I just came up with this idea over in a Site Feedback thread, but it seemed TOO FUN and potentially useful not to run with! Help me brainstorm ideas for a new hub for CW-oriented activities here on the site!

Premise: A new island/city to explore on the Subeta map, complete with its own NPCs, and shops, and quests.

Reasoning: A lot of discussion has been flying around lately regarding CWs and their importance, use, and implementation on site. Staff and users alike are currently working on a lot of new features and community-related improvements, which is great! After reading a good deal of feedback from casual CW buyers, supporters of the CW Pawn Shop, and average players that are too intimidated by the CW forums, it seems one of the major obstacles to joining in the CW community as a whole is that it feels confusing and unwelcoming to a lot of people. Unfortunately, when CWs were first implemented on site, they were meant to be a very closed group, private affair. Over the years, they've exploded and become a significant part of the site, and brought a significant amount of income to the site, but the CW community itself is small and has been declining in some ways. I feel strongly that integrating CWs into the site culture as a whole instead of partitioning it off as some scary separate entity could only revive the community and bring more enjoyment to average users, too!

CWs are a big part of the site, but almost hidden - it should be a celebrated part of the site that anyone can find and access without "knowing where to look," so to speak!

My thought is that the CW Island (or whatever area it ends up being), could potentially be a place to 1) collect information regarding the purchase, sales, and creation of CWs into one central location rather than scattered among many different pages/threads; 2) collect and feature the various functions like CW Shops, the (upcoming) CW database, the submission page, and so on; 3) offer fun ways for users to interact with/earn CWs like quests or an event shop.

Expectations: Obviously, this isn't something that I think could be built overnight. I know it would require lots of staff members on board to create the lore, npc + map art, coding, and all the other myriad little pieces that would need to be made. I see it as something like Shengui Guo, which could be introduced and built onto slowly!

Brainstorming: --using the cws sold at the Pawn Shop to fund quests and special shops.

--An Oracle-like quest-giver that appears randomly/rarely with a CW (from the pawn) as the prize: requires a LARGE amount of sP or complicated activity to win, has a short time limit.

--An npc like the Hustler or Ujin who occasionally sells 2 or 3 CWs (again, from the pawn) on a rotating basis. Once the item is sold out, it's gone for the day.

--A library or school-type setting housing links to "lessons" regarding how to create a CW, the rules of submission, the basics of taking slots and/or using the CW shops. Possibly a walkthrough of the whole process.

--An archive area for the new CW database.

--An event shop stocked with CWs from the pawn shop that's only open certain times of the year.

--A restocking shop of sorts, stocked with unlimited-batch CWs (of course, releasers would need an option to allow their CW to be put into this shop first!)

--A fashion show area where HAs can be showcased, similar to pet profiles.

--New home for Thimble & Co., Grooming Parlor/other fashion related shops?

--Events/event shop controlled by staff, with user-submitted contest CWs: Suggested by Mesmer

--Integrated into existing lore: Suggested by Cherri

--Add a new section to an existing area like Centropolis instead of creating a new land: Suggest by Reykur

--Any Recycled Pawn Shop items used as quest rewards/in shops should be discounted: Suggested by Speiro

--A shopping mall in the diamond-shaped building in Centropolis: Suggested by Greg

--Buy raffle tickets for a small denomination of CSC (or lots of sP?) to have a chance to win a CW Suggested by Waijay

--Artist collective/fashion district with CWs and creative/artsy NPCs and supply shops: Suggested by dollipop

--Artisan mall with a directory (database), rental office (for new CW submissions), etc in Centropolis: Suggested by Cherri

--A makeover for the Lower West Side of Centropolis, expanded for not just CWs, but other arts and creative pursuits as well: Suggested by jersey

--Random Event or once-daily expensive and/or difficult quest that has a 1/10 or 1/20 chance of dropping CWs. Ways to earn discounts Suggested b Armor

EDIT 2/22: Changed the title from "CW Island" to "CW Fashion District" to reflect what seems to be the marjority desire on the thread!

SweetTarts

Maybe some of you would like to weigh in on this idea?

I think this is a brilliant idea! The CW forums CAN be very intimidating. I've gotten a bit less timid about asking for slots, etc, but I still can feel like I am not 'cool enough' to slot on really popular items, and I know that is ridiculous, but it still feels that way sometimes.

An area where players could go to explore CWs without having to interact on the forums could be helpful for shy-er players. Maybe also a way for releasers to slot CWs so that enough copies get on site for the people who really want the item, but not so many items that it loses value...personally, I think the system of 'batches' of 10 items at a time is really frustrating, and it means that many people miss out on great CWs just because they were not on site for the half hour that a popular item was released...

Aww, this sounds super cute! I'd love to see this happen. It would definitely make a difference if CWs were more integrated. Back in 2012 or so, I took a hiatus for a while because I was bored and didn't think CWs were really an option - I'd bought a few from the pawn shop and trades, but hadn't dared to think of trying to release one because it seemed like a closed community (and this was like, 8 months after they became a thing in the first place). I came back in late 2015, stumbled into some CW related forums by mistake, and started figuring out that they weren't really that difficult - but only because I'd mistakenly bumped into the right threads. After being back for 2 months, I released my first CW and.. Yeah, it's really not that hard, just requires some reading as it is. I definitely think it would help get more new people into the market, both buying and releasing, if they were more integrated and open.

I like the idea of "lessons" for new CW creators. When I first started I had no clue what I was doing, and I was too afraid to ask. Even now I still get confused, and I have even just given up on a few ideas just because I did not know how to go about creating it. One of the biggest problems I have is finding an artist. I hate having to post an idea and then wait for an artist to find me. A lot of the times my boards have just been completely ignored. I was lucky enough to find 2 artists that I really liked working with, but one has been MIA for almost 2 years now and the other one is very busy. Can there be some kind of board/database/anything where artist info can be available to people who want to put something on site, but don't have any artistic skills (ME)? Maybe they could post some samples of their CWs and a good way to contact them along with how they like to work. I know everyone has their own process. I just want an easier way to find an artist! Just throwing that out there :)

That´s a very interesting and lovely idea, you´re right, a centrum of couture is lacking on the Subeta map! <3

So I've read your thread personally, as well as to my husband (who doesn't really have anything to do with the CW market, but hears me talk about it all day every day)

We both kind of agree that the concept in general is very good. The idea of a place to go for knowledge that's easy to find and more welcoming sounds great. At the same time, I know this type of thing is something staff have stated (to me personally in a ticket) that is content that cannot be user submitted, and needs to be done entirely by staff. With being the only one managing the queue right now, and possibly the only person working on stuff like this, that is a LOT of work for her to manage all on her own so I don't know how possible or fair that is. I would love to see applications open for a second member to help the queue out, but again, I don't know if staff can afford more workers at the moment, and therefore this might not be possible :X

The thing I don't like, is giving out tons of items from the pawn shop. I'm worried that frequent giveaways of those items will cause an imbalance to the economy. Not specifically for CWs themselves, but for sP and CSC prices specifically. (Not everyone hoards every item they get for the wardrobe, like I do =P)

To add my own input though, I'd really like to see more contests like there were a couple years back for Pandemic where user items got accepted into the event shops. Only specifically for this island, and items in that shop are STAFF controlled and therefore are unlimited and at perhaps a discount? (Maybe 100-250 csc each item, BUT the artist gets NO profit just like what happened with the original items [maybe just wins a copy of their item for free plus a small prize like 100 csc])

This is cute, I hope staff runs with this. I did find it rather intimidating and isolating trying to get into the CW community when I first started out.. I imagine it calls into question the genuine nature of friendships here as well for CW releasers and designers..are people initiating friendships because they like YOU or what you have to offer in the CW realm? Just some ramblings. Hopefully this would help it be less clique-ish.

I really like each and every idea you have posted. You should try to get this implemented and let the staff decide what they can do with it.

I seriously need the lessons... I only know the bare basics. That whole process is super complicated to a noob.

I think the forums will always be a part of the CW-buying experience, because they are very personal items that users must create or commission on their own time and dime -- so they'll want to have the majority of control over how they are sold. However, I know that is working on a database of CWs (mentioned in my post), which might make it easier to find and buy items from the CW Shops if they are located there.

Yes, I agree that the process isn't that complicated, but it does have a learning curve, and having all the info you need in one place would be so so useful! Plus, like you said, you need to be in the right place to start with. For users that don't even know what CWs are, they'd never think to look for everything. It would be wonderful to make CWs more integrated into the site (like any other area to explore!), and help more people get on board.

I hope that one day finding all the information you need will be a lot easier! And I hear you, finding an artist is difficult, especially when you don't know anyone. I don't know if staff could feasibly provide a list or database of artists, because that list would always be changing, and artists are not available all the time. The best thing for you to do would be to hang out on the Commissions subforum, maybe join the ping groups of artists you like, so that you can hopefully see when they become available to take commissions -- or, you can post in the Commissions forum yourself and an artist might come find you! There's also this super handy thread full of ping groups (including CWComms, which you can ping when you're looking to buy a commission).

Thank you!

Thank you for taking the time to read through my idea and respond! I agree that it would be a massive undertaking on the part of the staff, but thankfully I don't think would be wholly responsible for this, and of course it would be something that would taking probably months of planning and building. It could start out with just a couple of areas and grow over time, too, just like when Shengui Guo was released.

As for the pawn shop, I hear you concerning flooding the market with Pawn Shop releases. I would not recommend that at all, but staff seems to be considering different ways to allow access to those CWs rather than just trashing them, and I think a once or twice a year "event shop," would work. The quest giver and "Hustler" type character I suggested could be huuuge sP sinks, too, which seems like it might be helpful for the economy (in a small way).

I like the idea of doing an event with user-submitted items! I wasn't here for that contest you speak of, but it could be a fun!

I would love it if CWs were treated more like Cash Shop items or Subeautique items - just another part of the site. Still exclusive, but accessible and fun to collect for everyone. That's my goal with this post!

Thank you! I'm hoping staff will like what they see here! <3

Aww, we will help you however we can! Most people in the CW community are super nice and helpful, just message someone you feel comfortable with. Me, if you want! :) Also, there's a helpful thread by that may explain some of the basics here.

come check first post because this idea is so awesome it needs more exposure ;___;

This is an interesting idea! This could be a great way to make the CW market more welcoming.

What I'm wondering is how this island would fit into Subeta lore.

Thank you bb! <3 I wasn't sure who to ping besides my group, but maybe some specific pings would be good!

Thanks! I am not sure how it would fit into lore, as I'm not SUPER versed in it, but I trust that the blessed Subeta gods would be able to come up with something cool. Maybe like...a formerly "secret" community of artisans that has recently decided to share their knowledge with the wider world of Subeta! :p

@Cresenta Pinging you guys in case you have any ideas to weigh in! Read the first post. <3

YOU'RE A GENIUS

"--A library or school-type setting housing links to "lessons" regarding how to create a CW, the rules of submission, the basics of taking slots and/or using the CW shops. Possibly a walkthrough of the whole process."

I love love love this idea haha ~

This is so well-thought out and creative!! Nothing more to add for now besides my total and enthusiastic support!!! <3

INNOVATION

i v love this idea, it's super fun and cute w pls make this a thing 1000000/10 ❤️

Thank you! This brainstorming pretty much came about because I felt like we all needed a more central location for information, and a bunch of pinned topics in a forum wasn't cutting it anymore. And it just snowballed from there. XD

Thank you! T_______T It would be so neat to see CWs more integrated into the site culture in a bigger way!

LOL now that I was summoned here I may not ignore the call. pops up

I'll read through all the replies tomorrow, sorry in case this was already suggested: I'd rather not have another island or completely new area, but rather see a new quarter of centropolis introduced. Like a hip scene quarter where all the fancy fashion stuff happens.

The general idea gets my total approvement though!

I think this could be great if staff allows it to happen. It would be awesome to get more people involved in the market because sometimes buyers are right, things aren't always friendly on the custom wearables board. I'm in full support of this.

The ideas presented here are lovely and I am all for it. It would be great to see new faces in the cw market. (:

That's a great suggestion! I would not be opposed to just a new section in an already established city. Mainly, I just think CWs need a "homebase" somewhere other than the forums. ^^

Thanks yo! I was so soooo sad to see so many people upset on the Pawn Shop closing board, because they felt unwelcome on the cw forums. CWs are the reason why I joined Subeta and how I got all my friends here, and I wish it could be accessible to everyone!

Thank you! I 100% agree!