Clan Rotations

[flurry]

I'm thrilled that the biters and Fale are opening.   I'm also curious what's going to happen with the Tuluk noble houses.

[John]

Some initial thoughts about how to help rotations:

1) Find a way to archive player email reports, so that they could be passed on from staffer to staffer. This way, when clan ownership changes, the new people will still have all the old info that the old ones did.

-- Maybe this could be done by setting up email addresses for each clan, which appropriate staff could log into and access? Players could then address clan-related email to HouseFubar@armageddon.org, and then whichever staff are running Fubar will have access to that account and all its past correspondence?

Actually, it would be possible to set up a filter to forward all e-mails to the clan imms. They'd just login into the House e-mail to send e-mails.

[John]

We have an up-to-date listing of staff members maintained here, also:

http://www.armageddon.org/ic/

The data for this page is dynamically generated from a database of staff responsibilities individually maintained by each staff member, so it should be up-to-date for everyone (ie., it doesn't need to be managed by HL/OL staff, everyone can keep their own stuff up-to-date), so you should never have trouble figuring out who to e-mail.

-- X

Thankyou. I tended to rely on the weekly updates, so with that on sporadic the page helps a lot

[Bebop]

I'm just wondering why there are no northern Houses are listed with their own IMMs?

Because what Tlaloc is working on is a revamp of the approach to northern nobility and I don't want to post about it yet.  He can reveal the details.

Oooooh.

[SpyGuy]

I'm thrilled that the biters and Fale are opening.   I'm also curious what's going to happen with the Tuluk noble houses.

Me too, with 4 noble Houses I personally can't wait to see the politics go into full swing.  I was pretty sure this is what was happening when it was announced two noble houses would close but now i really want to see what's going to happen with the North.  Looks promising over.

Question:  Sometimes I've noticed in clans that one Imm takes the forefront in all correspondence and from a player perspective it sometimes seems that one Imm is the one mainly in charge while the other is far less active.  In the clan rotation system how will that be balanced if the more active imm is phased out and the current imm that is left over has been less directly involved?  Will there be more of a focus on staff now to be equally involved in all clans they head (as RL allows of course) so that transitions aren't chaotic?

[Intrepid]

Yep.  Considerable discussion about how to make Fale more in keeping with the overall flavor of the mud has taken place and Nusku and Halaster have been working hard at revising the docs in order to make expectations and guidelines clear for the players.

That could only end in awesome.  Best news I've heard in a long time, in fact.  I
always liked Fale as a clan, and I do hope they do really well this time around.

[zanthalandreams]

To shift a little bit from the Fale and Halflings thread:  


The only thing I worry about with rotating clan Imms is a lack of stability.  I have had some long-lived characters in a clan and lived through several "changing of the guard" situations when we got new clan imms.  Every single time, there was a new interpretation of clan documentation, of How We Do Things Here, of even basic NPC relationships with current PCs.   Some times it has been subtle shifts, other times it has been rather blunt, abrupt "my way or the highway" type changes that didn't seem to take into account the work of long-lived PCs.

I am excited at the positive potential here, but wary of having to adapt to new rules and new bosses every six months.

[Maybe42or54]

I'm sure the first couple rotations will be tough, but then the staff will act as One. A second Ginka, as it were.

When is Tlaloc going to post? I'm on the edge of my uncomfortable seat.

[Anonymous]

The only thing I worry about with rotating clan Imms is a lack of stability.  I have had some long-lived characters in a clan and lived through several "changing of the guard" situations when we got new clan imms.  Every single time, there was a new interpretation of clan documentation, of How We Do Things Here, of even basic NPC relationships with current PCs.   Some times it has been subtle shifts, other times it has been rather blunt, abrupt "my way or the highway" type changes that didn't seem to take into account the work of long-lived PCs.

This is exactly my concern.  Having had a pretty long-lived PC in a clan that went through 3 leaders I found it very frustrating.  I'm not very sure of the benefits of something like this but I'll wait to experience it more before I complain.

Having said that, I have to admit to probably having done exactly that to a long-lived PC back when I was on staff.  Regrettably, it wasn't until I went through the same thing that I understood where they were coming from.

[Morfeus]

When is Tlaloc going to post? I'm on the edge of my uncomfortable seat.

You are not alone. I am checking GDB every five minutes since Sanvean's post.  :roll:

[zanthalandreams]

I'll wait to experience it more before I complain.

Oh yeah, I agree with that.   I'm wary and I'm not all that happy about the thought of losing my clan imm, but it could be a very good thing.  It may highlight the necessity to respect the long-lived PC leadership as a necessary partner in the effectiveness of a clan.

[Delirium]

I'm wary and I'm not all that happy about the thought of losing my clan imm, but it could be a very good thing.  It may highlight the necessity to respect the long-lived PC leadership as a necessary partner in the effectiveness of a clan.

Pretty much my thoughts.

[John]

This is exactly my concern.  Having had a pretty long-lived PC in a clan that went through 3 leaders I found it very frustrating.  I'm not very sure of the benefits of something like this but I'll wait to experience it more before I complain.

I'd say it's the eradication of this (at least that's an aim I'd say). With only having 1 year in 1 clan, the staff will hopefully become very conscious of what has gone before and what will come when they leave. They'd be more considerate to past events staff and players have done. Also the 1 6month "teaching period" will mean the new staff member has 6 months to get use to the old method.

Whether or not it works like that in practice we'll have to wait and see (and I could be wrong, perhaps that isn't a goal)

[Anonymous]

I'd say it's the eradication of this (at least that's an aim I'd say). With only having 1 year in 1 clan, the staff will hopefully become very conscious of what has gone before and what will come when they leave.

A year is a long time.  The character I had that went through 3 different clan leaders lived for about 15 months which would be a smaller interval for leadership change than once a year.  The 6 month 'teaching period' may very well take care of all my concerns as you said, though.

[Tlaloc]

When is Tlaloc going to post? I'm on the edge of my uncomfortable seat.

You are not alone. I am checking GDB every five minutes since Sanvean's post.  :roll:

We're still working on some of the OOC logistics and setup for these changes. I've got a few minions working overtime to help me with this, and I've been really pleased with the progress so far. Only half of the changes will be posted about on the GDB (at least at first) - the rest require some IC setup, so they don't simply come out of nowhere in-game.

Suffice it to say I'm as excited as you guys to push the 'go' button on this one.

[Anonymous person]

Bump!

I just spent some time trying to find some realistic reasons why clan NPCs suddenly started to act totally different than usually (not knowing things, not knowing relations etc.). I have a reason to believe the only reason behind this was change of IMMs. And however I see benefits of this change, it made me to dislike it. Seriously.

[SpyGuy]

That was a great bump, definitely something for all the new staff to keep in mind when animating clan NPCs.

[Marauder Moe]

On the other hand, I was under the impression that we haven't had an Imm rotation yet...

[Morfeus]

On the other hand, I was under the impression that we haven't had an Imm rotation yet...

I believe the first post on this thread announces it started at May. The first change already happened then.

[Armaddict]

Agreed, good bump.

Myself...I haven't experienced the rotation itself yet, but some things happening really make me think I won't like this.  Staff changes to a clan really do feel like a 'reset' button on everything you've worked for.  And like it or not, a working relationship is built between you and those who are running your clan.  When it changed, it gave me an OOC setback.

Yes, the change of play for npc's, or the sudden disappearance of npc's whom you work with closely, is jarring.  Yes, the change of goals, objectives, and 'mood' of a clan, or the sudden change in staff members with whom you're supposed to work with closely, is jarring.

[Barzalene]

I HATE CHANGE. So, when I originally read about these clan rotations I thought uh oh. But like it or not they're happening. And I keep finding that all the things that have changed that I've resisted so violently have usually worked out ok. (Like when they changed stun a few years ago.)

So, while this is in effect, and in case it stays in effect forever instead of disliking it, maybe the thing to do is try to make it go as smoothly as possible.

Would it help if when the rotations came, clan memebers were asked or took it upon themselves to write a note to the new imms, describing your current understanding of your pc's place in the clan, in the world, and their interactions with various npcs and the powers that be generally? I really think that while it may not be the same, it's would ease the way. Additionally, it couldn't hurt to give your impressions of npcs you deal with, note what you've noticed as their habits and personality traits. I think for the sake of continuity it would be worth it for every clannie to spend twenty minutes writing something up, and for the new staff members to take the time to read the feedback.

[Belenos]

I would like to second Barzalene's post.  Letting us know what you are up to can go a long way to helping us to help you. This includes all the unclanned characters. Feel free to email us, and don't forget to cc the mud account.

[Cale_Knight]

Rather than putting this burden on the players, I think the imms need to be more responsible when it comes to documenting NPC interaction with PCs.

Do NPCs have their own biographies? If not, code them in! If so, make heavy use of them. Note every single important interaction with clan PCs, titling each with the name of the PC involves and a brief summary.

That way, when a new imm rotates in, all he has to do is catch up with the most recent batch of biography entries. Time-consuming? Yes. But infinitely preferable to a period where NPCs act completely out of character.

Emails from PCs can only go so far when it comes to keeping NPCs consistant.

[Morgenes]

If you have concerns about the roleplay of a NPC, especially one in your clan, you should contact your clan staff about it via email.  If for some reason you are uncomfortable mailing your clan staff about it, feel free to mail your complaints directly to mud@armageddon.org.

Like it or not, you guys do not know all of the drivers behind every NPC in the game, and they may have had reason to act the way they did.  Just because an NPC acts inconsistently, doesn't mean there has been a drop in staff communication or that we are somehow not roleplaying the NPC correctly.

We do as much as we can to document and hand off the staff rotations.  This is our first rotation, so we hope you will cut us some slack as we get used to the process and as we progress on ways to make it easier for us and you.

That said, I think enough has been said on this topic.  If you have further concerns send them in email as expressed above.

Locked.