| Maybe that'll stop the Guardians recruiting anyone else. But I doubt it. |
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 We wish!
        
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Sorry to say Matthew, I also looked first at the Fellowship and was put off by the high proportion of inactive and zero submissions.
| Although I did drop a recruiting line on Gandolf that seems to have worked |
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Now, now Greldon, I thought we agreed that we wouldn't keep reminding Matthew that Gandalf chose to join the Guardians.
      
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This is when I first joined the Fellowship.  Link
It sure was an active empire back then.
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| This is when I first joined the Fellowship. |
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???  "Love2Code" ???
Good decision on the name change Lothmorg.
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#1156
by Veteran Gerakken - 4/6/2004 6:07:21 PM
| Anyone else got any stories to tell about how they chose their empire? I went for the Fellowship without doing any real research, because they seemed vaguely good-aligned, while GROSS, who were just ahead at the top of the metaverse at the time, seemed vaguely evil-aligned. |
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Oh, we be more than vaguely evil aligned. It still runs through us, even if the more active members don't outwardly show it too often these days. Enough of that. Empire joining story time:
When I was a new player looking around at all the empires, I had already decided I was not joining any empire until I had 5 games under my belt and did some research. (Research that never stopped, as you all well know. I still spy on everybody.) Since I play slow, I thought 5 games was more than enough time to check things out and by then I would have some points to bring to the table as well.
At that time, theme empires were rare and the big board was filled with empires based on regions or web sites. GROSS at that stage was a mere speck on the Meta radar, and not pirates. In fact, the theme was power and control to defeat the alien menace. All things were fair. Evil was an effective tool, but merely as a means to an end and not the only way. Any way that lead to victory would do. The Captain (then PBP) seemed like a take charge guy who would take no bull. That strong leadership appealed to me. I came to like that small band of marauders who could take on all comers despite the odds. It is kind of the story of my real life: me being a person who charges forward despite the odds. So I joined GROSS.
A few weeks later, the pirate theme emerged. I took off and ran with that because in real life, I lost my left foot and use an artificial one. So I already had the proverbial peg leg! What a better fit than that, I said to myself. It looks like I definitely have a keeper of an empire! Anyway, when the times of troubles came and GROSS had the long fall, I could not see the empire just lying down and dying. But it would need a strong leader to survive and an equally willful crew. The Captain is still a strong leader and there are enough mateys who are loyal to the cause, so we soldier on.
That's the much condensed version, but the lessons of the last paragraph apply to the Fellowship as well. The problem is that Ray was seen as THE Leader. When he retired and left a council with no leadership structure along with vague powers and responsibility, the Fellowship lost its way. I am not saying Ray was the Fellowship, but I am saying that Ray knew the common identity and culture that was the Fellowship and kept it on course. The Council was too disorganized and did not reinforce the common culture. In the Meta, empires are ran by men (women) of steel. Those empires without a strong leader stagnate and decline. Someone has to keep the train on track and that is the leader's job.
Of course the rank and file needs to be consulted over major changes in policy or identity, but there has to be a strong person to implement the will of the members because too many fingers ruin the imperial stew pot. Voting is good from time to time, but after the ballots are counted and the policy is set, much like the ship captains of old, the captain is God on the ship, trusted to keep it safe in storm or battle and to use his power for the benefit of the crew more than himself. So the Fellowship should not be seen as being run by fragments of a council keeping the light on waiting for Ray. I liked Ray, but there is no Ray right now. So as bold as it may be for an outsider to say this, if Downie is the de facto spokesman for the Fellowship at the moment, then HE is the leader of the Fellowship and needs to take a strong hold on the wheel. That is my opinion.
  
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| Good decision on the name change Lothmorg. |
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Indeed. If Gandalf were a Ringer, he would approve. 
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| If Gandalf were a Ringer, he would approve. |
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I bet Greldon put you up to that one, didn't he?
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| I bet Greldon put you up to that one, didn't he? |
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Oh, I forgot. We're not supposed to mention that Gandalf is a Guardian, huh?
[Message Edited]
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| I lost my left foot and use an artificial one. |
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Sorry to hear that, Gerakken. Sounds like you triumphed over adversity and are a better man now.
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| Although I did drop a recruiting line on Gandolf that seems to have worked. |
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In blatant violation of the agreed rules of when recruitment is permissible, I need hardly add...
| in real life, I lost my left foot and use an artificial one. So I already had the proverbial peg leg! |
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Hmph. Some people have all the luck.
My Fellowship alter ego has eternal youth, pointed ears and a gift for poetry, whereas in real life... Well, two out of three isn't bad, I suppose.
| if Downie is the de facto spokesman for the Fellowship at the moment, then HE is the leader of the Fellowship and needs to take a strong hold on the wheel. |
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I see myself as being like that Steward of Minas Tirith guy, who has to take charge because the rightful king had gone missing, and whose job it is to hold down the fort for as long as possible, then go mad and set fire to his own son.
I have no particular desire to be the leader. I'm far too unreliable. My only plan was to keep this thread going, and make it interesting enough that people would want to read it. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be enough on its own. So, my plan B is
(1) To put a message on the main forum asking the various active Fellowship players who never post on this thread to drop in and say hi.
(2) To take over the running of the Fellowship website. I'm not saying Greldon hasn't done a fine job, but ever since he joined the Guardians, he's been less focused on that aspect of his responsibilities.
(3) To discuss the idea of throwing out two-thirds of our membership with anyone else in the Fellowship who has an opinion.
(4) Find out if it's possible to have the leadership officially transferred to me. Anyone know?
    
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I've never once been complained at for my empire related posts on the other forums. I always make sure I keep to that rule that some people apparently once agreed to (only do a recruitment message after you've helped someone) and/or make my messages humorous enough to reduce the irritation factor for the people who didn't want to read it.
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Mat for Emperor!!!!
You got my vote!!!
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You don't get a vote. Consider yourself disenfranchised. If you have any objections, may I recommend a hunger strike? They're very dignified.
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Oi! No baseball metaphors in my thread! Tolkien wouldn't have understood them, and neither do I!
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| Oi! No baseball metaphors in my thread! |
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Is there a rule against that then Matthew? Shouldn't we start a seperate forum for baseball related posts?
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Aha! Now I see exactly what you mean!
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Mat for Not President!!!!
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And I almost backed away.) Hey a Canadian empire... I'm Canadian. I'll join. I would hazzard a guess that the Euro members and probably MWC feel the same. Hey I'm European or Texan or Mid-West or... well you get the idea. It was about joining something with an identity I already understood. Didn't matter that there were over 100 members, didn't matter that the thread eventually died down until Tech and I started posting... I know how Canadians think and act and react. It was 'safe' to join the CSF.
