When I joined, perhaps I was just ignorant, but TR seemed a solid, positive team that worked well and made excellent progress, each member complimenting another's works.
And now, my friends, where are we?
In the past few months, a great deal of our older members have left, either for RL issues or simply disappearing. And we've had more newbies come in.
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not here to bash newbies; there are a number that've been great for TR. And a number have also sat around doing no work whatsoever. Now, neither of these approaches damage the Project. The real contributing members should have nothing to fear; professionals should only be offended by professionals. Theoretically.
However, that isn't what's been happening. TR's now lacking what it needs most. Sure, we have experts like Noirgrim who could single-handedly construct all of Morrowind's exteriors within a few months, and even some interior artists similarily prolific. However, we're needing- and missing- scripters. Either the people here that know scripting are hiding and/or not doing any work on it, or we've a severe lack of them. And we're also missing a fair supply of meshers and texturers. Currently the near entire brunt of this section is being carried on by Asylum and Morden. As a result, this makes progress slow. This's put members in bad moods, as seen in declining morale amongst our senior members. Even the Core recognized this when Kothloth made the warning post for the Lounge.
What I think the real problem is the outlook of our experienced members on this Project. When I joined, it seemed to be "This is our Project, let's work on it, but have fun. We've no deadlines, and this is for our fun alone." Then Dex and I (mostly Dex, I suppose) a few months back made the whole complaint thread that our message had instead changed to "We're the biggest Morrowind mod in existence, so our purpose is to work, not to enjoy ourselves. I will work harder. Arbeit macht frei." The issue was making the Project unenjoyable, but not heinous. Now, I think, things are different. Now we're at "We're here both to work and to have fun, therefore: those who don't should be kicked out, and we can have fun at anyone's else's expense. Coincidentally, I, the senior member here, of *course* know what's best." This can be easily seen just by looking at our dear friend Stalker's signature.
What was the final straw for me was 'archer armor' thread. A simple newbie joined, Th3anglehasland3d. Some'd say he wouldn't help. However, that had yet to be established, and, as I said above, sitting around being useless doesn't hurt the Project; these people aren't being paid. Our master mesher, Asylum, made a 'dare' mildly provacative; not something serious at all, but could, over the internet, have been taken as both a challenge and an insult. Our newbie chose to take it as an insult, and responded as to what he felt was in kind. He used the dreadful word only heard in the slimiest brothels of Baltimore (Sorry, Dex)... 'Smartmouth.'
Now, when I saw our 'dear brother TR-members'' reaction, I literally had to go and run a mile outside just to get my anger out. They set on him in a way disturbingly similar than the Southern lynchers must've acted when abducting and slaughtering African American citizens for sport in the 50's. OK, so it's fine for a newbie to be goaded, but if he retaliates, he gets threats of banning, phrases like
OK, so now if a guy works hard for TR he gets the special privilage of censoring what people say about him? Let's go back to Nazi Germany. I'm sure all of us want to work for a TR Project just like that.Don't you dare to attack Asylum!
He has done more models then you can imagine. You call him smartmouth, we ban you. Since Vorrheis left, Asylum is almost the only modeller we have left.
So shut the fuck up about Asylum, or his work.
Provided we're the oppressors, of course.
Kasan, Graff, Stalker... I'm ashamed of you.
Anyway, at this point I'm so revolted with the common populace here at TR I can see little point in remaining here. I would send my direct hopes and compliments to the Core, though. They've done an admirable job and are full of- for the most part- excellent people. I only wish that our members wouldn't behave like immature children for them. I never looked into MEMod, but somehow I doubt they behaved with such blatent ignorance and mobness.
I may return, sometime. Not for a few months, anyway. I might help out for a few interiors in the future, but that'll be it.
Play the man, Master Ridley.
