<![CDATA[Conquest of the Horde - Loxmardin's Blog]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/ Tue, 28 Apr 2026 05:54:37 +0000 MyBB <![CDATA[Kidnapped: Give Me A Date]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-39137.html Mon, 19 Jan 2015 19:20:48 -0800 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-39137.html
I'm running another Kidnapped. Preparations are already underway but I have one dilemma I need to solve.

I need a date. With the lack of a proper schedule on my end, I don't really know when people would logically be available, when they have breaks, holidays, whatever.

So...

I want suggestions for ten-day periods you could see as being fitting for running this event. February and onward.]]>
I'm running another Kidnapped. Preparations are already underway but I have one dilemma I need to solve.

I need a date. With the lack of a proper schedule on my end, I don't really know when people would logically be available, when they have breaks, holidays, whatever.

So...

I want suggestions for ten-day periods you could see as being fitting for running this event. February and onward.]]> <![CDATA[Lox Ponders: Failing Mentor Program]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38882.html Thu, 27 Nov 2014 19:17:04 -0800 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38882.html
Something that's come up in recent times is the state of the Mentorship Program. The Mentor Program's design was hugely dependent on community participation beyond the involvement of solely the server staff, and management issues aside (we're learning)... we never did manage to rack up much of a consistent community interest in the Mentor Program.

The result of this is that it's failing. We don't have a lot of people who want to be Mentors and even during the time we did, it was either difficult to catch them online to assign Peons or they were already too crowded with Peons whereas other Mentors didn't keep any charges.

Now, I'm not blaming the Mentors for this, or the Staff.

I'm looking to the community for feedback, however, on how we're supposed to proceed and how we could possibly improve this program to make it work. Right now, the program's on ice pending a solid decision and our options right now are to dismantle the system as a whole or keep it to staff-members only, pending any change in the system or overall community involvement and interest.

What would make you more interested to participate in something like the Mentor Program? What's keeping you from being invested in it at present? How do you think we should proceed with it to make it work? ... Should we even bother?]]>
Something that's come up in recent times is the state of the Mentorship Program. The Mentor Program's design was hugely dependent on community participation beyond the involvement of solely the server staff, and management issues aside (we're learning)... we never did manage to rack up much of a consistent community interest in the Mentor Program.

The result of this is that it's failing. We don't have a lot of people who want to be Mentors and even during the time we did, it was either difficult to catch them online to assign Peons or they were already too crowded with Peons whereas other Mentors didn't keep any charges.

Now, I'm not blaming the Mentors for this, or the Staff.

I'm looking to the community for feedback, however, on how we're supposed to proceed and how we could possibly improve this program to make it work. Right now, the program's on ice pending a solid decision and our options right now are to dismantle the system as a whole or keep it to staff-members only, pending any change in the system or overall community involvement and interest.

What would make you more interested to participate in something like the Mentor Program? What's keeping you from being invested in it at present? How do you think we should proceed with it to make it work? ... Should we even bother?]]> <![CDATA[Lox Laments: Moderating]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38672.html Tue, 07 Oct 2014 06:26:43 -0700 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38672.html [Image: 8KQQ0Me.jpg]
Hey folks. Just me with another rambling post that probably won't make much sense.

Moderating online has been one of the most fun things I've ever done. I love doing it. I wouldn't have stayed here for as long as I have if I didn't thoroughly enjoy working as a moderator in communities like CotH; I've been doing it for four and a half years now (only taking a two-month break, total) and I don't really plan on stopping anytime soon as long as there are things I can do and no one objects to me being around.

It does get really difficult sometimes, though. As a moderator you usually have to put your own ideas and desires aside in order to look at the bigger picture. It means being unselfish most of the time, considering the feelings and opinions of others way more than you consider your own. It means putting aside your pride and integrity, at times, to be fair and understanding to other people to give everyone fair judgement and a fair chance to speak their peace. It means taking into consideration all aspects of the situation and listening to every side of it, keeping track of all available information and weighing it all objectively.

Sometimes it's impossible to be objective and professional. Other times it's easy. It's a very different way to look at things compared to how you're used to look at things as a member, or player. When you don't have to worry about what everyone else thinks and feels; you just worry about your own perspective and never even have to touch or even look at the scales to see if things balance out properly. We overthink things a lot as moderators because we are genuinely concerned for our playerbase and don't want to step on any toes or make things harder for anyone; we care about what you think and feel. We're part of this community as much as you are and therefore we care about your feelings and opinions.

Our job gets very difficult when different players disagree or when we, the members on the team, feel very strongly about certain subjects but the way we see things don't necessarily agree with the players involved in discussion on the subject. We don't want to step on any toes. We don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. We want to make sure as many players as possible can come to the server and play together with us and have a good time. To enjoy their time here. But obviously we can't please everyone. It's impossible, but nonetheless heartbreaking and discouraging. Especially when it's something that causes us grief and makes it not so fun for us to stick around anymore.

I sometimes miss being able to be in the dark about things and not have to consider all the things I do now. Sometimes it can be very overwhelming and hurtful when all the pieces don't come together as well as you'd expect, be it in the form of drama or disagreements, public lashing or even private insults and harassments. We all are here to have fun and it gets very personal very quickly and very real feelings get hurt when things don't go as we want them to. I think it's very easy to forget that there's other people on the other side of the screen, sometimes. People with very real opinions and emotions that do genuinely get hurt.

But I love moderating. I love to help people. I love trying to make this place a better place to be for everyone who love it as much as I do. I love storytelling, mentoring, bonding with the players and the cozy moments with the rest of the moderating team. I've made some fantastic friends on CotH that are going to last for a long time, and most of them were made while I was a GM.

I lost my train of thought.]]> [Image: 8KQQ0Me.jpg]
Hey folks. Just me with another rambling post that probably won't make much sense.

Moderating online has been one of the most fun things I've ever done. I love doing it. I wouldn't have stayed here for as long as I have if I didn't thoroughly enjoy working as a moderator in communities like CotH; I've been doing it for four and a half years now (only taking a two-month break, total) and I don't really plan on stopping anytime soon as long as there are things I can do and no one objects to me being around.

It does get really difficult sometimes, though. As a moderator you usually have to put your own ideas and desires aside in order to look at the bigger picture. It means being unselfish most of the time, considering the feelings and opinions of others way more than you consider your own. It means putting aside your pride and integrity, at times, to be fair and understanding to other people to give everyone fair judgement and a fair chance to speak their peace. It means taking into consideration all aspects of the situation and listening to every side of it, keeping track of all available information and weighing it all objectively.

Sometimes it's impossible to be objective and professional. Other times it's easy. It's a very different way to look at things compared to how you're used to look at things as a member, or player. When you don't have to worry about what everyone else thinks and feels; you just worry about your own perspective and never even have to touch or even look at the scales to see if things balance out properly. We overthink things a lot as moderators because we are genuinely concerned for our playerbase and don't want to step on any toes or make things harder for anyone; we care about what you think and feel. We're part of this community as much as you are and therefore we care about your feelings and opinions.

Our job gets very difficult when different players disagree or when we, the members on the team, feel very strongly about certain subjects but the way we see things don't necessarily agree with the players involved in discussion on the subject. We don't want to step on any toes. We don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. We want to make sure as many players as possible can come to the server and play together with us and have a good time. To enjoy their time here. But obviously we can't please everyone. It's impossible, but nonetheless heartbreaking and discouraging. Especially when it's something that causes us grief and makes it not so fun for us to stick around anymore.

I sometimes miss being able to be in the dark about things and not have to consider all the things I do now. Sometimes it can be very overwhelming and hurtful when all the pieces don't come together as well as you'd expect, be it in the form of drama or disagreements, public lashing or even private insults and harassments. We all are here to have fun and it gets very personal very quickly and very real feelings get hurt when things don't go as we want them to. I think it's very easy to forget that there's other people on the other side of the screen, sometimes. People with very real opinions and emotions that do genuinely get hurt.

But I love moderating. I love to help people. I love trying to make this place a better place to be for everyone who love it as much as I do. I love storytelling, mentoring, bonding with the players and the cozy moments with the rest of the moderating team. I've made some fantastic friends on CotH that are going to last for a long time, and most of them were made while I was a GM.

I lost my train of thought.]]> <![CDATA[Recent Server Activity]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38558.html Thu, 18 Sep 2014 02:07:07 -0700 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38558.html
I just wanted to express my sincere joy at this recent development.

Love you, CotH! <3]]>
I just wanted to express my sincere joy at this recent development.

Love you, CotH! <3]]> <![CDATA[Where I've Been]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38422.html Wed, 20 Aug 2014 12:34:55 -0700 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38422.html Most of this is a copy-paste from my blog on another site. I didn't want to rewrite it, but here you go.

On July the 30th at 2 AM, me and my mother went to the hospital in the middle of the night. I had been dealing with severe pains for the past couple of days and swelling that wouldn't stop. I couldn't walk, sit, lay down, or really exist in any sort of state without being in constant pain. We went in, sat in the waiting room, and a nurse appeared to take a blood test and my temperature. I had a fever at the time, which surprised me. It was at 39,8 degrees Celsius when we first came to the hospital. The blood test was a pretty typical one, too. A quick test where you measure the amount of proteins in your blood. Increased amounts hint at infection. Being below 10 is normal. With an active infection you can be between 40 and 200. Above 200 and you have a severe infection. My reading came up at 470+ when we checked in.

Turns out, later, that I'd came down with Necrotizing Fasciitis. The doctors here just called them "flesh eating murder bacteria", since that's what the tabloids like to call them. Rewinding a bit... I came to the hospital at 2 AM. They took my temperature and blood test. Then I sat there waiting for five and a half hours because the only available doctor in their department didn't answer the nurses' calls. None of the nurses took the time to look at me any closer, but lounged about their break room, sprawling in their sofas watching TV. My mother and I waited for hours until the ordinary emergency room three floors down opened. It wasn't long before a doctor saw me once we came down to the emergency room, though, so that's good. The doctor took one look, called in another doctor from another department who also took a look, and within half an hour I was in a hospital bed, being driven by nurses at high speed across half the hospital with my mother running after them to keep up. "Every minute counts", they told her.

The first week at the hospital is a blur to me. I was fighting the infection, and at the same time I was struggling with high fever. Reality was fuzzy enough and I admit that I saw things that weren't there. I even had an episode, or vision, where I was visited by my great-great-grandmother. Looking back at it now, it's kind of fascinating. Mostly because I have had to realize what a close call it was. I'm still struggling with the reality of it all, that I'm lucky to be alive right now. I was hours away from death. Or, at the very least, the amputation of my left leg (which is still partially numb). The infection spread like a wildfire, and if they hadn't hooked me up to the antibiotics when they did... Well, I don't really know what would've become of me.

These past weeks have been very harsh. Both on me and on my family. A lot of people, friends and family, have reached out to us to show that they care and wished us well and for a speedy recovery for me. It has been surreal. I still can't wrap my head around it all. I have many stories from my time in the hospital so far and no doubt I'll have a few more before I'm out of the woods entirely. Today marks three weeks of being here, and I've had a total of 8 surgeries in that time. I'm having another tomorrow. It's not such a big deal anymore now, though, since I've been through the procedure so many times. I'm just silently hoping that I'll be out of the hospital soon. My family's occasional visits have been life-savers. Without them, I would go insane.

So, that's about it, for now. I don't know what else to say. I just needed these things to be said for my sanity's sake. I'll finish off with a hospital picture and that one song that always keeps me going, and by saying that... No doubt, this is going to be a big part of my day to day for months to come. I'm glad I'm still alive.

(When I uploaded it, it had the appropriate CAPTCHA "cliff-hanger".)
[Image: 2ykjasy.jpg]

]]> Most of this is a copy-paste from my blog on another site. I didn't want to rewrite it, but here you go.

On July the 30th at 2 AM, me and my mother went to the hospital in the middle of the night. I had been dealing with severe pains for the past couple of days and swelling that wouldn't stop. I couldn't walk, sit, lay down, or really exist in any sort of state without being in constant pain. We went in, sat in the waiting room, and a nurse appeared to take a blood test and my temperature. I had a fever at the time, which surprised me. It was at 39,8 degrees Celsius when we first came to the hospital. The blood test was a pretty typical one, too. A quick test where you measure the amount of proteins in your blood. Increased amounts hint at infection. Being below 10 is normal. With an active infection you can be between 40 and 200. Above 200 and you have a severe infection. My reading came up at 470+ when we checked in.

Turns out, later, that I'd came down with Necrotizing Fasciitis. The doctors here just called them "flesh eating murder bacteria", since that's what the tabloids like to call them. Rewinding a bit... I came to the hospital at 2 AM. They took my temperature and blood test. Then I sat there waiting for five and a half hours because the only available doctor in their department didn't answer the nurses' calls. None of the nurses took the time to look at me any closer, but lounged about their break room, sprawling in their sofas watching TV. My mother and I waited for hours until the ordinary emergency room three floors down opened. It wasn't long before a doctor saw me once we came down to the emergency room, though, so that's good. The doctor took one look, called in another doctor from another department who also took a look, and within half an hour I was in a hospital bed, being driven by nurses at high speed across half the hospital with my mother running after them to keep up. "Every minute counts", they told her.

The first week at the hospital is a blur to me. I was fighting the infection, and at the same time I was struggling with high fever. Reality was fuzzy enough and I admit that I saw things that weren't there. I even had an episode, or vision, where I was visited by my great-great-grandmother. Looking back at it now, it's kind of fascinating. Mostly because I have had to realize what a close call it was. I'm still struggling with the reality of it all, that I'm lucky to be alive right now. I was hours away from death. Or, at the very least, the amputation of my left leg (which is still partially numb). The infection spread like a wildfire, and if they hadn't hooked me up to the antibiotics when they did... Well, I don't really know what would've become of me.

These past weeks have been very harsh. Both on me and on my family. A lot of people, friends and family, have reached out to us to show that they care and wished us well and for a speedy recovery for me. It has been surreal. I still can't wrap my head around it all. I have many stories from my time in the hospital so far and no doubt I'll have a few more before I'm out of the woods entirely. Today marks three weeks of being here, and I've had a total of 8 surgeries in that time. I'm having another tomorrow. It's not such a big deal anymore now, though, since I've been through the procedure so many times. I'm just silently hoping that I'll be out of the hospital soon. My family's occasional visits have been life-savers. Without them, I would go insane.

So, that's about it, for now. I don't know what else to say. I just needed these things to be said for my sanity's sake. I'll finish off with a hospital picture and that one song that always keeps me going, and by saying that... No doubt, this is going to be a big part of my day to day for months to come. I'm glad I'm still alive.

(When I uploaded it, it had the appropriate CAPTCHA "cliff-hanger".)
[Image: 2ykjasy.jpg]

]]> <![CDATA[Annoyance]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38337.html Tue, 05 Aug 2014 11:43:25 -0700 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38337.html
Rules. Language. Chat policies.

Really? Is it so damn hard? We're seeing a lot of things from the same kinds of people and I'm really getting sick and tired of it. Read the rules. Follow them. You agreed to them when you joined and we're at the end of our patience with people who walk all over them and decide to contest them on the spot or throw them back in our faces. If you want to discuss them, feel free to. But, you must also follow them.

It really isn't so hard. Most of us are doing it just fine. So why can't you?]]>
Rules. Language. Chat policies.

Really? Is it so damn hard? We're seeing a lot of things from the same kinds of people and I'm really getting sick and tired of it. Read the rules. Follow them. You agreed to them when you joined and we're at the end of our patience with people who walk all over them and decide to contest them on the spot or throw them back in our faces. If you want to discuss them, feel free to. But, you must also follow them.

It really isn't so hard. Most of us are doing it just fine. So why can't you?]]> <![CDATA[[RL] Volunteer Work]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38142.html Wed, 02 Jul 2014 08:16:27 -0700 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-38142.html
They also support the retirement home next door, offer cleaning to nearby companies, own two apartments that they lend out to women (and men) who need protection in undisclosed locations. Women's protection services, in short. It's a social business, as they put it.

I'll be working there part-time to begin with, and I start on the 14th. I'll be working mondays (half-day), wednesdays (whole day) and thursdays (half-day). The ambition is to work there full-time eventually (which comes together at 35 hours/week) and occasionally coming in to help on saturdays if there's a need.

I'm most likely going to work in the clothing & textiles department where they iron, check, fold, repair and take care of clothes, sheets and other textiles that people come in with so they are fit to be sold on to the next person, but I'll be jumping between departments since I'm pretty much proficient with everything but transportation (because I don't have a driver's license). So I'll be a stand-in everywhere. And apparently the department I'm going to work in has been desperately needing more people for a while, so that's fun!

I might even give them my sewing machine to borrow, since it's pretty strong and neat. The boss liked my enthusiasm and appreciated that I seemed to be a very stubborn and headstrong person, lol.

All in all, I'm very excited about it all!]]>
They also support the retirement home next door, offer cleaning to nearby companies, own two apartments that they lend out to women (and men) who need protection in undisclosed locations. Women's protection services, in short. It's a social business, as they put it.

I'll be working there part-time to begin with, and I start on the 14th. I'll be working mondays (half-day), wednesdays (whole day) and thursdays (half-day). The ambition is to work there full-time eventually (which comes together at 35 hours/week) and occasionally coming in to help on saturdays if there's a need.

I'm most likely going to work in the clothing & textiles department where they iron, check, fold, repair and take care of clothes, sheets and other textiles that people come in with so they are fit to be sold on to the next person, but I'll be jumping between departments since I'm pretty much proficient with everything but transportation (because I don't have a driver's license). So I'll be a stand-in everywhere. And apparently the department I'm going to work in has been desperately needing more people for a while, so that's fun!

I might even give them my sewing machine to borrow, since it's pretty strong and neat. The boss liked my enthusiasm and appreciated that I seemed to be a very stubborn and headstrong person, lol.

All in all, I'm very excited about it all!]]> <![CDATA[Poll: RP Flavours]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37900.html Wed, 21 May 2014 06:06:21 -0700 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37900.html
... After you vote in the poll, I'd appreciate some in-depth feedback in a post, as well. :)

Things I know I forgot that didn't fit in the poll:
  • Business (Merchants and that stuff.)
  • Navy/Pirates/On the High Seas (Ships. And stuff.)
  • Day-To-Day (Kind of fits in a bunch of categories at once, though.)
  • Apprenticeships (Learning is fun, right?)
  • Schools (Same vein as the above.)
  • Slavery/Indentured Servitude (Fits under Horror and/or Family, in a sense.)
  • Witch-Hunting (Have a favourite enemy? Let's kill them all!)
  • Organizations-For-A-Cause (Cenarion Circle and Argent Crusade being good examples.)
  • Racial Politics (City Factions and stuff.)
  • Global Politics (Dalaran, Kirin Tor, for example.)
]]>
... After you vote in the poll, I'd appreciate some in-depth feedback in a post, as well. :)

Things I know I forgot that didn't fit in the poll:
  • Business (Merchants and that stuff.)
  • Navy/Pirates/On the High Seas (Ships. And stuff.)
  • Day-To-Day (Kind of fits in a bunch of categories at once, though.)
  • Apprenticeships (Learning is fun, right?)
  • Schools (Same vein as the above.)
  • Slavery/Indentured Servitude (Fits under Horror and/or Family, in a sense.)
  • Witch-Hunting (Have a favourite enemy? Let's kill them all!)
  • Organizations-For-A-Cause (Cenarion Circle and Argent Crusade being good examples.)
  • Racial Politics (City Factions and stuff.)
  • Global Politics (Dalaran, Kirin Tor, for example.)
]]> <![CDATA[Play-By-Post Roleplaying]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37885.html Sat, 17 May 2014 02:58:18 -0700 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37885.html
CotH has IC forums. I see some people using them fairly regularly to in some way, shape or form record the going-ons of their characters when they are alone, writing down what happens when the character is not on-screen at the time.

This is great.

I am wondering, though, if there's any interest whatsoever in the CotH community to lead dedicated storylines that run primarily with forum posts with the occasional in-game adventure here and there. I ask this because I have a storyline in mind that I've been pondering for the past few months and in order to get all the necessary interactions with certain story-relevant NPCs and characters... the best way to introduce them to people is through forum roleplay.

Why is that?

Well... First of all, it puts less of a requirement on me and the players to be online at the same time and allows the story to progress naturally as long as either part has the time to produce a post once in a while. It eliminates the worry of not having the time to sit down and roleplay it on-server and lets the story evolve and relationships develop at a steady enough pace to let them last and then builds a good foundation for continued interaction in-game and still lets characters go about their business without being locked in place or anything like that. It lets the player integrate the forum experience in their in-game roleplay as they please to carry on the storyline. That way it doesn't have to steal a lot of in-game time or make anyone feel forced to log on just to keep participating.

Would this kind of storyline be interesting, at all? If I tried to get something like this off the ground, would you be interested in trying it out?]]>
CotH has IC forums. I see some people using them fairly regularly to in some way, shape or form record the going-ons of their characters when they are alone, writing down what happens when the character is not on-screen at the time.

This is great.

I am wondering, though, if there's any interest whatsoever in the CotH community to lead dedicated storylines that run primarily with forum posts with the occasional in-game adventure here and there. I ask this because I have a storyline in mind that I've been pondering for the past few months and in order to get all the necessary interactions with certain story-relevant NPCs and characters... the best way to introduce them to people is through forum roleplay.

Why is that?

Well... First of all, it puts less of a requirement on me and the players to be online at the same time and allows the story to progress naturally as long as either part has the time to produce a post once in a while. It eliminates the worry of not having the time to sit down and roleplay it on-server and lets the story evolve and relationships develop at a steady enough pace to let them last and then builds a good foundation for continued interaction in-game and still lets characters go about their business without being locked in place or anything like that. It lets the player integrate the forum experience in their in-game roleplay as they please to carry on the storyline. That way it doesn't have to steal a lot of in-game time or make anyone feel forced to log on just to keep participating.

Would this kind of storyline be interesting, at all? If I tried to get something like this off the ground, would you be interested in trying it out?]]> <![CDATA[Expanding the Community Series?]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37290.html Fri, 17 Jan 2014 04:42:52 -0800 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37290.html
Well, some might have seen the two blog posts I made, dubbed "Community Series". One about Apologizing, and the other about Introverts & Personal Space. These two blog posts have just come up because of images or videos I've read and have been spurs of the moment, but I'd love it if people could give me suggestions about things I could touch upon and perhaps hunt for some words of wisdom about.


The "Community Series" blog posts could become something pretty great if I got some help along with this. It's all to make our community better by inspiring and teaching people how to do their part in being better community members, and the lessons won't just have to apply to CotH. CotH being the second home it's become to a lot of the members, it certainly can't hurt to use it as a platform to share this kind of information, right?

So, suggestions?

Love,
Loxxy]]>
Well, some might have seen the two blog posts I made, dubbed "Community Series". One about Apologizing, and the other about Introverts & Personal Space. These two blog posts have just come up because of images or videos I've read and have been spurs of the moment, but I'd love it if people could give me suggestions about things I could touch upon and perhaps hunt for some words of wisdom about.


The "Community Series" blog posts could become something pretty great if I got some help along with this. It's all to make our community better by inspiring and teaching people how to do their part in being better community members, and the lessons won't just have to apply to CotH. CotH being the second home it's become to a lot of the members, it certainly can't hurt to use it as a platform to share this kind of information, right?

So, suggestions?

Love,
Loxxy]]> <![CDATA[Community Series: Introverts & Personal Space]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37275.html Wed, 15 Jan 2014 06:57:51 -0800 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37275.html
This one's going to be a bit more vague than the previous, which was about apologizing. I stumbled upon a picture this morning that resonated pretty intimately with me, and I thought I'd share it. I know we have plenty of people here on CotH who are introverts, or just very reserved, withdrawn or shy individuals who don't necessarily fall all the way into that pocket. Either way, this image I want to share still applies and holds a lot of wisdom that can enrich the lives of plenty who haven't seen it before, or texts or images with similar messages. To see previous discussion on the forums about Introverts, see the thread by @Kirabo, located here.

Clicky!

And that's about all, for now. Feel free to discuss it here, whether you're an introvert or not. I know that the "personal space" issue the image so subtly pokes at is something we see a lot of online, primarily because emotion and intention just don't translate well into writing. I feel the information can come in handy, for that reason. It might make people think twice and be more mindful of how they approach others. Even their friends.

Love,
Loxxy]]>
This one's going to be a bit more vague than the previous, which was about apologizing. I stumbled upon a picture this morning that resonated pretty intimately with me, and I thought I'd share it. I know we have plenty of people here on CotH who are introverts, or just very reserved, withdrawn or shy individuals who don't necessarily fall all the way into that pocket. Either way, this image I want to share still applies and holds a lot of wisdom that can enrich the lives of plenty who haven't seen it before, or texts or images with similar messages. To see previous discussion on the forums about Introverts, see the thread by @Kirabo, located here.

Clicky!

And that's about all, for now. Feel free to discuss it here, whether you're an introvert or not. I know that the "personal space" issue the image so subtly pokes at is something we see a lot of online, primarily because emotion and intention just don't translate well into writing. I feel the information can come in handy, for that reason. It might make people think twice and be more mindful of how they approach others. Even their friends.

Love,
Loxxy]]> <![CDATA[Lox Ponders: Event Rewards?]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37270.html Tue, 14 Jan 2014 06:36:29 -0800 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37270.html
I am planning an event right now where I hope to be able to devise some sort of setup that allows for a team-based competition where, at the end, a single person/team (depending on the direction I want to go) will be crowned the "winner" of the competition itself. Because of the storyline surrounding it, "rewards" will be handed out in a few different directions that have a purpose in the story, but I also want to give something solid for the big "winner".

To give some background to the event... Think survival-themed game-show. "Hunger Games" inspired, except a lot less deadly, slightly more relaxed and peaceful. There's still a lethal element to the game and people will be painfully aware of this and constantly reminded, but it's not going to be quite as extreme as the aforementioned example. It'll be a mix of puzzle-solving, mini-games and outright survival horror in some cases. A nice mix of it all to cater to different tastes but still with that lingering threat that you're at the mercy of someone else all along.

At the end of it all... I want someone to "win". And that winner needs a reward of some kind. If you were to take part in this kind of event, what sort of reward do you imagine you'd like to get? What would be meaningful, for all the effort put into participating? Mind, it wouldn't be something outrageous. We wouldn't want your fellows to get jealous. A token reward that still can hold great significance ICly, or just to your character.

I need suggestions, though. I'm a bit at a loss. Help!

What sort of reward could you imagine to be meaningful?]]>
I am planning an event right now where I hope to be able to devise some sort of setup that allows for a team-based competition where, at the end, a single person/team (depending on the direction I want to go) will be crowned the "winner" of the competition itself. Because of the storyline surrounding it, "rewards" will be handed out in a few different directions that have a purpose in the story, but I also want to give something solid for the big "winner".

To give some background to the event... Think survival-themed game-show. "Hunger Games" inspired, except a lot less deadly, slightly more relaxed and peaceful. There's still a lethal element to the game and people will be painfully aware of this and constantly reminded, but it's not going to be quite as extreme as the aforementioned example. It'll be a mix of puzzle-solving, mini-games and outright survival horror in some cases. A nice mix of it all to cater to different tastes but still with that lingering threat that you're at the mercy of someone else all along.

At the end of it all... I want someone to "win". And that winner needs a reward of some kind. If you were to take part in this kind of event, what sort of reward do you imagine you'd like to get? What would be meaningful, for all the effort put into participating? Mind, it wouldn't be something outrageous. We wouldn't want your fellows to get jealous. A token reward that still can hold great significance ICly, or just to your character.

I need suggestions, though. I'm a bit at a loss. Help!

What sort of reward could you imagine to be meaningful?]]> <![CDATA[[Loxmardin]'s Weekly Updates]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37197.html Tue, 07 Jan 2014 08:19:20 -0800 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37197.html
... One step towards that is to start with weekly updates. More as a reminder to myself what I was planning on doing, and giving myself a few goals every week that I strive towards fulfilling. It's fine if I don't manage all of them, but it would be nice if I could. As long as I have the reminder here for myself, I have something to strive towards. Putting it where everyone can see, too, should act as a good motivator for me, and it might be pretty neat to let the community share in my plans and know that the cogs are still turning, so to speak.

So, here's how the weekly updates are going to work.

First, I post every week saying what I did last week, and then what I plan on doing in the week to come. If possible, I also post up some of what I've produced, 'cause I like feedback. Seeing as I didn't have the system in place last week, though, I won't be posting about what I did last week. ... There wouldn't be much to tell, anyway. ;) Let's start small, I guess.

Plans for this week
  • Finalize event planning and make an event post.
  • Start tinkering a bit on guild concepts for the Gladiator guild I mentioned ages back. (Ideally, post up for community feedback.)
  • Make a CMC application for a potential future storyline, and make a rough draft for event ideas for this storyline.
  • Make an "event/storyline ideas" deposit in the GM forums, for my own ideas.
]]>
... One step towards that is to start with weekly updates. More as a reminder to myself what I was planning on doing, and giving myself a few goals every week that I strive towards fulfilling. It's fine if I don't manage all of them, but it would be nice if I could. As long as I have the reminder here for myself, I have something to strive towards. Putting it where everyone can see, too, should act as a good motivator for me, and it might be pretty neat to let the community share in my plans and know that the cogs are still turning, so to speak.

So, here's how the weekly updates are going to work.

First, I post every week saying what I did last week, and then what I plan on doing in the week to come. If possible, I also post up some of what I've produced, 'cause I like feedback. Seeing as I didn't have the system in place last week, though, I won't be posting about what I did last week. ... There wouldn't be much to tell, anyway. ;) Let's start small, I guess.

Plans for this week
  • Finalize event planning and make an event post.
  • Start tinkering a bit on guild concepts for the Gladiator guild I mentioned ages back. (Ideally, post up for community feedback.)
  • Make a CMC application for a potential future storyline, and make a rough draft for event ideas for this storyline.
  • Make an "event/storyline ideas" deposit in the GM forums, for my own ideas.
]]> <![CDATA[Community Series: Apologizing]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37162.html Thu, 02 Jan 2014 22:49:59 -0800 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37162.html
All in all, it's good advice. It's one of those "the world would be better if everyone did this" sort of things. ... Maybe I will start a series in my blog, just compiling guides and sharing videos for people to give inspiration and, generally, help people learn how to make their own community a better place for themselves and their fellow players!

Script, for those of you who can't stand his voice:
Spoiler:
I'm here to talk about how to apologize!

The slogan of <Some Name I Can't Hear> these past seven years has been "Don't forget to be awesome!", and that's a good slogan! Not because it is easy, but because it is hard!

Being awesome requires constant vigilance, and you will slip up! Whether because of ignorance, or because of selfishness, or because of outright malice, or because you're drunk!

But you have a choice, after you've done something crappy. You can transform into one of two things; either you can regain your awesome through actual apology, or you can become a Fartbag.

A fartbag--'tis a technical definition--is a person who hurt someone and then blames the person they hurt for their pain! It's like if I stepped on your toe, and then you were like "Ow!" and then I was like "God! Stop standing everywhere!".

I understand you didn't mean to step on the person's toe, but you still did and they're in pain, and you caused it, so apologize!

So I put together some DO's and DON'T''s on how to be awesome and not be a fartbag.

DON'T blame people for how they feel! If you're telling someone that you've hurt to not be so sensitive, that they're such a delicate flower, that they don't understand how the world works, they don't understand YOUR suffering, what you've been through, you're being a FARTBAG!

DO feel bad! I am sick of this idea that we're supposed to go through life experiencing the absolute minimum of negative emotions. If you did something sucky, you're supposed to feel bad about it. That's the definition of a conscience! That's how it's supposed to be!

DON'T, if you're apologizing, think that you're asking for forgiveness. That's not what you're doing. You have done something crappy to a person. You should not then, like, go forward and make additional requests of them. Yes, you can hope that your apology results in forgiveness--you can hope for that--but you are not requesting that!

DO figure out what you did wrong! Figure it out, understand it, believe it, internalize it--otherwise your apology's just going to be a load of poo because you're not going to actually think you did anything wrong, or you're going to end up blaming the person who is hurt. FARBAG.

DO figure out why you did the hurtful thing. Maybe it was because of ignorance, maybe because of insecurity, maybe because you were having a really super bad day and you really needed a snack. Spend that time in your own head figuring out.

And then DON'T make excuses, but DO provide context! The other person or the people understanding why you did what you did is not going to excuse what you did and it's not going to fix what you did but it might help them understand why you did what you did, and understanding is a really powerful force in human relationships.

DON'T just express sympathy. You can express sympathy but not just that, you also have to accept the blame. You are not sorry that your friend is hurt, you are sorry that you hurt your friend! Tell the people that you have hurt that you can see what you have done, know that you cannot undo it, but you will not do it again in the future.

DON'T think that you are losing, or that you are submitting. The biggest cause of fartbaggery is the belief that all social interactions are zero-sum games and I'm trying to win over you and that if I get you to apologize then I have won some kind of battle.

Apologizing is not a sign of weakness. People say that all the time. It's a sign of STRENGTH. It's a sign that you and your ego are strong enough to handle it when you make a mistake.

There's been some interesting research on this, actually, and it turns out that people who apologize FEEL WEAKER, but are PERCEIVED as STRONGER PEOPLE. Wheras fartbags FEEL STRONGER but they are PERCEIVED by the people around them as WEAKER.

I know which of those I'd rather [BLUR].

DON'T forget to tell the people that you hurt how you are going to change and, finally...

DO CHANGE.

Because otherwise, you are just a very eloquent, lying fartbag.
Here's the video:

]]>
All in all, it's good advice. It's one of those "the world would be better if everyone did this" sort of things. ... Maybe I will start a series in my blog, just compiling guides and sharing videos for people to give inspiration and, generally, help people learn how to make their own community a better place for themselves and their fellow players!

Script, for those of you who can't stand his voice:
Spoiler:
I'm here to talk about how to apologize!

The slogan of <Some Name I Can't Hear> these past seven years has been "Don't forget to be awesome!", and that's a good slogan! Not because it is easy, but because it is hard!

Being awesome requires constant vigilance, and you will slip up! Whether because of ignorance, or because of selfishness, or because of outright malice, or because you're drunk!

But you have a choice, after you've done something crappy. You can transform into one of two things; either you can regain your awesome through actual apology, or you can become a Fartbag.

A fartbag--'tis a technical definition--is a person who hurt someone and then blames the person they hurt for their pain! It's like if I stepped on your toe, and then you were like "Ow!" and then I was like "God! Stop standing everywhere!".

I understand you didn't mean to step on the person's toe, but you still did and they're in pain, and you caused it, so apologize!

So I put together some DO's and DON'T''s on how to be awesome and not be a fartbag.

DON'T blame people for how they feel! If you're telling someone that you've hurt to not be so sensitive, that they're such a delicate flower, that they don't understand how the world works, they don't understand YOUR suffering, what you've been through, you're being a FARTBAG!

DO feel bad! I am sick of this idea that we're supposed to go through life experiencing the absolute minimum of negative emotions. If you did something sucky, you're supposed to feel bad about it. That's the definition of a conscience! That's how it's supposed to be!

DON'T, if you're apologizing, think that you're asking for forgiveness. That's not what you're doing. You have done something crappy to a person. You should not then, like, go forward and make additional requests of them. Yes, you can hope that your apology results in forgiveness--you can hope for that--but you are not requesting that!

DO figure out what you did wrong! Figure it out, understand it, believe it, internalize it--otherwise your apology's just going to be a load of poo because you're not going to actually think you did anything wrong, or you're going to end up blaming the person who is hurt. FARBAG.

DO figure out why you did the hurtful thing. Maybe it was because of ignorance, maybe because of insecurity, maybe because you were having a really super bad day and you really needed a snack. Spend that time in your own head figuring out.

And then DON'T make excuses, but DO provide context! The other person or the people understanding why you did what you did is not going to excuse what you did and it's not going to fix what you did but it might help them understand why you did what you did, and understanding is a really powerful force in human relationships.

DON'T just express sympathy. You can express sympathy but not just that, you also have to accept the blame. You are not sorry that your friend is hurt, you are sorry that you hurt your friend! Tell the people that you have hurt that you can see what you have done, know that you cannot undo it, but you will not do it again in the future.

DON'T think that you are losing, or that you are submitting. The biggest cause of fartbaggery is the belief that all social interactions are zero-sum games and I'm trying to win over you and that if I get you to apologize then I have won some kind of battle.

Apologizing is not a sign of weakness. People say that all the time. It's a sign of STRENGTH. It's a sign that you and your ego are strong enough to handle it when you make a mistake.

There's been some interesting research on this, actually, and it turns out that people who apologize FEEL WEAKER, but are PERCEIVED as STRONGER PEOPLE. Wheras fartbags FEEL STRONGER but they are PERCEIVED by the people around them as WEAKER.

I know which of those I'd rather [BLUR].

DON'T forget to tell the people that you hurt how you are going to change and, finally...

DO CHANGE.

Because otherwise, you are just a very eloquent, lying fartbag.
Here's the video:

]]> <![CDATA[New Private Discussion Subforums]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37027.html Mon, 16 Dec 2013 11:54:01 -0800 Loxmardin]]> https://www.conquestofthehorde.com/thread-37027.html

Yep. These two subforums have been added under Private Discussion to give them a more obvious position and make organization easier. The "Player Reports" subforum is a new idea that we're giving a test run. I encourage people to make use of it. :) Just like with the rest of the Private Discussion board, you can only see your own threads.

Love,
Loxmardin]]>

Yep. These two subforums have been added under Private Discussion to give them a more obvious position and make organization easier. The "Player Reports" subforum is a new idea that we're giving a test run. I encourage people to make use of it. :) Just like with the rest of the Private Discussion board, you can only see your own threads.

Love,
Loxmardin]]>