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 Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 7:07 am
I think if there was some way to have the guests wander the labyrinth and then stumble on the different rooms. The only things we haven't really worked out is what's going on above the labyrinth, what's going on the rooms, and why the guests are in the labyrinth in the first place.
And the hosts should be mobile, but be leading them somehow. Maybe each room's team could lead a group of people? And they could 'accidentally' stumble on their own room, but still be able to leave at any time? I'd like opinions on that idea, if it made any sense. XD
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 8:53 am
I think I might be better for me to take a back seat to this discussion. At least for a little while. But, before I do, I want to explain to you why I would wanted us to consider a more simplistic plot with an itinerary format verses picking 7 subplots and giving them a sticky.
From looking through the various links in the FAQ I realized that the very first ball only had 1 Thread and one very simplistic Plot. The overall purpose seemed to be more about socializing and coming together. It wasn't about magic fairies, t-corps or even martians on a moon. There was no page long description, but only one post by one guy welcoming people to a ball.
The user base was much smaller then as Gaia was still very new. As you look at how many Gaians are on right now you will see that we have about 35k-70k at any given time. We are a community event, but I fear we may be alienating a 100k other users and their vast interests.
I don't see what gives Me, Sabs, Lady Angelisha, etc more right to be a host/co-host for this ball over the guy that might be making a new account right now. The statistics have already proven that a popular non-sticky thread can gain a much higher post count. Regardless if its topic has anything to do with our theme. Those same statistics cause me to realize that if I wanted to run a carnival during the ball I could easily ignore the plots the hosts have spent the entire year working on. And I would still have just as much probability of my thread being more active.
I also know that majority rules. If you have already included the vast majority, than an off topic thread is not as likely to be successful.
My concept allows for Angelisha to have her own tea party, temporal can have his steam punk paradise, Bliss & I could even decide to team together and run a carnival. But it also allows for new ideas to be born throughout the year with a loose plot where we allow the individuals to create the details and we shuffle the spotlight by linking these topics and encouraging people to get a variety of culture. It's what Gaia's been doing all along and its worked very well for their officially run events.
Our role would only be in setting up guidelines and leaving the rest up to the community that I was under the impression this event was about.
It's not about me, it's not about you. I wasn't even there for the first ball. I'd go out on a limb when I questioned if ANY of our current ball staff was. But, I don't think that changes any of you from having the very same reasons for wanting to host this ball as the original creator of it did.
Anyhow, I'm jumping off this soap box as I'm coming to realize that I may be only wasting my time writing this and your time reading it as I don't see us agreeing any time soon.
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 10:00 am
Well, this is just a thought, but if we did decide to open all the labyrinth threads at once, how would you guys feel about only being able access the next thread from the previous one? That sounds confusing, let me try to simplify.
Main ball- Labyrinth
Tea Party---> Carnival-----> Scotland----> Phoenix room, etc
Does that make sense? Then we still keep people moving and going to different rooms, and it has a more labyrinth feel to it.
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 10:08 am
 ♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
Envy - I get what you're saying. It's a tricky subject, because I think some people really enjoy the themed balls and the hosted topics. Whereas others just want a place to throw their own party! So in a very short answer, I think that the best way to do such is to pick a theme that leaves room for people to make their own topics. However I think we should keep the hosted threads and rp plots, for those that enjoy that. Make a happy balance, you know?
Kala - I see what you're saying! That would make it seem more like a labyrinth. But I think it might needlessly confuse someone. I would get annoyed if I had to go through like ten other rooms to find this one rp and check posts. Perhaps to make it feel more like a labyrinth even though all the topics would be open at the same time, we could put in the first posts of each topic something to the equivalent of: "As guests stumble through the labyrinth, a door to the -insert room number here-th room becomes more and more visible."
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥ 
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 10:17 am
Oops, I forgot! I was thinking we could put up a directory in each room, telling where all the rooms behind them were. And people can always subscribe to a topic. But I really do see what you're saying with it being confusing. What about if what we did was do them in groups?
1) Tea Party--->2) Carnival--->3) Scotland
1) China--->2) Phoenix room--->3) Centaurs
1) Rave--->2) Steampunk--->3) Unicorns
The first three are posted as links, the rest of them come from room before.
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 10:24 am
I think a lot of things are complicating this. I enjoy simplicity very much. And aren't all the threads going to be stickied? So why even try to do a link here link to next room thing?
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 10:35 am
Lady Angelishia ♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
Envy - I get what you're saying. It's a tricky subject, because I think some people really enjoy the themed balls and the hosted topics. Whereas others just want a place to throw their own party! So in a very short answer, I think that the best way to do such is to pick a theme that leaves room for people to make their own topics. However I think we should keep the hosted threads and rp plots, for those that enjoy that. Make a happy balance, you know?
Kala - I see what you're saying! That would make it seem more like a labyrinth. But I think it might needlessly confuse someone. I would get annoyed if I had to go through like ten other rooms to find this one rp and check posts. Perhaps to make it feel more like a labyrinth even though all the topics would be open at the same time, we could put in the first posts of each topic something to the equivalent of: "As guests stumble through the labyrinth, a door to the -insert room number here-th room becomes more and more visible."
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥ I agree, some people do like them. Theirs no denying that. The concern is not that people like them, but is there REALLY enough users taking part in them to justify them being the prime focus of the ball. If your topic is good and popular it's going to already stay on the front page of the forum. Its also going to have the advantage of being able to visually see if new posts have been made to that topic. Sticky threads don't get a new posts icon. All of our pre-planned events would still be available in our Announcement Sticky. If RP is their cup of tea they're going to see what Ball RPs are running and a tidbit about the RP topic. If they're more into the contest flair of the ball they can see what threads are hosting a contest and a brief idea as to what kind of contest it is. And if they like live action balls-- they would be able to see that at 7PM we're hosting an event in Towns and directed to more information on that particular festivity. As brutal as it might sound-- if a thread could not survive without having a sticky attached to it it likely that it wasn't good enough or well thought out enough to survive in the forum. The only exception being a thread that had no intent to be interactive or wouldn't autmatically generator discussion, i.e. a Formal Welcoming and a FAQ styled thread put in place to cover people's questions.
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 10:52 am
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
I think that having them as announcements help users find the main RP threads. It makes it so you don't have to comb the forum for a topic with a good plot. There are a few developed rp's already sitting there nice and easy to find on the first page of the forum, hosted by people who will keep the rp moving. I enjoyed those topics most about the ball, and probably would not have found them without them being announcements. It just makes everything easier.
I don't see why it's an ultimatum between guest roleplays and main roleplays. I think both can exist together quite nicely.
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 11:28 am
Lady Angelishia ♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
I think that having them as announcements help users find the main RP threads. It makes it so you don't have to comb the forum for a topic with a good plot. There are a few developed rp's already sitting there nice and easy to find on the first page of the forum, hosted by people who will keep the rp moving. I enjoyed those topics most about the ball, and probably would not have found them without them being announcements. It just makes everything easier.
I don't see why it's an ultimatum between guest roleplays and main roleplays. I think both can exist together quite nicely.
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥ Again I am going to sound like an a** when I say most of the sticky RPs did not have the host support that they should have had. I honestly found it kind of embarrassing that some of the "guest" role plays had more hosting support than the stickies. I see no reason to spotlight (sticky) a thread if the one who volunteered to host it doesn't show up or doesn't take the efforts to properly plan out their thread. I see no reason that if you were to offer to do a Tea Party RP in September and disappear that we have to scramble to get that Tea Party presentable in February to rush it's launch in March. I'd much rather see your Tea party work along side a general theme so that it could be scrapped from an itinerary and replaced with something else that was better organized and had more to offer if you didn't follow through. I also don't see how 7-8 people could easily represent a user base of 100k+. Nor do I really see how 7-8 people can be grandfathered into having a sticky thread if they don't take the steps to be prepared. If I had enough faith in people's dedication I would likely have a different stance. I'm only looking at the logistics from what I have evaluated. Sadly, there was a long list of people who were suppose to do certain things that never did them that is causing me to feel this way. There was a long list of people who WANTED to do things for the ball that couldn't because there were already people in place to do them (and sadly, many of those people never followed through to the finish.)
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 12:23 pm
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
Just because some of the hosts dropped out last time doesn't mean that we just drop the whole idea of hosting. In my opinion, that's like giving up. The ball just wouldn't be a ball without a few nice rp threads.
I'd say rather than scrap the ideas, revamp the hosting system. Have runner ups and backups who will help with the thread. Have at least 3 or four cohosts assisting a host, with an order in which they will take over for the host based on interest. Have people volunteer for the topics that they are interested in, and make them post a second and third choice. That way they host or cohost something that they are interested in and will more likely follow through. When it gets to be a month or two in advance, make sure everyone is available and that there are STILL 3 or 4 cohosts behind every host. If some have dropped out or had to take over for the host, then we can recruit some more people. There are plenty of people interested in helping out here.
I don't mean to sound mean. x.x But it seems like what you're suggesting is giving up due to staffing problems last year. I say work on the problem. Don't delete a part of the ball that many of the guests enjoy.
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 1:51 pm
Lady Angelishia ♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
Just because some of the hosts dropped out last time doesn't mean that we just drop the whole idea of hosting. In my opinion, that's like giving up. The ball just wouldn't be a ball without a few nice rp threads.
I'd say rather than scrap the ideas, revamp the hosting system. Have runner ups and backups who will help with the thread. Have at least 3 or four cohosts assisting a host, with an order in which they will take over for the host based on interest. Have people volunteer for the topics that they are interested in, and make them post a second and third choice. That way they host or cohost something that they are interested in and will more likely follow through. When it gets to be a month or two in advance, make sure everyone is available and that there are STILL 3 or 4 cohosts behind every host. If some have dropped out or had to take over for the host, then we can recruit some more people. There are plenty of people interested in helping out here.
I don't mean to sound mean. x.x But it seems like what you're suggesting is giving up due to staffing problems last year. I say work on the problem. Don't delete a part of the ball that many of the guests enjoy.
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥ -rubs her temples and sighs- No, I never suggested giving up on anything more than this discussion because I don't see it going anywhere but in circles. It just seems that the moment that it goes two steps forward it goes three steps back. I NEVER suggested deleting or even removing the RP element from the Ball. I'm recommending revamping the ball so the RP and everything else can more successful and more enjoyable for the guests. And it's not that I think you're being mean, it's that I think you are either misunderstanding me completely or are so set on what you'd like to do that you're not hearing me. Please don't insult me by suggesting that I'm not trying to come up with ways to fix the problems of last year. That's what I've been trying to do all along. You're proposing doing the EXACT system that was done last year and it had so many holes and flaws that the ball was almost canceled. Even the Ball Hostess was unable to attend- not to mention the co-hosts, actors, etc. that were suppose to be there. Complicate that on top of having rooms that were half finished when the ball was to start and I think that's a true sign that something is obviously wrong with the current system. I'm suggesting a system that actually requires people to follow through and be more accountable. It also allows for a LOT more people to get involved instead of a select few. And one more thing, please for the sake of clarification, give me an estimate of how many people you define many as? Because my room count seems to be a lot less than yours and I'd like to be sure I know if my numbers are inaccurate.
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 2:55 pm
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
Envy, I didn't mean to insult you. I know you're trying very hard, and I never meant to suggest otherwise. I know you try harder than most of us. <3
What I meant was, the way I interpret it, you're trying to unsticky the stickied rp threads in favor of a more user run rp system, correct? Let me know if I'm wrong.
I think that the threads could still work if, like I said, we revamped the hosting system instead. I never suggested that we keep everything the same.
And I know in the thread I was in there were usually somewhere around, I would say 10 people actively posting in the thread at a time. So probably a lot more than that that were reading and popping in. So at a low number, 20 per thread? Times 7 threads. So that's like 140. Just an estimate.
I respect your ideas Envy.
And for the most part I agree with you.
Just not about changing the sticky rp's.
Those are my favorite part.
And I know the people I roleplayed with enjoyed them as well.
All I meant to say in my last post was this, in a nutshell:
I don't think we should take away the main rp's. The problem seems to have been more understaffing than that people felt they couldn't participate.
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 3:30 pm
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
I think you may have taken my post the wrong way.
x.x
Sorry if it sounded like an insult.
Envy, you're amazing and I've told you that.
-nod-
Your ideas are creative and helpful and aimed towards solving our problems.
I just don't agree with the solution to this one.
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 3:35 pm
We both seem to agree that there was an issue with under staffing.
You may also not realize that there were many who did want to help with the planning of the ball that were either not given a chance to or were so lost on how to help that they couldn't. So yes, it really does irritate me when those who were in place to do certain things never did them.
I also think the problem is that I see the estimate of 140 as a very low number and you see it as a large number?
That and the other radical issue seems to be that the ball has primarily always been a RP forum event and I am recommending introducing non-RP elements and the 'Virtual Worlds' to run along side of the event because there has been a high demand for that.
Introducing non-RP elements does not equal removing RP elements. It just means changing the way in which they are set up. There would still be an 'official plot'. I mean, as an RPer.. wouldn't you rather not have it flooded with obnoxious spam and OOC non-sense that doesn't apply to the RP? Does the sticky really add that much glam? I guess I just don't get it and I'm sorry that I don't.
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 3:45 pm
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
Well you're a genius. >W<
So not understanding one thought I'm expressing is not really something you should think too much on...
It's probably my fault for not elaborating.
The 'glam' of having a thread stickied just means that people can find it easier.
Normal rps can be found all over the Barton Towns forum.
But THESE rps have a super amount of thought behind them.
Have hosts.
Have a ton of users.
And a BIG plot.
That's what makes this the glamorous part of the ball for me, and if they think the same way, other rpers. It's not JUST an rp. It's a special, once a year, roleplay.
And I do agree that there need to be other elements. Utilizing the other worlds is an ingenious idea. <3 I know you already know some people don't have access to towns and such due to their internet. But I think alot do, and would be interested in meetups there.
♥♡♥♡♥♡♥
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