House News

Displays recent news events from House members in Common Room page. Shows last 5 news items filtered by House membership. Tracks achievements: VE kills, deaths, weddings, level-ups, special events. Posts automatically to the House hall. Simple community feed for House-only news.

What You See

Location: Common Room page (below House information)

Format:

  • Header: "Recent News for [House Name]:"
  • Bullet list of recent news items
  • Each item timestamped and formatted
  • Max 5 items displayed

Example Display:

  • "PlayerOne has slain Voldemort and gained 15 Voldemort Encounters!"
  • "PlayerTwo has married PlayerThree in the Gardens!"
  • "PlayerFour was killed by a Troll in the forest."
  • "PlayerFive has reached level 12!"
  • "PlayerSix has been resurrected by Bellatrix."

What News Gets Shown

The module pulls from the global news table and filters by House membership:

Typical News Events:

  • Voldemort Encounter victories
  • Player deaths (forest/PVP/dragon)
  • Resurrections
  • Marriages
  • Level achievements
  • Special event participation
  • Rare item discoveries
  • Module-specific milestones

NOT Shown:

  • News from non-House members
  • Events beyond the 5 most recent
  • Administrative announcements (global server news)

How It Works

What You See:

  • Only your own House's news, never another House's
  • Newest first, limited to the 5 most recent events
  • Shown in the Common Room

What the Administration Can Change

  • News items shown: Maximum number of news items to display (range 0-25, normally 5)

The administration can adjust how many news items are shown. Higher values show more history but take more vertical space.

Purpose & Benefits

For House Members:

  • Track House activity without checking global news
  • Celebrate member achievements (VE kills, level-ups)
  • Offer condolences for deaths
  • Stay informed about House events
  • Build House community through shared awareness

For Heads of House:

  • Monitor member progress
  • Identify active vs inactive members
  • Recognize achievements for rewards/promotions
  • Track House-wide trends (lots of deaths = training needed?)

Limitations

  • Only Recent News: Limited to last 5 items (normally). Older news not shown.
  • No Filtering: Can't filter by event type (e.g., only deaths or only VE kills)
  • No Archive: Past news beyond limit is not accessible
  • Passive Display: No interaction, just information display

Comparison to Global News

Global News Page:

  • Shows news from ALL players
  • Harder to find your House members' news
  • More comprehensive but cluttered

House News Module:

  • Shows only YOUR House members' news
  • Easier to track House activity
  • Focused and relevant

Strategy (For Players)

Check Regularly: Visit Common Room daily to see latest House news

Congratulate Members:

  • See someone killed dragon? Send them a YOM congratulating them
  • See wedding? Offer congratulations in House commentary
  • See death? Offer condolences or mock them (depending on House culture)

Track Rivals: If competing for top House VE kills, check who's recently slain dragon

Identify Help Needs: Multiple deaths from same member = they might need advice/help

Strategy (For the Administration)

Adjust the number of items shown:

  • Small Houses: Keep at 5 (enough to show activity without repetition)
  • Large active Houses: Increase to 10-15 (more members = more news)
  • Inactive Houses: Reduce to 3 (less clutter if news is rare)

House News: where you get a curated feed of your housemates' triumphs and humiliations without having to wade through the global news cesspool. It's like a House-specific gossip column, but less judgmental and more "congrats on not dying today."