Stepping Forward

[Asaraa Vaashe]

Hey Guys,

We’re coming to the end of a well deserved break in May now, so we have to turn around and look to the future. The staff team have a few thoughts and ideas of what we want to do going forward but we wanted to know, what do all of you want to do? I know I say this a lot, but it really is your faction, and I’m just the caretaker.

So, a few areas I thought that people might want to weigh in on, and these are by no means the only ones… I think of them as guidelines.

1. Faction storyline:

We are, in the end, all here to RP, and the most important thing to think about is a story. We’re all here because we want to tell a cool story, but what form do you all want that to take? A lot of factions out there look at a storyline and try to craft something that the entire faction can get behind; after all, your faction’s storyline is the way that most people identify a faction. The CIC’s claim of the Core, Corellia’s idea of freedom and independence for the Corellian sector and a chance to set their own destiny. We could set ourselves as against the Sith Empire, or against the Mandalorians on our borders, or against slavery or darkness in the galaxy… or we could do it all. An idea I’ve been playing around with in my head has been to not focus on one big storyline, a Jedi order is too vast and varied to be easily defined by one thing, so I thought of a lot of smaller storylines going on at the same time. Slaving on one border, a Indiana Jones style search for a Sith temple etc.

2. PvP:

Of course, there is one kind of thread that no major faction is able to avoid, the PvP thread. This generally takes the form of a Skirmish or an Invasion. The SJO has spent the last few years in a passive mood when it comes to PvP: if someone attacks us, then we will deploy to defend ourselves; we protect and support our allies, but we never throw the first punch. As a faction, is this something we want to continue with, or would you like to see us take a more aggressive attitude to PvP and ‘enemy’ factions?

3. Faction threads:

One thing that we have been looking at is increasing the amount of faction threads we run. We already try to do one training thread every month, and try to create one story thread every month. These are either campaigns, stories people want to tell, or larger events. My question to you all is: do you want to see more faction stories as a focus, or keep a focus on Dominions and showing off our activity by increasing the size of the SJO’s presence on the map?

4. Groups within the order:

The next thought I had builds off the previous query: we have several smaller sub-groups within the order. These are groups like the Silver Circle (our healers and humanitarians), the Pathfinders (our scouts and explorers), The Rangers (our military), the Silver Shields (guardians and protectors). Would people be interested in threads specifically targeted at those subgroups, allowing them to expand on their lore and development?

5. Individual storylines:

The single most important role of any faction is you, the writer, and the stories you want to tell. So, what stories do you want to tell, how can the staff team help provide an environment for you all to tell the great individual stories you want to?

6. Any other business:

Is there something you’d like to see us do more of, less of? Is there a way you want us to frame our doms, elements you’d like to see more of?

Let us know what direction you’d like the faction and our threads to go in. After all, we're just here to make a better writing environment and community for all of you. The most important thing is to have fun out there and enjoy yourself, like Yoda.

​

Spoiler

[member="Drystan Marakos"]
@Asaraa Vaashe
[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]
[member="Reggie Faayare"]
[member="Eustachya"]
[member="Jasper Candos"]
[member="Varindar Asyt"]
[member="Jessica Med-Beq"]
[member="Matsu Ike"]
[member="Ostdern Mastogar"]
[member="Cyrus Nova"]
[member="Alyisa Mithel"]
[member="Josh Dragonsflame"]
[member="Gherron Dragonsflame"]
[member="Riamah"]
[member="Tara Creel"]
@Thalo Molidias
@Zak Dymo
[member="Tyluko Dubykee"]
[member="Rick Kaloo"]
[member="Valae Heavenshield"]
[member="Stephanie Swail"]
[member="Celeste Rigel"]
[member="Samara Raine"]
[member="Katarine Ryiah"]
[member="Pash Tafo"]
[member="Kiran Arlos"]
[member="Dagos Terrek"]
[member="Kei Amadis"]
[member="Mariya Fleischer"]
[member="Tom Taff"]
[member="Rachel Taff"]
[member="Kobi Fesser"]
[member="Celiana"]
[member="Briar Sulvi"]
[member="Jake Daniels"]
[member="Cassius Droma"]
[member="Ayla"]
[member="Nida Perl"]
[member="Veiere Arenais"]
[member="Dusaro Dresari"]
[member="Aida Aquila"]
[member="Sabine Galen"]
[member="Jairdain"]
[member="Ronak"]
@Milla Ordo
[member="Sigyn Vanir"]
[member="Gherron Dragonsflame"]
[member="Veiere Arenais"]
[member="Kahlil Zambrano"]
[member="Allya Vi'Dreya"]
[member="Tyrell Caphey"]
[member="Nesota Kynnovan"]
[member="Horus Arseneau"]
[member="Calithea Taff"]
[member="Caedyn Arenais"]
[member="Amon Vizsla"]

 

[Jake Daniels]

Guess I’ll jump in first. I’ll start off by saying I know I’m not the most active member but here are my two cents:

1) Faction Storyline: I like the idea of multiple objectives and not just being “against one thing” or “just for something” but meshing it all together. I know Jake could get behind the idea of abolishing slavery though his methods to do so would tie into his individual plot (see below)

2) I’ll be frank. I despise invasions and skirmishes. I just can’t get behind them at all. Too much chaos and drama from what I have experienced. For those that love it I am not knocking you at all but Jake won’t be apart of these going forward. It’s just not in his character or within his writers patience lol

3) Why not both? Show our presence on the map but also have faction threads that are necessarily about liberation or war; more solely about training. Faction threads that could be deeply personal for all those involved that allows for immense character growth. If played right you could tie these into pvp threads or dominion threads.

4) Id say let the groups in the faction build on their lore so long as it remains tied into the lore of SJO. Something I personally wouldn’t want is a “rogue wing” that goes off and does stuff as a group that’s against the factions ideology and philosophy.

5) This is my area. Private (and sometimes rarely) public threads where I can really bounce off another character. It’s small and easier for me to keep up with. Jakes story is currently trying to bridge his darkness with his light now that he’s lost his love (think deep codependency issues). Perhaps a roster of individual characters personality traits? Other members could skim through and find someone that sparks an interest and perhaps work out a thread between characters? That roster might be too much on the staff to try and maintain though.

6) I honestly don’t have anything.

Again just my two cents from a guy who is around but barely posts so take what I say with a grain of salt lol

-J.

 

[Celiana]

My issues are with #'s 2-5

2) Salt. So much Salt. In all honesty the SJO I feel is too passive when it comes to doms, skirmishes etc. One of my biggest things is when I've followed skirmish protocol and then get swarmed by bucketheads when I'd already discussed plan for storyline thing. Now I realize that plans change but Faction leaders randomly showing up with disruptor rifles and Gundams is osik. I feel with anything like that happening that Admins of respective factions NEED to back their RP'ers who've reached out to RP judges or the characters in question to edit or fix their stuff. I haven't had that which is why I've bounced out of most of them.

3) Sometimes less is more. Rather than spreading out a bunch of doms or whatever to get the shiny new SSD. Maybe focus on building connective story threads. Comics were fun as a kid since everything connected. Time to go back to imagination and fun vs number games I think.

4) 9/10 Groups within The Order fall apart. There are sometimes reasons for this. Whether it's a person takes on too much or to quote Bilbo feels like butter scraped over too much bread. If you feel overwhelmed step back let others help. I cite the Silver Shadows s an example. One person was running what was a major faction on top of trying to be leader of The Silver Shadows. They flamed out and a Major faction died and the Shadows died. That being said I do believe building lore on these groups helps there to be a common interest and a point to build off of.

5) Me time

I've built a solid backstory for my main. I want to continue building, what that entails is likely a padawan. Private threads are good as [member="Jake Daniels"] mentioned private threads are where great story and interactions can be found and created. I'm looking to continue character growth with an Anakin/Ahsoka or Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan vibe. (Anyone who read the Jedi apprentice series by Jude Watson will understand)

those are my thoughts.

-C

 

[Hunter Blackburn]

Despite possibly being in the minority when it comes to my stance on this I'd honestly say more Skirmishes or possibly even Invasions would be more fun. Part of the big draw about Star Wars is the battle between Light and Dark and you don't really get that all too much when you're only doing stories within the faction or other lightside factions. Sure you could get another darkside writer and do a 1 on 1 thread but it misses out on the grand engagements. Since joining the site I've been in a few skirmishes/Invasions/Event threads and by far those were the most fun I've had on the site and relatively low on salt.

 

[Coren Starchaser]

So, I'm not quite a super Silver. I'm... me, whatever. I work on the light side.

The points Asaraa is bringing up are all great. I don't want to step in too far on the story, but working with allies, especially the major and minors that lead towards freedom and Light sided stories. That kind of ties into faction stories, but if the thread power is there for PvE, go for the faction threads and the dominions, tell a cohesive story that builds between all of them.

And then there is my favorite topic. PvP. Chaos does have a history of salt, sure. But coming from the ORC and coming back for the end of the GA with Endgame, the PvP there has been fun. Its a matter of chit chatting with the other writers, and letting them know before hand what you're comfortable with. Want to write 2v1? Say that, if someone else wants to join, kindly state that you can't handle that kind of load. Talking prevents a lot of salt. Just like talking to your SO about whatever. This is a game, make it be a game, and that means fun. And as the major Light Side team right now, Jedi, Rangers, we have the power here to write the bigger light side party. Sure, it won't be a Republic, or Alliance type, but thats not what SJO is all about.

As for groups within the faction. That should develop naturally. Within the GA, we did a lot of smaller units and had a rule of it needing to be a group that was working together for a few threads with three or more people in it. Then you weren't burning bandwidth to include them on some list.

Just some things to think about.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

1) Multiple storylines is definitely best for the style we run. One thing I'm definitely interested in doing though, is leading the newly annoited Silver Shields on a campaign to severely weaken if not eradicate most of the presence of slavery within Silver Space. Going after camps, disrupting sales, tracking them to their sources and shutting them down, I feel like that would be a pretty fun thing to run for the Shields.

2) I feel like our being so passive is part of our identity. I want to continue that. Having a faction that isn't constantly at war and doing invasions (Which are stressful on all involved, let's be honest here) is one of the breaths of fresh air that has defined us as a faction and made us attractive to members. But I do think we can afford to laxen that rule a bit depending on the circumstances. Should someone attack us repeatedly in other matters without outright invading, it may be justified to shut them down if it makes sense to IC. Technically, the first shot would have already been fired after all, and not by us. The first major shot, though...

3) Continuing to develop on the avenues we've got is a good way to go here. I definitely encourage more and more members to create more story threads and training threads themselves to contribute to the overall activity of the faction, and interact with your peers and tell stories. This is a team effort, after all.

4) Yes.

5) I run my own stories and the faction members have been helpful in advancing them, which I am happy about. I'd like if we broadcasted more to the members that we do so.

 

[Lynette Lykova]

Storyline: Sure. Especially if it involves smaller threads.

PvP: It's an opportunity. Creating opportunities is healthy.

Faction: Silly socials are my fav.

Sub-Groups: If it feeds the greater faction, it can only help. If it's a call for independence, ignore. Lulz.

Other: Co-op with other Jedi groups.

 

[Eugen Aker]

I've been out a while, so I don't really know the current situation with the SJO, but I can offer some general tips as a former admin.

Faction Threads:

I think it's a good idea to aim for one or two large tentpole threads every month, and then a handful of smaller threads involving 3-5 writers. In my experience it's the small intimate stuff that keeps people hooked.

Going into June, I think you guys have the big threads covered with the upcoming Prom event, as well as whatever Dom is dropped for that month. I've also seen a few small group threads pop within the last few days, so they should be promoted if they aren't already (especially if they're made by new members). You don't want to throw out too much stuff so people don't get overwhelmed.Honestly, considering the general activity of the site atm, the SJO seems to be in a good spot right now.

For greater exposure and variety, I do encourage cross faction interaction, be it PvP, PvE campaigns with other factions, or just jumping into public threads as they pop up (or dropping one ourselves). Currently, as far as Majors go, I see the CIC and Corellians (particularly the Green Jedi) offering the best opportunities because of their proximity and interests as fellow Core powers.

Just speaking for myself, I'd like to see some more Trek-style exploration/mystery threads, as well as small scale stuff like regular crime. Hutt Space is our backyard, so we have a good setting for the latter.

PVP

When it comes to PVP, the SJO has always been passive, which has always been one of its major draws. People like joining the SJO to focus on character development in relaxed atmosphere where we're not fixated on the map game. If you wanted to crusade, you'd join the Republic, Rebels, GA, etc.

That said, having a few PvP events can be a good thing, as long as we're coordinating well with whoever would be the opposition. A PvP event wouldn't necessarily have to be a straight up battle, but perhaps something more story focused dealing involving intrigue and politics.

I actually miss that we don't have officially have Conquests anymore, because now we have a situation where the mechanic can be put to good use (though I think a special arrangement could be worked out with board admins if everyone was on board).

Sub-Groups

I think some specific threads for the Rangers would be nice, and I see one going on right now, but I wouldn't worry too much about Jedi sub-divisions because of all the overlap. I think you'd be good designating specific objectives in doms and large threads to each sub group to tackle.

Speaking of which, are the Shadows inactive again?

[member="Asaraa Vaashe"]

 

[Kontra Adidius]

I'm pretty new to this whole Silver Jedi hoopla, but I think I can pitch in to this discussion.

Faction Threads

Coming from the CIS a larger cohesive story for a faction to follow has always been something I've wanted to see. I'm not sure if it's common place here but I'd certainly look forwards to seeing some kind of PvE threat that the SJO has to take care of. An anti-slaver/organized crime story might work out well I think. Given that from what I know Nar Shaddaa is in SJO domming trajectory and picking a PvE fight with the Hutts would be interesting and could even pull up some kind of Sith conspiracy since from my understanding TSE has slavery. There could also be some interesting interactions considering that the Jedi kinda just allowed slavery in the past with the Old Republic.

PvP

I think a proper skirmish is the way to go. That way it can provide those thirsty for some PvP an outlet to do so and not have really high stakes as far as faction wide outcomes go. As far was doing it against Sith or Mandos. I would put my vote in for Sith since I feel like a conflict between two Force Orders would be cool. Also since it could be a skirmish I feel like there's far less stress and worrying to come from it and can kinda just be a story that writes itself ideally with out much need for taking too much creative muse to fuel it.

What would be cool is if we could do both. A skirmish kinda acting like a side project while the larger story plays out.

The other stuff I'm kinda "meh" on since they can be fleshed out more just through standard faction engagement.

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

While I'm not as active as I used to be, I have to say the following:

PvP: This is the main LS faction that we have that can actually cater to those writers more interested in character development and other RP venues that don't involve heavy fighting. So we should stay the current course in that matter, and not to seek it out too much. That said, we had bad experiences with PvP threads in the past.

Sub-groups: We need to examine how much each of those sub-groups overlap and maybe merge some of them if the overlap is significant. I don't think more subgroups would be a good thing in this current context.

 

[Asaraa Vaashe]

So, to summarise the thread

More focus on small stories rather than one big faction story-line seems to be what people are interested in so as we go forward well try to keep that in mind, building the threads into Doms and other types of threads for the faction. If anyone has any ideas of the stories they'd like to see please let us know.

PvP seems to be one where there are a lot of differing opinions, which is a good thing, it's bound to be one of those topics. The trend seems to be towards not being massively focused on the map game, but some set up threads could be something to look at. I'll be coming back to talk to people about this as we go forward

Group wise, I'll let the groups develop organically, and as Jess and Jyoti said, we don't need to focus too much on that, after all it's fun to be able to do everything you want to without being locked down too far.

For the personal threads, we have a mission board up now for people to use to look for other faction members to write with.

As always, if you have any thoughts, questions, complaints or ideas or you just wanna chat and shoot the breeze please feel free to reach out to contact me or the rest of faction staff.