Let's Hear It From You! Part II

[viking-mod.livejournal.com]

Friends! Romans! Polyites! Lend me your ears....and votes. We have a few decisions to make as a community to improve POLYchromatic. All voting results will be privatized. Vote once only, please.
[Poll #1573644]

To those voting in favor of allowing anonymous commenting in HMD posts understand that anonymous is a privilege. IPs will be tracked if there is shown abuse. If anon is widely abused, it will be taken away.

We would like to take this time to clarify a few details regarding activity. "Open Action" logs posted within the character's journal are accepted as one required post for the month. For instance: Cosmo rushes here and there with butterfly nets. He pays no attention to the other flying coins. Phillip the Female Nickel is falling! Somewhere! is acceptable because all characters from the City can interact in the same way that a voice or text post could.

Conversely, posts that are only "Private to Self" or "Filtered from Everyone" are not included in making activity. So Doug needs to write more than his journal entries. He must talk about the Honker Burger events, Roger's bullying or of course curses.

Apps! We love them. And you do too! There has been some confusion as to what we are looking for in a Third Person/Log Sample.While it is a piece written in prose, for the application its focus is not meant to initiate character contact like tampered type logs. Our application process asks for a Third Person/Log Sample for a look into character's mind and/or heart putting to practice the traits listed in the Personality section of the application and going a step further to introspection. For example: The Kool-Aid Man crashes through walls, bellowing "OOOH YEEAH" does sound like him and it is a kind of log. But there is more to a character than their actions and it doesn't show too much of what makes characters tick. The Kool-Aid Man is filled with glee at the opportunity to sweep children away to a flavorful paradise. He hates the restricting walls of thirst and nothing beats the satisfaction of plaster falling away.

We are making changes to clarify within the Power Gaming Section of berryfloss on our policies on power limitations. Please keep an eye out!

And we've heard you loud and clear! The deities will be out and about more. Ready or not, here they come!

A number of players have been speaking to us lately, both on the recent discussion thread and through email and IM about the plot of POLYchromatic, whether the clock can be destroyed, whether the deities can ever be deposed of, and whether the City can ever be escaped.

But our feeling is that Poly is a place, not a plot. It's a place with a specific nature whose mysteries and workings have been hinted at on several occasions, however these secrets of the City are not the entire focus of the game.

Poly is character-driven. We strive to foster an environment where players can focus on having characters interact with a variety of other characters and what those other characters bring to the table. We have heroes, villains, anti-heroes, amorals, sympathizers, etc. Conflicts between these personalities and deeds take precedence over the "conflict" of the City.

The City has no "conflict". To the Deities the City is a well-oiled machine, a clock that never breaks (How untrue is that? Characters who have been around would know.) and each piece has it's own already designated role. So forever and always, the City has sucked your character in and your character is left with the impression s/he can never leave unless you decide to update or drop. No matter how often characters come and go, what remains constant is the clockwork because the City > them.

However the landscape can change, whether caused by an event, caused by the Deities, caused by a curse, etc. There used to be a Prison Island; well that's an underwater maze now. The Barrier in the sky was only as high as the tallest building; now there's a mountain to accommodate. The Deity office has changed at least three times; once because some characters tried to blow it up. A Shadow City has been revealed; what other truths will it reflect?

One thing is for certain, there is nothing wrong with a character wanting to settle in the City. Some characters can't wait to break out of this hole, some characters think this hole is the closest thing they'll ever have to a home. Some characters think the City is punishment for a misdeed, others think this is a second chance at life. Some days will be full of chaos the action-oriented characters can handle without thinking while other days will be full of a more psychological terror over something as inconsequential as a coffee cup. How your characters take to these situations is up to you. How they develop, how they grow is up to you. It's these varying worldviews based on characterization and experience that give the Citizenry flavor, we highly encourage players to get a taste of everything.

We can't stress enough how character-to-character, therefore player-to-player, interaction is important in this game. Above all we treasure a game that can truly call itself panfandom where Dr. Claw has to compete with Dr. Evil or Faye Valentine meets her match in Carmen San Diego. It's true, sometimes Wolverine will want to team up with Batman to save the world but when the world itself isn't in danger of imploding there's another cause for alarm; Orochimaru teaming up with Jafar. All the while Morpheus and Giles are doing what they do best; watching.

For us there is no game if we can't maintain an environment that fosters this kind of panfandom interaction and all the potential opportunities that come with it from gelatinous blobs rolling down the streets to viral outbreaks in the water to dancing with characters to get their hearts back (all examples driven purely by players and their characters). We understand for players with characters used to a linear plot structure (conflict-->climax-->resolution) this can be a difficult adjustment. Believe us there are bits of City mythos that have been hinted at throughout all 4 years, and characters have discussed them, but the core City mythos itself is unchangeable. It is the kind of place people have applied to and for some have been playing in for years, not on and off but consecutively and actively. It would be unfair to change that

We the mod team feel poly should be a place with no end in sight, a world where characters can look back years into the past and realize the City may not have changed a lot, but they as people have.

Comments

[peopletalktome.livejournal.com]

Thank you for Poly, and for openness to suggestion.

/appreciates

[pinkikemenhero.livejournal.com]

Seconding this.

[viking-mod.livejournal.com]

Thank you for playing along with us!

[candlejacked.livejournal.com]

We can't stress enough how character-to-character, therefore player-to-player, interaction is important in this game. Above all we treasure a game that can truly call itself panfandom where Dr. Claw has to compete with Dr. Evil or Faye Valentine meets her match in Carmen San Diego. It's true, sometimes Wolverine will want to team up with Batman to save the world but when the world itself isn't in danger of imploding there's another cause for alarm; Orochimaru teaming up with Jafar. All the while Morpheus and Giles are doing what they do best; watching.

I think the problem I (and probably others, too) have with this is that almost no one apps villains at Poly because in the end, they can't really do anything with them. I know while many of us loved the recent Tales of Phantasia cast's plot, still other players thought it was repetitive and has been done before. True, the City has undergone and continues to undergo cosmetic changes, but there is little to no incentive attached to these new locations. There's a mountain, but what's to do there besides fight monsters--which can be done just as easily in the Underground or in the woods? There's the Shadow City, but the only danger it poses is a temporary death if you're there for over a day, during which you can still use your network device and someone is bound to get roped into saving you. And only a handful of characters can even access the Shadow City on a regular basis, anyway.

Plenty of other games manage to be sandboxes that still have engaging events but aren't necessarily dominated by a single, eventually terminal plot. We choose to play at Poly because this is the sandbox we like best, but while we have the ball, the net, and sand a-plenty, we don't necessarily have the actual volleyball game.

In short, I feel like this is a genuine, well-founded concern many players have that has been completely brushed aside.

[emiltastic.livejournal.com]

/agrees? ;;

[viking-mod.livejournal.com]

What do you suggest we do?

[kicksmoreass.livejournal.com]

Re: villains, just have to say that as someone who loves playing villains I agree it's a little hard to get them doing stuff, but I'd love more villainy plots (ex the dinner that happened a while back) and would totally want to participate in 'em. This guy can't do much right now (except maybe be someone's shitty little evil apprentice - he's good at fetching coffee) but I'd so encourage more villains and am always up for a villainy plot.

[jackstoflirt.livejournal.com]

So I guess my question is whether you're still in discussion about logs in tampered counting as activity or not, because it was never really clarified in this post I think (unless I'm missing something in that case sakljdf I apologize)?

[viking-mod.livejournal.com]

tampered logs will not be counted for activity. Though logs within character journals open to everyone do count like the example with Cosmo the fairy. Sorry if that wasn't clear.

[egregiouslypink.livejournal.com]

I had a question not regarding the game at large, but rather the polling process! In specific, regarding question one as it pertains to grab bag curse. I was wondering if, provided no one option gets an absolute majority (in which case, this point is entirely moot) y'all were thinking about a runoff election of sorts?

For example, if the poll ended right now not changing grab bag is the option with the single most votes, at twenty. However, the general concept of changing grab bag is in the lead with twenty one votes, meaning the actual majority voted for change but due to a split vote within that group of thought, without a runoff staying the same would take the day despite not actually garnering the most support, in a strictly general fashion. (ie, between the two base options.)

Obviously if the votes change (and given the mass of our playerbase still unrepresented, there is no doubt it will) and either staying the same sweeps an absolute majority or one of the change options does, there's no need for a runoff. However, in the interest of procedural fairness I'd like to put out there a suggestion up for a runoff in the instance that doesn't come to pass.

[robot-mod.livejournal.com]

We have deferred to the majority vote on many major decisions in the past, and certainly hope that there will be a clear preference or majority decision in this poll as well. However, in the instance that there is a very close result when the poll closes, a run-off would be necessary, yes.

If the three options returned results like 40 to 35 to 35, yes, we would need a run-off in order to break the three-way tie. Likewise, if two options returned majority results and were close, such as 39 to 40 (with the third option returning, say, 6), we would also need a run-off.

We are certainly aware that ties may happen and we will certainly try to break those ties, if they should occur, through another community poll.

We hope that answers your question and concerns.

[notflynn.livejournal.com]

Kinda think deferring to the players all the time is exactly the problem, here? I know relying on character-to-character dynamics has always worked in the past, but something has changed, and it's just not enough anymore.

I respect the choice of the mods to keep it very character-driven, and I do like the idea of the deities appearing more. That would help with the complacency of some of the characters, I think.

Is the fact that the buildings/environment can't be damaged part of the "well-oiled machine"?

[floralities.livejournal.com]

Actually, I would really love to see some damage done to the buildings/environment that doesn't automatically disappear right away. I mean, it can disappear eventually, right? But letting the citizens figure it out for a while could be pretty entertaining. To use an example from this post: the Deity Building. It got destroyed in a player-run plot, which caused quite a few ripples before and after a new one eventually popped up.

...I guess I'm just suggesting more flexibility and organic... ness involved in the gameplay. Like, for example, letting plots/curses have more reach and more serious, possibly long-lasting consequences (while still providing an out for people who don't want to play). The deities could help here-- a long long time ago, some male character pissed off a deity enough that the deity randomly cursed guys with PMS or something, iirc. I'd love to see stuff like that happen again.

tl;dr: I think that less rigidity would really help make things feel more fresh and shiny and yaaaay.


LMAO SORRY TO PIGGYBACK ON YOUR ARGUMENT, MY LOAF. /asses tenderly

[pirate-mod.livejournal.com]

Players have had the opportunity to destroy parts of the forests and beaches. Property destruction is a bit more sticky when it comes to places characters either live in or frequent often. The buildings can be damaged and they can be damaged with more realistic consequences such as a month of repairs and no hot water. If all the players of the Opera House agreed to extensive damage requiring temporary rehoming of all the characters involved, they would be more than welcome to play out such a plot. The same applies to the apartment buildings, however we will not force that kind of change on players if the players who have characters living in the building do not want it.

[bakurakrazie.livejournal.com]

Oh my god you guys are awesome! So intricate and eeee, polls. And- oh my god, Doug and Fairly OddParents, ftw. I do think that a test run of an organization post should be in effect, whatever the vote winds up as.

[viking-mod.livejournal.com]

We will let you know what comes next after the poll results come in.

1/2

[fireplacegirl.livejournal.com]

I think that your number one problem is "deferring" to the players. You've always deferred to the players, and I don't think anything of substance has come of it. I know that quite a few players are displeased with the mod response to the feedback post. I mean, this entire polling post is a bunch of tl;dr that doesn't say much of anything. Just clarification of already-clear activity rules, saying the deities are gonna come out more, and that Poly is supposed to be character driven.

Out of the giant feedback post, we're only voting on three issues, one of which is not new and we vote on every time.

Look at the issues we're voting on:

1: Grab Bag (and this devolves to curses themselves) - if it changes frequency, what effect does it have on the game? Not much, save for maybe a few less reaction posts from characters. This is one of the most unfortunate aspects of Poly. It is driven almost solely by posts of characters reacting to curses. More often than not, these curses do NOT have long-lasting effects and serve little more, I feel, than to elicit posts out of us. I think we need more to develop our characters, and to develop the game.

The game needs plot, and not just week long ones that result in a deity interfering and restoring the City to normal after. As far as I've seen, the long plots work like this:
1- Something happens
2- Characters react (but ultimately do nothing more)
3 - Deities clean it up and solve the problem.

[fireplacegirl.livejournal.com]

If Poly is "character-driven", then longer plots should be more malleable and their outcomes should depend on what the characters do rather than on the deities cleaning it up. We could also use more long-term plots that tie in to the concept of the game. Right now, Poly is all about playing the waiting game. Waiting out all the curses and dealing with the City until you go home. What is there to do? What is the point? I remember back when I first started at Poly (2006-ish), more characters talked about the "plot" of the City, ie. the clock and it's ticking, going to the underground to investigate the clock, try to stop it, more conflict with the deities, etc. Now everyone just settles for being here. And there's nothing wrong with settling, I suppose, but it would be nice if this game had a purpose. That doesn't mean there has to be an ultimate end to the game and to its plot, but I really feel there should be something more.

Yeah, I get that you think Poly is/should be character driven. But I don't feel that characters can develop as individuals or develops relationships when all they do is react to curses. Poly is basically a giant dressing room, and contrary you what you think, Poly can be both a place and a plot.

2 - City Death - This, I've got nothing to say about. It sounds like some genuine progress is being made here, and something I'd never have thought of. Cookies to whoever brought this one up.

3 - HMD - "Deferring" to the players in the instance of HMD is ridiculous. Do you honestly think a majority are going to say yeah, please let people crit me for real!!!! Ever since anon has been turned off, HMD has turned into nothing but a love meme. There are some bitchin' RPers here who are doing it all right and don't NEED crit, but not all of us are, myself included. I would genuinely like some real, down and dirty crit. It's awesome if I am doing it right, and I'd love to hear so. But I don't want someone to be too afraid to tell me how they feel about my characterization and then see myself end up on RPS because I'm doing it entirely wrong. And a lot of players don't even allow anon on their personal crit posts, so what is one to do? It's not that I'm afraid of confronting a player, I just don't want OOC to turn IC. I don't want someone to take it out on my character simply because I critted them. I don't understand why anyone would vote no to anon off, because you, the mods, have clearly said you're gonna police it. If you can't allow anon on HMD proper, then I think anon should be required in personal crit posts, or something. Because all HMD is is a place to tell everyone how much they love them. It is a joke.


And I think you'd all be deaf and dumb to think that a lot of people are happy with these feedback posts. You can't ignore the most recent drops we've had, and you need not be following the most recent anon meme to know they're related to the game itself and the feedback posts.

These feedback posts seem little more than rigged elections. For having "heard [us] loud and clear," I don't feel this post reflects that.

imho ymmv etc.

[robot-mod.livejournal.com]

While our posted information is clear to a number of players, there are still unanswered questions. Within this thread there were activity questions answered and we hope we've made our activity requirements clearer for players who were confused.

The curses are, as they have always been, optional. There is no obligation at all for a character to be under the influence of every curse. We aren't going to dictate what players must make their characters post about. If they can post about curses, still develop CR, and still grow as characters through that CR then that's their prerogative. We have no wish to limit this potential. Frequency of Grab Bag is a player's privilege, one they clearly want to keep in some form instead of getting rid of it entirely. As for the kinds of curses made available, you are more than welcome to suggest your own in the Calendar Post. One complaint we received in the past was not accepting player-suggested curses enough. Now we accept more than we used to. You are more than welcome to suggest your own curses or discuss with other players to suggest ones that you feel would be more beneficial to the community. Yes, this is another act of deferring to the players, but if they continue to suggest curses and they continue to want to post about them, we will not impede that. Feel free to encourage players to post about other things whether it's about new books they want to read or it's their research on the City itself based on past events; both examples which characters have posted recently.

The bone basic "plot" of the game is that characters are transported to a city. Their goal is to get by through the curses, deities, and sufferings. We're open for suggestions and ideas to help the game run better and for more enjoyable gameplay. However, we can only imagine how confusing things would be if the setting of the game players applied to changed every 6 months into something different. Very subtle changes have been occurring to the world of POLYchromatic. They are small enough not to affect the game as a whole but they are noticeable enough that characters can openly research them. If you're not satisfied with these kinds of changes, please give us examples of what you would like to see happening.

Since 2006 we've had characters going down to investigate the clock, getting electrocuted for it, having the clock stop only to show the rest of the City decaying because of it. We have done many things with the clock since the start of this game and do our best to strike a balance between keeping things fresh for older players while not drastically changing the environment in order to accommodate newer players.

[robot-mod.livejournal.com]

The Deities have a purpose for keeping characters in their little microcosm. That some characters choose to settle works to everyone's advantage. That some characters try to riot are dealt with by the Deities. That outside forces try to interfere with the microcosm are dealt with by the Deities and the characters. That characters will clash with other characters in player-plots such as the Dhaos plot, the Golden Army plot, the cannibal dinner, the old Social Club, the Sandalphon kidnappings and many others are part of the microcosm and something the Deities encourage. In this model of the game, what is the "something more" you are looking for? We certainly welcome suggestions and would love to hear more ideas.

Anon on HMD was a thread in the Discussions Post. It was also a thread that very few people participated in, yet we decided to poll for it anyway knowing there were some players who want anon on HMD but didn't want to comment to the Discussions Post. If you would like to discuss it further or bring it up with the other players in the game, you certainly can. We already understand why some players feel anon is beneficial to the community, but we feel that it's our job to balance what's best for the community with what the majority of the players want, because the players are the community. As mods we feel that it would not be fair or right to make an executive decision to have anon on HMD regardless of a vote.

We have not investigated the reasons for any recent drops nor have those players come to us with their concerns. All we have is hearsay, and sometimes conflicting hearsay at that. Either way, as mods we do not act on hearsay alone. We have noticed their departure, but unless we are contacted, we will not make any assumptions regarding whether those drops were related to the game as a whole, to personal issues with players in the game, to harassment issues, to being unable to commit to activity, to conflicts in regards to "real life," or other possible circumstances. We hope that players can feel comfortable coming to us if there are details of harassment, then we will go into action.

We're sorry you feel as though the post is a rigged election or a form of lip service, but we are nonetheless glad to see you expressing your feelings on the matter in a public forum and we certainly thank you for your feedback.

[worksmart.livejournal.com]

OK here is my one little suggestion, which I SHOULD have made on the suggestion post but forgot.

Players are encouraged to suggest curses in the comments to the calendar post. Could their possibly be a post, maybe with comments screened so as not to provide spoilers, where players could suggest gamewide plots? I see a lot of people talking about not wanting plots to always end the same way, or wanting certain kinds of plots, and perhaps this would be a place to suggest other ideas. I don't just mean posting 'robot raptors invade!!!' I mean coming up with suggestions for the full structure --

'A new laboratory appears in the city overnight. Its metal doors are padlocked but there are lights flashing and a strange whirring nose from within. Two days later an NPC scientist makes an appearance. This is Robocorp labs and they're recruiting volunteers to help in their experiments. It seems a little shady but the wages are incredibly good. The next week, all volunteers are brought in for a training day. Then work at the lab commences. Strangely, when asked about their new job, all volunteers can only give the same one line reply. Robotech starts producing new television sets with incredible holo-laser screens and selling them cheaply throughout the city. Once a number of citizens have these within their homes, at midnight all tv sets disassemble and transform into laser-eyed robo-raptors ready to take over the city. More raptors are rolling off the production line at the lab and marching out into the city fully armed. The citizens should try to fight back, encouraged by the deities, but those who volunteered at the lab have been brainwashed into fighting on the side of the raptors. The scientists claim they are going to overthrow the deities and invite citizens to fight on their side for the new regime. Scientists vs deities! A poll is taken or a tally of whoever is fighting on which side decides who wins. If the deities win the lab is blown up and all brainwashing techniques are undone. If the scientists win the Deity building is blown up and the deities vanish for a week. However if the scientists win they discover a glitch in their robo-raptors, which become minature bombs all over the city. The scientists leave, promising to refine their designs, and gift all their followers with one curse immunity token as proof of their strength. After a few days the deities come back, restoring all damage done by the raptor-bombs and claiming victory, though who knows when they may be bested again..."

And that was a lot longer than I meant but as an example that kind of thing, a full synopsis, would be what people could post as suggestions. Then every 4 or 5 months someone's idea could be picked, tweaked and possibly turned into a city wide plot which HOPEFULLY would give people the chance to inform their environment and feel like they're contributing more. The main requirement being that player posted plots don't rely too heavily on either deities or npcs as anything more than facilitators.

...I am also asking this because I have an idea for a plot. It does not involve raptors.

+1

[scarwithin.livejournal.com]

BEST SUGGESTION EVER

[ignipotent.livejournal.com]

I don't see enough effort on the players' side to help out the game, beyond raising issues without any input on how to solve them. Some players may point out a problem with the City lacking a plot, then conclude that a plot is that band-aid needed prevent stagnancy. But that's it. They don't put their two cents in on what kind of plot might do the trick. The moderators guide the game and mediate issues that may come up in the community, but they're not the only authors the game. All of us who apply are individuals inclined to story telling, intelligent individuals who are attuned to writing and developing plot lines. If you have an idea, it doesn't hurt to suggest it.

Regardless of how you might interpret the tone of the recent announcement (http://community.livejournal.com/polychromatic/211018.html?mode=reply), the fact is that it's there for you to use. If the problem is fear that the mods won't approve your plot: Don't worry about it. I've been in the game for more than two years and have proposed a myriad plots, large and small-scale, and I've never had a single one rejected. I've contacted every one of the moderators, and they've been nothing but helpful. They might have to tailor your plot a bit in consideration of other players, but the moderators won't change the core idea.

Those who say that it's useless to try and plot, as characters can't affect the fixtures of the city (the clock, the barrier, the direction of the game), I think we have to remember that for everyone who wants a game structured around a plot, there's another person who is happy with the way it is. Some people might want to play in an environment where their character can live out a life and where they can focus on relationships with other characters. Others might want a motive and conclusion. The moderators have to take this into consideration, and mediate between these opposite spectrums.

However, large, impacting plots aren't only achieved through fiddling with fixtures. Your character can discover things within the entire terrain of the City. You can expand on locations whether you have an idea where your character finds some indomitable creature in the depths of the forest, or some mysterious tunnel in the underground leading to X (Mysterious engravings? Indications of a civilization that was here prior to the City? A mummified body?) There's no guarantee they will be approved, but all these ideas can be pitched to the moderators. I've done it myself recently, and have gotten a positive response.

My main point is: What risk is there in asking? In throwing out an email to the mods? In using the Plot Ads? You're not gambling your life; you're not doing anything that will outcast you from the game. It's basic communication.

To be honest, what has changed the most in POLY for me is the level of player-based plotting. I remember a time in the past were there were so many plots that there were scheduling conflicts. Even if a plot doesn't resolve to some grand "end," it brings the community together and creates a feel of a cohesive city. One recent example: The Golden Army Plot had the Supernatural crew and Hanna's not a Boy's Name crew involved with Nuada's destruction, while other characters could wage war in the fight log. In the beginning of the plot, Nuada targeted characters from OC's to Harry Potter's Ginny. Player-based plotting is what fueled Poly in the past, and I think that's what is lacking, if anything.

+1

[risetwice.livejournal.com]

I definitely agree with this sentiment.

[neverendingbeat.livejournal.com]

As most of the issues people have do not seem to be with the actual polling brought up, I was just wondering what the purpose of the non-viewable results are, because it only seems to have created a bunch of doubt about fairness and accountability among various Poly...people.

[robot-mod.livejournal.com]

When we put up the discussion post we noted that identities of the voters for polls on policy changes would be non-viewable to the community at large. While we prefer the greatest amount of transparency possible, we have had some players express concern about harassment based on not voting with their friends. We want our players to vote their conscience and preference, not feel compelled to vote along with the crowd or fear that others will label them in unfair ways simply for voting as they did.

If there is a way to answer the concerns some players have about having their names associated with their opinions on anonymous response on HMD, then we will gladly consider it or put it up for discussion for use in future polls and discussions. As moderators, we're likewise weighing the pros and cons of each option in this discussion.

But, in this case, because we've already set up and posted this poll, we have some concerns that trying to make the names of the voters visible now might actually break the coding for the poll. We'd rather keep the poll functional for the sake of those who have not yet voted than try to make the names of the voters viewable at this time.

[citadelspirit.livejournal.com]

I have two criticisms with Poly, that were not represented in the poll -- so I figured I should put them here.

1: Poly is a place, not a plot -- I understand this concept. So, given that, why can't characters do bigger plots? I understand that the "City-wide Plot Ads" just went up, but I'm darn scared to suggest that my character do something that may affect the entire City -- because I have this impression that the first thing to happen will be the mods shooting me down. Because there is such a big deal made about "permanent fixtures," it seems like even temporary changes to these fixtures is taboo. This ties into something else -- villain decay.

Some characters may have a reputation for doing grand things. Epic things. I was thinking, whoa, it'd be neat if some of the mechanical beasties got together and tried to take a shot at the Network, even to claim glory for only a short while before something smacked them down --

Except it would instantly fail. The Deities are, as their names suggest, giant powerplayers. If any villain manages to get his day in the sun, he's going to get nuked from orbit by the Deities. (Honestly, there are times when I think the Deities should not exist, and the curses should stand alone, because it wouldn't scare characters/muns away from doing stuff.) It means the characters don't have to save themselves; they get a deus ex machina for truly Epic plots. It's kind of sad. I really wish there could be a legitimate attempt, and even a temporary success, on part of villainkind to do great things, but...I get the feeling the answer is, "If one person wants to do it, everyone will."

But honestly, some heroes and villains aren't made for Tom and Jerry antics. They're made for world-shaking performance. I wish we could have that.

[viking-mod.livejournal.com]

We welcome bigger plots. The tricky detail involving Citywide plots is that they should be created with the consideration of other players. Will there be an out for people who do not want to participate? Will this plot have any issue involving canon supremacy (http://berryfloss.livejournal.com/14036.html)? We are not out to smack down anyone's ideas but we must take these elements into consideration. The Clock cannot be harmed, the carousel cannot be harmed, true. We would hope that with a big plot, other characters would be welcomed to fightback as a unified force and that those dastardly villains be willing to face consequences for their actions. There can be allowances to building damage provided it is mindful of the other players if Big O falls into Apartment Building 3, what happens to the occupants? There was a Nazi vampire conflict in which the armies of undead were fought back by the citizenry itself. The Major, the head of the operation, was done in by a deity with the mun's permission, but it does not always have to end that way. We've had many plots, big and small, that have no deity involvement whatsoever. Should there be a plot that requires deity intervention, we always have been more than willing to work with players so that everyone can be happy with the outcome.

We want your suggestions. If you have a plot, lay it out. Let us know what you had in mind and we'll go from there.