[Sharp]

The Bottom Line Up Front: Please consider changing the "New Member" slot to a "First Claim" slot. A first claim slot is a slot that can be taken only if you have never made a claim on the list before (or after a 2 year absence).

Description: Currently the new member slots in specialized abilities and weapons are for brand new members (or those returning after 2 years).

Problem 1: New members have a lot to read and learn. They may miss their opportunity to take advantage of their right to a new member slot if they gloss over the brief indirect mention of the list in the newbie guide. By changing it, we no longer have situations where people locate the thread after the fact and feel disappointed they missed out.

Problem 2: Nearly all of the claims will require high ranked characters. New members shouldn't feel like making a genin or academy student is going to cost them an opportunity. By changing the rule they will be able to play whatever rank they want starting out and still have the opportunity to get easier access to a special claim later.

Implementation: The mod checking an app opens the reserve list and the who's who. They use ctrl+f to search the names of each of the person's characters. They search the OOC name in the archives to look for old characters who might have had a claim previously.

[Yoshiko]

I'll put this up in the staff board and as usual apologies if this isn't addressed quickly. We've got a pretty large list of staff discussions, but this might go by quickly as it's fairly simple. I definitely agree with your problems though, I think those are very fair concerns.

Thanks for the suggestions~