Non-participating FS Members?

[Laochra]

In the last couple of weeks, I have noticed that in at least 3 of my FS, there are members that are active in their cities, but they are not making neighborly visits to their FS friends or taking/posting trades.
It started when I had a new member join us in Felyndral. After visiting him daily for several days, I noticed that he was not returning my visits. I messaged him, offering assistance, as he was a very new player. A week later, no response. So I sent a second message stating that despite the relaxed atmosphere of our FS, the visits & trading were required whenever logging in to our cities. I received a message back stating that he would work on it. One member that I have checked with says that he received one visit from him last week. I have now sent him a 3rd & final warning that he will be released on Nov. 1st if he is not going to participate.
I am a very laid-back player, even when I am the AM. I don't ask a lot. This really irks me though, when it appears that members are taking advantage of the FS.
This incident has caused me to examine my other FS more closely & I have discovered that it appears as if the same thing is happening in both of them--by at least 1 player. I doubt that it is part of the CL protest, because only one of them is advanced enough to even have the CL.
It's making me question whether they have even been helping all along......I know one of them does a couple of provinces in the tournaments occasionally, but no visits or trades. It is upsetting because in one FS, we are really hurting for scrolls and can't afford to have anyone using the FS for their own gain without reciprocating the help they receive.
I have already addressed this issue with my Mages & Ambassadors in one FS, so that we can get a consensus about possible removal of the offending parties. In the other two FS that I am responsible for, I have already messaged the offenders & given them until Nov.1 to amend their ways.

Has anyone else had this problem?? I'm starting to think it might be a chronic issue.

 

[SoggyShorts]

It's strangers on the internet, what did you expect lol.
If your FS has a rule that members must do visits x times per week but you don't actively monitor it you'll always get a couple lazy players that don't do their part. We have 4 players tracking visits 2 of whom are secret so that players can't cheat the system by just visiting mages.
With any luck later this year they will implement a much faster way to do visits and this will become less of an issue. Until then, you either have to really track visits or ignore it... both kinda suck.

 

[Laochra]

Yea, I feel like a bad AM for not doing a better job & catching this earlier, but I am still learning the game myself.

 

[Laochra]

It's strangers on the internet, what did you expect lol.

Whatever happened to the lesson we were taught as kids---to never talk to strangers? LOL Guess that went right out the door when the internet was born!

 

[SoggyShorts]

STRANGER DANGER!

 

[SunsetDanar]

Obviously you are a player and one whose perception of your current fellowship is suspect...You are wondering why your fellows fall short of your expectations and asking for suggestions. I suggest that you bail on them as you believe they have bailed on you. I have a full and well functioning fellowship but aspirants are always welcomed. I'll wager you'd have little trouble finding a new home more to your liking.

 

[Laochra]

Obviously you are a player and one whose perception of your current fellowship is suspect...You are wondering why your fellows fall short of your expectations and asking for suggestions. I suggest that you bail on them as you believe they have bailed on you. I have a full and well functioning fellowship but aspirants are always welcomed. I'll wager you'd have little trouble finding a new home more to your liking.

Um, seeing as I am the AM, I can not be doing any bailing. LOL
I am AM in 3 realms, Mage in 2. The issues I am asking for advice on are in two FS that I am AM of.

 

[DeletedUser6219]

Every FS I am in has people responsible for tracking the visits of others. Usually it is 1 person who is known (AM or a Mage) and another "helper" who is unknown... that way the people who only visit the AM and Mages are seen.
It's never too late to start tracking visits, fs participation, etc... simply send out a FS email stating your intentions to start tracking progress of everyone in an effort to make sure that people are doing what needs to be done (or something like that). One way I did it in the FS I am AM in is to hold a raffle for persons who visit 6+ times a week and then the Mages and myself each donated an extra 10 KP to an AW of their choice. So the tracking we do is to see who is eligible for the weekly reward, but it also let's us know who is not pulling their weight. We also use the tracking to announce the top 5 point earners each week.

 

[Laochra]

My FS are not that agressive--minimal requirements, but it is at least expected that they do participate when logging into their cities. I have in the last couple of months been monitoring those members who don't seem to be regularly active. I also now have a member who is stat-tracking for me, so that helps me to catch what I have missed in my monitoring. That was part of what made me notice this new trend.

 

[DeletedUser10859]

I have the same issue with a new member that I recently accepted into the fellowship. They are a very small city, but I took a chance and added them knowing probably the only way they'd be able to help out right now was with visits. Discussed the expectations which are pretty laid back - only 2-3x per week, but this member has yet to visit anyone. I have messaged 3x now about their not contributing and in the last message I did the same as you, gave a date that they must start offering help by or I will let them go so they can find a fellowship better suited to their play style.

 

[DeletedUser4372]

Most games would keep track of the last time your fellow logged into the game. this would tell the officers of the FS if they need to remove them or not. All the officers of the FS have is to email. Like Prue above me states, " I have messaged 3x now..." yes, but are they msging back? what if they have just quit and not logged back in? why should you have to wonder and worry and keep emailing a dead account? why is there not some simple tracker that tells the officers or even everyone when the person logged in? other games have that tool.

 

[DeletedUser3468]

This has been a problem with nearly all of the Fellowships I've belonged to. When I go through my periodic "I can't take playing 6 cities if I have to do Fellowship stuff too!" moods, it's generally the Fellowships where this has been a problem that I end up dropping out of. There are only 2 Fellowships out of the dozens that I've belonged to over the time I've played here that don't have this problem... probably because everyone in these Fellowships (which have many of the same members) talk, Talk, TALK!!! All the time! There is a very strong sense of community in the groups and we all want to help each other. (and I think we also have hidden watchers that track activity... we do occasionally get reminders about helping ) With all the groups (even the good ones) there are inevitably some members that take advantage. When reminders don't work, the only answer is to replace them and hope the new ones will actually follow the Fellowship guidelines.

On the other hand, I wouldn't be too hasty about dismissing someone, even if they haven't logged in to the game in over a week. Things happen. I had a day when I had to follow my doctor's advice and go in to the Emergency Room for an infection that didn't want to clear up. I thought they might keep me overnight. I ended up being in hospital for a week. No way to play. Luckily my hubby also plays and I was able to talk him into letting all of my Fellowships know what was going on so they wouldn't think I'd just flaked out on them. Not everyone has that option though.

On yet another hand (I must have extras! ) as Archmage for a small group that was in the midst of deciding whether to merge with another small group or not, I sent out one final MUST REPLY message to all members only to have one not go through with the message that the member had somehow blocked me from sending messages to her. (I didn't even know that was an option!) Yeah... maybe I was hasty to boot her but if I couldn't message her, how could I ask what the heck???

 

[Laochra]

The players that I am experiencing are working on their cities, but they won't make neighborly visits or help with trades. Isn't that why we join fellowships?? To help each other grow & thrive! Without this, fellowships can't function properly. I have decided to implement a 3-strikes policy. First message-a friendly reminder & offer for help. 2nd message a week later if no change in behavior or reply. One week later, a 3rd message is a 7-day warning that they will lose their place if they are not going to reciprocate the help they receive. My FS have very relaxed rules, but I can not have players that are only using the FS for their own gain. I have a member in two FS that are both on their final notice & will be removed on Nov. 1, if they are not willing to be a team player.
I had to remove 4 members today from our Ceravyn FS, but they were inactive for a month or more.

 

[Mykan]

This is not an unusual problem which is why many fellowships actively monitor visits.

Not everyone who doesn't visit is a leech though. Some people just want the benefits of a fellowship without the rules of visitation or having to explain why they missed a visit. Granted if these are those people they really should find a fellowship that supports that play style.

For those with very new members you may also want to ensure the new people understand how to do visits. I had one new person who wasn't "visiting" members only to find out that every day they went to everyone's town but never clicked on help. They didn't know about the button so thought they were providing help by visiting. Now not everyone can claim that but you may find very new players aren't sure what to do.

 

[Laochra]

This is not an unusual problem which is why many fellowships actively monitor visits.

Not everyone who doesn't visit is a leech though. Some people just want the benefits of a fellowship without the rules of visitation or having to explain why they missed a visit. Granted if these are those people they really should find a fellowship that supports that play style.

For those with very new members you may also want to ensure the new people understand how to do visits. I had one new person who wasn't "visiting" members only to find out that every day they went to everyone's town but never clicked on help. They didn't know about the button so thought they were providing help by visiting. Now not everyone can claim that but you may find very new players aren't sure what to do.

I send a personalized welcome greeting to each member with a few tidbits of helpful hints & for those that aren't visiting or trading in my initial messages, I offer help, if they are sure how to complete them. The only response I get back, if any, is that they are fine & don't need help. I have adjusted the wording on all of my FS pages so they now clearly state not to apply if they don't intend to visit or trade.

 

[Ashrem]

Unless you're very lucky it's going to take a week or so to recruit. Send a message that you need to get an active person in, and are recruiting to fill their spot but that if they return before you come to an accommodation with someone new, their spot is still there, and they are welcome to reapply when they become active again.

 

[Laochra]

Already got two new members today!!

 

[Inspector 12]

Laochra, Our leadership styles are very similar. When I see, or hear about, a member of my FS that is inactive I try to contact them to see if they are having a problem. This happened a bit because of the hurricanes in the southern US a couple of months ago, but that is pretty much cleared up now. If I get no response I will contact the member again to let them know if I don't hear back from them within a short time frame I will remove them from the FS.
I was just contacted today by a member that I removed a while back. She said she had been dealing with some personal problems and had not been online, or at least not enough to play the game or let anyone know of her situation. She wants to come back, but now the FS is full. I told her she could return when a spot opened up.
It seems to me that this is a game where players will come and go. Unfortunately, when they go it's usually without informing anyone that they are leaving.
Good luck in whatever you decide to do.
Inspector 12

 

[DeletedUser8187]

We have one person who as far as I can tell-does 1 encounter in the tourney, not even a 1 full province. This person is not a newbie. Then no interaction till the next tourney. Our mage keeps track of visits and whatnot.

 

[shionnach]

In the last couple of weeks, I have noticed that in at least 3 of my FS, there are members that are active in their cities, but they are not making neighborly visits to their FS friends or taking/posting trades.
It started when I had a new member join us in Felyndral. After visiting him daily for several days, I noticed that he was not returning my visits. I messaged him, offering assistance, as he was a very new player. A week later, no response. So I sent a second message stating that despite the relaxed atmosphere of our FS, the visits & trading were required whenever logging in to our cities. I received a message back stating that he would work on it. One member that I have checked with says that he received one visit from him last week. I have now sent him a 3rd & final warning that he will be released on Nov. 1st if he is not going to participate.
I am a very laid-back player, even when I am the AM. I don't ask a lot. This really irks me though, when it appears that members are taking advantage of the FS.
This incident has caused me to examine my other FS more closely & I have discovered that it appears as if the same thing is happening in both of them--by at least 1 player. I doubt that it is part of the CL protest, because only one of them is advanced enough to even have the CL.
It's making me question whether they have even been helping all along......I know one of them does a couple of provinces in the tournaments occasionally, but no visits or trades. It is upsetting because in one FS, we are really hurting for scrolls and can't afford to have anyone using the FS for their own gain without reciprocating the help they receive.
I have already addressed this issue with my Mages & Ambassadors in one FS, so that we can get a consensus about possible removal of the offending parties. In the other two FS that I am responsible for, I have already messaged the offenders & given them until Nov.1 to amend their ways.

Has anyone else had this problem?? I'm starting to think it might be a chronic issue.

Yes our Fellowship has begun to have this problem also. While I hate to have to remove anyone, I think it is necessary to cull out the ones who don't participate, especially if they are busy working in their own cities. I threw it out to the membership without mentioning names and the feedback was to remove them after giving them some warnings. I don't think it is fair to the ones who are working hard to help build up your fellowship, trading, visiting and playing in tournaments to keep the ones who don't. A major problem with trying to contact these people is anyone playing on mobile does NOT get mail and you don't know if you are actually reaching them. I send a letter offering my help if they are struggling with something. If I get no response then I send a second email enforcing the policies of the Fellowship. A third email would be my last warning and removal in 7 days if things don't change. Again I don't know if they are even receiving my emails....but if they are not engaging they must realize it.

I also do check to see who is visiting and playing, trading etc. I guess if you don't enforce your rules then sooner or later things are going to fall apart. Getting rid of the inactive players also opens the door for new members who may fit in your fellowship better. I also try to communicate with my fellowship everyday ~ throw out little tips, discussions, etc. I want everyone to enjoy being in the fellowship and try to create a friendly atmosphere.