I also contact new players in game immediately, but perhaps not always ooc.
However in my IC messages I do offer help and explain that the noble life is dificult at first and needs time to get used to, I also often do my best to give them immediate goals and things to look out for.
In Gotland I also started a mentor message group (the Goatling Shed), where new members are added to get special tasks (sort of training missions) and also ask questions about the game or the strange realm of Gotland.
In reality it is mostly ignored by the new players.
I agree that some realms are silent and perhaps a terrible start for new players, however i must agree with Wimpie that most players just don't communicate much.
I didnt see any of the new players leave, but i rarely see them communicate.
However some do become ' real BM' players, and Gotland is a great example of a realm saved by new players, the majority of active players are now all relatively new players (past year).
They arent great roleplayers and their characters quite standard but they do go along with the local theme and appear to be ambitious.
The frustrations they have expressed aren't really mechanics related but more invasion related (I am not sure if they really get the concept of invasions in BT, or if they just don't like the ways its currently going, things are very stagnant because of it and their and Gotlands new efforts all beaten down time after time)
Certain environments might be better for new players, however there is no way to know that for a new player.
Some realm descriptions do state that the realm is a place for young and old or something similair, but thats just written by one person during a certain moment.
It might not be true or no longer be true.
Perhaps we can implement some kind of statistic on amount of new players in a certain realm, if they stay and their chance of getting any positions or wealth soon.
A query for new players after 3 days, a week, a month and or a half year asking if they need help and how well their realm has helped them could gather more statistics and also raise an immediate red flag for other players to help the new player. (ideally their lords should help them)
If the player answers yes i need more help, it could become visible for all.
If the player awnsers yes or no on their current realm beeing helpful, it could show up on the choose your realm page.
These two simple questions are more then enough and won't take much more time then 10 seconds.
Meanwhile I will ask the relatively new players IG to respond to this topic.
Perhaps can do so too.
