Featured Wynncraftian Fw S4e7 - Ectoplasmaticgoo

FEATURED WYNNCRAFTIAN
Season 4, Episode 7:
ectoplasmaticgoo


Hosted by @Pretzule and the always pretty @Pretty Princess

Greetings one and all to the seventh interview of Featured Wynncraftian!

For anyone that has no clue what in the world I'm going on about, let me sit ya right down and explain it.
Basically, we feature people from the community that have done something that I can ask questions about or are pretty cool and have something to feature.
They don't always have to be a popular member, just as long as I can ask them about things that make them unique.

If you think you know someone that might be good to be interviewed or is crazy interesting or someone that is a standout member of the community feel free to suggest them here.
Seriously please suggest some, I really can't find them all on my own, and it never hurts to suggest people.


This next interview is someone that tends to build a lot of walls of text, so get ready for a large read, and is fairly enthusiastic about everything Wynn and other things...

It's none other than @ectoplasmaticgoo!! he was originally suggested by no one... Really? No one?

Anyway... let's just jump into this very long interview!​

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How did you discover Wynncraft, why did you decide to play?

I discovered it back when BdoubleO did a video about it with generikb. I used to watch those 2 play Minecraft on Mindcrack server, and one day, I saw them upload an MMORPG video about Minecraft. I was instantly interested about it, so I watched it, and later, decided to try it. It was nothing like I ever saw, an RPG game inside Minecraft. Considering I love both RPG games and Minecraft, I was instantly hooked.

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Oh so you were with the 214 youtuber wave of new people, I didn't actually know that.
So then what made you stick around, after the initial it's an MMORPG in Minecraft?
Unless that's still your main reason for sticking with us.

I guess there are several more reasons, other than it just being an MMORPG. 1st of all, I was blown by the fact that it was made in minecraft. I never knew you can make something so complex with just plugins. 2nd, the builds. I liked how huge and detailed the map was. I also appreciated the efforts that went into it, as it probably took a very long time to make. 3rd, it was a 1st person RPG game, and I never played many of those. 4th, the forums. I think they are the main reason I got stuck in the Wynncraft world, as they gave me the reason to stay when I am not playing the game. Summing it all up, I suppose I am still here due to creativity of developers/ct team and because of the community itself.

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I completely get your reasons, your third one was a huge drawing point for me as well.
So then what do you enjoy specifically about the creativity of developers/CT and the community itself?

I was always admiring the builds people made. I was never able to be that creative, so whenever I'd see a huge, detailed build, like a city, I'd be lost for words. For example, Llevigar. When I 1st arrived at that place, I was instantly impressed. It's extensive, yet very detailed. I can't imagine time and effort that went into making it, which is why I appreciate builds like those even more. Whenever I'd watch Grian's building video, it seemed so simple. He'd add small details here and there, but in the end, he'd end up with an incredible build. It's just fascinating to see what people can come up with, especially when you can't do it yourself.
In the past, I have been very vocal about the state of the gameplay. I think most of us agree it's not too good at the moment, but there are certain things I enjoy very much. For example, boss altars. I think those are fantastic additions to the game and promote everything RPG stands for. Crates and particles. The only reason I have hero is to get daily level 2 crate. I just love how they made wings and weapon particles work, it's amazing. Regarding the community, I just feel like people understand me and that I understand them. I feel like this place is my 2nd home. I also like how CT/mods are directly involved in discussions, and the fact that mods aren't just a bunch of grumpy folks who wave their banhammers around. As a person who spent ages on forums, this community is one of the best I was ever part of.

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Yeah the gameplay is something that can be a little lacking at times, but you gotta admit it is impressive that we've done this much with it so far.
In regards to the community you're involved with it quite a bit favoring quality over quantity with what you say, because of this what you say can be fairly different compared to much of the forums. Because of this is there anything you would like to see change in the community itself or do you not mind how it is?

It is impressive, yes. Really looking forward to refactor to see how it will change the gameplay, and hopefully, it will be for good.
It took me a while to think whether I'd like to see something change, and I guess the answer would be yes, but it's nothing really important or something I couldn't live without. There has been a really good suggestion thread recently asking for CT progress. I would like too see that. It's hard being left in the dark for a longer period of time and keep a positive attitude. Admins participating in the content/gameplay discussions a bit more would be also nice to see, just to hear opinions from their perspective.
Now, regarding people & posts, I suppose I dislike seeing disrespect, either direct or indirect. Direct in a sense of being rude without a reason, obviously. Indirect, several examples come to mind. TL;DR posts when you are not even interested in hearing the shorter version. Person can put a huge amount of work into a single thread, literally hours like I do, and there is always at least one person who opens the thread, puts tl;dr, and goes away, zero interest. I suppose it's fine to not have patience to read walls of text, but you don't need to ruin it for us who are looking for a quality discussion. Then the "no refund posts" with no compassion. It's even worse when it's so obvious OP didn't even ask for a refund. "It should been a profile post" can sometimes be a bit too harsh, e.g., when a person had a bad experience and is feeling down, don't instantly tell them to take it to their profile, be supportive. Community members should have each other's back.
I guess all that is something I could see less of. Market section has been on a slippery slope recently, tho mods involved are handling it well. In general, I am satisfied with the community.

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So really just relatively small improvements in the quality and attitude of how people are on the forums, which in turn would make it a better place overall.

You mentioned that you sometimes spend hours on writing threads and posts, which really shows in all of your threads, I want to know what compels you to write that much and be so passionate about your ideas and expressing them, so that maybe others might follow suit.

I think you just said it, I'm passionate. I like expressing my thoughts and writing detailed posts. Whenever I make a thread, I never plan to make it long. I just start writing the post, put as much details and elaborations as I can, and it just end the way it does. As I mentioned many times before, I like this place, therefore whenever I do something, I wanna do it right. With every thread, I'm trying to increase the quality of this place, that's all. I am not sure if I can influence others to start doing the same, it's either something your enjoy doing or do not. That being said, writing long posts isn't the only way to increase the quality of this place, obviously. Following the golden rule means a lot, and is often enough to make you a great member.

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That makes sense, but who knows maybe someone will be inspired by you.

As much as you enjoy and love Wynn there are times where you seem to be frustrated with how some things are in the game, such as your thread about the state of the archer, do you believe that your discussions and small essays on those kinds of topics has influenced the CT or community at all?

I do believe, yes. I got into FW, so that's something :P On a more serious note, I do believe I inspired several changes regarding Wynncraft, both on forums and in-game. For example, back when selling un-IDed mythics was allowed, I had an open discussion with you about the new rule, and how hard it was to understand it, so you re-wrote it to make easier to follow. I'd say my feedback was at least a bit influential. When I made e.g. state of the archer thread, there were some CT and mods involved in the discussion, which I am extremely pleased about, and I am sure in the future, they'll at least take into the consideration what I brought up when making updates. I also spoken relatively a lot about item balancing team, and who knows, maybe they do introduce it and I get to make changes directly, if I do make it into the team. If not, I'll just pay off someone to buff certain items. Ignis is gonna be OP, you heard it here first folks.

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Speaking of teams, have you ever thought about applying for GM or have you applied for GM in the past?
It seems like it would suit you.

I did consider applying for it, yes. Not for quests or items, but to help out with new features and gameplay content. I am not sure if that falls under GM category, but assuming it does, I still have issues with time, as I am very busy with college. Like I already mentioned, when I do something, I wanna do it right, and I couldn't possibly devote myself to the cause as much as I'd like, therefore, I don't see myself deserving of a GM title.

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That's very honorable, I hope that when you do find time you do apply, I can see you being a pretty good GM.

These next questions were somewhat answered in the previous questions, but I want to go a little deeper on these topics to get your opinion and how you feel about them.
So if you were to be a GM what would you like to change in the game?
And what would you like to see change in the CT in general?

Regarding the 1st question, I always wanted to introduce new features that would prolong the playtime without relying on quests. What kind of features, I don't know, not because I have no ideas, but because I played so many RPG games, at times I feel like I am subconsciously trying to turn Wynn into those other games. That's the exact reason I am refraining from making suggestions what to add to the game. I have no issues with giving examples of what I liked in other games, but the path they took isn't the only one, and it often just comes down to creativity, which Wynn isn't lacking. Other than new features, I wanted to fix the grinding. I feel like a parrot at this point, but I'll repeat it once again. Grind isn't a chore when done right. It shouldn't be looked down on. It's literally one of the most fundamental aspects of an RPG game and should never be neglected. When you finish the quests and reach the end game, grinding is one of the last things that are left for you. Currently, it's not really viable for anything, as it's monotonous, bland and unrewarding. Even considering all that, if you go to leaderboards, you can notice that the last person on the 10th page has 800 levels. That's immense, so to claim people generally dislike grinding is untrue. Leveling up different characters, running dungeons over and over to reach 101, even trading on forum's market, is all grinding, and people have been doing it for quite some time. Furthermore, since I mentioned dungeons, I believe exp rewards for both quests and dungeons should be re-balanced, as leveling up is too easy at the present. Having level 75 before meant a lot more than having 101 now, which I believe shouldn't be the case. Salted asked us if we would like to see exp tweaks, so I am hoping something is done with exp, after refactor is introduced that is.
Onto the 2nd question, I would really like to see some sort of "item balancing" team introduced. I have no issues with Selvut's balancing, but at times it feels like it takes too much time from him. I'd rather see him make more e.g. boss altars with new cool gear than have him spend countless hours on already existing content. Moreover, saying this as an ex-beta tester for an MMORPG, you cannot reproduce team work nor opinions originating from other people. Someone who plays all 4 classes equally won't have the same experience and opinions as someone who focuses on just one class. Taking different opinions into account is very important and makes balancing the game easier in the long run.
I think that mostly sums it up. I have some other beefs with the game, but I believe most of them will be fixed with the refactor. At least that's what I am telling myself.

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I agree with you on both aspects. Especially for the team dedicated to item balancing, it would certainly help create items that are more acceptable and usable in the meta.
For the dungeons, we are aware that they're a little OP so those will definitely be changed up.

Now for the final few questions I want to ask a little more about you personally, I hope you're okay with that if not I'll ask other questions.
I believe you've mentioned to me before that English is not your first language, and that it can take up to several hours for you to create a long post, I was wondering what is your primary language and how long did it actually take you to learn English and be as fluent as you are now?

I have no issues answering personal questions.
That is correct. English is my 2nd language. I am Croatian, and Croatian is my main language. Me writing posts for several hours on occasions has nothing to do with that. When I write a paragraph, I read it, I try to search for grammatical errors, look for words that are used too frequently and try to replace them, I try to make paragraph sound better and so on. When I am done, I usually go trough my post 5-6 times and then apply e.g. bolding, change colors, add pictures... and it all ends up. I think my record for writing the longest was around 8 hours. It was the pre-gavel archer guide, which I sadly lost in the coffee spilling. I know this wasn't your question, but just wanted to elaborate.
Regarding English, I started learning it around 15 years ago. My mom's friend signed her daughter for private lessons and asked if I wanted to go. I said yes and I have no idea why. Prior to that, I had no English knowledge. All the sounds I heard from movies, cartoons and games finally started to make sense. I have no idea when I started being good at it, it kinda just happened. 10 or so years ago, I joined my first forum. I was a terrible user and literally no one liked me. I was bad at writing, explaining myself and overall spammy. After bunch of warnings and infractions, I managed to "get a grip" and started being a proper user. I still remember when a mother of two, Felicia, said I have improved by a lot and that it was nice to see. Somewhere around that point, I started exposing myself to a more advanced vocabulary due to various different users found on that forum. If there was a word I didn't understand, but sound interesting to know, I'd look it up in the dictionary, and if the word was used frequently, I'd memorize it. Grammar, I mostly learned that in school/college, as it's not something users bring up frequently. Foreign media had immense effect on my English development, but that was mostly in the beginner stages, as the words used in e.g. movies aren't all that advanced.
Even after 15 years, I am still learning and trying to improve myself. I don't mind it, as I enjoy the process. I am exposing myself to English on a daily basis, and looking back, that is the exact reason I am fluent at it, not because of the textbooks.

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That really is the best way to become fluent in a language, is to use it. A textbook can only really carry you so far.

I'm curious about your education, what did you study during college?

I'm an engineering student, currently it's my 4th year.
Freshman year is the same for everyone. You are learning all the basics needed for every engineer. Maths, mechanics, tensions, engineering drawing etc. Year later, you are choosing your own field of study and a year after that, you get to chose a sub-field. I chose energy engineering. It's a field oriented around thermodynamics, which is by far the hardest subject in our college. If you are interested what we learn there, I could list a couple of subjects, like construction elements (calculating and testing whether a particular mechanism can sustain all the tension), fluid mechanics (calculating force and pressure of a water), steam generators, pumps & motors, air dynamics, water, fuel and oil and much more.

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Instead of listing all of them, would you mind talking about the ones that you are specifically most interested in?

Quite frankly, there is only 1 subject I loved since the day 1. Basics of energetics. That subject alone is the reason I love energy so much. It thought me everything I was ever interested in. We were studying about our power plants and the power plants around the world, renewable and not, their potentials and issues, about global warming and energy production effects on it, energy economics, and by far my favorite part, energy efficiency. I am not sure why I like that so much, tho a huge role plays the fact that it's an easy way to make a lot of money. To elaborate what energy efficiency is, you'd get a particular building or a house and then you'd have to calculate created heat by the heat source and how much heat is wasted trough windows, walls, floors... then you'd have to find a way to increase the efficiency and calculate after how much years the investment cost would pay off. Currently I am listening to another subject I am very interested in, heating, ventilation and air conditioning. So far we haven't done much, but we did start radiator calculations which is quite fun. Compressors, pumps and motors were quite interesting, to learn how all of that actually works and what are the issues, but I never liked that as much as I did basics of energetics.

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So then it's safe to say you're going to mainly be looking for a career that involves energy, or energy efficiency?

Yes, that's what I am hoping for at least. My final task before I get bachelor degree will be regarding energy efficiency. I may also work in other fields, but I am not quite sure which ones, as it depends on the job... and money.

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Well you'll manage to figure it out, all you really need is an opportunity/chance.

Alright we're gonna wrap this up with one last question, since so far this has been the longest Featured Wynncraftian interview ever...

How has Wynn shaped you as a person since you joined, do you regret any changes, or experiences that you may have had?

There are actually 2 things I am extremely grateful for getting from Wynncraft. Patience and calm head. As a member of EA forum, toxicity levels are off the charts there, and the atmosphere there gets to you. What's ironic, people there are mostly grown ups with families and jobs. Wynn taught me, generally, not to be that kind of a person, for whichever reason. It's probably something I should have learned myself, but arguing seems to be in human nature, and being behind the screen, typing anonymously, only supports that. It's better to learn it someday rather than never.
Things I regret is me not acting to certain things in a better manner, tho I did improve in those instances and still trying to. It's all a part of the learning process. Whether I regret something regarding the community or forums, no, not really. Wynn has had ups and downs, just like everything else in life, but it helped me trough some stressful times, which I am thankful for. I don't believe there is a single thing I regret regarding the community changes, on the contrary, I fully support changes occurred between me joining and now.

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Sounds like one helluva character arc, well for what it's worth I'm glad that you're the person you are now.
Thank you so much for answering my questions and sharing some of your experiences and thoughts.

Thank you for the kind words and questions, Mr. Pretzule. It has been a pleasure.

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IMPORTANT:
The next interview is going to be something a tad special, and it's going to be done a little differently.
I am going to be interviewing @Hippie and @SoloSnuggles and I was thinking that there should be community questions along with my questions.
So if you have a question you want to ask them, please submit them here: https://goo.gl/forms/qjMAsyHYqAGBuAPi1

Anyway, that's the end of this interview and short little announcement.
The next interview will be out in the future, gotta get questions from you guys first, so don't expect it for a long time.
If you want to check out the last Featured Wynncraftian where I ask @colin350 questions check it out here: https://forums.wynncraft.com/threads/205576/

Thank you once again @ectoplasmaticgoo for letting me interview you!​

 

I knew it was going to be long, but this long!? FFS, I am seriously taking the piss lol.

 

congrats

 

So he pretty much got nominated for FW because of writing long, quality posts? JJTH would be proud.

However, choosing people who were never nominated in the first place makes me believe that the Featured Wynncraftians section of the forums has now been made to be a fucking joke.

 

Congrats! @ectoplasmaticgoo ! :)

 

It's a fair question. The answer would be yes and no. I can't elaborate that any further tho, sorry.

FW nomination section is...peculiar, to say the least.
I once nominated a person who I think should be a FW, and I instantly got shit on. Not that I care too much, but that kind of a mentality makes me not want to nominated anyone ever again. It's not that those people don't deserve it, but why even bother making a nomination when it instantly backfires. If that's how I feel, I wonder what goes trough other people's head.

 

There's about 8 threads in there, a few of them I do want to do but if I interview them then I am basically out of people to interview.
People need to suggest more.

If need be we can delete posts and tell people to not act like that, but the posts have to be reported so that it gets the most attention.

 

would probably be taken seriously if people made threads there more than twice a month, and if the nominations were actually good most of the time

 

Congratulations fellow long poster! Time for me to step up my game with a 20 Page long post! Why??? CAUSE I CAN!!!!!!!!!!

 

ok. tobulance next pls, though.

 

NO

 

Interesting interview! I remember when you helped me with the Beneath the Depths quest 3 years ago (don't ask me why I remember that)

Čestitam! (congratulations in Croatian)
and yes i used google translate for that

 

Hvala!
Did I really help you!? Unfortunately, I don't remember, but I am glad I did and I am glad to see someone from "old times" still active.
Cheers mate!

 

Ayyy the Old Times are the best times!

 

Would it be cool if I call you Fwectoplasmicgoo for the next 2 weeks?

 

I don't mind :P

 

Hey man congrats! Hope you become a GM someday

 

My time as a FW is almost out.

I just wanna thank everyone for this community. I really like this place and I hope I'll be seeing everyone around in the future.
Thank you all for helping me to go trough some hard times.