Filed under: The Guild Counsel

One of the challenges of running a guild is avoiding the emotional peaks and valleys that tend to come up. In fact, one of the scariest times for a guild is when it's just accomplished something big because once the cheers stop, there's a void left and people begin to wonder what's next. It's not uncommon for a guild that's just hit an amazing goal to lose some members shortly after, and in some cases, it can actually lead to a guild withering and drying up because there's a letdown and apathy sets in.

How do you survive the dreaded plateau? Let's look at a few ways in this week's Guild Counsel!

One age-old debate in MMOs revolves around the buying and selling of characters, and the argument becomes especially contentious when it involves the exchange of real-life money. The members of one camp will staunchly defend the practice, saying they put the time and effort into the toons and that those characters are theirs to do with as they please. Others argue the opposite, saying that there are plenty of characters who were given help from others in leveling and acquiring gear, and it's not right to take that collective effort and market it to the highest bidder.

It's a complicated issue for sure, but it's mainly centered around one single character. But what if it involved an entire guild? That's a question that players have had to tackle recently in World of Warcraft, as the practice of buying and selling guilds has become more and more popular. Would you buy a guild if you were just starting out? And would you sell your guild if you were done with the game? As usual, there are three sides to this coin, and it's something that we might see more of in other MMOs, so let's take a look at some of the arguments both for and against in today's Guild Counsel.

When you're running a guild, there are lots of clear, right and wrong, cut and dried issues to take on. It might not be easy to carry them out, but it's pretty easy to know what the right decision is. There are some, however, that aren't so clear, and it's hard to even gauge which variables might help reveal the best solution. One of those naggingly difficult areas is knowing when to put your trust in a new member. A good recruitment policy will help filter out bad matches, but at what point do you know that a new member really is a good fit with the guild and can be trusted? As much as I'd like to just say "you'll know it when you see it" and leave it at that, I'd like to touch on a few areas that might come into play as you evaluate new members. Read on for a few ideas in this week's Guild Counsel, and add yours to the discussion below!

Guild-leading can be a very enjoyable and rewarding activity, but it's not always a walk in the park. In many of the columns here and the discussions that follow, the most common theme is how leading guilds is both the best and the toughest role in the game. When things are all falling into place and everyone's clicking, it's extremely satisfying to see it all come together. But when it's not, it can be extremely frustrating and stressful.

We've often looked at the benefits of running a guild, but in today's Guild Counsel, let's look at a few areas that can sometimes make guild leadership almost seem not worth it. Hopefully by discussing and recognizing these moments of misery, guild leaders can find some solace in knowing that they aren't alone, and members can help make life easier for their leaders.

Over on YouTube, amid the sea of boring, mindless, drivel-filled videos are a few gems that capture worldwide attention and have become iconic. Numa Numa, the evolution of dance, and of course, Charlie bit my finger are all so well-known that they've become part of the lexicon. So when I watched the World of Warcraft speed dating video this week, I couldn't help but think that this video is iconic in its own right. In that short snippet, we can learn a whole lot about the state of gaming and a hint of our future. Read on to see why I think it's more than just a cute conversation.

There are some things in life that just go hand in hand, like peanut butter and jelly, Bert and Ernie, sun and sand, and guilds and embarrassing moments. In fact, one thing that makes guild life so memorable is our collection of those little screw-ups that leave us laughing and wondering what on earth someone was thinking. There are tons of things people do in game that leave them flustered (believe me, I know!), but some go down in history as classic moments of mortification. Let's take a look at a few epic embarrassments in this week's Guild Counsel.

In last week's Guild Counsel, we looked at some of the qualities required of guildleaders for those who might be thinking of trying it out. But what if you're someone who's already a member of a guild? If I had a nickel for every time a guild member thought to himself, "I could do a better job," I'd be able to retire and buy a ticket to fly in space. In some cases, it's just an issue of backseat driving, but in others, there's some merit to that point of view. When is it time to step in and replace the guild leader? And if so, how do you do it without the usual Hindenburgesque drama that ensues?

The Guild Counsel has explored lots of tips and advice that make running a guild more enjoyable and (hopefully!) more successful. But I'm constantly amazed at the number of players I meet in MMOs who would probably make great leaders and would probably enjoy it but don't give it a try. Making the leap from player to guild leader can be both tempting and daunting, and unfortunately, there's no easy way to tell who will make a good leader and who won't. Plenty of us have come across people who really should not have taken on the guild leader role, but for every bad guild leader, there are probably dozens of good people who could become great leaders if they chose to make the leap.

Granted, there are many who are firmly set on staying away from the role, and that's understandable, but this week's column is devoted to those who are considering stepping forward to lead but aren't sure if they have what it takes. Are you ready to run a guild? Let's find out!

The good news for guilds these days is that you don't need as many players in order to form a raid and tackle endgame content. However, this is also the bad news because it means guild leaders need to keep a watchful eye on their roster and face the unenviable task of telling certain members they can't be part of the raid on any given night.

In this week's Guild Counsel, we'll look the time-honored tradition of benchwarming and cover some tips on how to avoid the drama that comes with it. You may not be able to completely avoid having to sit members out, but there are some ways to cut down on how often you do have to say no.

When looking at the dos and don'ts of guild leadership and member interactions, usually the don'ts tend to dominate the discussion. And when it comes to evaluating player types, usually it's the negative types that get described, like the Henny Penny, the Mr. Wiggly, or the Guild Turkey.

But what about a player who might be interested in trying his hand at joining a guild? There are definitely some tips that help make you a respected guild member and won't have you feeling like pretending to be someone you aren't. In this week's Guild Counsel, we'll look at some easy ways to leave a good impression and be seen as a great guildie by your mates!

There's an eerie similarity between gamers and guilds when it comes to game launches. The day a game goes live, there's often a huge rush of players, elbowing each other as they gobble up content. But as quickly as they arrive, some players decide that this isn't the game for them, and they move on.

The same is true for many new guilds. If you consider the size of the Star Wars: The Old Republic pre-launch guild database, for example, there were over 78,000 guilds signed up to deploy, but the total number of guilds still active today is undoubtedly only a fraction of that. In some cases, guilds that signed up probably never got off the ground, but in other cases, it's possible that the guild soured on the game. Now, it's one thing if you're just one individual who gets cold feet, but it's much more complicated when you're the guild leader and you've got a roster full of members tagging alongside you. In this week's Guild Counsel, we'll consider what you should do you do when you've made a guild in a new game and then realize the game just isn't your cup of tea.

Guild leaders and raid leaders have a bad reputation for being loud, cantankerous, and well, mean. If you make a mistake, you'd better brace yourself for an in-your-face, five-minute reaming-out in front of friends and guildmates. Not all leaders are like that, but it's common enough that it tends to be the standard M.O. that players picture of those in charge.

It's time for the yelling to stop. It's giving guilds, and MMOs in general, a bad image, and it really isn't necessary. In fact, it's quite likely that all that yelling ends up making your guild less productive when all is said and done. In this week's Guild Counsel, we'll look at four reasons it's time for guild leaders to calm down and stop the screaming.

One question every guild needs to answer at some point is, "Will we be a raiding guild?" Many guilds answer that question with a loud "yes" even before they set foot in game, but for other guilds, it's something that bubbles up as members reach the level cap and raid content is within reach. Raiding tends to get a bad rap, but that's not surprising when you remember that raid videos are usually filled with yelling, swearing, finger pointing, and heavy metal music. It looks about as relaxing as boot camp in the winter.

But it is possible to go from casual to raiding and still maintain a casual, low-key tone. In fact, it's even easier now to do that in many MMOs. In this week's Guild Counsel, we'll look at why we've entered a golden age of raiding, and we'll cover a few handy tips for guilds looking to make the leap.

When was the last time you said congratulations to someone in game? And no, I don't mean the spammy "congrats" when someone in guild gains a level, an AA, a skill up, a crafting combine, or any of the dozen other milestones that pop up every day in chat. Those are the easy congratulations because the accomplishment has no direct effect on you. I'm talking about the congratulations when someone beats you in game. You might be in a duel or battleground, and the other guy ends up taking you out. You might be racing for a named mob, and the other guy gets there first. Or you might be in that guild that always seems to fall just a bit short and winds up the bridesmaid when it comes to guild progression.

There is plenty of competition in MMOs, but you rarely see much sportsmanship from players. In this week's Guild Counsel, we'll look at why it's so hard to say "congrats" and why that has an effect on guilds as well as on the communities overall.

Guild leading is often as much about managing personalities as it is about managing the nuts and bolts of the game. In previous columns, we've looked at all sorts of issues that guild leaders have to solve, and at the root of almost all of them is some sort of personality clash. Show me a nice blend of personalities, and I'll show you a happy guild that will stick together for years.

What makes guild leading so difficult, though, is that unlike real-life leaders, guild leaders need to manage two identities for every member. There's the real-life identity of the player, and then there's the identity of the in-game character, and they aren't always the same. If you talk to a guild that's met at a guild gathering or convention, one of the things you'll always hear is how a particular member is so different from his in-game character. In game, for example, he might be a rough-around-the-edges general, but in real life he's a quiet teddy bear.

MMOs give us the opportunity to be someone completely different from who we are out of game, and even non-roleplayers will sometimes behave differently when they're playing. But Star Wars: The Old Republic has taken away some of our power to construct our own identities in game. In this edition of The Guild Counsel, Let's look at how that's happened and whether it will affect the way we game.