[Suggestion] The Politics of Supporter

Discussion in 'Suggestion Box Archives' started by FirstJugBurgerz, Feb 22, 2014.

  1. Hey everyone. I have sort of been wanting to talk about this ever since I became supporter for the first time, and since my time on EMC is sort of shortening, I figure I get the word out about it before it's too late. My story is the second paragraph, but if you want me to get to the point then go to the third paragraph.

    I know this may sound strange, but when I first started on EMC I felt rather...intimidated by the players with a supporter rank. It was like I was at the bottom of the food chain, ready to endure a criticism that the all-mighty supporters could get away with. I became a supporter not really just for the perks, but more as a way of showing people that I'm not just a typical white rank that will eventually get banned. In fact, I found it hard to get any respect at all until I got one month of gold supporter, then the number of supporters or "server jocks" who would judge me as someone different decreased dramatically. I don't think that I'm the only person who feels this way either, I think the amount of "respect and status," was a factor that went into everyone's decision on whether or not to become a supporter, unless you're a robot that has no emotions and will go out of their way to defend the rules of EMC and not care about how you're making yourself appear.

    To sum it up, I think people would simply regard me as a useless player unless I proved myself by becoming a supporter, and I really don't think that's how a server should work. I figure this message would best be displayed by a former supporter, because that's who really has a clear analysis of the whole situation.

    So why is this in the Suggestion Box? Well everything I said above should explain my theory. I simply think that the supporters, whether active or former, should be at the same status level as the white names. Meaning that if they are caught using illegal mods, they should not get extra credit by the moderators and receive the same punishment as the white names. And if there is a supporter who's bothering a white player, then a mod should intervene and not just let it happen, give the supporter a warning too since chances are they know better than to do that, since they were probably just demonstrating their power over the others. I really think that the amount of respect should be based on how well spoken the player is, not based on $5, $10, or $20.

    Thanks for reading my thoughts, I'm open to any criticism on this thread. ~FJB. :)
    Mirr0rr and porphos like this.
  2. Everyone gets treated equally whether supporter, or non supporter. If they use illegal mods they are subject to be banned. ;3 Hope this helps :)
  3. I do agree with this. The only time I felt like a recognized part in the community was when I was a supporter. There are definitely some supporters that will be mean to younger players/non supporters, but they are dealt with however. I found that it got better as I got older.
  4. Problem is they're not. What server would want to ban an active supporter who was doing something wrong, when they know that now they just wasted someones money on something they never got to do?
    Perhaps the easiest solution is to make it clear. Make sure a buyer knows that when they become a supporter they aren't buying themselves extra "lives" on the Empire, unless that's what becoming a supporter is really about.
    boozle628 likes this.
  5. Same here.
  6. This would help if you provided an example of a supporter who broke the rules and didn't receive the same punishment. I've personally seen several supporters banned in the past.

    and the supporters I have seen that could have been seen as being condescending to a non-supporter would've likely acted that way with or without the supporter rank because that's just the way their personalities are.

    sorry you've had a negative experience, it definitely shouldn't be that way :)
    Damiensmom11 and 607 like this.
  7. I agree. Supporters are basically pay-to-get-respect(Instead of pay-to-win). Seriously, people should get the same respect.
    porphos, FirstJugBurgerz and Hash98 like this.
  8. In terms of moderation actions, Supporters will always receive the same punishment as free players.

    In terms of people respecting free players, all I can suggest is that any active supporters try and take that mindset away from any 'negative' supporters. If supporters are willing to work together to do this, then it WILL happen. :)
    Damiensmom11, Twitch1, 607 and 3 others like this.
  9. EMC would. Supporters do not have protection against moderation.

    I've been supporter several times but spent the majority of the time as a regular player. In my opinion, I have never seen or noticed or felt any of the things you describe. There are probably supporters out there who think that supporter rank makes them more important, but it doesn't. The "respect and status" played no role in my decisions to get supportership, and I think you overestimate the amount of people who think that. If someone is bullying or being condescending because of supportership, report them and it will be taken care of. I've seen it happen. The way you gain respect on this server is not by having money to spend, it's by being considerate, polite to others, contributing to the community, helping others, etc.
    cutejuliew, Twitch1, LadBlo and 3 others like this.
  10. We will need some examples of 'unfairness' that you're saying you see here. It doesn't happen in the eyes of any of us. If you look at the people we've banned in a big jumble you will see a large mix of people who are/were free players and those who donated/supported. Supporting doesn't and has never received any special treatment when it comes to other players and being punished. :)
  11. I understand where you are coming from. But think of it this way:
    -A supporter steals something from a white name, white name reports him. However, the supporter reports him back, claiming he was the stealer. Given that all of this happened within a quick timespan, where a mod has to make a quick decision, what does the mod do in this situation? Chances are they go with the supporter.
    -The other thing is that it would really tick someone off after they bought a supportership and was banned the next day. Logically, you would think that the server might feel a little bit guilty for doing this, given that that person just tossed away X amount of dollars. Some servers are on point with this, they provide ban protection for active donators so situations like these don't come up. Without the players being told that becoming supporter does NOTHING for how they stand with mods, players can just assume they're immune to bans or kicks.

    For those of you who think I'm losing the argument, think again. I have sort of felt more determined to make this thread because of a banned player who was a friend of mine. He had a really cool creation, probably the best parkour course on the Empire, but was banned for illegal mods. Although what he did was wrong, I have a hard time believing that if there was an active supporter who was so well-known for some amazing store or creation that they would be permanently banned as well for the same reason that he was banned.
  12. I was always a normal player before getting diamond status around December 2013.

    We need examples of actual mistreatment, not theories/suspicions.
  13. Anyone can become respected if they are active in the community and ensure they have a high amount of presence, regardless of the adversities they face.
    Twitch1, cddm95ace and 607 like this.
  14. I'm sorry about your friend, but the only response here is that you are 100% wrong. An active supporter, banned for illegal mods, would also be banned and lose anything they've built. Simple as that.
    shaunwhite1982 and Twitch1 like this.
  15. Even having been staff for less than 24 hours, I can comfortably say that would never be the case, a player's rank has no effect on vulnerability to the rules, even staff have to follow the same rules as everyone else. :)
    Damiensmom11, Twitch1 and 607 like this.
  16. I've been banned 2 times and kicked 4 times as an active supporter.. Pretty sure it doesn't mean anything versus if I was a normal player.
    Twitch1 likes this.
  17. all i say to this is look up /p PThagaard sometime. he was a WILDLY popular player, and a diamond supporter most of the time, before todd_vinton was around he had one of the best malls on smp1, he also partially ran one of the biggests casinos too. he is permabanned....
    the reason you dont "see" supporters getting banned, is because alot of times permabanned players get banned after the fact. not in game.
    Twitch1 and FirstJugBurgerz like this.
  18. Just wanting to say there has been many hackers who got away with the crime simply because we did not have solid proof on them.

    Our staff team is not one to jump to quick decisions to "get it dealt with", we dig deep to make sure it is the right decision, so there for in the case of "reports between Diamond and Free", no staff will quickly side with Diamond.

    If a moderator can not make an informed decision, they will get Sr Staff involved to dig deeper.
  19. Or more specifically the supporters know they are risking losing IRL money for breaking the rules and put in extra effort to ensure they follow them.
  20. Our Staff team will not ban people for lack of reason. Our Staff team does not take sides. Our Staff team is trained to make sure to gather proper evidence first, before issuing any sort of action. I know this, because I train them.

    Every single ban I have ever done has evidence behind it. I have banned many supporters, and non alike for Illegal Mods, chat infractions, or otherwise. I make sure my Team follows me on this path.

    Everyone who appeals correctly after their first permaban can be purged, and given a second chance to start over in the Empire.

    You'll find we're not like any other Server out there; If you break our rules, we do not want you here no matter how much money you could try to throw at us.