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The Guild Leader's Handbook

The Guild Leader's Handbook

by Scott F. Andrews
Publisher: No Starch Press
Release Date: April 2010
ISBN: 9781593272586
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Book Description

Scott F. Andrews has been helping guild leaders and officers since 2007 through his weekly column for WoW.com, Officers' Quarters. In The Guild Leader's Handbook, Andrews offers a complete guide to conceptualizing, establishing, and maintaining a successful guild.

Table of Contents

  1. The Guild Leader's Handbook
    1. Acknowledgments
    2. Introduction
    3. Author's Note: GM vs. GL and Other Acronyms
    4. 1. Forging a Guild Identity
      1. One Size Does Not Fit All
        1. Large and In Charge
        2. The Clique Conundrum
        3. Other Size Considerations
        4. A Small World
      2. The Hardcore/Casual Issue
        1. Definitions
        2. Dangers
        3. Division
      3. Set Your Focus
        1. PvE
        2. PvP and Other Gameplay
        3. Roleplaying
      4. Standing Out from the Crowd
        1. Don't Be a Plain Wooden Fence
        2. Guild Differentiators
          1. Time
          2. Age and Maturity
          3. Affiliation
          4. Theme
          5. Policy
          6. You
      5. The Guild Identity Flowchart
    5. 2. Humble Origins: Foundations of a Successful Guild
      1. Your Paperwork
      2. Your Guild Name
          1. Clichés to Avoid
          2. Personal Favorites
      3. Your Policies
        1. A Few Words About Power
        2. The Guild Policy Triangle
          1. Stability
          2. Transparency
          3. Opportunity
      4. Your Tools
        1. Websites
          1. News and Announcements
          2. Guild Information
          3. Application
          4. Loot Tracking
          5. Forums
          6. Fighting Spam
        2. Voice Chat
        3. Calendar
      5. Your Officers
    6. 3. Nonhuman Resources: Recruiting Players and Evaluating Recruits
      1. Recruiting Fundamentals
        1. Fundamental #1: Recruit in a Good Mood
        2. Fundamental #2: Advertise with Consideration
        3. Fundamental #3: Be Social
        4. Fundamental #4: Be Honest
        5. Fundamental #5: Do Not Poach
        6. Fundamental #6: Observe and Record
        7. Fundamental #7: Build Server Presence
      2. Server Presence
      3. Guild Applications
        1. Building an Application
        2. Application Follow-Ups
      4. Beware the Eedies!
        1. The Greedy
        2. The Needy
        3. The Leety
        4. The Cheaty
        5. Dealing with Eedies
    7. 4. Dramatis Personae: Dealing with Guild Drama
      1. People and Personalities
      2. Drama Is Natural
      3. Dealing with Drama (Or Not)
      4. Drama Solutions
        1. Communicating with One Party
        2. Communicating with Two Parties Separately
        3. Communicating with Two Parties Jointly
      5. Rewarding and Punishing
          1. Rewards
          2. Punishments
      6. Removing a Member
    8. 5. Epic Encounters: Raiding as a Guild
      1. In Harm's Way
      2. Preparation Is Key
      3. Raid Leadership Is Not Guild Leadership
      4. The Raid Leader's Handbook
        1. Encouraging Preparation
        2. Filling Slots
          1. First Come, First Served
          2. Rotation
          3. Raid Leader's Choice
          4. Other Systems
        3. Maintaining Discipline
        4. Explaining and Executing Strategies
          1. Prior to Combat
          2. In Combat
          3. After Combat
        5. Post-raid Analysis
          1. Damage Meters
          2. Combat-Log Parsers
          3. Personal Communication
      5. Why Lead Raids?
    9. 6. The Protocols of Plunder: Loot Distribution
      1. Loot Causes Drama
        1. Challengers of the Fang
        2. Loot Is Personal
        3. Systems and Decision Making
        4. When Ninjas Attack
        5. Preventing Drama
      2. Choosing the Right System
      3. Loot Systems
        1. Loot Council
        2. RNG-Based Systems
          1. Basic Rolling
          2. Suicide Kings
          3. Modified Rolling
        3. Point-Based Systems
          1. Fixed Price
          2. Variable Price
          3. Bidding
          4. Inflation Solutions
          5. Guild Impact
      4. Exceptions
      5. Faith and Fairness
    10. 7. PvP and Roleplaying Guilds
      1. Player Killers
        1. Open-World and Territorial PvP
          1. Caution and Guile
          2. Recruiting
          3. Commander and Strategist
          4. Leadership
        2. Instanced PvP
          1. Recruiting
          2. Leadership
          3. Loot
        3. A Strong PvP Community
      2. Leading in Character
        1. Three Degrees of RP
          1. Light/Casual
          2. Medium/Normal
          3. Heavy/Hardcore
        2. The Role of Your Guild
        3. Sessions: Guiding, Not Leading
        4. Roleplaying Issues
          1. Erotic RP
          2. The Scourge of Mary Sue
        5. A Healthy RP Community
    11. 8. The Burdens of Command: Managing Officers
      1. Promoting Members to Officer Rank
      2. Officer Roles
        1. Recruiter
        2. Communications Officer
        3. Raid Leader
        4. Loot Master
        5. Banker
        6. Disciplinarian
        7. Drama Squasher
        8. Field Commander
        9. Master Storyteller
      3. Officer Discipline
      4. Burnout
    12. 9. The Long Term
      1. Morale
      2. In-Game Events
        1. Planning
        2. Prizes
        3. Rules
        4. Volunteers
        5. Event Ideas
          1. Competitive Events
          2. Party Ideas
          3. Server Events
      3. Ethics and Server Reputation
        1. The Reputation Graph
        2. The Favor Scale
        3. The Power Scale
        4. Changing Your Reputation
      4. The Big One
        1. Origins
        2. Solutions
    13. 10. IRL: Dealing with Reality
      1. Online Gaming Is Real
      2. Life Is More Important
      3. What You Can (Sometimes) Help With
        1. Substance Abuse
        2. Computer Game Addiction
        3. Depression and Mental Illness
        4. Sexual Predators
      4. What You Shouldn't Help With
        1. Relationship Problems
        2. Family Problems
        3. Criminal Confessions
      5. Meeting Face to Face
        1. Why Meet Offline?
        2. Who, When, Where, and What?
        3. Meet-up Preparations
        4. Safety Tips and Legal Concerns
        5. After the Meet-up
    14. A. A Look Ahead
    15. Updates