I do like the campaign cause I have never seen something like this in my normal DnD sessions except for once and while it is a good and cool there are some issues with execution.
One failed part of the campaign in my opinion was the Compendium. While yes there was some good story and building to it, being trapped sucked. The worst part was being trapped with toxic players/characters and not having that choice to leave the area to avoid fights with them Icly or Oocly. Like a private conversation between friends could go easily south by a player/character jumping in that you didn't want to and forcing your character into a situation you /really/ didn't want or consented for to start with. If you tried to leave the room, they could easily just follow you and make you rage quit. You also had some players and characters that easily took the spotlight and became the protagonist cause of their powers/ links and it leaves other people who don't have those perks to go like "Well I tried to do something but evidently it was pointless". The Compendium part of the campaign honestly made me feel like not wanting to log on and I know I'm not alone at that part. There also was the fact players who wanted to help by experimenting on themselves just couldn't cause restriction to materials due to other players and the fact most of the building is locked away for only the main people in the campaign.
Any breakthroughs made by players were not communicated with others which is another downfall. Rival houses/ Factions play into this a lot and is another example of why you can't shove people together in a tiny building and expect it to be ok Icly or Oocly. Trust me, I know of a whole group who has been sitting back and just shit talking other players Oocly for having a caparii or other dumb reasons. I personally try to avoid the players I know who do this like the plague but being stuck together makes running into each other near impossible to avoid and causes a lot of not need stress and drama. Communication is the key to this campaign but it's hard cause the players are separated into groups and if you think this campaign will bring the lot of people together with others, be ready to only be partially happy with the outcome and mainly disappointed.
I personally liked how it strengthened some bonds between close characters and made them change. It made people come together but also pushed them /very/ far away. Although the idea was good, the execution by the players and others killed a very cool thing that had potential. If this was to be done in the future, I would keep a few aspects such as the monster attacks and The Watchers. They were an interesting thing that I logged on just to see in a bleak hospital rp. I do enjoy how I and others have had the ability to start being diplomatic and making allies as well. Another thing I loved was the unannounced events and such happening at about the same time everyday so if you wanted to take part you just had to be in the right place at the right time and be ready (Or not if you like a challenge). I also enjoyed how widespread it is but that is also a downfall for all the folks who want to just have some slice of life and log on for that. I personally am a sucker for character development and such and that's what the campaign has offered to many others. Want your happy go lucky elf boy to get crippling paranoia and learn the world is a terrible place or have your stern knight realize they just aren't as strong as they thought? Boom, get involved with the campaign and have them learn first hand.
While I can say a lot about the campaign, these are just what I think and I know others will think differently and disagree but it's were I stand. There are always pros and cons to everything and they can change from person to person.
TL-DR-
Overall, I am enjoying the campaign- there are just aspects I don't like but I can suffer if I get that sweet, sweet plot and character development.
I just wanted to take a moment to respond to this post in particular. I think a lot of your points are extremely valid, but I also think that the campaign isn't the source for some of them. I think how the players themselves responded is part of that, and I would like to apologize for some of it.
Compendium was not Elz's doing or design, so I do not think it's really fair to use that as a critique for what the campaign is. The Compendium experience was fully a player driven endeavor that evolved in response to everything. Not something the campaign runner designed or intended to happen. In part, it happened because Elizabeth announced that Compendium was the research capital and declared that all healers and physicians were to come there as a focus for the cure efforts. She asked Olive to bring all of the patients from the Storm's Landing hospital to Compendium and that is sort of how that began. OOCly, I wanted to try and bring the map together in one place because my biggest upset about the server is how clique and faction based it is. "This group never interacts with that group," and "That group refuses to RP with that group if they're in an area." I was hoping that by Elizabeth pulling everyone into one city ICly, that it would create new and exciting character interactions. And I think that worked. However, I think so many players confused IC aggression for OOC aggression, and blend the two. When a character does something hostile, that does not mean that players behind the action are hostile to the other party.
But what Compendium was was a beautiful, horrendous, disgusting, and glorious mess of fear and paranoia. It was how players responded to the random happenings that Elz put together, so I think it is unfair to say it is Elz's fault. She could not control how players and characters responded to what she threw into the world. The quarantine was many characters' way of dealing with the fear and the unknowns on the disease. When we didn't know how it progressed, or how it affected people,. we responded by quarantine for observation and care. But also, no one was ever forced to stay in the hospital until it got fairly severe. The standing agreement Olive set was that you could leave at any time, but that treatment would be refused if you returned because she saw it as that person risking the lives of others carelessly to potentially spread it. But once we began figuring out the cures, then we tried to get folks out of the hospital as quickly as we could.
I do apologize that it left a bad taste the mouths of many players, but in looking at the last month or two, I have actually been SO proud of the server BECAUSE people who don't like each other are RPing together. I feel like cliques and groups have become less pronounced and it feels like everyone banding together to fight for survival as a whole. It does not fix the OOC drama between players, but I sincerely hope that many of us are mature enough to realize that a character fighting another does not mean that player is being OOCly hostile to you, or that a player is targeting you. It is all just roleplay at the end of the day.
As far as the separated into groups thing, I will concede that point. While we are all RPing in the same place and interacting, there are still subsets of groups. (But what's made me ecstatic is that we're all RPing together in general, even if some groups are secretive.) But I do apologize, because I know that my character is part of the secretive group. I am not sure how to respond to it, as she fully believes that the Entity is watching at all times, and that the best way to fight it is by keeping things secret to avoid it discovering that "such and such thing" has been figured out by anyone. And that does create a disconnect with others. As a player, I want to make sure everyone can be included and having as much fun as possible. But Elizabeth as a character wants to make sure everyone stays alive as long as possible and is willing to withhold information if it means staying one step ahead. She doesn't trust those with loose lips, those she doesn't know, those that are infected, etc.
I think for those that WANT to be involved, it's really just a matter of considering what playstyle you enjoy and what level involvement you want to have. If you want more involvement, I recommend looking at ways to make your character useful and noticed. Try doing some research. There's still A LOT we don't know. Or find a way to contribute to the health and safety of the refugees and infected. Or if you like combat, considering joining local militia and defense efforts. The "protagonists" are only that because there are characters that choose to follow their orders. But that does not mean others are unable to participate or join in. If your character dislikes the shot callers, you could start some juicy drama to call them out, or you could talk to them to see how you can get involved. But again, that is all part of the player experience and roleplaying. Not something the campaign designed to happened, or that Elz orchestrated.
TL;DR: I don't think Elz can control how players respond to what she does. She hasn't really been the one setting events and choosing what happens, so much as players. But I think your concerns with player experience is valid, but worked around with more communication. I think there is a lot of misunderstanding that conflict IC is not conflict OOC, and perhaps a clashing of what different groups find to be enjoyable RP. But I am ecstatic that people from different groups are regularly RPing with one another. Some players would have never otherwise met or spoken ICly if not for the way this campaign brought everyone together in close quarters.
Thanks!
