cliques
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Storyboard: Nobody wants to play with you
You want to roleplay. Oh, boy, do you ever want to roleplay. You have pages and pages of character backstory, you have your character's voice down, and you can cycle through emotes like a champ. (There's no championship for that, I know. Bear with me.) Your only problem is that when you walk into the room, everyone quietly turns away and discusses how urgently he or she needs to get to the next dungeon, and well, it's late. Bye! It's just like at prom, except this time you can't assume that people were just turned off by your decision to wear Groucho Marx glasses. So why does no one want to roleplay with you? Obviously I can't tell you exactly why people don't want to roleplay with you. There are a lot of variables that I probably don't know about. But I can at least give you some ideas about why you might be encountering some problems and how you can fix them, since you deserve the same sort of fun that everyone else is having. Sit down and let's figure it out; there's no judgment here.
The Guild Counsel: The crisis of cliques
Last week, a few readers offered up a terrific subject for the Guild Counsel to take a look at -- cliques. Those little pockets of exclusivity can wreak enormous havoc on an unsuspecting guild. Guild leaders want their guilds to resemble Little House on the Prairie, but what they get is a sinister version of Married... with Children. Why are cliques dangerous, and how should a guild leader handle them? Read on for some handy advice and helpful tips!
Behind the Mask: Cliques are the bane of roleplaying
Although Demonflame has just launched and is quite an entertaining little addition, there have been a few things in Champions Online that have been bothering me. I spend a large amount of my time in CO roleplaying, and I have a pretty tight circle of friends. The problem is that I tend to be sort of exclusive when it comes to roleplaying with people. I'm not openly mean in most situations, but I tend to avoid certain kinds of people. You know the types: godmodders, selfish jerks, and people with only the thinnest grasp of the English language. Most of my friends kind of tolerate these people, but I am pretty adamant when it comes to keeping them out of my RP. Unfortunately, this kind of makes me a tool. No one wants to roleplay with idiots and godmodders, but no one wants a loudmouthed jerk making a big deal out of everything, either. This realization made me understand why people form tight, exclusive cliques and how to get involved in them.
Addon Spotlight: Addons for clickers
Addon Spotlight focuses on the backbone of the WoW gameplay experience: the user interface. Everything from bags to bars, buttons to DPS meters and beyond -- your addons folder will never be the same. This week, please don't berate the clickers too badly in the comments. Addon Spotlight strives to educate and empower, bringing you tips and tools to enrich your World of Warcraft experience. Playstyles are as varied as the addons that support them, and as a comprehensive writer, I try to cover everyone's specific setups. One playstyle that is a bit of a foreign concept to me is mouse clicking. Clickers are often derided and ridiculed for their point-and-click interaction with the user interface. Sometimes, you will be watching that YouTube video of a heroic kill, and the cursor is flying around the screen a lot more than you are used to. You've found the elusive clicker.
We have a Tabard: New kid in town
Looking for a guild? Well, you can join ours! We have a tabard and everything! Check back for Amanda Dean talking about guilds and guild leadership in We Have a Tabard. So you've got goals for your guild, and you've been working very hard toward recruiting new members. One of your next big challenges is keeping them around. Turn over is a plague among beginning and middle-tier guilds. Sure, guild dynamics like raid rules and bank privileges play into who stays and who goes from your guild, but it is more important to help make someone feel a part of the team. Think about your own experiences in joining guilds. Have you ever been in one where nobody seemed to talk to you, except to ask if you could make them a flask? What about the guild that shifts their raid times, and doesn't make it clear to all members. WoW is a social world and new guildies are subject to the same anomic forces that someone might feel during their first few weeks at a new job. First things first. Let your new guildies in on your expectations. It's helpful to have guild policies posted permanently on a website so that they can quickly learn what to do and what not to do. Be firm, fair and consistent with enforcing these rules for new guildies as well as established guild members. For example, loot systems can be daunting at first. Have a clear explanation and be prepared to answer questions. You may consider appointing an established member to helping your rookies learn the ropes.
Officers' Quarters: An exclusive party
Every Monday Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership.I get a lot of e-mails, many more than I could ever cover in this column. I hear about a lot of drama, drama of all different kinds, for all different reasons. So it always piques my interest when I read an e-mail like the one below, with an entirely new kind of guild drama. This one sounds more suited to a middle school class than a guild, but here it is: secret party drama. Read on for the details!I am a member of a fairly progressed raiding guild. I am a member of the main raid. I am not an officer, but almost all the regular raiders are officers. In many ways the guild is good. Raiding rules and loot are fair. However, it has become clear that the guild is dominated by a clique and that promotions to officer and most raid invites are largely based upon becoming part of the in group. Recently it was announced during raid that we would be taking a week off as many would be out of town. After the week off, during Vent chat, it became clear that the many out of town were all out of town together. That is, the guild officers were invited to an in person party (some traveled to go to it, others didn't but all were invited). I also learned that the officers intentionally tried to keep the party a secret beforehand.
Officers' Quarters: On the brink
Every Monday Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership.A few weeks ago, I talked about the difficulty of maintaining an active raiding schedule all summer long -- and what you can do about it. This week's e-mail is from yet another victim of the summer raiding slump, but his guild has some other issues going on here, too. Hey Scott,I'm an officer of a relatively new raiding guild (3-4 months old). We formed a few weeks before 3.1 and built the guild up from almost nothing besides the group of friends we had. The core group started out almost in Best in Slot gear but most of the people we recruited were undergeared so we ended up having to run Naxx for almost a month after 3.1 before we had the gear to really push Ulduar. That being said we have done phenomenally well in the time we have spent in Ulduar. We have downed all the watchers[. . . .] We consider ourselves way ahead of where we should be for such a young guild.However we seem to have numerous problems.
Officers' Quarters: Unsocial
Every Monday Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership.What does your guild mean to you? Is it a community of like-minded players enjoying the company of their peers, helping one another to meet goals, and overcoming challenges together? Or is it simply a means to an end, a treadmill of raid attendance and loot rewards, where you slog through the necessary steps but never feel any real companionship with your fellow raiders? Some guilds start off as the former -- a fun, social organization -- and then end up as the latter -- a tier-set assembly line. This week, one officer wants to know how this can happen and what he can do about it.Hello Scott,I'm facing a dilemma that I'd like to share for a possible "Officers' Quarters".I am an officer in a medium-sized European raiding guild. We have always been proud on our mature and social playerbase. It is one of our spearheads to provide fun raids in a relaxed atmosphere. But lately, the social aspect has been degrading. Ever since the launch of Wrath and people rushing to level 80 something has changed. Where TBC provided a challenge and a common goal to work towards (mainly progressing through the different raid instances) Wrath has left us with a lack of common binder.
Forum post of the day: Cliques aren't just for high school anymore
I was under the impression that the purpose of a guild is to have a group of folks that you enjoy playing with and have common goals. It's a good way to share the game with friends and family, in addition to experiencing new adventures and progressing together. Triamala of Blackwater Raiders fears that such actions are seen as cliquish, causing drama amongst the ranks. In a post in the Guild Relations forum she said that a previous guild of hers feel apart because of cliques and her current guild is facing the same fate. Members of her guild apparently get up in arms if she runs instances together with her husband or other friends. In a later post she admits that she is closer to the officers than other guild members because they've been playing together for quite some time.
