Monthly Update

Members of the Dark Brotherhood-

I hope you all have been enjoying the casual gaming queue. I’m really excited about how well this is going. So far, I’ve seen some Pokemon (Unite and even a couple Go! subs), chess, Dead by Daylight, Rocket League, and Back 4 Blood. I hope to see even more this month.

Last month saw the return of Gorefest, which was a big hit. So many clusters! We’ll be back to normal GMRG Members Only for the next few months, so for you non GMRG members, you can either wait for the next open Gorefest weekend or take the GMRG exam and participate every month!

I have a few things to cover this month.

Game Updates (Destiny 2, Diablo 3, Heroes of the Storm) New Position Opening Thoughts on the GMRG Society vs. GMRG Leaderboard

Game Updates

Destiny 2

Destiny 2 has a consistent Seasonal structure that features new modes and different ways to play the game. With a consistent stream of new activities, it seems logical to find a blanket method of support vs constantly researching and adding additional modes.

As such, I have added a Seasonal Playlist Activity option to the Destiny 2 submission portal. All seasonal activities, special event activities (like the currently running Haunted Lost Sectors for Festival of the Lost), and other items like Dungeons will fall into this category.

With this change, I am removing the Battlegrounds event as it is included in this new submission method. The Battlegrounds image on the wiki will give you an idea of what to submit in the Seasonal Playlist Activity section.

To submit, follow this thread in the Gaming Score Submission Portal:

Report PvE Activity > Destiny 2 > Seasonal Playlist Activities

Diablo 3

I have spent the better part of Season 24 looking at cluster values and whether or not the juice is worth the squeeze for Diablo 3. Currently, the top value starts at Greater Rift 126+. In this season, and with the best gear I could possibly have (some primals, all ancients, all upgraded with Caldesaan’s), I have struggled to clear a 118 GR. From my perspective, the grind does not match the payout for cluster values.

As such, I am rolling back the top tier GRs required for max cluster values to make Diablo 3 a little more palatable for people to play and hopefully assist others in playing. It is no secret that Diablo 3 is one of the better games we have to introduce new gamers to how gaming works in the DB.

Updated D3 Values are as follows:

• Normal Rifts T1 to T16: 1.5 CE
• GR 1 to 75: 1.5 CE
• GR 76 to 100: 2.25 CE
• GR 100+: 3 CE

If you are new to gaming in the DB, grab a copy of Diablo 3 and reach out in DB Gaming. I will help anyone, anytime I can. There are quite a few others who will do the same.

Heroes of the Storm

HotS still stands strong as one of the more popular games in the DB. It is also the game with the most tedious grind for Pendants of Blood. As a free game, I want this to be a little bit more accessible since some gamers prefer to play games that don’t cost any extra money. After review and discussion with current players and members of my staff, I’m going to make those six Pendants a little easier for you to attain.

Pendants of Blood will now be awarded for each character that reaches level 5, with the corresponding required player level. So for all six PoBs, you will need six characters at level 5 with a player level of 150. As always, there is a maximum of six pendants of blood possible, so once you hit six characters at level 5 and player level 150, that’s all the Pendants you can get.

Hopefully this eases the burden and the grind for Pendants for those of you looking to add a few more and work on ranking up in the GMRG!

New Position: SWTOR Tribune

One of the first things Evant discussed with me upon returning to the office was the possibility of having a position dedicated to the SWTOR community. I absolutely agree that this position is not only warranted, it is necessary. It is no secret that SWTOR has seen a bit of a resurgence over the past year, and that is a very good thing to see.

So, I’m hiring!

The SWTOR Tribune (or T:SWTOR) is a special staff member serving in the office of the Fist of the Brotherhood and acts as the Guild Leader for the official Dark Jedi Brotherhood SWTOR Guild. The T:SWTOR is responsible for all Guild Leader activities to include, but not limited to: maintaining the guild bank, regularly scheduling competitions and activities for TOR players, recommending updates to guild rules, maintaining the SWTOR Guild Wiki Page, reviewing new content and providing recommendations for additional supported activities and modes, in-game recruitment, and resolving potential guild conflicts.

For the purposes of this position, the official Dark Jedi Brotherhood Guild is defined as the current Sith Empire (Imp Side) Guild on the Star Forge Server. While the Tribune will have the leeway to offer activities on the Galactic Republic (Pub) Side, the DJB’s official guild will remain the Imp Side guild.

Expanded Duties

Maintaining the Guild Bank - Monitor the activity in the guild bank. Ensure that guild members are following all guidelines and rules for how the guild bank operates. Ensure no members are abusing the guild bank, either by removing items and selling them on the GTN or to NPCs. Review the current rules for the Guild bank on the SWTOR Guild Wiki Page and refine them as necessary.

Regularly Schedule Activities and Competitions - Competitions are the lifeblood of activity in the Dark Jedi Brotherhood. As the T:SWTOR, you will be expected to schedule regular events to provide opportunities to win crescents, clusters, and pendants to all members of the DJB SWTOR guild. You will be expected to run at least one SWTOR-focused competition per month. You will have the freedom to schedule other events as you deem necessary, such as weekend gaming sessions, in-game role-play, guild meetings, conquest point rewards, etc.

Reviewing New Content - As Tribune, you will be expected to monitor official release of updates, expansions, seasonal content, and other special events that can potentially add to the depth of supported activities members can earn clusters for. All recommendations for additional activities will be reviewed by and approved by the Fist prior to implementation.

Recruitment - Where competitions are the lifeblood for activity, recruitment is the lifeblood of the Dark Jedi Brotherhood. As SWTOR Tribune, you will be responsible for managing an in game recruitment program to help bring new members to the club. The methods you use are at your discretion, as long as they are within reason. Don’t bribe people to join by giving them in-game credits and gear with the expectation that they join the club. Look at some of the more successful guilds in the game for ideas. Weekly planetary conquests, attempting server first on new raids, casual fun; these are only some of the options you will have at your disposal to bring new people into the DJB community.

Position Requirements

• Rank: None
• Guild Membership: Required
• Knowledge of SWTOR: Required
• Willingness to Run and Organize Competitions: Required. Applicants will submit ideas.
• Recruitment Plan: Applicants will submit concepts for recruitment.

If you are interested in applying for the position, please fill out this google form .

Applications are due back to me no later than November 20th.

The GMRG as a Society and as an Endgame Activity

Not long after returning to the Fist office, I had a few people ask me what my thoughts were on the possibility of changing the GMRG Society rank-up process to be more in line with the Fiction and Art societies. While I’m not 100% against this, there are some things I want to consider before I decide whether to make the shift or stay with the way things are now.

The first consideration is that the GMRG provides something akin to an endgame activity for gamers. Once you reach Rank X in the GMRG, you are eligible for the GMRG Quarterly Leaderboard, which is a passively run event that takes into account cluster earnings and Fist-sponsored gaming competition placements. So naturally, I want to see members actually playing games to participate in this activity.

The second consideration is that for some, the current gaming milestones to rank up may seem a little daunting. The total number of Clusters of Earth (2200) and Pendants of Blood (10) to reach Rank X requires a sizable amount of cooperative gaming and a moderate time investment to achieve. If you play games that award CFs, you can speed the process up a little bit. From my perspective, I like this concept. Play games with other DB members, earn rewards, rank up.

The last consideration is accessibility of the society. Currently the Art and Fiction societies are fully accessible to all members of the club. I can reach the pinnacle ranks (albeit slowly) by doing minimum word count fictions in competitions and submitting VERY bad art for graphics competitions. It will take a while if I don’t use the other available methods to rank up, but I can eventually get there, and I don’t have to rely on anyone else to rank up. Gaming is different. There is only one way to earn clusters: play games with other people and submit them for credit. Pendants of blood are easier to obtain, as they are awarded for achieving individual milestones. But for now, if you want to rank up, you have no choice--you play video games with other members or you never gain a rank.

As I see it, there are a couple of options on the table. First, I do nothing and leave the GMRG Society as it is. It works in its current form, people actively game now, and if they want to game there are plenty of members in the DB to play with.

My second option is to view the GMRG Society and the GMRG Leaderboard as two connected but distinct activities. In this model, the GMRG society rank up could include some of the same things the other societies have in their points structure, like running competitions, playing games, serving on staff, and others. The GMRG Leaderboard would function solely as an endgame activity, with earning clusters of earth/fire as the only method to placing in the top 10.

But like anything I do, I want to hear your thoughts. My job is to provide opportunities and activities for the members. My preference is to give you all what you want, so long as it is within reason. As awesome as it would be to be able to read your minds, I haven’t figured that trick out just yet.

So let’s hear it! Post your comments below. Let me know what you think.

Competition Spotlight

• FIST-Slaughterhouse 21 – Cluster Race. Earn clusters, win crescents!
• FIST-Supported Platform-Feel the Force(BF2) play the Assault mode in Battlefront 2, submit your highest single match score.
• Diablo 3 Solo Greater Rift - Korvis is running this one. Create a seasonal character and run the highest solo greater rift possible.
• A Good, Old-Fashioned Cluster Race?" 2: More Clusters for Me and You Bentre is running another Cluster race, for the whole DB!
• Uncle A-Aru's Big Load of Puzzles Aru is running a long puzzle series. Puzzles are fun!
• Star Wars animals puzzle series Xantros has some puzzles for you as well!

Admin and Policy Reminders

If you haven’t joined the ranks of the GMRG, head on over to the GMRG-History course and pass the exam within the Shadow Academy. Get an opportunity to gain exclusive items, compete on the leaderboard to choose a Dark Council member to protect! (Get their accessory!)

All current Gaming and Fist Policies can be found on the Gaming Information page. I suggest that all members read this page as it has some great info. I will make sure this page stays updated to reflect all current office policies.

Helpful Links

• Gaming Information page

• Rites of Combat

• Send us an email at [Log in to view e-mail addresses]

I’ll be out of the country for a couple weeks in November. I believe I’ll have internet access, but my work schedule will be very hectic during that time. Aldaric and the team will be my solar powered crew while I’m sleeping, and I’ll try to hop on when I can to check on things.

I will have constant email access, so if you really need to get ahold of me, just shoot me an email!

Keep on gaming!

-Dracpool, out.