2022-01-09 - Premium - Premium OOC meeting (log)

Premium OOC Meeting 2022

Category: GemStone IV Premium, Platinum, and Shattered
Topic: Premium Discussion
Message #: 1053
Author: GS4-QUILIC
Date: 01/09/2022 06:28 PM CST
Subject: Premium OOC Meeting

Thank you all for coming out for this. A log of the Q&A:

Uniana

Uniana says, "First, thanks for the meeting. And I want to say thanks for all the merchants who have been popping up without notice."

Uniana says, "But I would like to request more scheduled GALD on the calendar. Outside of that workhorse Haleen, the calendar for premium has felt really sad."

Speaking to Uniana, you say, "So... the thing there is that there has long been a call for 'other' services, so we've been trying to provide those."

Uniana says, "And that's really it. I love that they come randomly but for some of us I think we'd benefit from scheduled opportunities. Thanks so much."

You say, "However, we have yet to manage cloning, so we're limited in how much total we can do."

You say, "That said, thank you for the feedback. We'll see what we can do about switching some things to GALD and getting them calendared so people can plan."

Clunk

Clunk deeply asks, "Can you provide some information on 'the foruns going away'. What it means, what alternatives will be, and how we can interact (if allowed) as the change is made?"

Speaking to Clunk, you say, "I really can't give you much more than this: We're aware of the feedback, and discussions are ongoing. We're going to have something in place before we just delete the forums. Will it be perfect? Probably not, but we'll keep working at it until we get it as good as it can be."

Clunk deeply asks, "And interacting as this goes forward?"

Speaking to Clunk, you say, "Well, for now the forums still exist. And they'll likely still be there tomorrow. Feel free to use them for now. I assure you they're being read."

Vaemyr

Speaking to you, Vaemyr asks, "Thanks for the meeting, I'm not sure you can answer this, but at least for the sooner of the upcomming hunting zone, can you share perhaps the level ranges involved?"

Speaking to Vaemyr, you say, "North of level 60, but that's all I'm saying for now."

Bigsword

Bigsword says, "I would like to request less GALD and more mechanical stuff like premium point (PP) enhancive switching, maybe boosting raffles, switching it from an item to a comparable item... other functional stuff like the script swapping, fusion obelisk... stuff that really interests "involved" players who probably pay for higher tier."

Bigsword says, "I was thinking of putting a PP enhancive on my biggest sword but god forbid I find a bigger one in a couple years then I am stuck. It makes me hesitant."

Speaking to Bigsword, you say, "OK, a few things here."

Speaking to Bigsword, you say, "Premium Point switching/rebuilding has been requested for this year. This is what I was told is the more valuable surface, so that's what I'm going for. This would allow someone, if spun/selected/whatever, to rebuild their PP enhancive skills/stats from the ground up."

Speaking to Bigsword, you say, "Script swapping is usually a high end service, and not one that is usually allowed for Premium. I can request it, but the odds are low. That's something that's more likely to see the light of day at EG, traditionally."

Speaking to Bigsword, you say, "As far as swapping PP enhancives to a new item, the issue there is that once a PP enhancive has been applied, it 'looks' the same under the hood as any other GM. That would make it very hard for us to determine if your enhancive was a premium one, or just a regular one received some other way."

Speaking to Bigsword, you say, "And enhancive switching is... an even rarer thing, to the point that I can't recall seeing it offered off the top of my head."

Treeva

Treeva exclaims, "Thanks for hosting an OOC meeting!"

Treeva asks, "How will having a smaller, shorter and less mechanically oriented premium fest cause less complaints?"

Treeva says, "Respectfully, it seems like that will simply yield players saying it's far less impressive than years past, and now purposefully so, also leaving them preemptively disappointed."

Speaking to Treeva, you say, "We're going to be more focused on new, fun fluff things. The complaints almost uniformly complained about the watered-down mechanical offerings and/or exorbitant prices associated with them."

Speaking to Treeva, you say, "That isn't to say that there will be NO mechanical offerings, but in years past people have complained rather bitterly about how they could get better at EG, or {insert event here}"

Meliyara

Speaking to you, Meliyara asks, "Thanks to you, Zoelle, Mazreth, Jainna, and all the other GMs who help out with Premium/FWI, for everything you do for us. I was wondering if it would be possible to have Xerria's visits alternate times and switch between weekends and weekdays. I don't expect to be able to have an unlock every month, but given how rare unlocking is, it's frustrating that the visits are consistently on a weekday at a time that I (and I'm certain many others) can't generally make. If that doesn't work schedule wise, would an alternative be able to be considered, such as a periodic unlock-by-mail?"

Speaking to Meliyara, you say, "I am working on an additional means for unlocks to be available for people who miss Xerria. It's still in the early proposal stage (I've sent one email, two days ago), but it's something that we're aware of and are hoping to find a solution for."

Speaking to Meliyara, you say, "I'm sorry I don't have better news than that, but we ARE working to find a solution."

Erienne

Erienne asks, "I wanted to bring up the subject of cathedral weddings. I've heard they'll never happen again and also that they might come back. Have there been any discussions on this and if so, can you offer any insight?"

Erienne says, "I also have a suggestion that I think a lot of couples would really appreciate. What if there were marriage licenses that you could buy with premium points and/or silvers where you could choose the cathedral verbs or the ones the Wavedancer had? These could then be accepted by two people then redeemed at a special cleric in the Wedding Glade."

Speaking to Erienne, you say, "To the first, all I can say is that it's been discussed, and that I can't say much more than that."

Speaking to Erienne, you say, "To the second, that's a great idea! No clue if it's possible, but I will absolutely be looking into it."

Naamit

Naamit asks, "I have a few questions but I'll start with one - How frequently can we expect to see WPS specifically for Mist Harbor citizens this year?"

Speaking to Naamit, you say, "We're in the process of nailing down WPS for the year, but as it stands we should see it twice a year. Unless things change."

Speaking to Naamit, you say, "I'm hoping to add some more value to MH Citizenship this year, though what form that will take is still under discussion."

Maylan

Maylan says, "I'd love to see regular merchant refilling offered as a regular premium service, similar to Xerria unlocking. Things such as: calling cards, stationary accessories, kegs, etc. There are so many non-permanent items out there and not a lot of opportunities for refilling. This would be a very valuable addition to our subscription. Thank you for hosting this meeting and for hearing my suggestion."

Speaking to Maylan, you say, "Thank you for bringing that up here so it can go on the record. I will see what I can chase down along those lines, though it's likely to be like Xerria, where some items are allowed and others are not."

Leifa

Leifa continues, "So instead I will request that Premium account holders get a special gift box per year with some special perks. Specifically, I would like Reim passes, RP orbs, and Sadie scrolls!"

Speaking to Leifa, you say, "Sadie scrolls are really hard to do as anything other than what they are, at present."

Speaking to Leifa, you say, "Since they tie in to the billing system, we don't have an easy way to hack that and make them reduced cost, or free."

Speaking to Leifa, you exclaim, "However, I can see about an annual gift box!"

Jaysehn

Jaysehn says, "It seems an odd thing that with Premium being a subscription upgrade that adds extras to our gameplay/experience, that citizenship is still a trade off we have to make with other towns. I'd like to ask that FWI citizenship be made into a thing we could have dual citizenship in. It should pesent extra opportunities, since this an upgrade service, not replace existing opportunities."

Speaking to Jaysehn, you say, "I would love to make that happen, but it's possibly the most un-doable thing in the guts of this game."

Speaking to Jaysehn, you say, "It touches almost every single system we have."

Speaking to Jaysehn, you say, "I will ask the question, and see if there's some bastardized version of what you're asking for that might be possible, but it's been asked before and turned down flat."

Sothog

Sothog asks, "Regarding merchant events: I've noticed in the past that plenty of them don't fall on weekends. Will there be an ample spread of weekend and non-weekend merchant events?"

Speaking to Sothog, you say, "All I can say for certain is that Premium Fest will have weekday and weekend options for merchant services. Beyond that, it's up to the GM running the service, and their schedule, when they can do things like that. But I'll put the word out and see if people can do a bit more non-weekend stuff."

Rinualdo

Rinualdo says, "Expanding on some previously voiced concerns, what do you see the roll of roleplaying and related activities as it relates to premium and what are your thoughts to subscribers who would rather see roleplay not gated by premium while also not be a focus of the limited premium resources. The perception from some is this is a lot of work that is utilized by a very small, consistent portion of the premium population."

Speaking to Rinualdo, you say, "In case you missed it, QST was postponed indefinitely, and not a single thing relating to RP is currently on our list of things that are being worked on."

Speaking to Rinualdo, you ask, "Did that address your question?"

Rinualdo says, "Not at all."

Rinualdo says, "Not really sure if you are looking at me to expand my question."

Rinualdo says, "It was a big consternation a week ago so I was looking for a chance to see what your thoughts on the two are."

Speaking to Rinualdo, you say, "The role of roleplay as it relates to Premium is that I like to add value to those Premium subscribers who enjoy a roleplay/storyline experience."

Speaking to Rinualdo, you say, "So long as that does not deter all the other things going on with Premium, I have never seen it as an issue."

Speaking to Rinualdo, you say, "To those who would rather that the stories not be gated by Premium, I see their point, but I view it as added value to Premium, which is quite literally the emphasis of my job."

Speaking to Rinualdo, you say, "As to the perception that this takes up too much of our time, I had hoped that by sharing everything that's underway, those concerns might be alleviated."

You say, "We're wandering into unproductive territory. QST is not happening any time soon, and hopefully that will put the issue to bed."

Obsalyn

Obsalyn says, "One of the hardest parts of festivals is being available for the unlocks. It can be hard enough to be picked by a spinner and harder still to arrange time to be around for the merchant to unlock. I loved the Junker in EG that allowed us to buy unlock certs, it helps people that have to work or just might have stepped away for some reason. So if there was any way to automate the unlocking process that would be great."

Speaking to Obsalyn, you say, "There may be. I'd be happy to look into that. We have tried to make more raffles not require people to be present at the time, though I get that that doesn't solve the unlocks issue."

Akenna

Thank you so much for holding this meeting! Also, thanks to you guys who keep premium afloat, I appreciate you. I have a question about cobbling carts. Is there any chance of getting new mats on the seasonal carts, maybe an update?"

Speaking to Akenna, you say, "I... think that should be doable! I will make a note to check into that and see about a refresh of them."

Dalinsia

Dalinsia says, "Now that there is a massive hole in Charl's Teeth large enough to allow an entire fleet of ships entry to the island, may we please see OSA brought to Mist Harbor? Even if the solution is that anyone can dock, but only Premium subscriptions can be permitted outside the harbor area, I'd still love to see it. Lore-wise, it doesn't make sense to me that no one (including NPCs) has started to map the seas just outside of Mist Harbor and bring them into the larger Elanthian trade network."

Speaking to Dalinsia, you say, "There have been very preliminary discussions about an OSA area for FWI. I'll be honest and say that that's not likely to be on this year's list, but it's something that I would like to see happen."

Melivn

Melivn says, "With premium fest moving in a more RP fluff dirrection I'd like to ask that these items offered come fully unlocked and dont require years of merchant chasing to unlock , or a system be put in place to reasonable unlock them through out the year on mistharbor."

Speaking to Melivn, you say, "Definitely. While some unlock tiers are unavoidable, we're making a concerted effort to keep them to a minimum, where a single unlock 'fully' unlocks the new things we introduce. There may be outliers, but I agree with you, and we're going to try and move in that direction as much as possible."

Yukito

Yukito asks, "There is an elephant in the room when it comes to mechanics wants and needs, and roleplaying wants and needs. This needs to be a peaceful discussion with patient resolution, but it does seem that neither side gets satisfied in order to maintain "peace". I would like to ask, respectfully.. where are we headed as Premium? What is the overall goal?"

Speaking to Yukito, you say, "The goal is to add value to Premium at every opportunity. The problem is that in a lot ways, that knob is already at 11, which is to say that adding more things in 'that' direction simply won't happen."

Yukito asks, "On both sides?"

Speaking to Yukito, you say, "There's a real issue with making Premium 'essential', as well. If it gets too overpowered, then players would be crazy not to subscribe if they wanted to really enjoy the game. Some would (and do) say it's already there."

Yukito asks, "I see. I think that is what is frustrating me here. I know what I want, and I want others to get what they want. I just don't want to feel... less?"

Speaking to Yukito, you say, "In a lot of ways I feel like the perception is simply that if we're doing one thing on the mechanical side, we're ignoring the RP side of things. I personally dislike pretty intensely that there's two 'sides', but that's another issue."

Speaking to Yukito, you say, "We have four dedicated Premium GMs, and I feel like we're pretty balanced, what with new hunting grounds, new Premium fest grounds, and new scripts. We certainly try to be."

Kayse

Kayse says, "An odd question and I feel weird asking it now, but: Are there plans/is it possible down the line for more RP opportunities in MH to open up like Rohese's position as loremaster? This was created while I was away from the game and I think these neat little experiences like that just bring more RP to the town--and more importantly player RP."

Speaking to Kayse, you say, "At this point, I can't say for certain, unfortunately. I wish I could give you a better answer than that, but I will put it on the list of things to look into."

Yardie

Speaking to you, Yardie asks, "Afternoon all and thanks for taking the time to communicate with us. Means a lot. I got simple tastes. Love it here in Mist Harbor. Particularly all of the restaurants and all of the food and beverage joints. You mentioned adding stuff to the menu of Greth's and the like. Do you see that happening here and elsewhere around the island?"

Speaking to Yardie, you say, "Absolutely. Adding things to Greth's, and other places, is on my list of things that I want to get done. We're hoping to use some Premium Contests for ideas for things like that (past winners and things)."

Erek

Erek asks, "Some time ago we were having some idle chat in Discordland regarding Junker or HESS-style purchases made with premium points. This would be along the lines of what others had suggested, such as rechargers, unlocks, flat priced services, etc. (right now the what being less important than the how really). Is this something you are kicking around and if so would it be a 2022 thing or a later thing?"

Speaking to Erek, you say, "It's something that I am hoping to get an answer on soonish, then if it's positive, implementation could take a lot longer."

Nodyre

Nodyre says, "Would it be possible to get Dragonbones regularly scheduled for mist harbor? A quarterly game would be just terrific."

Speaking to Nodyre, you say, "We tried, then it broke! We'll definitely try again, though. I want a regular game here if at all possible."

Lylia

Lylia exclaims, "With regard to seeing "sides" in the roleplay/mechanics conversation, I hope we as players can start seeing this as an "us versus our shared concerns" situation and not "us versus them" -- or versus the GMs who keep the game compelling and fun. Soapboxing aside and onto the question: do you foresee more events like "Premium Prom," which focused on services and fluff? I had such a great time at it and would love some more!"

Speaking to Lylia, you say, "Premium Prom is scheduled to happen again this year, 100%. That was a big hit, and I'm glad everyone had fun."

Speaking to Lylia, you say, "As for more events like it... that's possible, but not on our immediate radar. Premium Fest is our Death Star, and it's rapidly approaching."

Luxelle

Luxelle asks, "Mister Quilic, it is always so nice to see you and thank you and the entire Premium Team for all the work you do for us! We have not seen Miss Nycolle for Label goodies since I believe the end of 2020. Is she going to return in 2021, pretty please?"

Speaking to Luxelle, you exclaim, "I can certainly request that she make a return!"

HATESHI (forums)

May we please see more FWI transporter merchant work offered this year, both for changing messaging and for anchoring? I feel like I only saw this happen 2-3 times at most this past year, though it is entirely possible that I missed some announcements. I'd love to see this offered more, both as a calendared and an unscheduled merchant service. Thanks!

Response: That's definitely something that's on the radar, though it's not something that's likely to be offered all that often. I will see about opening it up a little bit, though I would suggest that you're very likely to see it at Premium Fest this year.

~ASGM Quilic