MLP Forums turns 1 year old!

[Twilight Sparkle ✨ 8,526]

366 days ago, in the dead of an early October night, a switch was flipped. That night marked the birth of a My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic fan site... a brand new forum, engineered to nurture a kind and loving community embracing the ideals of the intellectual property it is dedicated to.

 

Welcome to MLP Forums.

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I don't think it needs to be said that MLP Forums is an impressively large and active community. Indeed, we have never had a day with zero new fans finding us and registering an account. But while activity has always been a strength of this community since the minute it opened, there was a time when the entirety of the userbase huddled together to anticipate a 500-member giveaway.

 

Let's begin with some lifetime stats, to put some numbers to our growth:

 

Lifetime Pageviews

• Pageviews: 14,930,055
• Visits: 1,319,705
• Unique Visitors: 494,381
• Time Spent On Site: 41.35 years
• Members: 6,911
• Topics: 34,974
  • Approved Topics: 31,314
  • Deleted Topics: 3,660
• Posts: 821,490
  • Approved Posts: 805,681
  • Removed Posts: 3,660
• Notifications Sent: 3,942,865
• Private messages sent: 212,591
• Site Data: 39.64 GB
• Data Volume Served: 4.84 TB
• Files Served: 371,953,260
• Servers Outgrown: 7
  • 5 VPS's
  • 1 public cloud
  • 1 dedicated server
  • currently running on second dedicated server

For just a single year of existence, these are some awfully impressive numbers. But what is the story behind these digits? What happened during the 41 years that all of us have collectively spent here?

 

The answer is, a whole lot. Too much has gone down here for a single Canterlot Castle announcement to encompass everything the MLP Forums community has accomplished in the past 366 days. But I would like to take this opportunity nonetheless to give you an overview of some key events that shaped MLP Forums into the sprawling metropolis of a community it is today. So where better to start than with the creation of the site?

 

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Prologue: Prelude to Genesis

MLP Forums began as a joint project between Kurtiss and myself. At the time, Kurtiss was an administrator at Nintendo 3DS Forums. Incidentally, a devoted following of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic had developed at that site. At the same time, a similar following was developing at my other forum, TheWiiU.com. When I gave the show a try myself in May 2011, I famously said that I would not "dedicate a significant portion of my life to watching it":

 

I was pleasantly surprised. Even though the ratio of female-to-male characters in the show is 99:1, I honestly found it rather enjoyable to watch. Plot's a little on the cliché side, but the production values and quality of the animation are incredible for a kid's show. Though I'm not gonna dedicate a significant portion of my life to watching it, I'm thinking of watching more of it every now and then, particularly considering how much talent is actually behind the show (they've hired a bunch of people who worked on all of Cartoon Network's classics in the past). And this is coming from someone who doesn't even subscribe to cable anymore because "there's nothing worth watching."

Thing is, on both sites, the pony fans were confined to a single MLP:FiM megathread. Those are good fun and all, but terribly disorganized and forever cast in the shadow of their parent community. The idea of creating a dedicated pony forum was whispered around a few times; but one day, I received a fateful email from Kurt...

 

 

That right there was the beginning of what later became MLP Forums.

 

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Chapter 1: Conception and Launch

I can tell you right now what MLP Forums was not going to be. The ball began its roll with a casual email, but MLP Forums was not going to be the ninety-two-millionth "worldsmostamazingforum.freeforumzhosting.net". A full month prior to launch was spent planning out the goals and strategy of the site, with the idea of being able to hit the ground running and avoid the dead-on-arrival fate of the vast majority of Internet forums.

 

With the so-called "brony" fandom had already existed for a while, Kurt and I knew that established gathering spots for fans of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic already existed. Because we thought that it was too late into the game to compete on numbers alone - number of posts, number of members, number of [X metric] - we devised a new strategy. The idea was that, since we were the new pony forum on the block that no one has ever heard of, we wanted to make sure that, for those few people who did trust us enough to register and get involved, the time they'd spend here would be damned well worth it.

 

Of course, even with the greatest member retention strategy on the planet, a forum's useless if it never gets any members. And the negative feedback loop here that renders so many forums dead-on-arrival is that if no one is posting, no one will join to post. A cycle with seemingly no escape...

 

...or is there?

 

After letting some ideas percolate, we devised a strategy for this, too: develop some interest in the site and build a mailing list first. Once we had enough people on the list, the doors would be opened and an email would be sent out. In the excitement of the site's launch, no one from the mailing list would care that the site has zero posts... not like it would be zero posts for any longer than a minute after launch, anyway.

 

To this end, several hours were spent putting a gorgeous form together with a single goal in mind - convince any passersby to leave their precious email address behind with us. This is what it looked like:

 

Within its first 24 hours online, MLP Forums already had over 130 members and 2500 posts, and 30,000 pageviews, MLP Forums was dead on arrival, all right.

 

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Chapter 2: Budding Steps

Although the "lots of activity on day one" part of our strategy was successful, the more interesting challenge of keeping the small - but active! - userbase we acquired was now becoming an important factor in the future of the site. Inspired by the community's own feedback, several key happenings took place which brought nearly every one of the several hundred of us together (at least, it sure felt that way).

 

The addition of an on-site gallery was the first of these happenings, marking both the site's first major feature addition, and the first push for monetary donations. As it was... the gallery did not quite pan out in the end, to a great degree because our vendor's gallery software was much more difficult to work with than anyone expected it to be. Its fate was sealed when the other admins and I took a critical look and stumbled upon, among other things, an album of gloriously high-resolution images of a soggy, half-eaten cookie sandwich.

 

What was a smashing success, however, was the "Making Christmas Merrier" fundraiser we ran for the BC Children's Hospital. We managed to raise $400 (plus a physical video game), all of which the community requested go towards purchasing Christmas presents for the poor children who had to spend the beloved holiday at the hospital. At the conclusion of the fundraiser, I personally delivered the proceeds to the hospital.

 

With the MLP Forums community over ten times larger now than it was last year, plans are already underway to hold another holiday fundraiser for the hospital. You can expect to hear more about this in the coming weeks!

 

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Chapter 3: Of 500 Members, the Room of Chats, Feld0's Inheritance, and the Prophecy of Zoop

After the initial rush from the mailing list, registrations fell to a daily number countable on two hands. Understandably, 500 members seemed like a lofty milestone for the new pony forum on the block to reach, and quite a bit of excitement surrounded that number - not least of which was my promise that MLP Forums would get an on-site chatroom once we reached that figure.

 

When the milestone was finally reached on December 4, much rejoice was had. In addition to the opening of the long-awaited chatroom, our Apple Bloom held an iconic contest to commemorate the occasion, which many of our "older" community members will fondly remember.

 

Unfortunately, the chatroom brought out the worst in the community and was a royal pain to moderate. An anonymous survey we conducted in March revealed that there was a nearly-perfect split of chatroom-goers who believed the chatroom was not moderated anywhere near tightly enough, and chatroom-goers who believed the new Gestapo was lurking in there. After well over a million messages were sent through the room, we dropped a sonic rainnuke down that way on April 8 to refocus our managerial efforts elsewhere, on areas of the site that are open to the public. It was not the most popular move we ever made as staff, but it was made with the long-term interests of the community at heart.

 

This period of time also marked some significant staffing changes. Kurtiss, the co-founder of MLP Forums and a beloved member of the community, stepped down for personal reasosn shortly after the New Year, leaving the entire community in my hands. Zoop and Swoop both received their promotions in this general time period as well, proving themselves to be capable moderators and dedicated stewards to the community.

 

In January, Zoop prophesized that MLP Forums would reach half a million posts by the end of the year. He was pretty far off the mark.

 

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Chapter 4: Server Woes of 2012

I realize that many of you probably don't care all that much about the arcane technowizardry that powers this place and keeps it online; but as its owner and sysadmin, taking measures to keep up with the community's growth, while not breaking the bank, has been a major challenge in and of itself.

 

In the twelve months it has existed, MLP Forums has migrated between servers eight times. The first four times, we had simply outgrown our virtual server and moved to new host nodes that offered more resources per server. The fifth time, we moved to a cloud server with a new hosting company that used SSD's exclusively. The performance was incredible... until a relentless string of DDoS attacks hit us in the last two weeks of May. Unfortunately, the datacentre kicked us out when a multi-gigabit UDP flood targeted at us knocked much of their network offline.

 

Don't get me wrong - these attacks put a pretty noticeable dent in our traffic and some members' sanity, but I like to think of them as a coming-of-age sign. Attackers usually go after well known sites in an attempt to make some sort of public statements, so our first DDoS'ing meant that word about MLP Forums - the new pony forum that had no intention to grow huge - had spread out there in the world.

 

Three more migrations followed, all in an effort to keep up with the rapid growth of the community. The first one was a move to a huge virtual server, which was soon followed with an upgrade to an even larger dedicated server.

 

The final migration, to the dedicated server we're on today, happened with a little bit of luck. Presented with the opportunity to get a custom server built with arrays of both SSD's and hard drives, at a great price, I jumped. The machine we now run on has about as much power packed into a single box as one could ever ask for, and is expected to keep pace with our future growth for many more months to come. If (when?) we outgrow this little beast, it'll be time to move to a dual-server setup.

 

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Chapter 5: Survival of a Pony-Less Summer

The last two episodes of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic's second season aired on April 21.

 

https://mlpforums.com/calendar/event/51-%7B%3F%7D/?module=events

It was difficult for many fans to accept that this was the last of the show we would see until Season 3's premiere in the fall, especially after the intense, fan service-laden romp that was Season 2. Some went as far as to predict that the lack of fresh pony to watch for so many months would be the fandom's downfall.

 

At MLP Forums, however, we treated it as an opportunity to expand and reform our community to bring out the best fan content our members have to offer. Some of the expansions are still being completed; but it was during this general time period that many reforms were made to Roleplay World, our game servers, and the community's management - not least of which was Scootacool's promotion to my #1 personal assistant.

 

Work also began on increasing the appeal of Octavia's Hall with the introduction of a regulated commissions section and the Octavia's Hall Critics initiative.

 

With Season 3 right around the corner, I feel confident in saying that MLP Forums is in the best position yet to ring in a new season, along with the endless stream of fan labour and new members each episode brings with it.

 

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No, silly Twilight. The rest of the book has not been written yet!

Epilogue: Roadmap to the Future

MLP Forums has come an awfully long way. We're on track to exceed a million posts by the end of the year, and there's no doubt that a full season's complement of episodes will work wonders to boost activity and registrations. But we're not stopping here.

 

Our strong traffic and dedicated userbase puts us in the enviable position to undertake intricate and ambitious community projects - projects that transcend our little corner of the My Little Pony fandom and have the potential to serve a purpose in the greater brony community. There are plans for a number of such "Extra-Large Expansions" in the cards, but Pony.fm will be the first of them to see a public release.

 

Pony.fm will do for pony fan music what Bandcamp did for indie music - provide a beautiful, slick, and easy way for artists to upload, organize, and share their music with the world. Although it is a separate site from MLP Forums, the two will share the same user accounts and MLP Forums will be Pony.fm's official forum, meaning that a degree of integration and overlap will exist between the two communities. It's quite possible that Pony.fm may catch the interest of a few celebrity fans and bring them into the heart of the MLP Forums community.

 

Part of what makes Pony.fm even possible is the ability of MLP Forums to support it, at least in its initial stages. A music hosting site that transcodes uploads into a multitude of formats calls for some pretty serious server power - and thanks to MLP Forums, Pony.fm has this server power readily available. And the ability to launch Pony.fm with thousands of accounts on day one could very well dwarf the launch of MLP Forums itself - a smashing success itself.

 

As Pony.fm moves further along in development, you can expect to gradually begin hearing more about it, particularly once beta testing begins. It is a project that I'm incredibly excited to get off the ground, and I hope you will be, too.

 

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In closing, I'd like to reiterate some of the main goals that the team and I have for the ongoing maintenance and development of the MLP Forums community.

• To continue holding the forum community and our members to the highest standards, ensuring a friendly place you can always feel safe visiting, no matter how large it grows.
• To continue encouraging and nurturing our community to produce content of a high quality, leaving behind interesting and diverse discussions for everyone to enjoy.
• To begin building out an integrated, unified community of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic fans that transcends a single Internet forum.

A Gift from MLP Forums to You

To make the celebrations all the merrier, we're granting one week of subscriber privileges to every single member FOR FREE! Better yet, if you like what you see, you can get 20% off a subscription if you order one before October 10th.

 

To get the 20% discount, first choose the subscription you want. Once you get to the checkout screen, click the "I have a coupon code to use" link and enter the code YAYBIRTHDAY (see screenshot below):

 

And yes, the discount applies to a long-term subscription as well! For example, if you order a $10/month subscription for 6 months, you can get 6 months of subscriber for just $48.

 

In addition to all this, everyone has been given a special party badge. Over the course of the festivities, there will be no "leveling up" - don't worry about your rank or post count, kick back, and enjoy MLP Forums.

 

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I'd like to give a special thanks to Marco23p, Jokuc, and Jonke for their work on putting all the graphics together for the celebration. It wouldn't be anywhere nearly as festive without you. Thanks!

 

And finally, thank YOU for being a member here and doing your part to make MLP Forums into the awesome community it is today.

 

Here's to another excellent year of MLP Forums!

 

[Zoop 8,384]

Time flies when you're having fun.

 

A whole bloody year? Scarcely seems like it, to be honest - seems like just a couple months ago I made my awkward introduction thread, which was quickly followed up with severalpostspraising the administration.

 

This place, and this last year as a whole have both been good to me. I've made a great many friends here; far more than I've made in any other internet community I've ever been a part of in my life (and I've been online for over a dozen years!). Though I've fallen out of contact or have otherwise drifted apart from some of the folks that I've met here, they've still all had a tremendous impact on my life, and have inspired me to hold a much more positive worldview than I once did.*

 

I don't like listing names or such when it comes to people that have had a major impact on me because I always worry that I'll leave someone out on accident, or make someone sad because they didn't get added to the list, so instead let me say this: it is no exaggeration to say that I very truthfully love a fairly large number of the people here. With that out of the way... to my friends here, I hope that I can eventually come to have had half as positive an impact on you as you've all had on me.

 

Regardless of who comes or who goes, and regardless of how much the community 'changes' or evolves, I will be here, looking forward to the next great evolution of this community. There may come a time at which I will not be able to enjoy the same level of activity here that I presently do, but I for one do not intend to up and leave any time soon.

 

*Somebody once told me, quite seriously and honestly, that my capacity for cruelty and meanness was beyond measure.

[---------------------- 1,645]

Wow....1 year ago....that's a long time...like.... AN ENTIRE YEAR!....

 

 

Ummm...anyway,

 

I don't claim to be around sense the very beginning, but I have been around for a large chunk for it.

I joined the forums in december, at the time I was looking for a forum where I could find some really great and friends fans of MLP, after becoming a brony about 5 months before, I really wanted to get into a community!

 

This community over achieved what I was looking for in a brony community, you guys are funny, kind, and always where there if I needed to vent, or just talk life. Hell, I loved this community so much, that I ended up making these just to show my apriciation!

 

http://marco23p.devi...346452#/d4sz2pj

http://marco23p.devi...er-II-324770509

 

I was just getting into Deviant Art, but not because I was doing art, but because i wanted to save the art I really liked. I came across a image I really liked, it was a vector of a santa fluttershy winking. I loved it, I couldn't get over it! This image was made by none other than Nico! So I sent him a message on dA asking him "how the hell do you do this?" And that's how me and Nico met, looking at the desc of that fluttershy image, I noticed something about "MLP Forums" so I decided to give it a quick look and sign up.

 

My Time spent on these forums is nothing short of amazing! I got to know many interesting people.

 

My first friend being Nico, who was someone I really looked up to, and I still do to this day. He is a true friend and not a day went by where I was excited just to talk to him, even if it was for a little bit. He is a great artist, and was a friend who always cared about me and was always willing to hear out my problems when ever I was down, when ever I just needed some one to talk to, he was there, and I really appreciate all he has done for me! If it was not for him, I would have never become a artist and strive to do bigger and better things. Thanks buddy!

 

Feld0, I joined the forums around the time when he was doing the christmas charity drive, and I was so touched by it, that I decided to shoot him a private message, I just wanted to get to know him better. I never expected such a friendship to spring from it, but it did. Feld0 has some really good quality traits, hes a very intelligent guy, and most intelligent people I have met are always kinda moody and depressing, sometimes lacking common sense. Feld0 may use big words sometimes that drive me to google them, but he has always cared for my well being and I have done everything I could to help him, and even though we don't always get a chance to just idle chit chat, I think of feld0 as a really close, and great friend!

 

Elvis (Apple Bloom) - I added him on skype when I added...everyone on skype XD, I saw he had a skype name and decided to shoot him a friend request. Once again, I never thought anything of it, never expected a real friendship to spring out from it...but I was proven wrong ONCE AGAIN. AB is a dude that I wish I got to know sooner during my stay here at the forums he is kind, funny, and overall a really great friend. He has helped me out in a few situations and always did what he could to help me if I ever needed it. Not to mention, he was a blast at bronycon!

 

Then....there is.... *sigh* lerpy....

 

Lerpy is a guy I doubt I need to introduce to anybody. Probably the most popular member on this forum lerpy (Lady Rarity Pony) is known for his...interesting....very....interesting sense of humor. There are 3 occasions I can think of on skype where the jokes hes made were...questionable to say the least, such gems like

 

Marco: "..."

Lerpy: ",,,*"

Marco: "Jesus dude...really?"

Lerpy: "jesus is a cool dude, anyone who walks on water is cool"

Marco: "Spoken like a true Preacher

 

or the ever so lovely

 

Marco: "Oh no wonder, I am sitting here trying to jam my sd card into my ds, but there is one already in here XD" (not forbatem)

Lerpy: "You can jam your sd card into my ds. ;D

Marco: "uh...huh...

Lerpy: "It would go in...nicely"

Marco: "You have a lot of issues dude"

 

To the charming

 

Marco: "I am heavy weapons guy...and this...is my weapon"

lerpy: "Pull up your pants, man."

Marco: "eh?"

Lerpy: "your heavy weapon is showing"

Marco: "o_o...I really dont know how to respond to that"

lerpy: "I think "o_o" was probably the best response"

 

...and trust me...there is more where that came from

 

Sufficed to say lerpy has probably brought upon the biggest hijinks on these forums, such as the swine invasion last may...pigs...everywhere....

But lerpy is a really good friend at heart, hearing me out when ever I just need to vent, and always tried to make me smile...despite the fact that he was known as the "Silent Protagonist" as skullbuster put it, because he was so quiet at bronycon (...yea I know right?) but in all seriousness, hes a really cool guy with a great test in humor!

 

And those guys are not the only one, so don;t feel bad if your not up here, you guys are all awesome!

 

 

One last member that of course needs to be mentioned (though I am writing this before feld0 puts his post up...so I'm sure feld0 already mentioned him) is Kurtiss.

 

Feld0 did not quite start up the forum by him self, kurtis was kind of like the co-owner or runner of these forums but he left shortly after (about 2 months maybe?) the forum opening for personal reasons, so let's not forget about him! (realized I made a horrible mistake here, just edited it. )

 

I never was really into forming, I ran my own for a short period for my gmod server, but lack of proper knowledge and...well...money, I had to take it down, besides I was getting tired of GMOD. MLP Forums is the only forum I have ever actually...enjoyed...and I really care about the forums and it's users. The quality of the members, and the people who run this site, really make the forum a enjoyable place to stay around and talk about the magic of friendship and stuph...yea stuph >:]

 

There is always something new going on in the forums and lot's of events to keep the fun going like the weekly synchtube, or the tf2 and minecraft servers, the guys have always thought of neat ways to keep interest in the site! and I have been around long enough to see all the crazy stuphs that has happened here, like the ever so spammy chat being nuked, or the awesome april fools day effects. Never a dull moment on this site!

 

 

In the short year of MLP Forums being online, it has gathered much traffic and gets an absurd amount of posts and new users everyday. I think it's probably safe to say this forum is one of the most, IF NOT THE MOST, popular brony forum out there. And it has good reason to withhold that title, the forum is run by people who actually know what they are doing...for once....and they do a great job making sure the forum is better then the day before. All the staff here always take great care of this place and never let it get out of hand, I can't say we have ever experienced any really situations here, and that's due to how well the staff handles everything! So I think a round of applause is needed for the previous and current staff here at MLP Forums

 

 

I think I am kinda stretching this out now, so I think I should conclude here. MLP Fourms has achived great miles stones during it's operation, and I really can't wait to see what lies in store for the future of this awesome site. so once again

 

 

 

So, everypony, lets make this year EVEN BETTER THEN BEFORE

 

Until next time

 

 

 

-Marco.P

Edited October 4, 2012 by marco23p

[Vicke 3,189]

I’ve been a member here for 10 months now! And I can proudly say that this is the best 10 months I’ve ever spent online.

This single site has given me so much love, and I’ve done my best to repay it. The friends I’ve made here is probably some of my best friends I’ve got, and that says a lot.

I still remember when I first joined the site. I joined because I wanted to advertise my Youtube channel where I made pony videos. But we can all say that that plan got scraped. Instead, I got in love with it.

I still remember the good old chat we had here. That’s the place I used to spend my school days, just talking to everyone.

So yeah, thank you everyone for making my life a little better!

Thank you Feld0 for what you have done, I’d hug you right now if I had the chance!

[Key Gear 6,663]

Well, I wasn't originally going to say anything here (I'm a tired pony right now), but forces outside of my own sphere of influence have compelled me against my will (I'm looking at you Scootaluna aka Manthisis). By the way, I'm normally Scootacool, as you might have guessed. I'm currently going retro to coincide with the anniversary.

 

One year… I haven't been around for the whole year, but I have been around for most of it. Just looking at Feld0's truly epic original post, I can see so many things that have happened both before and after my own arrival on the site. Really, what an amazing history! It really does put things in perspective… A year normally doesn't seem like such a long time, but it can be an eternity within the right context.

 

One year ago, if you would've told me that my favorite show would be about multicolored ponies, then I would've called you crazy. If you would've told me that I would be spending hours out of every day on a pony site, then… I have no idea what I would've done, but it would've probably not been pleasant. I generally had a reputation as being something of a completely no-nonsense individual at that point in time (startling for those that know me now).

 

Enter ponies. I discovered the show back in January, I think. I was pulling an all nighter putting together some computers and I ran across a link to a ridiculous animated video on YouTube. It was some type of orange creature… (Look, it was 2 AM in the morning so I was half crazed.) Looking over to the right, I saw more videos in the related links area. I clicked in an episode (the most recent episode of season two at that time). The rest, as they say, is history. I watched all of the episodes in reverse order. Then, I watched them again.

 

I finally joined MLP Forums back in February. It took me a while to find this place. I basically gave all of the other pony communities a try, but none of them really struck me as being places that I would want to hang out. They all seemed… To just not fit me. If that sounds unusual, then you should consider that I'm not really much of an online guy. Before I spent time hunting for a pony community to call home, I had not been a member of a forum since 2003 or 2004. For me, finding *the right place* was a really big deal. But when I saw this place… I just knew that it was perfect for me.

 

Looking at my welcome thread now, it brings back memories. It takes me back all the way to the beginning. I have had so many amazing conversations on this site, and I have met so many amazing individuals. I originally joined this site just looking for a place where I could talk about and analyze ponies without being considered crazy. That was all that I wanted, but I actually ended up getting so much more - friends, fun times, great memories. This may sound crazy, but I can totally see myself telling my kids and great grandkids about this one website…

 

To say that I love this place would not really do it justice. To say that I have treasured memories from this place would also not do it justice. To someone just casually striding by, this is just another Internet site albeit one with an unusual topic. However, to me, this place is like my home away from home. There are so many users on the site that I consider to be friends. I would love to just list out all of the names of individuals that I have spoken with and that have had some type of impact on me on this site, but the list would be too long. I think that says a lot about this place. MLP Forums is not just another discussion site.

 

Before I say anything else, I would like to say thank you. Thank you Feld0 and Kurtiss for founding the site. Thank you to all of the early moderators, administrators, and members for their contributions in making the early community fantastic. Thank you to every member that has ever shared an encouraging word, a word of wisdom, an amazing experience, a laugh, or put a smile on my face. Thank you for all of the current staff members for all the hard work that you do to keep this place rolling. Thank you to my friends on the site.

 

I realize that the last few months have seemed quite tumultuous. Staff and members that were fairly prominent in the early community have left, new staff members have been added, and other changes have also occurred. In the midst of changes, it may seem as though the community is in danger of losing that spark that made it so special for so many of us. However, this is not the case.

 

Every day, the community continues to grow. New members feel comfortable enough to dive straight into things and start posting. While we have lost a few of individuals, that is what naturally tends to happen as a community grows, develops, and matures. Changes will happen, but so long as a strong core exists that is dedicated towards improving the forum and preserving the friendliness of the community, then there is nothing to be concerned about.

 

So long as the core is strong and the roots remain intact, then the forum itself will continue to prosper. Feld0 is still at the helm and he is doing a fantastic job of running the site. The current staff is committed to the same vision that the early staff members maintained and that Feld0 listed in his above post. The current members love MLP Forums just as much as the originals. The future is bright. Anyways... That's enough of this mini-wall-of-text. Now......

 

LET'S PARTY!!!

 

http://youtube.com/watch?v=0gfniCDbbzg

[Nightfall 3,950]

Congrats, Peter! This site has been, from what I see, a massive success!

 

Wow... One year, yet so many things have happened... and I've been here for less than half of that time... All the shenanigans that have occurred...

 

Thanks for the Subscriber stuff, man! We owe you so much!

[Jonke 3,743]

I'll probably keep this quite short.

 

So, 1 year has passed since the start of this very forum, so much fun we've had. I can't express in words how i feel right now, i'm shedding a small tear of joy... and i think that should say enough. :') Huge thanks to Feld0 and Kurtiss for creating this community, all the admins, moderators for keeping this place clean and friendly, stewards and donors/subscribers for keeping the forum's services operational and running at speed of light (Sorry Rainbow Dash, you're slower :z) but also thanks to all of YOU. We wouldn't be standing here today with over 800 000 posts, an activity seen nowhere else and a successful community as this one if it weren't for all of our members. *applause*

 

All i can say is that, it has been one of the best years ever and i'm really looking forward to another awesome year of MLP Forums. Stay awesome everyone, we don't want it any other way. =)

 

 

 

Happy First Anniversary MLP Forums!

 

 

Edited October 4, 2012 by Jonke

[null123456 759]

Well, MLP Forums. You have done great to all of us. And considering your first year, I would like to reward you with a special thing I saw while searching 'Anniversary' on Google Images.

Come on Feld0.. Eat the cupcake!

EDIT: Just realized I have one of the shortest posts in this topic.

Happy Birthday! MLP Forums! I've been on since April! Hug me!

Is that better?

Edited October 4, 2012 by Random Sushi

[Nah 3,182]

Wow, this is amazing, a simple email for an idea turns into a fast growing, friendly, and awesome forum. This place changed my life and thanks Feld0 for doing this.

 

(PS, if this was a movie, it would be called "The Brony Network". )

[NavelColt 22,879]

One hell of a reflection on the forum's development, very impressive. The background and banner were one thing, I pretty much expected those when I came on earlier this afternoon. Then there was Finest's original username and avatar day idea that's been anticipated for a while now. But I was thrown for a pleasant loop at these decorative and utterly festive badges and temporary global subscriber status Ain't no party like a Feld0 party.

 

Like I ranted a bit about in the unofficial thread, this place blew away even my highest expectations from day one. The professional level of the staff that I've only ever seen from top rank companies, a userbase that's mature and accepting, and activity that cannot be rivaled all impressed me. More so than not only any other forum I've been on, but any other site I've been on, period, this place is a gemstone that I'm so very happy I decided to join back at the end of April. It's now my prime home on the internet, and I'm confident that this birthday will be the first of several.

 

I may not be a veteran here, but I'm very excited to move into November, embracing Season 3 and the activity, new faces and events it brings, with the rest of you.

 

You're a goddamn prodigy at your young age, Feldy, and I sincerely hope you're proud of this place, and the other sites you've built and successfully run. A happy birthday to the board, and good will to all of us as we trek into the future and see what kind of mayhem, fun and excitement Season 3 and beyond will bring us.

 

And now, here's a pony with a birthday hat and balloon.

 

Edited October 4, 2012 by ~Chaotic Discord~

[spas-ticShotty 3,584]

Man, it feels like yesterday I just joined as a massive AJ fan. Hey wait a minute, I still am . Gotta say, if I didn't find this place, I'd be bored as hell right now. Never have I spent so much time on a site like this. All the good people I got to meet, all the stuff I got to do, and the fact that I could openly say I'm a brony and not be ridiculed is fun .

[MVC NVMXD JVRXD 2,406]

I always regret finding you guys in March. I missed so much fun stuff...

But since finding my way here and into the brony fandom, I've had the chance to talk with some of the best people possible. I mean, just look at how much posts I have. In a couple months, I've racked up more than people who've been here for a year

It's really nice to see what a success these forums have been. Feld0, you're a great guy, running an amazing site. Though we've all had our fair share of problems, it's nice to see that we're still one big, happy, pony-loving community.

Happy birthday!

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u85wVlFBBW8

DON'T STEAL MY THUNDER, EVILSHY. YOUR RP WORLD POWERS WON'T SAVE YOU NOW.

 

 

[Twiliscael 3,960]

Ya know, I checked this place out on day one. I was never a forumite. I honestly thought that this site was going places, but due to my stupidity I held off signing up for over 4 months.

 

I wish I could have been here for the beginning of this site's journey, but I am honored to have played whatever small role I have played this site's evolution.

 

Thank you Feld0, thank you Hasbro, and most importantly, thank all of the awesome people who keep this site going strong.

Edited October 4, 2012 by Twiliscael

[Pinkie D Pie 1,036]

This is going to be rather short as I am pretty tired right now.

 

I've not been here a year, I have been here Roughly 5 months, but these last five months have been some of the best I have ever expirenced. I love this forums, this community and everything about it. I may not have seen everything may not have been here since the beginning but from the time I have been here, I know this is one kick-ass site. Well congrats to one year everyone, and thank you Feld0 for one of the best sites I have ever had the pleasure of finding. And before I forget, thank you for the free subscriber stuff for a week.

 

So with that, happy birthday forums, congrats to everyone, especially Feld0, and goodnight!

[Starshine 16,333]

Happy 1st anniversary, MLPForums!

 

Silly nelly! I never thought a forum this young can be this fucking huge!

 

I could still remember that one time when I registered here. What I had in mind was "lol another trollable forum", and damn I was surprised I got hooked up almost instantly

(well, technically not almost, but you got the idea)

 

Everyone here is so nice, lots of people are more than willing to lend an ear to your opinion, even if they don't agree, they rarely ever be rude to you. Everyone is so understanding.

 

Moderators here are (too) kind. I once asked a silly question to one of the staff months ago, and surprisingly he answered my question quite nicely (Usually I got a bad case of "fuck your shit" when I ask that question in another forum)

Not to mention they can be very helpful and cooperative when you lost your shit :V

 

Last but not least, the main factor why I'm in love with this community is the general friendliness of the members. Yeah, six months ago I was nothing but lurker under the shadow with no reputation and little to no post counts, but the community graciously accepted me as their own. You have no idea how much that meant for little me back then.

 

Long story short, I would like to see this forum continue to prosper. May the Wraith of the Moon watch over us!

 

Zoop you glorious bastard

[Marshmallow 1,137]

That was really great to read. It made me feel so nostalgic at times! So much stuff has happened here since last year! I can't believe that it's already been a whole year! And what a year too! I'm really proud to be one of the 130 members who joined on the first day! These are the first forums where I really felt at home.

 

So

Happy birthday everyone!

 

Oh and thanks for the free subscription! That's really neat! It'll finally allow me to change my member title after all these months!

Also, LOL, It feels weird seeing so many yellow names

 

Oh and I love the PARTY badges too!

Edited October 4, 2012 by Marshmallow

[AegisReflector 886]

I am proud to be a part of this crowning achievement, even though I've only been here a mere month now.

 

But during this small time here, I am proud to say that this is one of the most organized and thoughtful communities I've ever been on. Before I stumbled upon this forum, I felt like I was alone with my Brony fandom. Sure, I had friends who liked the show, but not to the extent of a hardcore fan like me. MLPForums clearly established the atmosphere of everybody having a common interest like me: Being obsessed with ponies and the Brony culture!

 

Not to mention that the staff here is an absolute powerful team. Not only do they maintain order in Equestria, but they also show their silly side by actually posting funny stuff in General Chat Thread and also associate themselves with the common pony. Not a lot of forums do that. Sometimes the moderators just come on to clean up material, then leave before even being social with anybody. That is just one other unique thing that MLPForums does best, and stands out from all the rest.

 

Let's have another fine year filled with excitement now that Season 3 is just A MONTH away! And again, guys, thank you for such an awesome beginning on my part.

[HomuraBL 851]

Thank you Feld0 for the gift of both the forums and the lesser gift of free subscriber bonuses.

 

It's been one wild year, and I can't wait for this forums to be back on track when new pony episodes get shown.

 

Unfortunately, I wasted my speech on the other birthday thread.

 

Though, that makes nothing any less meaningful.

 

I was a little disappointed when you didn't respond to my pm Feld0, but I guess that doesn't matter. Tonight, it's time to party!...for five minutes because I got to go to bed.

 

Goodnight, and thank you Feld0.

[Steel Matt 250]

To continue holding the forum community and our members to the highest standards, ensuring a friendly place you can always feel safe visiting, no matter how large it grows. To continue encouraging and nurturing our community to produce content of a high quality, leaving behind interesting and diverse discussions for everyone to enjoy. To begin building out an integrated, unified community of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic fans that transcends a single Internet forum.

The site mission statement! -

 

 

Happy Birthday MLP forums! Here is to another awesome year of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness...which in our view is friendship, love, and tolerance!

 

EDIT: Oh yeah! I wrote this a couple weeks ago for the birthday dedication! : http://mlpforums.com/blog/210/entry-692-life-liberty-and-the-beauty-of-love-and-tolerance/

Edited October 4, 2012 by Steel Matt

[MrL0LZ 866]

So many posts, so little time to read, also, can we use the subscription coupons for already existing subscriptions?

That aside,

http-~~-//www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpaX6-MP2gs

TIME TO GET DOWN AND DANCE!

HAPPEH BIRTHDAY MLPFORUMS.

Now to post tons of happy pics and overload the forums.

Pretends he's saying "MLPFPORUMS! MLPFORUMS!"

Now that I think about it, that's not that many...

Edited October 4, 2012 by AceCord

[Jokuc 8,173]

Once again, Happy Birthday forums! (Though it's already the 4th here)

I'm so glad I joined this forum. It's been amazing and I hope next year will be just as good

[Doctor XFizzle 8,669]

I've been here since Day 1 (User #124 to be precise), so I have witnessed the charming, interesting evolution of the forums. From the Gallery, to the Christmas charity drive, to the first installation of moderators, to the chatroom, to the dA group to kill the Gallery, to the eradication of the chatroom, to the DDoS attacks, to the doldrums of the summer of no ponies. It's been a wild ride, but a doggone fun one.

 

Thank you Feld0 and Kurtiss for your vision, dedication, and effort for creating this pony sanctuary from scratch. Thanks to the moderators, past and present, for your time, dedication, and effort to keep this place running smooth and junk-free. Thank you to my friends for being some awesome people I've had the pleasure to know a little better. And thanks to all the members for being the life force that keeps this beautiful community alive and well. I hope I've positively impacted your lives the same way you have mine.

 

Congrats to MLP Forums and here's to another great year.

 

- XFizzle/Doctor XFizzle

 

*PARTY PELVIC THRUST*

[Modphase 1,271]

I already said this in the happy birthday thread that Jokuc posted, but if it weren't for you guys.....I don't know even know where I would be. I've only been here for a month and a half, but already I know that you guys are absolutely the best. I'm not going to post my sad story here, as I already did in Jokuc's thread, but for those of you who have already been there and read it, you can understand why I appreciate you guys so much. You're always there to give you're best advice, you respect everyone no matter who they are, you have a great sense of humor, and you're a fun bunch to be around. I'm so thankful I found you guys.

 

so......

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

 

Now, i know I'm not the most religious guy, and I know that I posted it in Jokuc's thread, but god bless you all.

 

And thank you, thank you so much, for turning my life around.

 

 

 

Edit: Oh, I forgot to mention, this is how I feel about MLP forums

 

 

 

As you listen, replace the words, "in my hometown", with, "MLP forums", and then you know how I've always felt about MLP forums and it's members.

 

 

A happy song for an even happier day.

Edited October 4, 2012 by Modphase

[Lady Rarity Pony 4,892]

I feel unworthy to reply to such a post with anything less than a wall of text. Although my laziness shall prevent me from even attempting a lengthy reply.

 

Give me an A for effort, please.

 

This has been the first and only community I've ever taken seriously and have been able to watch grow. I would use the word 'erect' just for the sake of making this sound homoerotic.

 

Despite the occasional trouble and confrontations I've gotten in, I still love this site. I owe Feld0, Kurtiss (wherever he may be), and all the staffers (past and present) a thanks for creating and maintaining the site. Devin is still best mod, by the way.

 

I'm honored to have been able to join these forums in their first month of existence. These forums have led me to find some well-needed friends. Great friends, in fact.

 

Time certainly does fly when you're having fun. Last time I checked it was October...2011.

 

Congratulations Feld0 and your staff on the 1 year anniversary of the launch of the MLPForums.

 

Lady Rarity Pony approves.

 

[Radiance64 7,053]

MLP Forums is best forum.

It is my home on the internet, and I love coming here every day to talk with you guys. Even from the first day I joined when I came here on the crappiest phone ever(thank god I have something much better now), even though I wasn't incredibly active my first month I still really liked it here.

I have come here pretty much every day since the end of January, and I don't regret one moment I've spent or one post I've made(if there was anything I've said worth regretting, I sure don't remember it lol). I'm also very honored and privileged to be a member of the staff now, and I hope to serve you all the best I can as a moderator. Long live MLP Forums, and again, because it can't be said enough, happy birthday!

Edited October 4, 2012 by (\SBB64/)