User blog comment:1hs444/Further on canon confusion/@comment-24750690-20141028043900

I have a very complicated relationship with newcomers making threads. I think it can be a good idea, if it isn't a Gateo sized clusterfudge...

Come on. Two letters are coming to everyone's mind right now.

I think certain restrictions should be put on new threads. I think UFM's threads, which are consistently successful and usually become big, awesome canon altering moments (as well as being really fun and giving RPers something to do) should be elevated a bit. If only because he's, like, good at it.

I think that would be a good place for new kids to start, and I think we can advertise our "sponsered RP's" along with most material for newcomers better.

Likewise, I can see some problems with this. It can be pretty intimidating to be thrown right into the fray, in the middle of a firefight, expecting to know everything about who you are, where you are, what people can do and why they're doing them - especially if that means reading 300+ comments writing in Kig-Yar. (Sorry Stars) Then again this isn't that bad of an issue. I mean if they're really lost, they can just ask. (A simple expository post in parantheses does not the tension break.)

IMO, if a newcomer should wish make a new thread, he should be able to so - with a few restrictions (eg: small unit cap, few amount of max players, certain specific npcs, characters and weapons/concepts off-limits, max thread size, et cetera) I also think these tools are bendable to an admin. Say, out of nowhere, Commander Heathcliff, a rogue wanted by both Chat and DinoFoxes is sighted attempting to navigate the warzone into the planet below! That would totally change the dynamic of the RP. Of course, this could also frustrate and discourage new players, especially the OP, whose nice peaceful thread has been hijacked by admins. But I dunno. Opinions. State them.

I think if THDF really flourishes, we'll have enough people trying to learn the ropes of RPing on the wiki that newcomers will join other newcomers' RPs, provided they have a good sense of the rules on the wiki and other things that are common knowledge to everyone right now.

By the way, has anyone considered a ranking system for Roleplayers? I don't mean for characters, I mean for straight up users. Like, the higher the rank, the bigger the RP could be.

Finally I come to my last point. Certain issues we're facing come from the fragile nature of the canon. Seriously. If we want to attract newcomers (and let's face it, we will. If we don't, we die, and if we do but we're not ready, we die) we need to make the universe less of a hoop jumping experience and more of a galactic adventurer experience. I can't believe I'm saying this...but complicated story arcs and massive backstories might actually detract from the fun for a new guy.

I'm not saying we need to overhaul everything. If I ever do say anything like that - please - check me into a mental institution immediately. I'm saying that our characters, so far, are awesome. Our galaxy is awesome. But we need to everything more concrete. Certain things need to stay constant, even a bit MMO-ish, if this stuff is going to work and get big.

TL;DR: make it fun for noobs.

But these are just my thoughts. Feel free to reply to this comment with yours. Cheers!

--Lettuce.