My opinion on what has been happening on the site.

It has come to my attention on the past few days of the arguments that we as a community have started. We been arguing with mods and complaining about how the nerfs have been evil and that they are too much. We have complained to mods that Ambushing is the most broken thing on the site is needed. We have been like an angry mob surrounding the homes of the mods and admins threatening to torch their houses for rules that were being recently introduced. Mods have had to respond in kind be being the iron fist of the law on people. And thus the vicious cycle is continuing over again. Each time it gets worse and worse until we are nearly at war.

This needs to stop. Now.

We as a community need to stop pointing fingers at the mods and telling them they are the most evil people on the site for rebalancing your apps. There are reasons why this is being done. A lot of the apps on the site have been outdated, reviewed badly or missed some details. It happens, we are human and make mistakes. We all have reality to deal with and sometimes the focus is not put 100% in the apps. Maybe the magic wouldn't have existed in first place, but somehow slipped by. Mistakes are made, no system is perfect. What we can do is strive and attempt to reach that state.

The Ambush Rules is something that I support (shocker I know because my alts been invade crazy), but its not an attempt to doom people. It is interaction of 2 or more players trying to achieve their objectives in a form of competition. As memory serve it was the Dark Guilds that suggested this form of PvP in the first place. When I saw this at first my initial reaction was, "Ooh Dark Guilds can start doing their jobs and wreck peoples lives like the evilness that they are." I was expecting Darkies to gather up in posses and take out a whole guild by pure invasions. It was meant to be an equalizer and people have squandered it. So all that happens now is the few that invade are Rune Knights busting Darkies butts because they take no initiative. I want to see Nakiyas Dark Celestial Spirits tearing Fairy Tail a new one or Za'cha Requip + Death reaping the souls of Lamia Scale. Remember Darkies you have one advantage us legals don't have: Unity.

Ambush rules have been a good thing for things that I have noticed while invading were people have broken apps. At one point I found someone at C-rank could rip holes into reality, strip your character butt naked and teleport all around the map without a cooldown. This was how bad we have gotten back then and while the man was nerfed (leaving the site afterwards because he couldn't come to an agreement with an admin) the effects this had was evident. Which led to the next topic I am ranting about...

...Nerfing

To all you admins and mod I want to say OH GOD THANK YOU! This was something that I wanted to happen for a long time and even suggested doing to several mods and admins (wont name them) after the PvP's I had. Oh I hear you wonder, "Well Katherine, why would you support such a thing if your magic app is so OP as well?" My answer dears is balance, fairness and for the sake of the site keep you peeps happy ^_^. Like all reviews apps are graded differently based on point of view and some may have been harsher than others. It happens, we make mistakes both players and mods. Tempers get hot when we realize we cant get what we want, but again its for fairness of the site. But instead of support we have been chewing them out and breaking their spirit. Mods have recently quit their jobs and this workload is going to be harder now.

Which comes to the mods... Do you realize how thankless of a job this is? Instead of having fun and RPing in the site like us happy normal people, they need to review your apps, magic, job, pvp, jewel purchases and deal with complaints on a daily basis. One mod even claimed being gone for an hour and having 100 notices in his message box. Its insane. It's not fun. And they are not getting paid for this. They made a sacrifice for you all for the benefit of the whole site and you have repaid them by sucker punching them and kicking them on the floor. I know not all of you, but certain members sure have. And it is utterly unfair to mods and yourselves.

What have your actions done with all this complaining? You are hardening and jading their personalities which in turn makes them more harsher with their rulings. You guys are instigating this vicious cycle where you complain and they harden the rules more. These people are human and any disagreements can be talked out like gentlemen until a middle ground is formed. I have done it many times on this site and it has been pure creative gems. Excellent plots and some mods and admins will actually buff your apps when they feel it necessary. They can be very nice or biggest jerks.

This in no way is letting mods and admins off the hook either. Your responses have also been less than perfect (Not all mind you) and have allowed this to happen. You all need to take a deep breath and relax for a bit. You are all running yourselves ragged. It is perfectly fine taking a day off to go back to posting with the rest of us. You guys should be able to reap what you sow. What you guys need to stop doing is acting like the military police state. If you need to walk away for a couple minutes or do something else then fine, but please don't rip it out on other people. We are supposed to look up to you all for wisdom, not the lash.

And finally the cbox... Why the hell do you guys insist to inflict drama so much? This is a site and a game, not a place for politics and scheming (Unless it is plot related). Complaints, anger or site improvements go in the Suggestions here or in PM's. Hell skype is perfect for putting in your complaints direct to mods and mins. What gathering together a posse and whining in cbox is doing is repelling potential new members that we could be getting and keeping. They do not want to see this and neither do we. It is also not the place to start arguments or threatening to beat crap out of someone IC. Those with Cbox mod powers, don't be afraid to break up fights or use the banhammer on these fools.

We are a family. We will argue and bicker. We will fight. And we will have arguments, do not let the few ruin the fun for the many. It is okay to be a Power Player and take Pride in your app. You have every right to do that, but not when it can ruin the fun of others. I am a Power Player (shocker I know right?), but even I have come to realize that this next request is needed not for my selfish reasons but for sake of the whole site....

And so with this, I personally request https://www.fairytail-rp.com/t9284-storm-goddess-slayer to be taken down, reviewed and nerfed as needed. My only request while doing this is that I have a mod that I never had a history with or had an app graded from to provide best and unbiased review (which if memory serves is either Kihia or Aedre). I will back up my words and lead by example. I will talk with the mods until an agreement is made, even if it costs my chance at acquiring Wizard Saint in a duel with Kirahunter (which you have every reason to be yelling NERF after my post).

I ask that as a player, friend, RPer and most of all a person that to remain calm. And show your support to the mods, admins and the site as a whole. We should be asking what benefits the site more and not what benefits yourself. There is not that many forum RP sites anymore and I would hate to see this die due to infighting, selfishness, greed and anger.

Happy New Years.

Thank you Katherine for taking the first step on this situation in an approachable manor. I would just like to say I agree with pretty much everything you have written here. I have a few things to say however writing my thoughts down really isn't something I am well at, so here is a jumble of words...

I know there has been a lot of arguing in the site recently and to be honest I am not very happy with that. I think people are being rather disrespectful to the members of staff here because they are trying their best to do their job. And yeah, the system we have isnt perfect. So? The mods and other members of the site are trying their best to sort this out and it will definitely take several attempts to find a better solution. So before we find that final solution people need to calm down.

Also like Katherine said, complaints really need to be kept to private conversations either over skype, PMs or some other form because it takes away the fun for most people in the chat box. Oh and if you have a problem do not target the mods individually and point out their flaws, I think that is an awful thing to do when they are trying their best.

And have you people who are complaining about this ever really offered any help or suggestions on the matter? The suggestions I have seen have not always been conveyed in a polite and respectful manor, this needs to change because no one wants to deal with difficult people. If you want your voice to be heard then you need to go about it the right way and be open minded.

But above everything I have said here, thank you to all of the mods who every day log into this site and deal with a hurricane of notifications, PMs and complaints on the chat box. Remember mods have real lives to. So if Kyll doesn't reply to your PM because she is cooking dinner for her kids? Suck it up sunshine and don't rant in the chat box about it~

So yeah, thank you mods for your hard work *smiley face and a thumbs up* Hang in there~

Boom

I post here simply to keep the logic active as kat and ama have kinda said what needs to be said.

I still think staff should specialize itself more.

Have people who exclusively do character apps and people who exclusively do magic apps. and a single person to run each (so two people both of which are admins).

Support.

All of the above.

I also agree, although, some people should be strong that is what separates different characters. However, must be done without favoritism, which is the hardest part. Good luck on all that jazz.

I for one am happy the way Khia helped me make my magic app. Some have said I am beyond weak but I have found, that since I am D-rank I'll work it out. Just gotta have that willpower.

Whilst I do agree with the general message you are trying to convey, as well as the overarching theme of "Let's all just calm the heck down", there are some specific connotations and pieces of information I don't agree with or I think are flat out wrong.

I won't try to instigate a debate, since gee whiz I would be contradicting my agreement with the point you are trying to make, but as a former moderator AND a current regular member, I want to focus on this: "Which comes to the mods... Do you realize how thankless of a job this is?". Right off the bat I want to say you're wrong. I felt quite thanked by a multitude of people. One of them happened to be yourself. But there were many others who tried to convey their gratitude on a daily basis. Of course there were others, but you know, it all balanced itself out, in my opinion. The reason I quit modship was certainly not the attitude brought to me by the pool of members, but rather the attitude by a certain few as a small part, and the general stress of the actual activities as a major part as well as a big heap of internal stress.

I have to say, a lot of members make being a mod an incredibly grateful job because you actually get a feeling that you are doing something for the community. You get the feeling that you are helping, which is a REALLY nice feeling. Especially if there's a member you have worked with as a moderator on a permanent basis and you actually make friends with that person.

Now, at this point you might think I am trying to undermine the entire "Being a mod is hard" image. Don't get me wrong, it is an incuh-REDIBLY hard job. Not because of the intellectual requirements, but because of the amount of mental fortitude you need to possess to endure all of the things you, Katherine, mentioned. Mental fortitude, I myself decided, I didn't want to keep up anymore.

But saying a moderator's job is thankless, I feel is wrong. Because I have felt quite integrated in the community, moreso than any regular member. I felt at the center of attention, and it felt great, because if you do your job well, people will start to like and respect you, making it THAT much easier to return the like and respect to others. The social aspect of being part of an rp site is incredibly easy as a mod. Interactions become regularities and don't feel forced anymore.

My point? Well, Katherine's post kinda of made me read the entire thing twice. The first time, as me, the second time, trying to put myself in the shoes of someone who has been but a regular member ever since his or her point of joining. And well, it gave off the image that being part of the staff is hard, ungrateful, stressing. In short, nothing I, the regular, experienced member would want to do. But guess what? Guys, being a mod is a wonderful experience. Especially because you make friends on the staff you will never forget. I want to, with this response, endorse you people to try and take on modship.

Being a mod is much greater than you think. If you have more mental patience than me, you're sure to do fine. All of the quirks and necessities you need to bring to the table are easy to learn and the rest of staff is sure to help you. At the moment, how I see it, there is something of a staff shortage. And since my spot is open, and an additional one as well, try it out you guys. Seijin can only say no. There's really, nothing to be lost. Only experience to be gained (:

With that, happy new years everyone.

There are three sides to every argument. Don't be so quick to dismiss one side.

Happy new years.