Aperio - T4 - Obelisk Proposal - Aperio

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This is carryover from T4. I hope to aggregate past materials to simplify migration to the next Tale.

Obelisk Construction Guild

We oppose the build Queue as implemented as its selection method was unfair (2-3 months because you're weren't online when the test was unlocked? Who picks?) and it discriminates against people unable to access the wiki due to filters or inability to master the technology. - 12:15, 21 December 2008 (EST)

PROPOSED VALUES:

  1. Provide an open forum to discuss the coordination of Shabbat Ab Obelisk Building.
  2. Open to all Shabbat Ab residents
  3. No citizen of Egypt is more worthy to build than any other.
  4. Citizens who have been part of the organized guild should receive consideration for having waited (over holdouts and new players).

We plan to implement a weighted lottery system to select builders INSTEAD of the de facto queue that favors some people for no valid reason. We plan, as a guild, to help rebuild obelisks for the selected builder that are defeated. If you share these views (or have changes to suggest), please join. OVERVIEW

Test of the Obelisk is an ARCHITECTURE test and one that requires CONSENT of your peers to pass because your obelisk must stand for 7 Egypt days (or 2 1/3 days). At a MINIMUM, it will require the cost of your obelisk (plus construction site) materials to pass PLUS any other larger obelisks you are forced to rebuild when someone overbuilds your obelisk prematurely for any reason. In Architecture tests, materials talk; b.s. walks... expect to spend a lot of materials in any of them.

   * In a truly disorganinzed build environment, build rights go to the biggest bully on the block with less industrious players not only having to rebuild but having to rebuild at exhorbitant costs because the bullies will try to protect their builds with large skips in build size.
   * In a semi-organized build environment (queues), build rights are assigned to an arbitrary builder generally based upon a first-come; first-serve policy which doesn't start with an equitable order assignment, does not ensure the next builder is ready to go, nor does it offer protection other than anger and indignation against the biggest bully model.
   * In an organized build environment, we aspire to offer an equitable assigment of build rights, ensure that the assigned builder is ready to build quickly be securing the materials in advance, and offer protection against the biggest bully by distributing the risk of having to overbuild among its members making the burden of competing against the solo player negligible for the member.
         o As an incidental benefit of being sanctioned by the largest minority (or even majority) of the region's citizens, we aggregate the power if not the responsibility to deter bullies by denying them successful passes and thus deterring others from attempting to usurp the consensual build system. This is a benevolent bullly system and its the values and will of the members that will determine whether this power is used. Regardless of this decision, the guild still has to build the same size obelisk; it's just a matter of timing and intent. 

CONSENT

After some discussion, some of the issues:

  1. How do we select a build order?
        1. Weighted Lottery - Prospective builders are selected by some random system.
        2. Auction - Prospective builders bid for the right to build. 
  2. What do we do if someone builds over the the selected builder?
        1. The designated builder is entitled to rebuild.
        2. The guild, in cooperation, is best equipped to help a member rebuild; particularly in competition. 
  3. How does the guild assemble materials for guildhouse expansions, obelisk builds, and obelisk rebuilds?
        1. Guildhouse Expansions - New members pay a nominal membership fee
        2. Obelisk Builds - Prospective builder provides
        3. Obelisk Rebuilds - ??? 

COSTS (all non-refundable)

   * INITIATION: You must provide 250 boards, 500 bricks or you may be dropped from the guild at the guild's discretion.
         o WHY? Initiation materials are used to expand the guildhouse ensuring a spot for the next member. 
   * MEMBERSHIP: You must build a chest (NOT a box) in the guild compound, provide materials equal to the 7-cubit desert obelisk, and turn the chest over to a guild elder (to be guilded, assigned proper permissions, and probably re-arranged as described later).
         o 231 Bricks
         o 23 Boards
         o 24 Clay
         o 3 Dried Flax
         o 1 Flint
         o 7 Linen
         o 5 Slate
         o NOTE: The materials you possess at any given time may be less than those you submitted (SEE BELOW)
         o WHY? These materials are a token expression of interest in the test. If you are not attempting to pass the test, nobody cares what your opinions are as you are not a peer against whom consent must be secured. Also, these materials represent an emergency reserve against which the guild can draw for a rebuild. 
   * BUILD RIGHTS: You must MAINTAIN enough materials to build the NEXT LARGER OBELISK (CURRENT SIZE +2) in your assigned chests (which may be moved around as the requirements will exceed the capacities of chests quickly)
         o NOTE: These material requirements for BUILD RIGHTS will be listed on a sign in the guild house
         o NOTE: The materials you possess at any given time may be less than those you submitted (SEE BELOW)
         o WHY? By opting into the BUILD RIGHT LOTTERY, you are embarking upon building your obelisk which as described above is a risky venture. You are agreeing to share this risk even if you lose the lottery and these materials are the first line of defense if the designated builder must rebuild. If a rebuild is required, you probably won't qualify for the next lottery. Likewise, if your chest go unattended for awhile, you probably won't qualify in subsequent lotteries. 
   * BUILDS: The guild will provide you mats to build your obelisk (mats provided by your previous investments)
   * REBUILDS: The guild will provide you mats to rebuild your obelisk (like insurance; you've paid your premiums) 

BUILD RIGHT LOTTERY

   * Each time you invest in a lottery, you earn an additional 'lottery ticket' that you reuse in each lottery you enter.
   * Each lottery, the participants are announced and ordered alphabetically with duplicate tickets being ordered sequentially (i.e. taking up 2...x spots)
   * Each lottery, the number of tickets are counted
   * Each lottery, an arbitrarily short period is announced and anyone in the guild shouts out a number between 1 and the number of tickets. These number are all added together and divided by the number of tickets and the remainder is the number used as an index against the list (the list is a 0-based array, so 0 is the first ticket in the list) - I'll work on a clearer explanation of the weighted lottery system. 

SUMMARY (Does not replace details above)

  1. Provide 250 boards and 500 bricks to advance to associate to justify your spot in the obelisk community
  2. Build a chest in the guildhouse with mats tor a 7-cubit obelisk to justify your voice in the obelisk community
  3. Maintain mats in the guildhouse chests for the next obelsik build to justify your build intent in the obelisk community
  4. Guild provides mats for builds
  5. Guild provides mats for rebuilds