Death the Kid (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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soul_ooc2012-08-16 08:23 pm
perfectorder) wrote in soul_ooc2012-08-16 08:23 pm
Important NPC Changes Announcement!
Hey guys! This is your NPC mod representative Laena with a few important announcements regarding our NPC crew.
As some probably noticed in the most recent Introduction Log, we were pretty short staffed when it came to having actual NPC players. Really, do you want Excalibur greeting guests again? Really? Really? So you have no idea how happy I am to have our new players joining the team and this is where I shamelessly plug for anyone to come join the cast—for any character! (Team B characters would be awesome man)
But that aside, since I've taken up the position, I've been working on a few tweaks and changes for the NPC crew as a whole—and hopefully these changes will not only help clarify what players can do when playing the Soul Eater characters, but also make it more enjoyable for both us and everyone else in-game.
Beneath the cut is a list and explanation of the recent changes, all of which have received mod approval and gone into effect since the beginning of the month.
-------------------------
change in "label"
It might not look significant at first, but it's actually pretty big in terms of its implications. One of the first big things we did was change the label of what we call the Soul Eater cast as "NPCs." To be honest, that confused me a lot when I first joined, and after discussing it with the mods, it was agreed that calling them NPCs wasn't really quite right. Sure they play major parts in the game at times, particularly Spirit and Kid, but in terms of gameplay, they're like any other character that's apped in.
So from here on out, we're just referring to them as they are: Soul Eater characters, or SE character for short. (And this is not because we couldn't come up with a better term than "staff" or anything.) Thus upon applying for a SE character, one isn't just taking a role to be used at varying times, but is actually part of the cast. This will hopefully change how most people probably perceive the SE characters. They're to be played and interacted with like any other character. The only key differences are that there are some minor "duties" and when a player drops the character, they don't disappear but just stay in the game premise somewhere on a big mission.
Of course some characters do serve more like a traditional NPC (see Exaclibur) and anyone can still call them NPCs. But just remember, they're much more than that!
change in application process
First of all, because of the changes made to the purpose of the characters as well as the application process, the whole application page was revamped to reflect these changes. You can view it here. But here's the run down of changes that were done to make the application process easier, especially since we really do need more players for these characters.
Everything else is the same. Nothing else was changed, so the above are the only two major changes done. I did contemplate changing the AC requirement for the characters but decided to defer and stay with the old system. Despite the change in purpose, the SE characters are a bit more laid back in nature. The change is still on the table, but for now it's just that—on the table. If activity does become a problem in the future it may be changed but we shall see!
other changes on what players could do
Or more like ideas to help get the SE cast and the in-game characters more engaged with one another. First of all, as mentioned in the "Change in label" section, the SE cast are to be treated like any other character apped into the game—that includes plots! Yep, SE character players are more than welcome to come up with their own plot if they so desire. This also includes events. The only caveat is that it would have to be approved by me (and the mods depending), but that's more just to make sure the plots don't conflict with anything. So standard "player plot" rule.
Two other things you might notice on the application page are mentions of co-op missions and a mentoring type program. Right now it's still in the "proposal/development" stage, but mostly because I want to hear feedback from the rest of the playerbase. As you can guess, the purpose of these two "programs" are to help the characters interact more with one another and close any "distance" there might be between the guest characters and Shibusen. So here is the basic concept of each.
As said before, these are still in the "development" stage until I hear feedback, but so far the current SE character players are for it.
end goal
That's pretty much it. I've been having a blast playing as Kid here, and I just want to share that fun experience with everyone else. So hopefully these changes will help both improve the older NPC system and make playing these characters more fun than some kind of job to be fulfilled at a mod's beck and call.
After all, the Soul Eater cast are characters, too—open for development and relationships with all kinds of characters. Plus, who agrees with me that it's usually more fun when the SE crew gets together andthreaten to kill each other pull off crazy stunts? Yes? No? Maybe? Haha, either way I can at least say it's definitely more fun.
-------------------------
Phew, that was long, but hopefully I covered everything. If you have any questions or even suggestions feel free to comment!
UPDATE! Due to the amount of interest for certain characters, there is now a Reserves section on the SE Character application page! We decided to just stick it in there since it's highly unlikely that it would see too much action. It will be screened at first, but I'll unscreen them when I see them and also make a note on the character table for easy reference :|b
So once again a shameless plug: COME JOIN US :D
As some probably noticed in the most recent Introduction Log, we were pretty short staffed when it came to having actual NPC players. Really, do you want Excalibur greeting guests again? Really? Really? So you have no idea how happy I am to have our new players joining the team and this is where I shamelessly plug for anyone to come join the cast—for any character! (Team B characters would be awesome man)
But that aside, since I've taken up the position, I've been working on a few tweaks and changes for the NPC crew as a whole—and hopefully these changes will not only help clarify what players can do when playing the Soul Eater characters, but also make it more enjoyable for both us and everyone else in-game.
Beneath the cut is a list and explanation of the recent changes, all of which have received mod approval and gone into effect since the beginning of the month.
- Change in "label"
- Application changes
- Co-op missions and mentor program proposals
-------------------------
change in "label"
It might not look significant at first, but it's actually pretty big in terms of its implications. One of the first big things we did was change the label of what we call the Soul Eater cast as "NPCs." To be honest, that confused me a lot when I first joined, and after discussing it with the mods, it was agreed that calling them NPCs wasn't really quite right. Sure they play major parts in the game at times, particularly Spirit and Kid, but in terms of gameplay, they're like any other character that's apped in.
So from here on out, we're just referring to them as they are: Soul Eater characters, or SE character for short. (And this is not because we couldn't come up with a better term than "staff" or anything.) Thus upon applying for a SE character, one isn't just taking a role to be used at varying times, but is actually part of the cast. This will hopefully change how most people probably perceive the SE characters. They're to be played and interacted with like any other character. The only key differences are that there are some minor "duties" and when a player drops the character, they don't disappear but just stay in the game premise somewhere on a big mission.
Of course some characters do serve more like a traditional NPC (see Exaclibur) and anyone can still call them NPCs. But just remember, they're much more than that!
change in application process
First of all, because of the changes made to the purpose of the characters as well as the application process, the whole application page was revamped to reflect these changes. You can view it here. But here's the run down of changes that were done to make the application process easier, especially since we really do need more players for these characters.
- No more prior AC requirement to app. Previously, a player must have passed two ACs before they were eligible to apply for an SE character. This has been removed, so those who even just recently joined can apply.
- Players not already in Soul Campaign may apply directly. This is a big, big change. Although this had already happened in the past, it was never officially stated in the application page. Now it has been officially implemented, so anyone who is not already a player in Soul Campaign can directly apply as a Soul Eater character. There is not much change in the form except the necessity for a sample. This is because unlike players already in Soul Campaign, we have no idea how such players play. Thus the sample requirement. Players already in game do not have the sample requirement, and the form is otherwise the same.
- Reformatted the table. Okay, not that big of a change, but I thought it would help clarify the "roles" of certain characters. Some of the characters have larger roles than others just due to their in-game position. Obviously, Spirit and Kid have the biggest roles since they're kind of the top dogs. Although it's mentioned on the page itself, as a visual aid it is made distinctly clear that some characters have bigger roles than others. Thus the table has been reformatted to reflect that.
Everything else is the same. Nothing else was changed, so the above are the only two major changes done. I did contemplate changing the AC requirement for the characters but decided to defer and stay with the old system. Despite the change in purpose, the SE characters are a bit more laid back in nature. The change is still on the table, but for now it's just that—on the table. If activity does become a problem in the future it may be changed but we shall see!
other changes on what players could do
Or more like ideas to help get the SE cast and the in-game characters more engaged with one another. First of all, as mentioned in the "Change in label" section, the SE cast are to be treated like any other character apped into the game—that includes plots! Yep, SE character players are more than welcome to come up with their own plot if they so desire. This also includes events. The only caveat is that it would have to be approved by me (and the mods depending), but that's more just to make sure the plots don't conflict with anything. So standard "player plot" rule.
Two other things you might notice on the application page are mentions of co-op missions and a mentoring type program. Right now it's still in the "proposal/development" stage, but mostly because I want to hear feedback from the rest of the playerbase. As you can guess, the purpose of these two "programs" are to help the characters interact more with one another and close any "distance" there might be between the guest characters and Shibusen. So here is the basic concept of each.
- Co-op missions. It's pretty simple and would work very similar to the standard missions on the mission board. However, the partnered pair (or pairs) would be teamed with one of the SE characters. So for instance, a team with Black☆Star and Tsubaki. Not only would this be an opportunity for the characters to get to know one another, but from a practical standpoint the guest pairs would be able to witness and experience how higher leveled pairs work. This would thus provide a good training opportunity. These missions would be designed either by me or the SE character player, and these would be completely voluntary. SE character players don't have to participate or create such missions, and I won't make any if a player does not want to.
- Mentoring. It's a bit similar to the Co-op missions, but more relaxed and laid back. The purpose is for the SE characters to help the guest characters get used to Death City, both in living and in fighting. They would basically be the "go to" person for possible training related questions. But it's more than just training, so it can be serious or silly. If Black☆Star wants to mentor a guest and teach them how to be godly awesome (though not as great as him), then that can totally happen. But if you want lessons on being a peeping tom, Tsubaki refuses to participate so you'll have to find another target. If someone wants to learn of Kid's odd, but refined symmetrical and ordered ways, that is also possible. Want some fashion advice? There's Liz. Learn how to make origami? ...Well, Patti may not be the best choice, but she's great to just hang around with? And there's always Excalibur—okay, maybe not.
But hopefully you get the idea! It's really meant to serve as another outlet for fun shenanigans and close that gap between the two character groups. This is also voluntary—players of SE characters do not have to participate if they don't want to, but it will be highly encouraged.
As said before, these are still in the "development" stage until I hear feedback, but so far the current SE character players are for it.
end goal
That's pretty much it. I've been having a blast playing as Kid here, and I just want to share that fun experience with everyone else. So hopefully these changes will help both improve the older NPC system and make playing these characters more fun than some kind of job to be fulfilled at a mod's beck and call.
After all, the Soul Eater cast are characters, too—open for development and relationships with all kinds of characters. Plus, who agrees with me that it's usually more fun when the SE crew gets together and
-------------------------
Phew, that was long, but hopefully I covered everything. If you have any questions or even suggestions feel free to comment!
UPDATE! Due to the amount of interest for certain characters, there is now a Reserves section on the SE Character application page! We decided to just stick it in there since it's highly unlikely that it would see too much action. It will be screened at first, but I'll unscreen them when I see them and also make a note on the character table for easy reference :|b
So once again a shameless plug: COME JOIN US :D
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