How to: Suggest an idea

Hello everyone!
Suggesting an idea can be hard right? Sometimes it really does feel like you're simply talking to a brick wall. You'll get staff feedback but then it'll just go nowhere. Other times, you just can't quite get your point across the way you'd perhaps like it to? Sometimes it can just be because an idea isn't fully fleshed out, or perhaps even more simply the way the thread is structured means that people can't fully understand the idea you're trying to suggest. I'm writing this guide to hopefully give you guys some helpful tips for making a suggestion regardless of the server, whether that be through structuring your argument properly, backing it up with solid reasoning, and in an appropriate manner! Before I say anything though, this is the first guide I've written on Brawl so apologies if it's not my best! Without further ado:

Stage 1: The Idea!
Before even beginning to write any thread, you first need to think of a solid idea. You might already have one, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it's solid enough to be a useful addition to whatever gamemode it's relevant to. The idea needs to be more than something incredibly vague and simple like "there needs to be a new kit!" or "this is too powerful and should be nerfed" In the first example, it's all very well and good saying that there should be a new kit, but the staff have no idea what to base this new kit off both thematically and through gameplay. In the second, this is more of a complaint than a constructively critical comment and subsequent suggestion. Again, the staff have no idea how to balance a nerf of a certain class or ability, only that you want it nerfed. In both cases, the statements are too vague and likely to be forgotten about quickly. To stand a chance you need to have specifics. That means not just adding a new class, but what kind of new kit? What theme? What abilities? Numbers can be a little difficult given they can get very complicated very quickly. You don't necessarily need numbers for the themes and ideas to be used, but ultimately the staff are going to need to come up with/obtain solid figures for the idea to become properly balanced into the game. If you fancy trying to handle the numbers, I tend to use the original minecraft wiki for armor, weapon and enchantment data values. Make sure that you're aware of whether these figures are updated or not for your gamemode (some will be 1.8 and others 1.9 on Brawl currently). I'm sure the community will also help and point out figures if they also seem unbalanced once they have been posted too. For all ideas, there are a few questions you should be both asking yourself before suggesting it:

"Why is this idea necessary for the gamemode?"
"Is this idea clear, detailed and understandable to those in the community?"
"Does my idea fit in thematically with the gamemode?"
"Why is this idea better than other alternatives?"

If you can answer all four of these questions, then you have a solid idea. It's about time we get to writing the thread!

Stage 2: The Thread
So, you've come up with a fantastic idea, and now it's time to write it all down! Before you do though, think about how you really want to structure the post. You don't just want to spew everything down onto the page, nobody is going to understand! You need to structure your thread so that everyone is clearly going to understand what the idea is, how it works and how this suggestion solves the problem. One of the ways to do this is using this structure:
1. What's the problem? Why is it a problem?
2. Introduce your suggestion, THE SOLUTION
3. The specifics: How does your solution work? How would you do this. E.g. if it's a new kit, what abilities/stats does it have?
4. Why this solves the problem you've already mentioned! Also why it's better than other solutions!
5. State any other benefits

This doesn't have to be the list you use when posting a suggestion thread, but it can help to set out your ideas in a way which will make it easy to understand and make your argument much stronger in comparison to others. Keep it specific, to the point and not overly long. Nobody wants to read a book on 1 suggestion (believe me, I've written enough threads which people can't be bothered to read). Keeping it concise will keep their attention, and you're more likely to have your idea remembered. It's often overlooked, but proofreading your post, using good English with spelling and grammar checks also improves your chances as the community (and the staff) will be more easily able to understand your suggestion!

Other useful things
There are a few things to remember both when creating your thread and when responding to the subsequent comments and feedback:

Use an appropriate tone when writing your post. Nobody wants to read an extended complaint about why a particular feature is so terrible for gameplay. By all means state the problem you're trying to fix, but don't go overboard in a whiney negative tone, as people will immediately focus on that more than the suggestion, and your point won't get across. You could also lose interest as people decide to move on rather than properly reading because the tone is negative and annoying.

Leading on from this, try not to rage when suggesting an idea, whether that be in the original post or in any subsequent responses to comments. Often the community is just trying to help by posting critcism, and they'll be much less likely to give it, or to pay your thread any attention, if you're raging against them. This also goes for the staff, whom can also be frustrating in these situations as whilst they do try to read every suggestion, they do not always respond. This means you probably won't know whether some of your ideas will be used or not. Good ideas do definitely get used, but you won't always be told. Keep your cool, and people will be more likely to help improve your ideas, and they may even be used!

When people post criticism on your thread, listen to that advice and make appropriate changes. Not all the advice is going to be accurate, but more often than not important advice will be repeated by numerous people. Your idea probably won't be perfectly balanced outright, and often there are alternative ways of working your idea that will be superior. Make sure to use the advice you're given and make changes and improvements to your suggestion over time. Better ideas are always more likely to be used, so take all the constructive criticism you can get!

Your idea will take time to be implemented. Not every gamemode has a coder, for example CTF. This means that even though your idea is great, it may also need a coder to be implemented. Additionally, even if you had a coder, turning this into in-game reality is not a simple process. Adding an entire new class in CTF can be difficult because they can have unique abilities which need to be properly coded. This takes time to happen, so there will inevitably be a delay. That's not to mention hiring a coder takes money, and with Brawl not making a massive amount right now, updates are having to be staggered. There will also be more checks and barriers, only the best ideas can afford to be implemented at the moment.
Other than that, Good luck!


That concludes my guide. Let me know if it was useful, or you want additional information added. I'm quite happy to spend time updating this and keeping it relevant for everyone!