Readjusting Tiers: What In The Sam Hell Do You People Want?

Alrighty. Basically...

Out of billions of souls that exist in the many planes of our site, only 100 of those have a zero tier? If our average human was a zero tier, then yes, I'd see that as a terrific problem; but the blood, sweat, and tears of people that went into making these creations that received that tier? That's slightly different.

In my experience, we have not habitually been giving out 0 tiers just because we feel like it. I have several 1-1++'s; 0 tier is still respected, and we still want people to get there. To me, that shows that those who have it generally deserve it.

As far as shops go - Yes, i do believe that after 0-3-, things should not be able to be bought or gotten through special events; but I also wish for us to make that fact public, or have something like multiples of those upgrades that the user has taken time to save up could advance them.

Personally, I think that the amount of zero tiers isn't a problem; 100 characters have so much quality that they can be among the highest on our site? That's f#cking amazing, not something to get worried about. I have over ten zero tiers personally; I've been at this whole PH thing actively for over three years now. I know it's a lot. But I also know that I put in the work for them.

Colin Washi 0-2++ - Started at 2-3+ and worked his way all the way up.
Dr. Kabuto Hebi 0-2++ - Started at 0-4+ as my main antagonist; worked his way up.
Gilgamesh 0-2++ - FREAKING GILGAMESH, a co-head position.
Coyote Starrk 0-2+ - Starrk, I have maintained some amount of activity with ever since I received him and love using him.
Schrödinger Yuudeshi 0-2 - Five. F#cking. Pages. of Application. My brain is still numb imagining that.
Katana Broadshield 0-3+ - Started out as a member of the Banshees, back when they were trying to become an elite fighting force. Out of all my zero tiers, probably has the least amount of backing to her.
Byakuya Kuchiki 0-3+ - Started this way as a Canon and had been this way before I received him.
Gift Jackson 0-3 - Worked his way up from 1-3.
Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez 0-3 - Again, Canon, came this way and has also been upgraded by me.
Justin Washi 1-3+, 0-5+, 0-4+ - Has a freaking god inside of him; has been active in threads; encouraged others to make characters... A favorite of mine, having the ultimate form of the Washi, the only time when he has access to 0-4+, meaning that most of the time he is barely a zero tier.
James Mizumuzi 0-4+ - Started at 1-3+, I believe, the first member of the Nature Iramasha; built his way up and also performed actively on the site, though his role of late has not been shown recetly.
Moonie 0-3+ - Started as 1-3+. Gosh. Darnit. He's one of my most active characters, EVER. Has some of the greatest fights I've ever been in, and the way he fights is simply amazing. (To me, anyway.)
Katto Soan 0-4+-1-1+ - A Zero Division member whose 0 tier is LITERALLY pending; he was put at 1-1+ to see if he would be eligible for the 0-4+ tier with activity. Otherwise, it is sealed within his bankai, meaning that he is typically not a zero tier.
Tobi/Cole Iramasha 0-5+ - A former Angel Iramasha Leader and one of the longer apps I have made. While he definitely has the power for this tier; on basis of activity he is one of my utter least. He is the only one in this list to have never had a thread done with him before; never once. However, his tier does accurately represent his power level; does activity truly change power level after they have worked to gain it?
Blaze 0-5+ - One of my villains who was originally the co-head of Haseo's america. He was originally at 1 tier until he was bumped up to 0-5+ when the checker saw the amount of power that he was able to display. I have roleplayed with him before, and am even in a thread with him right now.
Shinji Hirako 0-5+ - Eeeeeeh. Shinji would come in for second of all my characters in this list who probably should not be their present tier. I have next to no muse with him; I've had threads with him in the past, but they weren't anything worth writing home about. He could potentially be this powerlevel in the right hands and with a proper bankai; but as my Q1 2012 version shows, it is really not that powerful.
Alex Washi 0-5 - My first zero tier. Ever. I love playing him and have greatly enjoyed doing so in the past; has been one of the most active and consistent member of the Rinyauru; was a co-head through the time of Nagato and then Zefonse.
Kuro Okami 0-5 - Started at 4-1. Worked his way all the way up through the tiers, my first ever approved character. Went through so much crap that his mind is nothing like when he started out, and has been in the past one of my most active characters.

There's my list. So out of 18 zero tiers, only 2 of them have a reason why their current powerlevel does not suit them. Should we degrade the rest, therefore, despite the fact that they in some way or another 'earned' that tier? Last night I offered up six or seven who I would not mind being changed; but in the end of the day, most of those DID do something to deserve that tier, and I am COMPLETELY against misrepresenting work that has been properly done.

0-3/0-2, I do think should get double staff approval, one of whom should be an Administrator. However, with at least a Moderators check they should be able to perform in casual roleplays and use their powers up to a 1 tier until they have received full approval. That way, the large percent of characters would be able to remain at the same activity we have now, and we would also have the security of ensuring their tier.

So I'd say Alternative. Recognize work that is and has been done. Get it right the first time so we don't need to back track (Been guilty of that once or twice before; one of the worst predicaments you can get into on the site.). Recognize that having so many zero tiers should be a GOOD thing, not bad, as quality characters can only help the site. Do ask if there is anyone who would like a tier re-evaluation... but allow for it to go both ways. If the only direction we head in is down, then we're no better than Dr. Faustus.

The last thing I'd offer is: Tell the member if they are going to receive a zero tier. That opens a dialogue of communication on what that means for them and that character, as well as giving them the chance to decline it if they did not imagine the character that way or if they believe something was wrong with the check.

Last note: People are different. They will do things at different rates. Staff are human beings. They can change their opinions of things and therefore change what they would do. Having disparity over who receives what power level is something that will not go away while we are a site; that's a simple fact. However, people have the power to CHOOSE how they think. They can't control the actions of others; they can control themselves. I know how I felt when Blank walked in as a 0-2 and me and my Colin were barely beginning to enter 1 tier, despite the fact that I'd been working on him, and only him, for months. However... I realized that that negativity and dislike is pointless. The only thing envy or dislike can accomplish is bringing one down. Every character has work put into them, they all deserve to be recognized. Caring so intensely about tier is just begging to bring up more drama than it's worth; I played Moonie the same way as a 1-3+ as I did as an 0-5+. That's the way he was written and how he played. Tier gives a general outline of the maximum output a character can have; it's so vague that indeed, caring intensely about who gets it and how they get it... is only bad for the self. I know that through my own experience and the experience of others.

The reason I put Gin's face at the top of this post? He had the exact same ideas of changing who had powerlevels. It caused his first and last ban. And you know why we didn't listen to him? Because we respected the work that people had put into their characters.

I just want everyone to remember that.

~Those be my thoughts~

So, keeping with the theme of responding to these walls of text with apathy and short messages and since Pammy is the main reason this is even a discussion we'll focus on her. Pammy has been given tiers she has not yet earned, she has been given privileges she should not have been given, authority she has not paid her dues for...but she was given them. She played within the rule and within the system and did everything she was supposed to within the confines and parameters that we have set out. Consequently, she shouldn't be punished for playing by the rules and the whole tier adjustments are neither just nor fair.

So we need to do a better job of giving out proper tiers, we need to raise our restrictions on freebie tiers at creation, we need to stop playing favorites, and we need to work on uniforming our grading processes, at least in regards to tier because whether or not you think "envy" is toxic and detrimental...it's our fault it even exists. We shouldn't punish people because we sucked at our jobs.

This wasn't brought up by Pammy, but instead when Ulqui did the 0 tier listings and most of us realized it consisted of over 110 0 tiers and the sites total characters is around 400. So when most of us realized that the overall site character count of 0 tiers is 25%, when 0 tier is supposed to represent 10%, that's when we realized that 0 tier is being handed out too easily, and we need to be stricter, but also question some of the current 0 tiers and see if they honestly earn it. That's what the source is Imak, not Pammy. She's just collateral in this, as we ALL are. Not just one or two of us, ALL of us.