A few days ago I was doing some pretty fun and solid RP with a character who happened to be played by a mod, and we talked a bit afterwards OORP. I told them how grateful I was to be welcomed into the community and how much I was enjoying playing this silly game again that I love so much.
We briefly discussed any negative experiences that I'd had so far, and I told them that thankfully my experiences over the past month have been far more positive than negative. The mod was relieved to hear this, but said:
"cutting down on toxicity by harshly slapping players who create bad impressions and harass others is one of my #1 priorities as a mod right now, and we don't see everything."
I told them again that while there were some small things I'd seen that were unsavory, by and large my experience was very positive.
We continued to have a very positive and friendly conversation, and as we were signing off for the night, they added:
"I really appreciate you taking the time to report stuff, I genuinely love this community and want to see it continue to live and even grow. it's amazing that this clunky-ass unfinished game from 20 years ago still has so many players, and Discovery's been a big part of my life."
I couldn't agree with that mod more! I love this game too, and I have loved finding people that are passionate about it like me!
But this is the first time I've felt genuinely nervous on this server and forum. Slapping Doc with a warning when he has invested so much time and effort into his RP....an RP that has so much history and work put into it that I do not think it's feasible to compare his current version of Doc Holliday to the historical figure OR the movie character played by Val Kilmer in Tombstone. Our Doc's character is so fleshed out that he looks nothing like those figures.
Beyond that, however, as a new player......this is DEFINITELY something that gives me a negative early impression of the community and makes me hesitant to play.
Is it worth it to invest weeks...months........or in Doc's case YEARS into building RP only to have it blown up because a mod decides to read the rules differently than they have been for the previous 15 years?
As a new player, seeing a character played Doc Holliday makes me SMILE....it makes me grin and makes me happy that there is a playfulness to the server even among characters created by the mods.
As a new player....seeing players get warnings for silly names...but other players who are verbally abusive, swear at mods and admins, and constantly complain have nothing happen to them?
......that definitely leaves a bad impression and makes me feel like maybe this might not be the RP server for me.
And I don't want that. I really love this game, and I already enjoy some of the genuine connections I've made here.
