American_Angel

Thank you for your insights...it's a learning process for me.

Working on a new, hopefully better arc. Maybe I'll have better luck with it.

[ QUOTE ]
Okay, thanks for the help everyone!

I've determined that the double routers are almost certainly the problem.

(Not sure why there are two, that's just what there was when I moved in. My sister has no idea either as it's something her ex-husband did.)

The other day I tried unplugging and then replugging in her modem and that did no good.

However, later, I tried unplugging and then replugging in her router and my ping dropped down to 200!

The only problem is that after a while the ping just goes right back up again. After an hour or so.

So, any recomendations on how I would just plug in straight to her router? Please bear with me as I am not tech savvy at all.

Thanks for all the help!

[/ QUOTE ]

Just a thought...with the storms the power flickers a couple times at my house this week...and each time I was forced to unplu/replug my router.

Maybe that was the reason all along.

[ QUOTE ]
Don't let your SG so big that members get swamped by numbers, ignored and/or cligues form. I left a SG today for precisely that reason.

Don't offer ridiclous amounts of inf to the member that earns the most prestige in a given time. As most members starting date will surely vary and the oldest group members will get an unfair advantage leaving the newer members no chance of catching up, hence no chance of winning an unobtainable prize.

Always acknowledge members when they log on and encourage older members to start teams as and when the opportunity arises.

[/ QUOTE ]

On this note, I once had a contest...I recruited on a certain day in atlas and had a contest for members that joined that day and the following 3 days...

Generated a TON of Prestige that way.

Old members were permitted to create NEW toons to enter the contest.

This popular series now has a new chapter added.

Arc #183150
2 Missions
No AVs, 1 EB

All Levels able to play. Can be soloed, but better with 6 or more players.

In Legends #0, we met Lord Chronos, a being with the ability to manipulate time and alternate realities. Now Lord Chronos is back to wreak havok...can you halt his evil schemes before he succeeds? NOTE - This is a Task Force -

Comic Cover : www.cohLegends.com

This is my first attempt at making a mission less "deadly", and is sort of an experiement for future arcs.

I have been intending to make the request, but still working on the base

It's the room size.

[ QUOTE ]
It's not so much that I object to the rent (though it's trivial enough that I'd prefer they just did away with it).

What I object to is the fact that the mechanics are broken (at least for me right now).

Right now it's supposed to be:

Pay rent.
2 weeks later get a notice that rent is due.
2 weeks later notice changes to "rent was due"
2 weeks later power is shut off.

Right now, for me, it works like this:

Pay rent.
1 DAY later, get a notice that rent is due.
2 weeks later notice changes to "rent was due"
2 weeks later power is shut off.

Needless to say I'm a might peeved over the situation.

[/ QUOTE ]
I can agree with your point here.

The should just automate the rent payment.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
You can lower the Auto-Demote time to 15 days and get him demoted then you should get the Leader rank provided your at the General rank or the most recently logged in. Then once you get the Leader rank you can set the Auto-Demotion time back to 45 days.

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't know if this has changed, but I'm pretty sure that altering the demotion time RESETS the timer. So if there is currently four days to go on the current timer and it is changed to 15 days, it will now be reset to the fifteen day setting.

It's been a while since I've had to deal with that but that's what I remember from my experience.

[/ QUOTE ]
It doesn't reset the timer...it just takes an extra 24 hours to take affect.

[ QUOTE ]
I don't think the person that starts the SG should EVER been auto demoted. This is just crazy!

This is the aspect I have always hated about this game. If the founder AFK's for any period of time he could leave someone in charge but not lose control of what he built up. If members do not like this fact they should leave and start their own.

For this very reason it has always been just my girlfriend and myself in our groups across all the servers. This way we know nothing will happen unless it is a game bug.

I feel for this persons feelings as I built up a group by myself and know how much work it is. So all of you doing nothing but bashing get a life. This person has the right to the feelings he has regarding this matter and as the person who started it should never have been auto demoted....the developers need to fix this as it isn't fair to that person.

I hope the OP gets control of his group back. Happened to me once and I got lucky that this person didn't log in for the 45 days. Promptly kicked this person once I could to ensure it didn't happen again.

[/ QUOTE ]
A agree with this. Unless the founder of a SG willingly gives up his group to someone else, he/she should always have control.

That said...only persons of hte 5th rank qualify to get leader rank right?

So that means someone promoted this unknown individual at some point.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Couldn't you know, ask the person ?

Im assuming they were invited to the SG by you, or at least by someone you promoted.

<edit>
Oh and as for advice generally if you have a base and want to retain ownership, make sure only characters on your own account(s) are in the SG when time expires. It will sit safe and sound until you re-activate.

The guy who was Best Man at my wedding was off in WoW for over 2 years, but the SG name and base are still his.

[/ QUOTE ]

There are a couple snags with that. First off, when we reactivated and signed back on, we found this person was the new leader and neither of my sons nor I recruited him. And he had been leader for a couple weeks and also had been offline for 14 days. Now he is offline for 41 days so 4 more days and perhaps the nightmare is over.


Second, if I purge the SG of non-alt/persons that aren't on my account, that punishes a few loyal members that have diligently supported the base with their time and prestige. HAD I KNOWN auto-demote was working (and that it only demotes the leader? Where does it say that?) I might have promoted another member to leader status so that he could run things in my absence. Its a base that took a long time to make since it was done mainly by casual gamers, not farmers or people that log in nightly.

[/ QUOTE ]
Wait till no one else but you is on. Get on yor highest ranked SG Toon.
Set the demotion to 40 days and wait. Being the latest leader on, you will get the leadership rank back.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Hmm, after reading all of the posts, I'm left wondering something. What do your SG members get out of being in your SG? How does it benefit them? What are you doing for them?

All I've seen is talk about getting your ranking up, and it seems like your SG members are just tools to get you there, instead of people you actually like/respect and enjoy playing with.

[/ QUOTE ]

My guess is "A bunch of teleporters and a medstation". There may be some open chests full of generic IO's, or there may not.

Building generic IO's for your SGmates is definitely a good idea.

Edited to say: not everyone who plays the game is good at, or cares about, making inf. Helping those people out is not really bribery in my brain. So I don't see this as "Bribing people for prestige" but as "helping out your mates." By all means DO help your SGmates out, with time, inf, and knowledge.

[/ QUOTE ]

Actually, our base is really nice (well most of it is, got some construction happening).

Also, I've been gining out rewards for earning influence.

And we try to team as much as possible.

All that said, the posts here have helped me gain some insight. Afterall, sometimes we can fail to see things clearly when we're inside a situation...and getting outside advice helps.

I decided to leave the SG Mode question up to the group members to decide. Created a poll on our forums and they are voting on whether to keep or not.

The majority so far say remove it, "But I'll still play in it."

[ QUOTE ]
sadly I checked the "Bork Emblems" and they are all working like they should. Meaning the ones marked as invisible by the bug are now showing. I did find a way around it however by changing colors to all black and using the smallest icon. It seems to be working and not showing an icon.

[/ QUOTE ]
pic?

[ QUOTE ]
And the floor tile stacks on itself without increasing the height, so you don't have to be careful in positioning it. If there's a gap, just stack another floor tile on the edge of the previous one and use that to fill in.
.

[/ QUOTE ]

Except the floor tiles will flicker a lot if overlapping.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
do tell!

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't know what trick the OP used but I recently used a painting to make wall where you can see in but they can't see out.

[/ QUOTE ]
I used the same trick for windows in a house. Made it so people can see out but not in.

[ QUOTE ]
they are the glass SG logo panels,but,they fixed it and you can't have them without a logo now,you should see them in room detail tab,next to the SG hologram thingy LOL

[/ QUOTE ]
When did they fix it? It works last week.

[ QUOTE ]
I would rather be in an SG with 10 great friends and zero prestige than a group with 100 perfect strangers and 20 billion prestige.

Rank only shows how good your SG is at getting prestige. It doesn't actually say anything about the group itself.

[/ QUOTE ]

Base must not matter to you then?

Actually, for us, we have enough Prestige that base edits won't be an issue for a couple years or so. So I guess sg mode actually does not matter as much at this point, other than rank.

Right now, we have 53 mill prestige laying around...working on editing the base, but it's already full sized secure as it is. Truthfully, I could free up even more by going with a standard plot, but I like hte idea of dual power supplies and dual controls.

Well, that will teach me...

#1 SGs Prestige Amounts:
Champion: 364,811,360
Freedom: 360,101,989

So Champion now actually has more prestige in the Top spot. Interesting. This wasn't the case when I left Champion 2 years ago.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
what's a Strike Force?

[/ QUOTE ]

It's exactly the same as a Task Force, but for villains.

[/ QUOTE ]

Me = Redside noob lol

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
You mention wanting to be in the "top 10" and I just have to ask ....why? The ranking system is based purely on your prestige numbers, and I have to say, that literally means diddly-squat to me if I were a prospective member. In fact, I usually point this out to people who advertise their SG as being "Number 27 in the server" so the people they're trying to pick up aren't confused about what it means. Now, I'm not saying you're trying to use this meaningless ranking as a tool to get new players, but it's what I see most frequently on Champion. With the changes to base pricing, the amount of prestige your group has for a base means even less than it did before.


[/ QUOTE ]

You may feel that way, but the vast majority put stock in it.

Also, if a SG goes from say, #50 to #25, in a short time, it shows that they are active (especially on Freedom; where it's hardest).

The fact that you call out recruiters like that is kind of rude...and something you might want to reconsider. You're talking to people that have worked hard to get it, and they have a right to be proud.

Shooting them down simply because it doesn't matter to you isn't right.

Still reading the rest of your post

[/ QUOTE ]

I'd like to know who this "vast majority" is. In my experience, the only people that put any stock into it are people that don't know how it's calculated, don't know what it actually means, are unaware that it really doesn't mean anything regarding the quality of a SG (and to me, it just means the group cares more about prestige than having quality members), or they're trying to use it specifically as a recruiting tool to grab some ignorant newbies to fill out a roster. I'm willing to entertain the idea that this is probably restricted entirely to Atlas Park recruitment spam, which isn't a good way to get members who will stick around regardless.

All I mention when the "top X on the server" is announced is what is actually used to calculate it. Quite a few people aren't even aware that it's based solely on your gathered prestige numbers, including those who are using it to advertise their SG. I've rarely gotten into "broadcast fights" about it because I don't announce it in a "matter of fact" or "condescending" manner. It's purely informative and most people appreciate the explanation and clarity.

The only reason I say it doesn't matter is because what required a lot of prestige to maintain (large impressive bases) requires significantly less now.

[/ QUOTE ]

Very good point on the bases.

Personally, I use to play on Champion, and I have to say things are a little different on Freedom.

On Freedom, Atlas Park is now constant spam...I mean constant. You can't even have a conversation there anymore unless you have a seperate tab for local, SG and team chat.

Also, the Top SGs have well over 300 million Prestige, whereas Champion has well under 100 million I think. So accomplishing it on Freedom is a greater challenge.

The truth is, Ranking is the ONLY reason I care about Prestige at this point. And once we hit the Top 10, I'll probably stop requiring it at all. It's just a matter of the challenge to get there.

We've earned about 90 million so far...which if we were on Champion would probably make us #1.

Edit: I was wrong about the Champion amount. It's 364,811,360. I guess the Prestige refund boosted it a while back.

Will update the freedom amount in a minute.

[ QUOTE ]
I also agree that having a 10-day inactive restriction is extremely restricting. Hell, 14 days is still pushing it in my opinion though that's a bit more reasonable. Not to drag another MMO into this, but I'm reminded of a certain player in WoW who wanted to do scheduled guild raids.

He took it upon himself to try to set them up, which was good... except his schedule only worked with his own personal time openings. He had no job, no obligations, and his raiding schedule reflected this. He eventually left the guild due to "lack of raid interest" even though we explained that his schedule didn't let anyone but two or three others show up.

That's what I'm picking up here. Your policies seem to reflect a system that you, personally, can handle and you're not taking into account the variables of other peoples' lives. Things can happen, people might jump around on some alts for a couple weeks, or a life emergency occurs and they can't really log in for 2-3 weeks.

Coming back and finding that the SG they had fun times in has given them the boot because of a inactive period that's far too short doesn't usually sit well with most people. My suggestion to you is to find a system that accommodates the largest possible selection of your members without being so lax as to allow the SG to become cluttered with throw-away alts.


[/ QUOTE ]

Actually, the 10 day restriction has worked out well for over a year. Your example of the player in wow doesn't really apply to this situation, but it is a good point.

In our situation, it's not hard, especially now that the character screen shows time offline, to quickly log a toon on...I'll admit, that's an illusion...but a valuable one.

Right now, we have no one that has been offline more than 14 days (I relaxed it since starting this thread). Most have not been offline more than 10 days.

We also have a section on our forums called "Member Vacations" in case someone needs to take time away longer than 10 days.

I'm re-evaluating the policy though. I like the idea of simply removing members that have been offline the longest only as needed for the roster spot.

I always look at their Prestige too...if they have earned more than 100,000 Prestige, I try to give them more time...or even over 50,000 if newer members.

btw, anyone...I know what a Task force is...what's a Strike Force?

[ QUOTE ]
You mention wanting to be in the "top 10" and I just have to ask ....why? The ranking system is based purely on your prestige numbers, and I have to say, that literally means diddly-squat to me if I were a prospective member. In fact, I usually point this out to people who advertise their SG as being "Number 27 in the server" so the people they're trying to pick up aren't confused about what it means. Now, I'm not saying you're trying to use this meaningless ranking as a tool to get new players, but it's what I see most frequently on Champion. With the changes to base pricing, the amount of prestige your group has for a base means even less than it did before.


[/ QUOTE ]

You may feel that way, but the vast majority put stock in it.

Also, if a SG goes from say, #50 to #25, in a short time, it shows that they are active (especially on Freedom; where it's hardest).

The fact that you call out recruiters like that is kind of rude...and something you might want to reconsider. You're talking to people that have worked hard to get it, and they have a right to be proud.

Shooting them down simply because it doesn't matter to you isn't right.

Still reading the rest of your post

[ QUOTE ]
With the new resource of the mission architect at your disposal an SG initiation arc introducing the officers of the sg as npc’s/ contacts along with an introduction to some themed rivals may also be helpful in building a meaningful commitment to the sg. It may take some effort to build an arc with some prominent officers in it but fostering the feeling of belonging to the SG is what keeps SG’s active. Something like this would go a long way to making the SG more memorable than say the uber team Z who broadcasts for recruits.

[/ QUOTE ]

We actually have a SG Policies mission that includes NPCs of our leaders. At the end of it, an Architect Souvenir is given to the people who complete it. It's a fairly each arc, one mission.

Number: 63384
(in case anyone wishes to check it out)

And we also have a series of missions called "Legends" (Supergroup name is Legendary Superheroes of Paragon)

Legends #1: Coming of Catalyst #4811 (currently bugged, tech support is patching sometime this week)

Legends #2: Crimson Dawn #35986 (Working)

And have another coming out soon.

[ QUOTE ]
QR

1. Quality over Quantity - use a recruitment period. We have an established 30 day recruitment period for all new applicants because we care about our members and not their prestige.

2. Event - People like to be involved. Players/members may not initiate many events but if you have a Task Force Friday and/or Strike Force Saturday...you won't have trouble making a full team.

3. This is a social network - SGs, are for the most part, a social network. Treat it like such. Get to know your members personally. This also ties in with the recruitment period.

4. Website - this is a huge plus. It gives members another medium to be focused around your SG, a place to plan events, make silly posts, talk about one another, and to send possible recruits for membership.

5. Clear concise rules - It's your SG, so your rules. Be sure to enforce them for everyone or no-one. Most players will pick up on favoritism and that only promotes ill-will.

Feel free to check out our SG at www.doomheroes.com for an example of a website, etc.

[/ QUOTE ]

I've started introducing events and announced them on the website.

We have both a website and a forum (your's rocked btw)
Website: http://cohlegends.com
Forum: http://cohlegends.com/legendary-bbs/
(Note: The Forum shows much more once registered and logged in)

Got a question for you though...
...how does your website roster work? Does it update according to the actual SG membership automatically? Do you have members register?

If you use a database tool, could you share it?

Some ideas I was thinking about:

TF Saturdays

SG Farms on 1st and 15th of each month.

A monthly Costume Contest in Atlas (though with all the spamming going on there these days maybe another zone would be better).

[ QUOTE ]
Firstly, that 10-day activity requirement is kind of obnoxious. I bet that has cost you some potential members. We have NO activity requirement. Once you're in, you always have a *HOME*. We're not herding cattle. The only time we kick for 'inactivity' is when we're full and want to add someone new.

Second, having X number of people in the SG online at once isn't necessarily your goal. My SG has our own global channel and all members (and some non-members) are on it. We might have 3-4 people *online in the SG* but 15 or 20 *on the channel*. You're recruiting PLAYERS, not specific characters. When we have SG events, people can bring any character they want. They don't need to bring the toon that happens to be in this particular SG.

How are you recruiting? If you're broadcasting or posting on the forums, I don't think people take that seriously. If there is no entry requirement beyond "Invite me?" "You're in.", people don't feel they're committing to anything. They may decide your base isn't big enough or the SG name isn't cool enough and leave. After all, what holds them there? At that point, they don't know anyone.

We don't specifically 'recruit'. If we meet someone in-game AND they don't have an SG AND they're fun to play with, THEN we'll try to recruit them. At this point, you've gotten to know them and have become friends (at least to some extent). True, this means we add members very slowly. But it also means that they are likely to stick around for a hell of a long time. I don't recall if we've ever had 20 online at once, but if we got 12 to show up for a *SHARD* TF, we must be doing something right.

As for specific things to do to increase activity. Schedule stuff. If people log on at a random time and see two people on, it doesn't make an impression. If they log on for something planned and see a dozen or more, they'll take notice. You need to have the players get to know each other. Once that happens, they'll start to make plans to team even when nothing is scheduled. If you get multiple SG members on a team and a new player sees them playing together, it tells them it's an active SG. This helps you find new members. You need to work hard to get this sort of thing started but, once you do, it builds on itself.

[/ QUOTE ]

Having people in the SG online "in the sg" is exactly the point in our case. We're faced with trying to make the Top 10 on the hardest server to do so (Freedom).

Using the current method, we are nearly always full, and about 20-30 toons are logged on daily...but I suspect many of them are alts of a limited few.

I see your point on the Global channel, and I actually joined an SG on Virtue that did this...the result in that one was the SG itself was very inactive...like 3 people on daily. That's something I want to avoid.

My goal is to successfully make the SG a proud place to play...friendly and enjoyable.

I might do the global thing though. It would actually come in handy if the newer members don't have alts in the SG.

We have a themed sister SG...it never really caught on because of the theme. Maybe I'll make that an Alt sg.