Canon Company Feedback and Discussion

[Cira]

I've seen the evolution of Canon Companies since we brought them into fruition at the birth of the board. There are many strong opinions on the matter and we kept them because of the nostalgia factor.

However, personally, reviewing the rules and regulations with canon companies, why bother with one? You can work so hard and do all the requirements to tier up to Tier 6, only to be gone for 30 days and have someone else try to take your company. And if in 72 hours you do not respond, you lose it.

Why would anyone want to do that? Why not just create your own personal company and tier it up without the fear that if you go away for one month, someone else might have taken it?

Then there is also the whole concept of new members interested in canon companies but see that they are taken. A large majority of these canon company owners show little to no activity and otherwise 'sit' on them for whatever reason. Not sure myself how fair this is.

We used to have canon company check ins, but that became tedious. Some have suggested we just do away with the canon companies, others are happy where they are at, and others say it isn't fair a few keep canon companies that aren't that active at all.


So, what are your thoughts on canon companies? Where should we go from here? Should there be change?

What say you?

 

[Sanya Val Lerium]

Well tbf it's just a name. So what if the name comes from Canon. If someone wants to run a canon company but it's taken then make it like the one you want. I think the canon companies should be treat like normal companies. It's not really limiting anyone's creativity at the end of the day.

 

[Fatty]

I don't use canon companies at all, but I almost wonder if Canon companies would benefit from multiple owners, or "shareholders" between multiple writers. That way everyone gets a little taste, and its easier to replace and reintegrate any individual that goes in active, or goes away for a period of time before coming back.

Besides, most companies exchange their CEO's every once in a while anyway, and it isn't like companies are usually dictatorships, they've got boards of directors and such.

This way, you only have to keep a registry of what Canon companies we've accepted, that have a team working on them. Then say, every six months you check in on everyone, poke 'em a little to see if they respond. In all likelihood I'd imagine them to be more autonomous anyway, with their own open sign up's for anyone who is interested in participating, or pitch an submission item at them for them to develop.

Just a thought.

 

[Republic Engineering]

[member="Fatty"] - You stole the words right out of my mouth. lol

 

[Junko Ike]

I built up my company higher then the canon company I control. It is fun either way honestly and the big name companies (blastech, seinar, corellia) ones that are big and galaxy spanning or make the things everyone uses. Those are the ones people want and that change hands more often. Seeing them get built up, change hands and lose several tiers and then built back up is a little strange.

and that idea from Fatty is better the what I could think of. nice work

 

[Jorus Merrill]

I just got done writing a canon company for a year. I enjoyed the history and IC connections and old designs and freedom to build a strong foundation in iconic elements. To me it was worth it, as much fun as building my own or more. Now I've de-canonized my company by changing its name, so anyone else who has interest in that setting can have a chance to play with it.

I'm not sure, though, of the extent to which my experience is generalizable​.

 

[Mishel Kryze]

I don't use canon companies at all, but I almost wonder if Canon companies would benefit from multiple owners, or "shareholders" between multiple writers. That way everyone gets a little taste, and its easier to replace and reintegrate any individual that goes in active, or goes away for a period of time before coming back.

Besides, most companies exchange their CEO's every once in a while anyway, and it isn't like companies are usually dictatorships, they've got boards of directors and such.

This way, you only have to keep a registry of what Canon companies we've accepted, that have a team working on them. Then say, every six months you check in on everyone, poke 'em a little to see if they respond. In all likelihood I'd imagine them to be more autonomous anyway, with their own open sign up's for anyone who is interested in participating, or pitch an submission item at them for them to develop.

Just a thought.

Please, this would be amazing! (would also make all those trading floors I keep creating have a real purpose). I support this!

 

[Popo]

I have my canon company and, really, the only reason I snagged it was because it fit this character's background and had a nice, murky history that I could use in RP. The canon ship/weapon/item designs were nice and gave it a sort of... theme? I guess? But mainly I snagged it because it made sense. If anything, it's less a canon company and more of a canon crime syndicate with a corporate label.

Personally, I see nothing wrong with how it stands today. Someone wants it, decides to go for it, and puts up a sub for it. If the owner doesn't respond in that 72 hours (or a reasonable amount of time in the event of a LOA announcement), then the new guy/gal gets it. For the person coming back and losing their company... well, it happens. Relabel the place and get back to it. iirc, you still keep your old subs, so that's a thing.

 

[Onith Trill]

My biggest concerns.


1: It's too easy to keep a Canon Company.

At present no actual work in the company is required to own it. If someone is claiming a part if canon as a tool that only they are able to write with, advance, and mold they should use it. Having a Canon Company sit at tier 2 because someone wants it but doesn't want to work with it is a disservice to the players who want to play the company game with a canon entity.

2: Renaming Canon Companies

A big pet peeve of mine. If someone has claimed "Canon Company X" no one else can make or use a company with that name. A name that can very well be a part of canon that people enjoy, appreciate, and value. When "Canon Company X" is renamed to "Cool Other Company Name" and still claimed as a canon company it robs the userbase and the setting of a set piece of it's roots.

 

[Darth Pyrrhus]

I'm fine with this going either way. Pyrrhus owns a canon company, but that came about mostly as a "You want a slave company? Why, just take over this already established one here!" And for the longest time I was guilty of not doing anything with it. Now I'm slowly moving my way towards tiering it up. Although the following suggestion won't affect me greatly (as the company is just Tier III), if Chaos moves away from dealing with canon companies, I'd like for there to be a way for current canon company owners to re-sub effectively the same type of company and keep whatever Tier and progress they had made.

Probably this would be done anyway, but I felt like it ought to be said.

 

[Jairus Starvald]

[member="Onith Trill"]

For 2) I am reasonably sure that if someone renames their company away from their canon name, they automatically release the name back into the pool.

 

[Darth Metus]

A long time ago, it was suggested that canon companies be done away with, and instead writers could start new entities with canon-inspired names. This way, there would never be an OOC driven break that deprives themed factions of iconic items again (remember that X-wing affair?)

Furthermore, I think that the ability to lose one's work due to things happening behind the screen is silly. Coming off an LOA to see one's efforts taken from under them really kills the desire to write on the board. Having lived it, I wouldn't wish that on any fellow writer; especially if they did the grind to a high tier.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

Never bothered to RP a canon company, seems like a lot of work. Although recently I've been thinking of claiming Aquatic Ecosystems,Incoporated once my non canon company hits/gets closer to Tier 6.


Sharing a company seems interesting, also could turn into a rain of salt city. However it could create some awesome opportunities for RP for those who are interested in companies or might not want to dedicate the time. I'm always pro-company RP so if it did increase activity in this area, I'm all for it.

 

[Jak Skirata]

You can work so hard and do all the requirements to tier up to Tier 6, only to be gone for 30 days and have someone else try to take your company. And if in 72 hours you do not respond, you lose it.

I don't even know why that was implemented...Its not like Canon companies get a boost or boon and no other Canon items have such restrictions haha

They should have been treated like they were when companies first rolled out...just like any other company. Like someone else said, its just a name. But this is also a story board that prides itself on freedom and the "first come, first served" mentality with pretty much everything from canon items to dominons. I think its silly and a pain for everyone involved to treat Canon companies any different from canon items. If the name's taken, its taken. If you want the company build your own and make a tempting offer.

 

[Onith Trill]

[member="Onith Trill"]

For 2) I am reasonably sure that if someone renames their company away from their canon name, they automatically release the name back into the pool.

It may have changed, I'll admit I'm only recently back into the loop. I just remember a few examples of "oh, I own this company but I re-named it _____"

 

[Kana Truden]

I am not readily available for discussion for the next few days, but I just wanted to lean into the discussion to say I really don't like players claiming canon companies and that, if anything, I think they should be public domain as far as who can create items for it goes.

That means:

Player A wants to own it but they cannot. Player A can however be a subsidiary of Canon Company Ltd. and then break off from the company in a company update.

Player B however just has a nice idea they like. They have a new X-Wing or similar, and therefore they submit an X-Wing for Incom to sell that everyone who wants to use can then use. They keep the rights to this submission in the sense that they made it and therefore they can also pull it from Incom's list of items that are for sale and such fanciful things.

 

[Captain Larraq]

I picked a canon company because I wanted to use the canon stories and material as a launch point from which to theme my creations and stories. In that regard, I picked the least powerful and least well-known of the three canonical Mandalorian companies and set off with the goal of out-performing the other two companies in Technological Superiority (in the factory) and political/economic might (roleplayed importance).

It was fun, it shaped nearly my entire stay on the board, and it helped my company gain attention and recognition. I held a name that people recognized, I stuck to the theme (mostly), and served as an IC roleplay element that many people were excited to have their characters interact with.

Also, keep in mind that I was very new to play-by-post roleplay and writing in general when I joined Chaos. The fact that the company I picked had canon sources material to draw from served as a near-endless and invaluable writing prompt for me. And while it's true that I may have held onto it for longer than I should have, there are always plenty of canon companies laying around waiting to be used. Especially if you are willing to look at the smaller and less well-known ones.



That being said... The idea of a shareholder system for the largest canon companies could be interesting. Possibly make a list of qualifying canon companies (Rendili, Mon Cal Shipyards, Kuat, MandalMotors, Sienar, exc) always Tier 5, 6, or 7 and anyone who wants to be a CEO/shareholder in the company submits a request through the company factory. That new shareholder has an "Influence Tier" of 1 or 2. And even though they represent the large canon company, they can only wield the assets of a small portion of it until their influence tiers up via roleplay, factory activity, and trade. The canon company could start out at Tier 5 and grow with the influence level of its highest ranking shareholder until topping out at Tier 7 with 2+ shareholders at Influence Tier 6.

For metagame/protecting OOC IP/Submissions from being used/abused by anyone, IC copyrights to submissions could belong to the R&D department of the shareholder that created the submission and other shareholders must obtain permission to use said copyrighted submissions.

This could be done with all canon companies, or just the biggest.

 

[Matreya]

Personally, I dont see the idea as much a risk. People enjoy role-playing that they own(ed) some of the galaxies most powerful corporation. Even if it is no longer at its peak. Its that, "My stick is bigger" mentality i believe.

However, i do agree with the shareholder idea. I actually implemented it with [member="Jorus Merrill"] and his characters. The end result over time was he became majority holder, and what happened? Name change, moving, etcetera. It was still my company, i still got to say, "I maed dis, dis mienz" but he also got the joy of taking something and making it different. Helping it to grow. I also got to watch my company becomes unique even more so.

Why not implement this here? Give the companies that have multiple parties vying for ownership, equal sets of shares. This first of all gives way more time for the actual owner to return. Add a limit before "board of directors X" decides next major shareholder becomes CEO.

 

[Tefka]

BAN EM ALL

 

[Seris Caine]

BAN EM ALL

This.

Kidding.

But in all seriousness I don't know what the focus on canon items is all about. All of that stuff is antiquated, and honestly, what does owning Luke's lightsaber or Han's jacket do for you? Holocrons are different because they can actually teach you things, but lightsabers, pistols, coats, armor, companies? Just... why the focus?

But I agree with Cira's sentiment. Why put all that work into something you can lose if you have to go on a hiatus for some reason? They do happen.