As many of you have realized, a Liaison round is imminent. This is
simply a courtesy post to suggest that you all get writing! In about a
week, I will enable submission of reports. From there, you'll have until
the end of the year to get everything perfected and submitted.

For those of you unfamiliar with the process, Liaison reports are
focused, specific appeals to the administration on matters of combat
balance. Each report has a problem at issue and some proposed solutions.
Anyone can submit a Liaison report, but most of the world is limited to
six submissions per round. If you have a multitude of reports you
consider important, suggest one to one of our approved Liaisons -- they
have unlimited submission capability.

This round, our big focus in addition to the usual combat balancing is
quality of life. What are the combat-related things that bug you? Inline
envenoming is sure to get some attention, but what else do you have?
Note that if such a change would have no combat ramifications, it's not
necessary to file a Liaison report. Please do NOT submit reports about
Carnifex, Sentinels or statpack changes. The former two revamps are
coming quite soon and the latter is still in a state of post-release
fluidity.

Finally, I've included some tips below to ensure that each report is as
effective as possible.

1) Start with a focused problem.
Don't just tell us "Templar does too much damage," because our response
will probably be "Yep!" Instead, pinpoint an ability or two which you
consider to be excessive and work from there. For example, "X does too
much damage in conjuction with Y" or "The balance cost on Z is far too
short."

2) Consider your audience.
We deal with an enormous number of skills and abilities, either live or
currently in development. Try to be pretty detailed when making
references to skill names and effects. Above all, remember that we're
people. Reports should be respectful and as neutral as possible.

3) Try not to submit duplicate reports.
As soon as I'm finished posting this, I'll start up a forum thread for
you all to discuss what you're submitting. If you and another person
have identified fairly similar problems but you still believe you have
an innovative solution to the problem, go ahead and report. Otherwise,
it may be best to simply collaborate and improve the original report.

4) Don't get too attached to your solution.
Many report approvals boil down to "We'll do -something- like this."
Every approved report is subject to modification and refinement.
Conversely, make sure you shoot for your ideal solution. If it's too
ambitious or not mechanically possible, we'll hash out the details.

I can't wait to hear your input!

Oleis

Penned by my hand on the 24th of Khepary, in the year 407 MA.