I hate repeating things, but I am about to repeat the change for a certain rule that I'm proposing for the second time. I'm understandably very unhappy about it, so I'm going to share my misery with everyone. Misery loves company, right?

Oh yeah, the reason why there is yet another new start to this discussion is because it seems that reading a whole page is quite a chore and probably takes up a lot of your precious time. If I offend anyone, my apologies are not going to be very sincere anyway, but you know what, this truly are what I think, though warped with bitchiness and my twisted sarcasm. The fact that I didn't sleep last night because I have to do a project and it has a hectic schedule attached has nothing to do with it whatsoever. Right.

Let's move on, shall we, ladies and gentlemen?

---

Choice 1. Basically, all you guys have to do is sit back and let the moderator do all the approvals, since he or she should know all, have all the time and patience in the world to read through the new RPs for the sake of the RP forum. Afterall, he/she volunteered for this very prestigious job, and it's his or her responsibility to ensure that the RP forum runs smoothly. Even during his or her bitchy days. And it is to be understood that no new roleplays shall be created during the periods where there are no mods. Too bad, but you know, the previous mod was irresponsible and did not want to serve for a lifetime. It sucks to be you if you are that lucky to want to create a RP when there is no mod around to approve your RP.

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Choice 2. There will be this one topic where new RPs to be created in Dreamers will be posted there for your very sacred vote of approval. There will be a set of basic RP creation guidelines that all new RPs have to follow if the creators want them posted in that topic. There will be a minimum number of votes that when met, will automatically allow that oh-so popular RP to be posted up if there is a RP slot available. The lazy bum of a moderator will just be checking which of the RPs does not meet the basic guidelines. What a complicated process. And you know, the RPs are so going to take years waiting for the votes. The moderator is totally useless with this system, so you know what, to ruthlessly exploit him or her, let's not choose this option.

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Choice 3. The rules have always worked and it should still work. So all the experienced RPers automatically knows how to create and manage a good RP, therefore, they only need the moderator's pat on the head and a 'good job, son' before the RP goes up. Ain't that wonderful? But the new roleplayers... what new roleplayers? Oh, you mean those kids who post variations between 'hi i no0b, wan rp?' and those that produce a lengthy detailed piece of art? I have never seen them before, they must all suck. So if like... two of my pals here say they are good to go, I guess their RP must be worth something. By the way, I'm not experienced enough to vouch for you, newbie, I'm so sorry. Let me redirect you to xxxx, but you know what, his last post was three months ago.

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I deliberately left out 'No comments' option because I know I'll be enraged if I see the majority voting that. It's very bad for my health. But then again, whether I'm having a headache and tummyache has nothing to do with you, right?

The moderator who knows all and has all the time and patience will take care of the forum for us, we don't have to say anything. Sure, we get to voice our opinions, but you know, he or she will take care of everything so what we say are probably not necessary. Mod-dy knows all, afterall. He/she probably anticipated what I want to say, just like how he/she knows what kind of RPs I want to participate in. I just love the sci-fi RPs here... what sci-fi you say? Oh, it's that very recognisable only RP on this board that is not a medieval RP. It is like... the first one in six months. Cool huh?

Hey Sel, can you please write a short and sweet version of this post for me? I don't have time to read all this. Hello xxxx, I'm so not going to do that. Because everything I say in this piece of writing which probably classifies as a rant comes straight from my frustrated heart. Yeah, even where I am making fun of certain things and using whole lot of sarcasm.

Hm, you know what? I challenge you guys to read the entire chunk up here, vote, and then tell me that all of the above that I wrote and implied is false. I am willing to admit that anyone who can is very courageous in doing that. Are you sure you are not lying blatantly?

And yes, I am implying that you guys are so busy you don't have time for RPing and I can dig out some time. Oh yeah, I forgot, I'm a mod. Boo for me. Oh right, the time thing is an old argument that I forgot, no time for that, eh?

PS. You're welcomed to respond vehemently, but as the stickler of rules that I'm supposed to be, I'm warning you guys not to flame.

I just think it's funny that after the very small hubbub in the other thread, that no one else has stepped up suggesting how the rules should be revamped. One new member, and two old members who don't even post here in the RP section ( Or most of the boards for that matter ) got in their two cents without making any real suggestions, and left it up to you to basically come up with all the new ideas Sel.

But anyway, I'm gonna go ahead and place my vote. I know I don't RP, but the only person in that last thread who RP's was the new guy and Shadows, the rest of you still got to share your opinion.

And

LOL Sel.

Choice 1. Stressed out moderator is bad. Plain and simple.

Choice 3. Well... this idea is out as well. Even reducing the number of experienced roleplays needed to vouch and just allowing the "experienced" roleplayers to just "get a pat on the head" from the moderator, it leaves it too open to a number of factors: a.)what if he/she is unable to find vouchers due to popularity, etc.

Choice 2. With this choice, at this moment, I cannot even find any cons. Allowing all current roleplaying members to vote for the roleplay they would most like to participate in means that... we may have another roleplay to finish. And another. And so on.

If the majority of the members decided to go off on a sudden rant and vote for their favorite person's entry, well, there are other roleplays out there. They've made their bed, and they can lie in it, as the saying goes.

And if the voters are kind enough to explain the motivation behind their vote, instead of just "OMGZ, Roleplay A is UbEr-CoOl", etc., then those daring enough to create a new roleplay in the future will have suggestions to base their roleplay on. No, I don't fear that with this, roleplays will become to similiar, because the original ideal for each roleplay must be different anyway.

Vote goes off for two.


Ted, that isn't exactly true... ^^;

Tough decision,

I do not want an unhappy mod, but I worry how crowded a RPG approval thread would get. If everyone's RPGs are in a single thread, that thread is going to get real big real quick.

A few thoughts surface to mind.

Are we going to have a limit to the number of RPGs running at once? If we have a limit of five or so, I do not think the burden would be that bad on the Mod. Any RPGs coming in while the limit is filled are simply shelved to be read later.

Rather than having a thread where RPGs are approved, how about having one where people say whether they want to play in said RPG? This would in essence still get the number of votes needed to approve an RPG, but the voters would be also pledging to participate in the RPG they voted for. This would serve two purposes. It would serve to limit the number of RPGs running at once (no one is going to volunteer to play every RPG, while they might approve anything that comes their way). Yet, it is flexable enough that the unoffical limit would grow as particpation did. The better effect of this thread would be to ensure the RPG has interest in it before starting up, thus reducing the number of RPGs that never get off the ground due to lack of participation.

Any thoughts?

Barring the "I would play that" thread suggested above, my vote is number two.

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I know being Mod sometimes leaves everyone putting off everything on the Mod. That's wrong. This is our forum and no mod is a mind reader. Give Sel a break, she just took back the position (I think becuase I stirred the pot on that one, sorry Sel if that is the case). Just as in a democracy, the mod is the represenative of the forum, if we do not provide any feedback besides "Something is wrong", we are going to do nothing but drive Sel batty (although that might be fun to watch :) ).

Yes, Seluna, we do understand you have your hands full with real life, mod stuff, and trying to RP so this si still fun for you.

Shadows

oh me oh my Seluna. It looks like my cynical ranting has rubbed off on you. So what happened to the anarchy option? You know, that one option that was, "What the hell ever, rp at will, and if it sucks I'll yank you like a baby tooth." I always was in favor of that rule.

by the by... Is it honestly all that hard to read a couple pages of posts? I thought we were trying to cut down on clutter with this whole rule of "So many posts"?

Really, I don't think Anarchy is what the forum needs.

I'll go with Method 2.

choice three for me.

the rules should work, the only reason they dont is because people for some reason feel the need to whinge and bitch and moan about them. because, they are rules. (way to be rebelious!) if people are coming here from other rp forums, and they had a better way of doing things, well whoop-dee-doo. this is the way its always been and the old regulars of dreamers have never had any drama with it.

ive seen some of the rp forums where rule 2 is implemented. god damn, its the most messiest place ever. threads everywhere, or theres just one massive thread, with barely anything that represents a decent rp. its just a random idea, because people know they can just put them out there whenever they want, they dont take as much care, or time when creating it. they just write the first thing that comes into their head.

I don't really think that because the current moderator would have to write off on each RPG it would be majorly stressful, considering the amount of new RPGs at the moment. It could mean reading and approving ONE RPG in the space of 2 weeks to 2 months.

What I was suggesting before is devising a method of promoting activity during the slow times like these by changing the rules. If the approval system gets too stressful on a moderator in the coming months with some magic explosion in the amount of RPGs being created, then things can be modified again so it's less stressful. Also, if the moderator is inactive for a period of time, assign a fill-in that can approve things without having mod powers.

Things such as freeforms are still a good idea, but I think more mature players (such as myself) are looking for new RPGs that have a highly developed story and plotline. Just as a personal note, I tried getting into a few RPGs over the last few weeks and months, such as Destiny, but I kind of read it and felt disappointed because I felt like I had done that story at least seven times already.

So hopefully new members bring new ideas too.

I refuse to believe that this is all the opinions that I'm going to get. There are seven replies, and one is from a non-RPer. Is that all the RPers we have?

I will post more after there are more replies. There's a tie in the poll anyway.

my thouhgts about rule three are this, how about making a sticky thread in the rpg section, with the names of known members and rp'ers who are willing to sign off and comment on any new rp. that way instead of getting all rp's sent to the sole mod, they can be sent to the peopler willing to sign off, who then send a messege to the mod, saying, yeah, this ones good to go.

I'd say out of any of them go with #2.

#1 gives the moderator too much power in deciding which RPs are done or not. The decision could be solely based on the moderator's personal taste and not what the other RPers want, which could result in an over abundance of one type and not enough or none of another.

I'm not feeling #3 either. I think it shouldn't be the responsibility of the moderator to decide what gets put in here or not. The moderator's sole job should be to enfore the standard rules, and closing inactive RPs. And having other members vouch for new members? What's the point? If the RP the person has created is good enough then it should speak for itself, not by getting others to say the obvious.

If anything, I'd rather have members post whatever they want (as long as it goes by the standard rules that all the other RPs in this part of the forum go by.) If the RP is successful, then it stays. If it isn't, its gone and locked by the mod. With the dwindling amount of members that Dreamers gets everyday, it would help increase activity (hopefully).

This I got to reply to. Because it's true. I have a preference for medieval, modern and hybrid setting and plot, and a freeform style of RP. Whenever I see a sci-fi or mecha RP, I could never be enthusiastic about it. I also happen to not like zombies, basically Resident Evil style RP. I try not to let that affect me, but if there are limited RP slots, guess what RPs I may choose.

I am only wondering about why this so difficult? It doesn't matter what the thread is about, it just matters whether or not it's decently written. I would think that grammar, length, and how interesting the plot is, rather than the genre of the thread. Also, what's so wrong with anarchy? As long as there's Big Brother (or sister for the time being) Seluna to yank any bad threads why can't people post at whim? Withstanding mention the fact that noob threads would not even get posts because no one would post in it. I think this whole argument is getting really tiresome. Just let the people do as they will. It's not the moderators forum, its the roleplayers forum. If it goes to crap there's no one to blame but ourselves. I think it would work itself out.

Blood Rose,

You can not have anarchy and someone in charge keeping order, that is a paradox (or is it an oxymoron?).

Take a look around, you say that the forum should belong the the people not the mod. Yet, everyone who has voiced an opinion has favored a rule of some sort. You are the only one advocating anarchy. The people seem to desire some sort of order, not anarchy... so it seems the people are running the forum.

Your cry for anarchy will not work, there are way too many people not in favor of it.

Just sit back and let the process run it's course. It's looks like rules are changing and it will be sooner rather than later.

You will be able to start your RPG soon.

I voted for option three. Seluna, we need your aproval, I know. But at the same time, we can't have newbies like me spamming you with useless ##### RPs. Even if I have experience elsewhere, it is not proven here, and therefore useless. We can't have anarchy here, because if we did, we'd end up with tons of inactive threads not even worthy of the archives. Though, even with all of this, I think you're #####, Sel. This place is inactive. Hardly anyone wants to RP. Look at all of the hit we have, then look at how it just sits there, idle. Every site has a peak, Sel, and thi place is far past it.

But I wannnnnnnnnnt it. And I realized the paradox, but conflicts only make things stronger. And what's better than a conflict between anarchy and someone saying, 'Nah your thread sux, bye'. I think if 'Freedom to Post' was one of the original options we would have seen at least one or two votes. Honestly, how bad would it be if there were 8-10 threads to pick from to rp in, instead of one?

Because I don't want there to be half a dozen of 'tis is a ff7 rp, i wan play Sephrioth'. Again, I'm dead honest when I say I saw one such topic. The rules or mod approval is to prevent that from happening.

Do you want that happening?

Freedom means 'something without restriction.' This stands to reason that this 'Freedom to Post' would cut off any/all reason for a moderator, because the rules Seluna is to implement, well, in anarchy, are restrictions.

This not only means that the wonderous half a dozen Final Fantasy 7 IC threads may pop-up, but also that the members do not even have to follow a basic guideline. I mean, for a year and a half, Krazed and I have been working (procrastinating ^^; ) on the background for a roleplay, and no, it is not finished. In anarchy, who could stop me if I posted it anyway? Half-thought out ideas. Poorly "completed" construction of the background. Even if a small chunk of decent roleplays out there, these other roleplays will be numerous, most likely even outweighing the goods in such a situation.

Not to mention, how poorly would it reflect on dreamer's roleplay forum if there were 8-10 threads, most of them lacking even enough support to get them off the ground? Even in anarchy, the support given would be a statement of 'Nah, your thread sucks, bye.'

Man. The thing about asking me to vote for something is...I'm so indecisive. =\ I voted for option #2, but I liked option #3 just as much. However, I wouldn't change my vote if I could. But I will explain why I felt/feel so torn:

I liked the second option because for some reason I was thinking that if RPers had to go through a process of recommendation or something like that...then it would drive them off purely because I think most RPers are lazy anyway.

But, thinking on that...if most RPers are lazy...then what makes me think that RPers would take careful consideration or even participation in voting on RPs? If the topic is going to be as lengthy as I think it is...

I really don't have that great of a solution, given what it is I think. I think people are busy, and if they aren't busy, they were just uninterested, and if not that....then lazy.

I felt good about option 2 because I thought it would mean people would get to cranking out ideas if they knew they could place them out there. And I thought things would get a little busy with a vote or two...

But if we all prove too lazy to uphold that....maybe it's better we just keep things as they are because then it wouldn't be a problem of lack of ideas getting out there.

Just a thought, since there are so many concerns over a possible long topic (which I frankly couldn't foresee), but what if a new topic is set up every month or two (or even three), depending on how long the topic is? It won't be too much of a bother for me to do, if that's what we end up with.

Regarding topic length - What I was meaning by length was just that if people write out their RP sheets (with the plot, guidlines, character sheet) than even just one or two seemed lengthy to me. I know I have little faith, but it's only because I want to be proven wrong.

But I see no problem with length at all if people don't find it too time-consuming to read through a couple of RPs and vote.

If anything for a solution, I was thinking, they could just condense what they have or write a good summary...but I like Sel's idea, too.

I like the voting part of option 2, because if people vote for an rp, it hopefully means that they will rp in it and be more dedicated to it, but i also like the limited amount of roleplay idea in choice 3. I voted for option 3, but to me either one would do.

I'm thinking more of just a brief but detailed summary for each new RP (maybe with a link to the full thing), like somebody mentioned, a 'I would like to roleplay in this new RP if it goes up' from the members.

For option 3, I have yet to figure out how many should vouch first before the RP comes to get my approval. Also, how to let the newbies know who are the ones to approach, especially since our RPers get inactive and active like the change in weather.

Ok since nobody seems to like the word anarchy...

Why don't we get rid of the voting thread altogether? And just let people post their threads. If they get a certain amount of roleplayers to post (3 or however many it would take concerning characters and all) it would be allowed to get off the ground and go. If a weekend or two goes by and no one has posted in it, Seluna can delete it. Or it'll just end up in the back pages of the forum anyways so it's not cluttering the main page. This eliminates Seluna having to do alot of work, but it keeps the forum lean and running smoothly.

Also it helps the threads themselves. Sure people can vote and say, "Oh I think that thread passes my personal approval which means it is no worthy to be posted," But like it was already said. Roleplayers, including me, are LaZy. Just because I believe something should be allowed doesn't mean I think I'll take the time and effort to post in it. If each thread is posted on its own and people enter characters or accept characters then you'll be ready to go as soon as you have enough votes and/or approval from the moderator. And that moderator approval, if required can take place as a post in the thread of, "You have my approval." That easy. If a thread sucks, then no ones going to want to join and/or the moderator can just say, "You do not have my approval," in a pm and delete the thread.

Finally, @Reanimation, I believe that it would be best to post threads with half-thought out plotlines and the such. If you already have an idea of exactly what's going to happen in a story then where's the fun of involving others? Just finish the story yourself and put it in the fiction forum. My theory is that the best threads have good settings, better characters, and one fantastic plot twist.

Hmmmm....

This sounds contradictory. No one seems to like anarchy, so lets just get rid of this whole poll and let there be anarchy. This doesnt make much sense.

Anyway, I vote for idea 2 because it seems like it would work, and it would take a lot of stress off of the mod, sorry, not much detail to go into for the reason I chose 2, it was just clearly the best choice for me.

Clearly, I'm in the minority here, but I see others' point of view, too. I would just like to add that option 1 is the only truly unacceptable option. I like you Seluna, and am glad you are mod, and think that you are fair and will not abuse your power like some of the mods. However, you should not posses thed power to be omnipotent. I highly doubt you even want this, from reading your posts, but it must be said.

The one truth. I don't want to be able to and have to dictate every single thing in the RP forum when with just some thinking or discussing, the members themselves can take care of things for themselves. This RP forum is not just mine, it's everybody. Frankly speaking, I'm fed up with the reliance on the mod, and I'm seriously wondering if it was because I mothered the forum too much earlier. No wonder I was all stressed out then.

But if that's what the majority wants from me (which I hope is not the case), so be it. Just know that I won't be happy.

" This sounds contradictory. No one seems to like anarchy, so lets just get rid of this whole poll and let there be anarchy. This doesnt make much sense. "

well i was actually more just rewording it... b.c whenever i said anarchy people went ahhhhhh and jumbed their thumbs in their eyes

When you reworded it, the outcome would be anarchy anyway. So knock it off. If you're not going to help contribute to the thought process here, then please, don't comment at all.

Anyhoo. I don't like having the moderator do so much (#1 and #3) as well as us oldbies getting special treatment. I like the democratic approach. (#2)

So, I think we should stick with that.

The results of the poll as of current is:


I would close the poll but I'm not sure which button does that for me without closing the topic. I don't want to waste space so I'm going to continue discussing this here anyway. Any votes from here on will be disregarded.

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Now... to respond to the posts in the topic that I said I would respond to.

If the majority of the members decided to go off on a sudden rant and vote for their favorite person's entry, well, there are other roleplays out there. They've made their bed, and they can lie in it, as the saying goes.

And if the voters are kind enough to explain the motivation behind their vote, instead of just "OMGZ, Roleplay A is UbEr-CoOl", etc., then those daring enough to create a new roleplay in the future will have suggestions to base their roleplay on. No, I don't fear that with this, roleplays will become to similiar, because the original ideal for each roleplay must be different anyway.

I fear about the flood towards favorite/popular members too, but it is like you said, they have to stick with that decision then. And yes, I was hoping that suggestions and comments will also help the other RP makers-to-be in improving their RP.

Are we going to have a limit to the number of RPGs running at once? If we have a limit of five or so, I do not think the burden would be that bad on the Mod. Any RPGs coming in while the limit is filled are simply shelved to be read later.

There already is a limit that is to be decided by the moderator privately. It's up to him or her to announce the limit, and it can be of a very wide-range. Myself, I'm thinking to allowing a lot more RPs because of the complaints of lack of variety. I should have done the 'shelving to read later' thing, but I didn't think of that. o.o But I think I still prefer to read them and give the most appropriate and hopefully helpful responses, thus cancelling off my intention to slack.

Rather than having a thread where RPGs are approved, how about having one where people say whether they want to play in said RPG? This would in essence still get the number of votes needed to approve an RPG, but the voters would be also pledging to participate in the RPG they voted for. This would serve two purposes. It would serve to limit the number of RPGs running at once (no one is going to volunteer to play every RPG, while they might approve anything that comes their way). Yet, it is flexable enough that the unoffical limit would grow as particpation did. The better effect of this thread would be to ensure the RPG has interest in it before starting up, thus reducing the number of RPGs that never get off the ground due to lack of participation.

I really like this idea, and you can probably see me picking up on it somewhere earlier, although the only problem I see is our Dreamer RPers favorite trend of drifting off without a word midway through the RP. But that is not something I can or wish to control, so this is what I'm looking to do. Thanks for the suggestion, Shadows. ^^

oh me oh my Seluna. It looks like my cynical ranting has rubbed off on you. So what happened to the anarchy option? You know, that one option that was, "What the hell ever, rp at will, and if it sucks I'll yank you like a baby tooth." I always was in favor of that rule.

it seems that others also agrees on not having anarchy, even though I don't know if it's for the same reason as I myself. Restrictive or not, there is a certain standard of RP quality here in Dreamers that I wish to maintain because that was what the RP mods before me had created for this place, and I'm damn proud of it. I'm not going to have it ruin by all sorts of nonsense that can happen because of thingies such as anarchy and 'RP at will'.

Nuff said about that, me think. And no, I'm not influenced by you. I was already known for my sarcasm and my lousy stress management. I amaze myself by not ranting in public only until now.

the rules should work, the only reason they dont is because people for some reason feel the need to whinge and bitch and moan about them. because, they are rules. (way to be rebelious!) if people are coming here from other rp forums, and they had a better way of doing things, well whoop-dee-doo. this is the way its always been and the old regulars of dreamers have never had any drama with it.

The initial idea of the rule was to let the new roleplayers get used to our roleplay style because it does take some getting used to, in my opinion. I think it did work, in that sense. It also seems to keep new RPers from sticking around because with the situation here (lack of roleplays which they can join immediately without having half a dozen of pages to read and 'who exactly is an active experienced roleplayer who can vouch for my roleplayer') makes it hard for them to.

ive seen some of the rp forums where rule 2 is implemented. god damn, its the most messiest place ever. threads everywhere, or theres just one massive thread, with barely anything that represents a decent rp. its just a random idea, because people know they can just put them out there whenever they want, they dont take as much care, or time when creating it. they just write the first thing that comes into their head.

That is why there will be some basic guidelines to be observed, just so people won't write down the first silly thing that goes into their mind. To prevent the thread from being the big and messy, I'm thinking of 'refreshing' it monthly or something. Thanks for the information though. ^^

I don't really think that because the current moderator would have to write off on each RPG it would be majorly stressful, considering the amount of new RPGs at the moment. It could mean reading and approving ONE RPG in the space of 2 weeks to 2 months.

Dreamers famous inactivity uh? That does happen, since everyone who promised to send me their OOC somehow found better things to do. >.>

What I was suggesting before is devising a method of promoting activity during the slow times like these by changing the rules. If the approval system gets too stressful on a moderator in the coming months with some magic explosion in the amount of RPGs being created, then things can be modified again so it's less stressful. Also, if the moderator is inactive for a period of time, assign a fill-in that can approve things without having mod powers.

Fill-in idea is nice, I didn't exactly think of that. But tell me, who exactly should I assign that is qualified and active when I don't know which of the more experienced RPers are around since they keep drifting away eternally or periodically?

And I'm modifying the system now because I don't want to have to keep modifying it. I like stability in my tasks. But I'm not saying the rules are stuck forever, I'm just trying to let them go a long long way before the next modification is required. Besides, it places a lot less stress on me. I actually closed my IE window on a very long RP that is waiting to be read (I briefly scanned through it once already).

my thouhgts about rule three are this, how about making a sticky thread in the rpg section, with the names of known members and rp'ers who are willing to sign off and comment on any new rp. that way instead of getting all rp's sent to the sole mod, they can be sent to the peopler willing to sign off, who then send a messege to the mod, saying, yeah, this ones good to go.

Mm... that could work, except I don't know if those people will be around when I need them, are they qualified enough (meaning they don't approve everything on sight), and how long are they going to take to read the thing and reply to me? That's too much work and waiting, in my opinion. Especially since people around here have bad track records at keeping promises when deadlines are in question.

If anything, I'd rather have members post whatever they want (as long as it goes by the standard rules that all the other RPs in this part of the forum go by.) If the RP is successful, then it stays. If it isn't, its gone and locked by the mod. With the dwindling amount of members that Dreamers gets everyday, it would help increase activity (hopefully).

Meaning an option #2, except this bypasses the topic thing and goes straight to posting? Then I filter out the spammy ones by checking for the basic guidelines? It sounds like it could work, but I really don't know. The other RP forum I goes to seem to use this system, but I honestly can't tell if it'll work for us.

I voted for option three. Seluna, we need your aproval, I know. But at the same time, we can't have newbies like me spamming you with useless ##### RPs. Even if I have experience elsewhere, it is not proven here, and therefore useless. We can't have anarchy here, because if we did, we'd end up with tons of inactive threads not even worthy of the archives. Though, even with all of this, I think you're #####, Sel. This place is inactive. Hardly anyone wants to RP. Look at all of the hit we have, then look at how it just sits there, idle. Every site has a peak, Sel, and thi place is far past it.

I was a little shocked by the 'I think you're #####' but I got that cleared up for me, so yeah. ^^; This place is inactive, and has been for a long time if you count activity with a daily standard or something. But sometimes activity rushes in for a short while, and some are even had posts coming within dozens of minutes. Then it all goes back into low tide. So I'm just trying to see if I can change something and get more of those activity waves and make them stay. Wistful thinking, eh?

Also it helps the threads themselves. Sure people can vote and say, "Oh I think that thread passes my personal approval which means it is no worthy to be posted," But like it was already said. Roleplayers, including me, are LaZy. Just because I believe something should be allowed doesn't mean I think I'll take the time and effort to post in it. If each thread is posted on its own and people enter characters or accept characters then you'll be ready to go as soon as you have enough votes and/or approval from the moderator. And that moderator approval, if required can take place as a post in the thread of, "You have my approval." That easy. If a thread sucks, then no ones going to want to join and/or the moderator can just say, "You do not have my approval," in a pm and delete the thread.

True, RPers just may approve and don't join the RPs, just like I did. Not that I don't like them, but I simply did not have the time or concentration to. I am afraid of that happening as well.

Anyway, Neccers proposed skipping the 'select' topic too, and I replied to that already. But just to be quick, basically, I have seen it working elsewhere but I don't know about here. But what you're saying... whether the RP lives or dies depends on activity and moderator approval which is again dependent on the activity? How does that work? How is that different from not needing a moderator's approval?

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Anyway, option #2 seems to be the preferred choice of many. So I'm assuming that you guys want to decided on what RPs you get to roleplay in. But as you can see from the posts and my responses, I'm not yet certain of how to go about doing it. Yes, there will be a basic guideline to be observed no matter what, but there are a few options after that step.

1) Do I make this 'select what you want to RP in' topic? Should I have summaries with links to the full things (more work for RP creator)? Should the topic be refreshed monthly to keep it from growing too large? Do we have approval system or a 'promise to RP in this RP' system (then how is this one different from the option below)?

2) Should I allow RP creators to just create their OOC topics, and RPers can choose directly from there? Then should I approve the RPs in the topics? Should the 'life' of the RP be judged by how active it is, and does that mean that everything will be judged by activity?

3) Any other suggestions?

PS. Because of how many things my post touched on, please quote if you're replying to my post. Thanks for the little move of consideration. Oh and sorry for not using quotes in my post, they died on me.

Alright, so anarchy nobody likes. Fine, I get it already. We go with option 2.

I’m sitting here the other day uselessly hammering away on the keyboard and then I remembered the fact that RPGDreamers has this amazing technology called subforums. It’s how we store our archives and make areas where we can differentiate threads. So I thought why don’t we have something for beginning threads there? We can call the subforum Thread Nursery or The Cutting Room or whatever. Let everything happen that’s going to happen with a new thread over there. Don’t limit threads, don’t limit ideas, just let it all go. Allow creators to make their OOC’s or the sticky thread and use that as a soapbox to get your thread of the ground. Then when they have the votes, or support from other members, they can go from there. Then once the thread is on its feet it’s reached a predetermined amount of posts (10, 20, 50, whatever) the mod there, or here, can move the post into the actual roleplaying forum.

I think this idea works best because if people who are going to slam new ideas anyways can just stay in the normal forum, and not be bothered with heading over to the beginning area and have to read such horrible, tedious, uninspired, n00b posts… you poor, poor veterans. And it still allows for a modicum of elitist behavior in the original roleplaying forum. There still won’t be that many threads there, so it’s not cluttered, and the only threads in existence are ones that already have a stamp of approval from the creation forum. And if one or two roleplayers get pissy because there’s this really cool thread, but it’s already into post 50 and they can’t jump in anymore. Fine, it’s good for them to be on the other side of the fence once in a while. Maybe that will let them see what good can come from posts that aren’t created by someone who’s been on dreamers for five years. Then that would inspire them to go poke around the beginners’ area and join one or two threads themselves. I like to call it the circle of life.


Oh and...




How is that different from my cry for anarchy everyone hated?

I'm for option three. By doing this, every RPer get's a say in what is allowed. It also prevents idotic poorley written OOCs from taking up board space.
PS

Oops. I don't exactly remember what I said, but I'm sure it wasn't meant to cause too much offense, if it was meant to cause offense at all. It's these ##### blocks. They can cause some confusion.

To put it crudely, anarchy basically meant that all rules are off, and all kinds of sh*t goes, right? But what I proposed up there had the basic guidelines as some minimum requirement. That is different. It meant that the roleplays are still governed by some rules, albeit more relaxed.

Can you please stop trying to propose anarchy? It's not going to work. Especially when you propose it with the addition of moderator's approval. It's an oxymoron.


I think you mean option 2? Option 3 is mod approval for veteran, and also vouching for new members.


Yeah, but it's fine now since I know what you meant. ^^;

Oh, right. When I said option three, it was my bad, I meant option two. But not option two from the polls, the new option two for how you're gonna do it now.

I was for option three when I voted in the poll, though.


This also seems like a good idea to me.

I think that's a good idea, actually. Rather than a cluttered confusing topic, maybe a sub-forum just may be the thing to work. Then I can judge by the number of profiles submitted (and approved, if need be) and move them to the main RP when it reach my minimum required amount. Sort of like incubation chamber or something. Lovely idea, Blood Rose... I must have been blind or too tired when I read your post. How did I miss this?

I decided to have another poll for convenience sake. Anyway, the results of the last poll shows that the majority would prefer if they have a say in which RPs they eventually get to RP in. There were many suggestions as to how to do it, and I don't know which will work better. It's a new thing for me afterall.

One thing first, no matter which method gets chosen and used, there will be a set of basic guidelines for every RP to meet first. The reason is to prevent this place from being spammed by one-liners, script format, and all sorts of stuff that we all agree as nonsensical.

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Okay, on to the options themselves:

Number o1: There will be a topic for RPers to select which RPs they are interested in RPing in, and the RP creators can post their entire OOC in it. RPers will respond in that topic as well, and when the number of interested RPers is enough for the RPs to go up, the OOC is then posted in the forum. The topic will be re-newed every month or so, depending on how many posts there are.

Number o2: Similar to Number o1, but with a main difference of having only summaries, with links to OOCs posted or hosted elsewhere. It is a little troublesome, but meant that RPers won't need to scroll as much. Again, it'll be re-newed frequently.

Number o3: There will be no topic for selection. The new OOCs will be posted in the forum itself, and RPers will view and respond in them. Those that gets no active for two weeks will be closed and archived. If the moderator's limit for RPs is reached, the other OOCs will be merged into a topic for later revision.

Number o4: Similar to Number o3, but there is a sub-forum for all new OOCs. When they get enough interested RPers (or profiles), they are then moved to our main forum unless the moderator's limit is reached. Again, if there is two weeks of inactivity, they are still closed and archived.

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I'll vote my own preference later. Regarding the sub-forum, I'll ask if it can be created, but I think that the chances of an 'okay' is quite high. Now, note that each option has their good points and bad points, so consider well before you vote. ^^ Now, let's choose how you want to select your RPs.

Double-posted because I'm an idiot.

Like I said, we need a set of basic guidelines that everyone agrees on that we use to 'approve' the new RPs with. Basically, the new RPs that fulfill these requirements will stay for the RPers' selection while the others will get flushed. However, it's not supposed to be strict and forbidding. We are only going to have these so that the standard of our RP quality won't drop drastically as we forego the 'get used to our style' thing.

Yume-chan brought up a few things that she thinks should be included inthe guideline and I agreed with:

- OOC posts must be spellchecked, grammar-checked.

- IC posts must be more than 2k characters minimum for non-freeform and 1k for freeform.

- OOC background story must be at least one paragraph (or at least three long sentences)

- provide a character template for non-freeform

Now, what else do you think should be included? Or which do you disagree with?

All of the above guidelines seem fine, and should stay just for the sake of making a good RP.

Also, I liked having the OOC topics in a sub-forum, as it made them easier to find rather than having to sift through IC topics as well to find them.

I refuse to believe that our RP community consists of only five active members. Come on guys, contribute your part.

Four days and there's only six votes. Whatever. If six is the majority, so be it. I'm going ahead with the idea, and you guys will live with the decision to not vote.

And the guidelines too. Since there are no comments, I take it that all of you are fine with that.

Poll and topic is closed. Watch for the changes.