Original Post: Ember, March 27, 2016
Howdy! This past month has been filled with transitions the clans rebuilt their camps and returned to living as four separate groups with the end of the flood and many new leaders came into power. In a unique turn of events, DawnClan peacefully voted to demote Locuststar, but allowed him to remain in their clan as a warrior. MoonClan, NightClan, and SunClan came to an agreement in which their borders were opened to allow apprentices to visit any of the clans and join whichever group they felt they belonged in.
Everyone, please remember that metagaming (a type of powerplaying in which a character makes use of knowledge that the player knows, but character does not have the means to be aware of) is against the rules. In the past few weeks, particularly as a result of Locuststar’s demotion, we’ve had a few characters spreading information that they have no way of having been exposed to.
Thank you to everyone who suggested topics to me for this Monthly Meow, I hope to get to a whole bunch of them in the coming months. For this Monthly Meow, I’ll be touching on how and why rules have changed over time. Thanks you, Toxic, for suggesting this topic!
The first change, is the function of the Character Updates Page. Originally called just the “guestbook”, it was used for character creation and nothing else. All deaths, pregnancies, changes in clans, etc. did not have to be recorded outside of the roleplay itself. As so few members were on the website at this stage, simply remembering what changes needed to be made in our infrequent updates was feasible. However, as more people joined and the character limits rose, this system of just remembering what needed to be done became impossible. I first started keeping written records of necessary page updates as they were roleplayed, then moved to having blog entries in which members would list all of their characters in each clan. This system was difficult from the start, as many members ignored the blog entries, and we quickly changed to a more inclusive Character Updates Page where, eventually, all required page updates were recorded. In addition, formatting became stricter as I began to streamline the updating process and to take detailed records.
The character limit has increased over time to accommodate for the addition of more clans. The limit began as seven characters, but with the creation of NightClan, members complained that having only seven characters spread between three clans (MoonClan, StormClan, and NightClan) was interfering with their roleplaying. The character limit was then raised to 15, where it remained for quite some time. Later, staff members were given additional character slots as a reward for keeping the website running smoothly. Unlike today, where all staff members have an additional four characters, moderators received 18 characters, administrators 20, and website owners 22. Finally, the character limit was moved to where it is today, with members having 20 characters (five cats per clan, if split evenly) and staff members having 24 (six cats per clan, if split evenly).
While we’ve had a rule limiting “throw-away characters” that includes all cats outside of the clans for quite some time now, loners were allowed in the first few years of the roleplay. However, it was unusual for us to have more than a small handful of inactive loner characters at a time and as the website grew and the structure of the clans proved helpful in delegating responsibilities and ensuring some degree of order, it was decided that loners would not be claimed characters anymore.
Several different systems of adoption had been attempted for short periods of time before our current one. Often these systems involved characters remaining up for adoption for unlimited periods of time and were very unpopular, usually only having one or two characters put up for adoption in the months they were open before eventually the system was done away with. Our present system was introduced two or three years ago and has been a greater success, largely because of the specified adoption period. While originally the time span was a month, as most characters who are adopted are taken within only a day or two of being posted, the time span was later halved to the two-week limit we have today.
Aging systems have also changed substantially over time. Initially, no aging system existed, so characters could be promoted or die whenever members felt was appropriate. This caused some confusion, as all of the characters were getting older at different rates, so it was decided we’d just stick with real-time aging. This fit along with the idea that, as most of the members knew each other offline and lived in a relatively close geographic area, the in-game weather was whatever was outside your window. But no one wants to play a kit for six months. A rough aging system was created, which was later changed to the system we use today but with two major differences: queens were pregnant for one month, instead of two weeks, and leaders would have an additional year added to their lifespans.
The additional year leaders had was created as since the roleplay moved rather slowly, by the time a character earned that rank, they’d often not have any time left to accomplish anything substantial. As the roleplay grew and became faster-paced, this rule was both no longer needed and limited the number of members given an opportunity to have a high-ranking character.
Who is applicable for a high-ranking position has also changed over time, particularly for medicine cats. Medicine cat positions were assigned just like leader positions are today, with any openings being handed to owner-chosen members. However, the website was so small whoever stepped up with a willing character was very likely to receive an open position. We moved away from this system toward allowing members to just ask for a position when it opened, but as in the entire time this rule was in place I never denied anyone a position, the rule was adjusted and members no longer had to ask permission for a medicine cat position.
Leader and deputy selection has also changed. At the beginning of the roleplay, only a few members were active and most had one specific character they were championing for a leader positions. No limits existed on character age, so a character could remain in a leadership position almost indefinitely. Waterstar, for example, spent two years in her deputy and then leader position. This resulted in leadership positions being hard to come by, even for rule-following, active members who had been on the website for over a year. As the website grew and time limits were placed on character creation, leaders changed more often. Over time, focus has shifted from characters to members, as having a reliable roleplayer in the position proved to be more effective in the long term than a member who was sporadically active, even if their character made more sense for the current leader to name as deputy.
Members were originally allowed as many high ranking positions as they wanted, but as more members joined we moved to allowing each member one high ranking position. This was later reversed in a rules simplification, but then reinstated recently to accommodate for the roughly 30 active members we have at any given time and ensure that every member who wants a high ranking character will have a fair shot at having one granted they stay active and follow the rules.
The art page began with only one rule: it has to be your work. This system worked well for some time, but eventually rules regarding relevancy were added to conserve bandwidth. The rules remained very consistent for several years until last March, when concerns over whether doll-maker created images were turning the attention of the art pages away from member-created drawings, whether doll-maker created images fit into the rule requiring all images posted there to be original, and bandwidth pressures. While banning doll-maker created images all together was discussed, it was eventually decided that only a limit would be put in place for the sake of adoptables and character design reference sheets used by non-artist members.
Plot planning is arguably the biggest and most important place changes have occurred over time and like many of the other changes, has been shaped by the size and nature of our member group. Initially the roleplay had a small number of members, the vast majority of which knew each other in real life. This had the result of plot planning being carried out largely face-to-face, with plans often being only shared with members who had characters directly tied into whatever plot was being discussed. Later, as members from all around the world began to join, the planning shifted from offline to online, with the bulk of planning occurring through private messages. This system held for several years, at first very unorganized, later being built into the structure of the website through a planned events box on the information page that displayed what plots were being planned through private messages at that time, so everyone knew what to expect.
Currently, plot planning is more accessible and organized than ever. Blog entries are regularly made where members can all discuss events, with only minor details or the very beginnings of ideas often tossed back in forth through private messages. With the addition of plot planning pages, the planned event box was done away with as members could see planned events on the blog entries, and as more members were contributing to ideas, plans have a tendency to change up until the moment they happen, which makes keeping such a box up to date an almost impossible task.
In the future I hope to discuss how these changes, particularly changes in plot planning procedures, may have altered the events and success of various plots. In the meantime, I hope that you’ve enjoyed reading this Monthly Meow as much as I liked writing it! If you have any questions or would like to know how features not covered here have changed, feel free to ask in the comments below.
Ceremony Lists
MoonClan
Apprentices:
Buzzardkit, Treekit: Early April
Robinkit, Phalanxkit, Seraphkit, Victorykit, Cobrakit, Pythonkit, Mambakit, Angelkit, Boagale, Viperkit: Mid April
Cherubkit, Riverkit, Aphrodite, Lastkit, Sacredkit, Brokenkit, Softkit, Dawnkit: Late April
Warriors:
Vixenpaw, Murmuringpaw, Foxpaw, Halfpaw: Early April
Nightpaw, Chivalry, Snakepaw, Jaypaw, Sphinxpaw , Snowypaw: Mid April
Pride, Greed, Sloth, Envy, Gluttony, Wrath, Darkpaw, Mantispaw, Northernpaw: Late April
Elders: Plumefur, Bramblelight
Deaths: Endlesshorizon
NightClan
Apprentices:
Devilkit, Vidar, Skuld, Baldur, Nidhug, Freyr, Odin: Early April
Whitekit, Tidalkit, Scarletkit, Penguinkkit, Halfkit, Sirenkit, Cherrykit, Hecate: Late April
Warriors:
Silentpaw, Nightpaw, Thunderpaw, Berserker, Asmund, Skoll, Saga, Stormpaw, Snowflakepaw, Damselflypaw, Coldpaw, Applepaw, Lilypaw, Tatteredpaw, Nightmarepaw, Toothpaw, Sparkpaw: Early April
Frozenpaw, Trialpaw, Dragonpaw, Nightpaw, Eveningpaw, Pegasuspaw: Mid April
Nightpaw, Silentpaw, Skypaw, Duskpaw, Harrowingpaw, Leopardpaw, Splatteredpaw, Burningpaw, Phantompaw, Ghostpaw, Smudgedpaw, Halfpaw, Lightningpaw: Late April
Elders: Roxie, Widow, Gladys, Tawnyfur
DawnClan
Apprentices:
Maplekit, Cottonkit, Dhaliakit, Bearkit: Early April
Athena: Late April
Warriors:
Bearpaw, Rippedpaw, Purepaw, Murkypaw, Lambpaw, Harrierpaw, Stormpaw, Cloudpaw, Citruspaw, Rowanpaw, Endlesspaw, Topazpaw, Otterpaw, Meadowpaw, Heronpaw, Infernopaw, Sugarpaw, Mudpaw: Early April
Sweetpaw, Wolfpaw, Petalpaw: Mid April
Ghostpaw, Warpaw: Late April
Elders: Clawtail, Blossomsong
SunClan
Apprentices:
Knightkit, Aloekit, Agavekit, Crackedkit, Summitkit: Early April
Fadingkit, Serenitykit, Rustykit, Swiftkit: Mid April
Scaredkit: Late April
Warriors:
Aspenpaw, Cryingpaw, Coyotepaw, Hushedpaw, Cosmicpaw, Horizonpaw, Tigerpaw, Blazingpaw, Screamingpaw, Nautiluspaw, Moonpaw: Early April
Oceanpaw, Kohaku, Borealispaw, Phoenixpaw, Kronospaw, Cthulhupaw, Seraphpaw, Griffinpaw, Fabledpaw, Hydrapaw, Sleepingpaw, Chiliadpaw, Quietpaw: Mid April
Dragonpaw: Late April
Elders: Epochstar, Rushfeather, Gorseflower
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