Overview
For those of you who are uninitiated, and those who are, but were not around when the Organization was formed, I have decided to make an Info Thread detailing our history and what we stand for. This is also an ideal place to ask questions about the ShaDo and how we operate.
A Little History.
The Origins of the Shattered Dominion date back to the summer of 1999. I had just graduated High School, and I was looking for a way to expand the group of role-players who had come together to test the game I was working on at the time. I decided that I should create some guidelines and try to make a structured organization with the potential of recruiting more members. The Holy Knights of the Shattered Dominion Role-player's Guild was born. In the interests of preventing tongue-tiedness when talking about our organization we abbreviated it to ShaDo. (And us being young at the time thought this sounded dark and cool so it was instantly a hit.) By the next year we had 5 members. We went on a group outing to a local Renaissance Faire for fun and Shenanigans. (And an excuse to wear sharp objects in public.) There the group bought their first Dragon Claw pendants. This was to become the symbol of the Guild. The claw symbolizes strength and the sphere it clutches symbolizes the countless worlds we help build in our role as creative role-players. And so, it became a tradition, that each time we inducted a new member, that member receives a dragon claw pendant to wear as a guild member. A tradition that still continues to this day, where we have over 30 members cross-country.
Our Purpose.
The Guild was formed so that we could easily and quickly organize games and find more players, but it grew to be much more than that. Today the guild is a brother/sisterhood that spans cross country and grows larger every year. Beyond Role-playing, The guild participates in a wide variety of activities, from various kinds of games, to attending events and activities, and even helping out in the community. The Latin Motto of the Guild is: "Macto. Justicia. Rectum." In english this translates to "Honor. Justice. Virtue." and we strive to live up to these morals, to go beyond being gamers and serve our fellow man as best we can. The weight of the deeds of our guild members is deeply considered and as such each guild member has a rank. Members are promoted not only through their achievements as a gamer, but for upholding the tenants of the guild motto, or for performing services to the guild above and beyond the call of duty. The Ranks of the guild are presented below.
Ranks.
Initiate: The rank bestowed upon one who has completed the guild initiation but has not yet received their Claw and been officially dubbed into the Guild.
Knight: A fully initiated, fully dubbed in member of the guild. Knights make up the bulk of our ranks.
Lord/Dame Knight: The Lord/Dame Knight is a step above the knight. This rank is usually conferred for outstanding service in the name of the guild. or for those who have been with us 5 years or longer.
Paladin: This rank is has an air of authority. It is conferred on those who have shown responsibility as well as excellence, and those who hold this rank may be given additional responsibilities such as treasury duties for a chapter or communication responsibilities.
Lord/Dame Paladin: Responsibility, Excellence resourcefulness and loyalty, this rank is conferred to the ShaDo members who prove they can do it all. A Lord/Dame Paladin is a High ranking member of the guild who may be given responsibilities such as event planning, fund allocation, and guild arbitration.
Lord/Dame General: Second only to the High King, Lord or Dame Generals are typically the heads of chapters, and are senior ranking members of the guild, who have not only proven their worth and solidarity, but have done so over the course of years. There are only 3 Lord Generals in the Guild today. Two of these run chapters as Proctors of the High King.
High King: There is only one high king, and that would be me. The High King is responsible for the guild on a national level. If there is a major dispute within the Guild, the High King is called. If there is a multi chapter event that needs oversight? The High King is called. The High King organizes major events and experiments with ways of getting the word out about the Guild (Exhibit A: High King trying a new way of getting the Guild out there.) Newly initiated members are generally brought to the High King's attention as well.
It is important to note, that while I am High King, major decisions for the guild tend to be put to a vote. I founded the Guild, and therefore I have this position, but I assure you I do not take it for granted and it is nothing less than an honor for me to serve in this office. I am not the Guild, YOU, the initiated, are the Guild.
Other common terms used by the ShaDo.
Proctor: The head of a chapter. Literally the eyes, ears, hands and mouth of the High King in places I cannot physically officiate. Proctors tend to be the most trusted and most dedicated individuals in the guild.
The ShaDo, The Guild, The Organization: TLDR versions of the Guild name.
Handle: The Monicker every guildmember goes by. The Handle is typically chosen before an initiate is dubbed in, and it is the name spoken during the Dubbing Ceremony
Initiation: The simplified game used to test new members who are applying for guild membership.
Dubbing Ceremony: The little to-do where the High King, or a Proctor, waves a heavy, bladed object about the head and shoulders of an initiate, calls them by their chosen handle, and presents them with their dragon claw, The act raises the initiate to a Full knight of the Shattered Dominion. Guild members may also be dubbed for important reasons, such as promotion or receipt of a responsibility such as proctor-hood.
Timmay: A call to attention during a live gaming session in which one or more members of the group would stray far off target. Stems from an airsoft gun I used to own that I called by that name. People who did not return to topic after 3 Timmay warnings.... would get shot in the leg with a 6mm plastic bb (This seldom led to anything more than a bruised Ego and a split second sting). After a while Pavlovian response prevailed and I only had to say the word to get folks back on track. Now-a-days, any GM in the guild will use this word if the game goes off topic. Whether or not this is backed up by plastic projectiles is up to the individual GM.
Tumbleweed: The declaration that a particular topic of conversation is now closed, over, and done with. Often used when the subject matter is grossly off topic, and generally gross itself. EXAMPLE:
ShaDo 1: You should check out these sweet nude pics I found of Bea Arthur!
ShaDo 2: Tumbleweed.
In real life this is often accompanied by the act of throwing a balled up piece of paper across the surface of a table.
Probation: A member of the guild who is under investigation for an infraction of guild rules is considered under probation. This means they cannot be promoted, and may or may not be allowed to come to guild events.
More to come as I remember it! XD
