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Zhavi · **11-30-2017, 04:07 PM**

(11-30-2017, 03:47 PM)Unnamed Mercenary Wrote: If we look at Balmung's history too though, there was a LOT more open-world stuff happening in the 2014-2015 mark, it feels like. The server had just launched Summer 2013 and people were still feeling out the server and getting to know each other. Probably it felt like there was a lot more public stuff going on. FCs and Linkshells hadn't quite been made for everything and there was a lot of shuffling around. ...and at least personally for me, I had more time and the general peak hours of gameplay/RP.

But as people kinda found their usual spots and FCs/LSes/groups of people they liked to hang out with, I had noticed a shift where more plots went FC-driven than say, clustered events/plots on the RPC that were open to anyone. And I feel like that's pretty normal. If a FC has similar-minded people, it's much easier to DM an extended story than to try to get a bunch of people who may or may not know each other. But then it starts to crystallize and may not be as flexible as before, which then leads into difficulty in expanding perspectives or meshing with new people or new people getting involved.

It's possible that because Mateus is still actively growing, their server hasn't been affected by that type of RPer grouping trend yet. It took Balmung a few years, and the lock certainly isn't going to help in that regard. Perhaps it won't happen if the server continues to stay open. Or perhaps it will if Mateus grows to Balmung's size and becomes locked one day. ...at which another RP server will likely be designated as the go-to place and so on.

But also, you know, you gotta count that some people like hyper focused rp and some people don't. A lot of the discontent in people who voiced it and left was that they weren't able to integrate into hyper focused rp, and couldn't find enough wider focused rp that suited them.

Don't forget -- entire established groups up and left Balmung for Mateus. But if I can't creep on their chatter on the forums, I have no idea what they're doing and can't comment on that rp. I don't put any effort into searching out the rp/stories posted on tumblr, so I'm not seeing that, either. It is wholly possible that Mateus has that kind of rp, I just am not seeing it.

Also, I still do see a lot of open world rp on Balmung, especially when farming.

But even back in 2014, the open world stuff that I saw and participated in on Balmung was still pretty tightly plotted stuff. Not to say that all of it was, but it had a different feel than what I get out of open world Mateus stuff. It could simply be a function of people who wanted something different than what is up per usual on Balmung moved, and that could shape the overall community.

It's hard to comment on the whole of something though, in any case, when you're not seeing the whole picture. It would be useful if someone who is well integrated into Mateus rp groups could comment, haha.

Valde · **11-30-2017, 09:14 PM**

(11-29-2017, 12:20 PM)Zhavi Wrote:
(11-29-2017, 05:55 AM)Kylin Wrote: Mateus DOES rival Balmung in RP population. Also, a few people regretting their decision does not equate to "many."

Based on my own independent study between RP activity on both servers, Balmung as a whole still has a slightly larger active RP population than Mateus, but not by much. Based on daily glances at all players utilizing the RP tag, along with activity in hot spots like the Quicksand, RP on Mateus is almost equal (and some days greater than) Balmung. Their biggest problem in showcasing that is not utilizing the RPC to show the myriad of events (or really for anything else either if we're being honest) they constantly have on a weekly basis, opting to use solely their own community discord.

The passive-aggressive attitude of one server being "superior" to the other is the exact root cause to server conflict and partly to blame for why past attempts like Gilgamesh failed as a secondary main RP hub. It needs to stop. Now. Off-hand comments like the one quoted above literally equate to psychological warfare meant to stray people away from the 'competition' or make them regret being part of it. Such comments are partly the reason so few of them even come to the RPC, because seeing/battling that type of response (even if it is from a tiny vocal minority) gets exhausting after awhile.

This. Â Even casually dipping into Mateus' community has convinced me that they're happy and proud of their community -- as they should be. Â They have what they enjoy. Â Is it exactly like Balmung? Â No. Â But then again, if it was, they'd just come right back when Balmung opens again.

The whole point of having sustainable server communities is to have those unique identities and rp styles so that people have options in finding what they want. Â It's good if someone has a bad time on Balmung, or Gilgamesh, or Mateus, or Siren/Jenova, or whatever other small server, and can go 'this server isn't working for me, I'm going to try a new one.' Â It allows people a chance to find their people, and sometimes a fresh start can help alleviate burnout.

Going to chime in, many of the people on Mateus are absolutely happy to be here. I was formerly on Balmung before I dived entirely onto Mateus due to the inability of friends to join me on Balmung, and the extreme housing issue on Balmung (Not that Mateus doesn't have its own issues).

I'm on the Mateus RP Hub Discord, a 1200+ strong Discord for Mateus folks to advertise and connect, and we grow daily. Though I've encouraged many to utilize the RPC personally, it seems that the community and Hub has really focused on Discord and centralizes around that. It could help explain the very hard difference you see between RPC representation. Many have expressed they still feel like the RPC heavily caters to Balmung only (Though I've pointed out numerous things that prove that wrong). Can't really help perception at this point.

I will say, whatever Balmung/Mateus rivalry may have once existed is not tolerated within the Discord. We are all RPers. RP on Balmung, RP on Mateus, we're all weirdos writing pretendy words at keyboards.

**Unnamed Mercenary** · **11-30-2017, 09:35 PM**

(11-30-2017, 09:14 PM)Valde Wrote: Going to chime in, many of the people on Mateus are absolutely happy to be here. I was formerly on Balmung before I dived entirely onto Mateus due to the inability of friends to join me on Balmung, and the extreme housing issue on Balmung (Not that Mateus doesn't have its own issues).

I'm one of the Moderators of the Mateus RP Hub Discord, a 1200+ strong Discord for Mateus folks to advertise and connect, and we grow daily. Though I've encouraged many to utilize the RPC personally, it seems that the community and Hub has really focused on Discord and centralizes around that. It could help explain the very hard difference you see between RPC representation. Many have expressed they still feel like the RPC heavily caters to Balmung only (Though I've pointed out numerous things that prove that wrong). Can't really help perception at this point.

I will say, whatever Balmung/Mateus rivalry may have once existed is not tolerated within the Discord. We are all RPers. RP on Balmung, RP on Mateus, we're all weirdos writing pretendy words at keyboards.

I remember bringing this up with the RPM heads too as a concern! The feeling that RPC caters to Balmung is one of those weird powered-by-confirmation-bias issues where by avoiding the thing, a person encourages the same. It's been awesome to see more Mateus activity and I hope more people consider cross-posting. RPC does have the nice added value of google searches coming up. And an arguably easier method to search for old posts/lore/past events/etc.

And the same goes for every other server with RPers too. We want to know what you're all up to! If it's in a discord that requires an invite link, a shared google doc, or tumblr, my first question's always gonna be "so how does a new person find out when/where/how RP happens on that server?" In my experience, that usually means checking the official forums, or searching, which usually brings up RPC on the top.

Kieron Lohengrin · **11-30-2017, 09:40 PM**

the lock might stay in place for a while

https://www.reddit.com/r/ffxiv/comments/...al_census/

[Image: XXBBXpi.jpg]

Valde · **11-30-2017, 10:06 PM**

(11-30-2017, 09:35 PM)Unnamed Mercenary Wrote: I remember bringing this up with the RPM heads too as a concern! The feeling that RPC caters to Balmung is one of those weird powered-by-confirmation-bias issues where by avoiding the thing, a person encourages the same. It's been awesome to see more Mateus activity and I hope more people consider cross-posting. RPC does have the nice added value of google searches coming up. And an arguably easier method to search for old posts/lore/past events/etc.

And the same goes for every other server with RPers too. We want to know what you're all up to! If it's in a discord that requires an invite link, a shared google doc, or tumblr, my first question's always gonna be "so how does a new person find out when/where/how RP happens on that server?" In my experience, that usually means checking the official forums, or searching, which usually brings up RPC on the top.

I know this, and have encouraged many to use the RPC for posting character profiles and FCs as well to both increase visibility and help alleviate the difficulties of searching through a Discord to find active and excellent FCs.

I'm only one voice among many, and I'm hoping with your incoming face lift people will feel more at home on the new site than this one and it'll encourage more activity. I personally have never used forums all that much, but I do still stop by to keep an eye on things and to try to catch any fresh faced people for Mateus and invite them to the Discord Smile

AkhutaiAngura · **12-01-2017, 02:50 AM**

So I read the first page, skimmed the middle pages, and read this last page.Â

IT seems that most of what people are talking about, or questioning, or whathaveyou is concerning the 'established' RP community and lack of newblood and whether or not thats good, right?Â

Here's my take on it.

I've been on Balmung since the first days of ARR. I was on.. Whatever the original server was called back in 1.0, too.. But, even having been around that long, I don't know if I'd ever say I hit the status of an 'established' RPer. I never felt like I could say with confidence that more than.. 20 people knew the name of whatever character was my active one at the time.Â

Now, this is mostly due to me of course - I'm pretty reclusive, quiet, I like to watch and I don't come out of my shell very often. My problems, not the servers problems.Â

I quit FFXIV for several months, twice. I dropped prior to HW, came back and played through 3.0, then left again due to no social ties keeping me here. Again, I'd failed to come out of my shell and make friends, which is what really will keep me coming back to a game like this.

Now, I'm back again - And at this point, after having been gone so long, I would almost consider myself 'new blood' to the server. I'm definitely not new to RPing, but I don't know who /anyone/ is, and am effectively new to literally every RP clique/group/whatever here... And honestly? It's overwhelming. It's scary. I know just about every RPer and every FC and every LS and every everything in the history of things says that they're open and inclusive and stuff.. But from the outside looking in, its very cliqueish. Everything thats here already is.. Here. IT's established. Storylines have been playing out for months, for years, and it's incredibly overwhelming trying to find something that you can just jump into the middle of and not be washed away in the flood of things.. And this fear, this overwhelming quality, might push a lot of returning players off of Balmung to MAteus or somesuch where the RP is more fresh, where storylines might seem 'new' and less.. Aged?Â

What I'm saying, I guess, is that I think there is a definite need for new blood, if only because of other new blood. I think it would be easier for me, if I could meet someone else in a similar situation.. Someone else who was 'new' to the server, whether due to returning to the game after a long hiatus or being actually new to the server.. Then that person and I would be in the same boat, and we'd be able to find that 'new' RP in each other. Begin to establish our own stories, that we could then begin to work our way into something else.Â

Take from that what you will.

Zhavi · **12-01-2017, 11:37 AM**

(12-01-2017, 02:50 AM)AkhutaiAngura Wrote: Take from that what you will.

Hm, maybe the issue is more that established players know how to find new/returning/unable to find niche players in order to start new storylines, whereas those new/returning/unable players go for groups and feel stuck when they can't find their people, because they can't make those connections fast enough.

Because while I met new people since the lock, and engaged in new stuff with them, I can also say that most of them were kinda on their last legs, so to speak, in feeling like they might need to move elsewhere for lack of being able to find others to mesh with.

Maybe my bias in being able to hunt people down for rp is really coloring my server experience beyond the norm for other people not as familiar with where and how to look, Iunno.

Skae · **12-01-2017, 12:10 PM**

(12-01-2017, 11:37 AM)Zhavi Wrote: Hm, maybe the issue is more that established players know how to find new/returning/unable to find niche players in order to start new storylines, whereas those new/returning/unable players go for groups and feel stuck when they can't find their people, because they can't make those connections fast enough.

Because while I met new people since the lock, and engaged in new stuff with them, I can also say that most of them were kinda on their last legs, so to speak, in feeling like they might need to move elsewhere for lack of being able to find others to mesh with.

Maybe my bias in being able to hunt people down for rp is really coloring my server experience beyond the norm for other people not as familiar with where and how to look, Iunno.

I think it is, at least in part, a case of long-established groups not really looking for more people to add to their group. It is not that they are opposed to adding new people as such, but more that they are not actively trying to find new people and are a bit wary of adding the "wrong" persons.

This means that the new people will have to work much harder to join an established group since they will have to be the sole driving force behind the recruitement process.

Newer groups however will often be much more open to add new people to their group. The relationships within the group will be less entrenched and thus new people will cause less disruption.
They will often actively try to recruit people who might be a good fit - making it much easier for new people to join.

Zhavi · **12-01-2017, 12:24 PM**

(12-01-2017, 12:10 PM)Skae Wrote: I think it is, at least in part, a case of long-established groups not really looking for more people to add to their group. It is not that they are opposed to adding new people as such, but more that they are not actively trying to find new people and are a bit wary of adding the "wrong" persons.

This means that the new people will have to work much harder to join an established group since they will have to be the sole driving force behind the recruitement process.

Newer groups however will often be much more open to add new people to their group. The relationships within the group will be less entrenched and thus new people will cause less disruption.
They will often actively try to recruit people who might be a good fit - making it much easier for new people to join.

I guess, too, I have never so much been inclined to find groups to rp with, for the most part -- while I'll help friends with theirs, I've always found that my favorite ff rp is when I find one or two people and establish our stuff for however it lasts until we reach the end and move on to other stuff (or, as sometimes happens, we drift apart or it doesn't quite come together).

But I guess if you're primarily interested in FC rp then yeah, I can see how that would be problematic.

Why don't more people who aren't already entrenched in a group start stuff together? Lack of desire to spearhead something? Or more a desire to become part of building something that's already started? Less risk?

AkhutaiAngura · **12-01-2017, 12:31 PM**

(12-01-2017, 12:24 PM)Zhavi Wrote: Why don't more people who aren't already entrenched in a group start stuff together? Â Lack of desire to spearhead something? Â Or more a desire to become part of building something that's already started? Â Less risk?

It takes a certain personality to keep things together, and I think by and large those of us who haven't found our groups to play with - Whether it be an FC or just a group of friends - Aren't of that 'leader' type personality. The one who sort of.. encourages the group down a given plot line or somesuch. The ingame DM as it were.

So, in joining with an FC, we're getting that 'leadership' personality to follow.

Skae · **12-01-2017, 12:31 PM**

(12-01-2017, 12:24 PM)Zhavi Wrote: Why don't more people who aren't already entrenched in a group start stuff together? Lack of desire to spearhead something? Or more a desire to become part of building something that's already started? Less risk?

Partly because they don't know each other, but mostly because most of them won't be the type of people who start groups and organize events and generally makes things happen. It is well known that it is a fairly small minority who actually does those things, and most of them will already be busy with one thing or another.

Starting a group is easy. Making it grow and become established requires a lot of work, and without someone doing that work, groups will generally fall apart fairly quickly.

Zhavi · **12-01-2017, 12:38 PM**

(12-01-2017, 12:31 PM)Skae Wrote: Partly because they don't know each other, but mostly because most of them won't be the type of people who start groups and organize events and generally makes things happen. It is well known that it is a fairly small minority who actually does those things, and most of them will already be busy with one thing or another.

Starting a group is easy. Making it grow and become established requires a lot of work, and without someone doing that work, groups will generally fall apart fairly quickly.

My thought is more that not every group has to grow to be big or established. It's one thing if you're looking for a big, established group to rp with -- I absolutely agree with you there -- but surely not everyone struggling to find new storylines wants or needs that in their rp? Small groups of 2 (if that counts) to 5 people are relatively easy to put together and work through rp plots. Too, I've tied such micro groups to larger fcs, when necessary.

But yeah, the failure rate when doing that is higher then trying to integrate into something with a core of people, probably (chachan pointed that out in chat). That counts as a barrier to entry, too.

Zen Ares · **12-01-2017, 01:09 PM**

I have a few friends who play on Balmung. I still remember earlier this year when I decided to take the jump and transfer a set of characters when I started up. Since there was a 3-day wait for new characters to be established for transferring. There was a game downtime of over a day and was going to transfer right after that, and that is when they locked Balmung down. Friends scampered about, and we settled on Faerie. I lost interest at that point due to not finding the type of RP I enjoy.Â

Fast forward five months or so and friends dragged me to Mateus. On an OOC level, I'm a bit of an introvert (not shy, but easily drained by too much interaction), so joining an FC is a major decision, of which I still haven't joined one. I'm happy with this because the server is largely open to walk-up / organic RP, and my character has become embroiled in several storylines. Fast forward and all but one of my friends moved on from FFXIV, but it's okay, because so far I've found RPers to be an approachable lot, and open to RPing with strangers.Â

For someone who enjoys an immersive, organic RP experience, Mateus has been wonderful. I do wonder if this playstyle has been cultivated due to our community being tucked away in a Discord environment. People post character profiles, looking for contacts, events and guilds in the Mateus RP channel, but I don't see people as reliant on it as with forum communities. Over the years, I've become disheartened by the trend of RPers desiring lots of OOC communication and needing to know the people, and their character's stories, before they'll roleplay with them. I just -really- like being able to RP without needing to "sell myself" and delve into a lot of OOC networking on forums toÂ get my characters noticed.Â

I will say that if Balmung ever does open up, it will probably end up problematic for me, as many of the people I know have characters on both servers and I fear they may move back, forcing me into a decision of staying or leaving if that happens. I try not to get ahead of myself! But I do enjoy Mateus RP in its current iteration.

Mermaid · **12-02-2017, 09:49 AM**

(12-01-2017, 02:50 AM)AkhutaiAngura Wrote: Now, this is mostly due to me of course - I'm pretty reclusive, quiet, I like to watch and I don't come out of my shell very often. My problems, not the servers problems.Â

I quit FFXIV for several months, twice. I dropped prior to HW, came back and played through 3.0, then left again due to no social ties keeping me here. Again, I'd failed to come out of my shell and make friends, which is what really will keep me coming back to a game like this.

Now, I'm back again - And at this point, after having been gone so long, I would almost consider myself 'new blood' to the server. I'm definitely not new to RPing, but I don't know who /anyone/ is, and am effectively new to literally every RP clique/group/whatever here... And honestly? It's overwhelming. It's scary. I know just about every RPer and every FC and every LS and every everything in the history of things says that they're open and inclusive and stuff.. But from the outside looking in, its very cliqueish. Everything thats here already is.. Here. IT's established. Storylines have been playing out for months, for years, and it's incredibly overwhelming trying to find something that you can just jump into the middle of and not be washed away in the flood of things.. And this fear, this overwhelming quality, might push a lot of returning players off of Balmung to MAteus or somesuch where the RP is more fresh, where storylines might seem 'new' and less.. Aged?Â

What I'm saying, I guess, is that I think there is a definite need for new blood, if only because of other new blood. I think it would be easier for me, if I could meet someone else in a similar situation.. Someone else who was 'new' to the server, whether due to returning to the game after a long hiatus or being actually new to the server.. Then that person and I would be in the same boat, and we'd be able to find that 'new' RP in each other. Begin to establish our own stories, that we could then begin to work our way into something else.Â

Take from that what you will.

Actually, I'm in a very similar situation where I would practically be considered new blood as well and it's why I've just been reading this thread instead of posting an opinion. I started playing FFXIV when Heavensward dropped and squeezed a character on Balmung maybe a year ago. At first I tried to find linkshells but didn't really do anything and quickly fell out of it for several months. Then Stormblood hit and I saw new roleplaying opportunities so I came back here and tried being active. The whole time I've had this character I've RPed like...3 times. My schedule gets weird, I get terrified and don't message people to set up RP when I should, I'm intimidated by in game RP due to my poor typing skills and focus problems, and, just like the post I'm quoting, the established RPers and plotlines seem like an impenetrable wall to us newbies.

Honestly though? I'm pretty sure 80-90% of those problems are me and not the lock or the server at all. I don't think the lock is a terrible thing either. It sucks and it's causing problems but I'm not really sure if there's much else that could be done about the issue. I also really doubt it's going to be the end of the RP community on Balmung anytime soon. The longer it goes the more RPers might thin out but there will always be returners, people rerolling old characters into new ones, and shy recluses, like me, hiding on the sidelines.

Seriphyn · **12-02-2017, 03:38 PM**

Oh boy, as an LS/FC leader on Balmung, this entire thread gives me anxietyÂ Laugh

For us, because we're so niche in playing hardcore Immortal Flames, the lack of new blood is killer. I do hope that Balmung opens up again in the future. I love my guys and many of you have seen our achievements in running the Eorzean Alliance group, but I get all maximizing and think "But what if you could get even BIGGER and BADDER on Mateus?!". It's irrational on my part, of course.

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[Discussion] The State of Balmung's Lockdown

RPC has moved! These pages have been kept for historical purposes