Category: NPA

Serenity Valley: Now Hiring!


I’ve talked about it for a good, long time and now it’s here!  We’re finally at the point that it’s time to bring on some fresh blood, start building our support team, and reach a point where players can get help for their game 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There are a few different ways we’re doing this. The first is that we’re implementing a new trouble ticket system where people can offer feedback,  lodge complaints, request assistance, and appeal administrative actions. That system is up and being updated almost daily at http://rust.ars-insolitus.com/help. With time, we’ll be building up a knowledge base through the help portal as well, so that when player have questions about how to accomplish a task, rules clarifications, and more, it’s all in one, easy to search place.

The second step relates to the first as I’m currently writing the application process for these positions through the help system, but very soon we’ll be accepting applications for a number of support roles that we’re looking to fill to help the server run smoothly. These are volunteer positions. Each of these roles offer some in-game perks, but some of them come with restrictions, and all of them demand an absolute respect for and adherence to the community’s guidelines. Each of these positions starts with a 60-day probationary period so we can all determine if this is going to be a good fit. Without further ado, the new positions being created for Serenity Valley gaming:

Customer Service Representative (CSR): The CSR will be a first line of contact for many player issues, answering questions about rules, policies, benefits, and services on our server. This role will be able to work across all servers and comes with no play restrictions. Ideally, we will have 1-2 CSR’s on each server, all of whom can answer player questions and point them toward helpful resources on Discord or in-game. Questions or requests beyond the CSR’s responsibilities are forwarded to the admin team for resolution. This role is expected to work at least 5 hours/week. There’s a small reporting component with this role so that notes and the questions being asked can be collected by management and either added to the knowledge base or policies adjusted accordingly. If you like helping people, showing off your expert skills, or writing correspondence, this is a great role!

Server Administrator (Admin): The Admins are responsible for enforcing the servers’ rules within fixed guidelines, assisting players in-game, fulfilling sponsorship awards, and designing/maintaining the server store. This role will be unable to play on any server that they work as an Admin. Ideally, there will be 1-2 Admins per server, with Mr. D serving as backup/floater between all servers. Admins will also provide enforcement of the community guidelines on the server’s Discord server. Admins will also be the go-to for conducting server events, adding extra elements of fun, PVP, or player interactivity for their assigned server(s) and must be able to maintain professionalism and respect. This role is expected to work at least 10 hours/week. Each day will include a small after-action report. If you like being hands-on, working with people, or enjoy building creative things in Rust, this will be a very enjoyable role for you!

New Player Ambassadors (NPA): NPA’s are players who primarily play solo and make themselves available for new players to join them for 1-2 wipes in order to learn the four core pillars of the game: Farming, Building, PVP, and Raiding. These players will reach out to newer players, offer them safe-haven, and introduce them to the NPA service where they can join a temporary friendship/alliance and learn the game with the active involvement/support of an experienced player. These players are also asked to help new members of the community get to know the rules, expectations, and ways to get help within our community. This role has no hours requirements or reporting requirements, and is best suited for people who love playing, love teaching, and love making new friends!

Community Manager: The community manager coordinates with the lead Admin and each server’s admin staff to design and conduct regular events across all Serenity Valley servers. This role will require a good familiarity with all games in the Serenity Valley network, a moderate understanding of game design and balance, or a similar understanding of economics. The ideal community manager will be upbeat, positive, and willing and able to engage the community in a friendly, welcoming manner. This role will also interact heavily with the Discord community, engaging in conversation, seeking feedback, and working with the community to develop ideas for the sorts of content they wish to see in the game.  The Community Manager will have some light supervisory duties in working with, consolidating feedback from, and training for CSR’s as this role develops. The Community Manager’s time expectations are fluid and as-needed, but are anticipated at taking no less than 5-10 hours per week.

Media Team: If you’re interested in producing art, music, or video content for Serenity Valley, let us know! We’re very interested in and excited for more development and interaction with the community at large, and we’re looking for a more creative eye to help offset Mr D’s seemingly endless analytics.

Each of these positions will have an application form on our help portal (soon), and will be available for players to apply. Players can apply for any and all roles that they feel that they are suited. As mentioned above, there is a probationary period for each of these roles. We won’t start giving volunteer perks until after the first wipe that a person has worked in their assigned role, and during probation, they’ll receive one half of their reward stipends. Probation status lasts from 60 days past their start date. During and throughout probation, new volunteers will be evaluated, tested, and given training to make sure they’re a good fit for their assigned positions. These roles will remain open and available for all to apply until all roles are filled, and before we add additional servers, more positions will open to fill those staff roles before the new server(s) start. Please leave a comment here, send a feedback ticket, or message @admin on Discord if you have any questions!

NOTE:  This posting is up a few minutes ahead of the applications being posted.  Applications will be live as soon as the announcement hits Discord.

Introducing: New Player Ambassadors!

Despite my most valiant efforts, it seems that I cannot be everywhere, all the time. Strangely, neither can the admin staffers.  You know who IS on the server all the time?  You! Well, not YOU personally, but he community is always, one way or another, plugged into the server. As we inch ever closer to having our first alternate server up and running, it’s going to give us even more capacity to focus the main server on its primary mission:  Helping new players get into Rust. In order to facilitate that, we’re rolling out a new program that we’re calling New Player Ambassadors.

What this amounts to are a small handful of experienced Rust players who have learned enough to be competent builders, gatherers, and fighters. People who know about closing up windows, airlocking their doors, and distributing loot to avoid raiders. Their job on the server will be simply to play and have fun–but to always keep their eyes open for new players. Basically, it’s their job to find and adopt newbies (who want it) and bring them in for a couple of wipes to help them learn some best practices in Rust in something of a safer environment, as opposed to leaving them to build a 600-foundation twig house, and then wonder why their masterpiece is gone the next day.

Everyone who joins the NPA program will be invited to join a special Steam group just for this program, and each of them will receive a stipend of tape, both to help offset the time that they spend teaching, and to give them access to some supplies to help teach a new player how to get the most out of the game.  The NPA Steam Group will have some best practices, including some different things that we’ve seen as helpful for not going insane when you have a new player with a lot of questions, managing time while managing two or more people, and major bullet points of stuff that new players should probably know before we turn them loose on their own. The idea is that a new player should be in and out of the NPA program in 1-2 wipes, and then they can move on to start playing solo or join another group.

If you’re new to the server, and you’re looking for a helpful hand, just look for people wearing the handy [NPA] tag or anyone who has a green name in chat, and they’ll be there to help. If none are around, just ask your questions, and everyone in the community tends to be pretty helpful!

To sign up for the NPA program, please message Mr. D on Discord, or drop a line on the Welcome Forum.