Greetings my fellow Odanites and onlookers from the Dark Side,

We have a lot of news to cover today so without further ado….

The featured art this month is a little piece I had done by Suppa Rider for when the Sorenn siblings can be on the same side again :( Also I was beta testing a new outfit for Turel.

Jobs!

• M:Fist - Closes 12 September.

• ACC Judge - Closes 8 September

• Shan Aedile - Closes 10 September

• CSP Rollmaster - Closes 12 September

News

• DJB Fiction Update “Treason” - Seriously, stop and read this one. The Resistance is growing and a larger war is coming to the Brotherhood.

• Fist Report - Overwatch is approved and League of Legends goes into beta testing. Get gud scrub!

• Combat Master - Wally reports are full of the vitamins and minerals a growing combatant needs. Part of a balanced breakfast.

• New D.Cov - I know legal documents can be boring but a lot of work went into bringing the Dark Covenant into the modern era. Jac and his crew did a fantastic job, be sure to check it out even though the deadline for comments have passed.

• Headmaster Report - Things are popping in the SA, be sure to check out all the comings and goings.

• DGM Report - Mav gave all the units their quarterly report cards. I’ll talk about ours in detail in the #askTurel section.

• Wiki - Xolarin and Korroth got wikipedian and page of the month respectively. Congrats to both!

Event Recap

Homecoming and Battle Formations concluded since my last report. I would like to take a moment to thank the members of the summit who had a hand in running those events. Content doesn’t just create itself and a lot of love goes into creating one of these events, so be sure to give feedback so we can make these more fun for you and pat your local summit member on the back. Everyone on the team works hard day in and day out for your benefit.

I can’t stress the feedback piece enough, it’s so crucial to how we operate around here. Did you like something about an event? Did the plot lose you? Were members featured enough? Was there a particular type of competition you would have liked to see but didn’t? These are all things that help the summit make things better for future events and everyday competitions. Also, if you have an idea of either a competition or event you’d like to run, let us know. You don’t have to be on the summit to create content, just run your ideas by us and we’ll try to help work them into something fun for the Clan.

The beta for the COU feedback form

But seriously, the Summit feedback form is still live and does go straight to my mailbox. One particular concern we have is the pacing of the events / competitions. Too many? Too close together? Not enough? Just right? Let us know.

Sentinel Network: Resurgence

From the ashes, a phoenix rises. But a new shadow descends to consume it.

You may be left wondering how COU fares after the latest fiction update expanding the growing war against the Iron Throne. Well rest assured we are not sitting on the sidelines and Pravus certainly hasn’t forgotten about us. The Sentinel Network has been rebuilt following the events of New Tython and Florrum to continue our guerilla war against Pravus and the Inquisition. The attack on our Jedi brethren (and their Clan mates) on Karufr has created an opportunity to rally more to the Resistance cause and strike a blow.

Sentinel Network: Resurgence will involve a large raid into Brotherhood space to attempt to strike such a blow. Every action has consequences and COU has drawn enough attention to warrant the Voice sending one of his deadliest agents to hunt us down. Intel on this Grand Inquisitor may have leaked onto the holonet, but rest assured you will get know this new threat as the event unfolds. Let’s just say this operation will not be a walk in the park and depending on how things go, there will be lasting consequences. Ooooo.

I know you guys are ready.

I’d like to talk out of character for a moment about the event and how it will go. My intent is for this to be fun and low pressure, especially that this is the third event we’ve done back to back. The focus here is on the story and getting as many members involved in the shaping of that story as possible. That being said the main event for Resurgence will be the team run-on which will run the entire length of the event (about a month). We’re doing things a little differently this time. For starters the max team limit has been raised to 5 members, though we can look at larger teams on a case by case basis. Also, we are relaxing the post limit rules. If a team member does not meet the two post minimum, only that member will be disqualified, not the entire team. This is notably different from how GJWs and vendetta ROs are ran so don’t get too used to it. We are also strongly encouraging teams to form based around unit affiliation so look to your battleteam and House mates to form teams.

The Team run-on signup form is live but there’s no rush. The run-on will not start before next Monday the 12th so take your time and form solid teams. Talk to your unit leaders if you are interested in participating.

Stay tuned for more updates folks. You’ll likely see a teaser fiction by the weekend.

Competitions

Comps By and For COU members

• RM - Open-ended Fiction Sept '16

• RM - Open-ended Graphic Sept '16

• RM - Puzzle #1

• Opinions are like… - This is a somewhat unique chance to get competition credit for making an argument over the internet. How many of us just do that for fun anyway? Check it out!

• A Poem for the Empress - Get your poetry on!

• COU Logic Puzzle Challenge - A logic comp? Hosted by Edgar of all people? You have to check this out. :P

• Jedi Summer Camp - Shameless plug ahem.

• COU Free Form Fiction Sep 16 - Free style it!

• Shan Back to School - House Shan can get their trivia on!

• Shan Down Underground - This is a great prompt, if you’re in House Shan you should check it out.

DB-wide comps

• [Herald's Weekly Challenge] Then and now - Draw a before and after of your character and get some of sweet sweet Cluster of Graphite.

• Build a NPC: Scoundrel - Build an NPC using a template, how hard is that? Winning NPC becomes the example for the discipline. DO EEEET!

• Shadow Academy Newbie - Tell about your character’s early days at the SA.

• First Encouters: Leaving Home - All our characters left their home of origin at some point, explore that in this fiction comp.

• Don’t I know you too? - This prompt is really neat, write a fiction meeting another character for the first time. This is a great excuse to establish some in-character connections.

• PLA and COU double CF day! - GET ALL THE CLUSTERS!!

AskTurel

Nero - #askTurel What's is your opinion of the revised covenant?

Lots of very needed changes, some of which I either argued or suggested in earlier drafts. I like the posted policy rule. I hate the enforcment of unwritten policies.

Lexic - #AskTurel when you first became PCON, was it a hard job? What were the first steps you needed to take? Do you see the contributions you make become successful and permanent?

Uhh the hardest part of PCON is it's not really defined. Its really whatever the Con needs it to be. So, the first step is getting a feel for how you'll divide things up and work as a team. Second big change from a House level position is you're on the dark summit so you're dealing with other Clans and DC'ers. So some learning there on boundaries. But overall extremely rewarding.

Dealing with criticism in a constructive way is a must

Tisto - #AskTurel What is Turel’s favorite food

I haven’t actually thought this through...there’s an obvious joke about how he’s vegetarian now but I won’t make it. :P

Atty - #AskTurel bro and/or siscon Christmas, yes, no? :P

Raiju - #askTurel What goals have the Clan Summit set their sights on in regards to the 2nd Quarter/DGM update? How can the membership help?

Oh gosh...going straight for the numbers eh? Spoken a former Consul. Well two metrics in particular resulted in some focus for our summit. The first is our member retention. You’ll notice in Mav’s report that our numbers were the second worst in this category. The general membership has a big role to play in helping keep people in the Clan and engaged. Reach out, meet new people, get to know them. If you see someone start to get frustrated or express a desire to go elsewhere let the summit know so maybe we can do something. Retention of all our members will be a major focus of the Rollmaster going forward, more on that later. The second metric I’d like to improve on is submissions per competition and that comes down to comp organizers promoting comps more effectively (instead of just posting and forgetting). Also I’d like to foster a culture of supporting our member’s competitions and I think that starts with the leaders setting a good example, though members have a key role in that as well. So help promote your buddies comps and DO ALL THE THINGS (you can, don’t overdo it). Great question.

Arch - #AskTurel Do you have any advice for AED applicants?

Focus on looking forward and what you plan to do. Biggest mistake I see in applications is pages of "I'm awesome" but that does little to show me how you will move this unit forward. Also try to include some bits of personal philosophy on leadership.

Nero - #askTurel Are you the true King of the brotherhood. :D

I’m the Princess of Friendship.

Arch - #AskTurel How worried IC is Turel about giving a military force to a literal fascist and throwing her at the Sith?

Not very, she's watched. Alethia follows orders and generally is effective at what she does.

Xantros - #AskTurel Can you imagine how 'quiet' one's inbox is when they resign from a leadership job? :P

I can, but it's been a while :P

Atra - As a busy guy in your RL and DB roles in tandem, are there any tips for time management and prioritization you can provide to the masses? How do you manage it? Does it ever get to a point where you question if you can juggle it? If so, how do you push past?

Oh wow. This comes up a lot for me. So first and foremost real life obligations always come first. If real life has grown to the point you can’t perform your leadership obligations it’s time to look in the mirror and do that gut check and determine if you can or should continue in the position. There is nothing wrong with stepping down for the good of the unit. Second, use some kind of system for keeping track of your obligations. Use a calendar, to-do list, something. I keep a running to-do list of my on-going obligations with dates in a personal Trello page. Third, prioritize. There are only so many hours in a day, and far fewer hours you can and should devote to a DB position. I prioritize things by impact in that the things that impact the most people or have a bigger impact on fewer people take priority. So for example, awards/promos are my highest priority followed by grading events / ACC matches then content creation for Clan events. Stuff that only impacts me as a member is the lowest priority so I often delay ACC posts or individual entries to other people’s comps. I hope that makes sense.

If I reach a point where I wonder if I can juggle it, I will consider what I have on my plate and what I can remove to keep the proverbial balls in the air. I’ve had more than one conversation with A’lora about whether or not I should step down as PCON. That doesn’t mean I have a burning desire to quit, it means at various times I have worried about whether or not I would be able to do the job the way I think it should be done.

Great question.

Every so often this happens despite my best intentions

TL;DR

• Big things are happening with the Resistance! Check out the GM’s fiction update and the upcoming SenNet event.

• We are doing well as a Clan, but the summit values your feedback so we can do better.

• I felt like using all Gravity Falls gifs today...get over it.

Mabel is my spirit animal

Closing

That’s all for today kids. Go get a pumpkin spice latte and get ready for fall.

Turel Sorenn

Proconsul, Clan Odan-Urr