Cancelling My UOSA Subscription

[GuardianKnight]

I nominate myself to fix all of your problems by creating a series of economic policies that hand out checks and create jobs for poor tamers. If elected, I will assassinate the enemies of UOSA with the full force of our military.

A vote for GK is a vote for the future.

[Pehiko]

The issue with the afk crafting/selling is that it can't simply be done with razor.
On a small scale yes but when I see player like dolce e cabanna that recall 24/7 nonstop in serpent hold, i really don't think that it can be done with a single razor macro. Somewhere down the line razor will hit a "wall" and won't be able to recover from it. (From personnal experience after max 10 minutes the shit will hit the fan in the macro) This proving at 99% that they are using a script to do the work. UOAP and EASYUO are not allowed in UOSA and this is why in my opinion we should put a stop to it.

[SteelReserve]

I appreciate your long-time subscription. In the context of this post though, I'd like to reiterate that it is the greatest of the shard policies that money will not affect our policies.

I love that fact that IRL cash donations have no effect the Policies of UOSA, However Paying Subscriber or not. I feel the same Concerns Light Shade has. ( Mainly People Abusing the fact we are ERA Accurate!) It is one thing to exploit the things that were exploitable during the T2A era. it is another Entirely Different situation for people to come up with new ways to THE FACT that we are Focused on Keeping UOSA Era Accurate. Example ( Lets look at the T2A rule set and see what we can do ((Specifically because in t2a there was nothing done about this.. Mindset))

This really robs everyone of an overall Gaming experience.

As with any Alpha and Beta games they Evolve over time. Correcting unforeseen Problems and adjusting accordingly to make the gaming experience better for all.

What we have here is an Epic Example of "Gaming at its best" with a few overlook-able problems that were not really and issue at the time.

The current problem "IMO" are that the (over look-able problems) that were not an issue at the time. are realized by a handful of players that see it as either a possible cash cow (stable farming) or are just doing it to make it harder for other players. (the Troll Effect)

any decision made will be double edged. as in the Exploiters will complain as not era accurate. and scream they are caving in to new players whining. OR it will not be Era accurate.

There is no Way there will be a solution that will make everyone happy.

As Derrik said. One thing that will make X people happy will tick off another amount of X people

I don't See anything changing. due to these arguments.

So Finlay there are 3 options that will result in this servers Status.

1. Everything Stays the same, Deal with it or GTFO

2. A Compromise is met between Staff. New players, and Veterans.

3. New players get their way and Vets are as Pissed as Nubs in Example 1.

Personally id like to see some of option 2 but im a Realist. it is option 1 all the way rather its for the best of UOSA or if it leads to a Much lower player base. either way IDK ill still play UOSA which is why im sure Option 1 is here to stay despite the complaints ect.

[The Real Sandro]

Their will have to somewhat of a compromise in order to maintain donators. I can easily afford to donate monthly, but I simply refuse to send any positive reinforcement this shards direction. The object delay patch and patches thereafter have been killing this shard.

A quick rememdy will simply be to sort of "stretch" the era accuracy thing. It's been proven for 4 years now that an era accurate shard isn't possible. Might as well make the shard entertaining and ultimately boost donations and the player base.

I don't mean to sound resentful by any means, and I hope my post won't be taken to a personal level.

[SteelReserve]

Their will have to somewhat of a compromise in order to maintain donators. I can easily afford to donate monthly, but I simply refuse to send any positive reinforcement this shards direction. The object delay patch and patches thereafter have been killing this shard.

A quick rememdy will simply be to sort of "stretch" the era accuracy thing. It's been proven for 4 years now that an era accurate shard isn't possible. Might as well make the shard entertaining and ultimately boost donations and the player base.

I don't mean to sound resentful by any means, and I hope my post won't be taken to a personal level.

Good Point, Well made.

[chumbucket]

I haven't played regularly in a while but a few points on each of the OP's points:

1. No doubt it would be nice to have more, but I think it is understandable that they would be cautious in recruiting people. Who will do honest and good work for free? The staff we do have is saintlike and it isn't clear to me that the relatively small number of them significantly hurts the shard. As to events and activities, do it yourself! Make an event! It is fun to run events and it helps the shard. (Which isn't to say you're wrong on this point. It might be a good idea to have more still.)

2 and 3 - AFK buying and Stables - Again, I'm not saying you're wrong but the policies in place are not obviously unreasonable. AFK buying costs money so it is a little different than AFK gathering. Likewise, the stables thing might be annoying but the game isn't broken due to it. Again, I'm not saying you're flatly wrong. Perhaps the best thing would be to change these, but still I think calmer voices should prevail and we should all realize that either way it goes it isn't that big a deal.

4. Never had much of a problem with this. Maybe this is a new thing?

My general point isn't that staff is always right or that they always make the best choices but just that (1) they don't make obviously bad, game breaking choices and hence (2) a lot of the rhetoric about these things is way out of bounds. These are people giving us a free service in their spare time and at cost to themselves. I know it is easy to get worked up about these things. I have done that myself. But it is silly and stupid and often even a bit rude. Let's at least be nice.

[SethTersius]

My general point isn't that staff is always right or that they always make the best choices but just that (1) they don't make obviously bad, game breaking choices and hence (2) a lot of the rhetoric about these things is way out of bounds. These are people giving us a free service in their spare time and at cost to themselves. I know it is easy to get worked up about these things. I have done that myself. But it is silly and stupid and often even a bit rude. Let's at least be nice.

Especially considering all problems are minor.

As I said in IRC, the shard has a few "issues" that come up because it has been around a lot longer than the real t2a existed. So there are naturally going to be some things that come up with time that were never addressed and thus have no "era accurate" solution.

Trying to fix these small problems by deviating from "era accuracy" can cause a slippery slope.

[Pirul]

I have steered clear from this discussion, but I must say chum's coments make a lot of sense. I agree with Lightshade's points, all of them (although the desynch issue for me might be attributed more to an irregular 3rd world internet service), but still I am sure admin tries to make the best decissions (policy and otherwise) for the shard, but some might not be popular decissions, or even the "right" decission.

I think aiming for era accuracy is a good goal, since it does not cater to a single group's playing style, and you know you are getting a stable playing rule set. The unfortunate thing, is that we cannot be positive about many things without a shadow of doubt. I think stables are one of them.

As far as recruiting more GM's, it's tough. Very, very, tough. I must say if I were a GM here I would have banned half the shard, and quit after a week for having to put up with the other half. I agree that having more of them around would be awesome, but If you find someone who is (1) dedicated, (2) knowledgeble, (3) mature, (4) patient, (5) helpful, (6) level headed, (7) has common sense and (8) would donate his time for free, please let me know, I have a company I need him to run.

[chumbucket]

I have steered clear from this discussion, but I must say chum's coments make a lot of sense. I agree with Lightshade's points, all of them (although the desynch issue for me might be attributed more to an irregular 3rd world internet service), but still I am sure admin tries to make the best decissions (policy and otherwise) for the shard, but some might not be popular decissions, or even the "right" decission.

I think aiming for era accuracy is a good goal, since it does not cater to a single group's playing style, and you know you are getting a stable playing rule set. The unfortunate thing, is that we cannot be positive about many things without a shadow of doubt. I think stables are one of them.

As far as recruiting more GM's, it's tough. Very, very, tough. I must say if I were a GM here I would have banned half the shard, and quit after a week for having to put up with the other half. I agree that having more of them around would be awesome, but If you find someone who is (1) dedicated, (2) knowledgeble, (3) mature, (4) patient, (5) helpful, (6) level headed, (7) has common sense and (8) would donate his time for free, please let me know, I have a company I need him to run.

I would have banned pretty much everyone except cA and blackfoot by now!

[Light Shade]

I would like to clarify that I do think that the goal of Era-Accuracy is the one thing that sets this shard apart from every other shard and makes this the best shard to play on. However, with the exception of the Stables Issue, my complaints are with the policy decisions with points 1 and 2 and the coding and ISP Routing that is most likely the root cause of point 4.

The stables issue may or may not be an era accuracy issue. At best, its an exploitable mechanic that OSI realized needed fixing. If this is the case, I can understand that it will not be changed because of Era-Accuracy concerns. You can indeed venture into the Slippery Slope otherwise. I do believe that stance is detrimental to the shard regardless of anything, though. Unfortunately, this issue causes the one person on this shard that I enjoy playing with, above all others, to not enjoy playing here. Yes, my father's opinion is important to me. I am disappointed that he no longer wants to log in because of this issue.

I do not play other shards. I do not even play other video games, so walking away or taking a hiatus from UOSA means that i'm essentially giving up gaming altogether. I guess i'll go outside and play more. At the end of the day, I just was not enjoying my time here anymore because of the points that I outlined.

I'm slowly giving away and selling off all of my "pixels" and hope others will get the enjoyment out of them that I was not.

Safe Travels,

-L/S

[Pirul]

I think we have developed a good frienship in the time you've played here, you have thought me many things about the game, and have all my trust, so personally it is hard for me to hear about you cutting down on your play time.

However,

Yes, my father's opinion is important to me. I am disappointed that he no longer wants to log in because of this issue.

^ that is what should be most important.

[Will Sinker]

You are selling properties worth 10 mil+ and you can't afford to buy a few stable slots for your dad?

[Light Shade]

As to events and activities, do it yourself! Make an event! It is fun to run events and it helps the shard.

I did my best to do this until I was down to a 200k gold and 250 BP total across all my accounts. Point being, for a casual gamer such as myself, I can't keep it up. I was literally giving away everything I owned...whether it was 1,000's of crossbow bolts and Heavy Crossbows for the Paintball Event or Vanq's and gold for the Invisible Maze Event...either way, I was slowly putting myself into the poor house to do it.

In the end, running your own events on a consistent schedule requires a lot of time and investment on your part. Its not just the time it takes to run the events, its also the time it takes to save up for prizes for the events...let alone for funding your own playtime. It just wasn't a sustainable model. I tried to get others involved, but there simply were not enough people who would help.

What I have learned regarding this issue is that it is best to have an active staff running events, invasions, etc... for the shard. It is always good to have player-run events to spice stuff up, but consistantly running player-run events just drains well-intentioned players that can't realistically fund a prize pool indefinitely. I wish it were otherwise, but its one of those "ideals" that fails in practice, unfortunately. The "hit-or-miss" schedule of player-run events is also not the best way of doing things. My experience is that players want to see consistancy.

They do not want to wait around for weeks at a time for something that may or may not even happen.

-L/S

[Light Shade]

You are selling properties worth 10 mil+ and you can't afford to buy a few stable slots for your dad?

Its a moot point as my 60 year old dad isn't speedy on the keyboard and has no interest in fighting over stable slots and losing them. Especially with people AFK Macroing to steal them. If he does not enjoy that stable mechanic, then buying him every slot on the game is irrelevant.

You'd have to see him looking down his nose through his bi-focals and pushing up his glasses as he hunts and pecks on the keyboard to fully understand that what you're proposing simply is not a viable solution.

-L/S

[Will Sinker]

Honestly, I can agree that the stabling issue is annoying but there are workarounds and ways to deal with it. However, if someone is unable to take safety measures when it comes to stabling pets then I fail to see how they will survive in any other aspect of the game. Waiting on a stable master to move away from an afk macroer or moving him yourself manually then hitting a couple macros to assist in stabling faster is much easier than escaping from pks, killing mobs, or even crafting.

As to the events being costly, I would assume most would be willing to pay a fee for admittance if they understood the fee was going to fund other events. Possibly give away a few free passes to people you know can't afford to pay the entrance fee, but otherwise I believe that would work well. I know it does for PvP tournaments at least; I don't see why it would fail to work in other types of events.

I understand sometimes people can get frustrated and burned out on this game (as it has happened to me many times in the past) which may be what you are going through, however I believe the staff is doing a great job as it stands. Our player base has remained steady for years now with no major downtime or issues. I myself have no issue with de-synching, and if it does happen occasionally I believe there is a re-synch keybind in razor.

If you have a major era accuracy concern, bring proof of it to the forums and it will get fixed. Posts like this can only hurt the shard. People come and go every day, and while I have played with you in the past and found that you are a likeable person I simply don't see why you would make a post like this if you have nothing to offer other than complaints.