**MY INPUT**

Alright... I know I'm new here but I'm not new to the academy scene as I've lamented before. I've been an admin of a flourishing academy where I witnessed it's growth. As such, I have no doubt that with the right commitment and ideas, any academy can make it. Therefore, you should heed what I have to say; it just may prove to be of little use to you.

1. This is probably the most simple fix but talk more... When people log on... time out... log on... time out (and repeat) it doesn't really encourage them to log back on day after day. The place needs to feel more interactive and the chatter has to start from so where. So... chat boys and girls... chat a lot.

2. I asked this question the day I joined. I noticed that this academy is over a year old yet you only have around 60 members. I would advise you guys to recruit more (have recruiting sessions or whatever it may take) If the goal of keeping the academy small is to keep a tightly knit society then it wont work as in all academies majority of the members become inactive. So... recruit boys and girls... recruit a lot.
(PS: I know DB is much smaller than DN and so not many people are gonna be into the academy scene but you have to start somewhere and hopefully, this place will grow as long as DB continues to grow. I don't foresee it reaching the same level as academies were in the days of DN's glory but its still something.)

3. Ideas. We need 'em... Ideas in terms of tournaments using decks from specific formats only (not sure if you have that already) or games like "guess the card" or whatever else comes to mind. Small interactive games as opposed to tournaments specifically aimed an an audience. They'll help the overall feel to the place and be more of an incentive to stay. So... think boys and girls... think a lot.

Just I've witnessed places grow in the past, I've also seen potential squandered and places remain stagnant or worse; die. At this rate, I hate to say, but this academy is tethering towards the latter. You've a capable staff behind you... At it then boys and girls... At it.

I know how you feel. I used to be an admin for a clan of pro players, and we always had interesting shit going on to keep us on our toes, mainly story shit that I made up.

As an "ex-academy whore" i would have to say that i agree, with Maestro. I'll also admit, that many academies have fallen because inactivity and lack of recruiting. But this is not a one person job, we all have to work together to keep the place active and in check.

Hey Mr. Maestro, thanks for your input! I do agree that over the last few days, I have witnessed a few things decline, and it saddened me a bit seeing how progressive we where before this past weekend. Recuriting will occur again soon, I know a few things probably have been going on with my staff, but I believe this weekend will be a productive one.

I do agree that the chatbox needs to be a bit more productive. People usually log into it, talk for a second, and then disconnect without logging back on. People, epseically new recurits need to see that the academy has active members. The chatbox is one of the first things people may see.

As far as tourney and events go, I wanted to wait for this first tourney to be over with and then start a couple events and potentially another tourney, however I see now that prehaps that was a bad idea. I neglected those who didn't get a chance to join into the tourney, and thus I'm sorry for that. With that beign said, be on the lookout for a couple of events to start up over the weekend, I hope everyone enjoys.

For my last bit of things I wanted to say, I agree with Zolfo as this has to be a combined effort. With help from not only my staff team but the members of the academy as well, we can make this place a very productive place- ive seen this since we really started pick things up! Post, participate in event/tourneys, and earn ap by posting and winning. We will keep adding stuff to things like the ap shop to ap worth while, so try and keep up with that.

As closing notes, thank you for your concern. I realize things may be on the decline, but please stay with us. Together, we can make this place florish like academies before us, that is my goal anyway!