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As a server admin, I would like to know what you think makes a good public server good. What about it makes you want to keep coming back?

Think about your favorite servers, what do (did) you like about them?

If you have trouble explaining it, think about these things, but don't limit yourself to them:

 

Maps: do you prefer alot of different maps, even if you hate some of them, or just a few of the most popular maps, even if it gets repetitious? What is your favorite or most hated map?

 

Timelimit\Kill limit: should time or kills determine how long a map should play? What should the kill limit be? What is the best timelimit for a map? 10, 15, 20?

 

Force\No Force: Full force? No force? Partial force? If partial, which force powers to keep and which to definitely avoid? What force level (Jedi Master, Knight, etc.)? Normal or faster force regeneration?

 

Guns: No guns? Guns? Or guns on some maps and not on others?

 

Number of players: Do you only go to servers that can take a large number of players? Or is a more moderate number OK?

 

Gametype: Always the same gametype (FFA, CTF, Team FFA, etc.) or a different gametype on some maps?

 

Mods: Jedi Academy? Omnimod? Jedimod? Vulcanus? None?

 

Rule enforcement: strict rule enforcement by admins to kick and control punks and lamers? Or does the power go to their heads and turn them into petty tyrants?

 

Voting: How important is voting enabled? I can tell you voting to change to a random map stops custom map rotations, so you have to vote to change maps each time.

 

Bots: Of course nobody likes bots, but admit it, nobody goes to empty servers either. In my playing days, I used to filter empty servers out of the server browser list. If bots are a necessary evil, what is the ideal number if only one or two humans is in the server, assuming the bots will be automatically kicked as humans join the game?

 

Extras: voice communication? Double-bladed light sabers? Emotes (animations)? Dueling enabled or disabled? Server website? Player stats? Increased kick or saber damage?

 

Performance: what is the maximum ping you will tolerate before excluding a server?

 

Changes: should a server stay the same (maps, force, weapons, gametype, etc.) like a trusty and reliable friend? Or does that get boring, and should things change from time to time to keep things fresh?

 

Don't just say "all that sounds good". Server admins have to make configuration decisions that some will love and others hate. I have added someones favorite map to the rotation, then have had others bitch about how much they hate that map. Same thing with force powers. Any feedback you can give here will help any admin who cares about making their server a "good server". Thanks in advance for your comments.

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For FFA i don't play much but when i do I prefer servers where not everyone stands around and watches 2 ppl duel. I hate dueling ffa servers. this includes for both guns and saberonly servers. I also hate servers where a bunch of ppl stand saber off. But i don't have much of a problem anymore with these since i only goto about 5 servers frequently and they are all not ffa (/2ise, SD, MoD, JKL, and ShockWave).

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Maps have always been weird. Everyone likes custom maps, people make tons of them, but no servers run more than 3-4 popular ones.

 

It's not just jk2; it's like that in other games. There are thousands of custom maps for quake 3 but you really only see a few on public servers.

 

It just comes down to people won't auto dl a map for an hour and even if you put "get our maps at <URL here>" in your motd, they will be too lazy to go get them.

 

As for game type/settings/guns/powers that all just comes down to personal preference.

 

The only thing you have to decide is whether your server is geared towards the "serious game player" or the "star wars fan/role player".

 

 

The serious game player usually does not care about skins/maps/emotes or anything else along those lines. They come to a CTF server to play and win, not to hang out and mess around.

 

Stuff like "saber off = peace" and "you lamed me" are not taken seriously by them and generally laughed at when heard because on most if not all competitive servers it's rare that anyone hears or says things like that.

 

 

 

The star wars fan/role playing servers are usually the saber only servers set to ffa_bespin where there are 20 people in the server but 18 of them are sitting around emoting watching two guys nf duel.

 

These servers usually have dozens of rules in place and 99% of those rules center around making playing the game a criminal offense unless you get a written contract from the person you want to attack stating they gave you permission to do so in the first place.

 

 

In the end you really have to decide which type of crowd your server is going to be geared towards.

 

Competitive players do not tolerate the whiny "saber off = peace" stuff and will boot people once they stop playing and start complaining.

 

Fan/RPG servers hate it when people come on and just start playing/attacking people and will boot people for it.

 

It's a shame but there really is no "middle ground".

 

You either rpg or you play and if you want a popular server you need to decide which group you want to attract.

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Originally posted by shock ~ unnamed

They come to a CTF server to play and win, not to hang out and mess around.

 

i would hardly say there are any serious ctf games anymore. All the pickups at rise and mod and sometimes in rgf when ramp, nosferatu, swede, hood and tantalus come are just playing around, teams are almost never fair.

 

I would turn voting off, ive been voted off the server i admin before

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Originally posted by lllKyNeSlll

i would hardly say there are any serious ctf games anymore. All the pickups at rise and mod and sometimes in rgf when ramp, nosferatu, swede, hood and tantalus come are just playing around, teams are almost never fair.

 

I would turn voting off, ive been voted off the server i admin before

 

I play to win in CtF I am in no Clan and ok your right some times the balance of a game can be... elts say a little OFF.. but 2 players i play against/with are Virus and 6$ both players will swap sides if one side has more advantage than the other.

 

lets face it.. its cool to see your score in the 1000... but its a much better game when the game is a 20 mins map and after what seems a hour you win 2 to 1 :) or even lose as after a game like that you been on the edge of your seat trying to win and win or lose you nomaly had a great game.

 

back on subject i would say dont but vote on... ok there are always the grief player that joins.. but as soon as a sever has voting on.. all you see is vote to change map vote to kick such and such vote to play this game... vote vote vote... when are we gona do some thing LOL.

 

will there be a active admin keeping a eye on server, as the odd ban i.p is always helpful to get rid of grief players.

 

its almost a shame you cant do a rolling server game... what i mean is game 1 is ffa on a random map, game 2 is tffa on a random map, game 3 CtF on random map, and so on... would make for some great fun.

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Originally posted by lllKyNeSlll i would hardly say there are any serious ctf games anymore. All the pickups at rise and mod and sometimes in rgf when ramp, nosferatu, swede, hood and tantalus come are just playing around, teams are almost never fair.

 

For guns yes, (American servers, I have no idea about European) mainly because only about 4 people left in jk2 care about gunning.

 

Saber only CTF is very much alive. =X= is constantly full and although there are no leagues to play on all of the jk2 ff/so ctf clans constantly scim and match.

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Originally posted by Tosh_UK

its almost a shame you cant do a rolling server game... what i mean is game 1 is ffa on a random map, game 2 is tffa on a random map, game 3 CtF on random map, and so on... would make for some great fun.

 

My server is like that, mixing FFA and Team FFA. I am thinking of adding CTF, both with and without guns. But will FFA players get pissed if they finish a FFA game and begin a CTF game, perhaps a gametype they have never played? Or vice versa, somebody who likes CTF joins a server that is in the middle of a CTF map, then it ends and becomes FFA? In other words, do people generally like to play on a server that has only one (their preferrred) gametype?

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Originally posted by shock ~ unnamed

Personally I love servers that rotate like that.

 

as i said would be great... after playing CtF for a hour it gets a bit much, but a rotation of games would be great... hehehe and in a middle of a CtF and you get that person that pipes up if this was a ffa i would own you all... put ya money where ya mouth is :p

 

whats the name/ip of your server AdminAmidala i might have to swing by :)

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Originally posted by AdminAmidala

As a server admin, I would like to know what you think makes a good public server good. What about it makes you want to keep coming back?

Think about your favorite servers, what do (did) you like about them?

If you have trouble explaining it, think about these things, but don't limit yourself to them:

 

Maps: do you prefer alot of different maps, even if you hate some of them, or just a few of the most popular maps, even if it gets repetitious? What is your favorite or most hated map?

Frankly, at this point I'm happy with anything but that damned ffa_bespin map. There is nothing specifically wrong with it, it is just too damn common. When I play, probably about %60+ of the servers are running this map. I'm just tired of it, that's all. :)

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Timelimit\Kill limit: should time or kills determine how long a map should play? What should the kill limit be? What is the best timelimit for a map? 10, 15, 20?

I usually prefer the time limit to determine when to switch maps, but I really don't care either way. I probably like a longer time limit, because I often go to server that is running a map that I want. If the time interval is too short, and I joined the game in progress, I am likely to leave the server when the maps change. So I want to have a decent probability that when I go to a server there will be a reasonable amount of time left.

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Force\No Force: Full force? No force? Partial force? If partial, which force powers to keep and which to definitely avoid? What force level (Jedi Master, Knight, etc.)? Normal or faster force regeneration?

I usually like full force, especially for FFA. To me, the force is an essential part of a Star Wars game based on Jedi, and I am fond of this aspect. Although, I do like a no-force duel from time to time. But personally, if it is going to be a force server, enable all the powers, and hopefully at Master level. Why not give the players all the tools and let them decide the victor?

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Guns: No guns? Guns? Or guns on some maps and not on others?

Sometimes I like to play with guns, and sometimes I like lightsaber only. Variety is nice in this case.

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Number of players: Do you only go to servers that can take a large number of players? Or is a more moderate number OK?

Depends on the map, I guess. For saber only FFA, I usually like a server with a moderate number of players. I find that if there are too many, then people end up in scrums where they just swing wildly, hoping to hit someone. If there are too few, you spend all your time just looking for someone. Ideally, you should come across other players often, but also have the space for some one on one battles. For guns, the more the merrier :)

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Gametype: Always the same gametype (FFA, CTF, Team FFA, etc.) or a different gametype on some maps?

I only play FFA or Duels, but I usually like to add to my "favorites" list servers that have a constant gametype.

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Mods: Jedi Academy? Omnimod? Jedimod? Vulcanus? None?

None!! Mods drive me nuts, because they often lead to people doing anything other than playing the game. If you set up a good vanilla 1.04 server, I will be come a regular.

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Rule enforcement: strict rule enforcement by admins to kick and control punks and lamers? Or does the power go to their heads and turn them into petty tyrants?

It all depends on what the rules are and what defines "punks and lamers". If that means kicking people who try and prevent others from playing the game as it was intended, then I'm all for it :)

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Voting: How important is voting enabled? I can tell you voting to change to a random map stops custom map rotations, so you have to vote to change maps each time.

I prefer not to have it. When I go to a server, it is because it is already set up more or less the way I want it. It bugs me when I go to a FFA server with a map I like, and then people start votes to change it to a CTF game on a different map. If people want to play a different game, they should go to a different server.

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Bots: Of course nobody likes bots, but admit it, nobody goes to empty servers either. In my playing days, I used to filter empty servers out of the server browser list. If bots are a necessary evil, what is the ideal number if only one or two humans is in the server, assuming the bots will be automatically kicked as humans join the game?

Unfortunately, bots suck and are no challenge. I refuse to go to a server where the majority of players are bots. If I want to play against bots, I'll do it offline, and save myself the trouble of lag. I am more likely to go to a server than has just 1 or 2 players then a server with 2 people and 5 bots.

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Extras: voice communication? Double-bladed light sabers?

No double-blades please!

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Emotes (animations)?

Heeellll NO!!! This has been the single biggest problem introduced into online JO, IMO.

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Dueling enabled or disabled? Server website? Player stats? Increased kick or saber damage?

Don't care. Upped saber damage sure is nice though.

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Performance: what is the maximum ping you will tolerate before excluding a server?

I usually stick with less than 200.

 

Originally posted by AdminAmidala

Changes: should a server stay the same (maps, force, weapons, gametype, etc.) like a trusty and reliable friend? Or does that get boring, and should things change from time to time to keep things fresh?

I like a duel or FFA server that sticks with the same gametype and settings (Force/guns or saber), and rotates the maps. Then I can add it to my favorites, and when I want to play that type of game, I know where to go :)

 

Good questions...

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"all that sounds good". j/k :p

 

I play CTF I'd say about 90% of the time :D So I'll be basing this off of CTF.

 

I like playing on good custom CTF maps. They add some flavor to the game since I've been playing on the original released ones so long. I can't think off hand of my fav. CTF map, but the high rated ones are pretty good. I'm willing to give it a try if it is rated high.

 

I find that 8 Caps and a 20 min limit is good for CTF.

 

Full Force is a must in CTF. I don't like the partial force servers. (Especially when they take away my absorb :( then everyone just grips and/or lightning.) Actually, I was thinking of trying out a neutral force server with only jump and speed.

 

I started out on saber only but gradually began to like guns. Guns in both Full Force and my "neutral" server example. FF Sabers is OK, but there is always a lot of pulling going on. I get tired of it kind of quickly.

 

I play on servers with 8-16 people. 4v4 to 8v8 seems good.

 

Originally posted by Prime

I play on server that sticks with the same gametype and settings (Force/guns or saber), and rotates the maps. Then I can add it to my favorites, and when I want to play that type of game, I know where to go.

Same Here

 

I never played with the Jedi Academy mod so I dunno. Is it X-Mod that allows you to pull objects? Reminiscing of JK. But no mod is fine.

 

I have to say moderate rules. enforcement by admins to kick and control punks and lamers is a plus. To avoid admins from becoming petty tyrants, choose people that you trust.

 

No, voting. 20 min is a short time. And if there is an Admin watching the servers, they can kick the lamer(s).

 

2 to 4 bots should be enough

 

I like voice communication. No double bladed Sabers, Emotes, or Dueling. I like a Server website and player stats for those who actually care :) Leave kick where it is and maybe incease saber damage just a bit.

 

Max. Ping that I tolorate varies. I get servers that I get under 100 and get poor game play. Other times 200 ping and I'm fine. Usually 150 is my tolorance avg.

 

Server should stay the same (maps, force, weapons, gametype, etc.) like a trusty and reliable friend. (Good analogy)

 

Originally posted by shock ~ unnamed

In the end you really have to decide which type of crowd your server is going to be geared towards.

Yup....

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