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Witch

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Posts posted by Witch

  2. Posted

    Hey Odo,

    I've seen your guild host a couple of times. It was nice to catch up and I'm looking forward to your future events - I may join later when I have more free time. Wishing you best of luck!

  3. Posted

    58 minutes ago, Ross said:

    Whilst I will not go into great detail on the matter, The Steel Banner's disolving had very little to do with the current state of Epsilon or the promises of 7.3. It did play a part in the fact that it demorialised myself and @Cool Man, but there is more to it than is suggested in the original post.

     

    The intention of the post wasn't to assume. I'm aware that neither of you had any intention of disbanding the guild based on the server's population or 7.3. One of the points of the initial post, and this is not just true for many of the members of Steel Banner but players in general, is that the server has changed fundamentally from the time of its launch to today. Because of that, many players have left.

    7.3 is not necessary for Epsilon's survival but it has been a focal point of much discussion since this year began, with many people saying things like, "We'll return when 7.3 is live," or "I'm not hosting my phase until 7.3," or most commonly, "7.3 when." This makes it relevant when taking the necessity of a healthy community into consideration.

    The question to ask isn't necessarily "Will 7.3 save the server?" but rather, "How do we as a community take advantage of 7.3 to revive interest in role-play?" The interests and desires of the player base and the prioritization of development should go hand in hand. I felt taking a moment to reflect would help address that.

  4. Posted

    1 minute ago, Akhorahil said:

    I don’t, and haven’t, come around in a long while – but it sucks to hear that Epsilon is a dead server, even if it’s said jokingly. If I bring it up, the conversation generally stops with people complaining along the lines of “nobody is on there, nothing happens.”

    So I’d like to bump the thread with what little I can offer as someone who is, in any practical sense, an outsider. I liked the server while I was active and Witch’s post has encouraged me to come back around, at least in some capacity, as I feel like my indifference was a detractor. Hopefully that viewpoint is a valuable one, in case anyone has some gripes about what’s been said in this thread and how it’s presented to any potential returning members.

    Thank you Akhorahil! I was very flattered when I read your post. I also hope that, if nothing else, this thread helps make a difference. It's a long overdue discussion.

  5. Posted · Edited by Witch

    32 minutes ago, J J said:

    But on a more serious note anything that you said today is nothing short from the truth and I couldn't agree anymore.
    I want to have faith that with that rumored update to patch 7.3.5 from 7.2.5 will have a big impact on bringing people back but that is also another worry of mine because it is very apparent that the server is on auto pilot with nothing other than chat and phase moderation being active. And someone like @Tia can not be a one women show and run it all. If we are to have any progress in repairing Epsilon back to it's glorious start months ago there needs to be progress show rather than Administration just say "Coming soon... TM".

    I'm happy you pointed that out JJ! I think our biggest failure is that we do nothing together as a community. There has been no word about Running of the Trolls, which will be hosted on June 9th and benefits the Trevor Project, happening in the Epsilon community. We participated in Running of the Gnomes and I would like to see the community come together again on June 9th, and once again for the ninth annual Running of the Gnomes.

    Why do we not do anything, why have all of the major guilds and communities left, and while I think this may be a question better suited to another topic, Tiariana is absolutely the only active staff member in-game. Why? I would challenge any of the staff members to message a random average Epsilon player and ask them to name one of their in-game characters.

    Can you name any of Matt's characters, or Xeslite's, or Sadriel's off the top of your head?

    While I was a Roleplay Heaven administrator, I often said "RPH is a community effort," but the same applies to Epsilon. It is a community effort, and it will either succeed because the people want it to, or it will stagnate because they do not care.

     

    EDIT: To the staff's credit they have contributed very much to the server, but they should understand where I am coming from and why.

  6. Posted · Edited by Witch

    Hi everyone,

    Epsilon's Legion server will soon be one year old and I wanted to take some time to reflect on the server, including some good and bad things that have happened, and hopefully create an open and healthy discussion where other players can share their thoughts.

    Around this time last year, Epsilon experienced a huge influx of players and the decision was made to launch earlier than anticipated. Beforehand, we were a much smaller Discord with approximately 30 members (of whom maybe half were active) and we would often sit around in voice channels, play games like Overwatch, and talk about the server. I remember the excitement leading up to the launch of open beta relatively well: Rosehearth had been shut down on another server so its members had come over, increasing the average online Discord population to around 400. I felt overwhelmed but I was also happy to see things be sped along. Everyone had their own idea of what they wanted to build, who their characters would be and what guilds they would form.

    I fondly remember fighting the constant server crashes on July 23rd to try and log in. At one point I was successful in creating a randomized version of what would later become my main character, logging in, and claiming phase 210 about one second before another crash occurred. The first week experienced similar turbulence while Azarchius patched most of the major issues. Building began once the server had stabilized, and by the second week, phase owners had started to advertise their role-plays.

    I think most people would agree when I say that the first few months of Epsilon were the most memorable. We had more than 80 players on slow weekdays, more than 100 players on weekends, and role-play was not too difficult to find. We cracked the CDN technology and uploaded content directly to the server, giving everybody access to building tiles, Genn Greymane's cloaks, WMOs with removed doodadsets, and recolors of the most popular WMO buildings. Over 10,000 custom objects were added to the server in September. The first edition of the Gossip Corner was published in October, not even three full months after launch, showcasing the pristine night elf WMOs and Gilneas recolors that were soon added. Seven days after the Gossip Corner we participated in the eighth annual Running of the Gnomes as a community and raised $374 to fight breast cancer. The emphasis, and what I want to reiterate here, is truly that we did things as a community. It went beyond logging into a WoW server. Epsilon was a community where I could log in and have fun doings things knowing that the players were just as excited for the future as I was.

    I am now going to discuss a few of the negative things that have happened over the course of the last year, but I do not want this to come across as a personal attack to anyone:

    Epsilon was touted as a fresh start, a second chance for everybody to begin again, and for a time it was everything the Rosehearth community and people like I had dreamed it would be. I will be the first to admit that active role-play was always a struggle, even when it was "not too difficult to find." There was, albeit very briefly, a command to see which phases had the most players, but overall it was impossible to expect players to know that a phase was active unless they were waiting to see announcements in the event channel. This, coupled with mounting failed promises of additional features as time dragged on, resulted in most players becoming lethargic or apathetic to public role-play.

    The most prominent example of a failed promise is the Phase Manager addon. Players were promised a Phase Manager addon that was never delivered, and eventually more players spent their time asking for these features than creating role-plays they felt nobody would attend because the phases could not be easily discovered. (We did eventually receive a command to see open phases, although not until many months later.) Lack of communication in numerous other regards, such as future editions of the Gossip Corner, developer content, and a general lack of staff presence in the community created considerable unrest with the Rosehearth community who were often labeled as trolls by the administration. Some of us may recall the exact details which led to Rosehearth/LTB ultimately leaving the server but they are unimportant. What is important here is the community sentiment.

    Compare Epsilon's first 6 months with our last 6 months and anyone will notice a stark contrast. The once bright and vibrant community is little more than an absentee server where players login to role-play in private phases and occasionally some will talk in announce. I have watched the Rosehearth/LTB community leave, the once-most popular guild on the server Steel Banner has dissolved, the Scarlet Hand of Venstroyer is down to a mere handful the last time I spoke with their Guild Master, and while phases continue to pop up every so often, most players have lost the majority of their friends to another server or left themselves.

    An administration that has failed to deliver on numerous promises with little-to-no explanation and a presence that is more than negligible in the community combined with player stagnation has created a bleak outlook for Epsilon's future as a community. It is safe to say that the server will probably not die any time soon -- we still manage to pull roughly 40 players on a good night -- but there are also times when we are lucky to have 10 or 15 players online. It does not help that the last major content update was in November. From my perspective, players feel like they have better opportunities on other servers where they are actively engaged by a larger population and more consistent development updates. Both things that we once had.

    In conclusion, Epsilon has had a rough latter half of its first year, but there are rumors that the 7.3 content update is "soon." Do you think that upgrading to 7.3 will revive the lackluster community atmosphere, or are there other prerequisites to a healthy community? Will the players and groups who left return if there is more content and staff activity? Will we be better or worse off in the future? Also, what are some of your favorite memories from this year together so far?

    I've only scraped the tip of the iceberg -- it's very difficult to summarize an entire year in one post! -- but I hope that we can have a valuable discussion for everyone who is a part of the community. I know that Epsilon will be around 6 months from now and then on, but I want to see the communities return and I want them to be energized about the server.

  7. Posted

    4 hours ago, Consynet said:

    Figured I'd give all of this a try again.

    I'll probably regret it.

    Welcome back, Consynet!

    I hope you won't regret it. If you have any questions while settling back in, don't hesitate to let me know!

  10. Posted

    Welcome to Epsilon, Varonno!

    The easiest way to become involved in the community is to join our Discord if you haven't already (there is a link on the main web page). The #roleplay-ads channel has the most active phases listed, and you can usually find people willing to set something up with you there, in #general, or in the start zone in-game.

    Best of luck on the server! If you have any other questions please don't hesitate to ask. (:

  12. Posted

    32 minutes ago, MindScape said:

    Allowing a player to unban themselves from Warden really makes Warden seem pointless - should just change it to a kick then if that's the case.

    Indeed, there are far more efficient solutions than automatically banning players for spawning too many objects too quickly.

  13. Posted · Edited by Witch

    I brainstormed a few solutions, assuming that we are indeed worried about players coming over to spam the server:

    1. Apply a temporary timer on gameobject spawning to new accounts. Two hours of playtime are required before this timer is removed automatically.
    2. Mass spawning gameobjects incurs a cooldown on your character/account. If you spawn 25 or more gameobjects in less than one or two seconds (i.e., you are using a macro or script), you cannot spawn any more for a minute.
    3. Keep the Warden system as it is and allow players who are banned by it to log in to their account panels and remove the ban.
    4. Increase the Warden's trigger count (you have to spawn more gameobjects before it bans you) and allow players who are banned to unban themselves from the account panel.

    This is keeping in mind that Xeslite has already said the issue is addressed in 7.3. I'm looking forward to seeing the new and improved Warden!

    On 3/25/2018 at 4:19 PM, Erkor said:

    wowee here's tia-proxy number one

    Everyone recently banned by this pile of shit trashcan bot has been banned while trying to find a specific object.

    Most of us realize that there are flaws with the Warden system currently. Even so, you do not need to insult the administration to get your point across. They realize they are not perfect and they are more willing to listen to constructive feedback than when you behave destructively.

  14. Posted

    I've been meaning to reply to this thread forever and completely forgot until recently when the forums returned!

    I'll cast my vote for "The Ragged Stallion." Like Romeo said "The Tapped Trap" was also my first thought, but it has a salacious connotation depending on how you read it.

  15. Posted · Edited by Witch

    The doors to Barathen's Bank's very own auction house have opened. Bidding is scheduled to begin in approximately thirty minutes, but early patrons are invited to enjoy pastries and coffee.

    --The event ad from Friday, March 16th.

     

    Chaos at the Auction House!

    An otherwise pleasant evening took a turn for the worse when an impatient nobleman entered into a bidding war, calling on the local guardsmen to remove his competition from the auction altogether! Despite making an appearance, Mayor Augustus Gale was nowhere in sight throughout the incident and has made no public comment regarding the noble's indignant behavior.

    Congratulations to our winners for the items listed below:

    • Conjured Mana Gem - 'The Planar Vagabond,' a cowled man who was not present to collect his item. An arrest warrant has since been issued for his failure to pay.
    • Bertha the Award-Winning Pig - Galia Haselwood, who is delighted to offer her newfound friend a warm home.
    • Antiquated Elven Armor Suit - Lord Garrowith, a passing nobleman, was eager to collect this trophy item for a hefty sum of two hundred gold.
    • Nat Pagle's Old Fishing Rod - Davith Flounder, with the help of a local adventurer! It is rumored Flounder repaid this debt in fish, and not gold.
    • Farm Deed - The deed to a refurbished estate in Barathen's Bank was auctioned off, but appears to have gone missing! The town council is unable to finalize the transaction without proper documentation. Where could it have disappeared to?

    Screenshots

    Below are some screenshots from the event, along with the deed to the farm that was auctioned off.

    Spoiler

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  18. Posted · Edited by Witch

    Our next event will be hosted on Friday, March 16th, at 6:00 PM EST (11:00 PM server time)!

    Auction 3.png

    The Auction House will open its doors approximately thirty minutes prior to bidding for early arrivals to indulge in coffee, pastries, and social fare.

    Mini Quests Available: Deed to the Farm*, Lady Ameliana Blacklocke*, A New Fishing Pole

    *These mini-quests will be offered to all of the winning bidders.

    A New Fishing Pole:

    Davith.png

  20. Posted

    Hi Insomnia,

    Both of your posts are excellent reads. Creative license is obviously something to be utilized in writing, but it is better to omit details if they are not relevant to the story you are telling. Pilgrim's Bounty and the high elf were details that ultimately added nothing to the story -- what is relevant about them? There is a turkey, are the citizens celebrating? If so how do they celebrate, and how does it impact your character or the setting.

    I'm assuming the story takes place after the Second War if there are high elves in Lordaeron. How do the people around your character react to seeing one? They were a reclusive people who rarely ventured beyond Quel'Thalas and even then were mostly seen in Dalaran City.

    You are a very good writer with a lot of potential. Try to be more fluid and don't clutter your writing up with unnecessary detail. Also, be sure to proofread!

    I'm looking forward to seeing more of your work. (:

  22. Posted · Edited by Witch

    On the outskirts of quaint little Barathen's Bank, Postmaster Drews has recruited a band of adventurers to make an unusual delivery in the dead of night.

    --The event ad from Friday evening, March 2nd.

    Thank you to everybody who attended our first event and made it a huge success!

    I have been meaning to post screenshots but was busy until now. I apologize if some of the screenshots are less than optimal, but here they are!

    Spoiler

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  24. Posted

    While I agree that it can be tedious to delete parts of a phase (or potentially all of it), I wouldn't feel very comfortable knowing that I could delete everything in my phase with one command.

    I think things are fine the way they are. You can create a macro to .gob sel -> .gob del to handle larger amounts of objects. Or if you wanted to mass delete one or several particular objects, you can add syntax to the macro (e.g., .gob select house -> .gob delete).

  25. Posted

    Hi Roboduck,

    Welcome to Epsilon! I'm so happy to hear you've been enjoying your time in-game so far.

    Light's Harbor is a good phase, and I hope to see you around in some of the others as well! Of course, if you need any help feel free to shoot me a message on the forums or Discord. Good luck and keep having fun!

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