A report, Wherein Muz discusses a few projects progress, some minor changes, an opportunity or three and awards a pretty nice medal. Brought to you with Limited commercial interruption by The letters D, B and the number 20.

As far as projects, I've teased the progress on the Lightsaber Guide (spearheaded by Sai/Shi) in the past. Work is continuing along on that bad boy, and we've even started to get some of the new content sorted out (redacted is a beast). That whole project has had a lot of great work getting done by Sai, Sildrin and Xanos. Macron and Maelous have also done some heavy lifting on a sub-project there called the construction guide, which will tie very nicely into Possessions.

But wait, there's more.

Macron, Maelous and I have been working madly on the new Alchemy Guide. This new guide will lay out how Alchemy will work in the Brotherhood, (dovetailing again with Possessions in ways that makes James hate me). So those of us who have wondered how they can officially do some of the awesome things that Alchemy will make reality will have a resource, both for in-character and out of character.

I don't have something other than raw text to tease you guys with, but I can tease some of the things that you will be able to do: craft artifacts, enhance weapons, enhance NPCs, enhance yourselves, create creatures. There are deep and awesome ways to do these things as it is tying into the possessions system to make it all official. And the story behind it, the methods are deeply rooted in character development. This little tasty morsel will be done up in a badass PDF that we'll load into the library for even off-line perusal. We are sure that you'll love it.

A brother to the Saber Guide is also getting some serious work done. Arden, Mirus, Ryan, Kalon, Celevon and myself have been doing a lot of work on a revamp and refresh of the Hand-to-hand combat guide. We're going through and increasing how much detail is available for people to pull from for their characters. We're putting things down for people to write their characters doing the art more effectively for things like fictions, runons, and the Antei Combat Centre. We're deepening the level of detail available to our members who want to delve further into these arts.

So now, the opportunity.

But with all of this great work and effort that is going on, we need a little help. We're falling woefully short on the graphics side. We can piecemeal the work, certainly, but to make something really awesome, we need people who have the time and skill to make the graphics in the same style for each of the above two guides. It's work, don't get me wrong... but it's bound to be highly rewarded and highly visible. If you're interested in doing graphics for either the Alchemy guide or the Hand to Hand guide, shoot me an email with a few samples of your work.

Today, I have talked to Baxir. Recently, he's been finding that his real-life work has been taking him more and more time. Sadly, that means that he has had less time to do his work as Herald. I have asked him to stay on and continue his awesome webcomics for us as magistrate to the Herald.

Now, recently, he's been busy, but before that, he was most prolific. The activity tracker for the HRLD office has a lot of entries for the man, as it should...but they aren't as readily visible as just showing great big piles of lightsabers and robes. He's done graphical work, yes. He manhandled Herald Style Hannukhah, he's done up new navbars for the wiki, join characters for the new join form and the social media accounts and the aforementioned webcomics that help keep us all laughing. But he's done a lot more than that. He's pushed forward the concept of a Graphics society, to help grow our artists into something better, a resource for those of us learning and looking to do more. He's also worked diligently to codify and document the unwritten (or horribly out of date) policies that guide the Herald's office. It's been a lot of work, and it's worth our praise and thanks. To that end, I am very pleased to award Baxir an Emerald Dagger as a token of our thanks. Your time with us is always appreciated.

Normally, for a DC position, I go straight for the open applications trigger. This time, I think it wouldn't be right. As Baxir's work has taken him from the DB more and more, Socorra has stepped up in a big way. She's been instrumental in holding down the fort, and it's only right that we give her the opportunity to take over in a more official fashion.

I am sure I'm not the only one who looks forward to seeing what Socks can do as Herald. Welcome to the Dark Council, Socorra.

Of course, with Socorra stepping up, we'll be looking for someone to take over for her as Forum Tribune. The gig is deceptive. On it's face it seems like it is just a 'super-moderator' sort of position. In reality, it is much more than that. You'll be responsible for trying to drive more and more activity to the forums, working closely with several DCers to encourage the use of them via competitions, societies, etc. It's not exactly an open book test on how to do these things, and will require a fair bit of trial and error. If you're interested in this Dark Summit position, please email your application to Raken and I before 2359 EDT 27th March, 2014.

Real Life has been kicking more than a few of us around lately. Xantros has also found himself on the receiving end of 'too much RL work' and has had to step down, due to how much we need the recruitment funnels going. That leaves the position of Recruitment Tribune open for applications. This is not an easy gig, and will require daily contribution. This is the person who will manage our twitter and facebook accounts, as well as any other avenues for recruitment that come to light. With the new films starting production in less than two months, this will be absolutely critical to the long-term health of our organization. We have to strike while the iron is hot. If you think that you have the ability and the time to dedicate to this job, please shoot Raken and I an email before 2359 EDT 27th March, 2014.

Over the past few months, I have found myself talking to quite a few people about how promotions work in this club. There's been a fair bit of misunderstanding as well as a little bit of resentment as to what i guess we should call 'equal access'. Now I've spoken repeatedly and at length on the topic, including a massive diatribe/rant on my last report, but I did want to make a solid example of how it can work today.

Today, I am promoting someone to elder who hasn't been on the Dark Council for a few years. They haven't been even on the clan summit for a long time. But what they have done is the work.

Not all work is blatantly obvious. Not all work slaps you in the face and demands that you take a look at it. As a matter of fact, a lot more of the work that gets done in this club goes unseen, unrecognized by most people. Sometimes, we have to trumpet our own work so that someone notices it and does something about it. And those who don't, often miss out on the recognition they deserve. It's a shame, but it's the truth.

Sildrin, now called Xia Long, has been one of those who does a lot of work, but quietly and slowly, behind the scenes. She took a position on the Dark Council probably a bit too early in her career, and that made it difficult for her to get the kind of notice for her later projects and work that they deserve. Since stepping down from Seneschal (she was starting a family and they needed her far more than we did at the time), she's been lurking, working on almost anything that she had a chance to. As Grand Master, i have a small group of people who I know I can turn to when i need something done and not have to chase them down every few minutes. I jokingly call this the 'mercenary list', and Sildrin has been on it for many years, despite a few snarky exchanges between the two of us. She's a professional coder, one who helps streamline the DB code, test out new bits, and helped to keep the site running for literally years with practically no fanfare. She's put her oar in on the graphical front, helping to prettify projects such as the forthcoming refreshed saber guide.

She's also served as a voice for the average member, working to make things easier and more equitable for all of our members. It's a needed voice sometimes, helping to keep myself and others grounded and remember how it is from a different perspective. It's been a slow road for Sildrin, working often on smaller projects and minor details, without a huge project to call her own. But she has been doing this consistently for the six years since her last promotion, proving to me that it's not really about ego, that it's not about personal accomplishment, that it's not really accurate that I call that list the 'mercenary list', because she really does care for the club and wants it to be better than everywhere else. It could have been too easy for someone who didn't care except for what they could get out of it to walk away and not care any more.

The razor that I have always used for whether or not someone is ready to be an elder or not has been 'Is the club significantly better because of their work?'. It's not a matter of the clan, or the house, but the Club. Looking back, I can unhesitatingly say that it is better due to Sildrin's efforts.

It's a long road to Elder. Some manage to get it done in a few short years, thanks to equal parts skill and luck. It takes a third element to get it done across a longer road: perseverance. Xia Long is a perfect example of this. Thank you for all that you have done, Xia. It's been a long time coming.

This year marks our twentieth year as an organization. That's a heck of a milestone. That's longer than some of us have been alive. It's been about eleven years since we broke from the Hammer, and people have been asking me about the Independence Games.

This is a touchy situation. It is a big marker for us, and a date that was easily researchable, easily codified, and easy to remember. But why do we celebrate it?

We have spent more time as an independent organization than we have ever done under the hammer. For us to continue to indoctrinate new members into the stories of the past i think gives more credibility to some of those "villains" than they deserve. Yes, things under the hammer were not great. Yes, we left them. Yes, it was quite awkward for many years later.

But ultimately, it's a piece of history. It's not indicative of where we are now, nor is it fairly representative of where even the hammer is now. There is a difference between remembering the past and using it as a bogeyman. We use the exodus as our independence day, when really it's just the end of another's rule. We were founded in 1994 by Kane Vader and Jedgar Paladin. The Hammer was just a phase that we went through.

We have been so much more than just that one day. We are greater for having gone through that hardship, but it should not be all that defines us.

Last year, we celebrated ten years since the exodus with the Independence Games. I, and many others, feel that is more than adequate. We will continue to remember on Exodus day, but the time for the Games has passed.

We can find far better reasons to celebrate. Let us do that.

Ask the GM Time!

Cethgus asks "With the old talk of specific ribbons for the Dark Crusade, has their been any progress on these awards, or are they being scrapped?"

There has been progress on them made. That said, with Socorra taking over the project and the crusade still not completely done yet (we still have two more planets to work through, and that should take us into June or so), they won't be released for a bit yet.

Andrelious asks "Would the DB not logically use a calendar around an event like the split, rather than the Battle of Yavin?"

Not really. The battle of Yavin changed things on a galactic scale. It marked the beginning of the end of the Empire and the rise of the New Republic. The Exodus is historically important to the DB, but it's not on that grand of a scale. Out of character, it also gives us an easy frame of reference when dealing with canon things. If we had a separate reckoning, it would confuse matters some.

Aiden (Shad) asks "For all these "create canon" events, are there plans to stop people/groups who don't win from writing their own character histories as if they did?"

That's like herding cats. There's no real way to stop people from writing anything. We've all seen too many times where someone goes off the deep end and writes themselves as the GOD OF ALL DARK LORDS even though they are a protector. So just saying 'don't do that' won't magically mind control them into not doing it. That said, realism is an important grading point, so if a team who (for instance) doesn't win the Sword Revelation writes in a later event like they did, they'll lose big points and most likely the event based on that. Also, wiki staff can police that up some. So if you write yourself as winning when you didn't expect that the wiki team will be correcting you.

TL;DR

• Alchemy Guide and Hand to Hand refresh well under way

• Can you do graphics? Get on the team for the Alchemy or Hand to Hand refresh projects for great work and awards.

• Orv/Baxir retires from Herald.

• Socorra Named as Herald.

• Apply for Forums Tribune.

• Xantros retires from T:R.

• Apply for Recruitment Tribune.

• Sildrin is an Elder!

• No More Independence Games. We need a new reason to party!

• Cethgus, Lenzar and Shadow all get DCs for Ask The GM.

And that is about all for this time. Have fun out there!