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It wouldn't be an Abbi campaign thread without anime gifs!



With that said I want to start by expressly stating that I am taking this far more seriously than anything else I've ever done here as this is the first time I've really felt that I truly want something. I've learned a lot of things about myself lately one of those being that I have very few passions but the things I'm passionate about I'm obsessive over and Werewolf is one of those things. 

I want to note here and now that everyone involved in this election is not only deserving but a fantastic choice and despite my desire to win this position I would be proud of any choice so I only ask that you  read every campaign and vote for the most deserving choice in your eyes. I  want to see a close election but most of all I want to see a lot of votes. 



1) Why are you running for this position?

I care deeply about Werewolf and the community around it and want to see it prosper

2) What do you aim to accomplish as thane? As part of this, you must include at least one thing that you promise to do beyond the minimum listed duties of the position during your term. It should be measurable, so that it's black and white whether you fulfilled this mandate at the end of the term if you are elected.

I intend on doing a lot of things which I will outline below.

2a) If you are an incumbent running for re-election, did you fulfill your mandate from the last election? If not, why didn't you?

N/A

3) What qualifications or experience do you have in the area that you are running in?

I've been playing Werewolf for years now I've been the Wintreath sub for Mafia Championships I ran my first game recently I've fostered relationships with players and communities outside Wintreath. 

4) How do you plan to have the time to fulfill the duties of the position until the next election?

I have a pretty tight schedule but I always have open slots that I will spend focusing on my duties as Thane of Werewolf

5) Are you currently a part of any other NationStates regional or organizational government? If so, please include those regions and positions.

Nope

Now I know you want more so let's get to brass tacks

Abbi's Platform McPlatformface

The Werewolf community in Wintreath is active and wonderful and the players within it are some of the most dedicated and fun people I've ever played with. We've fostered relationships with communities across the greater Werewolf community a lot of which was done by both Silv and Lau and I'm hugely thankful for that. But I've seen some things I truly think we need to work on. 

The problems

1. A lack of retaining new players

2. A lack of general Werewolf organization

3. A lack of instrumental Werewolf tools

4. A lack of understanding for different community playstyles

5. A lack of understanding of Werewolf at large

6. A lack of community input

These are the big 6 things I have a strong desire to focus on. 4 & 5 really go hand and hand so it's more like 5 things.

Anybody Can Say Things Are Wrong But What's Your Plan?

Patience. I have a plan.



Problem: A Lack of Player Retainment.

Solution: There's a multi pronged solution I hope to implement starting with the Werewolf Academy. Taking some of the ideas from RP but implementing them in a new way the Werewolf Academy would be a subforum with a bunch of information about the game of Werewolf, it would teach players about the game and what to expect and I would also like to implement some interviews I would conduct with some of the players across Wintreath and the greater community who I think will be able to provide invaluable knowledge to new players. Unlike the RP academy I'm not looking to make people pass a test to participate this is just a place to give people more resources and info.

Step 2 is to start the implementation of mentorship games. I think we have seasoned Werewolf players who will be more than willing to join mentorship games alongside new players and teach them the ropes. This will require a careful balance because I don't think every mentorship game will reach enough of a player base to run a full game solely with new players and I wouldn't want it to. I want a mixture of new players playing alongside veterans in the scene and experienced players playing alone in order to give an overall feeling of the pressure your going to face when you're playing solo. I want to gather a group of mentors who are willing to play both these roles depending on needs so you may be called upon to mentor a new player or to play the game itself. I think we've pushed too many players away by throwing them to the wolves but I do think we need to give them that simulated game experience because this game is certainly not for everyone and I want them to understand what is going on so they can decide if they want to continue playing. 

Step 3 is a wealth of game types. I've thought long and hard about this and I do think we have an identity here that I want to foster. For a while I've thought it was as the place full of chaos games. Which is true but I think we are almost only catering to that audience. I think we should foster an identity as the place to go to play Werewolf games with detailed stories told through flavor. We certainly have a group of hosts who enjoy writing stories. Fostering this identity will allow us to alternate between vanilla games/ chaos games/spin off games and mentorship games while keeping an identity that makes us feel original in the greater Werewolf community. 

Problem: A Lack of Organization

Solution: One of the biggest things I want to implement is the creation of a hosting index. Everyone who wants to host can use the thread to enter their game into the hosting pool. I also want this thread to include go to information for new hosts. This thread will allow us to both see who is working on games who's games are ready and what flavor each game is using to prevent two people from accidentally working on flavor that will interfere with each other. It will also provide us with knowledge of who has games ready so we can both make sure everyone who wants to host is given the opportunity and that we do not have times without regular games or the confusion over who is next host. 

Problem: A Lack of instrumental Werewolf tools

Solution: Moot has been making great inroads into giving us systems that make games more approachable for host and player and it's something I'm vastly thankful to them for doing. When they have the time to work on this system I would work with Moot on very important systems that will continue to improve the state of Werewolf in the region. First and foremost with the implementation of an ISO system. 

Problem: Confusion over playstyles and over the game.

Solution: I think first and foremost we need to better define our games. I've seen players who join expecting something completely different from what they are thrust into and it is indeed something I myself experienced when joining for the first game I played. With regards to helping foster relationships with different communities that might play with a different style I think there's a number of things to keep in mind. Primarily that we must foster an attitude where players are able to play aggressively but understand that they need to focus on the play and not the player and the opposite side of that coin is that a player who's play is being attacked must be aware that these are not personal attacks but rather the aggression is directed at the inconsistencies we see in your play. This is a delicate balance but at its core we must foster a community that understands that the game is just a game and has no bearing outside of the game. I've first hand gotten into huge arguments with players within the game and afterwards or in dead chat we are just laughing and messing around because what happens in the game stays in the game. With all this said, game mods need to take action when the aggression extends beyond what is reasonable or beyond the game itself in any fashion and should be empowered to do so

Problem: A Lack of community input

Solution: I would like to involve the Werewolf community in a number of decisions. General game decisions like how often we should be holding games and what type of games they are most interested in but also I want to set up a flavor suggestion thread to allow the community to state IP that they would like to see turned into a Werewolf Game. 

As always I am ready to answer any questions but I hope you have a greater understanding for my goals. And remember vote. 

Mentorship games? In your honest opinion, how successful do you think this will be?

Mentorship games? In your honest opinion, how successful do you think this will be?

How successful do I think mentorship games will be or my platform as a whole. The answer to both is very. Mentorship games allow us to simulate a real game where you're going to get pushed and pressured but you have a veteran player walking you through it telling you important things to remember. Teaching you how to contribute and hey if I'm your mentor I can teach you how to meme and get away with it too 



I don't think it would be an extremely regular thing there would be a post to sign up for a mentor and I would run them whenever we got 3 or more people who want to learn which I think would happen probably a few times a year but it would be very helpful to new players

I might even sign up to be mentored lol

I might even sign up to be mentored lol

1. Love the confidence

2. What qualifications does one need to be a mentor?

I like your idea in general and I believe a lot of it provides needed solutions, but I have to ask- with the participation issues we’ve been facing (I.e having to take two extra weeks to hit a relatively small-mid size games minimum and lacking a significant amount of our vets) how can we be sure mentorship games as you present them are feasible? 

My other question… with your time being as limited as it is/can be how likely is it that you’ll be able to make decent progress with this list and how do you believe you can best balance your time without burning out? 

I might even sign up to be mentored lol

1. Love the confidence

2. What qualifications does one need to be a mentor?

The desire to learn really. I want to be able to teach players to get better something I myself am learning

I might even sign up to be mentored lol

1. Love the confidence

2. What qualifications does one need to be a mentor?

The desire to learn really. I want to be able to teach players to get better something I myself am learning

Though admittedly to start out I might restrict it solely to new players depends how many people I can get on board

I like your idea in general and I believe a lot of it provides needed solutions, but I have to ask- with the participation issues we’ve been facing (I.e having to take two extra weeks to hit a relatively small-mid size games minimum and lacking a significant amount of our vets) how can we be sure mentorship games as you present them are feasible?

My other question… with your time being as limited as it is/can be how likely is it that you’ll be able to make decent progress with this list and how do you believe you can best balance your time without burning out?

1. Well one thing I've learned from hosting is we need to be more flexible with our games. I think it's important that we can run games within a range of sign ups with that being said I do want and desire a community that can host big games regularly. A big problem right now is that some of our regular players just aren't playing and that's why we need to foster new players who will in time become regulars but another important thing is bringing in other communities something I'm very keen on doing. In this most recent game we brought in at least 3 players from outside Wintreath but I have a connection to several other communities I want to try to foster symbiotic Werewolf relationships with. Will it work? No idea. But I think it's more beneficial to work within and outside than to solely dedicate ourselves to one or the other. We can grow our player base and foster relationships outside Wintreath. 
Werewolf at its core I think will always be a 10-15 player game in Wintreath depending on how busy our regular players are. In general we can usually count on 

• Me
• Mel
• Michi
• Lau
• Vro
• Mars
• Aren
• Gerrick 

And than a few smattering of players who play from time to time or are new. We've already fostered a connection outside Wintreath with several players such as

• Dolby
• KoD
• Numbers
• Minish

Just to name a few who regularly play our games. An important step is figuring out how often we should be hosting games to keep our regular players invested without burn out. Personally I am the type of player who wants to be involved in like 3 games at a time all the time but I'm the outlier. Is it better to run 6 games a year? 12 games? 6 regular games and a couple lighter spin off games? This is what I want the community at large to help us answer. I do think we have a solid core here and we simply need to add to it both from within and outside. And I think we may be overblowing the activity a bit the two games before this hit 15 players + I think. 26 had a good chunk of players sign up and would have been fine if I wasn't so dead set on having exactly 15 players and I do think that's important to we need to be a bit more flexible with set ups and try to arrange for anywhere between 8 - 15 players maybe even more if we can generate more regulars.

2. I mean a lot of this is pretty easy to set up I think some of this requires very minimal effort some requires a lot of effort. Things like the WW Academy will take much longer for me to get up and I'm not expecting to have it ready day 1 but some of this is as simple as making a thread and having hosts use it to sign up. Burn out isn't an issue when I care about things... people keep telling me Werewolf will burn me out maybe I'm over exerting myself but I want to grow this community and I want to play 40+ games a year and I want to go to champs because I enjoy the game I enjoy the greater Werewolf community I enjoy the people I've forged friendships with simply by posting a kpop video (here's to you Ace) or because I invited them to tea (<3 you Numbers) or because we spent a whole have trying to change my alignment so we could both win with town (<3 you Minish) or because I've learned to respect the way they play and how fucking good they are thru champs (KoD) or because I caused unbelievable chaos by trying to lynch them when they were host (Silv) there's more to but I'm rambling a bit. What I'm saying is this game has forged friendships that genuinely mean the world to me and I want to help others see how truly beautiful Werewolf can be even when people are attacking your post and calling you a filthy scum. 

I stated when (technically before) nominations opened that I believed collaboration between the Thane of Werewolf and the Thane of Gaming could be a mutually beneficial arrangement for overall Culture in Wintreath. What were your thoughts on that and the potential of some duo-sponsored events (for example, I’m envisioning a Werewolf and related games tourney somewhere down the line)? 

Additionally, if you are in favor of such a scenario, do you have any ideas you’d like to bring to the table?  

I stated when (technically before) nominations opened that I believed collaboration between the Thane of Werewolf and the Thane of Gaming could be a mutually beneficial arrangement for overall Culture in Wintreath. What were your thoughts on that and the potential of some duo-sponsored events (for example, I’m envisioning a Werewolf and related games tourney somewhere down the line)?

Additionally, if you are in favor of such a scenario, do you have any ideas you’d like to bring to the table? 

I'm certainly willing to discuss any potential ideas. Beyond that I'm not sure it would depend what they are. I hesitate to say I'd be open to a tournament but I'm willing to hear the idea out fully before I make any snap judgements. 

I don't really have any ideas I've always thought Werewolf was separate from other games in Wintreath by and large. I suppose that's silly really but that's often how I've felt,  it's kind of its own little monster and I'm not sure how to try to meld it with anything else outside of like flavor which we already do lol but like I stated I'm certainly willing to listen and work together. 

I don't really have any ideas I've always thought Werewolf was separate from other games in Wintreath by and large. I suppose that's silly really but that's often how I've felt,  it's kind of its own little monster and I'm not sure how to try to meld it with anything else outside of like flavor which we already do lol but like I stated I'm certainly willing to listen and work together.

I feel like it's been a bit of a gradual process, as other games remain relatively casual while Werewolf has (both gradually and suddenly at times) intensified over the years. Other games have also been subject to complexification like Arena and Mage Wars but nothing demands so much of your time and attention in the same way (except maybe Diplomacy, but that high activity level is much more optional).

Yeah. Luke technically my spinoff melds it with spyfall in some ways and is an attempt to play a more casual game although ultimately even that will be a competitive intense game itself 

I'm not trying to change Werewolf or reinvent the wheel. Werewolf isn't a game for everyone and I'm okay with that realization. The very nature of Werewolf will turn some in the community off to it. Werewolf is often about reading tone based solely off wording with limited info. Even with power roles many days your forced to make lynch decisions solely off how people are talking. 

I think it's important to understand why aggression in Werewolf is beneficial and necessary when applied the right way. We can have a friendly enjoyable environment without curbing the play of others. I'm highly aggressive now but I've been repeatedly told I'm a joy to play with. 

I'm just not sure we can meld that in a way that is mutually beneficial but I will always listen and approach collaboration with an open mind

Hey there! I have to admit, I can't remember the last time we had such a competitive election for anything, where I couldn't make a decision after giving it a few minutes of thought. So after reading everyone's campaigns, I have some questions...some are specific to you, and some I'm going to be asking everyone running.

1) You mentioned that you wanted to foster symbolic relations with other Werewolf communities...what form do you imagine that takes? Is it like NationStates foreign affairs where we send them an ambassador and our dispatches, or do these ties take other forms?

2) As a candidate who is running on working more closely with other Werewolf communities, I wanted to pick your brain on something...how can we make Wintreath a more attractive place outside of Werewolf for the people from those communities? We have a number of players from elsewhere who have invested a lot of time and made a lot of posts in our Werewolf games, but they haven't really become part of our own community. How can we change that? I understand this isn't necessarily a responsibility of the Thane of Werewolf, but I think tackling this would go a long way toward making our own community more vibrant and resilient (and less NS-dependent).

3) Speaking of NS, we're involved in quite a few areas that compete for time and attention, especially from me: NationStates, Werewolf, and other forum and Discord games. If you had to split the time and energy we put into each as percentages (so they add up to 100%), what would that split be and why? Do you ever foresee a time when Werewolf is a more prominent aspect in Wintreath than NationStates?

4) One of the unique aspects of the Summer season is the Summersend festival, which happens in August. What sort of Werewolf-related ideas and events are you thinking for the festival?

5) Overall, your campaign is by far the most idea-heavy, some of which will take a lot of time and energy like the Werewolf Academy. Three months is not as long as it may seem...do you think you may be biting off more than you can chew? Why or why not?

Thank you for your answers in advance!