New badge proposal

My first intention behind this idea was to honor those who further expand the A&A game with their creative skills and tools (which may or may not translate to a long stay on this site). I myself have spent hundreds of hours building my customized table, designing my maps, creating charts, and even re-writing the rule book, but I also know that I am no where near the level of some members here who inspire me. If I were to want a badge that distinguishes me as a true creator of game materials, I would surly want to deserve it…. and I’m not there yet.

I nominated Der Kuenstler, not only for the brilliant work he put into his game room, but the way he presented it in his thread… it was like a presentation of all his work, and he deserved praise. I wouldn’t feel deserving of such an honor unless I were to present my body of work in the same manor, and IMO, that body of work would have to have relevance to players on this site, or around the game table. I never considered guys who give their time like our rule deputies until Tall Paul mentioned them, because I was only thinking about the customizers who dazzle more that the volunteers who do the boring work of answering our questions.

Imperious Leader has been around here long enough to fairly determine who is worthy, and lets all be mature if we just don’t measure up… because handing out this honor like candy would be disrespecting those that work hardest. Above all, this recognition should revolve around the game, and not the site, Der Kuenster only has a couple hundred posts, but if we were doing the work he was (designing, building, hosting, creating) we wouldn’t be on this site much either… so my request is to make this about passion and not popularity. Beyond that… I trust that IL will find the right criteria, but I do support the idea of presenting the whole work for review if you really want a badge.

As for the name… I agree with “ENTHUSIAST”

Thanks IL… thats my 2 cents.

@Tall:

––I nominate you, “Imperious Leader”, for all of your amazing “map work”, not to mention your in-depth gaming knowledge and advice. Also your moderating work.

“Tall Paul”

Agreed, more for your map work and assistance to all those who ask for it.

Tall Paul,

I would say that painters and modifiers would totally be eligible. However, custom tables are more my thing… so I tend to pay attention to who’s building tables rather than the painters. I do know that you are quite the painter because I remember admiring your units (what?).

I’m more than confident that your enthusiasm for the painting arts will bring forth some very worthy nominations from you. If this gets rolling, I can’t wait to visit a locked thread with the works of the honored… kind of like that hall of fame you were mentioning.

Giving someone a separate “honor” badge for being a moderator when they already have a moderator badge seems over doing. However, I can see the need if such members contributed other helpful assistance like the way IL does. I understand that you wish to give credit to everyone here who gives their time for others, and you would not be wrong. With badges like moderator, liaison, sponsor, and rule official… it might get confusing if we add another as obscure as this. Thats why I think its important to be specific as to what this new badge represents and who is eligible. For me… it’s about who supports, promotes, and advances the game rather than the site.

@Imperious:

I don’t think the title should convey accolades like “hall of fame”, rather a title that makes someone know they create maps, paint their pieces, upgrade player aids, etc…and probably include house rules and variants.

This title cannot be too long or it won’t fit in the bracket under your name.

what about Contributor? Customizer? File Maker? Map Maker? Cartography? Game upgrader?

I totally agree with you IL on the “type” of people that should be recognized, but it will be difficult encompassing every trade mentioned into one title. If you include people who create maps, paint their pieces, upgrade player aids, etc… you won’t be able to get away with Map Maker or File Maker. A more bold suggestion would be Designer, but Customizer is also very good. In fact, it’s very straight to the point and probably the best we’ve come up with so far. If someone contacts a “Customizer” for something specific, that person can help them or guide them to a different “Customizer” if necessary. I contacted Most Holy on making a pod cast for my game days and he was extremely helpful, I myself have be contacted numerous times about my customized global map, or my Alpha +2 rule book, and there are also tremendous ideas out there from members engineering their own tables. My point is, people should know who to ask when looking for certain game aids, or customization ideas… like a “Customizer”. There are also those who are very well versed in the many house rules that have been offered in that thread, and they would also fall nicely under the title of customizer.

Yes… CUSTOMIZER… 100% agree.

Hey IL,

What are your thoughts on color and icon? I know that Yellow, Red, Green, and Blue are pretty much taken, so what about black? What’s available as far as Icons, do you like the pair of dice idea, or is there a unit icon that hasn’t been used yet?

@Imperious:

The boss will use the colored bar…

Orange, or Black or white with black letters?

Please not orange… something between green and blue (aqua) would be more appealing. However, white with black letters or black with white letters would be just fine too.

Just saw LHoffmans painted pieces…. he should definitely get tagged as a customizer.

Once these badges start getting handed out, it might be beneficial to everyone if the customizers use their signature sentence to describe what it is they customize. For example…. “I paint pieces” or “I build tables” or “I create map files”. Just a suggestion for those who get a badge so that we can identify people with our own interests.