My guild, your opinions.

[Lakov_Sanite]

Hello there, I am the consummate lurker.  I've played wow for far too long now, I've done the raiding thing back and forth and every which way.  I could never find a guild that really suited me or that didn't have trained monkeys as officers.  So, I finally decided to put my money where my mouth was and start my own.  This community is one I enjoy quite a bit so I'm going to post you my little guild manifesto/mission statement and if you could give me any constructive criticism or advice I would welcome it.  Starting a new guild is hard and this feels very daunting to me.  Scarlet crusade is a very old server and there are so many other established guilds that I worry I'll never be able to make this the kind of raiding/roleplay guild I'm wanting it to be.


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Ante Mortem


Greetings and salutations,

   Ah, I can see you're curious as to what I'm doing here aren't you? That answer is simple enough, I'm waiting for you of course.  Come, sit down and relax for but a moment, I would speak with you.  My name is Fortunado De'Leon and it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Ah, the stars are bright and the night is still young, I wonder how many stars will be plucked this night, how many new ones shall emerge. Oh but I get carried away, do tell me about yourself.

   Tell me, how many miles have you trod this world and the next, to bring you to this place? How many foes have you slain, how many treasures have you plucked from your victories?  And yet you wonder if it will ever end, what is the purpose of it all. You wonder what it is you truly fight for day in and day out.  I shall tell you a simple truth I have learned in my travels, if you willing to listen.  You see in this life there are two forces, beyond all else. There is light and there is Dark, there is life and there is Death.  Theirs is a dance that has played out in the night sky centuries before the first Troll ever drew breath.  It was these two forces that collided millenia before the Titans were even a thought.

   You have enjoyed life, I can tell you have revelled in its splendor and riches. Something is missing however and you do not know what it is.  Death, my friend.  What is life without her? It is meaningless and empty.  She is what defines us, what gives every moment purpose and makes our lives that much more.  To worship her this primal force, is to know the truth of our existence.

   There are those would would profess godhood, those who claim immortality.  They walk among these lands and in their mere presence they make a mockery of Her and in so doing make a mockery of all that lives and shall one day, Die. Dragons, gods and kings, they do not dance between life and Death. They would spit on you and have you bend knee to their wills.  I offer you a new way traveller.  I offer a chance to find your place in the great dance of life and Death.  Join me, together we shall honor the Goddess, we shall put an end to all those who would falsely proclaim immortality and walk upon you. Join me and find the true joy in life once more as we serve her, as we serve Death.

   If you need time do not fret.  All come to the Goddess one day and I shall be here, always at her side. I shall be waiting for you.

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Ante Mortem is not an RP guild.
Ante Mortem is not a PVE guild.
Ante Mortem is not a PVP guild.

Ante Mortem(before death)  is a guild designed to give players who enjoy pvp/pve a place to enjoy them with an RP backdrop and setting.  There are some who only enjoy the pve game, some who only enjoy the pvp or rp scenes. This would not be the guild for you.  All things can be fun in equal measure I say, if I enjoy dungeons and rp why choose?  too many times you've been stuck in a dungeon with a great tank but their name is "TanksNspanks" or you've tried going with the best rp'er you know but he never trained in shackle undead because he swore to only ever use holy spells.

You can have both, I know you are are there, people who simply want to play this game, to have fun and kick some butt but who also enjoy some storytelling and some meaning behind all those boss fights.  I would have this be that guild.

I won't lie, this is a newly formed idea, a fledgling guild but I believe it can be something grand. I would like this place to grow, to prosper and show that yes, good PVE,RP and PVP are not mutually exclusive.  That day may be a while in coming but if this idea appeals to you, then come join me and help make this happen.

This is a guild for all those who rolled on rp servers to get away from leet kids
This is a guild for those who may never rp themselves but love to listen
This is a guild for those who want to write about that raid on stormwind or that ragnaros kill
This is Sp.....a guild where there may occasionally be a bad pun.
This guild won't be for everyone.

Is this guild right for you?

Tentatively our Forums are located at:
 http://antemortem.freeforums.org/

You may contact me at either FortunadoSC@comcast.net, on the AM forums or in-game if you are interested.

[Cheddar]

Lots and lots of words

Or you can join Burning Region, the official f13 guild for f13!





<obligatory stealth edit>

[dusematic]

Is there even a market for an RP raiding guild? 


edited for niceness

[Merusk]

I wonder what it says about you that you didn't capitalize "Light" and "Life" but did "Death" and "Dark"

That's about all I got out of it, but it's definitely well-written and I think it would speak to other folks of a similar mindset..  Now your only problem is, exactly how many people are of that similar mindset.

[Lakov_Sanite]

I wonder what it says about you that you didn't capitalize "Light" and "Life" but did "Death" and "Dark"

That's about all I got out of it, but it's definitely well-written and I think it would speak to other folks of a similar mindset..  Now your only problem is, exactly how many people are of that similar mindset.

Well, that part is semi in character and he is a shadow priest afterall.  I guess I'm about to find out if there really is a market for this sort of thing.  Yay for pioneering, maybe I'll get dysentery?

[Soukyan]

I wonder what it says about you that you didn't capitalize "Light" and "Life" but did "Death" and "Dark"

That's about all I got out of it, but it's definitely well-written and I think it would speak to other folks of a similar mindset..  Now your only problem is, exactly how many people are of that similar mindset.

Well, that part is semi in character and he is a shadow priest afterall.  I guess I'm about to find out if there really is a market for this sort of thing.  Yay for pioneering, maybe I'll get dysentery?

Don't you mean... Dysentery? 

[Lakov_Sanite]

I wonder what it says about you that you didn't capitalize "Light" and "Life" but did "Death" and "Dark"

That's about all I got out of it, but it's definitely well-written and I think it would speak to other folks of a similar mindset..  Now your only problem is, exactly how many people are of that similar mindset.

Well, that part is semi in character and he is a shadow priest afterall.  I guess I'm about to find out if there really is a market for this sort of thing.  Yay for pioneering, maybe I'll get dysentery?

Don't you mean... Dysentery? 

Well played, sir. Well played.

[Righ]

Hello there, I am the consummate lurker.

Sixty posts betray your first claim as a falsehood.

[Lakov_Sanite]

Hello there, I am the consummate lurker.

Sixty posts betray your first claim as a falsehood.

Well 6(1) posts in 4 years.  I'd like a judges opinion on that.

[Signe]

[Ironwood]

Heh.

[Azazel]

Honest opinion:

The second half, the part where you desrbibe the aims of the guild seems fine to me. It's the kind of guild I'd probably/possibly give a chance to.

However, the first half, the in-character part I hated. I read, then skimmed, then skipped it. Nothing personal, I just hate that kind of stuff. If I were reading it as a potential app, it would put me off.


I'd reverse the order, maybe have a much less wordy in-character greeting up top, then the /ooc info, then finish it with more of the RP monologue if you wish.

[ajax34i]

From the point of view of "what makes this guild attractive to players"...  you seem to have nothing.

To "enjoy RP" there would have to be a focus on roleplaying, and definitely someone to set up events and encourage roleplaying, keep track of the guild's storyline etc etc.

To "enjoy PVE" your guild has to progress, you have to have experienced raid leaders and organizers, active recruiting, a gear upgrades plan, etc.

To "enjoy PVP" there have to be teams, raids against cities, etc, again you need dedicated people to organize stuff.

Basically, in order to give your members the ability to enjoy everything, your guild has to be doing everything a lot, and be very good at it.  Which means one of two things:  either a huge guild (3 guilds rolled into one), or leaders who burn out from trying to keep track and organize so many events.

[Jayce]

A few things come to mind:

I'd second the idea of reversing the RP text and the guild manifesto.  You want to probably tell people up front what they're getting into (RP) before putting them in it, so to speak.

I think you also have the "this is not a" part reversed.  In fact it is all three, but not exclusively any one of them.

I'd mention up front that name violators need not apply.

I don't know much about the RP scene, but the Goddess stuff is not really true to the Warcraft lore, and no one really knows about a time before the Titans... so you might turn off a few lore curmudgeons.  Regarding the death and life capitalization stuff, you're a shadow priest, but is the guild going to be formed in that image (ie. are you saying this is an "evil" or "dark" guild)?  That restricts you a little too (particularly if you're Alliance), and you probably want to be as pluralistic as possible if you're to get enough warm bodies from such a narrow selection of players.

One last nitpick - if you're looking to find folks who have an aversion to the l33t kiddies, you might want to pay special attention to grammar, spelling and capitalization.  People in that demographic tend to be sticklers for such things.  Specifically, RP, Stormwind, Ragnaros.

[Righ]

One last nitpick - if you're looking to find folks who have an aversion to the l33t kiddies, you might want to pay special attention to grammar, spelling and capitalization.  People in that demographic tend to be sticklers for such things.  Specifically, RP, Stormwind, Ragnaros.

At the start of sentences too. I would also make the OOC part less flowery - try to write in the manner that you would address a stranger in a casual face to face meeting - less of the "I would have this be that guild".