 Equal Rights For Small Hoods 

[bender018]

Just a small thought from me: Yes, it‘s unfair that you don‘t reach all horseshoes in derby when you‘re in a small hood. But you have some advantages bigger nhs don‘t have: for example preparing the derby board better or choosing from a bigger variety of tasks or in bingo derby (it‘s way easier to finish a column when you only have to do one or two tasks each), or simply a fewer chance of drama or mis-coordination.

[BostonGirl]

(Retrieves soapbox from its usual place over by the pig pens)

While I wholeheartedly believe that solo NHs should have the same opportunity to earn all the horseshoes, I think the premise of many of the posts is incorrect.

SC doesn’t care about the difficulty or not of one NH’s derby over another; they don’t care whether it’s easier or not for larger or smaller NHs. Having been in many large NHs and settled for my own little one, I agree with those who maintain that each NH type presents its own challenges. But I repeat, SC doesn’t care about that. Those are things that the players care about and all our misdirected energy will allow the company to continue doing what it does.

I want to be very clear before I go on that I am not making digs at SC. I don’t think they’re mean or manipulative in this issue. In their position I would have started out the exact same way. I would want my company to be as profitable as possible while maintaining clientele.

That said, SC only cares that research shows that people who play in groups play longer, stay longer and spend more than they would if they were not in a group. Not just any group though - it must be a group of a certain minimum size. “Private” chatting within the group increases this behaviour. It’s no coincidence that all pay-to-play games organise NHs or clans or armadas or whatever they choose to call groupings. Whether HD players
a. really conform to that research; or (as I believe)
b. behave like the curling stone and seem to defy conventional science
is the question.

I began playing solo a while ago. If I could not, I know I would have left the game. I was in one high pressure “mommy/overseer” NH that my independent spirit could not take. Then I was in a looser “we 10 will play like fiends while the other 8 will never contribute” NH and didn’t like that. I started my own NH and found that the pressure from some to be a “better” or “different” leader was causing me stress. There was yet another NH where the requirement to chat or be deemed rude made the game excruciating. I remember how the Champions League trashing notification raised my blood pressure. “Oh dear Lord! Now the NH will always know when I’m on.” Yet another where one or two were constantly asking for goods.

At one time, I left HD and didn’t play for many months. When I decided to try again, I also decided to go it on my own. The game allowed me to do that and boy was I grateful. I buy diamonds periodically because I need them, want them or sometimes just to support the game so that I can continue playing for years. I call boats, I almost always play the derby and I buy the 10th task. I find the inability to get all the horseshoes irksome and unnecessary and always will.

HD should check their own data. Do the people in the tiny NHs really leave the game sooner/spend less/play less? And even if they do the latter two, is that offset by the fact that were they not allowed to have and keep their tiny NHs they would stop playing altogether?

So after this long-winded thesis...I’m looking for a publisher...I close by saying that I hope Frisco wasn’t just paying lip service to us and that HD is really considering changing things. I hope they look at their own game data and do not simply accept the general data because I don’t believe HD players so readily conform, and that that’s because of the way the game was made.

(steps down off of, and replaces, soapbox. Retreats to NH house for tea and crumpets.)

[WussyPuss]

Do bear in mind that Frisco’s response is dated and the themed derbies have appeared since then.

I dont know if this this is what they have come up with in response to the concerns mentioned in this thread, however, most of the issues raised in this thread are dated as well. Not irrelevant, just dated.

this thread was resurrected in response to someone inquiring about smaller hoods and derby threshold rewards.

[blsb]

SC only cares that research shows that people who play in groups play longer, stay longer and spend more

Is this true in practice? My observation is that derby participants dwindle in number as people grow weary of the grind and drop out of the derby, if not the entire game. My neighborhood of 7 is now down to just one person playing derby, me. So to have a chance at all the derby has to offer my only choice is to leave my friends and join a new, bigger hood. And this latest Mystery Derby revealed another flaw that impacts small neighborhoods. Tasks involving the town can be nigh impossible. I had to send away 3, yes three, trains until one finally appeared with the final strong man that I needed. This game is rigged against small hoods in multiple ways.

[LynnK2015]

Do bear in mind that Frisco’s response is dated and the themed derbies have appeared since then...

Thank you WP for putting Frisco's response in the context of the timeline. Frisco posted his response in the beginning of June 2017 and announced the Birthday Derby, the first of themed derbies at the end of June.

https://forum.supercell.com/showthre...thday-Derby%21

[SmallChange]

I was recently forwarded to this thread. I had recently posted that it was not fair to be working in a derby and not be able to get all the horseshoes. I completed 10 tasks at 400 points each and the other member of my neighborhood to opt in also completed all tasks and we could not reach the higher horseshoe threshold. When I sought help through "Support", I was told by Farmer Jo that it was to encourage more participation. My thought is that this policy DIScourages participation. Some of my neighbors can not participate because of various reasons of their own. I do not fault them and I won't leave them. They are my friends and helpers. But why should I even want to do the derby, if I can't get all the rewards that other derby player get for the same work. Supercell needs to rethink this policy.

I agree.

I play solo, I do 10x320/400 tasks every week - the maximum possible, so why shouldn’t I and others like me, get all the horseshoes?

How many horseshoes *I* get, doesn’t impact anyone else. There’s no shortage of pixels.

Playing Solo is permitted, so why is that choice disadvantaged?

People say it’s easier, that’s debatable. Solo players don’t have up to 29 people on their team to fill crates, help with stuff for trucks, provide tools if they’re short, flag trees for help, grow/help with other crops when you’re stuck on a Strawberry Task etc.

Then there’s Town. Solo players have a HUGE disasvantage with these tasks. No popping to several neighbours to pick up characters, nope, just the eggspress. All townies have to do 2/3 stores, no one shop wonders.

Just a small thought from me: Yes, it‘s unfair that you don‘t reach all horseshoes in derby when you‘re in a small hood. But you have some advantages bigger nhs don‘t have: for example preparing the derby board better or choosing from a bigger variety of tasks or in bingo derby (it‘s way easier to finish a column when you only have to do one or two tasks each), or simply a fewer chance of drama or mis-coordination.

Yes, we can prepare the Derby board better. But keep in mind, there’s only one person able to trash too.

I can’t choose from a bigger range of tasks if I want to place. If I want to place, I have quite a restricted set of tasks that allow that.

BINGO Derby. Yes, there’s less chance of mistakes. We only have to do 1x each square, that’s true, but also we HAVE to do each square. There’s no wriggle room at all. We can’t afford to wait until we have all 10 tasks on the board, so we just have to hope the other tasks show up. We are massively disadvantaged compared to other size NH’s (for example a 2 person hood only has to do 5/10 Derby tasks. Between the two of them, they only have to do what us solos do on our own. Plus they have each other’s town etc.

(Retrieves soapbox from its usual place over by the pig pens)

While I wholeheartedly believe that solo NHs should have the same opportunity to earn all the horseshoes, I think the premise of many of the posts is incorrect.

SC doesn’t care about the difficulty or not of one NH’s derby over another; they don’t care whether it’s easier or not for larger or smaller NHs. Having been in many large NHs and settled for my own little one, I agree with those who maintain that each NH type presents its own challenges. But I repeat, SC doesn’t care about that. Those are things that the players care about and all our misdirected energy will allow the company to continue doing what it does.

I want to be very clear before I go on that I am not making digs at SC. I don’t think they’re mean or manipulative in this issue. In their position I would have started out the exact same way. I would want my company to be as profitable as possible while maintaining clientele.

That said, SC only cares that research shows that people who play in groups play longer, stay longer and spend more than they would if they were not in a group. Not just any group though - it must be a group of a certain minimum size. “Private” chatting within the group increases this behaviour. It’s no coincidence that all pay-to-play games organise NHs or clans or armadas or whatever they choose to call groupings. Whether HD players
a. really conform to that research; or (as I believe)
b. behave like the curling stone and seem to defy conventional science
is the question.

I began playing solo a while ago. If I could not, I know I would have left the game. I was in one high pressure “mommy/overseer” NH that my independent spirit could not take. Then I was in a looser “we 10 will play like fiends while the other 8 will never contribute” NH and didn’t like that. I started my own NH and found that the pressure from some to be a “better” or “different” leader was causing me stress. There was yet another NH where the requirement to chat or be deemed rude made the game excruciating. I remember how the Champions League trashing notification raised my blood pressure. “Oh dear Lord! Now the NH will always know when I’m on.” Yet another where one or two were constantly asking for goods.

At one time, I left HD and didn’t play for many months. When I decided to try again, I also decided to go it on my own. The game allowed me to do that and boy was I grateful. I buy diamonds periodically because I need them, want them or sometimes just to support the game so that I can continue playing for years. I call boats, I almost always play the derby and I buy the 10th task. I find the inability to get all the horseshoes irksome and unnecessary and always will.

HD should check their own data. Do the people in the tiny NHs really leave the game sooner/spend less/play less? And even if they do the latter two, is that offset by the fact that were they not allowed to have and keep their tiny NHs they would stop playing altogether?

So after this long-winded thesis...I’m looking for a publisher...I close by saying that I hope Frisco wasn’t just paying lip service to us and that HD is really considering changing things. I hope they look at their own game data and do not simply accept the general data because I don’t believe HD players so readily conform, and that that’s because of the way the game was made.

(steps down off of, and replaces, soapbox. Retreats to NH house for tea and crumpets.)

Totally agree.

Is this true in practice? My observation is that derby participants dwindle in number as people grow weary of the grind and drop out of the derby, if not the entire game. My neighborhood of 7 is now down to just one person playing derby, me. So to have a chance at all the derby has to offer my only choice is to leave my friends and join a new, bigger hood. And this latest Mystery Derby revealed another flaw that impacts small neighborhoods. Tasks involving the town can be nigh impossible. I had to send away 3, yes three, trains until one finally appeared with the final strong man that I needed. This game is rigged against small hoods in multiple ways.

I didn’t grow weary of the Derby, I grew frustrated for the reasons BostonGirl stated. Real life is stressful enough, I didn’t need the drama of NH’s in my downtime. It is better for my sanity playing solo, but it’s not without its ingame injustices.

Thank you WP for putting Frisco's response in the context of the timeline. Frisco posted his response in the beginning of June 2017 and announced the Birthday Derby, the first of themed derbies at the end of June.

https://forum.supercell.com/showthre...thday-Derby%21

Yes, so clearly it was NOT in response to this thread. SC cannot move that quickly.

*I am in a Solo Hood, but I have amazing GC/Friends Book Friends & Forum Friends - without all of you, I’d have stopped playing LONG ago. So once again, thank you x

[Tahoe]

Smallchange and many others have made some very valid points here. I am also a solo hood, so I've been there.

[BostonGirl]

In case I inadvertently hurt his feelings: I wasn’t dissing Frisco and I think the minds behind HD are brilliant. I’ve said this many ways on and off this forum. I do think that the SC HD team listens and that they try to keep players satisfied. Just see LetTheMusicPlay’s thread if you don’t believe that.

I do nevertheless trust that SC like all smart companies (and people) appreciate constructive criticism and being held to their word. I was trying to do that so that the 1-man NH issue at least remains on the SC list of things to consider.

Nick, Frisco and many of the moderators have on many occasions interjected comments in threads in very smart, pleasant ways to tamp down the “enthusiasm” before the train goes off the rails. I see it and admire it because it takes enormous patience and self control. However, sometimes those comments, as well meaning as they are, tend to so effectively diffuse the situation that the real issues are treated as “sorted” in our minds. I haven’t posted for weeks and didn’t intend to post yesterday. I only did because I really do believe that HD players are not the “normal” players and maybe SC needed a nudge to see/prove that. Maybe they didn’t need it, mind you, but I wouldn’t know that so I did what SC and my keyboard allowed me to do. I spoke.

To those who obliquely indicated that my Frisco reference may be construed negatively: thanks. It certainly was not intended and I hope this clears that up.

And now to avoid derailing this important thread:
Yes! to small NHs reaching all the horseshoes
Yes! to SC digging through its own data to see if that works despite what other data may say

Cheers!

[LetTheMusicPlay]

(Retrieves soapbox from its usual place over by the pig pens)

While I wholeheartedly believe that solo NHs should have the same opportunity to earn all the horseshoes, I think the premise of many of the posts is incorrect.

SC doesn’t care about the difficulty or not of one NH’s derby over another; they don’t care whether it’s easier or not for larger or smaller NHs. Having been in many large NHs and settled for my own little one, I agree with those who maintain that each NH type presents its own challenges. But I repeat, SC doesn’t care about that. Those are things that the players care about and all our misdirected energy will allow the company to continue doing what it does.

I want to be very clear before I go on that I am not making digs at SC. I don’t think they’re mean or manipulative in this issue. In their position I would have started out the exact same way. I would want my company to be as profitable as possible while maintaining clientele.

That said, SC only cares that research shows that people who play in groups play longer, stay longer and spend more than they would if they were not in a group. Not just any group though - it must be a group of a certain minimum size. “Private” chatting within the group increases this behaviour. It’s no coincidence that all pay-to-play games organise NHs or clans or armadas or whatever they choose to call groupings. Whether HD players
a. really conform to that research; or (as I believe)
b. behave like the curling stone and seem to defy conventional science
is the question.

I began playing solo a while ago. If I could not, I know I would have left the game. I was in one high pressure “mommy/overseer” NH that my independent spirit could not take. Then I was in a looser “we 10 will play like fiends while the other 8 will never contribute” NH and didn’t like that. I started my own NH and found that the pressure from some to be a “better” or “different” leader was causing me stress. There was yet another NH where the requirement to chat or be deemed rude made the game excruciating. I remember how the Champions League trashing notification raised my blood pressure. “Oh dear Lord! Now the NH will always know when I’m on.” Yet another where one or two were constantly asking for goods.

At one time, I left HD and didn’t play for many months. When I decided to try again, I also decided to go it on my own. The game allowed me to do that and boy was I grateful. I buy diamonds periodically because I need them, want them or sometimes just to support the game so that I can continue playing for years. I call boats, I almost always play the derby and I buy the 10th task. I find the inability to get all the horseshoes irksome and unnecessary and always will.

HD should check their own data. Do the people in the tiny NHs really leave the game sooner/spend less/play less? And even if they do the latter two, is that offset by the fact that were they not allowed to have and keep their tiny NHs they would stop playing altogether?

So after this long-winded thesis...I’m looking for a publisher...I close by saying that I hope Frisco wasn’t just paying lip service to us and that HD is really considering changing things. I hope they look at their own game data and do not simply accept the general data because I don’t believe HD players so readily conform, and that that’s because of the way the game was made.

(steps down off of, and replaces, soapbox. Retreats to NH house for tea and crumpets.)

This masterful post. Felt enriched reading your insights. And I'm so happy that you found a bijoux NH of one that suits you and keeps you playing.

[Lyngby]

Have this thread woken agen ,
Where the one man Hoods wish MORE awards then the BIG teams for doing much less work !
How it is to play a Derby in a big team if you like to get in top 3 ,you easy get to know if you only do 400 point tasks in a mystery Derby
To do a mystery derby is not much difference or harder then to do normal derby in a Big team .
To get ANY bingo in a bingo Bingo in BIG team is close to Impossible ,
And as a player in big team if you leave the ONLY thing you have to show is the awards ,
YOU DONT have any Derby CUPs to show , as you have in one man hood .

So you dont wish the Derby to be fair by scream for more awards to small Hoods . You want all advantage for less work . And more awards then players in big team gets !