I think it's time for an honest discussion about SoR. Becuse it's more important that we don't lose community members due to a SoR bleedout, than it is important to avoid this subject in order to keep those who are left ingame, ingame.

When we started out in SoR, it was to be our Seed replacement (yeah, not that anything could replace it), where we'd try to take our community. Of course the real community gathering place is our website here, but most of us decided to give SoR a try to play at least one game together all of us. Since we started, we've only had one direction ingame though, and that is losing players. We started out around 20 I think? Half that quickly saw that they didn't want to live through the grind, heh. The others went on for some time. We also got a few new players attracted to our community, which was one of the goals too.

But yes, we've had some bleed-out, and as far as I can see, never managed to build self-sustaining momentum. And now we're down to Kendrus, Mercellus, Perun, Artash and Shula, with the last two not being much present ingame. Which is of course no admonishment to them, just a statement.

And now it just so happens that because of RP getting more scarce to find and participate in in SoR due to a general exodus of players, and due to me having found something which has much more RP and no grind (Shadow Siege yes, which is admittedly not for everyone, being text-only),  I will also cut back on playing SoR. Actually I have already done that for 2 weeks or so already, but it took some time to step back and see it.

I'll be around for any and all RP, but I guess I'll take a more passive role, not directly creating new stories. I'll also be able to log in immediately if poked. I do think we should do something to find a more unifying game to play in though, now that we are so few left in SoR. Only problem with that seems to be that there are no alternatives? Or what do the hordes of you who did quit SoR say? How about we begin discussing the next best thing to come along that might draw a number of us, enough to gain momentum and gathering ingame. We need to recruit new members to our community, and give the old ones as many reasons as possible to hang around and be active For me, the community is more important than the game, as we will be able to create the RP I crave, if we are in sufficient numbers at least.

I think such a game is not immediately on the horizon. Lord of the Rings Online perhaps, Conan? More likely a good NWN PW, perhaps the Rome one? And most likely we won't ever get the perfect MMO anyway. But if we could find something that would make us gather again? Frankly URU is not doing a good job at this either yet, and I don't think SoR can draw you in again either.

Well this is a discussion going outside of SoR, but feel free to reply here anyway, the more the merrier really. Frakel has been doing exactly what was needed to stimulate RP and interest in SoR, and that's great to see. Such initiative is what is needed in any game we'd join to keep the kettle boiling. Without that, and participating in the stories and lives of other RP chars, SoR stands as the (friendly) grindathon it is. Which is as with most, if not all, other MMOG's.

I also have a concrete suggestion for SoR, if people are willing and ready. How about we play SoR exclusively at least once a week, gathering an evening all of us to do stuff together? That would create stories and motivation to log in on other days too maybe. And it could once again, make bonds with other RP'ers. But we need some more organization for such things. We should have done this earlier really. Anyway, I'm up for it and would suggest wednesday evening, though that is only a suggestion of course. Who's in?

Anyway, I've had a lot of unforgetable and intense RP moments in SoR, and this is no farewell thread to that game, 'just' a post to say that Perun will no longer be the moving force for IC mess/stories and change that he once was, along with a nudge to the entire community. We'd best not grow too stale and have the fading in SoR reflect on the level above, our community. So, what to do, huh?

Last edited by Darkhawk (2007-02-02 11:34:49)