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[cowboy-mod.livejournal.com]

¤ CHARACTERIZATION POLL ¤

I'm sure some of you remember the OOC discussion thread posted about a week ago. We'd like to thank you for your input. The various opinions and ideas offered were eye opening, and we're glad that the discussion went over so well. However, while it's clear that we can't make every single person in a community of 200+ members perfectly happy, we fully understand that it's the players that make the community as fabulous as it is, and so we value your input. We do what we do because we have the community's best interests at heart.

We've all read what you've had to say, and now we'd like a poll to better organize certain ideas. Additionally, we know there are members of the community who weren't able to participate in the previous debate, so this is your chance to offer up your opinion without feeling the need to tl;dr your brain out.

Bear with me, because this post will be hosting some tl;dr in the form of a poll. If you care about how this community is moderated in terms of characterization and inactivity, even just a little, then please fill out the poll. It will only take a minute of your time. ♥

[Poll #1183789]

We encourage comments as well because we realize opinions can vary beyond checking boxes. Please feel free to express your opinion, but don't forget to be polite. We won't tolerate flaming of any kind towards other players.

[EDIT] Please, only one vote per person.

Comments

[scienceinacan.livejournal.com]

How many characterization complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted?

^ I think this one really hinges on the size of the crew and the nature of complaints...

[sandmullet.livejournal.com]

Re: Characterization complaints:

Three is fine, unless the characterization is so BLATANTLY OOC that three separate complaints really should not be necessary to evince the problem. At that time, the single complaint drawing attention to it should be more than sufficient.

[ketsumetsu.livejournal.com]

How many characterization complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted?

This should depend on the severity of the oocness involved in complaints and the relative size or cultural entrenchment of a canon. (It's not ideal to consider Chameleon from the Legion of Superheroes as a character liable to receive as many complaints as the goddamn Batman).

When letting a player know of character complaints, should those who lodged the complaints remain anonymous?

Anonymity is important sometimes to keep players happy with one another, but anonymity would not be threatened if the moderation were to forward responses to complainants and inform complainants of what the moderation communicated to the players who play the characters in question.

[tenmorehours.livejournal.com]

Anonymity is important sometimes to keep players happy with one another, but anonymity would not be threatened if the moderation were to forward responses to complainants and inform complainants of what the moderation communicated to the players who play the characters in question.

I agree with this idea...as long as it wouldn't put too much work on the moderators.

[ketsumetsu.livejournal.com]

Regarding requests for no further contact, one of the options bothers me:

No, because other players' opinions deserve to be heard, even if the player might disagree.

Other players are welcome to voice their opinions, by means of crit posts, e-mail, im or ooc comments. They're welcome to voice their opinions about characterization on the HMD posts.

However--

Making a formal complaint about a player's characterization is an entirely different matter and suggests that there is a large issue. Moderators and players both should consider filing a formal complaint a last ditch measure.

This is not the same as simply having an opinion, and having an opinion and communicated it is not impacted by a player requesting not to be contacted about opinions they've received before and decided to not honor in their characterization.

[lefeufollet.livejournal.com]

How many characterization complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted?

I think this depends on the nature of the complaints. If it's something small and nit-picky, or if the complaint is even along the lines of "I mostly like this character, but I think this facet could use a bit of work," then I don't think complaints should necessarily be issued unless the complaint becomes a problem, just because characterization is such a touchy subject and in a game, we should be leaving much of it to the player to decide. Also, in the case of minor complaints, I would really prefer for the moderators to stress trying to contact the player in some fashion themselves--most likely, a player can either explain his or her reasoning, or perhaps take the complaint into account and change their roleplaying to some degree.

As for major complaints? Where a player is seriously barred from playing their own characters somehow, or if it goes strictly against canon? I'd say two-three complaints should warrant an email, depending. Also, I think frequency of complaints should factor in--how recent the complaints all were, how many in succession, and so forth.

I realize that these are hard to implement in a concrete fashion, but well. Willing to discuss at length if needed.

How many inactivity complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted?

I think two complaints, from separate players, should be enough. I really don't think many people even file inactivity complaints unless it's a real issue--I know that I've filed one, but only because it in fact really hinders my playing of a character, and I'm not sure if it's been resolved at all yet.

Should the number of complaints needed be changed depending on the size [small or large] of the crew?

No. A crew can be small and still adversely affected by really bad playing. Also note that really bad playing can uh, drive away people from a crew, thus making it smaller, but it doesn't make the complaints any less valid.

If so, what should be the deciding crews member number for smaller crews? What about larger crews?

N/A.

If a player requests not to be contacted about OOC complaints filed later when they feel they've already been solved, should we honor their request?

The latter 'yes' option. If they feel a problem has been solved, I don't think an email from the mods is going to change anything. Get the people who complained to try to reason things out with the player, even if it requires posting anonymously in an OOC crit post. It's better than getting things from the mods, who might have to water things down even because of politics, etc. Also, this can get a player to respond directly to a complaint, explain themselves, etc. etc.

Should moderators be allowed to file character complaints?

Nope. Moderators, of all people, should be able to contact a player through other means. Also for the sake of politics, etc., I've gone over this before. I sincerely hope this isn't changed. Really.

When letting a player know of character complaints, should those who lodged the complaints remain anonymous?

Yes, but encourage them to come out of the closet.

How should players be contacted by mods in regards to a complaint?

I didn't really have a response to this. I think all modes of contact should be... available. Also might depend on the situation. IMing one-on-one can be friendly for minor issues, emailing might be better for major concerns. Always offer IMing as an option to players in the email.

How do you feel about making the personal characterization crit posts mandatory to replace going to a moderator about characterization?

I personally like it, but I can see why some people wouldn't. So I'm unhelpful here.

[wishyuumay.livejournal.com]

RE: How many complaints should be lodged before player contact.

I agree with previous statements that it really depends on the crew, but the post raises a good question of when a crew becomes too big. The only thing I can think of to address this issue is to say that you need 30% of existing crew numbers (in complaints whether they come from crew members or not) or xx number of complaints, whichever is LESS. Of course, percentage and fixed number still depending on whatever others think, but it's one way around the dilemma?

[knightbalanced.livejournal.com]

I filled out everything, but I'd also like to note that I think having a fixed set of numbers that have to be met for any action to be taken might ultimately be a trap you're setting for yourselves. What if more than one member of any given crew is wildly ooc, and only one person has the balls to file a complaint, even if the complaints are dire and extreme? What if a fandom is too small for three unique complaints? What if you only get two complaints but they're really grave and have hard core backing evidence? I think three is a good general target if you're unsure, but I also think you should give yourselves room to make judgement calls based on the content presented versus numbers.

Edited for spellcheck betraying me with incorrect word choice. x[

[lullabyoflondon.livejournal.com]

Too scatterbrained at the moment to make my own comment, but replied here to note I agree with this; I think that three should be a general guideline, but not a hard-and-fast rule, because of all the possible situations brought up here.

[eternalnic.livejournal.com]

On the issue of smaller crews, if the crew is smaller and at least half the people from the crew complain, then the complaints should be looked at, even if that puts the complaints at less than the number of complaints that has been generally agreed on.

That said, complaints from outside of the crew should have weight just like complaints from other crewmembers.

[breakerofchains.livejournal.com]

Well, the previous comments have been taken out of my mouth, but like I stressed the last time, I'd like to see these issues at LEAST to be resolved to a player-to-player basis, and that complaints thread should honestly be a last-ditch effort. But that's just me, and I'm always willing to work for compromise.

Also, I'm sort of honestly leery, while concrit is good, but seeing as HMD is and plus the fact some people might feel uncomfortable with commenting on a crit post? I think making it mandatory is a bad idea, and should honestly be optional. Then again, that's just me, because some players wouldn't feel comfortable with that.

[ketsumetsu.livejournal.com]

Yes. You're entitled to your opinion, and we're entitled to decide in what forum we want to accept others' opinions.

And of course, some people would say 'but when you enter the game, you agree to game rules and regulations!' But honestly, taking away one option from others isn't fair, but taking away a right to choose an option (to have a crit post or not) isn't encouraging.

[lefeufollet.livejournal.com]

Ohgod, please don't hate me for this, but--

I do hope that... decisions won't be made purely on a democratic process for these issues? Because... some of these questions might seriously squick a player. (Like, for instance, if mod complaints gets passed, I'm going to be uneasy, not because I don't trust the mods to try their best to be unbiased, but because I really do think that mods of all people should be going directly to a player. Encourage exemplary behavior, etc. And humans are by nature... biased, too.)

*waves minority rights flags?*

[nico-oniichan.livejournal.com]

Actually, they are. At least they were in the past?

[proudbutterfly.livejournal.com]

Neutral. I think it has pros and cons [I'll explain in comments].

To address this, they should be mandatory, but they shouldn't replace the going to a moderator about characterization method. This last scenario should happen as last resort, methinks.

[nico-oniichan.livejournal.com]

Seconded.

[mildlyreckless.livejournal.com]

As far as neutrality on the mandatory crit post... There are some players here who are extremely paranoid about being attacked over their characterization. I think those folks should be respected by being ENCOURAGED to have a crit post, but not forced. But I'm not going to throw an outright hissy fit if they're mandatory, since it would be a personal post made, where they can screen comments and such.

Also, I really like the idea of OOC complaints being taken more seriously from crew members, since they're likeliest to know if a person's being played right.

This is looking good so far, guys. Kudos.♥

[theotokos.livejournal.com]

IAWTC!

[twin-gunsy.livejournal.com]

How do you feel about making the personal characterization crit posts mandatory to replace going to a moderator about characterization?

I think it really depends on the person. Hmmmm, maybe I should have said it's a bad idea.... But I think the threads are good for some! I am just a baby chicken though >.> so very very neutral on the subject?

1/2 because I'm just that verbose.

[i-themagician.livejournal.com]

Okay. So, like, I am going to comment on every single question because I didn't participate in the previous discussion and YOU TOTALLY CARE what I have to say because I'M JUST THAT AWESOME. ♥

How many characterization complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted?

H-honestly, all I have to say about this is that I'm of two minds about the whole characterization complaints thing. On one hand, I agree with some of the people that said that characterization should be worked out between players - and in an ideal world that would in fact be the ideal solution. However, this is not an ideal world and I have been in one too many games where the solution to characterization problems was "work it out with the player and if that doesn't work you're fucked" - and, trust me, dealing with a poorly-played version of a character can kind of ruin the RPing experience if it's someone that you have to interact with a lot. (Like, imagine if I were not awesome, HEAVEN FORBID, and Sakura-mun noticed!) So, I have to say that I like the idea of there being a way to go over players' heads and bitch to the mods.

... Uhhh. All of that long-winded-ness was just meant to express, in summary, that I think that it should be required that people talk to the offending player BEFORE going to the mods. But there's, uh, no way to enforce that, so.

How many inactivity complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted?

I actually put that I'd explain on this one, so I'LL EXPLAIN NOW: I don't think inactivity complaints should go to mods. In fact, I don't think anyone should really complain about inactivity. If people had a right to do that shit, I'd be complaining about EVERYONE EVER because I have no life.

CLAMP CREW NEEDS TO BE MORE ACTIVE. ENTERTAIN ME, BITCHES.

... Uh. Anyway, I think that so long as people can avoid being listed on the monthly inactivity check, they're good. If people want to play with them, they should bother them on AIM or whatever. I make a habit of regularly harassing muns of characters close to mine (DON'T I, GUYS? ♥) and that seems to work fairly well. Most people are fairly amenable to random IMs and if they're not they should say so and blah blah. You know, whatever. So, in short: no inactivity complaints, ever.

Speaking of inactivity, I'm really curious: How do you DO the inactivity checks? Do you just, like, look at everyone's journal one by one and see if they've posted at least twice in that month? @___@;;

Should the number of complaints needed be changed depending on the size [small or large] of the crew?

I'm actually not sure what crew size has to do with anything. Crew size is not a good indicator of how big a fandom is or now many people are likely to know the character in question well enough to critique them, and crew members are not the only people with a right to critique characters.

Not only that, but what's a small crew? What's a large one? I'd say that TRC has a very small crew right now whereas Holic has a large one, but that's mostly because there are a lot more different characters in TRC. And, speaking of CLAMP (although we might be the only group that has this problem), how do you even define a crew? CLAMP has enough crossovers in it to warrant just being one big crew, but there's no canon evidence that anyone from MKR (aside from Mokona) has ever met anyone from CLAMP's other works. That would sort of make MKR a separate crew. Except kinda not. And anyway there's only one person in that crew right now, so would that mean that any complaints about Hikaru's characterization would be too many? Or that nobody is allowed to complain?

When letting a player know of character complaints, should those who lodged the complaints remain anonymous?

I said no, but mostly because of what I said above - characterization should be worked out among players as much as possible. Plus, if it's me, the thing that's being complained about is probably something that I did consciously if not on purpose and if people are taking it as bad characterization then I will probably want to open up a discussion with them about why I did it and why it wasn't good. Kinda hard to do that when you don't know who to talk to, right?

OMFG ARE WE THERE YET, MOMMY? Yes, we are.

[i-themagician.livejournal.com]

How should players be contacted by mods in regards to a complaint?

I actually prefer AIM? But apparently a lot of other people prefer email. I think it's an individual preference thing, although I don't know if it's realistic to expect mods to remember that Clow-mun likes being contacted by AIM BUT SOMETIMES SHE'S NOT THERE AND FORGETS TO PUT AN AWAY MESSAGE UP BECAUSE SHE SUCKS SO MAYBE WE SHOULD JUST EMAIL HER INSTEAD THAT BITCH. Or whatever.

How do you feel about making the personal characterization crit posts mandatory to replace going to a moderator about characterization?

moar personal crit posts = gud, but I don't like the idea of them being mandatory. There's no logical reason why not, but I just think that to make that a rule rather than a recommendation is too micro-managing. However, I also don't think that they should replace going to a moderator because, like I said, I like the idea that there's something that can be done about poor characterization if the mun is being obstinate.

personal characterization crit posts

[venomouselle.livejournal.com]

Neutral. I think it has pros and cons [I'll explain in comments]

I think that having a hand in mediating OOC and IC activity is, when executed properly by all parties a great idea. Yet I can think of several ways it could go awry: the player is incapable of properly taking criticism, the player is capable of taking criticism but said criticism isn't something that one can glean enough information from other than anonymouse saying U SUCK LOL or because it is the mun's personal journal or wherever else the thread may rest its head it leaves the person to tone down what it is they mean to say.

Now, in the heat of dealing criticism, it is possible for a person to just let on lose and not quite see the forest for the trees. In this circumstance, when it is sent to the modship third party that picks through the muck to see Mickey kicked Pluto and is having a torrid love affair with Donald, that's superly not IC and cut away the acidity.

In turn, an open forum where a person can say as they will and have the mun deal directly to refute can be beneficial. Provided though that the person wants to speak to the mun at all.

Mmm. I feel like I'm saying what has been said a few times previous. I dunno. SOooo much tl;dr.

Re: personal characterization crit posts

[compactcrucifix.livejournal.com]

Mickey kicked Pluto and is having a torrid love affair with Donald

I've seen a lot of examples like this - suppose it's not always so cut and dry, though? I mean, if that were the case it'd be evident to me they wouldn't be able to make it through the app process, let alone get into the game to start kicking and..you know, shagging. XD

[noodlesickness.livejournal.com]

I don't know. I'm paranoid as hell and I would really rather people hit me up if I am sucking hard core. Because, yeah. I'd rather not be a total sucky-mcsuckpants, but I think that people should really try to contact people and discuss issues instead of being, "Pssst, pssttt." fknlanka I don't make sense.

I don't think a mandatory OOC thread is necessary if people can discuss things civilly, but if that's not the case, then there has to be some way to get information across lines in a way that isn't demeaning to a mun or something.

God I am so full of fail. D:

[better-third.livejournal.com]

How many characterization complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted?

A tricky question, really. I know it's been mentioned in some of the comments, and it bears mentioning again- it's possibly that a character be wildly ooc, and yet only one person will actually complain. Or maybe no one will complain. I think that one complaint is not enough, and three complaints is... not too many, but- too much to ask, perhaps? What I mean is- (orz bad with words) Like- Three is too high to expect people to put in? I think three is definitely a sign that ooc issues need to be handled, but you're just... not always going to get at least three. People are just lazy like that, idk. I think complaints should be weighed by content not quantity, if you get what I mean. One serious complaint could easily mean more than three petty complaints, yeah?

How many inactivity complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted?

Again with the whole content > quantity thing. I think a lot of complaints should be judged on a case-by-case bases. Sometimes one complaint could outweigh three.

Should the number of complaints needed be changed depending on the size [small or large] of the crew?

No. I am the entirety of the Tekkonkinkreet crew right now. Forgiving that I haven't posted yet, let's pretend I have. Let's say I've been playing for a good while, and I'm still the only one in my crew. My "needed number of complaints" shouldn't change because my crew is non-existant. All of my complaints would be from non-crew members who know the film well and just don't play in the crew and... fuck if this even had a point. Just- No. It shouldn't change. The number of complaints that Shiro "needs" to be forwarded to me should be the same as the number Kiyone "needs".

If a player requests not to be contacted about OOC complaints filed later when they feel they've already been solved, should we honor their request?

Uhh. No. I don't even understand why that's a question, truth be told. Because we know that the email don't put you under an obligation to change your characterization, aren't you free to just... ignore it? Take it with a grain of salt, constructive criticism, happy, pretendy funtime games, etc.

If a player thinks and issue is solved, that doesn't mean it is. I think as long as the mods feel the players complaints are valid, then complaints should continue to be forwarded it. It's kind of ah- pretentious to be like- "Don't even send that shit to me, omg". No one should be exempt. Mods shouldn't have a separate list of "is okay to forward complaints to" and "is a special snowflake and exempt from receiving complaints. don't forward complaints to".


Should moderators be allowed to file character complaints?

I know yes isn't a popular answer, but I think we should trust mods enough to have their own opinions RE: characterization, and be able to submit a complaint regarding it. I hope they're all above abusing that power.

When letting a player know of character complaints, should those who lodged the complaints remain anonymous?

Yes, and yes. All around.

How do you feel about making the personal characterization crit posts mandatory to replace going to a moderator about characterization?

I smell wars with anon. Not a good idea.

[ketsumetsu.livejournal.com]

Mods shouldn't have a separate list of "is okay to forward complaints to" and "is a special snowflake and exempt from receiving complaints. don't forward complaints to".

The issue here is repeated complaints. If the complaints the mods are receiving are redundant in nature and the player has already expressed valid reasons for their characterization, it's only respectful for the mods to not bother the players about an issue that is solved.

Both the player and complainant deserve the same amount of respect in the issue. The player's (evidently demonstrable) opinion that the already addressed complaint isn't an issue should be respected.

[not-mukuro-rly.livejournal.com]

In regards to the final question, an alternate solution that was brought up in an off-Poly conversation after the first post, was the establishment of something similar to cfud_concrit?

It would allow for an outlet for dialogue between the players without the, ah, simmering effect that tends to make HMD so terrifying at times, as well as one for players to voice certain concerns in regards to their personal playing habits. I know the fact that people would be asking for concrit would make me feel more comfortable bringing my personal issues up with them.

Of course, it brings up the problem of being completely voluntary, so some of the worst offenders might not comment. As well as what some might term a 'constant HMD-like atmosphere' that would certainly make some more casual players uncomfortable with the concept, but I feel that after the first post or two, it would settle down to just being a place to raise the occasional question or concern before things became exacerbated to a greater extent than they really need be.

However, this also brings up the issue of being yet another duty for the mods (I'm aware that Cfud's is mostly player-driven, but I recognize that the mods here like to be more involved in regards to running such potentially delicate matters) and I'd like to think we over-work them enough as it is.

[ruxi.livejournal.com]

Something like cfud_concrit is (imo) the best idea, but it does raise the issue of a "gentleladiesmen's alliance." What's to say everyone will occasionally post? Because it's the same thing as with HMD, and part of the reason why people have to resort to characterization complaints to moderators - there are, have been and will be people who are hostile or indisposed towards critique of any variety.

[banditfox.livejournal.com]

This is going to be quick and lack eloquence and probably leave things out due to circumstances.

In regards to the issue of contacting a player regarding complaints after that player has requested they not be, I think some case-by-case judgment is involved. No player can please everyone, and it can be incredibly frustrating if the same issue is raised again and again even if the player has worked hard to produce a satisfactory resolution or has made a good case for his or her characterization. However, there are certainly times when a player should be advised that a complaint has been voiced again. Perhaps the player has slipped, or perhaps the player never made an effort to adjust or defend his or her characterization.

As for mandatory characterization crit threads, I think I already made it clear in the last discussion that I am not in favor of this method, not only for myself, but for anyone else it would make extremely uncomfortable. This is an issue I feel strongly about, and making these threads mandatory for all players is tantamount to booting any player who isn't comfortable with them should that player decide staying in the game isn't worth whatever stress may accompany being forced to maintain a character crit thread. It's one thing to have had that sort of rule from the start, so everyone has had a chance to consider the implications before deciding whether or not they'd like to join the game; it's quite another to implement it this far down the line, no matter how much the game has changed, and expect players to get used to it or get out. I know that may sound dramatic, but again, the issue of perception comes into play, and having the choice of where and how to seek concrit can make quite a difference in how that concrit is received and how much it's valued. Encourage players to seek concrit, yes. Force them to say, "Here I am. Come get me," no.

[ketsumetsu.livejournal.com]

In regards to the issue of contacting a player regarding complaints after that player has requested they not be, I think some case-by-case judgment is involved. No player can please everyone, and it can be incredibly frustrating if the same issue is raised again and again even if the player has worked hard to produce a satisfactory resolution or has made a good case for his or her characterization.

This is my issue. A great deal of roleplaying is based on interpreting a published canon. Interpretation is both open and fluid, two people could believe very different things in specific cases.

Just because complaints are made doesn't mean people can or should be expected to acknowledge all of them as valid if they can demonstrate otherwise. To be contacted again, for the same issue you have rebutted, if it doesn't affect gameplay seems like an abuse of the complaints system.

[eternalnic.livejournal.com]

Something to add that might be important.

Part of what makes HMD a bit...harsher is that people save up their emotions for HMD. They don't complain because HMD is comming then just take it all out on the HMD thread.

It is unlikely that ConCrit posts will go the way of the HMD because they're permanent. Lots of people already have them, even people that have been 'targeted' during the HMD thread, and their concrit threads aren't being overrun with anonymous attacks. It's a different beast.

[nico-oniichan.livejournal.com]

How many characterization complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted?

I honestly don't mind the idea of three, unless there's an issue with a crew mate filing the complaint because crew mates are more likely to know the canon more than other players (though that's not to say others don't know the canon, but people can misinterpret a lot if they don't know which canon you've chosen, like going by Neon Genesis Evangelion's three million spin offs, or mixing up the Hellblazer comic with the Constantine movie which should be impossible to do, but I'm ranting). If you don't like someone's characterization and you're not apart of that crew, you don't have to interact with them, but if you're apart of that crew, it can end up with you looking out of character for not interacting with them.

If there's even one crew member complaint I think a mod should take it pretty seriously and send out an email. But that's...just my personal opinion. >>;

How many inactivity complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted?

Two, and I say again that the crew mates have more merit, because in the end, they're the ones who have to deal with an inactive player more so than anyone else.

Should the number of complaints needed be changed depending on the size [small or large] of the crew?

I said yes, but mostly for the smaller, unknown series because I guess they should be monitored more closely? I don't claim to be into a lot of obscure series, but if I was, I'd feel more obligated to try to hit up their OOC post, or file a complaint because I could be the only person in the game that knows they're "doing it wrong."

If a player requests not to be contacted about OOC complaints filed later when they feel they've already been solved, should we honor their request?

No, because just because a player has decided it's resolved doesn't actually mean it is resolved.

Should moderators be allowed to file character complaints?

No, because as someone put it ages ago, they're judges, and judges don't serve on the jury.

When letting a player know of character complaints, should those who lodged the complaints remain anonymous?

Yes. I feel it's a good way to prevent drama.

How do you feel about making the personal characterization crit posts mandatory to replace going to a moderator about characterization?

If they're made mandatory, mods should have a separate post for each character that logs the IP address of those complaining to avoid wank. I don't actually think they should be made mandatory, but I do think they're a good idea to avoid possible piling up in HMD threads.

[lefeufollet.livejournal.com]

JUDGES AND JURY FUCKYEAH♥

...why did I get so excited at seeing that example again? slkdjfksldjf I'm a dork. D:

another tl;dr comment

[pink-hurricane.livejournal.com]

God knows I usually don't put in my two cents about these things, because I am very non-confrontational and really don't want to stir up trouble, but I'll...try to be a good player ;;

My opinion will likely not be a popular one because people like to feel like they have more control - but honestly, if you've made it to mod-hood, you should have the general ability to put aside your personal differences and opinions to step up and do modly things.

Therefore, as for characterization, and contacting, and numbers - I feel that relying on numbers creates more problems than it alleviates. I feel that the mods should use their best judgment, as to how urgent the need is.

For example, what if you get one VERY well thought out complaint, with facts to back it up, and a compelling argument - heck, maybe even you've heard around that a lot of people don't like the characterization of that character - but with a 3 complaint rule, you can do nothing.

And yet, at another time, you get three very nitpicky and minor complaints about someone else, who you as a mod think is doing an okay job as a player - what then?

I feel judgment calls are a part of the mod's responsibility, which extends not only to the characterization complaints.

As for mandatory concrit threads, I believe this is a bad idea, as not only this makes those who are shy and non-confrontational with fragile muses to put them selves up on the chopping block, so to speak, but also because it invites drama, sock journals, and harassment issues.

A player should be encouraged to keep a check on their own characterization, but if an issue comes up, the number of complains and the mods best judgment should come into play.

In smaller games, mod judgment is expected to be law, and I can understand that the job gets harder with a game such as this, but let's all remember that it's happy fun time games, and each person should remember that they can't control everything, or expect everything to go their way.

That's the end of my tldr, and...if anybody responds to this I'm not going to comment back, since I've said what I need to say, and I want to avoid arguments and sides and cliques like WHOA. Thank you for reading if you got this far? ^^;

[copy-enigma.livejournal.com]

IAWTC

[fivelifetimes.livejournal.com]

Should moderators be allowed to file character complaints?


As long as they file the complaint and let a different mod handle it, I think they should be able to.

♫ PART ONE ♪ Watch Jamie reply to everything orz

[oodzuchi.livejournal.com]

Well, by now, a lot of what I already had in mind for this post has already been said, but I'll make you wade through my insufferable teal deer anyways. ♥

Also, it's 1AM. If I'm talking in circles, feel free to turn me 90 degrees to the right and install a fenced run.

♫ How many characterization complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted? ♪

I believe, as well as many others have said, that numbers shouldn't matter. It's quality over quantity, and especially for some characters that may be lesser-known or are often neglected, it could be difficult to gather sufficient amounts of comments necessary to launch action~

Though it may be more work, I think it's only fair to consider what may come in-- though I don't believe many people really utilize the feature-- because most people wouldn't resort to it in the first place unless they really felt that something had to be done. ♥

♫ How many inactivity complaints should be lodged before a player is contacted? ♪

Again, I really don't feel as though this is a quantity over quality issue. It's increasingly difficult to interact with inactive persons, though I know I myself have been guilty of it as of late. I suppose this.. well. I'm not really sure how to respond to this one-- case-by-case treatments would be time-consuming and a bit silly, but I suppose it really just matters. If someone's playing a main character (*cough* Gintoki, for example?) and he's inactive, but Kagura and Shinpachi are around, they could interact elsewhere, yes, but they wouldn't get much canonical plot done without Gintoki around, as the ringleader.

Inactivity can greatly affect certain players, whether they have characters in relationships, are in the middle of plots, canonical ties, et cetera, so yes. I don't think it's a matter of "how many", so much as "how bad".

♫ Should the number of complaints needed be changed depending on the size [small or large] of the crew? ♪

No no no no no!! No matter how you look at it, the answer's definitely no!! [ Insert flailing of arms and other exaggerated X-shaped actions ]

I don't see, in any way, how the size of the crew should affect the number of necessary complaints. I know there's a lot of crews that consist of only one or two people, here in Poly, and I'm a member of one of them, if those statistics showcase anything. [ A small intermission to wave to Star Ocean crew-- hiiiiii Shaiiiiii~ ]

♫ If a player requests not to be contacted about OOC complaints filed later when they feel they've already been solved, should we honor their request? ♪

I vote no. However, I suppose that also depends on the nature of the complaint and such. If someone is continuing to receive the same complaint, clearly something's wrong, but I can understand why they wouldn't want to continue to be contacted about it-- maybe they did try to change it, maybe they didn't. Nevertheless, to try and cut off all contact could have adverse affects, even if the complaints are completely different.

Besides, it's not a big hassle to ignore an e-mail, especially for those of us that usually check their e-mail... oh, I don't know, roughly five bajillion times a day? XD

To allow contact with regards to complaints, I think, is a nice courtesy to extend, and to at least give them consideration. Even just shooting back a quick e-mail saying "All right, I've given this some thought and tried to re-evaluate how I play Rabi, but I really don't think the complaint of him reading too much is based very solidly, and would just like to pass the message along back to the person that issued this complaint. He canonly likes to read, and knowledge is power!"

....Okay, that was lame, but whatever. I'd do it. D: It's a nice courtesy, and whoever said that we can't reply and ask the mod to be a middleman? It keeps the anonymity of the person that filed the complaint, but also gives a level of recognition and communication, and by further doing so, might convince the person to contact the player directly, if they feel the avenue's a bit safer to tread on. ♥

♫ PART TWO ♪ Did I beat Clow-mun yet?

[oodzuchi.livejournal.com]

♫ Should moderators be allowed to file character complaints? ♪

Hmmm... though "yes" is, in fact, an unpopular answer, mods are people just like us, and as such, they're also players, and I believe that they can exhibit the distinction between "moderator" and "player". Mods aren't your boss at work, they don't really hold a huge power over your head, and as such, I think they deserve to be treated equally in some rights? And being able to file complaints is one of them.

♫ When letting a player know of character complaints, should those who lodged the complaints remain anonymous? ♪

Yes, most definitely. The whole reason that they're using the complaint thread in the first place, I believe, if because they don't feel comfortable directly approaching the player, or they feel that it won't do any good.

I can understand that some people wouldn't take kindly to someone approaching them negatively as such, even if RP really isn't srs bsns. Trying to predict whether someone will take anon concrit/complaints seriously is really a flip of the coin-- but in the end, there's still a person with a serious opinion behind the "anon" title, and regardless of who they are, their opinion should still be respected as a person and as a, obviously, fellow player.

♫ How do you feel about making the personal characterization crit posts mandatory to replace going to a moderator about characterization? ♪

I share the opinion with many others that it should be encouraged, yes, but not forced upon others. ♥ This is, incidentally, the shortest write-up and I don't have anything in particular to add/express.

AHAHA it's now 3AM and brain functionality is at 10%. Am now going to bed, and sorry if this... somehow degraded into rambling and/or circles. Thanks for your consideration and time, POLY. ♥ I love ya, don't change too much, kay? ♥

[myxginxblossoms.livejournal.com]

Coming off hiatus veeeeeeery quickly >> just to say about the one that pinged me hardest.

I know that I can be pretty hardxcore wallflower, especially when it comes to talking to other people; I'm inevitably scared as shit, despite the knowledge that I have no reason to be, on the rare occasions that I need to contact a mod. I think I would pretty much go into full-on panic attack mode if I had to discuss OOC issues out of the blue on instant messenger.

Please continue to do the email thing; not only does it allow the player time to process the complaint without being required to try and say something in response on the spot, it feels more permanent to me. Not everyone keeps logs of their IM conversations, and while the delete button's easy enough to click, there's something very neat and clear about having everything laid out in the equivalent of an office memo. If I had to go through the OOC complaint business, that's how I would prefer it.

Otherwise...well, I have to rewrite a paper now. Keep up the good work, et cetera. ^_-