Entry tags:
Activity System
Thisavrou operates on a unique system for counting and applying activity. During most of the month, it works the same as most games: players aim to make a minimum activity level, with the knowledge that more activity could earn them potential bonuses later on. But when the month turns over, instead of all players being required to comment their activity, the mods do so using the ACSavior program. (HUGE kudos to its developer, ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
prof).
There are some exceptions. Those details should be included in any AC posts, but this page is meant to offer a more in-depth look at how the system works.
prof).There are some exceptions. Those details should be included in any AC posts, but this page is meant to offer a more in-depth look at how the system works.
| Activity |
Any of the following counts consists of a single proof, and full completion of standard activity requirements for a given month:
Timing: Tags used for Activity Requirements (base or bonus) must be OOCly from the month the check pertains to. (Tags made in January are counted toward February's AC, not January's.) Backtags are fine, and if a player has trouble fulfilling AC, they are encouraged to reach out to the modteam.
Double-Counting: Is prohibited. This means two things. Firstly, players may count either a single proof from the open starter or post, or the value of however many tags the threads include. The choice is theirs, but both are not applicable. Second, once a proof is used for base AC, it will not count toward bonus activity.
Hiatuses: if the hiatus is between 1-2 weeks, AC will be half of the current requirements. If the hiatus is more than 2 weeks, AC requirements are waived completely, though players are still required to check the post. Anything less than 1 full week will still require full AC. Characters may not hiatus out of AC for more than one month in a row.
Strikes: Can be taken to exempt a character from a single month's AC. On the next month, the player is required to meet double regular activity (two proofs for base AC).
Not all players are required to comment to AC. However, all players are required to skim each month's post, and to respond if they have a journal on the check-in list. A short period is given for responses before the check-in list is auto-dropped. As new characters arrive at the beginning of each month, they are required to make activity for that month—but not, of course, to participate in the AC post for the preceding month that goes up the same week. (i.e., a character who first appears on January 5 would be included in the check posted on February 1, not January 1.)
- 5 comments from your character in a log
- 10 comments in a network thread
- 15 comments from an IC inbox thread
- 1 open network post, log post, or open starter in an event log
Timing: Tags used for Activity Requirements (base or bonus) must be OOCly from the month the check pertains to. (Tags made in January are counted toward February's AC, not January's.) Backtags are fine, and if a player has trouble fulfilling AC, they are encouraged to reach out to the modteam.
Double-Counting: Is prohibited. This means two things. Firstly, players may count either a single proof from the open starter or post, or the value of however many tags the threads include. The choice is theirs, but both are not applicable. Second, once a proof is used for base AC, it will not count toward bonus activity.
Hiatuses: if the hiatus is between 1-2 weeks, AC will be half of the current requirements. If the hiatus is more than 2 weeks, AC requirements are waived completely, though players are still required to check the post. Anything less than 1 full week will still require full AC. Characters may not hiatus out of AC for more than one month in a row.
Strikes: Can be taken to exempt a character from a single month's AC. On the next month, the player is required to meet double regular activity (two proofs for base AC).
Not all players are required to comment to AC. However, all players are required to skim each month's post, and to respond if they have a journal on the check-in list. A short period is given for responses before the check-in list is auto-dropped. As new characters arrive at the beginning of each month, they are required to make activity for that month—but not, of course, to participate in the AC post for the preceding month that goes up the same week. (i.e., a character who first appears on January 5 would be included in the check posted on February 1, not January 1.)
| Tallying |
When run, the ACSavior program provides us with a full list of log and network comments made on the comm within the specified period. This is organized by journals and includes links to each thread. The result looks like this:
By entering the log and network counts into a spreadsheet, we can calculate quickly how many proofs each character has—and convert this to bonus AC where applicable. This takes a matter of minutes, and can produce immediate, accurate AC counts without players needing to dig up old threads or mods needing to check every link.
That said, the app is tailored for DWRP at large, not our game, and the specific AC rules of Thisavrou present some unique difficulties:
To a degree, these problems are smaller than they seem. Mostly, comments made on posts or logs provide more credit than the post itself, and if a journal doesn't make AC by comment counts, the tallying mod can check their entry manually for any starters that were overlooked. That said, we don't want to leave off inboxes—or risk denying people their full bonus. As a result, an Extra Activity comment will be included in every AC post for players who want to submit AC manually—either in addition to, or in place of the activity produced by our count. This is also where players requesting strikes would comment.
If a player has no corrections to make for their character, and their character had sufficient AC, they are not required to comment.
By entering the log and network counts into a spreadsheet, we can calculate quickly how many proofs each character has—and convert this to bonus AC where applicable. This takes a matter of minutes, and can produce immediate, accurate AC counts without players needing to dig up old threads or mods needing to check every link.
That said, the app is tailored for DWRP at large, not our game, and the specific AC rules of Thisavrou present some unique difficulties:
- IC Inboxes: cannot be tallied through the app.
- Open starters: cannot be differentiated from regular log comments.
- Log or network posts: ...do show up—but the program has no way of knowing whether a player would prefer to count the comments or the post. (See the double-counting rules above.)
To a degree, these problems are smaller than they seem. Mostly, comments made on posts or logs provide more credit than the post itself, and if a journal doesn't make AC by comment counts, the tallying mod can check their entry manually for any starters that were overlooked. That said, we don't want to leave off inboxes—or risk denying people their full bonus. As a result, an Extra Activity comment will be included in every AC post for players who want to submit AC manually—either in addition to, or in place of the activity produced by our count. This is also where players requesting strikes would comment.
If a player has no corrections to make for their character, and their character had sufficient AC, they are not required to comment.
| Bonus AC and Activity Lists |
For each three additional proofs (up to a maximum of nine), characters are granted an option for a bonus reward. This results in three levels of reward options in addition to base AC.
During each Activity Check, the mods running the tally will turn our spreadsheet data into a table, listing each character's reward level. There are five possible entries: check-in, base AC, first, second, and third.
- Check-In: means that a character did not have sufficient activity as detected by the program. This can mean they didn't meet activity requirements, or that they met it through tags that were not counted (inbox tags, open starters, backtags too old for the search to detect). These players are required to comment at the "Extra Activity" header or have their characters auto-dropped from the game.
- Base AC: means that a character made base activity, but not any of the reward tiers. These players are not required to comment, but may submit extra activity if they think they have something that might bump them up a category.
- First: means that a character made sufficient activity to both meet AC and earn a bonus. At the player's discretion, their character can receive whatever item is listed at the first reward level this month. As above, they may optionally submit extra activity, but are not required to.
- Second: means that a character made sufficient activity to both meet AC and earn the second level of bonus. The player may choose between the first and second reward items (or neither). As above, they may optionally submit extra activity, but are not required to.
- Third: means that a character made sufficient activity to both meet AC and earn the third (and final) level of bonus. The player may choose between all three available bonus rewards, or forego them if they prefer.
The reward system operates on a choose one basis. A player whose character qualifies for reward level three may select their reward from any of the listed options, but no character should receive multiple rewards. This is to prevent IC wealth buildups for OOC reasons, and to allow us to offer more interesting options without skewing game opportunities toward the most active tier.
For an example of what the tallying lists look like, check out one of our more recent AC posts.
If you have any questions or comments regarding this AC system, feel free to drop off a note below!