I have posted a few replies hinting at my perspective but will now completely express myself and then never again chime in on the new -vs- old subject.

I run a restaurant. Every season there is an influx of new staff. It is always interesting to see the dynamic between the senior staff and the new staff year after year.
One can observe…

-New people who complain about things who have no idea what the older folks have gone through and just how easy they now have it.

-Older folks who forget that they had time to learn each new wrinkle step by step and have no idea what it’s like for the new folks to jump into things with all the options now available.

-New folks who have no respect for a long standing set of unwritten community rules.

-Old folks who forget that it is not always clear just what those rules are.

I could go on and on, but does any of this seem similar to what you see sometimes expressed in these forums and experience during game-play?

Here are some things that are not tolerated…

-New folks who say “at the last place I did it like this so that’s how I’m doing it here”

-Old folks who ignore or alienate new people whose fresh perspective often has much to contribute.

-New folks who don’t realize there is always a learning curve no matter how much experience you have.

-Old folks who half-heartedly train then complain that the new staff isn’t doing things correctly.

-New folks who say “I got this” and don’t ask questions.

-Old folks who say “That’s a stupid question”

-Anyone who cannot bring a positive attitude to the table.
I will stop there but, again, could go on and on as a comparison.

In life there are 25% of the people who will always do the right thing, 25% who will never do the right thing and the other 50% will follow the stronger of the other two groups. This is true for new folks and old folks alike.

If you are not happy with the direction of things, I would tell an overly negative staff member, I would suggest you join the 25% who are actively seeking a patient, positive and cordial solution and be vocal about it. I guarantee you that half of the people will follow you and the remaining 25% will go away.

I feel exactly the same way about this game.

All too often life is a self-fulfilling prophesy. If you are overly express that all new players are (insert negativity) or that all old-heads treat me like (insert more of the same) I promise you it will come to pass. If you express things in a positive and constructive manner people will listen and things will get better.

F2P is not going anywhere, nor is the store. I doubt any business would offer something for free if they did not need to in order to compete and survive at least I wouldn’t Until we invent time travel, things will never be like they once were in anything we experience. We can play together in life and be civil and have fun or we can make life a game no one would care to play. It starts with basic respectfulness and empathy.

Anyway, I love Dungeons & Dragons in all its forms and would say thanks to the forum and all who have contributed their efforts, builds and ideas.