TheMaster99

The School in the Woods - Mystery/Fantasy Roleplay

Ok guys, it has been thirteen days since Thea has done anything here. I've sent her two pms (one of them after the notification system, so there isn't any possible way she didn't see it), and she has just been online a half hour ago. Alas, she has replied to neither, nor has she done anything on the rp. I've talked with two other people who are in this rp (@McHaggis and @Kirah) and we agree that this is going nowhere if Thea continues to do absolutely nothing, despite having logged on to the guild on multiple occasions. So, we decided to have a vote – shall we put a new GM in power, or continue to wait and hope that Thea will become active again? As of right now, Kirah has volunteered to become GM if the vote passes. So now it is up to you; shall we get a new GM, or wait?

Mahz's Dev Journal

So, this isn't relevant quite to continued forum software development, but how do we intend to make the forum grow more? We've been hemorrhaging users for a while now, is it just intended for us to gain new users over time? Does RPGuild show up high on google results for play by post roleplaying? should we advertise in certain other roleplaying communities? (Not other forums of course, but perhaps things like reddit or more general roleplaying forums?)

@Draconilian

I just did a google search, and the guild is the fourth result.

Mahz's Dev Journal

Hi! Thanks for all the hard work you're putting into bringing this site back to what it was. ^.^ I was wondering if you plan to make it so you can click a PM and go to the last post like it used to be. Haha. It's a bit tiring having to scroll and scroll to get to the last post. Not a huge deal, but I know a few of my friends really liked it that way more. Or maybe it could be changed to show the newest post at the top instead of the bottom when it comes to PMs. Something. <3

@Miss Gallagher

Click the chain-like symbol next to the name of the latest poster in the PM, and it takes you directly to that post.

The Siberian Sickle OOC (Post-Apocalyptic/Military)

Dmitrii Tolstoi

Name: Dmitrii Tolstoi Gender: Male Age: 29 Role: Pilot & Logistics Officer Callsign: Wasp Weight: 220 lbs. Height: 6’1” Description of Appearence: Former Military Enlistment: Russian Air Force Brief History and Background: Dmitrii grew up in Moscow, Russia, the only child of a middle-aged couple. It was clear from an early age that he loved to fly – it was impossible for his parents to pull him away from his expensive flight setup connected to his computer, which had been fleshed out over many Christmases. Another passion of his was flying quadcopters, mini drones. On the rare occasion that Dmitrii was found away from his virtual helicopter, he was practically invisible – he did as he was told without question, he wasn’t amazing nor terrible in school, and was overall just kind of shy; as a result of all of this, people tended to forget he was there. But of course, such was the life of a pilot in the military. “Chair Force” when performing everyday duties, hero when he saves everyone’s lives with a hot extraction. It was to nobody’s surprise when Dmitrii enlisted in the Armed Forces the day of his eighteenth birthday, determined to become a pilot in the Russian Air Force like no other. And he was on track to be just that, until the fateful night of March 17, 2042. He was flying two squads from a forward operations base in Ukraine (the site of a renewed “undercover” invasion) back home to a base near Moscow, when things went awry. Unbeknownst to them, a Ukrainian fighter jet had been following them from a distance, and when they struck, they struck hard. Out of nowhere, their helicopter was bombarded by several missiles. Dmitrii shot flares which deflected two missiles, and he narrowly evaded a third. The fourth, however, struck the main rotor cleanly, leaving it inoperable, as well as causing moderate hull damage. He attempted to perform an autorotation (completely idle the motor to put them in a freefall, then push it back to full as they are closing in on the ground, using the preserved motion in the rotor to slow their descent), and did so to the best of his ability. But unfortunately, his best efforts were no match for the stubborn, useless motor, and the landing was little more than a glorified crash. Thought to be dead, the Ukrainian jet returned to base, where it’s pilot earned a hefty promotion for his success. The Ukrainian pilot’s assumption wasn’t far off. Hours later, Dmitrii woke up as he was pulled out of the wreckage by two Russian soldiers. He began to look around wildly, searching for any sign of his transport. “Where are my men?” he demanded of his rescuers. The only reply he got was a grave frown. After being rushed to the nearest military base, he learned that nobody had survived. Nobody, of course, except him. “You did your best,” they said. “You’re lucky that you survived at all,” they said. But all Tolstoi cared about was that the men he had been tasked with were dead – that there was literally nothing more that he could’ve done didn’t matter in the slightest. Since that day, he has worked harder and harder than ever before. He pushed himself so hard that his higher ups “recommended” that he go to Officer Training School to become a Logistics Officer. That is to say, they signed him up without asking him and gave him a slip of paper telling him where to be and when, so he’d take a rest from flying to get some sleep, before he died from exhaustion. Although sent to Officer Training for his health moreso than for himself, he thrived nevertheless. He proved to have a great sense of strategy and coordination, which both lend themselves to his career in logistics greatly. When the Sickle struck, Dmitrii was fortunate. With his acquired skill in logistics, he quickly found a place in the ArtAmos society in Moscow. Over time, he found himself moving from society to society, being persuaded to leave each one by a better offer, one after another. Eventually he found himself in New York City, which was truly a logistical nightmare. 99% cement and steel, 0% agricultural prowess. 100% impending disaster. Not long after moving to the Big Apple (which was now more like the Big Hellhole, with the region that supported the city, Upstate New York, devoid of all life beyond the reanimated corpses), Dmitrii woke up to find himself restrained to a chair, surrounded by other soldiers who were in the same situation as him. With no other choice in front of him, he shrugged and began to fill out the form sitting on his lap. Other Items of Importance:

• Pilot - Tolstoi’s role in the Armed Forces was as a helicopter pilot. He takes great pride in what he does, and has been seen flying in military-grade simulators for hours and hours. To him, the slightest mistake meant an entire squad of soldiers died in a fiery wreckage, thus nothing short of perfection was acceptable. Although he isn’t perfect, not by any means, he is without a doubt one of the best pilots in all of Russia.
• Logistics - Dmitrii, in addition to his adept piloting, was also a skilled logistics officer. For the military he managed food rations, equipment distribution, and even determined where soldiers were most needed. Later, he found great benefit in helping to keep the ArtAmos societies afloat, with an absolute minimal supply. Without his aid, numerous societies may have struggled to keep everyone fed (although they didn’t do too great even with help).
• Self-Blame - Everyone knew that Tolstoi was lucky to be alive, and that there was nothing he could have possibly done to save his men. Unfortunately, he refuses to believe it. Every day he blames himself for not doing more, for not being able to dodge four missiles at once. He blames himself for living.

Mahz's Dev Journal

How about a search feature? Might help people find interest checks with their preferred setting/genre rather than make a new thread and add to the site's clutter.

@La Inquisidora

That's been mentioned by me and @Mahz, one of us will probably work on it soon™.

Finite Incantatem [AU Harry Potter RP] – ALWAYS OPEN!

2nd of December, 1999 Ronan Findley – The Safehouse

Ronan folded his hands behind his back, corrected his impeccable pureblood posture (despite his own filthy half-blood status) and observed the second captured Death Eater. There had been a time, back when he had only recently been cursed and taken out of the line of active duty, when he had been the “spymaster” for the Ashes – though that all changed when the Dark Lord began to root out the traitors within the ranks of his followers. Now, he had only Alistair MacFusty, who hadn’t been caught due to remarkable luck. Though, it could be because he rarely, if ever, handed important information to the Ashes, and it was always encrypted with a code only Siobhan could break. Being kept out of the loop of new information made the back of his neck itch – it was so unprofessional. He glared daggers at Albert’s back as he retreated. Brilliant though his trusted advisor was, he was far too similar to Ronan for his own good, at least when it came to controlling the chessboard that was Britain. And so, once the door had firmly shut, Ronan went against Albert’s ‘order’ almost instantly. “Name?” he asked coldly. He was certain he could judge a man’s loyalties better than Aldenberg could, especially when it came to the Death Eaters. Luther spit blood on the floor, careful to aim well out of Ronan’s way, before answering. “Luther Cunningham. You are…” he paused, racking his brain for what little intelligence the Death Eaters have of the Ashes. “Mr. Findley?” “Lord Findley to you,” Ronan replied dryly. He carefully avoided thinking about his lack of land or political power anymore. Both had been eroded by the Death Eaters until he was little more than a refugee hiding in a Dutchman’s mansion. He still had the title, though his father would be turning over in his grave knowing all he’d done with it before his change of heart, and should he survive to the end of the war… He wasn’t that optimistic. “I’m sure the others have already gleaned every possible tidbit of information from you, so I won’t bother boring you with those same questions. All I want to know is, are you aware and prepared for the consequences, should you fail?” Luther looked ‘Lord’ Findley in the eyes. “You said you won’t be asking every possible tidbit of me, but to answer I ultimately have to, at least partially. I’ll keep it short, so as to spare your sanity.” He glanced down to his neck, where the locket containing the picture of Lilly hung, beneath his robes. He looked back to Findley. “The Death Eaters took my sister away to Azkaban–” Ronan interrupted the Death Eater, when he took a breath. “Stop, stop, stop. I couldn’t care less about your life story – I’ve heard so many over the years that turned out to be false or embellished, and I’m not willing to waste my time sifting through your mind.” He walked over to take a seat at the rickety dining table, limp pronounced after how long he’d been standing for. Siobhan’s near-daily procedures lessened the pain to a degree that it was bearable, but it didn’t do a thing for having a boulder as a leg. “I asked you if you’re willing to put yourself at risk of torture, almost inevitable death, and that requires only a yes or no answer. Whether or not your sister is worth it or not is irrelevant.” Luther patiently waited for Findley to finish. When he did, Luther answered, rushing to avoid being interrupted. “They took away the one thing I care about, so I will do whatever it takes to end them. Nothing they do to me can be worse than what she is suffering. So to answer your question, yes, I am completely willing to risk my own death for your cause.” “No, you’re not,” Ronan said decisively, “Not for our cause. For your sister’s.” “They are one and the same, are they not?” Luther countered. “She wants freedom for herself, you want that for all of Britain. Both are reached by the same means.” Ronan ran a hand through his hair, tucking the errant strands behind his ear. “No, they’re not. Generally, vengeful heroes are the more trustworthy ones.“ The ’like me’ went unsaid. “Let me pose a different question to you. What would you do if your sister, the ‘one thing you care about’ is dead. Would you blame the Death Eaters? Probably. But if there was a chance she could be saved and you missed it, helping us, wouldn’t you blame The Ashes?” Luther pondered the question carefully. This man is definitely a critic of the highest caliber, he mused. “I have no chance of seeing her again if I were to work alone,” he finally decided on, speaking carefully. “If I don’t see her again as a direct result of supporting the only chance I have, there frankly isn’t much that can be done about it. Don’t get me wrong though – I’m not here just for her sake, although I’m sure you won’t believe it for even a moment. What happened to her made me realize what a cold bastard V–” he immediately stopped, having almost enacted the Taboo. Even more carefully, he amended, “the Dark Lord is.” Embarrassed for nearly compromising them all, although refusing to show it, he finished, “Although she is admittedly my primary motivation, I understand that the Dark Lord’s removal is ultimately more important than a single person’s freedom.” The silence that followed was filled only by the cracking of Ronan’s knuckles as he flexed them, preventing them from stiffening up. That it created a good bit of tension in the room (at least he thought so) gave him great pleasure. Eventually, he admitted, “I do wish I had a purpose as grand and noble as that. I’ll vouch for you, to Albert. Granted, I’m still suspicious, but that’s just my natural state.” Before he continued any further though, he wondered just how adept the future-spy would be at protecting the secrets of the Ashes. Nobody wanted a double agent. “How good’s your Occlumency?” Luther was taken aback from the question, having expected a counterargument to his own. Upon thinking about it, he realized he hadn’t even considered Occlumency. The Dark Lord was an amazing Legilimens, of course, and he was a damn fool for not considering it until now. “No match for the Dark Lord’s Legilimency,” he admitted. “Well, we can’t have that, can we?” Ronan mused, though he didn’t make any move to draw his wand for an impromptu session. “Mine stood up to the Dark Lord’s just fine.” Luther spit blood on the floor again. He couldn’t tell what was bleeding exactly,, but McCarthy definitely threw a good punch, that’s for sure. Ronan peered at him curiously. “Alas, I don’t think now’s a good time for that. McCarthy’s work, I’m guessing?” Luther nodded. “He wasn’t very happy with what I had to say, I’m afraid. Were he a Muggle, he’d be a damn good boxer, that’s for sure.” The leader of the Ashes simply nodded, having not even the foggiest as to what a ‘boxer’ was, other than it was something Muggle-related. “McCarthy wouldn’t be happy with anything, unless it was MacFusty’s tongue shoved down his throat.” He shot a grin over to the woman standing by the door to the room holding the Imperiused rookie. Siobhan, who had been uncharacteristically silent as her boss talked with the potential spy (she wasn’t so silly as to interfere in what looked to be a conversation between evil ex-Death Eaters), pointedly glared at Ronan as she stepped forward. She definitely wasn’t going to let that train of conversation continue, and it was either interrupt it or hex Lord Findley, cripple or not. “So,” she said decisively. Luther fought to hide a grin from his face as he thought, I don’t blame him, I wouldn’t mind that either. “I could’ve healed that up ages ago, you know,” she said, drawing her wand. It glimmered in the half-light, clearly recently polished. “Ronan’s just a sourpuss.” Luther nodded to her. “Yeah, that’d be lovely, thanks.” Siobhan barely even acknowledged his consent, already aggressively waving her wand with an “Episkey,” on her lips. A light mist shimmered out from her wand in Luther’s direction, as soothing as a summer rain. Luther shuddered as the spell hit him, the mist granting instant relief.”Thank you,” he said with a small smile. “That feels a lot better.” “Well, at least someone thanks me for my services,” Siobhan replied with an answering smile and a cheeky glance in Ronan’s direction. Her boss held up his hands placatingly, but otherwise said nothing. “I’m the mediwitch of the Ashes. Sadly the only healer. Bottom of my class in St Mungos, too!” Luther nodded, feigning shock – as if she was literally the greatest witch of all time. “No way! The bottom of the class! Truly remarkable!” he laughed, allowing himself to be cheeky with them, for they seem to be a lot… well, nicer than McCarthy. Siobhan seemed baffled by that, narrowing her eyes. Was that sarcasm or an insult..? Ronan snorted in laughter from somewhere behind her, and answered, “Believe it or not, she’s not as bad as she makes herself out to be. The fact that she had to buy her way into training is irrelevant.”

Mahz's Dev Journal

I'm currently working on user search, not topic search, but most of the code will be reusable for that purpose. Topic search is next on my list.

Mahz's Dev Journal

I tried implementing it myself when the guild first went open source, and the problem with using the first post id is that the first page of results will always meet the criteria of id > afterid. I couldn't think of any ways to do it using post ids, unless you store the previous beforeid in case you need it again. Or, like previously suggested, use JavaScript back. If Mahz can figure out a way to make the database query work, then afterid will work. To Mahz, I'd suggest using a subquery sort asc, then limit outside it and reorder. Works in theory, but it wouldn't play nice while I was trying it. Sorry for the formatting, on mobile and just woke up.

Mahz's Dev Journal

Default is newest - oldest, so post quantity and alphabetical will both be added. Any others?

Mahz's Dev Journal

We know the number might be depressing, but we found ourselves wondering how many users there are that haven't logged in since the relaunch... Its listed on individual user pages, but as userlist hasn't been implemented yet, it can't be checked easily.

@Ellri

I made a user search page for the next update, but it currently has no filter options. Now that you mentioned it, I'll amend that whenever I have time, hopefully before it is launched on the guild. Sort by newest or oldest are obvious, and based on who has an old guild name. Are there any other filter options people would like?