Hey everyone! This thread is going to serve as an update, and a bit of a dialogue on something I and some others have been working on behind the scenes for the past couple of weeks. Hopefully you’ve deduced what that is from the title of this thread!
A Discord server for us has been a long time coming: we’ve taken it upon ourselves to make the necessary steps toward releasing a community server. The precise status of that is myself, the site staff as well as Rick Gastly have decided on the general setup and channels of a potential server. Further, I have virtually finished setting up and branding said server, with a view to releasing it soon should Pokemaster permit. As our community isn’t large, I don’t anticipate flooding or any other issues if we were to simply release access, so that’s our plan for the rollout at present. (More on that later!)
Though interest in a Discord server has been quite substantial on this site for quite a while, naturally there’ll be those among you who aren’t experienced with the app. In short, Discord is a cross-platform text and voice chat service centred around the video game community that allows you to set up and run ‘servers’ entirely free of charge. Discord has emerged as a standard for gaming communities of all sizes, and so involving our community is becoming an increasingly clear move for myself and many others who frequent this site.
Discord’s utility as an instant messaging and contact-managing tool has been proven to our mod contingent over the past few months, as we’ve coordinated decisions using a server for about half a year now.
If you’d like to learn more about Discord, I recommend reading this article, this post and also making your own account and having a play with the service. You’ll get the most out of it by installing the desktop app.
This is where my focus momentarily turns from you guys and onto Pokemaster for a bit. If you’re reading this Pokemaster: this is where we need your input. We don’t want to release this server, and especially not brand it as official, without first contacting you on the matter. Particularly, we would want to know:
- Can we formally roll it out right now? We’ve laid all the groundwork and we’re ready to release the link if you’re agreeable.
- Does a Discord server interest you in the way it does the community? Is it something you may use occasionally?
- What input, if any, would you like to have to the structure of a community server? Could we collaborate with you on this here, or on Discord? You’re welcome into our mod server, if that suits.
- Would you like an administrative position within the server? I can assign you a ‘role’ in the server that would grant you multiple permissions, if you would like to contribute.
- Do you have any questions, observations or comments on Discord as a service, or what we are hoping to release? We are more than happy to respond to these and discuss them with you.
We are willing to plan a potential release of the server around you if you’re communicative. However, we will also distribute the link (less officially) if we don’t hear from you between now and my planned release, which is next weekend on Saturday 22 December (East Australian time). Please do get back to us: we want this process to be smooth sailing, and without the stress you won’t be happy with it.
In terms of the server itself, we’ve currently got an array of general discussion channels planned, as well as PokeBase section-specific ones and announcement areas. Roles, as well as an identity-verification system, have also been arranged. Once everything is ready to go, I’ll be distributing a ton of information on the specifics of it all. The rollout will be good, I’ll make sure of that.
However, I also want input from the community as to what you all want to see on our server. For example, we don’t currently plan on having voice channels on the server. Is that something you would want? Is there anything else you want to ensure makes the cut? Make your voice heard!
That’s all for now, but there’ll be a lot more come release day, whenever it ends up being.
Sorry to everyone who expected this thread a couple nights ago. Australian weather did its thing, and I ended up at an airport hotel in Adelaide for 24 hours, which was a fun surprise. :)))
