Dominion Dissolution, Mistral Lake (it's staying), and also moving away from CvC focus aspirations

[Lexx416]

Q: What, if any, changes to the CvC policy will be happening alongside this change in direction?
A: I don't think any changes to the policy need to be made, but I might be overlooking some considerations so please bring up any suggestions or concerns. (Hopefully this addresses other comments about CvC beyond Lexx's.)

This policy does not affect designated CvC zones.

I was thinking specifically in regards to designated CvC zones, with this specific question. Will those still exist in some fashion? If so, do you know what that looks like yet? Will the garrison code get repurposed to focus 100% around CvE content instead (if it still gets used at all)? Or will that fall to the aforementioned "antagonist factions that folks can opt in to joining"?

[Rias]

This isn't a clean slate. This is a change. This is not a retcon of what was. The two are very, very different.

Right, I should probably emphasise this, just for clarity's sake. No retconning is happening, no asks are being made for people to change how their characters think or how they feel about things that have happened with anything regarding the Dominion or Mistral Lake or anything else. Treat this all naturally as events that are happening in the world like you would any other.

[Rias]

I was thinking specifically in regards to designated CvC zones, with this specific question. Will those still exist in some fashion? If so, do you know what that looks like yet? Will the garrison code get repurposed to focus 100% around CvE content instead (if it still gets used at all)? Or will that fall to the aforementioned "antagonist factions that folks can opt in to joining"?

Yeah, I want to keep those as they are. They'll be used for CvE for sure, and we'll still have opportunities for PCs being on opposing sides of resource captures.

Hrrrm. I suppose it does merit some mulling over just because with the different context (not having two primary teams) they might be seen as sort of free-for-all zones where people can just gank anyone they want to for the lulz soooo ... all right, yeah, I'll consider how it might be reworded, and I welcome any suggestions!

... yeah. Good call, thanks for poking about it.

[Rilulth]

To quote Beetlejuice: I'm Rilulth and I'm of sound mind. The Dev next to me is the one I support, you asked me, I'm answering. Yes, I fully support this decision, this was not made by Rias alone, and we actually talked him out of a few things.

This topic has been one we as GMs have been mulling over for some time. We've had voice calls, several discussions, post event discussions, BBS discussions... not so much the dissolution of the Dominion, but how we should handle events, conflict and making things 'fair.' I don't think this will create a lack of conflict seeing as we already have groups within the factions that didn't agree with other groups of the same faction.

Someone was always going to be upset, no matter what we did. It left me running merchants. Hair dressers. Tattooists. Fancy parties and festivals. And whilst I enjoy those things, being the GM known for just that was disheartening for me. I do enjoy spawning mobs for people to kill and maim or be maimed by. Dragging players into moral dilemmas was fun. The infested are moving to northern climates because it's cold. They're a lucid family, but can still spread the spores. What do? Those kinds of things.




Also I 100% prefer the Mistral Lake aesthetic over Shadgard

[Volinn]

I'll preface this by saying that I'm cautiously optimistic on these changes, even as someone who enjoys CvC in general and tends to play PvP games on the whole. Overall I believe these will be net positive and I'm looking forward to see the direction the game and its stories take. I feel for the players who dedicated their characters to the concept of the Dominion, but maybe some interesting RP will spring from it?

I always considered the Faction War thing overly ambitious and was aware that it would unnecessarily drive a wedge in the player base while also splitting staff attention/time/effort. But I still thought it would be a fun time and spawn some great stories from both sides. I don't know if I have enough to say on it to write a chunky post, but I'll say that it's kind of disappointing to have my character be one of the organizers in an incident intended to push back at Dominion encroachment and yield only negatives from it. Of course I don't regret it, because it was really fun to organize (gathering everyone in the back room of a tavern like 1700s revolutionaries and making daring speeches!), but there is little in the way of positive from it now. The Dominion crumbled and we did nothing except get banned from Mistral Lake (and - I mean - we SHOULD have been banned from it! Not saying otherwise!) for actions that made more than a little sense at the time. Instead of an event that was them making a stand and planting the proverbial flag despite the dangers in doing so, the characters who chose to be a part of it have now done functionally nothing, are banished for it, and there will never be any positive impact from it.

It's an odd spot to be in. I'm not saying they shouldn't be banned, but I also don't really know exactly what I'm trying to say on it in general- just wanted to express my initial thoughts. I understand that it's just one of the random casualties of what staff felt were needed changes and I'm not upset over it or anything, but it still kind of feels like a very awkward spot to be in?

[Teri]

I like the change, while also feeling a bit aimless with it in regard to future planning after committing to the faction bit. My character is presumably banned from Mistral deservedly, but it takes the wind out of sails regarding the actions now seeing the Dominion dissolve. Oocly I'm struggling with character goals at max level while also not wishing to shelve. I curiously await the future.
In regard to citizenships, I was wondering if there are any particular thoughts? I wondered something like, every couple years a character could decide to go where they think grasses are greener after a freebie swap or two. It feels less stifling for characters to be able to make the change as people often move around if they have the funds, and I think it may even out the town populations if newer players can change about a bit more unless they can choose on character creation. I was under the impression Shadgard's population remained higher because newer players wishing to get a farm did citizenship, and it is always easiest to join the town you spawn in.
Will there be any changes to the ESP network with this change? The factions and towns having separate channels make sense, but if Mistral is a bit more open I could imagine the different channels being less a secret channels faction and more separate town specific chatter.

[ThresherAle]

I'm just glad I don't have to give up the shandygaff and seafood.

[Bork]

Just wanted to mention my support for this idea. I'm a returning player after a multi-year absence and nothing is more cool to me than an expansionist evil empire in a gridark setting but games really are much more fun when most of the players are on one side and the challenging antagonist(s) are on the other. The sense of community is generally enriched and I 100% support moves that makes it easier to run events.

So kudos for the move.

[Frisbee]

Honestly relieved reading this, and some of the reactions, even if it was abrupt. Glad I wasn't alone in feeling uneasy about the whole faction thing.

Here's to a more united community, and possibly more stuff for societies to do now the focus has shifted.

[silly]

Many people built their character's identities around the dominion and its activities.

I don't believe this is entirely true. There was a lot more to these characters than just their faction affiliation. Many characters, regardless of their allegiance, possess multifaceted personalities and depth beyond their factional ties.

At some point, I noticed a shift where friendships within factions appeared more centered on political ideologies rather than genuine connections. So much so that I did not feel like there was a point in trying to continue the story of a character who only wanted to learn how to treat herself better. There seemed to be very little interest in the character's wellbeing, or her journey towards self-acceptance. Moreover, there is a notable presence of other characters grappling with their own issues, and it feels like their wellbeing isn't receiving the attention or support it deserves.

I urge everyone, whether consciously or unconsciously making assumptions, to consider that there might be unexplored depths to every character. I understand the staff's decision, and sincerely hope that we can all become more mindful of how our roleplay impacts fellow players from this point onwards.

I loved the Dominion, the storylines related to it, and the efforts invested by both staff and characters. The effort and thought put into developing these characters are commendable. I hope that you are all able to find reasons to keep playing them, and that there will keep being ways for you to contribute to the community in ML.