CoC) to be dealt with by seniors. However it should negate most issues at the point they happen because people can calm down and learn from their mistakes and be better next time. If they dont then they get removed from what ever role they held. Simple.
The gangs can have a similar rank. Its called a Capo in the Italian Mob - lieutenant/captain basically. A consiglierie if you want to go one step higher. I held this rank in my first criminal family on the server and I absolutely loved it. For the right person it is a very rewarding chance for RP.
Natural leaders will thrive in this role but the key is identifying them and teaching them to be leaders or helping them to understand how they are leading and making it tangible. I think it would go a long way towards helping people to not be so salty.
If all of the major factions had these kinds of people embedded within them, who were able to help steer the RP to a positive outcome/conclusion for more people and had the greater good in their minds then i think maybe it could go a little way towards helping the server become better.
I am 100% ok with people downvoting this if you dont agree but please say why you dont like it. I am not here to start a flame war or the blame game, i just want to hear mature and reasoned arguments for how to help people and take the burden off the staff and have the community regulate itself so to speak.
W
