What are some ways to improve the Creative server?

[Magnyus]

I could talk about S, but that isn't my specialty.

 

I'm going to focus my efforts on C for the time being. Many of you might have seen my post which I've decided to hide, for my own reasons. But I do feel that we shouldn't be getting the short end of the stick in regards to our server. C is in need of more players and bigger builds. The question is, how do we get more players? That's is why we're here.

 

So I propose a discussion that mainly consists of players that are new to C, veterans of C, or plan on playing a lot of creative in the coming months. Anyone else is absolutely free to join in on the discussion, but I'm just pointing out that I want to prioritise players that will be on C because whatever comes of this (if anything does) will be for them.

 

Any relevant threads can be posted in the chat, but to make it easier for those reading I request that you quote the specific suggestion of the thread you're linking to.

 

Keep your ideas reasonable, but don't be afraid to post something wild out there either.

[Magnyus]

Seasonal Revisions? by kittypuppet [Having several revs a year according to the seasons]

 

More Changes to Creative by LetsBFehr [Moving Policy and ModMode]

 

Creative /me by Difficult1 [Enabling /me] ENABLED!

 

Fireworks on Creative? by Difficult1 [jchance is working on it]

 

Addition of Mini-Games on Creative by SkrapssparkS [using areas of C to host mini-games]

 

Post Your Ideas Here (Creative Mostly) by buzzinbee [Massive thread with several suggestions]

 

Creative Server Admin Q&A's by Cyotie911 [AMA styled thread with a few points of discussion]

[dizney07]

I'm not a C veteran or even that much of a C player, but I think something that would interest me is more building contests. All different kinds: short 10 minute builds to week long builds. I personally have wanted to enter some contests but my schedule never permitted it (since there were only like 2 this rev). I think these are important to C, just as arenas are important to S. 

[EeHee2000]

I'd like to add onto Magnyus' list above and ask if there's anything we can salvage from the 3M meeting recordings. 

[SirTacoface]

I'm not a C veteran or even that much of a C player, but I think something that would interest me is more building contests. All different kinds: short 10 minute builds to week long builds. I personally have wanted to enter some contests but my schedule never permitted it (since there were only like 2 this rev). I think these are important to C, just as arenas are important to S. 

This is something I would like to see, very well said Dizney. It would be nice to not have JUST Dumbo's speed build but have some other ones with a different style and rules?

 

Also what would be a great addition to C is (Don't know if it's possible, probably not) maybe a droppable items flag? Like I know it's disabled because of the exploits but what if for instance, LetsBFehr's and My labs, we could have more puzzles using droppable items. Difficult1 is doing something along those lines on P, don't see why we can't enable it in certain circumstances on C. It may be hard to manage with trolls and stuff, but that's just a thought.

 

Also, this: https://nerd.nu/forums/index.php?/topic/2492-suggestions-for-security-permissions-and-griefers/#entry18545

 

Edit: Oh also, (Then again, if possible) disabling ores, it's creative and theres no use for ores in the ground, and people like me would love to dig giant holes for big builds ore free so we don't get slowed by those pesky ore viens that slow you down.

Edited August 30, 2014 by SirTacoface

[BeastBruiser]

Fireworks on Creative? by Difficult1 [still no word from admins]

 

from here

 

We're still looking at fireworks to see if we can enable those.   I want to, but sever / stress issues might block that.  We'll announce it when we know for sure.

 

[XkinOEC]

Also what would be a great addition to C is (Don't know if it's possible, probably not) maybe a droppable items flag? Like I know it's disabled because of the exploits but what if for instance, LetsBFehr's and My labs, we could have more puzzles using droppable items.

lets not forget the long lost past-time of building golf courses on c.nerd.nu where the ball would be item drops... they slide on ice.

[SirTacoface]

lets not forget the long lost past-time of building golf courses on c.nerd.nu where the ball would be item drops... they slide on ice.

See this, we should bring this back. One of the biggest problems with C right now, personally, is the lack of events. See in P, we have firework shows, fun parkour events, arenas, mob slaying, tons of stuff. So far in C we have Dumbos great building event and the cool warps, although most of the warps consisting of creative builds to look at, nothing much interactive.

[Sapphric]

One thing I'd like to see is a large area, maybe a quarter of the map or so, be set aside for a specific theme. The community could vote on the theme before the rev starts, then reserve the NE quadrant of the map for that purpose. Say the theme is "Ancient Rome", the area would be built up completely to look like a Roman city and countryside. The rest of the map would be the usual builds.

The main problem I have with playing on C is just because there's no real goal. I don't feel like I'm working towards an end like I do on P, and something like that would make it a lot more fun to play on C.

[djt832]

Just gotta say, I hopped onto creative during one of the speed building contests and it was one of the most fun times I have had on nerd. If creative keeps things like that up, I think the outlook for it in the long run will be great. The people on C are always fun too, which helps a lot. 

[Aypop]

Next rev on C I hope to make a more planned out Redstone Academy (/warp RedstoneAcademy, for the one currently being built on C) with some hired help. Faster-built floors, more interaction, etc. I think the admins and mods have been extremely supportive of the current endeavor and it'll most likely translate well into next rev. 

 

Considering we're in Creative, showing off cool designs for redstone of all kinds of utility is something that'll unite a lot of people, redstone n00bs, enthusiasts, and opportunistic guys from P and S. 

 

Currently there's the Academy itself and the Playground/Recess Area. I might be adding a "Best Of" Area with admins' support that showcases useful/interesting/generally awesome builds in the Playground. I might ask for said builds to be moved to a more pristine location via modreq. 

 

 

lets not forget the long lost past-time of building golf courses on c.nerd.nu where the ball would be item drops... they slide on ice.

Although it's obviously not possible now, I am very much in favor of builds like this. Mazes and parkours are great, but I feel these, redstone, and speed-builds are the main events that are gonna make C attractive. 

 

On nickeox's point, why not have modreq'd regions where items can drop? Obviously these places would have to be regulated to make sure people aren't being negligent and lag-inducing. But it could be analogous to a hypothetical ender pearl golf course. 

 

 

Edit: Oh also, (Then again, if possible) disabling ores, it's creative and theres no use for ores in the ground, and people like me would love to dig giant holes for big builds ore free so we don't get slowed by those pesky ore viens that slow you down.

 

I am completely on board with this. Keep the dungeons though, those are fun. 

[SirTacoface]

 

I am completely on board with this. Keep the dungeons though, those are fun. 

Oh yeah those dungeons are a nice find, sometimes the spawners make for some interesting decor with some builds!

[nevastop]

As good ol' gsand brings up almost daily, I would like to see some (abit limited) world edit capabilities. I know, we have this culture of building everything by hand, but most modern creative servers have it to some extent.

Let's look back at the lobby building contest and how it was handled with that.

[nevastop]

Also, events! Let's try to host more events. If my work schedule wasn't so difficult to work around, I would love to host some spleef tourneys. I find it odd that P can organize entire leagues, yet we have some of the most amazing arenas on C, yet they are only used for pick-up games.

It's like if we were to give kids they keys to the xcel energy center so they could play some hockey, but instead they stay at home playing NHl in there Xbox.

[TornadoHorse]

I've brought this up before, but I'd like to see a section of the map dedicated to flat plot land.

 

I know our completely open world makes us fairly unique; I've seen several players come on and say how they enjoyed this different style, but we could cater to players who want to build small, quick builds as well. The only reason I use creative or freebuild servers is to test out builds for other servers, very rarely do I just build for the sake of it. I am a bit discouraged by creative for this purpose because I have to clear a plot of land first and level it out before I can start building. With plots I could just get on with a build straight away. I'd love to be able to do /warp plot as soon as I join and to be able to build immediately, I think it'd make c.nerd.nu more available to a brand new audience of players.

[plasticflesh]

Greatings nerd.nu, plasticflesh here. I come and build on nerd in month long spurts once or twice a year. 

 

I have a strange thought on map expansion, I don't know if it is technically possible, or pragmatically wise: a 'linear map'. Instead of expanding the map outward in every direction from the center 0,0; expand the map in a single direction, with spawn at one extreme of the map, say 'west', and fresh blank expanded land at the other extreme, 'east'. The creative map then becomes a long rectangle instead of a large square. This has a few advantages.

 

The primary advantage being that freshly expanded territory could be be in larger portions instead thin borders around the square. Perhaps every expansion could be a similarly sized square of land.

 

A secondary advantage would be a sense of time progression on the map, Spawn would be all the way on the "west" side of the map and presumably more developed, and the fresh-est territory would be on the "east" side of the map and be the frontier for new expansion.

 

The third advantage is this would encourage a single main road leading through all build areas, traveling through a 'linear' creative map puts all builds on display more easily than the traditional giant square.

 

But the 'linear map' design has its limitations. Large builds could crowd out smaller builds. The main road, if cutting through the center, could be damaging to all builds if it's one road cutting through the center of everything. This could be negated by making two main roads, a road on the North boundary and a road on the South boundary.

 

That's basically the gist of the 'linear map' idea.

Edited August 30, 2014 by plasticflesh

[jchance]

I've been asking about some of the items in this thread:

 

Fireworks -  Spoke to the techs, they see no issue and I think its a done deal for next rev.

 

Item drops-   I'm asking about getting drops enabled in specific regions with a flag.  It is my understanding from Dumbo that drops despawn after 5 minutes, so it might be doable with a custom region flag command.

 

To reply to specific points:

 

Tornado -  I feel you on clearing land.   What if, as a compromise, we had large swaths of area already cleared of forests?  At least then you would have plains as a starting point, and you could plant trees if you want more.

 

To neva (and gsand) -  I would love to give players access to limited worldedit, but the technical and policy hurdles, not to mention what you give players, is huge.  Is there a thread where this is discussed in detail somewhere already? 

 

Contests-

 

I'm not going to lie here, I'm all about getting more features and tweaking things to make C better, but I am not a contest guy.  I'm not against them though!   I know a lot of people love them, and I'd do whatever I can to support them.   How about we start a C contest thread and everyone can throw out a contest they'd like to see.  The thing is, instead of an admin running the whole show, how about we get a player (or mod) to MC the event and we'll provide whatever admin support you need?

[SkrapssparkS]

weekly spleef matches and pvp matches going into a tournament. We used to have great spleef events that attracted a lot of attention we should bring it back.

[kittypuppet]

Greatings nerd.nu, plasticflesh here. I come and build on nerd in month long spurts once or twice a year. 

 

I have a strange thought on map expansion, I don't know if it is technically possible, or pragmatically wise: a 'linear map'. Instead of expanding the map outward in every direction from the center 0,0; expand the map in a single direction, with spawn at one extreme of the map, say 'west', and fresh blank expanded land at the other extreme, 'east'. The creative map then becomes a long rectangle instead of a large square. This has a few advantages.

 

The primary advantage being that freshly expanded territory could be be in larger portions instead thin borders around the square. Perhaps every expansion could be a similarly sized square of land.

 

A secondary advantage would be a sense of time progression on the map, Spawn would be all the way on the "west" side of the map and presumably more developed, and the fresh-est territory would be on the "east" side of the map and be the frontier for new expansion.

 

The third advantage is this would encourage a single main road leading through all build areas, traveling through a 'linear' creative map puts all builds on display more easily than the traditional giant square.

 

But the 'linear map' design has its limitations. Large builds could crowd out smaller builds. The main road, if cutting through the center, could be damaging to all builds if it's one road cutting through the center of everything. This could be negated by making two main roads, a road on the North boundary and a road on the South boundary.

 

That's basically the gist of the 'linear map' idea.

 

I can see where you're going with this, however I'm not particularly comfortable with other builds being close to mine, nor having roads near it.

[Dumbo52]

Apologies for not holding more of the speedbuilding contests, but I'd like to emphasize jchance's point that events don't need to be hosted by the admins. I've been busy lately and haven't been able to host too many speedbuilding contests, but that shouldn't stop people from having fun. If you'd like to host an event, then by all means, do so; admins aren't the only ones who can plan them. The staff will more than likely be willing to support you if you ask for it.

 

To neva (and gsand) -  I would love to give players access to limited worldedit, but the technical and policy hurdles, not to mention what you give players, is huge.  Is there a thread where this is discussed in detail somewhere already? 

 

I posted some of my thoughts on the topic here a while ago.

[tobylane]

I had a non-speed building contest twice about 18 months ago, but players could build anything in a plot and I couldn't get it moved if it wasn't a relevant build. Has the policy on that changed, can we get non-criteria builds moved out of the way?