Info Is Willard Dying?

[AdamCF]

A map change and smuggling won't fix fundamental issues with some staff being incompetent and toxic in key leads and spots of power.

I agree. There needs to be a serious look at the entire moderation team. There's certain people I can see who shouldnt be in staff positions although can't back this up with evidence. So, any attempts at publically reporting them would be denied, and privately would get nowhere.

 

[Madcombat]

Instead of trying to imagine a reason why people are leaving, try actually talking to people who're leaving.

The maps influence on things in minor in comparison to the glaring issues presented on day 2-3.
The Smuggling system isn't a excuse either.

Actually do some bare minimum homework and stop trying to give a cope answer that doesn't incriminate anyone in fucking up.

On day 1, we had a terrible launch. We had blood thirsty cp's, we had minges running riot, we had admins doing nothing.
On day 2 we had the same because everyone went into a GM meeting and screamed over each other.
On day 3, the ban hammers started coming out, CP's were still blood thirsty.
On day 4- 12 we had people writing CCC's complaining about their experiances with the CP's as well as the business system- all of this kept getting swept under the rug. We also had glaring cases of administrative abuse which wasnt getting caught by administration but by players and being brought to the administration to finally solve. (We call this a uphill battle)
On week 3, we had no solutions to any of this issues and now the business system as predicted is on full collapse effectively slaughtering any business rp with the exception to very few people. Following this up, you now have the conclussive elements where there is a perceived extreme rail roading from the administration team causing people to go on strike for 2 days effectively from here on out until the map change.

People gave the community a full week of 75+ players because they were willing to give you a chance, it wasnt because you were on the right path. This is why after 5-6 days the playerbase dropped fast as fuck to 40 players. When people received shit awnsers to their complaints, you saw people become more frustraited and other people just dug their heels in and decided to troll your forums in a effort to get banned because they lost all interest at that point. You can only make so many repeated stupid decisions and expect people to take it.

Take this weeks event, you guys have saturated the entire shanty town with little warning/progression to the people around with Biomass. Yesterday the town had a encroching biomass sealed off by bulkheads. Today it's covered in shit. You are blowing your load way too fast.



I'm not going to sit here and allow you people to make up false reasons why people left and put blame on non-reasons. New players who joined were litterally met by a AR2 barrel to the face. Try waking up a little. Now down vote and "Shitpost" this like good little boys.

 

[zoid]

#4: (The Rebels. Oh my god the Rebels.):

#5: (The Admins as a whole):

Despite spending little time in the rebel system, I can say I've been there for the recent crucial events and spoken to a majority of the rebel population and civilian for that matter OOCly and ICly, so I consider myself alright to speak on this topic.

There's a clear disconnect between the resistance and the staff team, all encompassing, including the GMs and the Moderation team.

The Problems Between Rebels and Admins/Elements in the Server From Inside Perspective

1. GMs take time to set up events, behind the scenes. What they fail to realize is whilst they are drawing attention away from the server and towards their well constructed events, many things are taking place within IC. The resistance are collecting supplies, constantly shifting their plans, and in some cases even with admins. When they finally attempt to put something towards all the work they have built up, they are stopped by some random GM event. The most recent example is the GMs closing off the entire sewers and quite literately saying "Fuck You" to the underground community, all while the Rebels were coordinating a massive evacuation from within the sewers and constantly gathering up materials to ensure their safety. They work for weeks, they have too because...
2. The RPG elements are broken. It takes too long to level up and gather equipment, and the method of grinding is so fucking tedious. What you are going to encourage by remaining to keep it like this is script-grinding which is both detrimental to IC and OOC. Why you ask? Well, when it takes a person weeks to grind, set up IC connections, and gather up their skills to make even a dent in the rebel community, when you put in that type of time, you become subconsciously or consciously protective of the things you've worked towards. This will affect how your character may act, will cause drama and separation between those who have it all and those who have very little. Which brings us to our third problem...
3. The admins recently inflated the rebel community with items, yet not through events, by a literal "friendly NPC" who handed them shit on a platter. The drama that ensued from this was clear. The admins supplied the "Dutchy of Styx" group with extra supplies and left those who were constantly grinding in the dirt. To them they were most likely providing the rebels with valuable supplies, but what they did in reality is only thicken the line between rich and poor.

The Solutions

1. GMs pay attention to the IC environment and carefully center their events around what the players intend for. For example, if the players set up multiple weeks planning to escape to the Canals, you set up events that could help guide them towards that goal. That is not to say that their plans will always go.. according to plan, but the mentality of making Rebel life a living hell is only going to encourage your playerbase to drop further. I don't mean to alarm anyone, but I've personally spoken to many people and found that 60% people in active rebels in the Rebel community already say that they'd leave the server if they found somewhere else to play.
2. Fix the RPG elements. It's that simple. Make it easier to level up, specialize in a specific skill upon character creation (why does my Civic Engineer who went to Harvard not know how to break down a keyboard), and to get equipment. This will naturally break the strain between the Overwatch and Rebel communities as they enter equal fighting ground.
3. 
   Do not bring in a shitty Mafia boss to give rebel characters free items. You should give materials or items out in events, with the players managing to find them or loot them from bodies. Having a Resident Evil merchant appear to them and magically whisk items into their hands is the reason why people commonly call rebels "special snowflakes".

 

[AdamCF]

Here's what I vote for:
>On Friday, the server will temporarily close.
>During the weekend and the entirety of next week, development work, fixing businesses (preferably using my suggestion), fixing the staff team, and sorting out faction leads will be all that's focussed on
>Smuggling system will be put at the top of your Trello thing
>i17 will be propped up and ready for use, with all business owners assigned a location and will be informed about exactly which store is theirs
>Every CP and OTA is required to take the questionnaire and pass it. Failed it? Removed.
>A private forum to report specific CPs and OTA directly to faction leads will be created.

Honestly, this is the best and only way to solve the massive problems in my opinion. Willard has a chance, and this is it.
I don't want to see the dev work and effort that people put into this place just gone, or to be reused in another project a year into the future that none of us will ever know about.

 

[Stinky Rags]

I sadly echo a lot of sentiments from Dog, Madcombat and co.

A map change will most certainly offer an increase in player activity; sparkly cool events that aren't spawning fifty headcrabs as well as exciting i17 map change. Will it last? Right now, no, because of the issues that are currently still bone-deep into the server's core values and progressions.

Potentially a server temporary shut down could fix a lot of these problems, although this is only a viable option if everything that needs to be changed, is; if it isn't, the server will return to a dead playerbase. Witnessing how things have changed since release I wouldn't put faith in a server shut down, that will definitely kill Willard.

I think we as a community have been it abundantly clear what's wrong; it's up to the staff and development team now, if not at any time to before, if they want to act on our voice of concern, or let it be ignored and find the consequences that are born from that decision. I myself still have some faith that the CM team especially want the best for the community and will push their best to evolve the server into one that we all want and are trying hard to reach.

I was really disappointed to hear that the server flopped so heavily today, if I had the capacity to have logged on I would've. Willard would have, and still could be a great server for HL2RP. The coding's there, the serious players are there, but the soul and life is not. Focus less on controlling the playerbase and their roleplay and more on nurturing the roleplay that already exists; an omnipotens bureaucracy where everything is dictated by rules, regulations and constant admin oversight is not the way to encourage server growth. For all their problems, I do pity CP players for that; let them have fun, it's a game... one many want to passionately take part in.


p.s: mafia roleplay in a sci-fi futuristic dystopia is 9.9/10 cringe, overdone and childish. There can be criminal gangs, I guess, but if you want to RP as Don Good find a better setting, I'm begging you.

 

[AdamCF]

I kind of just wanna go to sleep for a couple weeks and come back, hoping something's changed.

 

[FreeStalker]

Here's what I vote for:
>On Friday, the server will temporarily close.
>During the weekend and the entirety of next week, development work, fixing businesses (preferably using my suggestion), fixing the staff team, and sorting out faction leads will be all that's focussed on
>Smuggling system will be put at the top of your Trello thing
>i17 will be propped up and ready for use, with all business owners assigned a location and will be informed about exactly which store is theirs
>Every CP and OTA is required to take the questionnaire and pass it. Failed it? Removed.
>A private forum to report specific CPs and OTA directly to faction leads will be created.

Honestly, this is the best and only way to solve the massive problems in my opinion. Willard has a chance, and this is it.
I don't want to see the dev work and effort that people put into this place just gone, or to be reused in another project a year into the future that none of us will ever know about.

No. There is no need for there to be additional vetting of CPs and OTA. Each of them are top quality role-players who have already gone through a battery of questions via their application process. Stop placing blame on them.

/s

On a serious note- Making OTA into a gun toting S2K no-RP allowed faction is absolutely heinous especially when you stop to consider they were practically begging previous DoP lead to shoot all of CWU when they had us lined up to root out a spy. Rather than do any real CITIZEN RP or utilize their Investigative Bureau or that CCA Spy Network and go through an in-depth internal investigation they decide to just disable all the CWU workers with AR2 shots to the limbs.

Almost as if they aren't really here to offer anything to the roleplay experience except disappointment.


Also let's take a look at the admin owned player based groups- AN ISIS/AQ group and Mafia group...Really? Staff- come on? No creativity or originality? Next you'll tell me that one of you will create the Fourth Reich. Shit atleast in reaction to the racist characters IC we had some Asian characters banding together to fight against discrimination within the community in C24 but they didn't try and start a triad.

Edit: Anyone notice how the Community Director never steps in to take responsibility or even speak of these CCCs? Sure he's busy with V3 but come on...Show Willard some love dude. Your community needs to hear from you in these rough spots. @Atle

 

[zoid]

I kind of just wanna go to sleep for a couple weeks and come back, hoping something's changed.

Most likely a bandaid will be slapped over the gaping hole with the map change, and hopefully something after that.

No. There is no need for there to be additional vetting of CPs and OTA. Each of them are top quality role-players who have already gone through a battery of questions via their application process. Stop placing blame on them.

Also let's take a look at the admin owned player based groups- AN ISIS/AQ group and Mafia group...Really? Staff- come on? No creativity or originality? Next you'll tell me that one of you will create the Fourth Reich. Shit atleast in reaction to the racist characters IC we had some Asian characters banding together to fight against discrimination within the community in C24 but they didn't try and start a triad.

It's pretty sad because usually large servers like this the playerbase is a large contributing factor to why it fails, yet it's just the upper echelons of the community that have control over everything making it a pitiful experience. Is that their fault? Well, I think its just because they literately don't pay attention. It's the struggle between those who have to RP for everything they have, and those who have it all at the very start. One understands the other doesn't.

 

[Stinky Rags]

When I first heard about the ISIS group I thought it was just made by a bunch of minges and they'd glitched in and gotten access to weaponry. Lmao, no. It's just embarrassing, the fact these groups were facilitated is embarrassing, and the fact that genuine resistance groups are continuously punished while these others get away scot free is just as much embarassing. The most HL2RP thing about Willard right now is the OTA that fire at citizens with zero RP (Thanks for that one btw, the new guys near us really loved that).

I'm tired of seeing OTA around the city, it's been two weeks. Instead of stealing the limited RP CPs already get, let them be the one to do stuff like what happened yesterday. Let them guard the gates, let them escort the CCAs. OTA are transhuman soldiers, they aren't supposed to be seen because of how freakishly abhorrent they are; you're not going to get a complicit citizenry by shoving the army in their faces all the time, especially not an army that openly shoots citizens in the streets - or at least fire at their feet.

Personally, I think the idea that any form of Overwatch can discuss what's happening in RP in a discord call rather than emoting it out is stupidly crazy as well. Imagine if a bunch of Resistance or a bunch of freed Vortigaunts just started blasting CPs, running around with zero emotes or just the occasional "SHAAAAAAAAA." while talking about what they're going to do in a call. Honestly.

 

[Madcombat]

And holy fuck, stop waiting for I17 to fix your problems, Jesus christ. You don't need to chop your entire leg off when your toe is infected.

The only sentiment I've heard from the team as a whole in general is "Huuurrr we'll fix this next week!" or "Huuurrrr We need a map change to fix our business issues!" or "HURRRRR We need a admin meeting to figure out what we're going to eat for lunch!"



^ The current Ethos to problem solving (And I have the screenshots to prove it.)

Honestly fuck it, you guys win. You should probably shut down the server and have a long hard thonk on your rock about these issues and what needs to be done. Honestly I was against the idea in week one when some people suggested it but hell, they sure have changed my mind despite the relentless amount of posts/threads I've alone made to make a point about why many issues exist and why they need to be solved / how to solve them.

When you got literal admins creating factions that are ISIS or Mafia etc, it kinda' gives you a big inside vision of what their grasp on creativity is when it comes to half life 2. Tis all I'm sayin'.

 

[zoid]

A map change and smuggling won't fix fundamental issues with some staff being incompetent and toxic in key leads and spots of power.

This pretty much sums it up lol

 

[Man Blue Trousers]

And holy fuck, stop waiting for I17 to fix your problems, Jesus christ. You don't need to chop your entire leg off when your toe is infected.

The only sentiment I've heard from the team as a whole in general is "Huuurrr we'll fix this next week!" or "Huuurrrr We need a map change to fix our business issues!" or "HURRRRR We need a admin meeting to figure out what we're going to eat for lunch!"

View attachment 2458
View attachment 2459
^ The current Ethos to problem solving (And I have the screenshots to prove it.)

Honestly fuck it, you guys win. You should probably shut down the server and have a long hard thonk on your rock about these issues and what needs to be done. Honestly I was against the idea in week one when some people suggested it but hell, they sure have changed my mind despite the relentless amount of posts/threads I've alone made to make a point about why many issues exist and why they need to be solved / how to solve them.

When you got literal admins creating factions that are ISIS or Mafia etc, it kinda' gives you a big inside vision of what their grasp on creativity is when it comes to half life 2. Tis all I'm sayin'.

View attachment 2461

Lemmie just tell you quick about my Mafia group.

It was created PRIOR to the servers startup when I was just another player, and then admittedly got a few unfair advantages such as four pistols on the first day which were /thankfully/ taken away during the switch to City 24. We numbered approximately 25 members at the time. And we wanted to create crime RP on a server to build up civvie Rp. Evidently, most of my people left the server after the first week because of the horrible drama. So as of now, there's only like four of us that are active.

However, I recently made the decision to gut the organization entirely and only make it an event faction for players to volunteer with to give Rebels Jobs, or Civil Protection something to shoot at. Right now, we barely have any influence IC, and the influence we had before was prior to my accepting as a GM. Note, that every item I gave them when they volunteered for my events. Was taken away after their death, or when the event ended. Same for anyone who I ask to play in my event.

The sole reason why I issue them suits and high-end weapons is to give off the impression of class. We never even used them in anger against a target yet. More or less just to propagate a certain feeling for players. Something of a offmap organization that players can work for now.

Now looking at it now. There's only.. two active players now. The rest have long since moved onto greater pastures.

 

[FreeStalker]

#5: (The Admins as a whole): Now, I might get fucked for saying this but I just have to let it go. In the past two weeks the higher administration. Not going to name any names. But a certain few members have this elitist as fuck attitude to criticism and the conventional player. They have consciously made decisions to /ignore/ the complaints piling on in the Discord and the Forums coining them "Just another troublemaker." Are you serious. What makes a server good is that they can take the criticism and actually make changes to benefit the playerbase as a whole rather than just alienating 90% of the players. It makes us seem like we really can't give a shit about what the players say. Now, me talking about this is out of my paygrade since I'm just a GM. But I have to call out this crap when I see it.

Okay, that's honestly all I got for us as a member of the Staff Team itself.

Would it be safe to say that everyone in this forum post including the OP has been put on a list of "troublemakers"? Can you confirm that Atle does not take responsibility for any of the issues found in the server and agrees with this mentality? Can you list the names of these "elistist" staff members since at this point you might get fucked for speaking out already- sorry about that- so we can see the staff team for what it really is?

Because if everyone in this thread so far is listed as a "troublemaker" then might aswell start banning all of us to silence us. Clearly nothing is wrong with the server and we are pulling shit outta our ass.

 

[AdamCF]

Would it be safe to say that everyone in this forum post including the OP has been put on a list of "troublemakers"? Can you confirm that Atle does not take responsibility for any of the issues found in the server and agrees with this mentality? Can you list the names of these "elistist" staff members since at this point you might get fucked for speaking out already- sorry about that- so we can see the staff team for what it really is?

Because if everyone in this thread so far is listed as a "troublemaker" then might aswell start banning all of us to silence us. Clearly nothing is wrong with the server and we are pulling shit outta our ass.

I don’t think Atle’s done that, or the CM team. I wouldn’t find it hard to believe that there’s some staff member out there noting our names down, though.

 

[Man Blue Trousers]

Would it be safe to say that everyone in this forum post including the OP has been put on a list of "troublemakers"? Can you confirm that Atle does not take responsibility for any of the issues found in the server and agrees with this mentality? Can you list the names of these "elistist" staff members since at this point you might get fucked for speaking out already- sorry about that- so we can see the staff team for what it really is?

Because if everyone in this thread so far is listed as a "troublemaker" then might aswell start banning all of us to silence us. Clearly nothing is wrong with the server and we are pulling shit outta our ass.

Lemmie just say this.
I have no idea whether or not any of us have been labled Troublemakers, and I highly doubt we are. We are actually using the forums to complain rather than just flooding the Discord General Chat.

As for Atle, he is pretty hands off, and I hardly even see him in chat. He seems to let the place be run autonomously. At the behest of the CMs and the various faction leads. He is more or less just the "Spritual" leader rather than the leader in practice. Willard is run something like an Oligarchy with various high-level admins making most of the decisions. I would like to also mention that some of the Admin team have communicated that they don't wish for the wider playerbase to vote on important decisions. Such as the Map choice but only allow players to vote because of a predetermined PR stunt.

I won't name any names yet because I believe in confidentiality and belief that the Administration would punish these people for what they've said. If I am proven wrong, then I will list the names when the time comes.

Now, I believe vehemently, that the Administration does have a few bad apples. And that it would likely be far better to see them either gone or demoted. But I believe in People, Concept, and Process and hope that they act before things get really bad.

 

[Merlinsclaw]

yeah, turns out people don't want to play default hl2rp anymore


the server is extremely boring when you look at different servers who are trying radically new things which engages players

no one wants to get beat for running or get killed by the fallout new vegas city administrator anymore

but go off with your "unique" take of default hl2rp

 

[Madcombat]

Lemmie just tell you quick about my Mafia group-

The issue wasnt about targets or anything. Hell, you could just be standing idle as a mafia all day in the street and I'd still have a issue with it solely based on the immersive element. The way such group is portrayed is so 1950's and uncharacteristic to the setting. It was but a sole example.
Dont worry, you're not the sole issue. Atleast you're calling out issues, that's a good thing right?

Fuck it, I'm here. Let's backtrack to day 2. Might as well take a sledge hammer to this thread, I've already rode in here yee''hawwing with a killdozer. Fuck it, I can unleash my diaper now. Que Music!











I'm sure I can remember talking about this kind of shit... Huuuuh.... I just can't remember when.... Hmmmm Could've sworn... /s







Nice roster- where's the new ranking systems that were supposedly introduced a week ago?






And that's only a taste, a mere drip in the water. (Regarding OTA)
Do you want the Blue pill or the Red Pill? Cause I got a fuck load more of these where they come from in the form of spicy memes and hot sauce.

 

[qapgonk]

really funny to see all the stuff that was learned on terranova was immediately forgotten in the next server lol

 

[Madcombat]

I can keep going but I am not going to, I think I hammer the message home. This all contributes to as why people start leaving, every single bit of it. And that was just with the CP's alone.

I havent even gotten to the rest of you yet.

/Continue or shall I put my diaper back on?

Litterally my post evolution from before I joined till now in a nutshell

 

[qapgonk]

/Continue or shall I put my diaper back on?

keep going brah