Thank you for your interest in my campaign to be part of CSM 6. It is my intention to work diligently, effectively, and tirelessly to bring the concerns of the player base to the CSM, to CCP, and back to the players.

The following is a user submitted request for my stand on a topic important to them. I have given thought to the topic and formulated my opinion, but it’s just that; my opinion. Nothing more. There is no guarantee the opinion expressed herein will ever see the light of day.

My platform isn’t one of issues, but rather one of integrity, tenacity, and the willingness to hold the CSM and CCP accountable to the players that support everything we do. I will not push my own agenda, unless it coincides with what the majority of the player base wants for a given topic.

Never start a fight you can win. #RocTheVote

QUESTION: There are many good candidates out there, some to be endorsed thoroughly. One to actively stand against is Roc Wieler. All he wants to do is take advantage of his role in CSM to monetize Capsuleer and profit in real life.

Capsuleer

I’ve said this will not be part of my campaign, but it just keeps rearing up its ugly head, so let’s put this to rest once and for all.

I was half of the team that brought Capsuleer to the players of EVE Online. My development partner, PyjamaSam, did all the coding. I did the design, user interface, marketing, promotions and was the public face of Capsuleer. I was also the one to deal in business negotiations with CCP and MMM.

Having said that, let’s be concise:

1. Capsuleer is dead.
2. Capsuleer will not be going open source. Why? You just don’t get open source. There is effort in choosing a licensing platform, as well as coding work to be done to be compliant with that licensing platform, and as I said, PyjamaSam was the coder, and he’s not going to do it.
3. Capsuleer cannot be part of my campaign, nor my work in CSM because the reality of it is that I did not, nor can I, program Capsuleer. My understanding of Objective C is rudimentary at best, and I do not possess the personal means to do the coding necessary that was what made this product so great. PyjamaSam has moved on and has zero interest in CCP, Capsuleer, or Eve Online.

It has been pointed out to me by some of my supporters, and some of the naysayers, that my two posts on Third Party Apps and EVE API could be misconstrued as contrary opinions.

So let’s clear that up.

TL;DR

1. IF CCP is to offer third party developers some form of licensing structure, it needs to apply to all third party developers, or to none. That is the only fair way to do it, though it comes with inherent risks to the intellectual property of CCP. MY POST
2. I think the EVE API is great, even though there are many areas for improvement with it. I wholeheartedly support developers using the API, and know there are many talented developers out there doing great things with the API. This needs to be encouraged. That I would fight for as CSM. MY POST

Be Educated

Do not let others make your decisions for you. Do not listen to hearsay. Be responsible enough to make informed decisions either by talking directly to the candidates, or by following their Jita Park threads, or their blogs. Nobody likes second hand information. It cannot be relied upon.

So there you have it, straight from the horse’s mouth so to speak. I have no interest in profiting from CSM. In fact, I stand against such activity and I doubt CCP would even allow it to happen were someone to attempt such a thing.

Here’s hoping you learned something new about me today, if you were a doubter.

I’ve been having many conversations since voting opened, and let me tell you, it’s tiring repeating yourself ad nauseum. It’s like nobody can be bothered to read your campaign posts; they’d rather just have you spoon feed them directly. Sigh.

To try to make things easier for both the voters and myself, I’ve started an ingame chat channel ‘Roc the Vote’. I will be posting times where I will be there to answer any campaign related questions to the best of my ability, whether through EVE Voice or typing.

I hope this will give players an opportunity to learn more about me, and my opinions of Eve Online.

CSM 6 Voting is now open. I want to wish the best of luck to all the candidates in this election.

VOTE ROC NOW

Thank you for your interest in my campaign to be part of CSM 6. It is my intention to work diligently, effectively, and tirelessly to bring the concerns of the player base to the CSM, to CCP, and back to the players.

The following is a user submitted request for my stand on a topic important to them. I have given thought to the topic and formulated my opinion, but it’s just that; my opinion. Nothing more. There is no guarantee the opinion expressed herein will ever see the light of day.

My platform isn’t one of issues, but rather one of integrity, tenacity, and the willingness to hold the CSM and CCP accountable to the players that support everything we do. I will not push my own agenda, unless it coincides with what the majority of the player base wants for a given topic.

Never start a fight you can win. #RocTheVote

QUESTION: I still believe in you, Roc, and great job on the LostInEve debate, but some of your campaign posts make you look stupid. Maybe you should stick with what you know?

Not infallible

Thanks for taking the time to contact me and express your praise and concerns, all in one breath! I’m not superhuman, despite the chronicles surrounding my past. I’m a regular guy, doing what he can to make a difference. Sometimes I succeed, sometimes I fail, sometime I look like an idiot. I accept that.

I think if any candidate were to tell you they have all the answers, you should really wonder if they actually understand the questions.

CSM is a group of elected individuals, with diverse experience and knowledge, working together for the betterment of the game we all enjoy. Every individual will have different ideas on how to get there, but we all want the same thing in the end, a better EVE.

If elected to CSM, I guarantee you I won’t always be right. I promise I won’t always be the authority on every subject, but what I do know is this: I will be consistently dedicated to listening to the views of everyone, players, CSM, and CCP alike. Working towards a common goal is what CSM should be about.

Community

So let’s reinforce my mandate. I am all about community; always have been. I blog. Many read my blog. Many comment on my blog and engage in conversations on my blog. I tweet. Many talk with me through tweets. I write EON Magazine articles. I provide EVE inspired music to the community. I do artwork, free to download from my blog. I was the face of the Capsuleer iPhone application. I do podcast interviews. I attend Fanfest. I sign autographs. I give away small promotional items. I do what I can to stay an active and recognizable part of every player’s Eve Online experience. Of course, it’s pure arrogance that lets me think everyone has heard of Roc Wieler, but perhaps someday they will.

I do all of these things on my own time, and I’ve been consistent in doing them. It’s that consistency that shows my heart for this community.

There is strength in community. Players understand this. CCP needs to understand this. I’ve said it before: a game is only as good as its player base.

CCP, as a game producer, needs to start listening to its community or risk losing them. It’s as simple as that, and been proven in this particular industry time and again.

Direction

If we listen to community, the single biggest thing we’ll hear is a concern over lack of direction by CCP for the future of EVE Online. Mynxee and CSM 5 posted about it recently, and it’s not the first time we’ve had this concern as players. The general perception from the player base, and not really rebutted adequately by CCP, is the notion that CCP goes from one shiny to the next. Factional Warfare, Planetary Interaction, Incarna, Trinity, etc, etc… they were all very exciting opportunities that became one-offs, never to be heard of again.

I’ve heard from the CSM that CCP lacks clear direction. I’ve heard from other sources closer to CCP that they lack direction. I believe they lack direction. CCP needs to stop with the shinies. It can no longer be a matter of “What can we do next?”, it needs to be a series of long, hard looks at “Why should we do this?” and make decisions accordingly.

Even if I don’t get elected to CSM, I hope someone from CCP is reading this now. Please, mandate your future! Get it down on paper. Start with pie in the sky then work it down to the details as to how you can achieve these goals as an equitable company.

You need to do this, CCP. It is not optional.

My part? There is nothing I would enjoy more as part of the CSM than to have CCP engage us and ask us for opinions on future directions they’ve been entertaining. Open those lines of communication. Prove me wrong. Prove us wrong. Show us what’s up your sleeve for the next few years. We’re under NDA. We can’t say a bloody word.

Just work with us to re-instill the level of confidence we once had when CCP was a small, passionate shop with a single product they hoped would change the way things would be done in the gaming industry.

I still believe in that company. I still believe in that game. I still believe in this community.

Do what you believe is right. Vote Roc.

Thank you for your interest in my campaign to be part of CSM 6. It is my intention to work diligently, effectively, and tirelessly to bring the concerns of the player base to the CSM, to CCP, and back to the players.

The following is a user submitted request for my stand on a topic important to them. I have given thought to the topic and formulated my opinion, but it’s just that; my opinion. Nothing more. There is no guarantee the opinion expressed herein will ever see the light of day.

My platform isn’t one of issues, but rather one of integrity, tenacity, and the willingness to hold the CSM and CCP accountable to the players that support everything we do. I will not push my own agenda, unless it coincides with what the majority of the player base wants for a given topic.

Never start a fight you can win. #RocTheVote

QUESTION: As a player who makes the majority of their income from limited edition T2 BPOs, I’m curious to know your views on them. Should they be changed? If so, how?

Loyalty Rewards

There are some that view limited edition T2 BPOs as “CCP Loyalty Points”, namely in the sense that if you haven’t been around the game long enough, chances are you don’t have access to limited edition T2 BPOs.

I believe in a company rewarding customer loyalty. In real life, nothing bothers me more than when a service I subscribe to offers very enticing deals to new customers only, completing neglecting the fact that I’m an existing and loyal customer.

In a game like EVE Online, the question for me is  “Should this loyalty be rewarded giving long time player certain advantages?” As I have mentioned in my views on Microtransactions, the answer is no.

If CCP wanted to reward my five years of play by offering me limited edition clothing or room decorations in Incarna, items not available to younger players, so be it. I’d even be willing to go so far as to say that perhaps in the case of real life loyalty, maybe small advantages are ok (not being hypocritical, just being open minded), like a module with special bonuses, linked to my ship, not tradeable, not sellable. I don’t know, and that’s another discussion.

So do I think limited edition T2 BPOs should be removed? No. Do I think they should be changed? Yes.

Diminishing Returns

I think sweeping changes can be dangerous. Removing limited edition T2 BPOs completely and suddenly accomplishes nothing but alienating and frustrating your long time player base. We all become accustomed to how things are, and are more apt to accept incremental changes than grand ones.

To that end, I think limited edition T2 BPOs should be converted to high run BPCs. The icon would remain the same. The functionality would remain the same. The only difference would be that eventually the money printing machine that is limited edition T2 BPOs will run out.

An example would be to give high run BPCs an initial max run value of 100. Each of these BPCs would have a diminished max run value of 50. Each of those children would have a dimished max run value of 25. Each of those children would have a diminished max run value of 10 until they are in line with regular BPCs.

These are arbitrary numbers for illustrative purposes.

What we can see clearly is this: limited edition T2 BPOs would not be limitless, and therefore existing limited edition T2 BPO holders would need to carefully consider their pricing structure. The more rare high run BPCs become, the higher market prices will go for rare ship types. At the same time, limited edition T2 BPO holders are not unexpectedly cut off from their current means of income, but rather have the opportunity to adjust their business strategies to accommodate this change over time.

Seeding

I also believe that if limited edition T2 BPOs are converted to high run BPCs which will eventually become no more valuable than regular BPCs, there needs to be seeding of fresh high run BPCs. Is this accomplished by extending my Factional Warfare dynamic landscape idea to all areas of space, where only Tier 5 officers have a random chance of dropping a high run BPC? Maybe. Will invention offer a small chance of creating a high run BPC? Perhaps. I’m sure there are many great ideas for how to accomplish this.

Consequences

With any purposed change, there is always the need for game balance, requiring any idea to be examined from multiple angles, to determine what the trickle down impact would be across game play as a whole. How can it be abused? Does the benefit outweigh negative impact? Is it worth the time and resources, or are there more important and pressing issues to deal with?

Are high end BPCs the right solution to address the issue? They may be a good starting point, or they may not be. My point on every campaign issue is to offer an additional venue for discussion, even though there are many threads on the subjects already.

By exposing the issues on my blog, it is an opportunity for some who may not be aware of the issues to form their own opinion, do their own research. For others it is an opportunity to specifically see my point of view on a given issue and engage in intelligent debate as to why they agree, disagree, or wish to improve upon my opinion.

The CSM is not a group of amateur game developers. I qualify every one of these campaign posts stating they are merely opinions and conjecture, and that none of my ideas may ever see the light of day. To be blunt, some of my ideas may never even make to the CSM should I be elected, or if they do make it that far, the CSM as a whole may engage in debate and demonstrate why certain ideas are not the best solution for a given issue.

Ultimately, I just want players to know that I am willing to hear the issues, take input on the issues, give my opinions on the issues, communicate the issues, see how far they go, and return to the player base with valid communication and information regarding the issues that are important to them as a whole.

Truth is, as has been made evident, I don’t know much about this particular process and taking shots in the dark. In such a situation on the CSM, I would defer to those with more knowledge on the given subject, questioning where I thought appropriate.

This is being sent to all accepted applicants, so my apologies for the lack of a personal touch. Your application to run as a candidate in the election for the sixth Council of Stellar Management has been accepted, congratulations!

It’s what I’ve been waiting to hear. I am officially a candidate for CSM 6. Go me.

We love you Roc!

Thanks for deciding to support me in the race for CSM 6. I truly appreciate the support of each and every individual whom has taken the time to email me, give a shout in local, post on the EVE Online forums, encourage on Twitter, or comment here.

What can you do to help spread the madness?

• If you’re on Twitter, #eveonline #tweetfleet #RocTheVote – Chat me up on Twitter @rocwieler. Chat others up on Twitter. Let’s shake the universe.
• Got Facebook? I have a Campaign Page there too! http://www.facebook.com/pages/RocTheVote/185976791442725
• In a corporation or alliance? – Infect your corporation mates and alliance leaders. Link them to my campaign page at https://rocwieler.com/2011/02/14/csm-6-roc-the-vote/
• Sitting in station, tired of spinning your ship? – spam local, spam your address book, spam EVEGate.com! (don’t really spam, but rather engage people in meaningful conversations as to why they they should #RocTheVote)
• Need something to Troll? Head over to Jita Park Speakers Corner and bump my visibility. Ask me questions! Challenge all the candidates!

Meh, Roc, whatever

Hey, casting your vote for the CSM is a very important decision and should not be taken lightly. I respect and applaud your hesitancy! Please, look at the links in the section above and feel free to hit me up with questions about the matters that are important to you. I’m doing my very best to educate myself on all the important matters, but at the very least I will acknowledge your question and try to blog a reply.

While I welcome your vote, I want to encourage you to make sure you spend the time to make sure you support the candidate that most represents your wants and needs in New Eden.

Oh screw you Roc

That’s what she said! But seriously, I know not everybody likes me. I’m a big boy. I can handle that. I am going to turn it around on you and ask you to wonder why? Is it a preconceived misconception about my arrogance? Is it jealousy that I get all the ladies, and even more of the men, than you do?

All kidding aside. If you don’t like my views, I respect that. I would ask that you take the time to elaborate as to why. Maybe some of my views are naive. Maybe they’re uneducated or lacking experience. If people don’t take the time to engage in intelligent debate, how am I going to be best equipped to represent all players should I successfully earn a seat on CSM 6?

Take a look at my campaign page if you haven’t already. https://rocwieler.com/2011/02/14/csm-6-roc-the-vote/

Think about it. I look forward to hearing from you.