Why i stopped playing CWU and CMU

[fritz]

If you enjoy a deprived playing experience and a true dystopian environment that makes you suicidal you probably won't like this.

After playing the server for a little over a year and having experienced RP within CMU and CWU as management, I will go ahead and vent about what made me stop playing the two factions.

(I have since retired from both factions so this is in no way an attack).

I think there is too much freedom in some ways which has a significant, negative impact on the server roleplay experience. Perhaps a lack of care from staff when it comes to certain aspects of the server or their focus being misplaced. The server needs more OOC involvement to make it better.

In order to improve the general roleplay experience in the server, core faction lead positions (CWU and CMU especially) should be way more strictly controlled and focused on OOC and IC to make sure the faction roleplay remains interesting, active and flows with the rest of the server. I don't think people realize how important it is how these factions are ran to the server experience. The roleplay content from these has been exhausted for a long while because there seems to be a great fear of change and a lack of creativity. Both on the part of leads and server staff who seemingly refuse to work together creatively.

The CWU was decent under Cadance Wattmuff, as an example. She truly seemed to care, because she involved herself with organising events, giving out tasks and spending time roleplaying with the plain worker staff as well as the management instead of controlling the faction through managers over discord and being a grumpy, unapproachable office shut-in (when online) IC. This may make sense RP wise but it is in no way good for the faction as a whole and has a significant, negative effect on the whole server.

This is the first faction newcomers come to and at the moment it has no charm, excitement or sense of progression. It is more stagnant than ever and frankly I see no reason why anyone would care to RP in that environment. I understand this is supposed to be a dystopia, but this is not just an IC issue, being deprived in every way as a player makes the server disappointing and not worth playing.

When it comes to CMU, I should not have had to write a petition for the CA about a 'young adult with plushies and guitar on back with bruises' desc. nurse with 2 week experience in the CMU and no degree somehow taking over as the new director, no better from the one before who barely spoke English. Vital decisions like this which have a strong impact on the whole server should not be made freely by one person. I believe it should be monitored closely IC and OOC for the benefit of the server.

Although there's also that the CMU has had a deeper rot, for a long time in regards to server staff leaving the roleplay entirely in the hands of the players with nothing to work with. The staff could instead stop ignoring the issue and (ideally) work together with lead to come up with creative ways and tools for the players to use in order to enhance the faction and make it worth playing. I myself approached redhotginger IC and OOC who was a CMU director before staying on as a long-term dean of medicine. I brought these issues to her attention and she seemed indifferent OOC and IC stated it doesn't matter who the director is. I don't think this is the attitude we need from a faction lead or a second-in-charge.

From experience I know that tensions between just these two factions have been strong, from the previous CWU director signing my petition to have the CMU director thrown out as well as due to new experiences. Ideally the factions should work closely together, participate in meetings and express their issues, then work together (and with server staff if required) in order to solve them. If they could ever admit there are issues that is.

 

[IDKanymoregaming]

>When it comes to CMU, I should not have had to write a petition for the CA about a 'young adult with plushies and guitar on back with bruises' desc. nurse with 2 week experience in the CMU and no degree somehow taking over as the new director, no better from the one before who barely spoke English. Vital decisions like this which have a strong impact on the whole server should not be made freely by one person. I believe it should be monitored closely IC and OOC for the benefit of the server.


They don't know that I'm creating a "young adult with fumo and violin" Civil Protection officer...

 

[Rabid]

CMU suffers on every HL2 server because RP wise it relies almost entirely on people being injured and coming to you for roleplay - or doing injury roleplay at all, and it has to be interesting to boot. Neither of these are consistant or constant and actually giving the faction stuff to do (even for staff) relies on the above which then circles right back around to the original problem.

Its not impossible to change - I've seen it happen - that but it relies on having genuinely dedicated leads and faction members alike, alongside a willingness to let the faction reach beyond its boundaries a little and stir stuff up.

As for the CWU, they're the CWU and that's basically the main problem lol. There's only so many times people will sit and slog through production shifts all day every day when there's nothing to shake that up. Do shifts where people have to transport sealed/frozen crates of live headcrabs and they start to thaw, stuff like that.

 

[RedHotGinger]

I brought these issues to her attention and she openly stated that there is no point in making any improvements because the faction will remain dead and uninteresting no matter what. I don't think this is the attitude we need from a faction lead.

I suppose there is a chance I said something like this OOC, but I highly doubt it. I like the CMU, and while there was a oofed period of it, I've never rallied against it. My guess is you've taken something deeply out of context on this.
Also have not been faction lead for a long time so big shrug on that one. CMU has been fairly okay all things considered. Its not great...but its alright.

CWU director signing my petition to have the CMU director thrown out as well as due to new experiences.

Also, sometimes IC has to be IC. This was started by my character and I only ever did it cause my character didn't like the director and found her to be a massive annoyance and problem. It was never intended as some underhanded OOC effort on my part. Tensions between factions is fine, so long as it remains IC and doesn't lead to any genuine disabling of either factions ability to function. (Unless this was another instance, in which case same difference)

 

[Merlinsclaw]

lines up with the “is willard to light” thread

people can barely speak english and the other half barely fit the setting. CMU characters with plushies, guitars, and with 800 mental disorders.

maybe this is dystopia

 

[Donavin Jones]

lines up with the “is willard to light” thread

people can barely speak english and the other half barely fit the setting. CMU characters with plushies, guitars, and with 800 mental disorders.

maybe this is dystopia

if this is a dystopia, George Orwells 1984 is a normal day in Chicago.

 

[Blitz]

The server has not even been up for two years, how have you played "a few years" on it? O_O

 

[Donavin Jones]

The server has not even been up for two years, how have you played "a few years" on it? O_O

A few years is 2 years. And its been up for two years.

 

[fritz]

My guess is you've taken something deeply out of context

Apologies. I may have misremembered the exact phrasing but IC I remember you clearly saying "It doesn't matter who the director is, the CMU won't change" after i initiated a meeting with the plushy director (Maura Azure) and yourself to complain about her and other issues before writing the petition to throw her out. It's basically the same thing just different phrasing. We also had an OOC DM exchange where i remember you not being bothered.

By lead i meant ex lead and then second-in-command 'dean of medicine', which you were at the time of that statement, I wouldn't be surprised if that was your character's outlook when she was a director as well given who you passed your leadership to.

Please don't see this as any offense to you directly, I just don't see why you would not want to improve the faction, instead your character and yourself OOC seemingly have/had this careless attitude which just isn't helpful to the faction OOC and unfair to people below to have an inadequate lead because "it doesn't matter".

This was started by my character and I only ever did it

I am not sure what you mean here, the petition to get rid of the plushie director was started by my character. I can't imagine who you are referring to because you seemed indifferent to every director.

 

[fritz]

The server has not even been up for two years, how have you played "a few years" on it? O_O

My bad, a year and a month. Though it feels like longer.

 

[RedHotGinger]

but IC I remember you clearly saying

Gonna be honest, this has absolutely no weight in regards to any views I hold OOC. No good character is an echo of the players OOC sentiments or values. IC is IC and it rarely correlates to OOC matters directly. What my character thinks is irrelevant to how the CMU as a faction runs. Our DM's (Given the shared PFP I am assuming it is you) are also completely empty save for one exchange of two messages.

As far as running the CMU, I always did the best I could in an OOC respect. I never even wanted to really run the CMU OOC so the fact I stuck with it for as long as I did, simply due to the lack of proper replacements, is something I am satisfied with. Current director is good and the CMU ended up making it in the end.

the petition to get rid of the plushie director was started by my character.

Idek who the 'plushie director' is tbh. My char oofed one director ICly. Must have been another.

 

[Donavin Jones]

Gonna be honest, this has absolutely no weight in regards to any views I hold OOC. No good character is an echo of the players OOC sentiments or values. IC is IC and it rarely correlates to OOC matters directly. What my character thinks is irrelevant to how the CMU as a faction runs. Our DM's (Given the shared PFP I am assuming it is you) are also completely empty save for one exchange of two messages.

As far as running the CMU, I always did the best I could in an OOC respect. I never even wanted to really run the CMU OOC so the fact I stuck with it for as long as I did, simply due to the lack of proper replacements, is something I am satisfied with. Current director is good and the CMU ended up making it in the end.



Idek who the 'plushie director' is tbh. My char oofed one director ICly. Must have been another.

Lucy Russel (I think) and Julia Jazmin who was fired. Plushie director.

 

[TheGoodHunter]

here's an easier way to note all of this down:

---

CMU: boring medical rp, nothing to do other than hope to god someone walks up to the cmu lobby and has a broken leg to do /me's for the next 8 hours

CWU: grind as a civilian for 2 weeks straight to have a chance to even apply for the faction, throw away your T5 status to the CWU instead of becoming a CP. then continue grinding for another couple of months to have a remote chance at being promoted a rank

this is all satire btw, the rp is kinda boring on both sides but i exaggerated it a bit

 

[fritz]

Gonna be hones

Of course I understand that your character cannot be held as a representation of your views OOC. Though I also know that there is OOC involvement in handling faction matters at a managerial position and i know some decisions made were terrible both from an IC and OOC standpoint and should not have happened.
A character 2 weeks in CMU with an innapropriate description and behavior and no noted qualifications as was seen on the roster being put to a position of director? Without even a vote, when there were much more qualified options? That's one of them.

I am simply saying, as is the whole point of my original post is that factions should be controlled both IC and OOC at the top so things like this don't happen.
(I had to remake the previous discord so the DMs gone)


This is just one instance though, i am less concerned about the past and more about how the faction system could be improved in the future, if anyone cares.

I am also concerned about the person behind the CWU director using troll emote reactions on this thread like he does over in the CWU channel instead of facing issues!

 

[Donavin Jones]

here's an easier way to note all of this down:

---

CMU: boring medical rp, nothing to do other than hope to god someone walks up to the cmu lobby and has a broken leg to do /me's for the next 8 hours

CWU: grind as a civilian for 2 weeks straight to have a chance to even apply for the faction, throw away your T5 status to the CWU instead of becoming a CP. then continue grinding for another couple of months to have a remote chance at being promoted a rank

this is all satire btw, the rp is kinda boring on both sides but i exaggerated it a bit

Even if it is satire.
Its 100% correct on the CWU side.

 

[fritz]

Even if it is satire.
Its 100% correct on the CWU side.

That is true but i am trying to make a point here. Faction leads should be controlled on an OOC and IC level to make sure the faction is at its best, the director should encourage roleplay within the faction, organise things to benefit the faction like working with server staff to organise out of the box events and roleplaying with the workers, amongst other things.

Right now the server staff who want the server to do well have left too much freedom in the hands of these important positions and due to low pressure the leads are not doing as well as they should, or could with more OOC involvement and IC involvement from CCA.

I see staff focusing on other things and i feel that more attention should be on how factions, these critical aspects of the server actually perform.

 

[fritz]

Lucy Russel (I think) and Julia Jazmin who was fired. Plushie director.

Angela passed leadership to Maura Azure the plushie director. Julia Jazmin was her second character after she got shot or stabbed or something. The CA didn't even intervene despite the suspicious promotion after such a short time, a petition and numerous re-educations she had, i remember her laying in bed in CMU at least twice from her beatings.

This is why i say things are out of hand.

Faction leads cannot be left to stagnate or make decisions that are not to the best interest of the faction when the goal is to improve the server experience. As long as faction leads can promote whoever the hell they want, their OOC friends even to the position of leadership it will remain a problem. And that's what happens, leads are chosen OOC and can be total newcomers to the faction with no idea how to handle it.

 

[Taliazure]

We've tried giving cwu scripts, garbage and other stuff people find so they can make their workshifts actually give people experience as to give these endless boring repetitive work sessions another purpose even if it is small.
But with two trash dumpsters full of scripts and crates I yet have to see them make an actual crafting workshift.
Disappointing that something so simple hasn't been done the despite efforts.

 

[Donavin Jones]

We've tried giving cwu scripts, garbage and other stuff people find so they can make their workshifts actually give people experience as to give these endless boring repetitive work sessions another purpose even if it is small.
But with two trash dumpsters full of scripts and crates I yet have to see them make an actual crafting workshift.
Disappointing that something so simple hasn't been done the despite efforts.

Thats easier said then done sadly. Doing a crafting shift means you gotta hope someone is able to craft the item you are trying to get them to make.

 

[Taliazure]

Thats easier said then done sadly. Doing a crafting shift means you gotta hope someone is able to craft the item you are trying to get them to make.

Np they do it trough rp as opposed to others and then ask an admin to grant him the xp he would've gotten if he where to do that craft. Theres many other ways to solve problems its just about finding the right way