Recruitment

 Welcome, if you are here, hopefully you spoke with me or saw a message about joining our guild - Temple of Sin - that is forming up to raid, PvP, and RP, on Elder Scrolls Online in the Ebonheart Pact faction.

The recruitment message posted below is the one I used to introduce new members to our guild when we were playing SWTOR (Star Wars: The Old Republic) --- and you would  do well to read it as it explains the philosophy behind the guild, the rules and expectations for behaviour, and what kind of benefits and rewards can be expected from membership, as well as what ways we are drastically different from most guilds. Thank you.

-Zode Vainglory

<Sin>

Name: Sin

Server: Ven Zallow - RP-PVP East Coast

Faction: Sith Empire

Type: Mature Adult - Medium RP / PvE Raid / Group PvP

Guild Goals: Serious raiding in a casual environment, Roleplay, group PvP - no attendance requirements.

Recruitment: Limited open recruitment - no need to sign up for some web site and fill out a five page application, just have an interview and get to know the guildmaster.

Officers: Zode, Vainglory, Lapin, Drexyl, Kathan, Infest, Maldoror, Tempered, Estella, Algeroth, Lizbeth, Sterk, Lieve, Hahaumissedahh, Vampuir, Trogdar.

Recruitment Officers: Zode, Infest, Lizbeth, Maldoror, Hahaumissedahh - if you are interested in joining after reading this, please mail me or whisper one of the recruitment officers as they are authorized to take you through the steps that lead to membership.

Voice Server: Ventrilo 25 - optional, required for raids.



---Introduction---

This message will be long and detailed. So long, in fact, that immature folks of all ages will eagerly decree, "The length of the text exceeded my patience, understanding, and attention span!" Those of you who stay with us until the end will gain a profound understanding of a guild very unlike most in philosophy, history, and goals.

<Sin> was founded on Andorhal server in 2005. As a small casual guild we successfully completed raid content competitively with much larger, more organized and "serious" guilds. We see a great opportunity in SWTOR and hope that you are also eager to make new friends and experience new adventures.

I played WoW for 7 years with my wife and friends, and learned a great deal. In that time I made ~30 PvP videos, did a great deal of world PvP and arenas, got membership in world class raid guilds, rose from a member in a 200 person guild to main tank, and Warrior class officer. I had many hours to experience both raid and guild leadership, and the perspective of a normal member, and what pitfalls and mistakes officers could make. In 390 days played on my warrior I achieved >9k achievement points and will bring the same leadership and experience to SWTOR.
( My achievments here: http://us.battle.net/wow/en/character/earthen-ring/Silver/achievement#81 )

I start with an introduction of myself because that's what it IS all about: ME. With a name like Vainglory, one should know what to expect and realize that Sin is a cult of personality or dictatorship as a means to feed my ego. That's the kind of honesty you will never hear from most guildmasters; though it's the reason take the job. They don't take all the hard work on for nothing.

That's the level of honesty you'll receive, but why would you want to be a member? Well, it turns out that what makes me feel good is providing an exceptional guild experience that is very difficult to find and inspires the kind of loyalty that has makes friends who last for years.


---Rules & Recruitment---

My essential goal is to make a overall guild environment that enhances the game for every member, easing their ability to achieve personal goals while forging long-lasting alliances and a sense of pride in their guild.

We also define ourselves by how we are different from other guilds. We don't recruit every person who asks, or invite people randomly, but we don't believe that joining a guild should be harder than getting a job or being accepted to college. Our members have husbands/wives and boyfriends/girlfriends - we have children, jobs, and school responsibilities. As such, I believe our members have better things to do than signing up for more forums and filling out long applications and begging for a membership.

A persistent problem that plagues many guilds from the most common zerg to the most elite world class teams, is player attitudes and behavior. The expecations are that you will behave as an adult and with respect towards your colleagues. Sadly it comes as a suprise to many that I prohibit jokes and speech that attack others for their race, gender, or sexual orientation. Having been in guilds like this, the constant barrage of harassment directed toward women and minorities is toxic and exhausting. I for one play the game to get away from real life problems for awhile, so I don't care how hateful you are in real life but we should set that aside when we log on. Additionally, it is a administrative nightmare to try to sort out the he-said she-said of trying to judge if people did or didn't cross the line with whatever remark.

Due to the above rules, my guilds often have a higher percentage of women since their is a zero-tolerance policy towards aggression or harassment. Few things were more frustrating than being in a guild where your friend or significant other is being targeted and the guild-master dismisses it as a joke.


Any prospect will spend some time getting to know me, and when we feel comfortable, you will be invited on a recruit basis. After a week or two when you have gotten to know the other officers and members, if you fit in well you will be promoted to full status. We are also different from other guilds in that you will find no negativity. It serves only to bring everyone down, so we won't waste our breath shooting down other guilds or being elitists. The common attitude is, "Anyone who plays less than me is a n00b and anyone who plays more than me is a no-lifer!" Amazing how those people manage to find the perfect balance, isn't it?

---Raids & Ops---

Though we do have lives, we take our hobby seriously and strive to excel at our chosen activities. With that in mind, we are tentatively planning raids to take place Tuesday @ 7 PM EST and Saturday @ 12:00 AM EST. This will be discussed further as more players approach 50 and find out what days and times are ideal for members.

Our PvE raids will not have a requirement attendance that will get you "in trouble" for failing to show up. Punitive members towards players are ineffective, like missing work or a class, simply causes discouragement and further absences. Players are never penalized if they must leave suddenly due to a real life work or family matter. This is a game. It should not cause you to feel guilty or have people attack you for living your life. However, if someone we count on proves unreliable over time, they may find themselves as a back-up rather than starter. Likewise, if a player is dramatically under-performing in their class role, or causing themselves or other players to get killed, they won't be "called out", yelled at, attacked, or shamed. Sometimes people get distracted, are having a bad night, or are not trained/prepared in their gear, spec, or education of the fight.

This follows to the group level as well. Many people have enough stress in their jobs and homes, and don't need one more place to be yelled at and berated. We will all be happy just to be in a raid group, it's not something every player gets the chance to do. It will be a series of teamwork and perseverance. Not negativity and criticism upon failure. If it becomes clear we won't be able to complete the content after many tries, I will call the raid early so that we can spend more time preparing ourselves with gear and knowledge for the next fight. I'd rather end the raid early on a happy note and leaving everyone wanting more --- than pressure people to stay for hours wiping with them vowing themselves not to waste another evening dying when they could be doing something else in game or with their family.

Loot! Oranges. Grapes. Purples. How do we do loot? DKP and other points systems are dumb. They can be gamed, played, people can save it and pass on things they need or take things that would be bigger upgrade for someone else. And once you start making exceptions for this case or that, it never ends, it gets manipulated, and people get angry. DKP focuses on players as an individual rather than a team and leads to a me-me-me. Gear is a means to an end, victory, and not a goal unto it self. It is an trophy to be worn with pride that says, "WE did this. Sin beat this boss. And I was a part of that victory."

Our answer to that is loot council - with a twist. EVERY one gets a vote, every raider has input. Their is no secret discussions behind closed doors and then items handed out as the raid leader plays favorites. Of course, common sense is taken into account, and the raid will know if someone has not been consistent lately, has already got many items, or if the upgrade is better for someone else. We used this "group council" system through all of Burning Crusade and Lich King with great success. This fosters a HUGE difference in players attitudes. In DKP or rolling, a player may say. *I* want this item. *I* need it. *I* DESERVE it. If someone who doesn't need/deserve it as much as THEY do, their can be bitterness or anger, even if it is quiet or unconscious. With the group council system, we would often have two people BOTH saying - "No, you take it. You deserve it. It's not THAT big an upgrade for me. You earned it." What a better result. And when someone finally takes it, their generosity is rewarded next time something they can use appears.

---Roleplay & PvP---

As a teenager I began MMOs with MUDs, UO, Meridian 59, Asheron's Call, and Planetside. Years of UO, Counterstrike, and Magic Online honed my strategic and twitch skills. As well as years of extensive PvP in all contexts in WoW.

SWTOR lends itself VERY easily to RP, as every quest and conversation you are putting the words in your characters mouth as you watch your Avatar say them. You customize to such a high degree and choose your armor companion, and alignment. This and the titles and legacy lead easily to RP in any context. Missions, PvP, and ops. I call us medium-RP as I RP often and it is encouraged as much as you want to.

Personally, I never break character in say, yell, and emote. I treat General/Trade channels etc as OOC. Guild chat and Whispers can be In-Character or Out of Character -- this is very obvious from the context of what is said. Ventrilo is always OOC. We do have a large Vent server that can be used any time, but is not required, as many people enjoy the dialogue, music, and sound effects. We do ask that most players be in Ventrilo during raid content that is not on farm.

---Ranks & Closing---

If you have read this far, I hope it has been with growing excitement at the possibility of playing with a group of like-minded folks who view the game with pride and in a fun, positive way. In many guilds I have been in are very cliquey, with a new member never feeling at home or getting to know the others, and the officers and higher ranks seeming like a secret club of inside-jokes and guild comings and going you never understand.

In Sin, the ranks are not simply "GM / Officer / Member / Initiate". Their are many ranks A dedicated member will move up in the ranks over time, and in a meaningful way. After achieving full membership status, a member is likely to gain rank when they achieve major personal goals such as hitting level 50, completing raid instances, equipping full epics, winning a very difficult battle, and other PvE and PvP victories that merit an RP upgrade in recognition of your success.


Players will earn badges through their PvP, PvE, and RP activity and accomplishments. These achievements will then earn badges, and rank will go up with the number of badges obtained. Which badges have been earned will be visible in the member note, such as «\/» would indicate the Vainglory badge has been obtained.

The badges that may be earned are as follows:

«\/» - Vainglory Badge - Pride - This will be a specific personal goal or quest assigned to you by Zode.

«Å» - Asmodeus Badge - Lust  - Obtain the 4 piece PvE set bonus.

«§» - Iblis Badge -  Wrath - Rise to Valor rank 60: Battlemaster

«Ł» - Leviathan Badge - Envy - Defeat Soa in the Vault of Eternity.

«Z» - Beelzebub Badge - Gluttony - Get all three crew skills to 400.

«M» - Mammon Badge - Greed - Donate 250k to the guild bank for tax purposes.

«ß» - Belphegor Badge - Sloth - Follow the blog sin-guild.blogspot.com - and comment on a post with your in-game name to achieve this badge.

However, not everyone is called to such a Dark path and their are those who find honor in a different calling: to be a member of the Empire who walks the path of light. If they choose to forsake the above badges, they may instead pursue the following heavenly virtue medals:

[H] Humility Medal - Humbly complete a personalized quest bestowed upon you by Zode.

[C] Chastity Medal - Get your 4 piece PvE set bonus.

[P] Patience Medal - Reach Valor rank 60: Battlemaster.

[K] Kindness Medal - Get three crew skills to 400.

[T] Temperance Medal - Defeat Soa in the Eternity Vault.

[R] Charity Medal - Donate 350k to the guild bank to be distributed to the less fortunate.

[D] Diligence Medal - Follow the blog sin-guild.blogspot.com - and comment on a post with your in-game name to achieve this badge.

The updated ranks for the guild are as follows:

0 Guildmaster - Icon of Vainglory - Zode

1 Reverand Mother - Blessed Queen of Zode

2 Dark Council - Icon of Gluttony - Zode's Inner Circle

3 Dark Seducer - Officers and Recruiters.

4 « Ìߣͧ » Icon of Wrath - 7 Badges

5 « ŧmºÐ³µ§ » Icon of Lust - 6 Badges

6 « Łë\/!ã†hªñ » Icon of Envy - 5 Badges

7 « (V)åmmøñ » Icon of Greed - 4 Badges

8 « ßé£þhèG¤® » Icon of Sloth - 3 Badges

9 Recruit - Initiate drawn in by a Dark Seducer.

And furthermore, those special members who excel over time in ability, service, and dedication - and who have a history of leadership as a GM or Officer in the past, or who have the desire to try it in the future... their is the opportunity to be promoted to an Imperial Officer or Sith Lord status and help us manage and lead the guild! With this policy any member can know that the sky is the limit for their personal success and their is no glass ceiling for not being a personal long-time friend of the Guildmaster.

Many current members and officers were complete strangers we met years ago who got to know us and succeed over time as a team. I hope that you are the next success story to share victory over the Republic and Imperial glory.


Sin

LUST for battle and bloodshed.
GLUTTONY a thirst for excess in all things.
GREED endless avarice for credits, power, and reputation.
SLOTH afk in in a warzone.
ENVYof anyone wealthier or better geared
WRATH unbridled hatred of the Republic and anyone who gets in our way.
PRIDE a guild tag that inspires ENVY and WRATH in others.