I'm trying to think of better ways to help get new members integrated in Sunder. This is an area that we have struggled with since our inception. I personally haven't put much thought into the subject because I've never regarded Sunder as being "old enough" to start making such preparations. I suppose time does fly when you're having fun though, and here we are, nearly 8-months old at this point. Anyway, here are some of my thoughts:
I am beginning to set up "Tips and Tricks" boards around town to guide new residents to areas where they can gather resources. I feel bad that I haven't been more vocal about my love and time investments in the local flora of Sunder, but much of the landscaping was done intentionally (terraforming, planting of saplings, bonemealing, etc.), or left in its natural state for one reason or another (cool land features, 'custom' map spawn trees, etc.). The best advice I can give a newer member is to head to one of our tree farms to harvest lumber.
Welcome Wagon. I think that it would be nice to show our love to new residents as soon as possible. We really do like new people joining our commune and hope that they will also enjoy being a part of it, so to show our appreciation to new members, I think we should organize an effort to do the following: provide an initial package of iron, gold, diamonds and xp upon joining, or perhaps after a certain amount of active play time in the city. We should also make it a priority to provide tours to new members, at the bare minimum showing them where factories, rails, storage, farms, points-of-interest, etc. reside. I could even start investing in a rail-tour system like Brimstone if there was interest.
New Resident Plots. Sunder has a fairly liberal building policy. Anyone can construct roads. Anyone can choose and assign plots. Anyone can build builds of any size. Unfortunately, this does leave room for conflict when two people plan to build on the same area or when a "scenic" area conflicts with someone's desired plot. The best suggestion I can offer here is to contact the people whose builds occupy the area near where you plan to build. Usually plots are labeled with a sign, but in the case that they are, Tamblers, TangentialThreat, Jmconee and a handful of other long-term residents can usually help determine whose plots are whose and who to contact.
New Resident Lodging. This is a bit different than plots because when a new member first shows up, it can be a bit overwhelming to try to pin down a plot and begin building right away. It would be best if we could build some designated new resident housing. We would need to construct 4-5 different units that have a 2-week occupation time limit on them after which the resident would be moved into their more permanent residence. Extensions could be made for residents who are still awaiting the completion of their home.
Reinforcing. I agree with Frae. I don't think we need to have a rigid rule on reinforcing, but the practice should definitely be encouraged due to the fact that Sunder has previously attracted the attention of raiders and griefers alike. The basic commands for citadel are as follows: