Kommand

Owning a commercial truck for the trucking job is not worth it unless you are simultaneously using it for other Freelance jobs that require storage volume. Like you mentioned, fuel costs, tolls, and vehicle repairs are avoided with rentals and that's a significant financial incentive to rent. I personally preferred owning my truck as it allowed me to diversify and enterprise my money making options a bit. Trucking orders are a bit more stable and generating now though it's possible to do it full time, In that case I'd say it's not worth the investment. I wouldn't worry too much about people judging you over CB because any truck owner saying that shit is really just jealous of the rental perks. Save. Dat. Money.

The interview process for SD is already pretty arduous. RED is often understaffed & overworked, which makes the interview process more difficult due to scheduling conflicts & availability. Typically it takes time to conduct, with most applicants not moving past that stage. The unbalanced amount of SD/PD members compared to criminal factions can't be blamed on the interview/application process. The attrition of applicants throughout the several stages of recruiting, training, & certification is very high, and it's engineered that way on purpose--to find who fits. The real reason SD/PD have higher numbers proportionally is because being a criminal in current year is just not very fun. The activities available that are enjoyable carry a tremendous amount of risk, and to overcome potential losses, it requires a lot of grinding. Criminals don't road work for 8 hours straight because it fits their IC lore--they do it because of financial necessity. Do I think this suggestion would help improve the overall experience of being a criminal? Possibly, as it could create competing factions from the influx of unaffiliated criminals. However, with current Faction Management policies, specifically the Tier system, smaller factions are still at a massive disadvantage even if caps are lowered. The process to Official status and improved tiering is also very demanding, even unrealistic. All those things considered, -1. This would be a band-aid on a much bigger problem.

-1. There are too many script problems with the way the Buffalo STX & Patriot Mil Spec are bulletproofed. I think any attempt to incorporate armored improvements will lead to the same script issues. Desync is also common, (vehicles in particular) where these proposed upgrades indirectly and directly influence RP, often with absurdly unfair and unbalanced punishments. Cool idea in concept with the immersive improvements to gearheadRP, though. Would make mechanic work a lot more engaging.

''There's the IC war, then the forum war.'' @AnakinB I think there should be some sort of policy where if you engage an alleged rulebreaker in combat, meaning you decide to ICly shoot back or retaliate, your right to report for DM/NonRP etc. should be voided. Often people just recklessly decide to go for the win knowing that if they lose, they can just report and end up getting a refund. And in addition, if they manage to win, suddenly they don't feel the desire to report. People put WAY too much importance on in game assets, to be honest. They're fucking pixels on a game at the end of the day. Yet so many lose a gun and immediately start a report hoping that the presiding moderator finds a reason to accept it. I'm not sure what exactly the repercussions are from a denied report, other than isolated cases where reporting parties have received an admin log for it. Personally I think the consequences should be more severe, as this culture of ''Save POV'' is insanely toxic & limits RP due to players avoiding situations that may result in an accusation. Furthermore, factions have now started using OOC tactics as means to disband or cripple competition. Hell, I read a report not too long ago where the Lost MC accused one of its own of stealing from the treasury! The reported party proved his innocence and the report got denied, but how does that not affect him IC? Knowing that your gang thinks you're a thief...oh but it's OOCly. Ridiculous. Regarding cops and the consistent petty reports we see from them, it really makes you wonder what their motive is. We all know taking the L can suck, but they literally suffer 0 IC consequences for it. 30 minutes later and they can be back on duty with the same loadout like it never happened. It's frustrating the leniency they get in comparison to crims who often are presumed guilty until proven innocent. OP is right though--this has been and continues to be a problem on multiple fronts. One suggestion I would make is that appeals should not be initially handled by the original presuming moderator. It should immediately be cross reviewed by a third party member of staff to prevent the bias that obviously exists when a decision is questioned. Less reporting, less deporting!

More people at labs just means more opportunities for roving gangs to rob/loot newer players who are brand new to criminal RP. The idea of more activity at the labs sounds good on paper, but established factions are always going to exploit solo rookies instead of recruiting them. Couple that with how broken Fear RP is, and you've got a recipe for a reporting uptick. Really makes no sense why players can only plant in these designated plantation zones. Pretty sure there's lots of soil in San Andreas. Maybe planting is isolated for developmental reasons, but realistically it should be possible essentially anywhere granted the topography makes sense. More people = more problems. I agree with this for the most part. The old meta of pick-locking vehicles and immediately driving off is obviously over, so I wonder how this translates with the new hotwiring system. Is there even any incentive or reason to try and steal a player owned vehicle anymore? It was much more fun to chop cars owned by other players who would chase after you or try and track you down. The fun of that is nonexistent with the NPC cars, in addition to cops metagaming the knowledge of what is, or isn't a NPC car. Not all of course, but the fact that's possible is a problem. +1. 250k for equipment that is so easily comped is ridiculous. There's way more money in robbing chop shops than ACTUALLY running one. All this will do is create higher profit margins for official factions. Sure, maybe Lost MC or others will decrease prices for competitive purposes, but a large portion of criminals can't import these weapons and have no other option but to pay the markup. It's not the prices, it's the accessibility of them. There should be an option to acquire them without the middlemen. +1. Failing a lockpick due to desync has IC consequences, and the cops don't care that it was OOCly caused. +1. I find it funny that the most glaring and obvious issue needing to be addressed is the one with the most contention from developers. I just don't see how anyone could objectively look at prison fines/time and deny that it's a problem. It's bad enough that time spent at DOC is mind numbingly boring. It's even more egregious when you now have 10-30k in fines that takes basically all of your legal salary until it's paid. The whole ''be smarter bro'' sentiment is getting old considering that it reinforces the play to win mindset. Moreover, sometimes no matter how smart you RP, shit doesn't go your way. It happens. Losing up to 5 hours of your time, and another 5-8 hours of money for it is excessive. +++1! The lack of developmental investment into DOC is very frustrating. There's a lot of IC investment that goes into DOC, but when all RP outside the script is considered alt RP, how can you expect the situation to improve? DOC RP should be so fun that people actually enjoy or look forward to prison, because of the unique and diverse roleplay that can occur. Right now it's essentially the opposite, and DOC employees unfortunately are affected by that. And yes, you're completely correct about why criminals hate roleplaying with cops--it's the dread of knowing the next 8-10 hours of our game experience is about to be fucked. On the other hand, the cops are having a blast and getting to enjoy the RP without any of the fallout. Sadly a certain demographic will always equate constructive criticism with toxicity. Those people probably benefit from the current server's state. I think that's the largest misconception from the side speaking up for change, the misconception that the priorities currently are bad for everyone. They are clearly benefiting someone or else they would have been addressed by now. But that's a discussion for another day. +/-1. There should be some sort of engagement with the job that prevents click farming, which is basically what it was prior to the minigame. The minigame isn't annoying because it forces you to be attentive, it's annoying because the engagement has no depth or realistic use. -1. So much potential for fishing to be an amazing industry and job. Diversifying the types of fish, incorporating bait, geographically specific fish, and of course deep sea fishing for boats, as they currently have no financial incentive outside of leisure. You could even create a Fishing License that would provide potential opportunities for Game Warden esque divisions at SD. I realize all of that is probably unattainable, but some of it should be realistically possible. +1. I always thought the way that nerf was handled was funny, because in their attempt to dissuade the mining meta, they created a new meta of criminals obviously knowing a slow speed RV has 25k worth of ore in it. If someone has put the time in mining enough ore to fill 20 safes I don't see why they should be put at such a disadvantage in transporting it. Either limit the number of safes that can scriptly be placed in a Journey, or remove the speed nerf. +1. Currently it's pretty easy to exploit the meta when it comes to hunting. One person can basically wipe all the livestock before others have an opportunity to find them. Also, nearly everyone traveling on roads through those zones will stop and kill a chicken or cow even if they're not actively hunting. Why wouldn't they? It's free money. Like fishing, there is so much potential to make hunting more in depth and enjoyable. +/-1. Not sure this would improve the lack of use the bus system currently has. Most bus drivers even when there is an opportunity, do not pick up other players. They only stop because they're forced to, and they have no interest in the RP side of the job. It's just a means to an end for money. +1. It can also be very confusing and time wasting for new players to learn how useless or terrible some of these jobs are through experience. Imagine your first day in the server you decide to work a tollbooth. The majority of traffic gets through for free, the other half either jumps the barrier or waits for a bus so they can pass for free. To me, that would leave a bad impression on first timers. +/-1. So what if someone wanted to impersonate the police, would you support players having access to those EXACT uniforms? Right now the only people suffering from ''job'' clothing is criminals. -1. The rules won't allow for a successful ''back to the basics.'' Many rule changes are in place because of the problems those basics caused. Whether you agree or disagree with those changes, you can't expect to extract the good of 2020 while avoiding the bad entirely. The truth is that Eclipse RP has a huge attrition rate by design. New players don't typically break the rules on purpose, or DM for the hell of it. Does it happen? Of course. But it's the minority. The majority of them are unfortunately inexperienced at RP and end up making mistakes in the nuances of complex role play. Couple that with each Moderator essentially interpreting those rules with carte blanche and you've set them up for failure. By the time they have reached competency in RP, they are either A. already banned, or B. Limiting their RP due to fear of a DM #2, ala permanent ban. Eclipse staff aren't interested in educating or empowering newer players--they are interested in enforcing a standard of RP that many can not meet. And that's fine! There's nothing wrong with that. But you won't reach the numbers of 2020 if that's the vision for the server. It's just the hard truth. More and more it becomes clear that the vision for Eclipse is to be a heavy RP server with a staggering learning curve. That's easy to transition into for the players who have been here for years, but very difficult when it comes to attracting new players. I've seen several suggestions sort of addressing this, such as a second 2.0 server, changes to Ban Evading policy, or unbanning players for less severe rule breaks. Not really sure what the solution is, but it'd be nice if we could at least all agree that we have an identity problem.

I appreciate the intention of this post but you have to acknowledge that Eclipse was never a server that appealed to low attention span, instant gratification geared players. I'm not trying to minimize your concerns on development and transparency, but I do think there's a chasm between player expectations and the reality of developmental limitations. And I do agree we deserve more transparency on that process--but I'm not quite convinced that the transparency would translate into positivity being reciprocated both ways. In a way it's nice to be shielded from the stressors of development because if we knew the facts, we might be disappointed or unsatisfied with the limits of where GTA V as a platform, can go. Player input can only overcome an aging platform for so long. Eclipse does an outstanding job on promoting roleplay outside the bounds of scriptly in game client control but this is still a base game from 2013, and there are times where I get the same feeling of decline as I did on San Andreas servers. Moments soaked in the monotony of a repetitive roleplay are common but then you also have fleeting moments of fun when stars align and everyone enjoys the RP without being toxic or reporting. Sadly I see more of the latter and less of the former the longer I research. The bottom line of the big picture is that ECRP has sacrificed a lot to be inclusive, and also a lot to be exclusive. We're a whitelisted server with strict and swift consequences for rule breaks. That alone alienates a lot of the player pool. On the other hand though, you see a sustained and significant effort in reiterating the importance of consent RP from staff, which is a huge win for inclusivity. I don't think the answer is nerfing the rules or weakening the whitelist, it's clearly an identity issue with what Eclipse RP is. It just seems to me that staff continues to cultivate a net negative financial experience for criminal RP. And obviously, money isn't everything when it comes to roleplay. But it does make a big difference in how effective you can roleplay. When we reduce it down to the Cop/Crim experience, the Cops are essentially eternally funded by a supposed IC budget that is only backed up by OOC legitimacy. I think if the government of San Andreas held elections, they'd be shocked at the results because people are displeased with the allocation of funds in various capacities. You say you want a revolution? Well you know, we all want to change the world.

+1 I'm personally in favor of all drivers being able to wield a handgun while driving, as it happens in real life. I'm not sure what the OOC reasoning is for its absence in ECRP. When it comes to the warrant requirement you mentioned, if you are pulled over with an active warrant, it becomes a 10-66 with multiple officers on scene, so this seems like a fair balance. Truth be told though, cops depend on a lot of OOC advantages including this to keep authority over criminals. You'd need $100k for the same loadout some of these officers are deployed with, with the risk of dying and losing it all, which they don't deal with. So I feel your struggle of hopelessness as a criminal, because the cop/crim dynamic is disastrously flawed and overwhelmingly favoring law enforcement. And even if you did manage to win in RP with them, they'll report you and likely receive a ruling in their favor. Like when cops reported Shenzen and other gangs for DM after they got clapped fair and square in a battle for plane loot. While I support this suggestion, you should know that you're barking up a tree that bites back. Proceed with caution.

The buzzer is always seen but it is ignored in certain situations. When a TAC or JTAC situation arises, it's not uncommon to see the impound get ignored for a sustained amount of time. Granted my experience was primarily at the Paleto impound, although I would assist at Davis if operating in open juro. Part of the problem disrupting the flow of impounds is the way LSSD handles field training. After graduating Academy, Trainees are limited in what they can do until they pass an evaluation, so although they are on desk duty, literally a walk away from the impound, they actually can't come help you. And even if they radio for you, if it's a TAC/JTAC scene, they'll be ignored. I would agree with Bala that impound releases can lead to positive RP with those I would not normally see. However it also led to a lot of negativity, because people get promised a secure impound only to find out they got actual impounded and lose thousands. I've personally seen non-criminal impounds/tows end up costing a law abiding citizen a hefty fine. So it happens and when you're trying to help mitigate a mistake and release a car you didn't even impound, it looks bad on you. My personal opinion is that all secure impounds should be automated as there's no inherent criminality in a secure impound, and would not necessarily require on scene police. Impounds should be automated after a certain time threshold has expired, to address the issues of police presence at impound.

+1 The way DOC is set up, it's not only an OOC punishment for IC actions, it's also designed to punish IC RP within DOC. Part of that is inherent due to the kind of RP DOC facilitates. But for as much guidance Kourtney gives on the role-play at DOC, it falls pathetically short in actuality. And it's sad that the blame continually gets deflected onto the player base for the failures at DOC when script support is nearly non-existent, And Alt RP attempted to work around the lack of script support is denied or ignored almost every time. So when people tell you that the burden of good RP bears on the individual in DOC, it's just laughable. Lol literally one of the Warden's recommended ways to RP includes watching TV while tabbing out to watch Netflix. inb4 YoU cAn sCrEeNsHaRe! It seems to me that DOC is engineered to kill RP so DOC can ignore inmates and go ride around and engage the more enjoyable aspects of their job. Then inevitably, due to the minimal presence on the cell block, LSSD usually has to come clean up an absurdly violent mess because inmates are ridiculously bored. I experienced this a lot, and even documented the issue here: I'm not saying that the prison break rule is unnecessary, because I do believe the kind of RP or backstory required to realistically escape is lengthy and complex. But the red tape around everything in DOC has many players feeling like it's the same as admin jail, watching their every word or move because the trust has degraded so severely at DOC. I frequently see reports in or around DOC that highlight the endemic issue of play to win RP, and more specifically, report to win RP. And interestingly enough, it's not limited to OOC when it comes to causing issues. When I audited county crime at LSSD, the majority of crimes committed happened at DOC. When you have an ICly created cycle of crime that starts and ends at DOC, combined with an OOCly influenced RP environment, you get a recipe for disaster and disaster seems to be an appropriate adjective for the state of DOC RP. You can blame anyone and everyone, but we can't even agree on the simple fact that it's unsatisfactory and unsustainable. So maybe we deserve it, but if you're like me, you'll continue searching and speaking truth.