First, Xygax will be handling special applications starting now. I'm moving my focus back to other things.
Second, we are going to cut back on the number of special applications approved. The new factors are:
* People who have not played exotic roles before but seem trustworthy enough to do so will be given first priority.
* People who have not played exotic roles for a long time will be given second priority.
* The number of exotic characters approved will be reduced overall.
Third, special applications are now handled through the request tool. This will make it easier to track things and respond quickly. Please don't send a special application just "to try out the new system" or anything. We'd prefer to see well-thought-out and interesting ideas.
Lastly, the request tool will have a hard limit on how often special applications are allowed from a given person. We are still discussing this limit. I will post when its decided.
A couple of notes on this; stemming from things that have come up over the last few weeks of special application reviewing:
- Please don't submit more than one application/concept per request. "I'd like to play either some kind of crazy cool mul/sorcerer/tailor, OR I'd like to play a half-giant/psionicist/linguist who can read and write Cavilish" isn't a good app. Come up with one role and flesh it out convincingly. The application queue is being throttled for a reason (primarily my sanity), and this just seems like an end-around.
- Please don't e-mail me after a denial offering other ideas. Again, the throttling/sanity thing. Use the request tool for followup applications. I certainly don't mind clarifying my remarks, but please do not use e-mail as a way of pursuing new ideas. Also, while I appreciate that you've worked hard on your ideas and that you very much want to explore some of these "exotic" roles before the game ends, I also feel that the game's environment remains critically important and that a surplus of "exotics" is detrimental to that environment, and off-putting for other players who are pursuing high-quality roleplay in more mundane roles.
- I have seen very few applications for anything that wasn't either a sorcerer or a psionicist. The majority of these more mundane roles were approved or at least pursued with other staff. Yes, this is a hint. I'm much more interested in considering skill-tweaks or stat refinements on mundane roles that seem interesting, than adding Yet Another Psionicist, or Yet Another Sorcerer to the world. Psis and sorcs need to be -deeply- compelling to get consideration; other roles not nearly so much. Where are all of you people who gave up karma a month or so ago to save the game from the flood of exotic roles? (some of you have been applying for psionicists and sorcerers, ironically) Thieves? Merchants? Assassins? Warriors? Where are you? Don't think you need a special app for one of these? No, you sure don't. But a creative special app might be a great way to save yourself from guild-sniffing punks who think they can peg you as a merchant-guild PC because you speak Cavilish. Just make it interesting, please.
- Lastly, please don't submit slave roles to me. If you want to be a slave in a clan, please work it out with that clan's staff, instead. They know better than I do how much burden they're willing to take on, and slaves can be very burdensome. They also know better how to fit you in and make your role in their clan something that you AND the clan can benefit from.