How to NOT F**k Up Your EO Private Server
MMOR Private servers are a dime-a-dozen these days. As a player, however, finding one that they may feel comfortable and be able to have a great, fun and long lasting playing experience seems to be a never ending quest. Having played at least 10 private servers myself, as well as two different servers from the retail game, here's collectively what I've noticed that brings the downfall of MANY servers. Perhaps it can help some new and future server operators help provide maximum playing experience to help them rise above, and not fade away into obscurity as yet another dead one.
1. Don't make your game publicly available until you have a stable, nearly constant connection. If people can't connect, they're not gonna play.
2. Choose your staff carefully - If you have have a bunch of *immature teens or rude, mouthy, and unresponsive staff, those are the types of players that you will attract. Good, honest players want good, honest staff. Avoid having GM/PM's in player legions and on war maps. This provides the opportunity for cheating and possible false accusations. I can't tell you how many servers I've seen go down hill because the staff are rude or simply because the staff cheat their way to the top.
3. Avoid cliques. Just because someone's your friend or cousin, doesn't mean that they will make a good staff member. If your players feel that they are "outsiders", it's less likely that you will get more players. Pserver adverts usually go best through word of mouth, and worse yet, through spamming other servers.
4. Respect players' privacy - Don't eavesdrop or punish for what is said in the whisper channel unless there's an issue of harassment. Asking someone in a private channel
"Hey did you play on the James Bond server" is not the same as telling people "Go play on the James Bond server at blahblah.com".
5. Be VERY clear about the rules. Trust me - There's always a hundred jackasses that will push the envelope on what's acceptable and what isn't. If your rules are all posted in the forums, be sure to put a disclaimer about "All rules are posted in forums" or post it in-game with the GM announcements. Not everyone will keep up with the forums, and if the rules are posted in only one place, it's best to let them know blatantly that they are posted in only one place.
6. If you take donations, keep the playing field moderately level. There are many people who will donate, but there are many people who play and bring players to your server, but for whatever reason, they can't afford to donate. Some suggestions are: Not installing (+255) eq, but instead using (+15). A full set of +(255) offers a ridiculous advancement, and it may make those who cannot afford to donate no longer want to play, because no matter how hard they work, it's unlikely that they will be able to compete with an extra 255 potency/bp. Do you take donations for EP? Perhaps charge $5 per 2M EP, but put a limit of 4M EP per month, or a limit of $50 per month that a person can donate for items that will advance their character. For example, if you take a donation of $25 for a special attire, and a player wants to buy 2 attires for $50 and 2M EP for $5, that's cool. But if they want to buy 10M EP for $25, put a cap of only $10 per month per person can be spent on EP or gears.. I think that you all get the idea here.
7. Maintain the server regularly. Do maintanences AND data backups on a regular schedule. Post that schedule on game as well as an in-game GM announcement. I've seen great servers go straight downhill because they did maints literally only when they felt like it. In some instances, there would be only one maintanence every 14 to 20 days. People cannot build their legions or player characters very well like this, and it tilts a huge advantage to some players and a severe disadvantage to newer players. Simply put, if you don't want to keep up your server, find someone who can, or don't waste the time and make players feel like you're taking them for a ride to get donations.
8. If you or your staff are going to have an attitude problem and play favorites and do it noticeably, you're probably not going to keep players for very long.
9. If you plan to accept donations, set up your payment acceptance method plenty in advance. Don't wait until the last minute. Make sure that you're VERY clear on the forms of payment that will be accepted, and the type of currency that you are planning to accept the payment in.
10. Don't rely wholly on donations to keep your server going. You, as well as the playerbase you've gathered, may find yourself sorely disappointed. If people feel that they are going to be ripped off, the staff disrespect them, your server isn't stable, etc.... are going to be much less likely to donate. Also, if your playerbase is primarily teenagers, are located in countries that do not have Paypal services, or are in bad financial situations, they too are less likely if not totally unable to donate. Don't make them feel like shit over it as I have literally seen some server staff do.
11. Cheaters beware - There ARE precise logs that show the owner what commands GMs and PMs enter =)
12. Teach your staff their position and commands, ffs! There's NO sense in giving someone a position of authority and no means to excercise it. Are you wetoddid? Pass them a list of commands, let them know which ones work and dont, and which ones they're allowed to use, and not use. Your GMs and PMs should have a minimal working knowledge of the game. At a bare minimum, teach them muting, jailing, kicking, and banning commands for god's sake.
13. Be prepared for people to diss your server and probably your staff too. If they're not insulting
your kids or your dead momma and using generally nasty language.. Who cares? Everyone's entitled to their opinion, and if you start kicking or banning just because a player whispers "I dont like this server because the drops suck"... You'll soon find your server getting dissed even more. Players might quit logging on or feel that you're just being a jerk and doing it whenever someone says something that you don't like, whether it's actually bad or not.
*So... here's my advice as both a former staff from various servers, as a player at many servers that have failed or become boring in less than 48 hours of hardcore playing, and having played where most of the good people left after some of the above became the norm in those games.
* Denotes an edit from original post
MMOR Private servers are a dime-a-dozen these days. As a player, however, finding one that they may feel comfortable and be able to have a great, fun and long lasting playing experience seems to be a never ending quest. Having played at least 10 private servers myself, as well as two different servers from the retail game, here's collectively what I've noticed that brings the downfall of MANY servers. Perhaps it can help some new and future server operators help provide maximum playing experience to help them rise above, and not fade away into obscurity as yet another dead one.
1. Don't make your game publicly available until you have a stable, nearly constant connection. If people can't connect, they're not gonna play.
2. Choose your staff carefully - If you have have a bunch of *immature teens or rude, mouthy, and unresponsive staff, those are the types of players that you will attract. Good, honest players want good, honest staff. Avoid having GM/PM's in player legions and on war maps. This provides the opportunity for cheating and possible false accusations. I can't tell you how many servers I've seen go down hill because the staff are rude or simply because the staff cheat their way to the top.
3. Avoid cliques. Just because someone's your friend or cousin, doesn't mean that they will make a good staff member. If your players feel that they are "outsiders", it's less likely that you will get more players. Pserver adverts usually go best through word of mouth, and worse yet, through spamming other servers.
4. Respect players' privacy - Don't eavesdrop or punish for what is said in the whisper channel unless there's an issue of harassment. Asking someone in a private channel
"Hey did you play on the James Bond server" is not the same as telling people "Go play on the James Bond server at blahblah.com".
5. Be VERY clear about the rules. Trust me - There's always a hundred jackasses that will push the envelope on what's acceptable and what isn't. If your rules are all posted in the forums, be sure to put a disclaimer about "All rules are posted in forums" or post it in-game with the GM announcements. Not everyone will keep up with the forums, and if the rules are posted in only one place, it's best to let them know blatantly that they are posted in only one place.
6. If you take donations, keep the playing field moderately level. There are many people who will donate, but there are many people who play and bring players to your server, but for whatever reason, they can't afford to donate. Some suggestions are: Not installing (+255) eq, but instead using (+15). A full set of +(255) offers a ridiculous advancement, and it may make those who cannot afford to donate no longer want to play, because no matter how hard they work, it's unlikely that they will be able to compete with an extra 255 potency/bp. Do you take donations for EP? Perhaps charge $5 per 2M EP, but put a limit of 4M EP per month, or a limit of $50 per month that a person can donate for items that will advance their character. For example, if you take a donation of $25 for a special attire, and a player wants to buy 2 attires for $50 and 2M EP for $5, that's cool. But if they want to buy 10M EP for $25, put a cap of only $10 per month per person can be spent on EP or gears.. I think that you all get the idea here.
7. Maintain the server regularly. Do maintanences AND data backups on a regular schedule. Post that schedule on game as well as an in-game GM announcement. I've seen great servers go straight downhill because they did maints literally only when they felt like it. In some instances, there would be only one maintanence every 14 to 20 days. People cannot build their legions or player characters very well like this, and it tilts a huge advantage to some players and a severe disadvantage to newer players. Simply put, if you don't want to keep up your server, find someone who can, or don't waste the time and make players feel like you're taking them for a ride to get donations.
8. If you or your staff are going to have an attitude problem and play favorites and do it noticeably, you're probably not going to keep players for very long.
9. If you plan to accept donations, set up your payment acceptance method plenty in advance. Don't wait until the last minute. Make sure that you're VERY clear on the forms of payment that will be accepted, and the type of currency that you are planning to accept the payment in.
10. Don't rely wholly on donations to keep your server going. You, as well as the playerbase you've gathered, may find yourself sorely disappointed. If people feel that they are going to be ripped off, the staff disrespect them, your server isn't stable, etc.... are going to be much less likely to donate. Also, if your playerbase is primarily teenagers, are located in countries that do not have Paypal services, or are in bad financial situations, they too are less likely if not totally unable to donate. Don't make them feel like shit over it as I have literally seen some server staff do.
11. Cheaters beware - There ARE precise logs that show the owner what commands GMs and PMs enter =)
12. Teach your staff their position and commands, ffs! There's NO sense in giving someone a position of authority and no means to excercise it. Are you wetoddid? Pass them a list of commands, let them know which ones work and dont, and which ones they're allowed to use, and not use. Your GMs and PMs should have a minimal working knowledge of the game. At a bare minimum, teach them muting, jailing, kicking, and banning commands for god's sake.
13. Be prepared for people to diss your server and probably your staff too. If they're not insulting
your kids or your dead momma and using generally nasty language.. Who cares? Everyone's entitled to their opinion, and if you start kicking or banning just because a player whispers "I dont like this server because the drops suck"... You'll soon find your server getting dissed even more. Players might quit logging on or feel that you're just being a jerk and doing it whenever someone says something that you don't like, whether it's actually bad or not.
*So... here's my advice as both a former staff from various servers, as a player at many servers that have failed or become boring in less than 48 hours of hardcore playing, and having played where most of the good people left after some of the above became the norm in those games.
* Denotes an edit from original post
