Horizons In-game Advocates

[Flindar]

Im not 100% on this but I think something similar was in effect with Tulga..... not on an "official" level though...

hence you got the scores of people screaming because changes were being made on the suggestions of a "select" few and not for the honest good of the whole player base

by doing this your only asking someone to become the object of everyones aggressions... these "advocates" will become the hated "brown nosers" of the past

every change made that is not at ease with the major portion of the player base will get blamed on them and they will bear the brunt of everyones anger

As decent people can you really ask someone to endure this??

My two cents

[Nalrach]

by doing this your only asking someone to become the object of everyones aggressions...

True Flindar, this maybe the case. But let the project get more define, it's all depend of roles and resposabilities. The ways the chain of command works and the way message get passed.

I only can speak for one game where I was on the inside and of the ways two WolrdMaster's took care of business. The role of advocate & sentinels were well defined and the power well define in how to exercise them. The biggest issues was because people did not want to understand limits and that no they were not there to replace item or ease the way they had to solve their quest. Yes power's from somone that goes there for the "I'm advocate" versus the "I want to help" can be abuse, and as a mather of fact I know of two sentinel been expelled for using their power wrongly. Trubine had a good system of communication with the WM and each shards depended on how well the WM passed & pick information. On my main shard the WM choose 3 devoted members to became dispatcher's and centralized the reporting, and it worked verry well. Even at time where no sentinel or advocate where offivciall on shift or when overwhelemed, we always could ask someone that was laying low in the convo channel to hand a hand for one incident. In general we had a fair quick return on the question and bug we reported to the devs. Plus we did have a good knowledge base to work from, if people took time to read before they went on duty. Each advocate/sentinel where encouraged to make a non playable character (annonimity) if they wanted. Turbine offered only free subscription for an exchange of few hours. Our WM enforced half the prescribe hours and asked for people to place themself on standby the rest of the time, which with the dispatcher made it easy. The dispatcher would be first to answer the players and manage the queue line up with the duty & off duty people. The company that was sued was because they were forcing their guide's to produce content and not been paid. You cannot ask to produce work and not getting rewarded. The turbine sentinel / advocate program was a self help / policing system run by volunteers. Sure the free subscription was a small token, but no special power or artifact was provided for use in the game. The only advantage we really had, was to know the quest that were bugged,and with experience know the rigth sequence for a specific task in a quest (which any good guild common group may acquire the knowledge). I'm a bit septic for rewards in game, that may unbalance the game.

I will reserve my final say about the project when I see the structure and a more define role & resposability.

[IndyMan]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarcharien
I think its a bad idea.

**someone say why?** Ok, I'll tell ya why ...

Because, HZ has plenty of players that already does all these things (and more!) that an Advocate would do, and they don't ask for a special titles, any special status what so ever, they don't ask for in-game rewards, or free subscriptions .. nada.

They do it because they love this game and this community! Thats what makes this community so great!


I would have to agree with this. I for one vote no to in-game advocates in any form sponsored or backed by EI in the form of a free account.

I also think the idea is not in the best interest of the game. Those with a WM's ear would be able to relay ideas THEY thought were good and NOT relay ideas they did not like. Their special powers would be a direct pipe to EII, thus giving them more of a say in what happens, even IF the majority of players did not want such change.

[Theolaerynn]

Not to mention you must be able to actually fix any of the issues that are reported, otherwise the players will quickly realize they are just wasting their breath.

You know, like it is right now. Got a problem? File a ticket. Now serving #1 of 10,345.

[Sunuke]

I think the only way you could build up a program like this is by having the WM visiting the game observing the channels and then having the WM looking again at the aplications that have been send in because I'm sure there have been send in more then enough.

When I started to read this thread I was already thinking how it would be to spawn SoG in New Trismus and then have the community react to it. I think it would be amazing but on the other hand I also know even more would be pissed off

I think this idea of advocates can have great potentional if you have the right people and you can't find those from just an emailed application.

There are some players might be able to explain the newbies everything or on certain aspects of the game but if you would ask those same players to write an application they would go like "erm.... how do you do that?" Just because they are'n't that kinda players. I think the best candidates wouldn't even apply for this function.

Again I think it would be a nice idea it shows how EII is looking into other ways to connect to us.

I think by just making that noob character the Wm can already find out alot.

Also keep in mind that some expect help already and are annoyed when they don't get it, the type of players that don't even say thank you when you craft something for them

[DANU]

Sunuke, you hit the nail on the head and we are working on the right people to help. I play Danu about 5% of my time in game so I that can listen. Well and maybe have private fun too. We have WMs doing the same. Once the League of Historians is assembled, the Advocate program will be revisited.

Danu

[Sunuke]

Sure I like helping new players but do I wanna have some tag onto Venom and LZ saying "Advocate Venom" or anything like that?

No way!!!

I have my personal playing and that's what I wanna keep seprated there should be some advocate account to login with an already setup character.

I also think that in that way EII could have alot more control

[Consecrated.ECSS]

so... do we have any yet??

can't wait to see them and ask one to spawn a big chicken in N'T like what used to happen...

[Sunuke]

so... do we have any yet??

can't wait to see them and ask one to spawn a big chicken in N'T like what used to happen...

That's not really what these advocates are for. They aren't there to be your serve.

They would be there to solve problems and/or to relay them in a quick way.

[Jazmyn]

My understanding is that these are people that would respond to requests for help. I would expect that they would be newly created characters that would either not be seen as targets by mobs, or would be given higher dex/hp to enable them to respond to requests for assistance in any area without the guide character being killed off.

I've been a guide for games in the past. We got one account free with an extra character slot for the guide character. The free account was because we also agreed to 20 hours/week service in exchange for it. My guide character was not "uber", but it had special abilities like teleportation from whereever I was at to wherever the call for help came from .. as in 'POOF! Straight to player X's location'. That's not exactly something that would enable the guide character to play favorites, and guide characters do not "play" the game. If I wanted to play, I had to be off duty and on one of my own characters.

Our primary duties were to help newbies with game commands, and help established players when they found a bug. You might get a "player X at loc xxx/xxx is requesting assistance", you port to them, and they might say "How do I get my sword into my hand?". It's your job to patiently explain it to them and then send them on their merry way in a polite, friendly, professional manner. Or, you might have an established player having trouble with something, like I had with lair construction. When I couldn't get my property details window to populate, and I could not add units to structures I was building, I could type /help and get a guide to assist me. The guide would be able to assist in determining if that problem was with the lair, all lairs, the community it's in, all plots in all communities, or with just my character. I would think that knowing those details would be a big help to the dev trying to fix the problem. The guide might not be able to do anything, but COULD put in a direct request to the Devs with details about the issue. We used to have Dev's online, but hidden, who would respond to an issue like that right away because it was obviously a game issue, not a player issue. When it's something with the game itself, and not player error or ignorance, then that's when the guides can really make the difference.

[Valados]

I registered here awhile back just to post a tech issue I had.. I hate talking unless I need, but seeing as how I would like to stick around this time in the character I have built I just have to add what I think...

I have seen and been a part of this in the past. Often leads to over inflated egos and alot of bragging from status. If I wished to relive all of that I would go back to my PvP game.

I have been doing what I can to help others with anything they need from crafting to hunting, in fact so much that I am busy working on something for somebody 75% of the time I log in to log out. I would hate it if a special title is branded over my head.. I've had that before in my past game and I HATED the praise that I got from it. If you ask me, there is a reason for the Blight server and there should be a community wide feedback form where ideas like this can be discussed and brought into light, not like the 'Just Ideas' form thats here now. Be able to get the word out so that way even those who hate the forms (Like me) don't have to come here just to see what might come and miss their shot at putting their two copper in.

Furthermore.. it becomes an issue where and advocate would be too good for their own good. Take for example: Im a serious hunter. The PvP side in me will never die, so I go out looking for mobs to kill untill I can rake them all up in a row with little to no challenge and then move on to another. If I was to give my imput stating that certian mobs were too easy.. thats just from me. Not everyone is such a serious hunter and thus if the mobs got buffed I would have a challenge but it would be impossible for others to defeat them. It works both ways. The builders might state something is too easy, and thus it gets buffed and those that had difficulty allready see it as impossible.. and thus more players leave the game. -- Now I cannot say this is the perfect example but I have become overly frustrated as of late from all the dread that hangs in the air and wished that things would get on track.

I dont mind helping with the Q&A about world spawns, combat efficency, locations, and the like.. but I do not want a company taking only my words and suggestions. I want them to listen to EVERYBODY. So lets not have another case of select individual players influencing the game as a whole again, thank you.

[Screech]

I still say that if the Advocates are accounts controlled by EII, and under restrictions, then where is the problem?
If they help identify problems and test bugs and report them bag to EII Devs, help players with in game issues, then where is the problem?
I would think the Advocates are much like the Guides of old, which used to be there as a liaison between GM/WM and the players. They are there to take the weight of their shoulders and speed things up for the players.
It must not be a play char tagged as an advocate however. It has to be a completely seperate account which is given to the Advocates to use, with various things enabled that they will need.
EII giveth and taketh it away as they see fit. That way the account can be monitored and logged without an invasion of privacy, and to keep things under control.
I honestly don't see a problem with them if it's handled that way.

[Sonea]

Once the League of Historians is assembled, the Advocate program will be revisited.


I wonder if we might get more information on this. who is forming the league? how do people get invited into the league?

[LexDivinia]

Once the League of Historians is assembled, the Advocate program will be revisited.


I wonder if we might get more information on this. who is forming the league? how do people get invited into the league?

What IS the League?
I must have missed prior information on this.

[Sunuke]

What IS the League?
I must have missed prior information on this.

I think the new threads made have something to do with this league for each server.

[Screech]

I have no idea what this league of historians is.

Can someone post some info?
Who is assembling it?
What is the job of this league?
Who is in it / will be in it?
What's the criteria to be in it?

You know... the nitty gritty.

[Saharas]

I believe they are talking about this but not sure if this is one of the links they are talking about:

http://community.istaria.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=15419