What kind of guild do you lead (is it large or small, is it tactical or do you give free reign) and why do you think this is conducive to the RvR WAR effort in the WAR campaign?
The Gaiscioch Family is a Tri-Guild community of Casual Gamers. On our original server, Phoenix Throne, the Gaiscioch grew past 500 members and forced us to create a second guild "Gaiscioch na Anu" to handle overflow. At our peak we totalled 790 members. Upon moving to Badlands we migrated our sister guild "Iron Legion" into the server renamed as "Gaiscioch na Nuada". Each guild is designed for a specific task and as such the standards are setup to cater to that task. The Gaiscioch na Anu is designed to help players level their characters, get acquainted with the family and learn about the game. The Gaiscioch is the main room of the house and is center for all things oRvR. All of the standard abilities for the Gaiscioch are related to various oRvR situations. A Defensive standard for defending keeps, an offensive standard for attacking keeps, and a standard for maximizing healing for epic prolonged fights. The Gaiscioch na Nuada are designed to cater to the end game PvE. Their standards are each specced for various boss types in Lost Vale, Tomb of the Vulture Lord and soon the King Instance. Members are free to move their characters to any one of the 3 rooms to the Gaiscioch house once they gain the Lorgair rank which is as simple as attending a few family events. We are very casual and laid back but truly enjoy a good fight. We are all about making sure the player enjoys his experience. We do not tell people when to play, how to play, or for how long to play. Players are welcome to come and go as they please.
Regarding how we help the WAR effort, Since our launch we have been most well known for our Trinity Raids, which are a Multi-Warband Organized Public Warforce. These events typically draw players by the hundreds as we take the common PuG and lace it with our raid leaders to provide each warband with direction. We unite the PuG's and turn them into a serious threat to our foes. During these events we often will give an overall objective for the night. Sometimes we will focus on earning as much renown as possible for those that participate and some we focus on pushing Destruction to their door and storming their city. Regardless of the night or tier the event takes place in, we rarely see less than 100 participants in the nights activities. We have also started making these events public on the forums and our website so that destruction forces can try to stop us. This typically results in some truly memorable battles.
How do you handle organization of your guild, do you assign large jobs to a few people or a series of smaller jobs to many people.
The Gaiscioch Family is based around a simple premises. Those that grow together gain together, those that ride solo stay solo. To gain rank in the family you have to participate in family activities, document events, or explore the world within Warhammer Online. Through our intricate website players log their participation, add new unlocks, and write blogs, stories, tactics, and recaps of the day to day activities. Through their progress within the family members are promoted via a series of Family Ranks and also based on their Leadership Success they gain an additional leadership rank. In addition to earning Family Honor Points for participation they also accumulate Family Vault Credits which can be used to purchase any item from the Family Vault. As members progress through the ranks of the family they gain more abilities to help keep the family running. All members contribute and see to the health of the family.
What do you think is your most difficult job of organizing and running your guild?
We practice a simple rule. Blades Out, Not In. This rule keeps our attacks pointed at our enemies rather than at other family members. This is a strict policy and violation is grounds for banishment. This was one of the rules of the Celtic Tribe and we hold true to it today. This prevents any infighting from erupting and keeps the family relatively drama free. This in itself was the most difficult task for any guild leader. As a Guild Leader the other most daunting task is keeping the family image clean. Preventing players within the family from tainting its public image and also building up your realm so that your family is seen as a benevolent figure rather than a antagonistic one. While many may not realize it, a Guild is a Business. It needs Marketing, Public Relations, Human Resources (to keep people friendly) and Management to succeed.
What do you think of the Guild/Alliance mechanics in Warhammer Online?
I feel they are a bit limited and unpolished. Right now the Gaiscioch Spans 3 guilds because the 500 Character limit placed on guilds and the limited standard and vault space that is imposed on large guilds. In addition we were forced to create the Tuatha, a out of game extended alliance, to grow past the 10 guild limit Mythic has placed on Alliances. In addition there are several key bugs within alliances that prevent them from succeeding such as the Alliance Child events not being seen by the Alliance Leader guild. This bug has plagued our family for a while. Before we realized this was a bug the other guilds of our alliance considered us a bunch of Snobs because we never attended their events. It wasn't that we didn't want to it was purely we never saw them. Once we created na Anu we realized there was a bug that prevented them from being seen by the primary guild of an alliance.
Have you faced the issue of losing membership due to the waning subscription numbers; if so, how do you combat this issue?
Yes, every time a new game comes out several members leave. Most eventually return to the game and are welcomed back into the family. However we have taken a more proactive Warhammer Recruitment via the Battle for Badlands series of events. Each week both order and destruction clash in our public oRvR event by the hundreds. It has turned into quite the epic event and is moving to a dual-night weekly event come summer '10. The Battle for Badlands has attracted players from other servers as well as games by blasting it across the internet via social portals, YouTube, Twitter, and other various media outlets. To date our largest battle included 350 players and totaled over 2500 kills in a single battle. Through promotion of our events publicly we are able to attract more players and keep our server healthy.