comments inserted below...
On Sat, Jun 20, 2009 at 10:12 PM, Michael Sims <mike(at)fuzzylogicllc.net ([email]mike(at)fuzzylogicllc.net[/email])> wrote:
Hi guys,
Anyone feel free to add anyone else to the email chain… but I’ve seen a few discussions fly thru various channels lately about quality of games. I suppose this would mean NMR’s, Abandons, and general lack of communication in games.
How can dc improve this?
A few things about the status quo…
- Right now… we recruit one standard game at all times, which has an invitation for newbies to join it, as it is after all, standard. Easiest to learn the game on.
- Newbies are – and always will be – welcome here, (we were all one at some point) however we need to be able to limit the disruption they can do to games, and the frustration they can cause to other players.
- Anyone can play here. There is no proving ground.
Is this appropriate? If a leader of a country isn’t very good – and doesn’t write, and misses turns – is it up to the “good” players to be the best to capitalize on this, or should that player not have played in the first place? How can we realistically prevent such a player from causing disruption, given that new players have to get a start, somewhere?
***Diplomacy is going to go the way of baseball cards unless we do all we can to not only make newbies welcome, but actively recruit them. PBEM play is all that has saved the game from this unfortunate technological revolution (the Playstation generation) anyway. So if the rest of us occasionally get stuck in a game with a bad seed that NMRs and abandons at *just* the wrong season to ruin the whole game - oh well. Not to be callous, but we need to suck it up and deal with it. The only control measure is for the GM to communicate emphatically up front to all the players that signing up for a game means a commitment to play it through to completion, regardless of the outcome.
Should we go to a system of newbie-only games? I’ve run, I think 2 of these over the years, and they were a big hit.
***GMs should be free to run a newbie-only game at any time, at their discretion of course. That said - it's only by playing against better competition that a newbie's game will improve. What exactly do you mean by a "system" of newbie-only games?
Can GM’s do more to avoid NMR’s? Pumping up the players, sending reminders, etc?
***Absolutely. While it's not their *responsibility* - the GMs are in the best position to prevent NMRs.
Should players get more limited on the number and type of games they can play, based on their propensity for NMR’s? We have the new NMR stat on the Profile pages, which gives us info, but currently there is no mechanic in the system to limit players in any way based on their frequency of missing turns.
***No. Let the GMs decide if they want to restrict a player based on NMRs. By the way, I thought we were removing the percentage next to the NMR statistic on player profiles?
Anyways just looking for insight into what might really breed good hi-caliber players, and provide a fun gaming environment that isn’t met w frustration when players drop out.
***In a word - tourneys. The tourneys really bring the lurkers out of the woodwork, and everybody plays their A-game. Also, promote more strategy and tactics discussions on the board, maybe in the context of some peanut gallery (panel) games. Those are great teaching points for newbies. Let them get on a panel and watch a few of their predictions disappear - great way to learn and broaden your horizons.
B.
-mike
Order of the Garter
www.diplomaticcorp.com
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