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Here we go, a forum for fightin' (buildin' on the thunderdome here) where there really aren't any rules regarding conduct for the members regarding what they say...uh, type. So still no creepy noodie pics or harmful code or prions or anything. Just get in there and wail on each other.

No, there's one rule. You can't edit your posts. If you want to have a beef-off, your beef will be on display for all to see. A constant reminder to all, and mostly to yourselves, of the terrible limits that we plastic soldier generals are pushed to in this unforgiving wasteland of the interboobs, er...tubes.

I am 100% serial about this guys, I think this could work.

Thanks Ketara, I almost was worried I'd have to post the O'Rly Gnome.

Dakka's like any other community - old folks leave, new blood joins in, times change. I think it's easy as someone who's been here a long time to look back on the "good old days".

I look at it this way - I first started watching Saturday Night Live in the days of Mike Myers and Dana Carvey. And I thought they were funny as hell. After a few seasons, they brought in new talent - folks like Adam Sandler, David Spade, Chris Farley. I didn't think they were nearly as good. Years pass and I keep watching SNL. Now, Sandler's being replaced by Will Farrell and Chris Kattan. I thought those guys were crap and longed for the days of yesteryear with Myers and Carvey and Sandler. Time continues to pass - I look back and see how funny Farrell's skits were now and how today's skits just don't seem to stack up.

Memory is a funny thing. We remember the best and forget most of the crap that filled in the spaces. So, it's pretty natural to remember the period of Dakka when you first joined and came to enjoy the community enough to stay. For some folks, watching personalities like Drew Riggio, Mauleed, or Stelek is part of what we enjoyed. Others are happy to see them gone and think about more positive folks like Migsula and Shep are what makes the community for them.

Has Dakka changed? Yeah. Has it changed so much that it's lost what made it Dakka? No. But many of the personalities that compose it aren't what you may want. There will be other Drew Riggios and Steleks - hell, one of them may be lurking reading this thread right now. But they just haven't revealed themselves yet. I don't think the competitive crowd is gone - and I don't think Dakka's gone soft. I just think there may be a lull in the fighting.

Oh, and for those folks dick-waving about who's been here the longest, if you look at Yakface's join date, you'll see it's labeled as 2005, just as many other folks are - IIRC, after one of Dakka's reboots (after getting sold or under new management or recovery from a crash, I can't remember...) everyone had to re-up. So, don't take the join date as when someone -really- joined Dakka.

Howlingmoon wrote:
I'm pretty sure we both know what I think of that statement. Or you might not, considering you're never around and have left the special ed table to run the lunch room.

Also, feel free to quote me where I've ever said that the "cool kids" intend to "ruin" Dakka. Far from it, I've contended that their intention is to have their own private sandbox. "Ruining" Dakka for anyone else isn't even on the to do list because Dakka isn't -for- anyone else.

I know you have this beef (where it came from though is anyone's guess). But seriously dude, you are starting to sound like a broken record and it's gotten really old.

I even agree with you a little, tiny bit, but your constant whining and railing against certain posters who are apparently in cahoots with mods is wearing thin.

Just for the record, the only Mod I've had any interaction with outside Dakka is Lorek and every single one of my warnings has come from... Lorek!

Hmmmm....

filbert wrote:

Howlingmoon wrote: 'Some vitriolic, frothmouthed, quasi-accusatory plea for attention couched in protest'

Speaking as an outsider to this debate and as someone who is relatively new to the site with neither allegiances nor cliques, I have to say that you come across as having a massive chip on your shoulder Howlingmoon. Whether this is from a real or perceived slight, I don't know, but that's what it seems like to me.

He does seem to have a massive anger at the site and prettymuch everyone and anyone on it. It's like he's been here for ages and fallen out with many, yet his joining date is so recent...

could it be that Howlingmoon has been here before... perhaps using a different username...?

Reecius wrote:Let me put it this way.

My introduction to Dakka went like this:

I came on thinking I was hot gak and new the game better than anyone.

I made some bold statements and the regulars called me out. When I was unable to back up what I said, everyone laughed at me and told me to get my gak straight before I opened my mouth again.

What happened? I got my feelings hurt and felt like an idiot and thought everyone was a jerk at Dakka. Then, I thought about it and realized they were right and I swas the one being an idiot.

So, I came back, learned the rules and my game better and as a result became much, much better at the game. It taught me to become more analytical about the game and as a result, a better player.

That is good! When everyone is just nice to each other and reinforce everyone's crappy tactics and lists just to avoid being rude, you are actually doing them a DISSERVICE!

By serving me a slice of humble pie and forcing me to look at the reality of the game, I became a better player because of it.

Ha! My story on this site is similiar (though still in progress.) but what really comes to mind is how I started out on another site. Came on and said a few dumb things, not all involving rules for the record, and got it shoved right back in my face. As you did, I felt horrible and sorta stayed off the site for a few days, before I finally grew up and realized how stupid what I said was. And I did the same thing on another site. I more or less called a VERY veteran member a moron for some rule he had interpreted (correctly, but I thought he was wrong) and said what "the truth was" and promptly got grenaded by about 20 members...... Five days later, finally having made up, I posted a few moronic threads about how killer a tactic I invented was. Next morning eleven people had shown me what an absolutely noobish, stupid, pathetic and moronic tactic that was. I was mad then, but now, I realize it really did help

When I joined, the site wasn't as technically advanced and stable as it is now. I really enjoy that it seems to be branching out into other systems moreso.

I used to post on OT a lot, but I have grown tired of it. It's good for a look at sometimes, and definitely educational at others, but I rarely feel like commenting anymore.
The painting and modelling and background fora are really a lot better now. Especially enjoy when people post really interesting stuff in background- "Death of the Emperor" and the Black Templars thread stand out in my mind.
At the same time, the 40K tactics section isn't what it was. I see a lot of really poor advice being given out, especially it seems in the Ork threads. A lot of the time, people don't even know the relevant rules, and are obviously just posting off the top of their heads. I don't understand that sort of thing. Still, there are excellent and interesting threads in there too.
WFB is quiet, but it was when I joined. There are some great threads in the tactics section though.
As for general tone, I dunno. There's an equal amount of animosity now to when I joined (which wasn't in the old days). It doesn't bother me. Sometimes, I think certain mods can be a bit abrubt, but any of them I've contacted via PM have been reasonable. The animosity that is there tends to be expressed in fairly civil language, though.

My memory must be terrible to be honest, I remember Russ running the site, and then folks like Mauleed, H.B.M.C, and various others stick in there.

The whole Steelek period later on, including that big drawn out exchange about challenging some player to a battle, or was it the other way round and someone challenged him. It was amusing though.

But sadly I can't remember much of what went on during the year I lurked and pretty much since I originally joined in early 04 as Captain_Reaper. (I think that was the name I had anyways.. it was something Scythes related as I had a huge Scythes army at the time.)

I certainly don't remember it being as harsh as the OP seems to suggest, mainly as if it had been that bad. I probably wouldn't have stuck around much. Although to be fair my original username didn't post that often, think I had in the region of 50-100 posts.

In general I've always been more of a reader here, but its always seemed a pretty damned good site. I always came here first for rumours and still do and joined sites like Warseer after this one due to it being mentioned here etc.

On the tone issue, I can only really echo Yak. The RAW arguments have always been there (one classic one from 1999 involved whether meltabombs had to be physically represented on the models, as the 3rd ed rulebook exempted "grenades", but not bombs). There has always been both enthusiasm and some harshness or hostility. But it is the prominent posters who more determine how the board looks and feels. There is a truism about being the change you want to see in the world. And it holds true for message forums as well.

I've been a mod since 2000, or 01, IIRC? And joined the forum in May 1999 since I played with Russ and the original league here in NH. In that time I've met all of three of the other mods, I think? I'm not personally friends with any of them. We're all just guys who really enjoy and spend a lot of time on Dakka, generally posted constructively and with a level head, and who Russ and then Yak thought would be willing to put in the effort to help keep this a good forum.

If anyone has an issue with any moderator, they're always free to complain to Yak, or to us.

If anyone resents us for some unknown reason, or has other issues which keep them from being able to maintain a realistic sense of proportion and perspective when it comes to our toy soldier forum, we'll all learn to live with his disappointment. Or without it, should they prove sufficiently intransigent, antagonistic, and detrimental to the board in general.

Every unpleasant poster gets their fair (or more than fair) share of warnings and temporary suspensions before we pull the plug on them entirely. The number of occasions on which we've had to do the latter is vanishingly small.

Just curious, how many non-spambot type people have ever been perma-banned? Stelek is the only one I can think of, but I doubt he's the only one

@Yakface
Good old Yak, always the voice of reason!

You are right, I guess I do miss the old posters. There were some real characters back then and some of the things people said were just crazy, which made it a really lively place.

I suppose the best thing to do is to be proactive and contribute instead of just bitching about things, you are right about that.

This place was just rowdy when I came on board, which I like. I guess it just suits my personality.

Anyone who has met me in real life, of which I have met a lot of the tournament players on Dakka, knows I am a personable guy. I am not a douche bag to play against at all, nor am I a WAAC type, I let so much stuff slide in a game as my goal is to have fun. I only get technical with the rules in a late round tournament game.

Tournament players play to have fun, just like fluff oriented players do, it's just a different kind of fun. I like tense games against good players with good lists, those are the most engaging games for me. Not everyone feels that way which is fine, but some of us thrive on that high level of competition. I love planning out my list, trying to figure out the meta for a tournament, seeing friends at the events, etc. It is a great community.

So, I guess the best thing to do is to try and contribute better content myself instead of lamenting the loss of the old timers as most of them are just gone.

Dakka is still the best place on the web to talk toy soldiers, IMO, I just don't want to see it turn into a mewling pack of numb nuts posting drivel. Some of the codex reviews and tactics advice I see on here these days makes me cringe, and I think that is why I was lamenting the good old days.

I remember the old days, if there was anger you would know it, threads would get shot down…
These days i need my trusty scanner.

We've laughed, we've cried, we've sang old songs and news songs, we've grieved and we've pissed royally on our chips.

Tune in in less than 2 months for the next of these threads.

Void where prohibited, might is right, war is peace, freedom is expensive, ignorance is misspelt far too often.