The rank before Elder — a goal that most dream of, but few rarely attain. It is a threshold that- signifies a member has gone far beyond ordinary, or even extraordinary, in their service to the members of this club, to their House, Clan, and the Brotherhood as a whole. Since he was last promoted, Esca has been a stalwart and tireless leader, pushing through all manner of small hours to perform whatever task was asked of him or heed any call. When we needed a Battleteam leader and a mentor, he was there. When we needed a Quaestor, he was there. When I needed a Proconsul, one I knew could be my right hand, he was there. When the Herald needed a Magistrate and then Praetor, he was there. No demand was too big or small — if Esca is needed, he answers. Various others in this recommendation will detail his time in each position and in the Brotherhood as a whole, but I will tell you of his individual merit and, most prominently, his dedication as the man who stood beside me to lead the First Clan. Bearing that in mind, it’s with great joy and pride that I present Esca, or Arcia Cortel, for advancement to Equite IV.

Over the last year alone, since his graduation to Equite III, Esca has spent a cumulative total of 20 months in leadership or service positions, including 4 months as Battleteam leader of Nighthawk, 4 months as Quaestor of House Galeres, 7 months as Proconsul of Clan Arcona, 5 months as Magistrate to the Herald, and now just over two weeks as Praetor to the Herald. Despite his rigorous focus on leadership service, however, he also showed great initiative in his personal activity, leading by example and promoting competitions to members by challenging them himself. Since his last elevation, Esca has produced 70 competition submissions and helped organize 26 competitions as my diligent right hand, placing in several of them to earn 21 Crescents (3 Cr-R, 4 Cr-A, 7 Cr-S, 6 Cr-E, 1 Cr-T). In addition, he found time for 33 PvP matches and 200 PvE activities, garnering 2 Pendants of Blood, 715 Clusters of Fire, and 1538 Clusters of Earth. He also participated in 1 ACC battle, 5 Fiction activities for a total of 5,355 words, and 3 run-on posts over 2,939 words which earned him 15 Clusters of Ice. Esca also passed 4 Shadow Academy courses and gained 1 Dark Side Degree, as well as 2 Scrolls of Indoctrination, 3 Scrolls of the Master, and 1 Legion of the Scholar.

Individual work has not been the only constant for Esca, however. He also stayed busy providing activity, mentorship, and leadership for others in a host of roles that aided in the First Clan’s growth. Others will speak most eloquently on what he has completed in each of those roles. I can say, in short, that Esca is an invaluable member to Arcona, and that we have been blessed to watch his careful, determined push to keep this Clan great. During his exemplary service, Esca was awarded a Steel Cross for his diligent development of one of the most active Battleteams in Arcona to date, Nighthawk. He built his roster into a team of members with skill and aspiration, many of whom went on to grand heights of leadership of their own, including the current Quaestor of Satale Shan, the current Praetor to the Fist, the current Battleteam leader of Nighthawk, the current Aedile of Galeres, and the current Battleteam Sergeants of both Shadow Gate and Styx. To say that Esca’s impact as Battleteam leader of the Nighthawk didn’t pave the road for the success Arcona is seeing today would be a tragedy. He led them not only through the Great Jedi War, demonstrating his team and himself as an immense asset in Arcona’s victory, but also mentored and encouraged them in a leadership capacity that they might go on to give back to the Brotherhood as well — and so they have.

Furthermore, Esca received a Grand Cross for all his efforts in activity and service, of particular note his project work and his ministrations as my Proconsul. He’s had his hands and eyes on every initiative taken in Arcona in the last year, from the overhaul of our wiki pages with the Arconan Article Improvement Program and the Shadesworn Wiki revamp, the Post-DJK Mentorship Program, the Arconan Recruitment Drive, Character Workshops and the ACE Pilot Initiative. In each of these projects, Esca was responsible for the delegation of tasks to various members and summiteers and ensured those tasks and the projects themselves were completed. He was also involved in brainstorming, recruitment, execution, progression, documentation, and approval of each project at various stages, managing them all and their moving parts with exemplary dedication. Alongside all this, Esca also aided I and the rest of the Summit in various day-to-day tasks: writing supporting and lead recommendations to numerous awards and promotions; overseeing applications and appointments to various positions as the need arose; overseeing the creation of two new Battleteams; writing “Proconsul Corner” sections in 7 of our Consul-Proconsul reports and one Proconsul report of his own; and planning, writing, and executing several fictional movements for the Clan’s progression during Tides of Change, our cooperative event with Odan-Urr, and afterward. He also performed beautifully in handling upheaval within the Clan in one of the most tumultuous years we’ve had yet, easily maneuvering several changing Summits, mediating conflicts, resolving disputes, and focusing on the balance of helping veteran members and the newer leaders to work together, all while tackling the unglamorous daily tasks that keep the Clan alive.

However, Esca’s brilliance does not stop at the Clan level. Any member wearing the mantle of the highest Equite rank ought to be one willing to give aid and service to the Brotherhood as a whole, and Esca is one such member. Simultaneous to all his work as my Proconsul, he also served the Herald’s office in great capacity over the last several months, which V’yr will detail for you further. What I can say to the matter is that he went into the work like he does all else, with diligence, determination, and a desire to improve himself and others.

Esca, I had many pillars of support in my first year as Consul, but none I counted on so much as I have you. For all the reasons I and others have listed, for all you have done, and most of all, for that reliability, that loyalty, and that altruism, it makes me glad to see you shine today. I’ve said a lot — I just hope you understand I can’t say enough. Congratulations, L-Teeee my friend, and well done.

Atyiru Caesura Entar

Consul of Clan Arcona

Master Ruka Tenbriss Ya-ir, 2016-01-22 05:11:53 UTC

Often the man or woman behind the Throne does not see the same spotlight. When people speak of Atyiru’s ascent to Consul, it’s oftentimes easy to look past those people who supported her. As a close friend to Arcia and Atyiru both, I can say that Galeres did not. In the waning months of Atyiru’s time as Aedile of Galeres, Esca served as the BTL for the Nighthawk Battleteam, a position which has historically always exceeded the expectations of a BTL. During this time he engaged members, drove activity and participation, including leading Nighthawk to be ranked #1 among his fellow Battleteams during the Sojourn Event which pitted every BT against one another for ranking.

What many don’t know however, is all that Arcia did on the sidelines. This included fleshing out the Battleteam’s background and information on the ship, providing commissioned artwork for the BT to use to represent the ‘Hawk, and building and guiding the next generation of leaders we see taking the reigns of the Clan today (Rulvak Qurroc, Kordath Bleu, myself), all members who have grown to become BTLs and higher due in large part to Arcia’s supervision.

When Atyiru was chosen as Consul of the First Clan and the Quaestor of the time, Cethgus, was chosen as Proconsul for another Clan, it left a significant gap to be filled in Galeres. Without hesitation, Arcia stepped to the fore and took command of the House, beginning the process of mending rifts between the two Battleteams at the time (Soulfire and Nighthawk), guiding them to work more co-operatively by creating fictional opportunities for the two teams to work alongside one another.

Continuing to build the strength of his bench, he enforced that his BTLs would create content for members to partake in, driving both myself as the BTL of the Nighthawk and the BTL of Soulfire at the time to generate competitions for members to enjoy. He also oversaw the long and arduous process of updating Wikipedias for the House and its teams while continuing to produce content of his own and assist the newly-minted Consul in every manner that he could.

Finally, when it became time for Legorii to step down after Arcona’s victory in the XI GJW, it was once again the same person who had risen from BTL to lead Galeres who would rise from Galeres to help lead the Clan. Arcia was the only logical choice for the position at the time. He once again stepped into the role with the desire to build the Clan, working over the following months to engage the leadership of both Houses to make improvements, drive participation and build the Clan to prepare for what is to come.

On behalf of Galeres and on a more personal note from myself, thank you for all you do, Arcia.

Uji Tameike

Aedile of Galeres

Eminent Ikarri Itinen, 2016-01-22 05:09:25 UTC

I’ve worked with Arcia Cortel, or Esca, for quite some time now. As a Proconsul for Clan Exar Kun, he embraced challenge and change with the same even temperament he does now as the Proconsul of Clan Arcona. Yet, over those years, the focus shifted from self-improvement and realization of his own talents to helping others become self-actualizing, confident in their skills, and courageous enough to try new things. It is a hallmark symbol of what it means to be an Equite IV in the Brotherhood.

His legacy is the Post Dark Jedi Knight Program in Clan Arcona. Others will tell you about his individual activity or how he - from the center of Arcona’s web as Proconsul - helped organized and pull off over 100 competitions throughout Clan Arcona, her Houses, and Battle Teams. What cannot be seen immediately is his discourse on four distinct documents that comprise of our Post-DJK Program: Member Profiles, Progression Plan Summaries, Modules, and the Proposal Outline itself. In addition to helping bring these documents to life for Clan Arcona’s future leaders, he also sits in on the course progression. He reviews every detailed Member Profile (generally two to three pages) before and after the one-on-one conversations. His attention to detail and corrections ensure that our program is consistent and has provided detailed feedback to Mako, Zakath, Kaiburr, Tavens, Celahir, and Nikola (over 16 pages of instruction and direction!).

He has also established himself as the designer of modules (courses) concerning graphics. His best work is done late into the night with Zakath teaching him about fine control and the graphic programs the Brotherhood uses to create Warbanners and Custom Lightsabers. As he does this work, he continues to help design and build future courses for other members with an interest in learning or improving their graphic skills. It does not stop there, though, because he also has his hand in the Character Development portion of this two-pronged attack. He created a profile for Arcia using the template penned by Uji, Turel, and himself that will go forward as the ‘mold’ for future Character Development activities within the First Clan.

The site cannot log the unseen hours he spends at his desk. It cannot tell you about the personal sacrifice, as Proconsul, that lets him elevate his House and Battle Team Leaders. We have had great success in Uji and I’s house, because he is comfortable in empowering his leaders. His stats are not individual, but the collective of what is accomplished by all of our leadership team. His hand is in everything. And for carrying such a burden, he should be properly awarded with this elevation.

Braecen Kaeth

Quaestor of Galeres

Braecen Kaeth, 2016-01-22 05:09:51 UTC

Arcia Cortel, or Esca as I’ve always known him, is the type of rock solid leader that organizations build themselves around. Steadfast, unshakable, unwavering, he is without question the cornerstone of the Arcona summit and the foundation of the success of Atyiru’s reign as Consul. Esca’s impressive rise from BTL to QUA to PCON in answer to the Clan’s call has been detailed by others and speaks for itself. What I will attest is the consistent and highly professional demeanor I observed as his peer, his subordinate then peer again.

Even during my time as a leader in Qel-Droma Esca’s influence as one of the central pillars of Galeres was readily apparent. The success of the Nighthawk and the House itself are largely due to the influence of his steady hand. He is the type of leader who buckles down in the face of a challenge and quietly burns the midnight oil, doing the very necessary but unglamorous work that keeps a unit going. He gives without thought of reward, or in Brotherhood parlance, he’s a quintessential “producer.” That impeccable work ethic continued when he stepped up to help carry the clan into a new era and carry he did. Esca was a beacon of stability in a tempest of change, but through it all he never faltered, maintained a calm demeanor and held his fellow leaders and members above the storm. As PCON he had the unenviable task of keeping a summit filled to the brim with strong personalities, focused, on-task, professional and unified. The fact he was able to pull off that seemingly impossible feat alone puts in the elite tiers of DB leaders.

In the time we’ve worked together Esca and I have sometimes disagreed, sometimes teamed up against cranky elders, but always approached a situation from the same desire to see the unit flourish. Even when our opinions differed he always had my respect and still does. I often seek his counsel as a valued peer on the Dark Summit. Watching him rise to leadership in the Brotherhood art community under Vyr has made me respect him even more. This should be a recommendation for Elder, but he has one final step to go, one which I have no doubt he will make quickly. Congrats on EQ4!

Turel Sorenn

Proconsul, Clan Odan-Urr

Champion Rajhin Cindertail, 2016-01-22 05:10:10 UTC

Arcona’s Summit has accomplished a great deal internally over the last year: completed Operation: Resurgence, a major multi-House run-on that spanned over 150 pages of fiction - more than double the length of most novellas; won a Great Jedi War; began a complete rewrite of all major “canon” Arconan wiki articles; instituted a post-DJK mentorship program; completed a top-down review of all Summit positions and coordinated their respective responsibilities and expectations; founded a new Battleteam; and fostered a new generation of leaders, many of whom have gone on to fill Summit positions themselves. None of this would have been possible without the hard work, dedication and enviable talent of one Arcia Cortel.

Arcia Cortel - formerly Esca - has been a member of the Brotherhood for over twelve years, but it has only been in the last year and a half that I’ve come to see just how invaluable his contributions are. He is the rare breed of leader that not only goes unsung, but prefers it that way. Well, Esca: deal with it. We’re going to sing your praises whether you like it or not.

As a Battleteam Leader during Operation: Resurgence, Esca was instrumental in pushing his members to participate and their team efforts became one of the two focal points to a story that would otherwise have been chaotic to the point of unintelligibility. He updated the background and history of the Nighthawk, rewriting much of it to make it more cohesive and allow for a more accessible entry point to the run-on for his members. His efforts and guidance led to his team taking first place in the event.

Still a Battleteam Leader, he was instrumental in Arcona’s victory during GJW XI, with his members responsible for a significant number of the points that helped Arcona clench the win. Not to be outdone, he himself placed in three events, and his efforts served to further motivate his team to give the War their all.

As Proconsul, he initiated and has coordinated the Arcona Article Improvement Program, a drive to update and rewrite all the major articles that contribute to Arcona canon. While still ongoing, the progress - multiple articles complete, seventeen in the process of being updated and thirteen left to go - has been both steady and satisfying, like all of Esca’s work.

With the repeated shuffling of Summit members that characterized the beginning of his tenure on Arcona’s Summit, Esca recognized the need to more clearly define the various roles and positions of each Summit member, as well as their responsibilities and expectations. Pursuant to this, he helped organize, proof and finalize the new standard to which all Summit members are held. This has led to a drastic reduction in redundancy among Summit tasks and helped streamline our interactions, freeing up more time to spend both with our members and on non-Summit activities. He also spearheaded the rewrite of our internal Rollmaster guide, helping to pare down a monolith of disconnected resources and irrelevant, outdated information to a simple, straightforward How-To manual to ensure every new Journeyman receives the assistance and instruction they deserve.

His contributions to Arconan mentorship do not stop with Journeymen, however. He has been pivotal in the creation of Arcona’s Post-DJK Mentorship Program, a series of courses and counselling sessions designed to take aimless Equites and show them a path forward, one that facilitates personal growth as well as focusing efforts on improving their Clan and the Brotherhood. With half a dozen members having so far participated in the course, and many more interested in joining, it has been a definite success in helping to focus the efforts of low- and mid-level Equites in a more productive direction.

In addition to his more regimented efforts, his time as Battleteam Leader, Quaestor and Proconsul have been marked by the sheer number of members he has personally helped to motivate, inspire and groom. Uji Tameike, Kordath Bleu, Zakath, Nath Agrona, Rulvak Qurroc, Ernordeth Puer-Irae: all of them served under him in Galeres, many when he was Battleteam Leader of the Nighthawk, and all have gone on to take up leadership roles throughout the Brotherhood, ranging from Battleteam Sergeant, to Aedile to Praetor. There is little doubt that it was, in part, his stellar example that has helped drive them to seek out ways that they, too, can give back to the Brotherhood.

Finally, I’d like to point out what may be his most underrated accomplishment: with a group of individuals as disparate and hot-headed as Arconan Summitters have historically been, Esca has been an anchor and a mediator. Often tasked with finding common ground between conflicting interests and personalities, he has been tireless in his efforts to form a smoother, more cohesive Summit - and the accomplishments of Arcona over the past year and a half are testament to just how amazing he is.

Esca, for everything that you do, for the unwavering dedication with which you do it, and for the infinite patience with which you deal with your Summit’s many and sundry antics, it is my sincerest pleasure to recommend you for Equite IV.

8nod*

• Terran Koul, Aedile, House Qel-Droma of Clan Arcona

Terran Koul, 2016-01-22 05:11:02 UTC

Arcia (or Esca, as I like to call him), is one of the pillars of the Herald’s office. I can say this for any member of my team, truly, but for Esca it is especially true. Ever since he applied for Magistrate he has been stepping up more and more, handling more and more work that I’ve sent his way. Back then his skills — just like mine when I was Magistrate — were humble but showed of great potential. Since then he has grown, developed and exceeded my expectations even to the point where I appointed him my Praetor.

His accomplishments for the Herald’s office include projects such as the redesign of the website, for which he did several detailed characters we can see greeting newcomers on the web site banners today. For the Path release he created three weapons for the Non-Force Using Orders and he did them in great quality and detail. For the Fiction Society release he created the highly detailed Inquisitorius scanner in two variants for the members to enjoy. During the Herald’s Christmas special event (Former HSH) he created only two weapons, the First Order Blaster and the Stun baton everyone is so keen on liking. However, he held the fort while the rest of us labored to bring the Club their much wanted presents. He held the office together, handling member requests for a total of 20 days so that we could work on the project.

Esca’s contributions don’t end there. He also supplied a total of 13 Custom weapons, 5 Selector weapons, 2 graphics requests, 5 Warbanners and a multitude of smaller requests from members to either tweak their Warbanners, approve their avatars or draw their characters. All in all Esca has created a total of 155 images for the Herald’s office and the general membership in his time as Magistrate alone.

On a more miscellaneous note, Esca has been an extremely supportive member of the Dark Brotherhood Art Club, acting as both mentor and student in many of the art challenges we have in our small Telegram group. He is ever the supportive critic that points out the flaws and strengths of each individual artists and helps them develop.

He has also personally advanced since he joined, under my guidance as well as his own perseverance. His product quality has improved immensely with the use of more advanced techniques and I dare say it won’t be long until he surpasses my level of detail and quality. Lately he has taken on the job of educating himself in making Robes and other related art, which is a step in the right direction for a Praetor to the Herald, and potential future Herald.

Esca has been a personal support for me in the toughest times when deadlines seemed to crush down on the Office. He is always ready to criticize my work, no matter how harshly, for one reason and one reason only — to bring out the best that we can offer the membership.

In conclusion, Esca has the drive and the spirit of just about any Herald I’ve ever worked with (and I’ve worked with most). His positive outlook on art in general, his enthusiasm for the work and his drive to get better make him a great companion and a worthwhile member of the Office and Art Club. His attempts to better himself and the Club have not gone unnoticed and for this very reason it is my pleasure to recommend this promotion to Equite 4. Congratulations, Colonel.

• V’yr Vorsa

• Herald of the Brotherhood

Governor Tierra Suha'sen, 2016-01-22 05:11:25 UTC

I was on the tail end of the “Arcia” mentorship program, always once removed by those just above me but always impressed by them. To say that they helped shape what Arcona is becoming would almost be an understatement. He's helped train up multiple members to be solid leaders, ran one of the most successful BTs the Clan has ever seen, and then moved up to help keep Galeres moving. From there, the Clan, where he's not stopped in his work to improve us all. From BTL to QUA to PCON in the matter of months, it would be easy to see a member take a break and find their feet, but not Esca. With clearly defined goals set for himself at every step, he'd pass on the projects for a position to the next person to take his place, making himself available to help them out, even as he tackled new tasks.

Arcona can owe a lot of its current activity, drive, and morale to the almighty Melons of Selen, and I'm ecstatic to see him get this promotion. You've always been straight with me when you needed something or I asked for help, and I'll always appreciate that. Thank you, Arcia.

Kordath Bleu

Rollmaster, Arcona

General Stres'tron'garmis, 2016-01-22 05:10:37 UTC