Abresi Financial Overview

[Senda 472]

Abresi Financial Status

 

Week 7-8 (2nd Dec - 15th Dec)

 

 

The fourth period already! This report marks the end of the second month of a status-updated Abresi, which has managed to weather all storms cast against it thus far, be they Rebel forces, Dwarves out for blood, random criminals smelling an oppotunity, the antagonists intent on mayhem.. or the absence of taxation, intent on crippling the cashflow!

 

But, we have managed to hold our own against it all.. and come out stronger because of it.

 

Sadly, with the good comes some bad, as eventually, rules are broken and measures must be taken to ensure the continued balance.

 

 

Let's start with some bad news this time: Charles Brae (Radahan) is no longer a Steward for the city. He was found guilty of unlawfully evicting someone and in the absence of proof to vindicate him, I was left with no alternative but to remove Charles from his office.

 

Let this stand as a reminder to all: While Stewards can evict people for inactivity, only the guardforce has the power to evict someone for criminal activity. We, the Stewards, only pick up the tail-end of those “criminal evictions”, in that we take care of the actual work, once the guards let us know they booted someone from Abresi.

 

Despite this, the past two weeks saw immense progress as several projects were completed.. or -very- near to that:

 

First up, the Royal Keep.

 

Good god, what a beauty! Mason Manfred really outdid himself on this one, as he constructed the single most impressive structure Abresi has even seen. A fitting seat for our government.. and a solid place for King Heinrik's Throne.

 

Secondly: The Sewers.

 

 

Hard at work in the depths of the mountain, tunneling underneath homes and churning through the rock, the sewer-contruction team (Bathrugman, Senda and Firespirit44) have brought Abresi two seperate sewer systems. One is located directly underneath the housing of the city, with accesspoints that open up within it (go look for them!), while the other part is located a fair bit below that, deeping into the mountain.. and spills out into the bay.

 

The two parts are not (and will not be) connected, but they will both lead into the Abresi Sewer Dungeon, where a giant rat is allegedly responsible for all kinds of evil. Watch out for an official

announcement when the dungeon goes live, but in the meantime, why dont you band together in small groups and explore the dark, cavernous tunnels that now honeycomb the Abresi mountain?

 

Last, but certainly not least: The Kraltan District. 

Oooh, we are /so/ close on finishing this. Would have gotten it done a whole lot sooner, if it were not for random things getting in the way, like Firespirit pushing for the sewers and Knox pushing for the
Keep. (both in very valid and structured ways, it should be noted). Expect the final row of houses to open up for renting within the next few days, marking the last building project within the city limits!

 

(Only took us two months, but the city is almost completely done!)

 

 

 

Income:

 

Plot taxation:

 

-none-

 

Plot taxation was suspended due to disabled plugins.

Once the voting and chest-shop plugins are back, taxation will return.

 

Total tax income: 0

 

Surplus from last period: -7550

 

 

Expenditure:

 

Guard payments:

 

lukylucaz - initiate - 160

outboundhotfire - initiate - 160

griff28 - initiate - 160

miningtilldeath - initiate - 160

 

epicaidana13 - guard – 260

ace134 – guard – 260

james2k - guard - 260

 

keith_dx7 - serjeant - 360

asafpoz - serjeant - 360

 

Origin_Lark - commissar - 460

Youlovesocks - commissar - 460

 

 

Total guard payments: 3060

 

 

Final tally: -10610 minas

 

 

Closing remarks:

 

From the last review:

A continuation of deficit, which seems staggering.. but must be put into perspective, to ensure everyone understands what these numbers actually mean.

 

It is far too easy to point at them and go "red is bad!", it goes beyond that.

Running a town, or city.. or even a nation, is all about long-term views.

 

We built the system to be reliant on two seperate plugins to function, as detailed in the last report.

Now, while one has been brought back, the other has not. At the moment, it is a simple case of waiting for the voting plugin to return.. and then we can levy tax again.. and get back into the green numbers.

 

"But how do you recover from red number -that- big?!"

 

Well, to put things in simple context: We lose roughly 5-6k on guard wages every period. This is offset by a potential taxation earning of 15k every period, from all of the plots in Abresi.

Statistically speaking, we need only recieve tax from one third of the plots to break even.

 

As you may have seen in my reports, our Steward team is hard at work to ensure as many plots have active owners as possible. In reality, I expect roughly two-thirds of our plots to provide a stable income.

 

This means that as soon as tax is levied, we will earn twice as much as we spend.

Keeping in mind that we want to use our surplus for fun events and prize money sponsorship of them.. we will be back in the green in as many weeks as we have spent there, give or take.

 

Suffice it to say that the "management" of Abresi is not worried in the slightest.. and will continue to have fun roleplaying and sorting affairs for all.

 

Fun fact to go along with the above: I made more money from auctions then I spent on paying the guardforce. Even less need to worry, we got it all sorted out for the moment.

 

 

Holiday season hits the city:

 

 

 

That's right, Abresi now has a huge Krugsmas Tree to celebrate the festive season! To go along with the decline in temperature, the entire region has been set to snow.. so enjoy the slowly drifting flakes dance in the air, as the city will be covered in a perpetual blanket of solid white!

 

(Also, snowball fights in the streets!)

 

 

Shop Spotlight:

 

This report, the spotlight shines upon Silus Horen's Locksmithing shop:

 

 

A neat little place, right next to the Auction House, which makes excellent use of the auto-shop plugin to display the variety of items sold that all tie in neatly to his locksmithing buisness. Be it an iron door or a specialized pressure plate.. or a simple wooden button, this shop stocks it all! Be sure to seek out Silus himself for his services as a certified locksmith, to tightly seal all you hold dear.. for a fair price of course!

 

 

 

 

[SirSnowMan 318]

((Looks great, Senda))

[VonEbs 1224]

Ebs is totally going to steal this.

[Lark 2227]

((Now Erlend can work on more important things like the Blacksmithing Guild. :p))

[firespirit44 1323]

((I want there to be a monthly LOTC world news like this.

 

Good job once again Senda. Also in regards to the sewers, we are excited to announce the usage of the dungeon plugin, which thanks to Sporadic's hardwork should be online in a couple of days-a week. Its creeping with crawlies, but it is a breakthrough once we gather enough information after the players have tried using it.))

[Rivk Zavadsky 700]

*Rick sends a letter*

 

I will be giving this 160 minas, as i do not need it at the moment.

 

Edit:

 

Ignore that above, kind of spent it all...

[Senda 472]

Notice: Due to the holidays, various time constraints and other complications (such as an incomplete guard listing that needs sorting to enable me to pay those guards that, despite everything, stick around and do their jobs.) .. the financial report that was scheduled to be posted yesterday/today will instead be delayed till tomorrow. (1st Jan 2014)

 

Abresi apologizes for the delay.

[Knox213 10]

Notice: Due to the holidays, various time constraints and other complications (such as an incomplete guard listing that needs sorting to enable me to pay those guards that, despite everything, stick around and do their jobs.) .. the financial report that was scheduled to be posted yesterday/today will instead be delayed till tomorrow. (1st Jan 2014)

 

Abresi apologizes for the delay.

Due to inactivity of a current guard force, none of them will be paid this week.

[Senda 472]

Abresi Financial Status

 

Week 9-10 (16th Dec - 29th Dec)

 

The fifth period has come and gone.. and from everyone in the Abresi Stewarding Team: Happy New Year!

 

Let us begin the new year with a bunch of exciting announcements, the first of which is a joint effort throughout all of Oren to provide a monthly set of events! A great shout-out to everyone involved, as Abresi, as well as every other fort or town within Oren will now periodically play host to one of the 4 monthly events that are planned, rotating them between all of us, to give people an excuse to visit every place in Oren, while giving the people that live in those places a good chance to showcase their home.

 

Oren belongs to all of us after all, we should share the fun among all of us!

 

More information on the events can be found in the following forum thread: http://www.lordofthecraft.net/topic/103608-event-calender-events-in-the-kingdom-of-oren/

Abresi, as a community, looks forward to attending the Kraltan Harvest festival on the 11th of January.

 

Meanwhile, the new year has come.. and to celebrate (even if it is a little out-of-character), we decided we wanted something small and fun for New Year’s, so.. we have a “Turn of the Decade”-feast in Abresi!

That’s right, simply walk up the main roads till you reach the Royal Square (the square in front of the Taxation Office and the Royal Keep) where you will find a banquet, ready for you to enjoy. Feel free to bring all your friends and enjoy the delicious cake, as well as what remains of other free foodstuffs arranged there.

 

 

To close it off, on saturday the 4th, at 3pm EST/8pm GMT, we will unleash a barrage of fireworks from the Square, to officially herald the new decade in a glorious display of coloured explosions!

 

Next up, a mixture of sadness and joy, as another Steward takes his leave.. yet we hire a new one!

 

Sheon Ryder (SirNublet) has taken his leave from us. We wish him well on his future endeavors, where he is going to explore a number of other things. His leaving was on the best possible terms and I, as well as the rest of Abresi, wishes him the very best and thank him for his stint as Steward, where he did an excellent job.

 

To fill his shoes, we recently aquired Davkas (xxBegginBobxx), who has taken to his new role with relish.

A keen and forward person, Davkas has surprised the lot of us with his frank and forward attitude.. and his willingness to sort out just about anything, while generally being incredibly helpful. A great asset to our team, we hope he will continue his service and grow to be an excellent hallmark of what “good Stewarding” is all about.

 

 

On a different note: The Imperial Army has been disbanded! 

 

Amidst gasps of disbelief and terror, let us all take a moment and be relieved in the knowledge that this is actually a good thing.

The Imperial army was created in a time of great strife and upheaval, where a central effort needed to be made to re-establish order where there was none.. and brutally enforce the law, to clean up the lands (mostly Abresi).

 

Now that this effort has been concluded and Oren is returning to its former system of Lords that preside over active towns and forts, the central army system is no longer needed.

This means that "the guardforce" in Abresi is no longer a thing.

 

Obviously, we still need and want a guardforce, so a new one, specific to Abresi, shall be created.

We will essentially re-make the King's Watch and establish them properly again. Keep an eye out for a forum post with more details about this over the coming few days.

 

 

And finally, we drop the bombshell - Taxes are coming back this period!

 

Talking about a ‘long time in the works’, we finally re-introduce taxation in Abresi.

 

“But Joseph, the voting plugin has not returned?!”

 

You are correct, it has not.

We have debated the return of taxation for the last month and a half. None of you would (or rather, should) know about it, as it all took place behind closed doors. Essentially, it boiled down the the King pushing me to return to taxation.. and myself pushing back with “but we don’t have a voting plugin yet.”

 

Ultimately, we reflected upon what the taxation system is supposed to be doing: Promote activity.

The way our taxation promotes activity is threefold. First, it ‘forces’ people to be active in the game to be able to pay them. Something as simple as logging in frequently to vote is, and will continue to be, the simplest way to gather the funds for this. Having said that, people are free to decide how they come by the coin, obviously. Some will not vote, instead making the cash through working jobs or running their shop efficiently. Ultimately, voting is really only a benchmark for the amounts we tax.

Secondly, the fact that our system is automated enables people to pay it when they have the chance, rather than needing to match time schedules with Stewards, or having to take screenshots. The system working the way it does, actually promotes activity, by allowing people the freedom to log in without having to truly manage their playtime. Reduces the strain on players, which makes LotC (for those players) more about logging in to have fun, in an unobstructed way.

Lastly, what we do with the coin that we collect promotes activity. As most of you know, we do not just pay guards with the money. We donate the remaining coin to events being hosted throughout Oren as prize money, or buy goods with them to help out certain places or events. For instance, a shipment of fireworks to celebrate the new year.

 

So, all in all, we decided that the pro’s outweighed the con’s, considering that it has been 2 months since we last taxed anyone, it should have been more then enough time for people to collect spare cash.

With this, we shall re-implement the taxation as of this period.

 

Therefore, the next week in which any inhabitant of Abresi is required to pay tax again will be: 6th Jan - 12th Jan.

 

Income:

 

Plot taxation:

 

No taxation this period. Tax to return the coming period (6th Jan - 12th Jan)

 

Total tax income: 0

 

Surplus from last period: -10610

 

Expenditure:

 

Guard payments:

 

outboundhotfire - guard – 260

griff28 - guard – 260

epicaidana13 - guard – 260

 

xtremegamer714 – serjeant – 360

asafpoz - serjeant - 360

 

Origin_Lark - commissar - 460

yopplwasupxxx – commissar – 460

 

Total guard payments: 2420

 

A note about guard payments: The Imperial Army (which Abresi paid for to this point) has been officially disbanded. As such, we still pay out the guards for their services of the past two weeks. 

 

Come the next period, a new, Abresi-specific, guardforce will see the light of day (and recieve payment)

 

Other expenditures:

 

supply of fireworks: 500 

 

Final tally: -13530 minas

 

Closing remarks:

 

Some of you may be wondering “So.. how are taxes going to work, now that we have a new shop plugin?”

 

What we will be doing is the following: A shop inside the Taxation Office will be set up prior to the 6th. This shop will sell a custom item, called “Abresi Taxation Papers” for 50 minas each.

As each plot in the city is taxed at a multitude of 50 minas, you simply buy the amount that corresponds with the tax of your plot (example: plot taxed for 200 means you buy 4 items) and go downstairs.. to the collection area.

 

In the collection area, you will now find a donation chest for each plot. You simply put the papers in the donation chest and come the end of the taxation period, the Stewarding team will empty out the chests and note who paid.. and who has not, same as we did with the previous system.

 

So, fear not, citizens. The system is all in hand, figured out and will be implemented in time for the 6th, so all can hop on over and check it out.

 

In other news, some of you may have known that Abresi was to recieve its own dungeon (the plugin developed by Sporadic) in our sewers. This was announced to go live “within a few days” with the last report and sadly, we have not been able to live up to that promise.

With the transition to 1.7.2, almost everything on the server broke down and the tech team has been very hard at work, but obviously the sewer dungeon is low on their list. We do not hold this against them, as they are among the most unsung heroes of this server, working hard to keep it all running.

Meanwhile, we are in talks to implement the dungeon in another way, by simply having it on the same server and setting up a warp to it, much like the mines. More news on that as it becomes available.

 

One small tidbit to close this off with some good news: We built another set of lifts near the back of Abresi. this lift now gives better access to the Chapel within the Royal Keep.

 

 

 

We look forward to more events within the Chapel as a consequence!

 

Shop Spotlight:

 

Abresi Jewelry and Engravings

 

 

 

This little shop at the beginning of Herald’s Pathway is owned by Abner Rahl and his wife, Evangeline Rahl. They sell diamond and emerald items for up to 75 Minas, gold, quartz, and lapis lazuli items for 50 Minas, and silver or iron items for 25 Minas. They pair engrave both items and weapons (for a fee, of course!) So, come down to this fair little shop and purchase an engraving for yourself, a friend, or a loved one today.

 

[Senda 472]

Updated quickly for a few tidbits we left out:

 

On a different note: The Imperial Army has been disbanded! 

 

Amidst gasps of disbelief and terror, let us all take a moment and be relieved in the knowledge that this is actually a good thing.

The Imperial army was created in a time of great strife and upheaval, where a central effort needed to be made to re-establish order where there was none.. and brutally enforce the law, to clean up the lands (mostly Abresi).

 

Now that this effort has been concluded and Oren is returning to its former system of Lords that preside over active towns and forts, the central army system is no longer needed.

This means that "the guardforce" in Abresi is no longer a thing.

 

Obviously, we still need and want a guardforce, so a new one, specific to Abresi, shall be created.

We will essentially re-make the King's Watch and establish them properly again. Keep an eye out for a forum post with more details about this over the coming few days.

[SirSnowMan 318]

[senda, if you want you can message me on Skype and perhaps we could come up with some solid ideas about the new Guard.]

[Senda 472]

((Will do. Got nearly all of it planned out, looking forward to your feedback on it!))

[Senda 472]

As posted in a seperate thread:

 

Greetings and salutations everyone!

 

Today (6th Jan), Abresi Taxation is finally re-implemented. It has been a long while in the works and we finally configured the system to work, allowing all inhabitants to pay their taxes (so we can do awesome things with it, like sort prize money for a ton of events, as well as pay our own guardforce.)

 

 

Sen, how does it work!?

 

 

I am glad you asked! In order to pay your taxes, first, you go to the Taxation Office in Abresi, located along to road high up on the mountainside, right next to the "Royal Square", with the path leading up to the Royal Keep.

 

A fairly big place, hard to miss:

 

 

 

Once arrived, inside, on the right, you will find my latest loyal minion hard-working helper, Thomas.

 

Thomas is the new Abresi Taxation Advisor, here to help each and every one of you come to grips with the new system, by explaining the basics.

 

(click on him to enable him to speak)

 

==============================================================================

Thomas mans the shop that sells the new item that is the system revolves around: 

 

"Abresi Tax Paper (paper)"

 

These papers, bearing an official seal and sold for 50 minas each, are the item you buy to pay your tax with. Simply buy as many as you need to cover your plot-specific tax, then hold on to them tightly as we move on!

==============================================================================

 

(Thomas is also a strong supporter of the Abresi Financial Report, and being the business-savvy professional that he is, will no doubt sneak in a small advertisement for it!)

 

 

 

Papers in hand, it is time to take them downstairs, to the tax collection system, which is fully automated!

 

Simply walk on down the staircase..

 

 

 

 

And you will reach the basement with the collection chests!

 

 

 

 

Each chest is labelled for the plot it belongs to, listing the name, the plot number and location.. and most importantly: The taxation amount (and how many papers that corresponds to)

 

Upstairs, you buy the amount you need, then downstairs, you deposit them in the chests.

 

At the end of the taxation weeks, we (The Stewarding team) will check all the chests to mark up who has paid their taxes.. and who has not.

 

Obviously, those that do not pay their tax face all sorts of annoyance, such as stern warnings, fines.. and even flat-out eviction.

 

So, make sure you pay your taxes on time!

(And if an RL commitment prevents you from logging in during the specific week, be sure to drop Senda a pm on the forum.)

 

 

 

We hope this informs you of all you need to know of the Abresi taxation system.

 

If there are further questions, please do not hesitate to ask them here in this tread, in-game or even through a forum pm.

 

 

From the entire Stewarding team, we wish you a great new year and excellent roleplay!

 

[Senda 472]

Abresi Financial Status

 

Week 11-12 (30th Dec - 12th Jan)

 

The sixth period has passed.. and this report got delayed by a few days, but lots has happened, so let us dive right in!

 

Bombshell-worthy news to start with, as we look back on the re-implementation of the Taxation system.

Even though the voting plugin was not operational, the shop plugin was and in the interest of activity and cashflow for fun events, we went ahead and started taxing again, with interesting results.

 

Getting the whole system adapted to the new way shops work now took a while, but we wiggled our way around the technical side of things and succesfully implemented a new automated collection system that takes full advantage of the new shop features, while still keeping to the list of perks that we have come to expect from Abresi taxation: Stress-free, simple and decent taxation.

 

A small notice needs to be given here: This one time, we allowed a grace period of 3 extra days for people to pay their taxes, as many needed 'reminding' that we started taxation again. Now that everyone knows (those that still dont got evicted), there will be no more grace periods.

It is up to each and every individual to keep track of time and collection periods. To stay up to date, simply take a walk over to the Taxation Office or the Visitor Centre, where the current or upcoming collection week details are posted.

 

For more information on the new system, give this thread a look: http://www.lordofthecraft.net/topic/104210-guide-taxation-in-abresi/

 

Hot on the heels of the new taxation system, came the revival of the Abresi city guard, or “The King's Watch”, as we know them.

Besides being the guards for the city and it's inhabitants, we should not forget that Abresi plays host to the Royal Keep, and within it, the King and his family. Essentially, this makes the guardforce the peronal bodyguard for the King as well, hence the name.

 

Theobalt Rolnik (firestar25), one of Abresi's Stewards, has taken up the role of Captain of this group. While he remains a Steward officially, he will no doubt have far less time for stewarding then he used to. Nevertheless, we wish his the very best of luck, as he will be responsible for keeping our city free of crime.

 

Give them a look in this thread: http://www.lordofthecraft.net/topic/104215-the-kings-watch-of-abresi/

 

Sadly, while firestar is taking up new roles to add to his stewarding ones, we are also losing a full steward this period.

Darius Mercer (Hobolympic) has stepped down from his roles and shall now spend more time wandering the lands, while he sorts out a ton of stuff outside of the game.

We all wish his the very best and are thankful that he will never fully leave us, as we still talk to him on a near-daily basis. (one of us.. one of us..)

With luck, he will return in the future.

 

With one steward leaving and another being very busy, this obviously opens up some spots for new Stewards. Prospective candidates are encouraged to contact Joseph Lane (Senda). A forum pm would be best, but other means of introducing yourself are of course fine as well.

 

 

So, that settles the introductory stuff, let us have a look at some numbers:

 

 

 

Income:

 

Plot taxation:

 

Total tax income: 8100

 

Surplus from last period: -13030

 

 

Expenditure:

 

Guard payments:

 

Firestar25 – captain – 500

 

Ventios – watchman – 250 + 1000 (bonus)

Beast720 – watchman – 250

bluesmith59 – watchman – 250

krazykidman – watchman 250

Minimanthefirst – watchman – 250

 

(note on guard payments: Ventios recieved the “most active guardsman”-award, giving out each period. This earned him a tidy 1000 minas bonus to his standard pay. Job well done!)

 

Total guard payments: 2750

 

Final tally: -7680 minas

 

 

Numbers still in the red, but not taking into account the deficit of last period, we turned a profit of 5350 minas. Given those numbers, we will be back in the green within 2 periods, though it may take up to 3 or 4, as we intend to spend quite a bit of money on the upcoming events, to organize prizes and the like.

 

 

 

Closing remarks:

 

So, the balance slowly returns to a healthy green colour, but we are not there quite yet. Thankfully, given time, it will all level out and we can focus on spending gleefully, with wanton regard, to promote all sorts of fun events on a bigger scale.

 

Speaking of events, there is a rather big ongoing one still running in our city: The Sewer Event.

 

Essentially, all you need to know is that our city smells bad. Or rather, the sewers do if set on fire. Groups of adventurers are encouraged to go down into the sewers to cleanse them.. and keep an eye out for a grand finale in this regard. Obviously, a problem this great can only be solved with the cunning application of large amounts of brute force.

 

Give the event a read in this forum thread: http://www.lordofthecraft.net/topic/104062-abresi-a-hive-of-sewage-and-smelliness/

 

Apart from this, Oren, as a nation, is now a bit more organised, event-wise. As Lord Steward, Joseph Lane has begun coördinating the various towns and forts within the Kingdom to all periodically host events, ensuring there is something fun going on every weekend.

 

Get aquinted with the entire Kingdom, recieve an excellent excuse to visit that place you have never seen before, or just hop over for grand prizes, the Oren monthly events have something interesting for everyone!

 

Give them a look in this thread: http://www.lordofthecraft.net/topic/103608-event-calender-events-in-the-kingdom-of-oren/

 

Adept readers will notice that the upcoming weekend plays host to a Tournament in Cavan, while the week after sees a Religious festival in Abresi, celebrating Saint Thomas.

 

If you want to stay up to date with current events, simple look at the notice pillar in the market square, which will always have an up-to-date listing of all events!

 

 

 

Next up: The Abresi Tavern is under new management!

 

Now renamed to “The Silver Maiden”, it is under the care of Christion de Silvarios (Semperosa)

Quickly establishing himself and his crew, the Tavern has been doing very well, with many evenings seeying a packed interior, full of drinking, talking and sometimes brawling folk.

 

We look forward to the Tavern playing host to the Pub Quiz again, come next month. Keep an eye out for that!

 

Last, but not least, as two small shops in the city that deserve a special mention.

 

For far too long, the supply of food to the city has been an arduous and complicated affair. Many things have been tried, few worked and generally speaking, the city has been facing starvation (nearly), which is bad. Much has been done in an attempt to promote/deal with this.. and at long last, we have a permanent solution:

 

Both Ager and Shattenburg have set up automated shops (with cunning npc's to advertise the respective locations) to provide a stable supply of food to the city. Should you find yourself in need of sustenance and none of the local foodshops are open.. look no further then this pairing of excellence!

 

 

 

 

Shop Spotlight:

 

This week, the spotlight falls upon Sofetios' bookstore.

 

An excellent store in of itself, Sofetios excells and makes the cut for his drive to go beyond “the basic shop”-idea. He organizes events, drawing crowds and generally improving the atmosphere in the city.

 

A job well done and may much merchantile success befall you in the future!

 

 

[Draeris 3124]

Gratz to Senda & Sofetios!

 

I just admire how people finally do things good who do not only benefit RPly but also for the server in general. Good direction we are on folks!