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I saw a glimpse of a conversation about that on Skype, and I was wondering... Should we care THAT much about someone who's creating a new profile and wants to start fresh?

There are many point of views on the topic. For some, it can be seen as a threat to the established order. And by established order, I mean overlapping the bans and try to sneak in to get informations on yourself as someone else, etc. But you have those who are just creating new accounts to start fresh and not have to be overshadowed by their past glory, so to speak, and really start from the bottom.

Personally, I'm okay with people doing it, simply because sometimes, it's good to just have a fresh start and leave the past behind, as we all know we tend to hold grudges for decades here, so moving on isn't easy, when it's possible. Plus, what if it's someone completely new? What kind of impression do we give when we start to investigate on that person? We look like a bunch of paranoids and scare people off! And we all know how activity and recruiting new people became a struggle in the past few years, so I don't think we need that either.

I remember doing that with Alastor/Chrono and sincerely, looking back at it, it wasn't necessary. A new member is a new member and I know some guys here are mule accounts and at this point, I don't give a damn anymore. At least not like I used to.

But I want your take on it, should we make a big case of new people and investigate on someone's past to make sure it isn't someone else or should we just let them be and just treat them as anyone else, regardless of "who they were"?

I think it's kind of tricky. There have been, perhaps are, and probably will be people who create new accounts to evade bans or punishment. They should be dealt with, of course. Then you have people that are brand spankin' new. Newbies will always find their way around and will settle in somewhere for their first time. Maybe they just so happened to find the G-fed community, or had heard about it and have come to participate.

I know that I've always thought of making a new account to get away from the self-percieved stigma I believe I have for dropping out with no warning from my whole thing with Tim (Daemonsparta) and just really falling out of the community several times. For some, people can view this as a clean slate, and maybe it's the best thing they could do for themselves.

Should we put every new person under intense scrutiny? No, but if you notice a similar pattern between them and a person you've had trouble with in the past, it's time to do some sleuthing. Otherwise we should let them be and welcome them with open arms.

It is tricky, indeed. It can go both ways, but I like the idea of "when in doubt, check" instead of screening right away. At least it gives that person a chance for a second chance to redeem himself RP-wise, if that person had difficulties with the others on that level. It's just sad that it has to be done through mules, but yeah, it is what it is I guess.

I think the issue can go both ways, because, yeah there are a couple of notable examples of people who have a history of being an a*****e and try to use mules to continue to propagate the cycle of douchebaggery. However, we do have the occasional person with a legit desire for a fresh start, like Bader and Trevor, which is why I run E:E with a mule honesty clause in the rules.

My personal stance on mules is that I don't really give a crap about it, so long as you come clean about it to the owner, at least. I do end up looking in to applicants to E:E, but it's more for quality control issues, as there are a LOT of people who join and never post a damn thing, or are the obvious marks who are more likely than not going to want to play reals. If I do find someone who looks like a mule, I let the request sit for a while and see if I get any response from them.

Falling out is definitely a bad term to use there. I meant it more to say that people like me might feel like people have a soured attitude towards people that will just drop everything they're doing on G-feds, especially mid match or when you no-show a card for several weeks. For me coming back several times has left me thinking about how others thought of me, so it was probably just myself thinking I'm letting people down and down again.

For me, and perhaps others, making a mule provides a sense of comfort. I thought people would be comfortable with a new guy instead of someone that had left people hanging many times in the past. I think I had made one a while back and someone messaged me like "Oh man, that's alright, just get on your main and get going again."

It's more of a personal point of view instead the true community perception.

I pride myself in being someone who has and always will have one and only one account on gaia (multiple characters though) . Im too adhd to keep track of two accounts. If someone comes in with a new start and actually does well who cates... spoop claims to know me I dont even know who he was....unless he WAS eric thompson... im miffed at you but hardly grudge worthy.. too easy going for that. However, if they do yhe same ol s**t... its the same old s**t and not a true fresh start. Im not a guild owner though so I guess my opinion isnt as valid in those regards.