Ministry of Cards Office - 2020 Cards Guild Survey Results
Hello everyone!
Right before the Ministry of Cards (MoCa) shall publish its end-of-term report, the leaders of MoCa made the decision to lay out the results from every single question within the 2020 Cards Guild Survey. For your convenience, all results have been spoilered to make access to certain questions much more doable:
Question 1: Did you previously know about the Cards Guild?
Overall, a significantly higher percentage of responders were interested in joining the Guild (or were already a member) when hearing about it - in contrast to not being interested. Half of the overall number of responses were already Guild members, while another 12.5% wished to hear more about how the Guild functions. Due to the relatively small duration the Guild has been in existence, there is noticeable potential for the amount of Guild members to increase as time passes.
Question 2: If you are currently a Cards Guild member, how long have you been so?
Unsurprisingly, if one were to look at the first question's results then half of the responders would be ineligible to answer this one. However, for those that were then it's worth noting that over 31% of users stated that they have been members for at least half of the Guild's overall existence, with nearly 10% even going so far to state that they've practically been members since the Guild was founded. Within time, we hope that this percentage grows, but for now, this seems to be a rather acceptable result.
Question 3: If you are currently or have been in the past a member of the Cards Guild, what most strongly prompted you to join?
Unlike the first 2 questions' responses, there was not a 50% of users stating that they have never been a member of the Cards Guild. This leads one to assume that they have been members before, but left for their own reasons. As for the main thing to take away from this however, it is that the Guild's primary strength lies within its card reward programs. Over 1/3rd of eligible users (which include former Guild members) all cited this strength as the main incentive for joining the Guild, and due to the fact that other regional cards organizations now exist (which may have caused several users to leave, as hinted from the 21.9% who joined for the sake of joining a cards organization), this incentive will likely be more focused on within the future.
Question 4: If you were a former member of the Cards Guild, how long did you stay before leaving?
In a slightly contradictory series of results when compared to Question 3, 50% of responders stated that they have never been members of the Guild (where in Question 3, it was just over a third who stated so). This may cause the results of this specific question - in combination with the fact that very few were actually able to answer this question - to be unreliable for users wishing to cite this survey's results.
Should we go off the sole non-N/A choice actually picked though, then it should be relieving that former members were willing to spend a lengthy period of 3-6 months before deciding to leave.
Question 5: If you are not currently a member of the Cards Guild, can you tell us why?
For the largest reason, it seems that at least 25% of users stated that they are not currently Guild members due to confusion regarding the application process. Another 1/6th of users required further instruction before being able to join, while a different 1/6th cited a general lack of interest for cards (this would be increased to 1/4th if we include the user who left for time constraint reasons). The other potential reasons (including the lack of account verification) seem to be unrelated to the Cards Guild.
As leaders of the Cards Guild, it is our job to ensure that the reasons emphasized in the above paragraph will be addressed. Particularly for the confusion related to applying for Guild membership, should any member require assistance in order to join, that's exactly what we will provide. And if how we accept members also proves to be confusing, then we will need to attempt whatever methods possible in order to make it as inclusive - while still maintaining the aspect of security - as possible for everyone.
Question 6: Did you previously know about the Comprehensive Guide to NationStates cards?
This question seems to yield some of the better results. A supermajority of users have stated that they have at least heard of the Guild-produced Cards Guide, with a near-supermajority further stating that they've also viewed it at one point.
Despite its relatively young age, this dispatch remains one of the Guild's most successful products, with updates being expected for said guide whenever and whenever appropriate.
Question 7: Do you have any suggestions for improving the Comprehensive Guide to NationStates cards?
(For reasons unknown, only a portion of the 12 responses were displayed by the site.)
While a FAQ has already been provided within the Cards Guide, the same player who asked for said FAQ also suggested a potential addition regarding descriptions of placing bids/asks. As bids/asks are the most simple part of the cards game, we do not particularly know if this addition is necessary, but it will likely occur nevertheless due to our wish to make the Guide - true to its name - as (comprehensive) as possible.
Other than the above, there was also a mention of Ministry of Radio NBS tutorials; this has been mentioned throughout the previous 4 months, and adding it will require extensive work in order to complete. Due to the inability for much (if any) progress being made regarding this suggestion, it is likely that Cards will plan its introduction independently going forward.
Finally, one other user suggested further emphasis on card farming. Card farming is indeed a regular part of the trading game, so analysis of the Guide will be conducted to see where it would be most appropriate to insert descriptions for card farming.
All other responses walked upon the lines of "no suggestions needed", save for a potentially satirical response related to heisting (which is forbidden for Guild members to do to one another). As most were content with the current version of the Guide, the "comprehensive" part seems to have been largely accomplished at the time of the posting of these results.
Question 8: Did you previously know about the pull events the Cards Guild hosts?
A supermajority seem to have been familiar with the Guild's pull events. However, only around 1/3rd have actually participated in them at least once. Typically, Guild pull events feature valuable cards of the legendary or epic rarity, and the higher difficulty of pulling cards of these rarities may play a factor into why not a majority seek to participate.
Either this is the reason, or time restraints related to participation in pull events (or a simple disinterest in pull events in general, which we will have to address if this is so) are factors; perhaps even all 3 may play a role.
Furthermore, as we did not specify how one can actually participate in pull events (which we will do in the next annual survey), such as (either) nominating a collection, voting to pick which cards to be auctioned in the Guild's pull events, or actually attempting to pull the cards during the event's duration, unfortunately the results of this particular question are unclear. For now, we should assume that the "participation" bit in pull events primarily deals with trying to pull the auctioned cards.
Question 9: Did you previously know about the Great Card Giveaway?
It is no surprise that most users would know of The North Pacific's Great Card Giveaway. It continues to be one of the chief reasons as to why the Guild constantly draws in new members, and it will (naturally) remain a Guild program and will always have a chance of being improved on for everyone's benefit.
To those who haven't participated in it, you definitely won't be sorry if you give it a try.
Question 10: Did you previously know about the WADP Card Lottery?
The WADP Card Lottery is one of The North Pacific's earliest card programs, and it has been a thing even before the founding of the Cards Guild. As a result, many are likely to have heard its mention before. That being said, only 15.6% of the users stated that they actively participate in furthering their own lottery-winning chances - most-likely due to the overall low rate to win a card from the lottery even with increased chances.
This does not mean that only 15.6% of the responders actually participate in the lottery (as simply being a Keeper automatically enters you in the lottery), but it is still a percentage that everyone must make note of. Perhaps the Card Lottery - even with all the Keepers it has helped create - serves more as an introductory cards program, with other programs such as the Great Card Giveaway being the real things to look out for?
Question 11: Did you previously know about the WADP Card Lottery?
The TMCCC is one of the Guild's earliest programs, so this (like most of the programs already mentioned above) should be relatively well-known for responders. The fact that it's well-known definitely did not extend to its actual participation though, as only 21.9% of survey responders stated to have participated in it. We hope to find new ways to encourage increased participation in this competition, as its activity has been slowly dwindling off.
Furthermore, as we did not specify how one can actually participate in the TMCCC (which we will do in the next annual survey), such as (either) submitting a collection or voting in the thread to decide the winning collection, unfortunately the results of this particular question are currently unclear (this was also an issue we had in Question 9). Additionally, as there are only 2 ways one may participate in the TMCCC, assuming one action to be "participation" over the other might not be representative of everyone who responded.
(Should one ask though, then the "participation" bit was originally intended to describe those who submitted collections to be voted on by the Guild membership.)
Question 12: Did you previously know about the Card Market Watch?
Slightly over half of responders stated of their knowledge of the Card Market Watch, while only a quarter stated that they have consulted its information. Admittedly, most players only seek to further their own collections, so going so far as to keep track of the entire card market might be for more advanced users.
Of course, due to its status of being pinned within the Trading Cards subforum, updates will continue to be made to further the Card Market Watch - hopefully to make its use more frequent by the playerbase.
Question 13: Did you previously know about The Monthly Snapshot?
The Monthly Snapshot is the Cards Guild's official newspaper. It is also rather new, so 46.9% of responders stating that they've heard of it is not too bad of a number. Unfortunately however, it is currently under hiatus due to the personal need for me to focus on other tasks within the ministry (originally, I was the one directing its production) - which may lead to a lower percentage recognizing it as time passes.
Should it be more focused on within the future, the TMS will definitely see more recognition by players; for now, we'll have to see whether other users would be willing to take control of it.
Question 14: Do you have any suggestions for improving existing programs run by the Cards Guild?
(Only 7 of the 9 responses were able to be displayed by the site, for some reason.)
Like in Question 5, at least one of the users stated that they had confusion regarding applying to the Cards Guild; we will be seeing on how this process can be made easier to understand if possible. The other piece of feedback mentioned greater implementation of the Executive Cards Rewards program - as it is still a new program, we will definitely need to ensure that it becomes a more pronounced and regular part of TNP.
All other users seemed to be content with how the Guild currently functions.
Question 15: Do you have any suggestions for new programs the Cards Guild should implement?
(Only 5 of the 7 responses appeared, for some reason.)
Other than the nearly unanimous responses of content regarding new Cards Guild programs, one user wished for the Guild to implement card rewards for those who apply to the Executive Staff. A monthly epic card is rewarded to those who are currently Executive Staff members, but extending the gifting of an epic card to applicants would also be an interesting idea, so it is likely that this will be implemented if not already so.
Question 16: What aspects of the trading cards minigame do you participate in (choose all that apply)?
Only 15.6% of responding users stated that they do not participate in the trading cards game. With this in mind, even if many users stated that they are not currently Guild members, it is still reassuring that they involve themselves with cards in some fashion.
The toughest tasks would likely be (either) the creation of card farming scripts (only 6.3% of users stated to help create such scripts) or the creation of regional cards programs (12.5% stated to have done so), while the largest/most potentially easy task was opening packs (71.9% picked this answer choice).
Ideally, more and more people would gradually see themselves participating in the harder aspects of the cards game, and if this is something the Guild can help facilitate then that would be something of definite interest.
Question 17: If you do not participate in the trading cards minigame, can you tell us why?
This question yielded potentially the least reliable results, as we were looking for reasons as to why the cards game was not interesting enough for a player to delve themselves in. We did note of the one response talking about time constraint issues though, which is something the Cards Guild cannot change as it is a situation unique to the player.
Question 18: If you farm cards or have farmed cards in the past, how many puppet nations (alt accounts) do/did you maintain for such purposes?
81.2% of responders stated to have farmed cards on their NS accounts. Over 1/5th stated to solely do so on their main account, while 18.8% do so using 50-100 of their nations. 1 user even claimed to farm cards using 1000+ of their NS accounts.
Farming cards is in no ways a necessary thing for players, but it does provide a needed boost towards efficiency should one try to accomplish something in cards as quickly as possible. As seen from the results above, many have went above and beyond and currently farm cards using accounts unrelated to their main nation, which may imply that farming is already a widespread practice within NationStates Cards and should not be undermined due to its current prevalence.
Question 19: If you farm cards using multiple nations, what would you consider to be the hardest part about it?
At least 9/16 users mentioned time as their primary challenge regarding card farming. Another 2 mentioned sending puppet-farmed cards to their main nation, which itself is also time-consuming due the general safety, but needed preparation, that sending cards to one's main typically features. 1 user also mentioned sending assets to their main, but rather than cards they mentioned bank, which is both time-consuming and risky to achieve (the "risky" part being the potential for heisting to occur).
It may be worth it for the Guild to encourage + tutor users on the usage of card farming scripts, in order to reduce the time-based issue card farming has seemed to overwhelmingly present.
Question 20: If you do not card farm, can you tell us why?
2 users seemed to be confused with the full advantages card farming may present. 1 user implied a general confusion regarding cards overall, while another mentioned a time constraint which had also been brought up in Question 19. Other than the 1 response stating of their full willingness to farm on their main, all other users withheld their reasons from the survey.
Going by the given responses, it is likely to our best advantage that the Guild emphasizes the benefits of card farming in order to incite more participation in this feature of the game. However, it would also be of benefit to warn users to farm cards only when they are able to and through efficient methods, as time constraints seem to be a major concern that hinders peoples' willingness to card farm.
Question 21: Do you believe the Cards Guild sufficiently informs TNP of any programs it releases/manages?
Slightly less than a supermajority of users stated to have been satisfied with the Guild's announcing of programs. 15.6% believed that the Guild informs well only during certain occasions, while slightly over 1/5th desired for definite improvements in the Guild's handling of announcements.
As it is only the MoCa's first term, the relatively new ability for MoCa to officially send out region-wide telegrams might play a role into why a supermajority has yet to express confidence for the Guild's announcements. Going forward, we will strive towards making announcements as timely and frequent as possible -
Question 22: Do you vote in event threads the Cards Guild hosts?
For those that were eligible to answer this question, it seems that none of the users went with "vote in all the threads the Guild hosts". This isn't much of a surprise due to potential time constraints unrelated to the Cards Guild. 45.9% of eligible responding users stated that they have voted at least one time, while nearly 10% went with "most of the time".
Ideally, we would like to see users vote "most of the time" in Guild-hosted threads, so rewards are currently underway that will seek to achieve this one goal.
Question 23: If you are a Cards Guild member but choose to not vote in Cards Guild event threads, can you tell us why?
It seems that the underlying cause for 3 of these responses lies in a general disinterest. This leads us to believe that rewarding users for voting in Guild-hosted threads will incite better participation in the future. 2 others stated of time constraints, which is something completely understandable and is something which prevents even Guild leaders from sometimes voting.
Question 24: What is your opinion on the fact that Security Council resolutions have commended/condemned users for Cards Guild work?
A supermajority of users responded warmly with regards to cards-based SC resolutions, with a simple majority further giving strongly positive feedback. 29% expressed disinterest regarding cards-based SC resolutions, while only 3.2% gave any sort of negativity regarding their existence. These results in particular give the future of cards-based resolutions a strong hope, as multiple of said resolutions have already been passed by the SC and they will not be seen as mere flukes anytime soon.
Question 25: Do you generally upvote dispatches relating to the Cards Guild?
More users responded that they generally upvote Cards Guild dispatches than those who did not. This is off to a good start as the Cards Guild is a relatively fledgling organization within TNP, so we hope to see this majority percentage grow.
Question 26: Do you generally upvote dispatches relating to the Cards Guild?
(Only 7 of the 10 responses appeared, for some reason.)
1 user stated a general confusion regarding the Guild (comparable to responses given in above questions). 2 more touched upon the subject of cards-based SC resolutions, with 1 detailing that it should be focused more while the other seeming to be against its inclusion. All other responding users expressed a general satisfaction regarding the current Guild's functioning.
Question 27: Are you a member of TNP's regional forum?
A near-totality of users responded with affirmation regarding being a part of TNP's regional forum. As joining the Cards Guild requires first joining the forum, this result easily provides us the assurance that the Guild will continue to receive membership applications.
Question 28: Are you a member of TNP's Discord server?
59.4% responded "yes" to being a part of the TNP general Discord server. The Guild may provide some future incentive to encourage the joining of said server, as it's where the Cards Guild channel is located.
Question 29: Are you affiliated with other non-TNP cards venues?
62.5% responded with "no" regarding this question. This either implies that 62.5% of responding users are only currently affiliated with TNP's card programs or are not affiliated with any to begin with.
The status of solely being a part of TNP's card programs is up to personal interpretation, but this may provide us some assurance that many are willing to provide aid to the Guild due to less time divisions stemming from non-TNP regions.
Question 30: Are you a member of the Cards Executive Staff?
Very few stated in the affirmative regarding this question. This is largely due to the fact that the MoCa Executive Staff was only established within the last few months (i.e. during Tlomz's term), so it is the newest addition of staff for the region. Leaders of the Guild are currently aiming towards increasing membership in the staff in order to allow greater efficiency in releasing Guild projects.
Fortunately, the Guild has already been receiving some promising new faces within the MoCa staff; hopefully this will continue to be the case.
Overall, the Guild seems to be in an adequate spot within the TNP community - particularly after its recent promotion to become an entire ministry. It is an almost universally recognized organization within the region, but it has a long ways to go before it becomes an organization that the community frequently cites for its efficiency and participation. Whoever chooses to lead the Cards Guild after us, we put our full hope into the possibility that the status of the Guild elevates even further under your care.
Thank you for reading, and we hope that the results provided were to your interest!
- The North Pacific Cards Guild Leadership