Suggestions, Question and Comments

[LadySilverwolf]

Suggestion for Society/Charter Profile:
There will be folks who will activily research your game before actually playing, or perhaps lay low for a few days to get the feel of the place before actually starting to look for what they may want to join or do. Set up a Profile Section on the different Charters/Societies that exist, and perhaps give an idea of what each society does. I also think it is great that you allow the ideas of players to establishing Guild's/Societies/Charters. Fresh eyes always have the inate ability to see something that might have been missed.

I know it is still sorta hard on you Ladies and Gents as you are still developing Marrach. The biggest thing I see with players lately, and I don't know if it is teenage kids, college kids or whatever, but many want instant success. An idea for those would be to find Story Tellers willing to set up tiny plots that set for specific days. Scavenger Hunts, Writing Contests, Practice Duel Contests, or other types of games or mini quests to find hidden objects. None of this has to be related to the larger plots, but would entice players to stick around more, and maybe eventually get involved in the larger plots. Granted I realize that you are trying to get folks to stick around for longer durations than just a couple of days, but this would be a small stepping stone in that direction. Granted this requires allot more work on your part, and I wish I knew how to help write scripts for this. Unfortnately I am just a hard core player myself. http://www.skotos.net/ubb/cool.gif

Another suggestion:
Establish a singular Point of Contact for Skotos team who deals with IC game questions through email only to free up the StoryHosts. Perhaps a Launfal email, since he is the Chamberlain. Not exactly sure if you plan on Launfal going Artifical Intelligent, but having a real live person that answers emails would help. Maybe create an assistant(secretary) to the Chamberlain while the Chamberlain is in the Inner Bailey (off hours). Of course this would require another Story Teller I suppose, or even another Story Host.

Question:
Will you continue to have In Character Board for Marrach once this becomes Pay for Play? If you plan on using other options, perhaps look at Arrion's Website, Dreams of Marrach:

http://www.darkwaters.com/Marrach/

THis would easy up on your archive as well as utilizing the Unoffical Fan site.


A suggestion for Website/Emails:
I know someone who is trying to get a server put up specifically related to Fantasy/RPG Gaming. He had a server once before, but because of RL problems of his Server Support, had to take his site offline until he could get his own server online. The Great RPG Archive (http://www.rpg-archive.com/) is in hiatus right now because of a lack of Host/Partner. I would like to suggest Skotos and GRPGA team up together. GRPGA was the one of the first Online community that networked Fantasy and Roleplaying games on the Internet. If you would like, I can speak with him about this, and then send him your way to discuss what you are looking for and what he can offer to you. Let me know and I will get on this right away. Personally I had planned on putting my character fan site on his server. http://www.skotos.net/ubb/biggrin.gif

[Sariel]

Hey LadySilverwolf,

Thank you for the great post and suggestions!!

Many of the things you have requested are in the works but until the CE department has more staff we are unable to implement all of them and maintain it in a consistent manner -however that should change shortly as we have just hired a new CE person who will begin training in few weeks. With this person's help players should begin to see an even stronger improvement in CE responsiveness and we will be able to more evenly distribute our online and offline time.

Some of your requests such as more quick ended plots are already in motion - however we notice many players do not recognize some of them as quick ended plots and lump them in with long term ones... sigh.... we try to accommodate when that happens :P Also our CE team has pushed to provide a faster turnaround time and response to emails sent to us and we have largely succeeded. Those emails that are plot-centric will almost always take us longer to respond to because we are always looking for ways to incorporate them into the Marrach’s larger plot picture – whenever possible.

We have been working on a societies list and it will appear when it is complete and ready. http://www.skotos.net/ubb/smile.gif

You suggest one person might be able to handle IC game questions but I'm unsure which questions you mean (we get many types of IC game questions). If you mean in terms of having someone that could help answer questions for newbies such as the Awakened Society is the most likely groups that helps the StoryHosts the most (and is also most appreciated by Lord Launfal I assure you). If you mean in terms of sending a message to particular character scrolls are still really the best method.

The IC board will remain in place after Marrach goes pay for monthly play. We do agree however that sites such as Arrion's Dreams of Marrach and other fan sites of Castle Marrach and it's characters are great and we are happy to see that people have taken such a liking to Marrach. Thank you also for the suggestion regarding GRPGA also we’ll make sure to check them out.

Hope that I’ve answered your questions!

Best,

Sariel

[Darren Brimhall]

If you were to work the 'little' stories by leaving a thread or two at their ends, you could entice players to continue adventuring in the Castle--especially if the rewards are enticing enought.
Right now, with Jayland, he's looking for a spare invite to the Winter Ball so he can speak with Ser Maugis d' Aygremont about his vision of the mage who calls out to him in his sleep. If he does, this may propel him into another story to solve another mystery.
I'm not expecting a free ride, I'll haft to work for that Invite. But the occasional little clue would work like a carrot, all I'd haft to do is find it.
As for E-Mailing Launfal, that would be perfict. I can now address a scroll, but I still can't write on it--and I'm at my wit's end over it.
There's my .02

Darren Brimhall

[LadySilverwolf]

Answered most of them, and thanks.

As for the Launfal assistant Idea, I guess I should have elaborated abit more. Many times I have run into characters who would like to start something or look into a matter, and they do this through IC responses. For example, Faer met one Sera who wanted to rp her character as an awakened with a terrible physical aliment. Well, getting ahold of Severin as difficult and I don't think I have seen the Doctor yet. She was a day player and the best we could do was send a scroll to Severin or the Doctor. It was an interesting idea for a character to RP out, and yet, because there has not been much opportunity for you guys to expand yet to late morning or early afternoon, I think she has quit playing. Not sure on this of course. Faer has been rather distracted lately http://www.skotos.net/ubb/wink.gif

Anyway, the idea I was trying relate is if there was one person or contact that players could go to (this does not have to be permanent) that could act as a channel for these small and different requests by players. That is what I mean by an assistant to Launfal. The assistant could recieve these scrolls/emails and then they could be channeled through to the proper Story Hosts and/or Story Tellers.

I know that you have these boards, but sometimes, folks need multiple options open for them. I try to send them to these message boards, and send scrolls to the approapriate characters, but occassional some folks either feel they have been ignored or just do not realize how taxed you all are. I guess you could say I am trying to think of alternate ways for folks to get their ideas to you.

Hope that clarifies what I am trying to suggest. http://www.skotos.net/ubb/smile.gif

[Atama]

To Darren...

I would be VERY VERY VERY VERY shocked to see the Mage at the ball. He is more of a legend than anything else, and some people doubt that he even exists. If you are trying to get to the ball so you can meet him, I hope you aren't keeping your hopes up very much.

(If this gives you a clue, I have been told that it's useless to even send a scroll to him... he might as well not even exist.)

[Darren Brimhall]

Thing's might be different. But who knows? It's better to have Jayland try than to mope.
But then, what would Jayland hear if he responded to the Mage in his dreams? That I'm willing to leave up to Skotos to decide.

Darren Brimhall