Greeter/FAQ

Here are some questions new greeters often have about the greeter system, tools, greenies, etc.

What is the spawnpoint? How often does it change?

The spawnpoint is the location where new greenies are dropped off. It changes based on a quota: When enough greenies spawn at the current spawnpoint, the spawnpoint shifts. For this reason, during "off-time" (late night, US workday, etc.) it can be in the same place for several hours at a time, but in the evening, weekend, or on holidays, can be shifting every 30-40 minutes.

The important thing to remember about the spawnpoint is that greenies don't spawn on the docks, they are first presented with a mission screen where they're offered the opportunity to attempt puzzles and missions before hitting the docks. The spawnpoint thus isn't as important as it might seem. It's still a good bet if you're looking to be helpful, but often you'll find more greenies at ringer-held islands and other highly-populated areas, regardless of if they're spawning or not.

How can I find greenies to help?

Your best bet? Just stand around outside on a busy island (ringer-owned islands tend to have heavier greenie traffic) or in a busy Inn and wait for them to come to you. Additionally, if it's been 30-60 minutes without a broadcast, you could make a broadcast soliciting questions or offering assistance to greenies. Do feel free to just go play poker and wait for the button tells to find you instead, though!

You can use the /gw and /w commands to find greenies to help as well. If you're on-duty, the /greeniewho or /gw command will reveal the location of every greeter and greenie in your archipalego, as well as what the ratios are across the entire ocean. /w will give exact locations. (/gw will tell you "this island has four greenies on it", /w will tell you "Pirate A is at the inn, Pirate B and C are on the docks, and Pirate D is in her shack.")

What is /greenie (greeter broadcast)? How often should I use it? What can I use it for?

Greenie broadcast sends a broadcast to all greenies and on-duty greeters in your archipelago. It appears as a red box, and "/tell (your name) to reply" is added to the end. As a general rule, a broadcast should be sent no more than once every hour, depending on how busy things are at that time of the day. If you have just gone on duty, be sure to ask an on-duty greeter if someone has recently made a broadcast before sending your own.

Greeter broadcast can be used for things like soliciting questions ("Ahoy, mates, and welcome to the game! If ye be needin' any help, just go to Ye > Help > Talk to a greeter!"), gathering greenies for a greenie-only tournament or pillage, and other fun stuff like that. Greeter broadcast may not be used for any kind of profit, such as finding jobbers for a "real" pillage or blockade.

What is /greeter chat? What can I use it for? Who can see it?

/greeter chat is visible to every on-duty greeter (which will typically include the OM) in every archipelago on your ocean. Try and use it only for greeter-related conversations, such as:

• A greenie asking you a question to which you don't know the answer, as well as seeking a second opinion if you think you know, but aren't sure.
• Locating greeters who speak another language if you run into a non-English-speaking greenie.
• Finding other greeters to help you run a tournament or education pillage.
• Inquiring about greeter policy and ethics.

/greeter chat should not be used for conversation, and should not be treated as a social channel. It's all right to have fun, but remember that 20-30 other people are being exposed to your conversation and it can be distracting. Greeters are permitted to /complain those who abuse the channel in this fashion if a pattern of behaviour develops. This may result in greetership being revoked.

Do be courteous to new greeters, though! Especially in the first few days and weeks, literally hundreds of people are /dutying on for the very first time, and will likely make mistakes with the /greeter channel. This will settle down as the novelty wears off, but getting snippish with new greeters only serves to hurt the entire system in the long run. It is fair game to helpfully and respectfully point out that /greeter is not a chat channel, but making threats or being abusive is no more appropriate on /greeter than it is in any other conversation.

How do button tells work?

If a greenie goes to the Ye tab and hits the "Help" button, they get another button that says "Talk to a Greeter". If they press that button, they automatically send the nearest greeter a /tell asking for assistance. Their chat parser is also set up so they can /tell back without needing to hit up or type in the /tell command. There is no automation, "alphabetical list", or quota for button tells. The closest on-duty greeter gets the /tell. In the unlikely event that you're getting more /tells than you can handle, feel free to /duty off until you've dealt with the ones on your plate already.

When is it appropriate to /blackspot a greenie?

If you've warned the greenie that their behaviour is inappropriate, and they persist, it is acceptable to /blackspot them. You may not wish to do so, and there is definitely something to be said for the "carrot instead of the stick" approach to teaching, but the tool is there for your use if their behaviour warrants it. Always explain to the greenie why they have been blackspotted; often the behaviour is just a lack of familiarity with Puzzle Pirates standards of behaviour. Remember that this is the first impression the greenie will have of the game.

There are some situations in which a social solution may be more appropiate than a blackspot... for example, a greenie who has discovered the swear filters and is gleefully shouting SCUPPER TART BRITCHES at the top of their lungs should be directed to their shack instead of threatened with forced silence, at least initially. You will become more adept at knowing when to blackspot or threaten to blackspot and when to attempt a social solution as you greeter more often.

What might get me de-greetered?

There is no master list of things that may get you de-pinked, but there are a few things you might want to avoid doing, such as:

• Cussing or swearing at greenies, however tempting it may be on occasion. (Not that anyone should ever cuss or swear at a greenie, but as long as your pink is on, go out of your way to be a role model.)
• Maliciously lying or providing bad information to greenies.
• Abusing the greeter broadcast function.
• Being suspended or blackspotted for any reason, including things not linked to greetership.
• Consistently providing incorrect information to greenies, even if it's just ignorance. (If you mean well, but steer greenies in the wrong direction, you may be hurting more than you're helping.)

Is greetership still secret?

No! Greetership is no longer secret. Although it may still be seen as impolite to "out" another greeter in a circle, greetership is now "open" or "global" greetership.

In the past, greetership was asked to be kept in secret because of the peer nomination process used to determine new greeters. The secrecy helped prevent awkward situations and strained relationships between greeters and potential greeters.