- How We Doing / Where We Going -

[Koi-Wish]

Greetings fellow Dreamers,

This last weekend was an important and critical update to the UnderLight: Clash of Dreams environment. We have a number of people to thank - but a simple BIG thank you to everyone in general for their patience and understanding as we did our best to home in on it. Two particular folks on the Dev side really grabbed it and ran - won't speak their names less they wish to expose themselves for whom they are. But thank you.

Last week we passed our 1 Month LIVE Anniversary. Things seem to be going well. Decent population. Some engaging RPs here and there, obviously 4 houses are open. Darkmare's are picking on you. We have LOTS more plans and ideas going in the future, and perhaps we will have a FireSide Chat type of thing as we home in on some of these new plans and events going forward. I couldn't be happier of where we are now considering 9 months ago this was just a post from me on the Echoes Forums complaining that UnderLight should NEVER go away - even though I didn't play EoC or SoT for any period of time that mattered - it still was nice to know UL was still up and running some place. I got all the pieces together and here we are, I am still amazed daily that I was able to put together this set of people to bring us to where we are today. It a testament to UnderLight in general and the passion and people that still believe in it. And to all of them, and you know who you are. Thank you.

Meanwhile, some things I would like to kinda put out there and then some opinions and things I'd like to ask.

First Off: One of the things we are seeing in RolePlaying Requests emails and even IC in Quests are REQUESTS for Elder or basically KoiWare team involvement to some degree. I would please ask to try to avoid these as much as possible. Obviously we will do what we can when we can. But REQUIRING a GM/Dev event to occur is tough. I know there are nightmares in the houses and that will obviously require US turning them back off, or slowing them down or some degree - but we want to see players RP amongst themselves things that make sense - Don't come to a GM and say if I do this will this work, or this is what we are doing and it WILL work... We KNOW what your doing, if we think its good enough, WE will react and you will see the results of your work. Also request for RAW Emotes, feel free to email WHAT you have going on, but please don't make a request for a RAW Emote - you can maybe send in a RP email with a "Would Be Nice If:" list of some sorts, but requiring items/RAW Emotes puts two things into situation: 1st IT REQUIRES a specific person/persons to be available at THAT time. Which is just too much to ask considering we are volunteers and have real lives. We don't want something to be put on us because WE didn't show up and thus it was a failure. Then turn around and we make it to someone else's event and then it turns into Favoritism (which is officially my least favorite word in the world right now) We can avoid these types of things if they are simply not REQUIRED. I had someone email me and tell me they were spoiled with EOC and SOT because they always did those things (always is a powerful word in which I doubt) - again I am not saying we WON'T. Suggest and ask away, but know that here and now we are saying we can if we can - but do not expect and be disappointed if we can't.

The Team: Our team is amazing. Period. All of us have lives, and jobs and we even put shoes on just like you. Just like EVERY version of UL in history - this team is VOLUNTEERS. None of us gets paid, no one. This team has a particular set of skills of which were needed to make this happen. None of us would be here if weren't for the members of this team who have ZERO obligation to be here. At the end of the day, they CHOOSE to help you. Choose to stand in thresh for hours making quests. Choose to listen to reports. Choose to work on this improvement or that bug fix or this level edit or that player request. They continue to make choices they are never paid to make. They do it for you. IF you don't like the response, the answer, the choice that was made - DO NOT take it out on them. They shouldn't have to tolerate it, as their time is completely volunteered. We can't possibly do everything for everyone that everyone will like. It's just not possible, but the decisions that ARE made by this team are theirs to make and I support them utterly in the decisions they do make. Sometimes we will get it wrong. And we have a few times gone back and re-looked at it. But that's ok, we are human. All I am asking is for a few thank you's now and then, and a bigger respect for their volunteered time whether you like the decision they made or not.

Projects: We have too many to list going forward. Lots of ideas we are stewing over.

Growth: My personal big push going forward will be growth and new players for the next few months. I think we have a solid foundation of a player base and we just need MORE for you guys to interact with. I was hoping to have the Windows 8 tackled before we looked for new players - but Windows 8 is just a large beast to tackle. Right now we have a few hundred characters that have been imported/created in CoD - I would like to see that number closer to a 1000. There are millions of gamers in the world... a percentage of them are RPers... a percentage of them are TRUE roleplayers... all I want is 1000 of them.

Us:
And now a question, HOW do you think we are doing? Not asking for suggestions as we have a whole section below for that. But overall, are you happy we are back, happy with directions we are going? Wish we had more events (ie: DarkMare Wednesday Nite Fights) That kind of thing.

Looking forward to the months ahead! I love this game.

Brian Clementoni
Producer UnderLight: Clash of Dreams

[Quints]

Now that everyone has stopped lingering in Threshold and started to build rp's, everything is starting to go well. I'd essentially thought by the way everyone was acting previously that this was going to be another sad flop. (no offense, not based on the Gm's by any means but more our own actions as players and the way we were acting - glad we broke out of that mess).

So, I'd like to say thank you for all your hard work and effort as a GM team, and that I'm proud of us as a player base for getting it all together.

[Ashton]

I really like the fact that the players have taken the game into their own hands, so to speak, with minimal GM involvement. (Save for quests/tasking/house opening/etc but that's a must for now). In addition to that, there are working mares and not in SOT, which was a really big turnoff for players. So, that's a big bonus.

Speaking as a former GM/MD I know the limitations on GMs and what burnout means. Without working mares, busted code and constant nerfs and changes, the GMs had to constantly step up and keep the players entertained. Every single RP -had- to have some sort of GM involvement IE: raw emotes, forged items, building new areas and it turned into a big job, and it shouldn't be. I'm glad to see that this is not the case in this version. I read that someone said they were 'spoiled' with the GM involvement from SoT and that irritates the hell out of me because it wasn't that it was being 'spoiled', it turned into being 'expected'. I miss the days when raw emotes were an "Oh my gosh, a GM is here" thing....

I think you all are doing a tremendous job. I'd like to see random story lines, like a treasure hunt type, or some big mystery going on that people have to get together to solve. That wouldn't require an insane amount of GM activity, but just enough to intrigue the players. There seems to be plenty in the works, so I look forward to seeing what this team brings to the game.

I have to say I've truly been enjoying myself in Underlight again. I came THISCLOSE to hanging up my RP hat for good, but for now I think this version has been stellar.. and the team behind it amazing.

Thank you! And keep up the amazing work.

[Dina]

This is a tough one for me because I hate to admit that I overreact and stuff, but here it is:

Yeah I get mad, lose my temper, and say stupid stuff when mad lol; however, deep down...you guys are doing a great job. I can honesty say this round is more fun than Lyra and SoT put together. When it comes to fairness, it truly hasn't been an issue and that's one of my pet peeves. To the person I had issues with being on the team (she knows who she is), I haven't seen anything that would prove me right, thank you for that.

Good job guys and gals!

Now, don't get an ego because I claimed fault!

[Koi-Wish]

I appreciate those comments more then you know.

OUR Approach to TRYING to Be Fair: In todays modern technology yes we still use IRC, but we also have FB and other means on CONSTANTLY communicating with one another. There is a UL GM Group and UL Dev Group FB Chat Group that is constantly running on our phones/PCs. This allows us to communicate, CONSTANTLY, sometimes too constantly as we have to scroll back thru dozens if not hundreds of messages to catch up on the conversations that are taking place. Sometimes it's just too much and we just ask for a short "catch me up" from someone who may be on. We use this TOOL, as a way of communicating with one another, sometimes arguing amongst ourselves but eventually coming to conclusions and decisions on things happening IC and OOC. This allows for open discussions - and diplomatic approach to resolving issues. Obviously we have Teaching Lead/RP Lead, Tech Lead, Managing Director, myself and team players.. but it is openly discussed with opinions and thoughts. At the end of the day our MD makes the final call on most decisions that are inconclusive or the lead for that particular area of concern. Nothing is decided upon in a Dictatorship approach - everything is openly discussed and everyone's opinions matter. We make decisions for the most part as a TEAM, not any one single "My Way or HighWay" approach by anyone. I'll admit sometimes we stray from the box, myself included, but we wrangle ourselves back together and move forward as a Team. I am proud of our approach, it has worked thus far and I cant help but believe we will see continued success from this approach going forward.

[Star Scream]

I honestly have nothing but possitive thoughts regarding the GM team. You all have done me a great favor in returnimg my favorite game of all time back to me. The only things I'd like to see improved is within the player base as I'd like to see all 4 houses actively being radical about thier beliefs and pushing the envelope creatively to ensure a do or die roleplay environment. However, I recognise that we are all individuals and all have our own perspectives and time tables for approaching things.

From a development perspective the only thing that has been a disappointment to me, and not a great one, is the limitations that have come up for the house we are building. As a group we decided on picking OoSM more OOC then IC. People like myself, Gier, and a couple others wanted to leave DoL availible for the players that would preserve those beliefs because we thought it would be better for the game to have a healthy DoL and HC to play with IC. The downer to that was discovering the limited storage rooms and inferiour house art. Had we chosen DoL, which was the most appealing choice to us, it would have benefit us IC to have the keep and the extra storage rooms. However, we did what was best for the game and were rewarded by seeing DoL reopened under the beliefs we hoped it would. So, everything worked out for us OOC but IC we are discovering that perhaps it wasn't the right call because of the houses limitations in that regard. Again, that isn't anyones fault but our own but I am really hoping that if we put the time in with a roleplay to create two additional storage rooms to put us on par with the other houses, that we will get development team support. I know you guys are busy and I'm not even sure what kind of burden that would put you under but it would be greatly appreciated.

You guys are great and even if this becomes an impossible task for us, I'm still very thankful and extremely grateful for everything you all have done. This truly is my favorite game of all time and is a big stress relief for me to go into my city of dreams and be creative and escape the daily burdens of work and paying bills for a few hours a week.

Thanks for everything.

[Koi-Raven]

I am really hoping that if we put the time in with a roleplay to create two additional storage rooms to put us on par with the other houses, that we will get development team support.

This has been discussed at length. Here is our stance and expectations:

I expect this problem, like many other issues within the city, will offer an opportunity for compelling game-play. The magnitude of such a fundamental change to the house structures, one that has only happened in two of eight houses, sets the stage for a process that is perhaps a bit more long-term as opposed to a short-term "wave my magic wand" around kind of fix, indeed this is something that must truly start "from the ground up" as it were. Mind you, there is plenty of opportunity for reward through the lengthy process of trial and error along the road of what should be expected as the inevitable failures involved in attempting to do something that only the most powerful people in history have been able to do. This path is largely in the hands of the players, as it should be. If the players make this path of game-play consistently compelling, then I feel the option for success (In this case, level changes) should be one of the possible outcomes.

TLDR: Show us what ya' got.

[Star Scream]

Hey Raven. Thanks for the follow up. I definetly like what I'm hearing. Creating or "discovering" rooms for the house should be a major undertaking but it is something I would enjoy hashing out IC. Thanks for responding, I would have hated putting in a lot of work only to find out it wasn't possible or wouldn't be done.

Thanks again.

[Zed Lagoon]

I for one have been having alot of fun man. I definitely loved interacting with the darkmares and stuff, i've been seeing alot of them lately man and it's great! Although I know you GMs have been busy. I'm glad to know that when you are available you respond to emails that are sent to you regarding certain RPs.


Thanks alot for being a good GM team. If only I had a way to talk with you guys OOCly lol.

-Lu Chaos

[Sidious]

This has been, by far, the most fun version of ul to date. Please do not break it. You guys are great, especially silk who I love but unfortunately have to oppose in game.

Code monkeys, this is so freaking stable now, seriously, way to go.

No matter what my character is doing or saying in game don't confuse that, each of you has my respect. That includes players and gms.

[Star Scream]

I just wanted to second whar Sid said. It only depresses me though when I think about how nice it would have been to have you guys all running the game back in the Lyra days. You have been so interactive and open to new ideas that it makes me wonder what might have been. Oh well. Again, thank you so much and just because Star Scream isn't particularly fond of "elders" doesn't reflect my personal feelings at all. I think the way you guys have approached the teaching and the houses has been damn near perfecrly done. I would have gone a lot farther with getting SS a respectable train had you guys been in charge back then. You make it fun being a teacher instead of a chore. Thanks for that.

[Gerroz]

I was hoping that the OSM vault thing would not come up, but since the cat is out of the bag:

Albert (Star Scream) is correct, we did make the house choice on an OOC basis. I was concerned for the game as a whole, feeling that a strong DoL is vital to a healthy Underlight. If we had taken their house, I was afraid that DoL as we knew it would be permanently killed. That's why we chose OSM. I admit though that taking DoL was something we did concider because of the keep, and the possibility that it could ignite DoL instead of destroying it. But my concerns for the game itself weighed more heavily, it is one of those decisions you make as a player for your character.


In that regard, we did get the shaft for choosing OSM, based on its number of vaults. It is however not something I have been bothering GMs about, and I was hoping it wouldn't be brought up OOC. The reason is that I am the type of player who likes to do things without knowing its chances of success or failure. I believe the game is more interesting that way, when you simply don't know how something will turn out. It is in my mind, a lot more fun to try things when you have no idea of its outcome.
Because of that, I intend to continue the efforts OSM have started, in many different ways, to try accomplish their goals. Maybe something happens, maybe something completely different will happen, maybe nothing will ever happen, and I am OK with all those outcomes. It doesn't mean it wasn't fun playing it out, it doesnt mean it wasn't a good RP.

I suppose that when you've played the bad guy for years, you're accustomed as a player that not everything you do will succeed. Some times you will lose, and in the realm RP, sometimes losing is more fun that winning.


-GS

[Sidious]

Geir's post was #666 on this forum

[Gerroz]

A complete coincidence, I tell you!

[Koi-Drama]

I really enjoy seeing a lot of the positive feedback on the forums. When we formed this project, we collectively came to the conclusion that our primary focus would be the players. We wanted to return control the the PLAYERS. Without our players, we would not have a game and we also understood that this community wasn't just a group of faceless players. Many of us have grown to be a sort of extended family over the years.

And as the project developed, we always approached it with the players first and foremost in mind. From the Teaching System to the House Faction System, we wanted to keep it within the players hand with minimal GM interaction. This allows us to focus on other aspects and elements of the game. The players have done a wonderful job in pushing the game forward. And your efforts are reflective in the game. Originally, we only planned for two houses and at best, three houses as the player base would allow for but we now have four fully functional houses that are successfully being self-governed by the players as it should be without any constant GM overview.

The Teaching System is well on its way to sustaining itself and as I said before - it would not be a process that would correct itself in matter of hours, days, or maybe even weeks but we are much further along than we anticipated. The Koi Team is very proud to dream alongside you all, for better or for worse.

- Koi Drama

[Starfall]

A huge thank you to everyone so far.

The tech team has done an outstanding job so far. I didn't even get to see most of this stuff in SoT but the new forge shapes and room (rooms?) are fabulous and I can't wait to see what comes of it. Fixing the chat bug, wow. I can't even list all the ways this has helped already. Everything from not having to watch each other's feet so closely while initiating new members in houses to not losing party xp to not having to waste 5 minutes re-arting everyone after a few people go down. Some of the ways we were adapting IC to the presence of the chat bug crashes crept in so slowly that it's really obvious now that it's gone. Also just the little things that came with launch were great to discover, like chat and list scrolling.

The IC team has definitely kept us on our toes. The house opening conflict was certainly an interesting one, but I'm glad it ended when it did. Those sorts of things are too intense to keep going too long, and so I'm glad there were means in place to let players open houses that didn't depend upon ever-shifting goalposts. From what I've seen, the IC side has mainly been dominated by teaching, since getting that stuff up and running has clearly been a priority. It was great to see the elder teachers out in force early to get things moving, since so many PCs are higher sphere. And there's been some hiccups there but I am confident it'll get straightened out as we all get back into the swing of things. It's *only* been a month after all, and a lot of these systems came about slowly over the course of years, so as frustrating as things can be at times, I remind myself and others that even the delays we've experienced so far (like with the DS Mark getting straightened out) are still moving faster than ever before.

I'm really looking forward to seeing a return of Sabriela, Xun'rok, and Zaxon, though. After the first two days I haven't seen much of them. Now that we have houses open and one of the houses is clearly, uh, shall we say "skeptical" of Idoaclesians, I'm really interested in seeing where that goes.

I'm also interested in seeing more done with how the cities were brought together in the first place.

[Noidea]

Is it not the same city at a different time (relative to Cloudsbreak), then? I always thought that was how Shades of Truth worked - same city, rediscovered hundreds of Cloudsbreak years later.

[Crystalline]

Just want to add my kudos to the rest. And thank you to those who were present when the Seers tried to find their guild house. I am happy that it was not a one and done. I am glad that we have to work hard for reward, that is how it should be! Especially with something as big as finding a hidden area of the dream.

Like the others, I am having a blast playing and can't wait to get into the game each day! You all rock and I hope that you do not suffer the dreaded GM burnout that many have experienced in the past. I would hate to see this group be taken away from us.

Again, you all rock, and I look forward to many, many great RP's in the future.

[Gerroz]

The kois have done a good job so far. We're back to the one thing we -truly- need, and have needed the last 15 years

-more players.