The way I see there are three types of mapping work: 1) building new maps from scratch (can include nr 2 and 3) 2) tuning the number and types of monsters and pickup items in a map 3) technical go-over (fixing errors, optimizing for speed, adding scripts, setting the travel map exit and entry points etc.) Question is, for which types of this work should we recruit primarily? I.e. do we want someone who can populate a map masterfully with just the right monster groups for great battles, a tech wiz who fixes and tunes minor things on mostly finished maps, or traditional mappers?

I would go for anyone who can map, we all can do numbers 2 and 3 if asked or needed, and frankly I'm not too good for doing maps from scratch... but I could do one or two if really needed <!-- s:) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/orc2.gif" alt=":)" title="Smile" /><!-- s:) -->. Also, in the final testing of the beta or whatever versions, we could rebalance the maps ourselves too.

OK let me put the question differently: do we need to recruit mappers or map fixers/map tuners for the tasks required for the alpha and first public beta?

I would wait until the public version is out, so people will be more interested on helping us with the project, once they see the quality behind it <!-- s:) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/orc2.gif" alt=":)" title="Smile" /><!-- s:) -->, but that's just my 2 cents.