Staff AMA - Your Questions Answered!
Last week we opened up the board for any and all questions from the community. We got a neat set of questions, ranging from the serious to the outright, "Wait a second, what?!"
We all tried our best the answer as many as possible. You should find all of the answers below! If any of you still have questions to ask, we'll still be glad to answer them - just ask away in the comments below! In the meantime, head on below to see the staff's responses to your questions.
REMkings asks,
"Is it absolutely out of the question that there will be a Best of Forge 2012?
A while back I learned you guys never do BoF's from previous Halo games, but personally I think it would actually be pretty cool if you did. And it's not like Halo 4 is the most popular game in the world whereby nobody even wants to think about Reach anymore. I think it wouldn't do harm to do another Best of Forge and credit the maps that were released later on in Halo Reach too."
Tedium says,
"Quite honestly, I'm skeptical about how BoF 2012 will work, given that we're already half way though 2013 and most of the relevant maps for Halo 4 have been made this year. However, I don't see why we can't try if enough people are wanting it!"
Organite says,
"'Wait... I thought that Orgy guy retired.' Well, yes, but I still have a salmon face so here I am. To answer your question short and blunt REM, no. You have to realize the amount of effort that goes into organizing something to the caliber of a BoF. You also have to realize that H4 was only out for less than two months in 2012 and everyone stopped caring about Reach abruptly after. So considering that H4 had next to nothing to speak of yet, a BoF 2012 would have to centered around Reach maps, but who cares about Reach anymore? So now we have this pretty little ratio: Effort put into a BoF '12 vs. Who cares about Reach Forge Maps? Not making assumptions, but I'd guess that ratio would end up looking pretty grim. That being said, with no major Halo release happening this year there is no reason a BoF '13 can't happen. So, I'd say look forward to that :]"
REMkings asks,
"Do you know more already about whether or not the thumbnails for maps might make a return?"
Tedium says,
"I would love to see this happen! Unfortunately, it's not up to me, but I will still fight for thumbnail rights!"
xAudienceofone says,
"I support thumbnail rights, unfortunately though the discussions we've had haven't made it there yet. There's been so much to go over. Forum designs, placement of certain boards and whether or not some should even exist (you saw the result of some of this in the recent consolidation of the Forge and Halo discussions). We've discussed tournaments to death, and even had a fantastic one in the works that took up a ton of time. Unfortunately it was cancelled, but we still have a whole bunch of other surprises for you. Yet, unfortunately, we haven't been able to get past these things and discuss thumbnails.
Chron says,
"I've seen a few mentions here and there but from what I remember discussion has never really gotten that far. I've always had a neutral stance on thumbnail images for the map forums though. There are both positive and negative aspects that have a significant influence on whether or not to implement them."
Organite says,
"I'm personally not a whole helluva lot for map thumbnails. I've made my case against them before, but I realize that there are pros and cons, and it seems the community at large prefers them so... holy shit is that a question about pie???"
Vincent Torre says,
"While I liked the thumbnails I can see why they'd be problematic. Hopefully when we're granted more super powers we can overhaul the map forums to make them better."
REMkings asks,
"What is your favorite kind of pie? ;)"
Organite says,
"Coconut Creme Pie!!!"
Tedium says,
"Pinkie Lemon Meringue. Pie and I have always been at odds with each other, because apart from Lemon Mirangue I absolutely hate pie. There's just something about warm fruit that makes me shudder. On the other hand, I'd eat cold pie any day! Actually, you know what? I need to change my answer to Banoffee pie. The fact that this banana/toffee dish is only really found in the UK is a crime to the world."xAudienceofone says, "I don't really enjoy pie. I find it rather useless most times."
Chron says,
"Pie that is created by the souls of banned Forgehub users."
Transactionzero says,
"Chocolate cream pie and cake/pie hybrid pies."
Vincent Torre says,
"Is a cheesecake a pie? 'cause I really like cheesecake."
Auburn asks, "Where is Shock?"
Tedium says,
"There's a lot of mystery surrounding the whereabouts of Shock Theta. Some say he got kidnapped by Somalian pirates. Others say he's actually just a figment of my imagination. I asked TransactionZero about this once, and he told me he was "KIA". While I'm pretty sure none of those are true, all I can say is that he's not here right now and we don't know when he'll come back. And when I say, 'all I can say' it's not out of any secrecy - I honestly don't know!"
xAudienceofone says,
"I don't think I've ever talked with him since I joined during Reach. I wonder if I'd know if he was even here. That's a lie, I'd see his name. But to answer your question seriously, we have absolutely no idea. He's vanished without a word."
Chron says,
"He's dead. Chron4ReplacementAdmin'13."
Skisma says,
"Last we heard, he'd be gone for a week or so and be returning in late February...
...it's now May."
Organite says,
"I believe a sock monkey finally absorbed his soul. Those things are damned creepy."
Vincent Torre says,
"I believe he caught a case of having a life, or at least I'm hoping so."
PacMonster1 asks,
"Do you smell what the Rock is cooking?"
Tedium says,
"No."
Organite says,
"In Texas heat, rocks can cook about anything."
Vincent Torre says,
"I like using a rock slate for cooking pizzas in the oven. Gives them a nice crispy crust"
xAudienceofone asks,
"What happens if a staff member asks the staff a question?"
Tedium says,
"I, uh... uhhhhmmmm... UHHHHHMMMMMM... I guess you'd have to- no, no that won't work. You'd say, uh... hm. I think I'll pass on this one."
Transactionzero says,
"Staffception happens."
Organite says,
"Audi, we talked about this. Now you have to spend the rest of your days in the Hub Pub pool which is also lost in the nether realms of FH. Have fun."
Vincent Torre says,
"Same thing we do everynight, try and take over the world"
Elliot asks,
"Can this be changed?
Forgehub.com - Halo Reach Custom Maps"
Tedium says,
"Of course, it can be changed. It's just that none of us know how, and the people who do are never around. Trust me, we're as frustrated about this as everyone else."
Transactionzero says,
"Give me a tooth pick and some gum and I'll make it work, with a side of root access"
Tedium says,
"'Root Access' is admin-speak for 'magic powers'."
Psychoduck asks,
"How many moar interlox does it need? HOW MANY?"
Tedium says,
"All of them."
Organite says,
"8/10, has good interlox."
Vincent Torre says,
"42."
FlyingShoeILR asks,
"Tedium, I would first like to comment that watching your Avatar to the tune of "What do you want from Me" by Pink Floyd is an interesting experience.
Now that that's out of the way, first I'd like to know the amount of trees that one needs to put on their map to have it be eligible for a feature as of now. I figure that this has changed since we can place them, I believe the old min was only one so long as it was in an atrium.
Second, when is the approximate feature date for Full Life Consequences and/or Toadz in the Hole?
And finally, what exactly is the "Tester's Guild?""
Tedium says,
"Hey, thanks! I'll give that a listen and try it out. I was actually listening to this on loop while I made it (<--- link. Warning: Ponies. And weird as fuck). Secondly, you can model the amount of trees needed for a feature as follows:
I couldn't picture, so I linked
And thirdly, the Testers' Guild is a seldom used copy of the Writers Guild. The whole group has had a lineage of leaders, who are little more than a band of ruffians and scoundrels who trade in lies and slander.
Organite says,
"The question now isn't about the quantity of trees, but the orientation of said trees. Trees that grow upside down from floating rocks are the in-thing right now, yo."
Vincent Torre says,
"85/7 trees cuz"
Elliot asks,
"What is all this green?"
Tedium says,
"They were Leprechauns."
Organite says,
"They're infected. Best to keep your distance."
Vincent Torre says,
"Green is the best color"
NIBBS asks,
"Three part question
We know 343 can shit the bed.
But can they change the sheets?"
Tedium says,
"I don't think any of us knew how to answer that one XD"
Cheeze asks,
"Did you smell what the rock is cooking yet? I'm hungry."
Tedium says,
"No luck yet. Though I hear it smells like protein and tears..."
Organite says,
"It's really starting to smell like that dead Opossum from down the road."
Vincent Torre says,
"Honestly. I haven't cooked a pizza in forever, or even on the rock slate I bought."
SpinCycle014 asks,
Transactionzero says,
Tedium says,
Bloo Jay says,
Organite says,
[DIDACTED]
Transactionzero says,
xAudienceofone says,
Well,
Vincent Torre says,
"Well let me tell you all about that, it started w
Loscocco asks,
"I'm 13, and do you think I'll get a girlfriend?"
Tedium says,
"You've already almost got one!"
Organite says,
"Clearly a proxy of SpecOpsGrunt. B&"
Vincent Torre says,
"what is this"
Pinohkio asks,
"How the fuck is Sharp still a Moderator? And for that matter, why? Whenever he's on, it's only momentarily. This leads me to believe that staff r corrupt."
Bloo Jay says,
"Sharp performs certain services for RST."
Transactionzero says,
"When you put it like that. It's really easy for me to answer. He's outperformed other moderators on a consistent basis. He contributes to over 30% of actions done by six moderators. During February he dominated with a total 58% contributed. That is why he is still a moderator."
Organite says,
"^Pwnt."
Vincent Torre says,
"He's also studying electrical engineering, so the fact that he finds time to come here at all is impressive."
J DawgMillenium asks,
"What happens when an administrator, journalist, or moderator gets featured twice? Do the colors blend?"
cluckinho10 says,
"They retain their staff color, and when they retire they get green."
Tedium says,
"Yeah, I'd hate to see a mixture of red and green on anyone! Unless it was flashing really fast between the two. Hm... TZ!!! I need you to do something!"
xAudienceofone says,
"I'm pretty sure that would just be obnoxious and distracting. We love our colors, but there's a place of overkill, and fused colors would be in that bracket. TZ, do nothing about this, disregard Tedium."
Tedium says,
"Yeah, but, flashing...!"
Organite says,
"I can flash. For a modest fee."
Vincent Torre says,
"No"
GrenadeGorilla8 asks,
"I've had this rash for a while. Do you think its bad?"
Tedium says,
"My Grandpa had the same rash a while ago, and considering that he's dead, I'd say you might not be so well off."
GrenadeGorilla8 asks,
"How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?"
Tedium says,
"The same number of interlox needed to get a 10/10"
Organite says,
"3/10, needs more interlox."
GrenadeGorilla8 asks,
"Is Audience-O-Fone asian? -_-"
xAudienceofone says,
"Nope, but I have often been mistaken as such."
Katanga asks,
"Is that pretty funny?"
Tedium says,
"I'm laughing."
GrenadeGorilla8 asks,
"What if chuck norris had a time machine and went back to 1985 and had to fight himself. Who would win?"
Tedium says,
"I reckon 1985 Chuck, since that was his prime. Now, he's just a literal joke. Back then, his badassery was 100% committed to what he did, not what was said about him. It's a more potent badassery."
♥ Sky asks,
"AMA eh? I wonder who suggested this to a staff member? < that counts as a question"
Tedium says,
"It was a mixture of a few people. Mostly Vincent Torre, xAudienceofone, yours truly and a few others, I'm sure. It counts because we suggested it to eachother over and over until one of us decided to do it. I don't know if someone else in particular mentioned it to us, but whoever that person is, you go girl."
Chron says,
"Lol, Sky wants his credit. You PM'd me and I brought it up in the staff chat. Everyone agreed on it and Tedium started writing the article. It had been brought up by someone else before that point but we didn't manage to get the ball rolling until now."
Tedium says,
"I stand by what I said. You go girl Sky!"
xAudienceofone says,
"I think I was the first to mention it, and then some others suggested it later (to which i replied with support). Then some well known community member (somebody linked me to it at one point, i forget who) suggested it at about the same time we were getting serious about doing this. So we knew that it was something we had to do. Maybe we'll make it a slightly more common thing, I've found your questions all so intriguing. Well, most of them anyway. :p"
Vincent Torre says,
"Wait I did what now?"
♥ Sky asks,
"Will I ever get another feature?"
Tedium says,
"Will a Halo game ever have ponies?"
Vincent Torre says,
"You got a feature? There must have been some mistake..."
♥ Sky asks,
"Who is the staff whipping boy and why?"
Tedium says,
"RST. One, because he isn't here. Two, because his name sounds like Arse Tea."
xAudienceofone says,
"I never noticed that, Teddy. Ha! Anyway, I'd say that we all treat each other respectively. We fight from time to time. Vincent Torre and I were arguing with TZ just a little bit ago actually. But we only do it to debate, really. It's only when people are gone for a long period of time without giving any reason that we get upset."
Vincent Torre says,
"Berb."
♥ Sky asks,
"Tea or Coffee?"
Tedium says,
"Health: Tea. Taste: Coffee. Depends on my mood. And I'm never in the mood for tea ;)"
xAudienceofone says,
"Tea, without a doubt. I have a whole drawer of teas. Coffee is a taste I never acquired, plus it's not nearly as good for the body."
Chron says,
"Coffee. Because fuck health."
xAudienceofone says,
"Chron, we can't be friends anymore."
Chron says,
"Don't be like that, Audi. I know you still love me. <3"
Vincent Torre says,
"Coffee, lots and lots of coffee"
♥ Sky asks,
"Selena Gomez or Hannah Montana?"
Tedium says,
"I don't even either or them."
Chron says,
Hannah Montana is a disney character/show. Selena Gomez is in Spring Breakers. I think we all know who the winner is.
♥ Sky asks,
"Would you risk it for a chocolate biscuit?"
Tedium says,
"I feel like you asked this already..."
♥ Sky asks,
"Who is my waifu?"
Tedium says,
"Depends on who you're talking to."
♥ Sky asks,
"Did I skip number 9?"
Tedium says,
"All numbers are lost in the ether."
♥ Sky asks,
"Did you just check?"
Tedium says,
"So... no."
♥ Sky asks,
"What score did the community beat you with in the last SNF?"
Tedium says,
"The community didn't win. They just twiddled their thumbs in the right way to force the words on the screen to make them happy."
xAudienceofone says,
"It was 5-0. In my own defense, I rarely play Halo, and when I do it's non-compertitive. Not a game I really care to try hard to get good at. But yeah, you all kicked our face in with bullets."
Chron says,
"I can't answer that because the records have just now been deleted by some unknown person for some unknown reason. Any scores mentioned by other Staffers are lies and should not be trusted."
Vincent Torre says,
"You know they could have had me on their team but started like 30 seconds after I got on, soooo"