Newcoming Help Handbook

[Discovery Freelancer Tutorials]

The Angels Handbook
4.86 Update 6, September 2012 revision

Main purpose of this document is to help newer Angels in getting familiar with the general responsibilities of the faction, and also help them with getting started in the faction and learning about the common ways used by other faction members to help new players. However, this document can also be helpful for anyone willing to join the faction by giving them a clearer view of what they'll be up to if they apply and become an Angel. We are trying our best to keep this document up to date, so anyone can feel free to direct any feedback or suggestions regarding this document to me via forum PM, however, keep in mind that the general feedback regarding the faction performance should be posted in our feedback thread.

» Welcome to the Angels & here's a hint which might save your sanity.

Unlike many other factions here on Discovery, the recruitment process is actually the easiest part of becoming an Angel. So, if you've managed to pass the recruitment and become an Angel, congratulations, but the main challenge is just about to begin. As an Angel, you'd be helping fellow players both through PM and local in-game, and every now and again you'll get multiple PMs from different players at the same time. The one thing that'd help you in keeping things under control and answering every question properly is correct use of in-game chat commands. Most Angels find it useful to use /fm instead of /r, because if another player PMs you right before you hit enter while using /r command to reply, he would be the one receiving your PM instead of the player you were trying to answer. That is why if you receive a PM from Trader_Bob, using "/fm er_b" to reply would make it much safer than /r, as you can be sure he receives your PM.

In other cases, if you see you're going to be talking with another player for longer than a couple of lines, while you're already in group with someone else, you can use the /pm$ command to help you reply faster. The way to use this command is using the /ids command to check said player's slot ID and then putting it in front of /pm$ when replying, and that way you can be sure he receives the PM instead of someone else the way which might happen with /r. So for example, if Miner.Jimmy's ID shows as 42 using /ids command, you can reply using /pm$ 42. This way, with combining /fm, /pm$, regular PM and group chat, you can answer to more than half a dozen of questions at the same time.

Last but not least, you might get some questions which you're not sure about the answer. Cases like this are one of the main reasons we have a skype chat for the members. Using the Angels skype chat, you can always make sure about the proper reply to any question you might get before actually replying in-game, which would make sure new players won't get confused and will also prevent any possible misunderstanding.

» Angels & our own style of "teamwork".

Every faction and group in Discovery is about teamwork, but where other factions focus on getting as many ships online at any given time, Angels have a different style of doing it. Having more than one Angel online at a time, despite looking cool, has proven to be unnecessary unless one Angel can't keep up with all the questions. That's why the Angels instead should try and spread their shifts through the day to cover as much time as possible, as that would be the most useful and that is why the Angels are encouraged to drop a line in the skype chat when they want to pull a shift, so other Angels would know that time span is covered and plan their shift for another time of the day. This way, if three Angels want to go online in one day, instead of going online together and Angeling for 2 hours, leaving the rest of the day with no Angel coverage, they can spread throughout the day instead, covering 6 hours instead of 2, resulting in more effective shifts.

» Probation period & all you need to know about it.

Each new Angel should spend one month under probation to make sure they're the right person for the job. Responsibilities and privileges of these Angels are the same as anyone else within the faction but with one minor difference. Angels under probation are not granted Neutral IDs and should use the Recruit ID and a ship within that ID's limitations, and additionally, they'll be asked to upload a chat log of their shifts to the skype chat, using a Pastebin document. The Neutral ID will be given to the new Angels once they pass the one month probation period. This period, despite the way it might sound like, is not a "qualification round" and everyone would pass it unless they prove to be totally unsuitable for the job, so there's nothing about the first month to feel uncomfortable about, as it's just there to help you get used to the questions by pointing out simpler and clearer answers if other Angels see the need.

To explain the first month in the faction in a step-by-step manner, here's what an Angel should do since the time they get accepted into the faction:

1. Create a character named [Angels]<Name>
   - Which preferably should be your forum name, but exceptions might occur.
   
2. Do a /restart Liberty to get a neutral rep with Liberty factions
   - So you get a neutral repsheet to your main area of operation as an Angel.
   
3. Buy any ship you want within the restrictions of Recruit ID
   - The ID only allows fighters and freighters, but use of Camera Ship is extremely encouraged.
   
4. Park your ship on Planet Erie, Pennsylvania and get ready for your first shift.
   

1. Once you've set up your ship, you can start Angeling just like any other member of the faction, so being a new member wouldn't have any restrictions for you.
   
   
2. Make sure you have -logchat added to your commandline options.
   - This will make sure you'll get the DSAce log after you're done with your shift.
   
3. Pull a shift but don't push it.
   - Spending time on your Angel character, especially during the first few months, can be really tiring and even though newer members are excited about logging their Angel ship and helping other players, they're usually recommended to take a break every hour or two so they don't get exhausted and lose interest after a few weeks.
   
4. Upload the log to Pastebin and post it in the Angels chat.
   - Once you're done with your shift, copy the chatlog from your DSAce.log file to Pastebin and post it in the Angels chat. This will only help you in your future shifts as other Angels who have been doing this for a longer time will give it a read and will share their experience with possible suggestions.
   

 

» Regular shifts & how we help new players.

The key of being a helpful Angel is being friendly toward anyone who approaches you for help. You should answer every question in a friendly tone and simply explained, to prevent confusions. When you're on your Angel, you'll get different types of questions regarding different aspects of rules and gameplay, but the most important task is helping new players getting started. Most new players who've already been on the server for a day or two use missions or trade runs in their starter ships to make cash, so letting them know that there are much faster ways of making cash is always a good small-talk to attract their attention. Once they've accepted to let you show them how to get started, here's the usual routine the Angels take:

1. /restart beginner
   - Tell them about the restart command and then ask them to do a miner restart, let them know they'll be kicked from the server so they don't panic or get confused.
   
2. Mine Helium
   - Accompany them to the field then show them how to mine, and preferably stay there while they mine their first cargo of Helium as it'd be a good time to tell them about the general RP guidelines of the server and direct them toward the forums, telling them to read the server rules posted in the rules subforum.
   
3. Sell on Emlenton Storage & Exports
   - Once they're full, tell them to sell the cargo on Emlenton Storage & Exports (Which is an USI affiliated player base located at E-F 4, buying Helium for 835sc per piece.) and head back to the field to mine another load of Helium. This can also be a good opportunity to tell them about player-owned bases and explain their role in the general gameplay of the server.
   

We don't, however, give money to new players on our Angels except in cases when another player donates a sum and asks the Angel to give the cash to newbies, or when someone has a solid enough knowledge of RP and server rules (Mostly those who move to GC from other Discovery RP servers), so in case a newbie asks for money, proper approach would be showing them how to make cash instead of giving them a few millions.

Last point you should keep in mind is, even though Angels are an ooRp group and using ooc chat is not a rule violation for us, keeping all the ooc to PM is still the better choice, both to show people they should use PM for their ooc messages and also make sure presence of an Angel won't disturb the RP in the area.

» We are Not the "Server Police".

This is the main thing you need to keep in mind as an Angel. We're here to help other players understand the rules better, not to enforce the rules. Avoid going into arguments with people or rule-lawyering them. If someone asks for a rules clarification, help them out. If you notice someone doing something wrong (Like using a wrong ID or no ID at all, which is the most frequent case), point it out in a friendly manner, but don't argue with them or try to force them into agreeing with you. We're here to help, and if someone cannot or does not want to be helped, it won't be our responsibility anymore.

» Final notes & a little heads-up.

Apart from being the "helper faction", we're server's "welcoming committee" as well, so always act friendly toward new players and welcome them to the server if you see their starflier undocking from Erie. A proper approach from an Angel might increase their interest in the community and make them want to be a part of it instead of just flying around shooting NPCs. Try your best to help new players as well as you can and always be patient, as you might get asked the most stupid questions, but always keep in mind that you, as an Angel, were also once a newbie and didn't know even the most basic things, so no matter how simple a question might sound, answer it like any other question.

Lastly, you have to keep in mind that this is not a job. Know your limits regarding the time and effort you put on your Angel char, and if you feel like needing a rest, don't stay on your Angel as apart from the negative effects a tired Angel might leave on other players, spending too much time and putting so much energy in your Angel shifts can prove harmful to your general interest in Disco and on top of that, your general health.

That said, welcome aboard and good luck.

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