New Decepticon City?

We built this city on Rock and Roll!

Premise
Hi!

Lately, I have been feeling very passionate about building a cool, new Decepticon base on Earth! I have a vision of a city that is very grand and very extravagant that I am confident will help to generate more roleplay not just for the Decepticons but also the Autobots. The question, of course is: do we need this? Will it do as it promises or just serve to be room bloat? In the interest of Trying Something New (tm), I open this question up to the playerbase to gauge enthusiasm and interest.

If enough people like this idea, I would like to pursue it by trying to convince staff of legitimacy of the idea. Of course there is an inconsequential amount of interest, I can just go back to the drawing board and come up with something else.

The Argument for a New Decepticon Base:

Our playerbase is at a modest but active level. Any ideas set forth, especially in terms of building something new, should do so with the intention of fostering as much activity as possible. While you cannot please everyone, there ought to be a decent chunk of players who really plug into it. We can encourage activity by following the fantastic model that the EDC players have promoted as the standard: less is more -- about distance. Why is it that at any given peak time for the game, +where shows a big blob of green in one to two rooms -- because they're all based out of California! Between Alameda (the primary headquarters) and San Francisco (Andi's home), there is not so much geographic and room distance keeping players apart. It keeps players together. It allows for more activity. You might even see some red there! Why? It is also accessible! For those who are interested (and I have taken part in this with my Autobot alt), you too can join in on the hijinx. There are no rooms to be navigated that require an ability (like Flight or Swim or a vehicle that utilizes it). You can just walk there! Easy-peasy!

...for sheezy!

In the current incarnation of the Decepticons, we are very spread out! We have multiple bases/points of interest spread across the cosmos. On Earth/Sol System our footholds are represented by the NCC Shark (in an undisclosed location somewhere in the oceans of Earth -- formerly occupied an island in the Southwest Pacific), the Absolution Command Carrier (in Earth Orbit), Not-Blot Station (in Earth orbit), Trypticon (on Jupiter's moon Titan). We also have the entire planet of Charr (really wretched place), IHQ Headquarters-at-Nightsiege (Cybertron), Darkmount-at-Polyhex (Cybertron), an orbital station (in orbit around Cybertron). While these bases range from "ew!" to "hey, cool!" we have the problem of being very, very spread out. Our assets within the Sol System are either hidden or require movement abilities to navigate to. While this provides us with a whole heck of a lot of privacy, it makes it very difficult (and often a TP) to allow the Autobots to interact with us at our places of business. This can be very discouraging for spontaneous roleplay. A glance at +where at our peak hours will show some purple on the Absolution's Power Station, NCC Shark's Medical Ward (?), Trypticon-on-Titan, and someone on Cybertron. Very spread out! Not very good for us to roleplay more often among each other.

Solutions
So what about centralizing and condensing? What if we went along with this great example the EDC players are providing the rest of the MUSH and threw a Decepticon twist on things?

The idea that I submit for your approval is we build another open, public city on Earth. One that allows us to centralize the Decepticon assets in the Sol System (we've got four!!) as best as possible, in a location that is accessible to virtually everyone without the need of movement abilities and puts us in a location suitably close to our In Character adversaries? It could provide an advantage to spur roleplay both within faction and cross-faction that strips away the complications of getting people together in the same room at any given time.

This is where Ayotzinco comes in. Former stronghold of the Militants that was once Mexico City set in Mexico (which to them was New Aztlan), a faction of alternate-universe humans that have since been pulled from our storyline. With the Militants since gone, Ayotzinco has continued on without their original vision and leadership. It may still be prosperous but one could posit it no longer the superpower it once was. The area is still rich in materials (minerals, energy sources) and labor (human slaves!) -- but the champions that have defended it are gone. In relation to California, it is practically a hop and a skip for Transformers. It's prime real estate for a Decepticon invasion!

Decently large and rich in resources, Ayotzinco can be the perfect foundation for a new Decepticon city on Earth. They wouldn't have to go far for building materials at all. This time around, they go for a mix of Aztec themes (preserved from the Militant flavor) with the forever future-looking Cybertronian architecture. Think big. Think grand. Think lots of gold and statues. Think glory and grand games -- a colliseum for public sport, a new War Academy to train Decepticons in new innovations of Earth warfare. Think research facilities that advance Decepticon technology. Think.. well.. a utopia! On Earth. In front of everyone, ripe and open. The Decepticons aren't hiding. They're doing it in front of your very eyes and they dare you to come taste the fruits of their labor -- or sour it, as your preference may be.

Advantages
1. Converts an area no longer being used into something to being used!

2. On Earth, within short distance of California. Let's invite those Autobots to bring Metroplex back to the West Coast and kick up a barbeque! ... Of pain.

3. Accessibility and city offering provide opportunities not only for Decepticons but for Autobot players, too. Perform some reconnaisance! Test our defenses! Grab your sombrero and infiltrate the city to catch a jet-chariot race or share a drink with your favorite Decepticon nemesis! Grimlock, grab some friends and lead a daring commando raid on our Jet Propulsion laboratories! Be encouraged to be a pro-active hero without having to worry about destroying everything we worked for -- try nailing a portion, instead!

4. Collects the 'loose' Decepticon bases into one! The NCC-Shark can dock at our harbor and rest until we'd like to use it again. The Absolution can land at our spaceport for repairs, re-fueling, and refurbishing. Trypticon can serve as our military headquarters or simply an easy place to mothball him until we need him again.

5. The colliseum can offer us fun sporty events to put together: the jet-chariot races, gladiator games, and debates.

Disadvantages
1. Hardly private at all!

2. Well-defended but not impregnable nor totally or obnoxiously defensible.

3. Might mothball things that some people really like and would rather keep playing in (NCC? Absolution? Trypticon?)

4. Changing the face of Ayotzinco.

5. Accessibility might get it completely destroyed / get us evicted should that be an avenue people really want.

6. In Character human slaves or a brainwashed population or a population that seems to be decent about living under Decepticon rule might make others feel bad.

7. Ramjet's ideas are all terrible! Boo!

Staying Private and Isolated
1. Privacy! We hug each other without you knowing!

2. Isolated or requires an ability to get to it. Good luck!

3. Completely defensible or obnoxiously impregnable. Try finding us, we'll just run away! Or you'll have to come up with a TP idea to pull anything off.

4. We do not change anything!

5. Hidden bases are keeping with the theme of the cartoon.

6. Existing bases are really cool and we rather keep those!

7. Not supporting Ramjet's ideas is as your god of choice (except Ganesha) intended.

Please post your comments/questions/criticisms to the Discussion Board 28. I will add them to this entry to provide discussion continuity as necessary.