Why is the community population declining?

[Manticore]

Look at Manticore's post above - it is representative for a point of view that I am met with a lot: That the deterioration of the server and the community is due to new players being nubs, totally dismissing the fact that we were all nubs at one point and only got better because some took the time and effort to teach us. So instead of pointing fingers and blaming caps, new players, indies and so on, start by taking a long look in the mirror and ask yourself what YOU do wrong.

Okay, I'm sorry but this is complete and utter baloney. You clearly know absolutely nothing about me, so please don't put words in my mouth.

Let me rephrase my criticisms for you. I am frustrated because the average player is now one of two things:

1. Lacking in intelligence and/or doesn't speak English.
2. Lacking in maturity and/or completely focused on the PvP aspect of the game.

Nowhere did I say I was upset with "new players" or "nubs" or anything like that. Yes, many new players these days fall into one of those categories, but so do a number of long-time players and returning veterans. There's a clear distinction between one's inherent characteristics and one's experience level with something, after all.

As for me personally, I came to this server with a large amount of previous RP experience, Freelancer experience, and an intimate understanding of the English language. Yes, I needed help understanding some of the nuances of Discovery in particular when I was new, but I was not even remotely in the same category as the people I am talking about.

Is anybody here perfect? Of course not. But what I'm saying is that the current environment is not conducive to a player like me finding sufficient enjoyment to want to invest significant time or effort here.

---

@ryoken: I agree that, in the current environment, more sanction activity and more rules would be better - in my eyes, at least. We can't control a person's level of maturity, but we can at least be a bit more stringent with punishing immature behavior. It's treating the effect rather than the cause, which isn't ideal, but I don't see a lot of other options.

---