3. Admin Team Applications

Admin Team Applications

  • Dev

    UPDATE

    The application period is closed as of 12/21/2023 and this thread is locked.

    Applications for the upcoming admin team will be held in this thread. This will serve as a reference of candidates stances on issues when the ballot is posted. For more information about the admin team, please see this post.

    Posts other than admin team applications will be removed from this thread by moderators. Please direct questions to this thread instead.

    To apply to be a candidate, please copy/paste the list below and input your stances. A simple "No comment" will suffice for topics you care not to answer:

    1. Listing their relevant experience (community leadership roles, time spent in positions on Narfell or other online game servers/communities)
    2. Stance on how decisions would be made between admin team members and how community involvement would work
    3. Stance on staff member term limits
    4. Stance on how other teams are staffed (DMs, Devs, PGs, etc)
    5. Stance on how recall votes should work
    6. Stance on admin team membership and other staff role exclusivity
  • A

    Hello Narfell! I will be applying for an admin team role:

    1.) Relavent Experience
    I played Narfell regularly between 2003 and 2020. For much of that time I was in a leadership role as Theaon Thorn in the Troff Legion guild for much of my time as a player and became leader of the guild in 2013 to current (he was also a member of the Halfling Defense League). During that same time, I’ve also played Brumir Silverhammer, who is a master in the Crafter’s Union and a member of the Council of Moradin. I returned to Narfell earlier this year upon the previous administration leaving and a new administration taking over.

    2.) Stance on How Decisions Would Be Made Between Admin Team Members and How Community Involvement Would Work
    My views on this haven't changed much since the first time I applied for a position on the Admin Team (AT) last December. The AT should represent the community as a whole and be transparent about it. Something we haven't done yet since the AT took over earlier this year is hold regular town halls, which is something I would like to see occur more often if elected.

    I believe the DM's should be allowed to DM as they see fit (within the bounds of the server rules of course). AT's would have no knowledge of what goes on behind the curtain as far as plots and events. The only instances I believe the AT should intervene in DM affairs is when there is a complaint brought against a DM by members of the community, or there is widespread dissatisfaction from the community in regards to the direction the DM team is taking the server. One example of the latter some long-time players may recall is the N'Jast War. The DM team of the time was hellbent removing certain starting towns despite the playerbase of the time not being on board with that. As a result, many players left and Narfell never really rebounded from that. If such a scenario were to play out now, that's something the AT would have to press the pause button on.

    In the case there is a complaint brought against a DM, the AT's would hear from both sides and any witnesses to the situation and make a ruling (upholding the DM ruling or overruling). The reasoning of the AT would be made public, and each AT would need to state -why- they voted the way they did. I know this is something members of the AT would not look forward to, but after seeing the previous administration circle the wagons whenever complaints were brought against them, I believe this is the most fair and transparent way to handle these issues.

    3.) Stance On Staff Member Term Limits
    1 year for AT's and DM's. None for devs as they would be appointed by the AT.

    4.) Stance On How Other Teams are Staffed
    As stated above, devs would be appointed by the AT based on their skill with the toolset. DM's would be elected to 1 year terms. No one can be both an AT and a DM.

    5.) Stance on How Recall Votes Should Work
    I think there should be two ways to initiate a recall vote - the first being if a majority of AT's vote for it, or if 25% of the playerbase call for it. A staff member can be removed if 60% of the playerbase votes to remove said member.

    6.) Stance On Admin Team Membership and Other Staff Role Exclusivity
    As stated before, no one should be allowed to be both an AT and a DM. I do think it's fine if an AT or a DM pulls double-duty as a dev. As a stated above, other than instances where complaints are brought against DM rulings, I believe DMs should be allowed to DM and AT's handle the administrative side.

    If you have any questions, hit me up on Discord or make a post on the Ask-Me-Anything channel.


  • Hello Narfell,

    I have played on this server for many, many years, and it is disappointing to see what it has become. I would like to see the server thrive once again, so I am stepping forward to do what I can to help.

    1. Listing their relevant experience (community leadership roles, time spent in positions on Narfell or other online game servers/communities)

    I have been playing NWN since the day it was released and Narfell since early 2005, so I know the game and this server very well.

    I joined the Narfell dev team under Morikhan, as a map maker, in early 2007, and I created several maps for the server at that time. I am no longer part of the dev team, but I have continued to make unattached maps, creatures, etc. for DMs and players on request.

    In real life, I have 30 years of teaching experience in a public elementary school (grades 3-5). I have been a union rep for my school site and a member of the union’s bargaining team for many years (including time spent as the bargaining chair).

    2. Stance on how decisions would be made between admin team members and how community involvement would work

    The process is pretty well spelled out in the original charter, and though there may be some tweaks on the specifics as we navigate this change, I think the decision process will be pretty straight forward.

    The bottom line is that the community must be included in the major (and sometimes minor) server decisions. Not only will they be included, but what they say must be taken to heart and acted/voted on. Gone are the days when community input was taken and then simply ignored because admin didn’t like the feedback.

    Community involvement would include discussion/debate threads, polls/surveys, player votes, town hall meetings, etc. Whatever method we decide to use, players will have plenty of opportunities to express their opinions and be heard.

    I, as a player, will also participate in these discussions/debates. However, even if I disagree with a clear community majority on a given issue, I will vote (as a representative) with the community’s decision - that’s my job.

    There will be full transparency on admin votes, so the community will see exactly how things are being done and admin will be held accountable. If admin isn’t doing their job, they can and should be voted out by the community.

    The great thing about getting (and using) community input is that, if the decision ends up not working as anticipated, we can always go back and fix it with another vote.

    3. Stance on staff member term limits

    If a staff member is doing a good job in their position, I do not see a reason for term limits to be placed on them.

    That said, there should be a system in place where staff is periodically confirmed by the community with a new vote (6 months/1 year). If they are not doing a good job, then they should be voted out by the community. This periodic vote would also allow other players an opportunity to take over a position if they (and the voters) feel they could do a better job.

    4. Stance on how other teams are staffed (DMs, Devs, PGs, etc.)

    Other team positions will be staffed by an application process and periodic community votes, as well. A job description for each position will be created, and any player who thinks that they are qualified is welcome to apply.

    The application process should include a statement of qualifications by the interested player, community input/discussion/debate threads, Q&A sessions, etc. We want to make sure we get the right people in these roles and avoid all the drama and hurt feelings of a recall vote.

    5. Stance on how recall votes should work

    Despite this being “only a game,” a recall vote would be a pretty serious and time-consuming undertaking. It should only be used to remove someone after all other options have been exhausted. The only exception to this would be the immediate removal of someone for an egregious offense or abuse of their position. That too would be disclosed and voted on, if necessary.

    That said, if someone is not meeting the expectations of the job description and/or the community, and they are unwilling/unable to improve, then they should be asked to step down. If they refuse to step down, then they will be subjected to a recall vote.

    Before a vote is held, there will be a full disclosure of the reasons, public discussion/debate with the community, surveys, etc. In the end, the community will be asked to vote and the results will determine if the person is recalled or not.

    6. Stance on admin team membership and other staff role exclusivity

    I think it would be wise to try and keep most of the roles exclusive.

    The only exception to this might be the dev team. If you are on the admin team, I don’t see a huge issue with you helping dev a better Narfell (if you have the time).

    The other positions, however, should be exclusive. DM/admin overlap is one of the major problems with current Narfell, and we can do better.

    Thank you for reading my application. ☺

    Bows - Fist to palm

  • A

    Hey all! Been a while since I last posted here. I will be applying for a role on the Admin Team.

    1.) Relavent Experience
    I played Narfell regularly between 2003 and 2020. For much of that time I was in a leadership role in the Troff Legion guild for much of my time as a player and became leader of the guild in 2013 to 2020. During that same time, I’ve also had a character that was a Master in the Crafter’s Union and a member of the Council of Moradin.

    2.) Stance on How Decisions Would Be Made Between Admin Team Members and How Community Involvement Would Work
    I think the Admin Team (AT), Community Leads (CL), or whatever we choose to call them should be a group of 5 that represent the playerbase as a whole in a transparent manner. To make ALL community members feel like they have a voice, I believe the AT/CL team should be holding regular town hall meetings with the community to allow all players provide their feedback and ideas for the server, and hold votes on how the path forward will be paved.

    I also believe the AT/CL’s need to be the ones ruling on disputes between players and DMs. My vision of this would be that when a DM ruling is challenged, the AT/CL’s will hear from the affected players and DMs, along with any witnesses to the situation. After all affected parties are heard and all evidence is presented, the AT/CL’s will then deliberate and vote on an outcome. That outcome will then be announced to the entire community, as well as HOW each member of the AT/CL team voted and WHY they voted the way they did.

    3.) Stance On Staff Member Term Limits
    Term limits would be 6-12 months as determined by the community. I think devs should not need to be elected as their will be a huge need for them. Additions to the dev team (or removals) would be handled by the AT/CL team.

    4.) Stance On How Other Teams are Staffed (DMs, Devs, PGs, etc.)
    First, I believe we need to get the AT/CL team in place. Once that is done, all current DMs should be required to step down. Anyone who is interested in becoming a DM can put their name forward as a candidate (AT/CL’s CANNOT be DMs). When all the candidates have made themselves available, an “ask me anything” will be held on Discord so the playerbase gets a chance to ask any questions they feel necessary to the candidates. A vote will then be held, with the 5 most vote-getters being appointed as DMs for 6-12 months. They will then be up for re-election after that time period. If a DM chooses to step down on their own before the next election, the AT/CL team will hold a special election where the community would vote for a new DM if there are any candidates.

    With the way the AT/CL team would function, I’m not sure that we’d need PG’s, though I would not be against having them. I feel there can be further discussions on the need/responsibilities of PG’s.

    As stated previously, devs would not be up for election. They would be appointed and removed by the AT/CL team.

    5.) Stance On How Recall Votes Should Work
    I believe we should have a mechanism in place where a certain amount of community members can initiate a recall vote for any AT/CL’s or DM’s. When the recall vote happens, I think it should take a 60% threshold to remove someone from their current position. If that threshold is met, a special election can be held to replace that person. In the case of DM’s, I believe the AT/CL’s should also be allowed to initiate recall votes if they feel they are getting too many complaints levied against a DM. This would also again, require a 60% threshold.

    6.) Stance On Admin Team Membership and Other Staff Role Exclusivity
    As I mentioned above, no one can be both an AT/CL and a DM at the same time. I’m not too picky about an elected staff member having dev responsibilities as we are not in a position to say no to people who have skills with the Toolset.

    I do not believe that if someone is a DM they should never log in and play a character. However, I do believe DMs should DM much more than they play. I also believe if a DM’s character gets items from another DM’s event, that needs to be made public and transparent to avoid any appearance of DM favoritism.

    If anyone has any questions for me, please feel free to contact me via the forums or Discord. Your vote would be much appreciated!

  • A

    Hello Narfellians!

    I would like to apply for the role of Admin Team also (along with these fine peeps). I will keep my application relatively brief focusing on the stuff that is important from my point of view. Thanks in advance for reading.

    1. Listing their relevant experience (community leadership roles, time spent in positions on Narfell or other online game servers/communities)

    Real life relevant experience

    • 30 years running tech start-ups and highly motivated and high performance teams.
    • Step-dad to an 11 year old
    • Volunteer at a soup kitchen for the homeless for 3 years

    Narfell Experience

    • 20 year player, multiple PCs with strong knowledge of mechanics (I believe this to be important in planning and ensuring we as a community consider all various types of ‘fun’ players with to have)
    • PG for a couple of years
    • Informal helper to many players when I can
    • AU time zone

    2. Stance on how decisions would be made between admin team members and how community involvement would work
    I think the Admin Teams job is to ensure community representation. Specifically, to help layout a plan of logical order with respects to change management and dependences and involve the community in voting on key decisions to ensure it’s a far more open and transparent server. Whilst we will all have to make compromises (including me) I will do my best to ensure decisions aren’t being made in secret or unilaterally by the staff.

    The goal here is to bring players back and build our player base up. Working with the community is the best way to make that happen – people need to be heard!

    3. Stance on staff member term limits
    6-12 months to be determined by the community.

    4. Stance on how other teams are staffed (DMs, Devs, PGs, etc)
    I believe DMs should DM primarily. Community Leaders (Ads) should be focused on working with the community to establish the direction of the server. Things seem to have gone astray in the past when DM have done both roles.

    5. Stance on how recall votes should work
    We should have a complaints process that is transparent. We do need to establish a forced stand-down protocol but at this stage I do not have a strong view personally on this.

    6. Stance on admin team membership and other staff role exclusivity
    In an ideal world the roles (aside from Dev and CL) should be exclusive but I worry, purely due to low community numbers we may need to have overlaps.

  • H
    Registered Voters

    I would like to apply for this Role. I looked over the responsibilities and found that 2 of the 3 do not require hard skills ( like code, bug fixes etc ) so Id like to address those first with some general comments.

    Server Direction - My view on this is simple ... we want players. We want consistent players. We want an average of more than 5. I've been playing this server on and off for several years. I've been on other servers on and off since the game released. I like the general feel of this server which is why I keep coming back however it could use some tweaking in certain places to draw more players and keep the ones we have.

    Community Engagement - This should be a skill that anyone who applies to this position should already be behind 100%. Whether you are new to doing it or not, communication is vital to every facet of any successful organization on the planet. ( Logically it would apply to off planet as well )

    So to summarize the soft skills above. More players, consistently, tweak as necessary to draw new players and maintain old ones. Both of which require 100% communication with your player base as obviously that is who you are trying to recruit and maintain.

    Now, onto the hard skills. IT Management. I do IT for a living. Bare metal, virtual machines, containers via docker or kubernetes, Storage, networking, performance tuning on all. Organizing and prioritizing projects, architecture, engineering, operationalizing, and seeing it all through to competition. Obviously I'm a Unix person and I code in C and python regularly .

    • Stance on how decisions would be made between admin team members and how community involvement would work

      My viewpoint is that Admins are here to enforce the rules which exists and the community voted for. If there are enough admins then voting can be pretty easy. If there are only a few say 3. I think we need to implement a player group as well which is elected so that votes are among a wider number of opinions. At that point the Admins and PGs would vote.

    • Stance on staff member term limits

    Admin and DM: I think its best to limit them to 1 yr with a call to reapply. If they get re-elected then they stay if they want to. Why would we want make a great DM or Admin step down if everyone else wants them to stay as well.

    Devs: no term limits. In fact, Hold onto them .. dont let them go .. put them in a dungeon if you have to. They are the ones bringing all these ideas to life and making the game fun.

    PGs (if required) 6 months - 1 year.

    *Stance on how other teams are staffed (DMs, Devs, PGs, etc)

    Admin/DM/PGs - elected by community. Devs can be appointed or Volunteered. The idea of a Lead Dev should also be considered as we would want to drive development in a consistent way. That Lead could be appointed by the admin team.

    • Stance on how recall votes should work

    I think there needs to be a minimum number of complaints before the recall would be initiated. Past that I support majority.

    • Stance on admin team membership and other staff role exclusivity

    In my opinion Devs and DMs are probably the most crucial roles in that they keep the game fresh.

    DM takes so much more planning Id think that perhaps a DM wouldn't have time to Dev or Admin.

    I do think however that an Admin, given it doesn't impact his roles, could do some development as well.

  • Dev

    Hello all!

    Some of you may know me from the server, and some of you may know me from Discord. I play the ranger Lence Arnimannes pretty exclusively, and when not getting beat up by various spawns in the server, I spend time making maps, doing a little dev coding and trying to enlarge the Narfell world for all to enjoy. You may know my work from The Road to Uthmere, the Quarry maps in the Lost City (spiders!), maps along the Icelace, expansions to Norwick and environs, and random tweaks to old and new maps to make the user experience richer for all who play on Narf!

    I am putting my name in as a candidate for the Admin Team, and hope that you’ll consider voting for me.

    Listing their relevant experience (community leadership roles, time spent in positions on Narfell or other online game servers/communities)

    • As a player since the mid 2000s, I’ve been on the server for a long time. I stopped playing Diamond Edition NWN around 2011, and finding NWN on Steam right before the pandemic was a blessing, as I was able to re-immerse myself into a familiar world that I didn’t know I missed until I got back in November of 2020. Since then, I’ve been a Dev, and have made close to 100 new maps on the server, and edited about the same amount of existing ones, working hand in hand with most of the other Devs. I can safely say that I’m responsible for growing the server size by around 20%. I’m a firm believer that as an open world, Narfell should continue growing (in size and options) and offer up more choose-your-own-adventure style gameplay alongside DM sponsored play.

    • I’ve tried to be a voice of reason and to push for a more inclusive, immersive, and interactive version of the server, so we could address deficiencies like lack of interactivity when there aren’t DMs on. That being said, I’m like most of you, I really enjoy it when DMs are on and interacting with the community as a whole on a regular basis, and look forward to fostering that kind of environment moving forward. I think with a great team in place we can serve both of those masters, the non-gamemaster play AND the curated sessions.

    Stance on how decisions would be made between admin team members and how community involvement would work

    • I want the Admin Team to be more inclusive, and to be able to make decisions based on a clear process, with transparency and communication with the community being key. The Admin Team would be responsible for making sure all the process stuff that keeps the server going continues uninterrupted during any changes. Community Voting on reps for the Admin Team, DMs, Devs, and Player Guides should be under their purview, and managing the code of conduct should be one of the major processes they manage. The Admin Team should set expectations that are real and actionable for DM involvement, Dev contributions, and player engagement.

    • I feel that Narfell has extensive documentation on how it's community should behave, and that the lack of implementation of those checks and balances has lead us to where we are today. These processes will have to be managed better and out in the open. Any major decisions made that impact player experience should have community input. If 3 Admin Team members or 5 community members want to invoke change, then that proposal will be put forward to the community to vote on as a whole.

    Stance on staff member term limits

    • I’m a firm believer that if someone is doing a good job, they should continue to do so. A 6 or 12-month check-in/review should be implemented, so if there are any issues, they can be addressed.

    Stance on how other teams are staffed (DMs, Devs, PGs, etc)

    • Anyone interested in any of these positions should be able to apply. Experience in any of these arenas is helpful, and encouraged, but not required. Anyone who is seeking one of these positions will have to put forward a proposal as to why they want that position to the community and then they will be voted in (or not) by a majority Yes/No vote.

    • There should be DM, Dev, and possibly PG teams that push things to the community as a whole with oversight from the Admin Team to manage those processes and not make it feel exclusionary.

    • For anyone who is elected who is not fluent in their new position, there will be an onboarding period where there will be a knowledge transfer from someone who is in that position. A lot of people already have some of the knowledge of what it takes to run a PW already, so I feel this may be less of a pain point than assumed.

    Stance on how recall votes should work

    • As part of the transparent checks and balances, if at any time 3 Admin Team members or 5 Community members want to call a No-Confidence/Recall vote on any elected members, the issue will be brought to the community, discussed, and if the community proposes a course of action, they will vote on removal/stay (or public flogging, flaming bamboo under fingernails… I am open to options – this is D&D, after all!).

    Stance on admin team membership and other staff role exclusivity

    • My stance is that I don’t think quotas on the Admin Team are a necessity.
      It can be made up of five players, five DMs, Devs or some random mix of all three. One of the issues that many folks have with the current system is that power is consolidated among a few folks. As a consequence, there is conversation about quotas on the Admin Team to include folks from all three elements of the server management (DMS, Devs, & PGs), to avoid that powercreep.

    • AS LONG AS A CLEAR AND ACCESSIBLE NO-CONFIDENCE/RECALL POLICY IS IN PLACE, IT WONT MATTER WHO IS ON THE ADMIN TEAM AS THE CHECKS AND BALANCES WILL PREVENT ANY ABUSE.

    • To sum up, if I can echo Dora, my real joy is making stuff for everyone to enjoy on the Dev side (and to take down the occasional Orb Spider Queen). If I were unable to do that because I was on the Admin Team, it would be sad. If the community thinks that the Admin Team should be exclusive, then that’s the way it goes. But I hope not. We all wear many hats in the real world, so there’s no reason we can’t do the same in Narfell.

    Anyway, I think we’re all looking to make Narfell a better place that’s inclusive, fair, engaging, expansive, rewarding, and most of all, fun! So, if that is your goal too, vote for me!


  • Listing their relevant experience (community leadership roles, time spent in positions on Narfell or other online game servers/communities)

    • Server member since 2003 (20 years)
    • Dev team since early 2007 (16 years)
    • DM team since June 2007 (16 years)
    • Server Host since December 2016 (7 years)
    • Head DM since May 2019 (4 years)

    Over my time as dev I have been responsible for: updated AI (from modified NWN base), (initial) language systems, hunting system, spell crystals, RLG modification crystals, recall relic, and DM tools including the area shelf and PLC NUI editor as well as ATS, summoning, quest systems, and spell refactors - and more bug fixes than I can count.

    Stance on how decisions would be made between admin team members and how community involvement would work

    • As I will state regarding the format for the admin team (after the reorganization), I think a team comprised of community representatives and members from each staff team should decide things in majority vote.

    Stance on staff member term limits

    • While I don't think "term limits" is the best way to phrase my stance, I think each member of the staff should go through a yearly (while a more ideal time would be every 6 months, I feel like asking for major votes like this has always been an undertaking) community review. Majority vote on retention (time limit on vote).

    Stance on how other teams are staffed (DMs, Devs, PGs, etc)

    • I'll first note that this bullet/question kind of implies that no member of the admin team may have any of the parenthetical roles. As in my bullet point below on staff exclusivity, I believe the admin team (after our reorganization efforts) should be populated with members of each of these teams. I will also note that this is all very dependent on whether or not the incoming admin team purges the existing staff teams.

    • No cross roles from any party. (Note that traditionally, higher level dev work requires DM access, which is why there was always some cross-functionality here. You can always script restrictions on the major functions but since the DM client now has the ability to execute arbitrary code chunks, devs that know what they're doing can hypothetically DM from there anyway.)

    • The DM team should be populated by player base members nominated by the admin team (as below, I suggest that this includes at least one DM already after the reorganization), and voted on by majority with a time limit on the vote. Admin team should retain blocking votes. DMs should focus on story, but this doesn't necessarily mitigate admin work. That could hypothetically be given to dev team members with higher privilege access, but that's something which needs to be discussed at length.

    • The dev team has always been a bit of an oddity in my mind. Currently we don't really argue and there never seems to be much of an agenda other than "wouldn't this be neat?." Some "test" has traditionally been given out to code monkeys who want to join the ranks but we've mostly been self-determinant over the years and somehow this has worked out. I suppose my true stance here is dependent on whether or not I'm still on the team, still server host, etc. when all is said and done because we could always put anyone in this role, but that might not work out all that well in terms of actually achieving dev team goals. I would imagine that the admin team should retain the ability to block applications/nominees and remove members via majority vote, however.

    • Player guides are important for arbitrating between "staff" and non-staff representation, and should be nominated by community. As with above, the admin team should retain ability to block candidates.

    • In my model of the team with representation from multiple groups, DM, dev, and PG teams should elect their representative to the admin team.

    Stance on how recall votes should work

    • Any five players can request a recall vote. Community votes on removal from role. Super-majority decision with time limit on the vote (if it's really enough of an emergency that we can't wait until yearly retention votes, 2/3 majority should not be difficult to achieve).

    Stance on admin team membership and other staff role exclusivity

    • I think that there should always be some amount of representation fom roles on the team deciding server direction. "Five" was just a nice round number for sake of reorganization. Ideally the DM team, the dev team, and the player base should all have representation here. Something like a DM, a dev, a player guide (assuming this role is re-instituted), and two community representatives might be a good makeup for the future. In this way you effectively have a community representation majority even if a PG is technically "staff."
    • As above (in staffing stance), I don't think we should have people operating as both DMs and devs or DMs and PGs (this one is a bit more obvious) or similar combination, but I still think it's important that staff members be on the eventual team deciding server direction because representation from folks running the story, folks participating in the story, and folks that can say whether or not something is technically possible are all important to move forward.

    I should emphasize that I fully support segregation of duties (as stated above) and if elected to the admin board for initial server direction - should it be decided that admins can't have also have staff roles - I will more than likely resign after the reorganization in order to keep my place on the dev team.

    I believe, despite my time spent as a DM, most community members would agree that development has been my primary focus in service of the community.


  • Listing their relevant experience (community leadership roles, time spent in positions on Narfell or other online game servers/communities)

    • I was a PG and eventually PL several years ago. Without embellishment I am still very much a 'go to' for staff/player concerns despite this role drying up.
    • I was an active DM 2014~2016, there are still a handful of DM_Braveheart loot items in circulation and some of my events left lasting positive impacts on the community. My focus had been Fight Night events.
    • I have been successfully running Fight Night (type) events with minimal DM participation when my schedule has allowed. These player run events have drawn weekend-level (and more) numbers to the server during weekdays. My focus as a player has been to find ways to be inclusive, for my characters' rewards/favors to be beneficial to the overall server as opposed to personal gratification. This would be my goal in an admin role.
    • As you all know as players who have interacted with me on the server, I am a roleplay focused individual. My presence will be to enrich your experience by interacting with you through roleplaying situations and experiences.

    Stance on how decisions would be made between admin team members and how community involvement would work

    • I elected to not be a part of the voter roll this cycle to avoid any perception of unfairness or self promotion. I am eager to see if this works out. As someone who has been willing to step forward and meet a hard situation, and address it, I feel it is in the server's interest to have me on board as at the very least an advocate for the players.

    Stance on staff member term limits

    • Few, if any positions should be permanent. It would be self destructive to uproot and wipe out the server's current staff every cycle, be it a year or six months, each quarter perhaps. I feel there is merit however in regular votes, polls, town-hall meetings. Communication is critical, when we stop talking to each other as a community, clearly, bad things happen. I stepped down from DMing years ago with no hard feelings, I would happily do so again from any position if the polls required it. I would add that I am the would-be DM's biggest advocate, and I will be encouraging (read pestering) everyone to try out at least once even at the expense of my own seat.

    Stance on how other teams are staffed (DMs, Devs, PGs, etc)

    • A DM spot should not be sought as a badge of merit, a DM should be driven and focused on the story that they wish to engage others in. I would like to see new names in the DM roster certainly, but would encourage future applicants to have a roadmap of what they intend to do (primary focus), along with any non-spontaneous side projects/hooks they want to throw out.
      -The Dev should do what the Dev does and because they scare me and I don't fully understand what they do, they should continue to be comfortable doing so with minimal nonsense from my uncultured smooth-brain. In reality my interactions with the Dev team has always been stellar, I have been present in the testing of a variety of features that are now in game. F'ing Otyughs.
      -PGs were a lifeline. Their position should be restored, and I hope that anyone stepping into that role will come forward with candor and grace, and a little spice when needed to help us all ensure that the player-base (the server's beating heart) is taken care of adequately. I would especially like to see a PG presence in all that the Admin Team, DM Team and Dev Team's day-to-day. Transparency is going to be important and PGs will be the bridge between the player and the Narfell Staff team.

    Stance on how recall votes should work
    -Voting will be important. I wouldn't like to see every single decision come down to a poll and run the risk of stagnation or backlog due to beaureacracy, but I do believe on important matters it's going to be necessary. I would like to see a rotation of PGs that can step in and be the last deciding vote on such matters as the voice and representation of the player base. As outlined in my expectations for that role above, their primary task will be to engage with the player and understand the immediate needs and concerns from a player level. This will be the critical knowledge that will help the team keep on track with what is fun.

    Stance on admin team membership and other staff role exclusivity

    • Knowing what has brought us to this point I would be anxious if a majority of Admin belonged to the group of players, DMs and Developers that elected to shit the bed and slam the door rather than have a frank and open discussion like adults while having the bald-faced cheek to claim things like being part of a small group of four paragons.
    • The mentality behind such is quite sinister and unviable for any kind of exclusivity in a leadership role. If you're still reading and haven't experienced a cardiac event by now, you'll understand that I am best known for my frank attitude and lack of compromise when calling BS where BS should arise.
    • In summary: Be careful with your votes Narfell, and make sure you spare one for me. And remember Cormac's words of wisdom in these uncertain times. "When there's wolves at the gates, all you need is a meaner wolf".

    mic drop

  • J

    I would like to put my hat in the ring for consideration for one of the Admin positions.

    I'd like to start by saying thank you to all of the current and past admins, DM's, Dev's, PGs/PLs, and the entire Narfell community (including current and past players) that have made our server a special place for all of us to enjoy throughout the past 21 years. The success of Narfell really is due to all of us and our contributions to the server and the community as a whole.

    A key component of my leadership style if you vote me in as an Admin is to recognize that we're all equal in Narfell though we may each play different parts. I would like to see significant community engagement via community voting (official voting for medium to larger topics and perhaps informal polls/etc, for smaller topics). I would like to see more events and activity from DMs, for all players. I would like to see transparency in voting and decisions with results made public. I would like to have DMs elected and have term limits (although they are free to re-apply at the end of their terms) and be held accountable to a Code of Conduct with the ability to revoke the position if the community feels the DM is not living up to the Code (and the same revocation of the Admin position if they abuse their position). I would like to see DM rewards above a certain level (e.g. 12 points and 1,000 XP) be published for transparency. I would like all rules published and up to date (even DM reward rules). Here are my answers to the questions:

    • Listing their relevant experience (community leadership roles, time spent in positions on Narfell or other online game servers/communities)

    I was a DM for Narfell in 2003/2004 (the original DM Skippy)
    I was a Dev for Narfell in 2003/2004 working on the HCR crafting system to replace the ATS system. We never implemented this system as it consumed too much server horsepower so we abandoned it even though it was "working". I also redid some areas in the Phoenix guild
    I've also been an admin in a number of other online gaming communities, though a long time ago
    I've also been a part of a small group of 4 that have been trying to effect change in Narfell via putting together a community and formalizing the changes we wished to see. I believe voting for the Admin position came from our suggestions.

    • Stance on how decisions would be made between admin team members and how community involvement would work

    I believe that if 3 or more admins wish to make a change to the server they should bring this to the community for voting. I also believe if a certain number of community members (e.g. 5) bring a potential change to the server that the Admins take this idea to the community for a vote. Minor changes maybe would only require some informal voting whereas major issues would need formal voting with at least a week for people to weigh in and vote. Regardless of the change, the results of the voting (informal or formal) should be published. If the community decides to give the Admins a little "power" to make certain changes without requiring community votes (likely on minor changes or certain functions like Dev appointments) then I would support this in order to "streamline" the process of implementing positive change.

    • Stance on staff member term limits

    I would like the Admin role to have a term limit, something between 1 year and 2 years.
    I would like the DM role to have a term limit of 1 year and be elected by the community.
    I do not think we need term limits for Devs. With the communities permission perhaps appointing of Devs could be done by the Admin team.

    • Stance on how other teams are staffed (DMs, Devs, PGs, etc)

    I would like to see change in the DM team and would like them all to step down so we can have an election for DM positions.
    I would like to have the Admin team appoint Devs unless the community feels strongly otherwise. I'm in favour of keeping all Devs that wish to stay and perhaps add to the team.
    I'm not sure if we would need the PG position with 5 Admins, but I'm open to the idea if people feel it's needed. If we have them I think they can be elected.

    • Stance on how recall votes should work

    I would like to create a mechanism such that the community can revoke the role of Admin, DM, Dev, and PGs. Perhaps this might look like a minimum number of people come forward (e.g. 5) and propose the recall to the Admin team. With the minimum being met, the Admin team must hold a public vote to recall the position. Perhaps the vote is a 2/3 vote instead of a simple majority.

    • Stance on admin team membership and other staff role exclusivity

    I would like to see DMs focus on DMing so I would suggest they not hold any other positions. I also believe DMs should DM MUCH more than play. If a DM wishes to play a significant amount they should step down and open up an opportunity for someone else to DM.

    I believe I'm a fairly open person, level headed, and fair. Undoubtedly I've forgotten something in my answers above but I'm always open to discussion and am willing to change my opinions if good arguments are made against my position. I listen.
    Thanks for your consideration.