Kap’s Log: So You Want to Join a Guild?

Today we launch the first in a series of opinion pieces from Nic “Kap” Stransky, one of our contributors here at The MMO Gamer. Each week Nic will present a topic ranging from recent events to other topics related to the MMOG industry.

When looking for a guild our intention is always to find that mellow group of like-minded individuals who have mature leadership and fair rules, but how do we find them? Will the clan website convey that which we need to make a solid commitment? Do the few members we’ve met exemplify those qualities that we would expect in our guild mates? What level of annoyance are we willing to put up with in order to attain our goals? We must answer these questions on our own before subjecting ourselves to the social clique that is a hardcore PvP or raiding guild. Only through introspection will we learn what makes the game fun for us, and thus, where we belong.

Slash Guild Quit… Again

Far too often our time is ill spent across a myriad of gangs comprised of immature warriors who only banded together so that they could give orders instead of follow them. They possess no leadership skills, nor would they take care to employ them. We waste months with these chumps while we watch our best friends down every boss in the game. Ignorant of even the most basic strategies available to his class, the new archer in our PvP group constantly mistakes his role and drains our healer’s mana – subsequently losing us the ladder ranking we needed to qualify for that last piece of our armour set! Why did the guild invite such morons? Can’t they grow a pair and stop wasting my time? What is wrong with them?

These are not the questions we should be asking. How about, “What can I do to help things get better?” or, “Have I determined my own level of involvement or was I waiting around for someone else to make me happy?” and, ultimately, “Why am I still in this guild?” By examining our personal role we might discover we have more control over the situation than we thought. If we enjoy certain aspects of the guild but are not accomplishing our overarching goals for the game, then perhaps we should move on. However, if we really appreciate the people we play with, maybe we’ll be willing to overlook some of their imperfections.

We must never forget we are playing these games because other people play, not in spite of that fact. Perhaps we all interact with them on different levels at different times, but if we didn’t get some enjoyment from other live player characters we probably would not find massively multi-player games attractive. Can we show every player in our guild how we think they should play their character? No, but we can hold their hand a little in the beginning, and try to be cordial and helpful.

Little Things You Can Do

Maybe the guild leaders aren’t aware of all the resources you use for game information and strategies. Show them a couple web sites and point out a boss you think the guild could handle - let the leaders take it from there.

Its possible that your new archer is just unclear on how much mana it takes to keep him healed when he tries to melee in PvP. One night when you’re both online, see if you can strike up a friendly conversation with him. Get a feel for his play style and personality. The next time you’re grouped with him, discretely private message him some advice and see if he doesn’t recommit himself to his performance. He probably knew what to do all along, but like you he was expecting someone else to do the dirty work.

Ultimately, the guild you choose is as arbitrary as your avatar’s name. Barring relatively new guilds or casual guilds, if you’re in one with 50+ active members, they are likely among the most dedicated players on the shard. With a respectable level of either skill, gear, or powerful friends, these people are no different than those found in any other clique. There’s the leaders - both bad cops and good cops, the kids - until 11pm, the whiners - know it all except how to express it, the stoners - not very talkative on vent, the drunks - way too talkative on vent, the girl / gay or black guy - always a hot commodity, the 40 year old virgins - play all day and night, and the plain old gamers - usually one of these but, “hates labels.” Problems and nuisances will arise in every guild, its up to you to determine how you deal with them.

 

We all dream of being invited to that perfect guild where we fit in and get loot, but if the only action we ever take toward attaining that goal is quitting, we may eventually convince ourselves that we don’t belong anywhere. In fact, it doesn’t matter where we end up, because the cliché is true – its just a game; the story is up to you.