Don't Play in the Arm of the Dragon.
Jun 25, 2015 14:22:44 GMT -5
Prime Minister Sinister, BitterFlashback, and 2 more like this
Post by Asan on Jun 25, 2015 14:22:44 GMT -5
Hello.
I'm Asanadas, and I'm a relatively new player. On my third character (and first character that achieved any sort of significance) I played Dannet, who eventually made it to the Sergeant of the Arm of the Dragon. The current state of administrative support for this clan is a joke, and a shame, and I would sincerely insist that anyone who is thinking of applying for this role-call consider it twice after they read the frustration I have gone through. The role call, here? That's to replace me, after I was force-stored. I was force-stored because staff decided they had "lost trust" in me -- I'm here to explain why the feeling is mutual with them.
This is a zip file containing the html request pages of a series of complaints. More specifically, complaints regarding the resurrection of three characters. It followed a string of events which ended up placed outside the Borsail compound, us defending this PC Templar from "arrest". One of the staff members animated a half-giant soldier to run up and subdue one of the Templar PCs, and in good-natured reaction, myself and all of the AoD clan members present at that time attacked said half-giant. Due to the design of the AoD clan never intending or accounting for green-on-blue attacks, the NPC soldier unit that was present within the same room "guarding" the Templar as well, turned and immediately killed all three of the recruits even though this unit NPC had been standing alongside them in solidarity just moments before, as it were.
You see, the recruit clan of the AoD is a separate thing, and offers no crime-code immunities. The half-giant that attacked the Templar PC was part of the AoD clan proper, and unable to be crim-flagged due to it. In this line of thought, after the half-giant laid hands on that Templar (a crime amounting to Treason in both Dark Sun and Arm lore, and demanding immediate execution), they attacked it, and then were cut down by a unit NPC that had been loaded in (which was supposedly on our side).
This struck me as a travesty of obtuse crime-code reactions, and an abortion of in-universe reasoning and logic. Due to that, I put in first a question request for these three to be resurrected, and then the following staff complaints. The detached, uncaring illogic I met with was disgusting.
At the end of this chain of worthless discussions, I look back and see the myriad of reasons I was told why staff had decided not to do the right thing and raise these dead characters -- characters who died due to an obtuse, unintentional reaction of the crime-code.
Talia's reasoning:
And when a rogue soldier attacks a Templar, the consequences are that recruits get slaughtered while defending him.One half-giant soldier that had grabbed a Lord Templar creates a "friendly fire" situation where an entire unit of soldiers are unable to tell who is, and who is not the half-giant who ran up to the Templar and subdued him.
Talia, let me run up to you after you've almost been assassinated and subdue you on the street, and let me know if you have the gall to insist that I had "no intent to harm". The intent to harm was obvious from a player perspective, and staff dropped the ball by painting it one way and then insisting it was another entirely after-the-fact.
I could go on, and on, cutting through these complaints and pointing out the general ignorance staff has to the player's perspective, but it would be more constructive, I think, if you read through and it dawned on you the same way that I did that the staff who presided over that event simply do not care. Moreover, it will dawn on you that they threatened me with character storage if I didn't let the issue drop.
Cut to the present day. As you no-doubt can tell, this issue still bothers me while playing. Let me guide you through the exchange that was had.
In the Priorities as a Community thread on the GDB, I had the following exchange.
Along with a response later:
Those are Nyr's words pulled from the complaints I submitted.
After which, I received the following ban:
I thought to myself, "Okay. I deserved that. I knew what I was doing, but I'll put in a ban appeal." There's an RPT coming up this weekend for the AoD and me being the Sergeant I wanted to remain on top of it.
My appeal,
Along passes four days without a reply. I comment on the ban appeal,
To which I receive the following reply not two hours later,
I need to get over whatever it is that's bugging me. 
Three hours later, I receive the following comment on a character report I put in around the same time as the comment on the ban appeal,
And here we stand. I told Cavaticus that he could marry me off to an NPC and kill me when I didn't have sex with it, since that's something staff does nowadays. It goes without saying that I was stored shortly after.
I've submitted a strongly worded complaint, but I don't expect anything to come of it. There is no accountability in Armageddon for staff. Nyr and Cavaticus were in the same mind to get rid of me from the day I started challenging their failure to do their responsibilities as volunteer staffers of Armageddon.
I have no faith in Adhira or Nathvaan either, the two other Producers. Indeed, I believe that they are a rubber-stamp that just go along with whatever intellectually dishonest frame-work or misrepresentation of a situation that Nyr presents to them. I have put in a strongly worded sincere staff complaint, which no doubt they will use this very post as an excuse to invalidate; after all, they are surely going to look for a reason to invalidate it anyways, instead of addressing the core problem of their failure.
I have been threatened, insulted, brushed off, and eventually stored because I had the gall to call Nyr, Cavaticus, and Talia out on their bullshit. Bullshit that directly affected me and three other characters who died, though they insisted that it didn't directly affect me as their Sergeant.
This is my warning to you: Don't play in the Arm of the Dragon. Cavaticus is currently in the process of ruining the tradition and lore of the clan in order to bring it into line with Tuluk's system of contracts and periodic terms of service, instead of swearing a life-oath. Talia is an uncaring, uninterested administrator with a pretty-face persona, whose insistence that adding on a save room to the militia's wagon is so intense a task that it takes upteen months to do so, it makes a former-staff AoD player store out of insult. And Nyr? He's Nyr -- that goes without saying. Above all, they will join together to lie to you in order to justify their failures as staffers of this game. Stay away from them, don't play in clans that answer to them, and don't apply for Sergeant of the Arm of the Dragon unless you want to go through the same wall-punching frustration that I have struggled through. Nyr, Talia, and Cavaticus do not care about their players, and falsely represent situations to players in their clan and other staffers so that those players who have died to bugs don't get resurrected. I am not capable of or willing to work with staff in the manner which is necessary for a clan leader in the AoD, and they are not capable of or willing to recognize or correct their failures as staff members.
I'm Asanadas, and I'm a relatively new player. On my third character (and first character that achieved any sort of significance) I played Dannet, who eventually made it to the Sergeant of the Arm of the Dragon. The current state of administrative support for this clan is a joke, and a shame, and I would sincerely insist that anyone who is thinking of applying for this role-call consider it twice after they read the frustration I have gone through. The role call, here? That's to replace me, after I was force-stored. I was force-stored because staff decided they had "lost trust" in me -- I'm here to explain why the feeling is mutual with them.
This is a zip file containing the html request pages of a series of complaints. More specifically, complaints regarding the resurrection of three characters. It followed a string of events which ended up placed outside the Borsail compound, us defending this PC Templar from "arrest". One of the staff members animated a half-giant soldier to run up and subdue one of the Templar PCs, and in good-natured reaction, myself and all of the AoD clan members present at that time attacked said half-giant. Due to the design of the AoD clan never intending or accounting for green-on-blue attacks, the NPC soldier unit that was present within the same room "guarding" the Templar as well, turned and immediately killed all three of the recruits even though this unit NPC had been standing alongside them in solidarity just moments before, as it were.
You see, the recruit clan of the AoD is a separate thing, and offers no crime-code immunities. The half-giant that attacked the Templar PC was part of the AoD clan proper, and unable to be crim-flagged due to it. In this line of thought, after the half-giant laid hands on that Templar (a crime amounting to Treason in both Dark Sun and Arm lore, and demanding immediate execution), they attacked it, and then were cut down by a unit NPC that had been loaded in (which was supposedly on our side).
This struck me as a travesty of obtuse crime-code reactions, and an abortion of in-universe reasoning and logic. Due to that, I put in first a question request for these three to be resurrected, and then the following staff complaints. The detached, uncaring illogic I met with was disgusting.
At the end of this chain of worthless discussions, I look back and see the myriad of reasons I was told why staff had decided not to do the right thing and raise these dead characters -- characters who died due to an obtuse, unintentional reaction of the crime-code.
Talia's reasoning:
When a recruit (not a soldier) attacks clanned AoD soldiers, the consequences of crim code are going to be brutal and swift.
From the perspective of the NPCs involved, this was a "friendly fire" situation where in the heat of battle it is nearly impossible to tell who is who, unless they are wearing a soldier's garb.
"The staff error here was you guys attacking with clanned soldiers, which caused a stupid reaction from the mob AI which lead to the death of those characters." That did not happen. A staff-animated NPC subdued a templar PC with no intent to harm, and was in the process of releasing that PC, when the templar PC codedly ordered a soldier NPC to attack; then the recruits jumped into the fight. That was player error, not staff error.
I could go on, and on, cutting through these complaints and pointing out the general ignorance staff has to the player's perspective, but it would be more constructive, I think, if you read through and it dawned on you the same way that I did that the staff who presided over that event simply do not care. Moreover, it will dawn on you that they threatened me with character storage if I didn't let the issue drop.
Cut to the present day. As you no-doubt can tell, this issue still bothers me while playing. Let me guide you through the exchange that was had.
In the Priorities as a Community thread on the GDB, I had the following exchange.
Along with a response later:
Those are Nyr's words pulled from the complaints I submitted.
After which, I received the following ban:
Asanadas,
Take some time off of the GDB. Your account is banned there for 7 days as first offense.
Violation: Rule 1.
1. Please don't flame. While you can criticize the opinions of other people, do so with respect for them as a fellow human. Unnecessary, flaming, baiting and trolling will be removed and the instigator and respondees may have their posting privileges revoked. This rule extends to criticism and baiting of staff. If you have a complaint against a staff member please place a complaint via the request tool, complaints and flaming of staff on the boards will not be tolerated.
Not liking the results of a staff complaint does not give you the freedom to bait staff on the GDB about it.
You may put in a request to appeal the ban if you'd like. Please do so via the request tool.
Nyr
Producer
Armageddon Staff
Take some time off of the GDB. Your account is banned there for 7 days as first offense.
Violation: Rule 1.
1. Please don't flame. While you can criticize the opinions of other people, do so with respect for them as a fellow human. Unnecessary, flaming, baiting and trolling will be removed and the instigator and respondees may have their posting privileges revoked. This rule extends to criticism and baiting of staff. If you have a complaint against a staff member please place a complaint via the request tool, complaints and flaming of staff on the boards will not be tolerated.
Not liking the results of a staff complaint does not give you the freedom to bait staff on the GDB about it.
You may put in a request to appeal the ban if you'd like. Please do so via the request tool.
Nyr
Producer
Armageddon Staff
My appeal,
A copy of the request follows:
Details
This is an appeal to my 7 day forum ban that Nyr slapped me with for baiting him / staff.
Yeah, I was being terrible and I deserved it.
As the player "leader" of the Arm of the Dragon, I really require access to the AoD clan forum in order to maintain the clan to the best of my ability, and keep track of the RPTs coming up.
I don't have any intention of posting on the GDB outside of clan-related necessities in the foreseeable future, for reasons that aren't constructive to express. Yes, I'm very bitter still about the response I got regarding the recruits being killed and the denial of resurrection; the GDB isn't the place to express that bitterness, I understand.
I'm not saying I didn't deserve this ban -- I just really need access to the clan forum. Which is why I'm asking clemency here.
For the sake of the other players in my clan (and my sanity), please lift this from me so that I can properly handle my OOC responsibilities. Please.
Details
This is an appeal to my 7 day forum ban that Nyr slapped me with for baiting him / staff.
Yeah, I was being terrible and I deserved it.
As the player "leader" of the Arm of the Dragon, I really require access to the AoD clan forum in order to maintain the clan to the best of my ability, and keep track of the RPTs coming up.
I don't have any intention of posting on the GDB outside of clan-related necessities in the foreseeable future, for reasons that aren't constructive to express. Yes, I'm very bitter still about the response I got regarding the recruits being killed and the denial of resurrection; the GDB isn't the place to express that bitterness, I understand.
I'm not saying I didn't deserve this ban -- I just really need access to the clan forum. Which is why I'm asking clemency here.
For the sake of the other players in my clan (and my sanity), please lift this from me so that I can properly handle my OOC responsibilities. Please.
Asanadas replied:
Is there any way this is going to get a response, or is this appeal going to be forgotten or ignored?
I find it's disingenuous from an administration standpoint to be told that I "could" put in an appeal for a week-long forum ban, but whatever system you have set up isn't capable of responding over the course of 100 hours or so (that system being Nyr entirely, as far as I can tell).
Am I wrong here? Because I've got things on the AoD clan board I need to keep up with in order to do my part making the game fun for other people, especially now with these RPTs coming up. I'm sure you can understand my frustration when it comes to this.
Is there any way this is going to get a response, or is this appeal going to be forgotten or ignored?
I find it's disingenuous from an administration standpoint to be told that I "could" put in an appeal for a week-long forum ban, but whatever system you have set up isn't capable of responding over the course of 100 hours or so (that system being Nyr entirely, as far as I can tell).
Am I wrong here? Because I've got things on the AoD clan board I need to keep up with in order to do my part making the game fun for other people, especially now with these RPTs coming up. I'm sure you can understand my frustration when it comes to this.
Request Declined:
Asanadas,
Your Complaint or Appeal request has been resolved.
Generally, we will respond to requests within a 5 day period. This is a volunteer effort for a free game and that seems to be a fairly reasonable SLA for players, as far as we've seen so far. The delay in this case came from waiting for another Producer to provide consensus on a Producer level response to you in declining this request.
However, given your reply and the attitude shown in it, I'll go ahead and give you the same answer: no.
Your staff doesn't think you need access to the board for this period of time, either. You were specifically talked to about not stirring up things on the GDB like this, and you did it anyway. You need to get over whatever it is that's bugging you.
Nyr
Producer
Armageddon Staff
Asanadas,
Your Complaint or Appeal request has been resolved.
Generally, we will respond to requests within a 5 day period. This is a volunteer effort for a free game and that seems to be a fairly reasonable SLA for players, as far as we've seen so far. The delay in this case came from waiting for another Producer to provide consensus on a Producer level response to you in declining this request.
However, given your reply and the attitude shown in it, I'll go ahead and give you the same answer: no.
Your staff doesn't think you need access to the board for this period of time, either. You were specifically talked to about not stirring up things on the GDB like this, and you did it anyway. You need to get over whatever it is that's bugging you.
Nyr
Producer
Armageddon Staff
Three hours later, I receive the following comment on a character report I put in around the same time as the comment on the ban appeal,
Cavaticus replied:
Asanadas,
You have sparked a great deal of discussion staff-side as a result of this and your most recent request, as well as your behavior on the forums. I'm sure you remember the long conversation that you and I had after the death of your recruits, where you were told in no uncertain terms that part of being a clan leader is in maintaining a good working relationship with your clan staff specifically and the Armageddon staff as a whole.
Unfortunately, you do not seem to have taken this to heart, and it's our consensus that you have no interest in moving on. Your attitude on the forums is echoed by your attitude in this (and other) requests.
We do not feel that you are, in your current frame of mind, capable of or willing to work with staff in the manner which is necessary for a clan leader in the AoD.
This said, the next step is to decide what we will be doing with Dannet. You have two options.
1) Dannet will be transferred to another unit of the Jade Sabers. He will maintain his rank of Sergeant and you will be stored.
2) We will come up with a reason to have Dannet demoted to private. He will not be promoted beyond that rank until we, as staff, feel that you've come back to a place where you can work with us in a leadership position.
I'm sorry it's come to this, but I have a lot of plans for the commoner component of the militia in the coming months and I need its leadership to be somebody who not only has MY trust, but somebody who trusts staff to work in good faith and with the best intentions of the playerbase in mind.
Let me know what you think. We're going to work to expedite this process.
Cavaticus
Storyteller
ArmageddonMUD Staff
Asanadas,
You have sparked a great deal of discussion staff-side as a result of this and your most recent request, as well as your behavior on the forums. I'm sure you remember the long conversation that you and I had after the death of your recruits, where you were told in no uncertain terms that part of being a clan leader is in maintaining a good working relationship with your clan staff specifically and the Armageddon staff as a whole.
Unfortunately, you do not seem to have taken this to heart, and it's our consensus that you have no interest in moving on. Your attitude on the forums is echoed by your attitude in this (and other) requests.
We do not feel that you are, in your current frame of mind, capable of or willing to work with staff in the manner which is necessary for a clan leader in the AoD.
This said, the next step is to decide what we will be doing with Dannet. You have two options.
1) Dannet will be transferred to another unit of the Jade Sabers. He will maintain his rank of Sergeant and you will be stored.
2) We will come up with a reason to have Dannet demoted to private. He will not be promoted beyond that rank until we, as staff, feel that you've come back to a place where you can work with us in a leadership position.
I'm sorry it's come to this, but I have a lot of plans for the commoner component of the militia in the coming months and I need its leadership to be somebody who not only has MY trust, but somebody who trusts staff to work in good faith and with the best intentions of the playerbase in mind.
Let me know what you think. We're going to work to expedite this process.
Cavaticus
Storyteller
ArmageddonMUD Staff
I've submitted a strongly worded complaint, but I don't expect anything to come of it. There is no accountability in Armageddon for staff. Nyr and Cavaticus were in the same mind to get rid of me from the day I started challenging their failure to do their responsibilities as volunteer staffers of Armageddon.
I have no faith in Adhira or Nathvaan either, the two other Producers. Indeed, I believe that they are a rubber-stamp that just go along with whatever intellectually dishonest frame-work or misrepresentation of a situation that Nyr presents to them. I have put in a strongly worded sincere staff complaint, which no doubt they will use this very post as an excuse to invalidate; after all, they are surely going to look for a reason to invalidate it anyways, instead of addressing the core problem of their failure.
I have been threatened, insulted, brushed off, and eventually stored because I had the gall to call Nyr, Cavaticus, and Talia out on their bullshit. Bullshit that directly affected me and three other characters who died, though they insisted that it didn't directly affect me as their Sergeant.
This is my warning to you: Don't play in the Arm of the Dragon. Cavaticus is currently in the process of ruining the tradition and lore of the clan in order to bring it into line with Tuluk's system of contracts and periodic terms of service, instead of swearing a life-oath. Talia is an uncaring, uninterested administrator with a pretty-face persona, whose insistence that adding on a save room to the militia's wagon is so intense a task that it takes upteen months to do so, it makes a former-staff AoD player store out of insult. And Nyr? He's Nyr -- that goes without saying. Above all, they will join together to lie to you in order to justify their failures as staffers of this game. Stay away from them, don't play in clans that answer to them, and don't apply for Sergeant of the Arm of the Dragon unless you want to go through the same wall-punching frustration that I have struggled through. Nyr, Talia, and Cavaticus do not care about their players, and falsely represent situations to players in their clan and other staffers so that those players who have died to bugs don't get resurrected. I am not capable of or willing to work with staff in the manner which is necessary for a clan leader in the AoD, and they are not capable of or willing to recognize or correct their failures as staff members.
