Yamato Warp Service Paused for Reorganization

[DarkMoonEnigma]

For some time, we have needed to reorganize our Yamato warp service and give consideration to some variables that prevent it from running as efficiently as it could, so we're going back to the drawing board and taking some time to get some things sorted.

Here are the dynamics of our current warp service:

• we are not a full-on warp service and only fly on Fridays and Sundays
• our space travel program was originally created for our Monrian Born to fly free
• we then added shop and apartment owners and gave them the same benefit
• we fly to all planets which allows shop owners and other traders to do business with auctions and storage, and ...
• --- be able to catch the final summons back to the Yamato -- this helps to restock their shops and/or shopkeepers
• the above makes for a very lengthy warp schedule of 3-1/2 hrs or more for crew
• --- even though we only fly on Fridays and Sundays, I can see where this might be a deterrent for a more reliable crew
• --- I don't fault them, we just need to sort some things out so it works better for all involved
• it has also meant that I've had to take on 3 roles during our warp schedules
• --- Monria Fleet Manager (MFM) - staff avatar that manages Yamato guest list maintenance and summons
• --- Flight Manager (FM) - crew role that manages passengers and their destinations via communication with the pilot
• --- and of course my official role as Community Manager with DME that is never on pause

In addition:

• with the absence of Anny for a long period of time, I have had to take over management of the space travel programs
• after adding Toulan to our virtual family, my work load has increased quite a bit, so ...
• --- I also need to sort out a more efficient use of my time and hopefully engage a few more community members

What this means going forward:

• I would like to build a solid Yamato space travel crew and be mindful of their time
• we have always relied on community member volunteers to help support our programs, and we will continue to do that
• however, I would also like to entertain some sort of incentive or benefit for being a community member volunteer
• this might mean for instance, that Yamato Pilots and Flight Managers get an opportunity to host space mission events
• --- this could be something that occurs once a month, but details would need to be worked out first
• --- I will take time to learn about the space expansion and what's available, and how this could work
• there are a number of things that could be considered but I would have to take a bit of time to give it some thought

In the meantime:

• we are placing the Yamato warp schedule on pause while everything is sorted out
• the late notice of there not being a warp schedule on Sunday (Nov 1st) is because I was hoping we would have a pilot
• I initially said that the warp schedule pause would be in effect until January, but ...
• --- if I can get things sorted during the course of this month, then we may be back in business the beginning of Dec
• this would also coincide with the Toulan Born Program that we are working on
• --- they will fly free, as well as Toulan shop and apartment owners after they are released
• we want to make sure that both the Monria and Toulan communities benefit from our programs

For now:

• I would like to encourage you to consider the warp services provided by Deatz and Priest
• they are members of our Virtualsense Space Travel Associates Program and have reasonable travel rates
• --- especially for those who already benefit from our free space travel program with the Yamato
• please check in with them to see if they might be of help with your space travel needs

I will keep you updated as often as I can with progress being made, and will be reaching out to a few of you since some have already indicated that they have interest in joining the Yamato space travel crew.

Thank you as always for your understanding and support, it's greatly appreciated.

 

[DarkMoonEnigma]

I updated the first post into sections with bullet-points to help understand what is current, what is needed, and what is proposed. Hopefully this explains where we are with our space travel program, and where we would like to go.

 

[DarkMoonEnigma]

As an update to our warp service, I've had several people approach me with interest in being trained for pilot and/or flight manager, or both, for our Yamato crew, so this is encouraging and I am confident that we can have the warp service operational again the beginning of Dec which would actually coincide with our new Toulan Born Program.

It's a bit difficult to get the word out to all who have been our passengers that our warp service is on pause other than posting here at the forum and making the announcement in the game, so there will be those who are unaware at the moment. I think most know though that when things are changed or updated we post at the forum to inform everyone. There's no global system in the game to be able to do that other than in chat channels which I covered by making the announcement in Yamato chat, Monria chat and Toulan chat, but all of our passengers are not in the game at the same time, so that makes it challenging too. Those who are aware of our warp service pause are also responding to those asking questions, so thank you for the assist.

In addition, there has also been an issue with Generic Fuses for all warp services, and I'll leave it at that.

I wanted to mention that Priest's additional weekday warp service as part of the Virtualsense Space Travel Associates Program is also on pause right now. The associates program is still in play, and unless otherwise notified, Deatz is running his associates part of the program in addition to his regular service for now.

This is a great program that offers options to the Yamato passengers during the week at reduced rates when we don't run our warp service, especially for those who get the free travel benefit, but I am told that not many take advantage of it.

I am working on reorganizing the space travel program, including the repair run program, and looking forward to getting them both operational the beginning of Dec. We have a different kind of warp service and not a full-on warp service because it benefits both our Monria and Toulan communities, and especially shop owners and apartment owners who sell from shopkeepers. It gives them an opportunity to travel to all planets and conduct business while still being able to catch the last summons at each location. This gives them a chance to deal with auctions and collect supplies from storage as well to restock their shops and shopkeepers.

Shop and apartment owners get the free space travel benefit, as do Monrian Borns, but at the beginning of Dec, our new Toulan Borns will also get the free space travel benefit which allows them to explore other parts of the universe, so ... our warp service has always been designed toward helping our community members first and foremost. We added a fee option of 6 peds for those who wanted to use the service who don't get the free space travel benefit to accommodate others who wanted to travel our warp service route.

I really don't want to change the design of our warp service, but be able to assemble a large enough Yamato crew so that we have the time schedule covered. I don't want to take away any of the benefits that we offer our Monria and Toulan communities, so I will be working with new Yamato crew to get them trained, and then restart the warp service again the beginning of Dec.

I appreciate your patience and understanding with regard to why we are doing this, and also your support, especially to those who are stepping forward in order to contribute to our efforts toward bringing our warp service back that so many appreciate

I'll keep you updated.