Everyone runs their group differently. And groups can be successful and highly active and some can quickly go silent. I figure this might be a nice place for everyone to share their thoughts and ideas on what they do or have seen that helps to keep a group active and gets people wanting to join and getting your name known. What kind of events or rules or requirements do you have or place for your valued members. This can help those that run groups and those that are looking to create one but don't know how to run one.
—
----------------------------------------
Owner and Big Sister of the Justice Girls -Champions Online-City of Titans-
Forum Breaker
Leader of the Ellysyn Dark Ensemble
I was the lead of a few sg's, was the main architect for a couple others, and also joined as simple members others. By choice, the sgs I led weren't extremely active but we did avoid drama, I made some great friends and, since we were around starting in July of '04, had earned enough prestige to have almost unlimited resources for a massive base with almost every room decorated to the hilt. By focusing on fun and keeping my ego in check, members seemed happy in these sgs. Now most of the members left the game prior to the game's end so, by the end, there were few active members left.
On the other hand, the sgs that I didn't enjoy or felt unwelcome were typically those that enforced strict rules and treated members as prestige wh****. If there was an extensive application process I felt that I would always be treated as someone who should thank the leaders for allowing me to be part of their "elite" group rather than having anything of value to contribute. The groups that I wanted to join tended to be those that had an active guild site, maybe a theme, and who treated others as equals. If they hosted costume contests or had fun chatting when teamed that definitely piqued my interest. Even if they required one of my slots to be an sg uniform, that was fine. However, I preferred some flexibility to the uniform (ie head gear, sleeve length/style etc...) but that's just my personal preference.
I was not a big fan of leaders or players who barked out orders during gameplay. I was rarely bothered by the occassional team wipe or mistaken aggro draw...in fact, I often laughed about it. However, if someone criticized others for their power choice or tactics (ie TF team leader on team speak yelling "No MELEE!" to my Claws scrapper every single engagement) I knew I would never really enjoy my time with them so I quickly left those sgs and/or teams.
The gist of my ramble? I would suggest forming a super group with several people at once and to not limit your group to too specific of a theme (ie must be a space pirate themed toon with energy powers...oh and we already have enough blasters so you can't be one of those). Be flexible with your requirements, understand real-life obligations and see where the sg heads...don't force your vision on everyone else. If you can set-up a guild page that helps. Same with hosting dance parties, events, costume contests (it helps to add twists...best couples costumes, ugliest costume, etc...). Make their experience as immersive and enjoyable as possible and I'm sure you will do fine. Just my 2 cents.
A good start is to know some other players already. Way too many SGs flared then died because 1-2 had a cool idea but didn't know how to grow it. If you already have some friends or frequent team members you know you enjoy playing with that's a great start.
Discuss the SG with the same people I just mentioned. Many themed groups do very well. Many non-themed or loosely themed SGs do just as well. Each will have pros and cons.
Something that I will consider a must for CoT is some sort of SG email/message feature. Some way to quickly send messages in or out of game to SG members en masse is something CoX never had. Make it easier to send the 'gentle reminder that this Friday is Raid Night' messages.
Many SGs will be like any other large social group. Some people will flit around, some will concentrate into groups. IMHO the important thing is to be flexible. This is a game...it's supposed to be fun. Make it too much like work and you kill the SG unless your players really like it that way.
I remember when Star Wars was cool...a long, long time ago...
Built a rather impressive base between my girlfriend, then wife through patience and prestige farming. It was just our alts on infinity for years. Then I got more friends involved. The nice thing was I pretty much had the base "done" and we had enough prestige to cover rent for years. These were friends I have known for years, some from before I started playing. So drama was not an issue and we communicated through vent and Facebook, so we didn't need a webpage. I'm sure there will be "those kinds" of SGs in CoT and they are rarely a problem.
The problem I had with SGs leading up to starting my own was I always felt alone. If there were group activities, they would be at bad times for me. I'd rack up hundreds of thousands prestige and the leader was never on to give me a rank upgrade. Or I'd get an invite after teaming on a few missions and I never heard or saw anyone ever again.
I think SGs need a little bit of built in social networking. If you want to set up a webpage, facebook page, etc that's fine. But I'd rather keep it all in game. A bit more than just a message of the day, where the upcoming SG events could be posted, the ability to do a SG-wide bulk email (by global for those with multiple alts), Offline invites/promotions. As a final bit, don't make SG members choose between helping their SG and themselves. I never agreed with the no inf, and later half inf, while in SG mode. What did it matter if a player was earning both?
-----------------------------------------
I never set anything on fire accidentally!
The Titan Legacy - Defender of the Inner Flame
After being in many kinds of SGs, I found that a big part boiled down to the leader, NOT dominating all of the groups activities. As has been mentioned previously, this is a game for enjoyment. I would soon leave an SG that simply treated me as a prestige opportunity, or try to dictate my character's actions & play style.I discovered that I enjoyed my role playing SG the most. Again as long as the leader did not become the "writer" & attempt to determine how my toon should react or have his powers planned out. Having an in game/out of game way to pass on story ideas, events, even using the architect system to design missions for our group to run through helped add a sense of belonging that we all seemed to enjoy. Not everyone in an SG may get deeply involved, but you need to make sure they can all have the opportunity to contribute. Regular planned meetings help as well. It was however no big deal if missed, Things were in no way mandatory for membership.
Deeds Not Words
Granted, I did have ONE toon that was part of a military-type SG. There were ranks, everyone was expected to Sir superiors and so forth. Not much RP to be sure. However we also had training and moved about like a real military unit.
Oh yeah, all guns of some kind. This meant no Tanks unless they joined the team from outside the SG. We had established procedures and tactics and it was all fun...until it got old. We played together once every 2 weeks or so and eventually faded away.
It all depends on the players. I prefer a more 'Legion' style of SG where anyone can join but some prefer the themed kind.
I remember when Star Wars was cool...a long, long time ago...
[b]1. Host events.[/b] Anything from a weekly raid, to a costume contest, to street sweeping/mission teams. If you can do it on some sort of schedule, all the better. With regularity, you can establish the group as a reliable source of fun, with events to which players can look forward.
[b]2. Don't require attendance.[/b] The majority of us gamers have lives outside of video games, and we want to enjoy both without feeling like we are neglecting one or the other. It might just be my opinion, but players should not have to worry about their group membership being revoked because they decided to read a book one night, or go out, or sleep, etc. There is nothing wrong with the hardcore gaming mentality of a core group of players who play at the same times, all the time, but if you plan to enforce something like that, make it clear to any prospective members before they sign up.
[b]3. Have a group definition.[/b] Role play, role play light, themed, anything-goes, etc. Having a clear mission statement not only gives you clear description to pitch to prospective members, but also let's them know exactly what you are about and, thus, whether or not they would enjoy being in your SG.
[b]4. Get familiar with base building.[/b] It is going to take a while to learn the tricks, but having a nice base with all the comforts and gadgets is a great selling point for your group. If you are completely uninterested in that part of running a SG, then you might want to find a partner-leader who is. Again, there is nothing wrong with not having a base, but it will be much easier to recruit members if they have a place to call home.
[b]5. Be friendly and welcoming.[/b] In all things. People talk, and even someone who decided not to join your SG may recommend it to someone else provided you seemed like a cool bunch.
My 2 cents.
[hr]
[center]
[size=15][b][i]A cold front is heading toward Titan City[/i][/b][/size]
Ice Man of [url=http://cityoftitans.com/forum/phoenix-rising-initiative-0]The Phoenix Rising Initiative[/url]
[/center]
All the friends I have from CoH are still my friends in rl, we still talk and one day soon our SG/VG will rise again. Best thing is communication, finding like minded people, and stay away from the drama.
My villain, my hero you mean. I always think of my murderers as my heroes.
1) Get critical mass early. If people log in, and nobody else in thier SG is logged in, it serves them no purpose. You'll have your core leadership team, and you should all plan to promote the Supergroup during a very early recruitment drive. .
2) Be available. During the recruitment drive and the first few weeks, the new members aren't going to feel like they "own" the supergroup yet. They won't be organizing things much, so your leadership should set a more active role, whether just chatting, inviting PUGs, creating events, etc. Eventually these rookies will feel the sg is more their own and will start initiating this on their own, but until then, its critical for the SG leader to give people a PURPOSE to be in that supergroup.
3) Don't mistake #2 to mean that you must control everything. If a rookie makes a suggestion or wants to run x, encourage it, help them take ownership. That means there'll be another person unafraid to bring activities to the Supergroup when you're offline.
4) Everything Winter posted above me
Yeah, pretty much exactly what chase and winter said...
_______________________________________
Kovacs - Leader of "The Titan Legacy" SuperGroup
The First SuperGroup In City of Titans History - Come Be A Part Of It!!!
http://cityoftitans.com/forum/building-first-super-powered-family
My rule is just to find people who like to play the way you do and see where the rest fits. For me this is people who enjoy the action and fighting of the game while in character.
My personal experience is that if you set rules and guidelines first you avoid the whole "bias" argument that seems inevitable in any social setting (even virtual ones).
Crowd Control Enthusiast
My rule is just to find people who like to play the way you do and see where the rest fits. For me this is people who enjoy the action and fighting of the game while in character.
My personal experience is that if you set rules and guidelines first you avoid the whole "bias" argument that seems inevitable in any social setting (even virtual ones).
Crowd Control Enthusiast