I'll leave it to others to discuss Drac's work in other roles (P:GM, RHoJ and LHoJ, PCON, M:MAA); suffice it to say that he's been busy since his last promotion. His work as Fist has been impeccable and truly unrivaled.

"Unprecedented" is the best word to describe Drac's third term as Fist. He is the longest serving Fist by a wide margin and also the only person to ever hold the same Dark Council position three times. More importantly, he used his third term to implement the largest changes to DB gaming since the introduction of mobile games and CEs last decade.

First, he introduced "casual gaming," a hugely successful innovation, which permits members to earn clusters for any games they play together as long as those games have scoring screens to permit match verification. Next, he effectively put the maimed corpse of PvP out of its misery by eliminating it as we'd known it for years: no longer bound by strict matchmaking rules, the "new" PvP is easy to arrange and awards clusters evenly regardless of win or loss. He also he decoupled the GMRG leaderboard from the GMRG society, making it easier for dedicated gamers to reach the top ranks of the society without having to win the leaderboard.

He accomplished all of that in under six months.

Elder promotions can seem mysterious and unattainable; they can seem to take literally years of work at high levels. Drac's achievements in his third term show that you can have a major impact in a relatively short time, and that reaching our highest ranks is as much, if not more, about the quality of a member's contributions as the quantity or duration of those contributions.

Drac, you've earned this. Congratulations!

Lord Dacien Victae, 2022-04-14 20:24:05 UTC

There is so much that can be said about Drac as both a member and a person. I have been graced with the opportunity to serve with Dracaryis for many years and lucky enough to call him a friend. Being afforded a front row seat, I've watched as he has weathered much in his time and always manages to rise above it. His time as a Hand of Justice under me was short, but he was adamant about his role and steadfast in his commitment to the club.

And that is who he is. Drac is committed to bettering any position he steps into. He also learns. This can be seen through his willingness to take on the position of Fist multiple times, even temporarily, and always able to step up when called upon. He looks at the numbers as they truly are and makes the hard calls, no matter what perception it might bring. Not many can make the call knowing the vitriol that might come their way. It makes people hesitate. But not Drac.

I've seen him continue to push forward and participate in critical discussions with the rest of the DC, going so far as to champion the "Casual Gaming" queue upon his most recent return to Fist. It has adapted gaming to meet the eclectic and often short-lived gaming that members participate in. I include myself in that. Quite often a game will only have a shelf-life of a few weeks before the various groups move on to another platform. And that's okay...because we have the Casual Queue for that. Anything with a longer life-span gets the dedicated treatment that our Star Wars games receive.

I could waste many a paragraph more just talking about the kind of person Drac is, but I'd be preaching to the choir. Anyone who knows him can attest to his stature. His quality. I'm just glad to be able to speak to it.

Congratulations Dracaryis, you more than earn your accolades.

Darth Renatus, 2022-04-06 14:37:23 UTC

Number 1 of 15 Dark Council Members I Senior rated as the Grand Master and in the top 1% of members I have ever served with in my 20 year career. Unlimited potential. Must promote now, must be selected for positions of increased responsibility, must send to Shadow Academy’s War College immediately!

Grand Master Declan Roark, 2022-04-09 15:47:02 UTC

Drac, you basically took gaming and met the community where it already was. Your leadership in your current time as Fist came from a selfless vision to improve our community and increase the positive interactions members have with one another on a daily basis. I have not gone so many months in all my time as a leader at any level of the DJB without hearing some complaint about the way gaming is operating.

I wish you the best of luck in the future and look forward to whatever awaits us in the future. I'm sure it'll be fun.

Congratulations on this promotion to Master, it truly describes you already.

Lord Nevan Taelyan, 2022-04-14 20:20:03 UTC