Aliso City

The Pinnacle

36 ABY

Arden drummed his fingers on his desk as he pored over the datapads in front of him. Flanking him to his right was Ronovi, her hands tucked behind her back, her eyepatch glinting in the sparse light of the Dread Lord’s personal office. TuQ’uan stood across from the Dread Lord and the Wrath, presenting several Plagueians who had brought the information and reconnaissance data straight to the Pinnacle. Malice and Gaius Julius Caesar were two of the many brought in, Malice’s amber eyes bright and Caesar’s slightly wrinkled face clean shaven despite his drawn out excursions on Aliso’s surface.

“Tell me what you learned,” intoned Arden, still perusing the data on his desk.

Caesar went first. “My lord, I have discovered a suitable site for some of our military operations.”

“So I see,” replied the Dread Lord. “Cordana Valley, isn’t it?”

“Correct,” said Caesar. “By the Braun river. The mountains would do wonders for our sniper training. And the land itself is well suited for our infantry.”

“Might be good to check it out further,” added Ronovi. “We could use some more barracks outside the city. A weapons depot, too.”

Arden pondered this. His fingers ran across the edge of his upper lip, before he picked up a datapad and examined it. “Cordana Valley,” he repeated, his voice low and tinged with humor. “I’ve always known it to be a thrill seeker’s paradise. Lots of camps there.”

“Those can be easily dealt with,” Caesar replied.

“Perhaps,” sighed Arden, “but I do find recreational markets and facilities to be useful. Especially for our coffers. Still, you make a fair point about our military. I’ll send more men to the valley to plot out potential buildings and structures.”

Caesar nodded and stepped back, opening the floor for Malice. Her announcement, however, was more somber. “My lord,” she declared, “I found what appears to be an abandoned Geonosian weapons depot.”

The Dread Lord raised his eyebrows. “Where? Near the former enclave?”

“Not even close to the city, my lord,” Malice replied. “I went south with a few of my droids. I’m not sure when or how the Geonosians built it, but it was in a hollowed out hill. The security system was non-existent, so I managed to enter easily.”

“And what did you find? Besides weapons?”

Malice swallowed. “Bodies, my lord. Dead bodies. Most stripped of skin by now.”

Arden leaned back in his chair and folded his hands in front of him. Ronovi was silent; so was TuQ’uan. The five of them stood in the office and let the tension wash over them. No one would speak even if they dared to: the Dread Lord had the floor.

“So.” The word more dropped from Arden’s mouth than slipped out. “Some decomposing skeletons in an abandoned weapons bin. Well.”

In truth, there was not much to say on the matter. The Geonosians had been known to kill, and with their queen now beholden to Selika and the rest of Plagueis, it was clear that they would not do the same again. Still, some questions remained, perhaps better posed to the Geonosians directly. Arden suddenly considered a trip to the Valneikian Spire.

“That will do,” he finally stated, waving his hand toward the two Plagueians. “You’ve done well and will be rewarded justly for it. Do we have anyone else waiting outside?”

“Vivackus Kavon di Plagia, my lord,” replied TuQ’uan. “He has notes on the Pearl Islands.”

“That’s the place with the natural hot springs, right?” asked Ronovi.

“Perfect,” sneered Arden. “I’ve always wanted to build a resort.”

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The fiction continues through this magical link!

Hello, Plagueians, and welcome to your Wrath’s second Proconsul report! No time for random trivia this go around, since we have a lot to cover. By the way, did you click the link above and read the rest of the closing fiction for Mysteries of Aliso? Did you? Did you?

Okay, good. Then let’s move on!

Mysteries of Aliso Results

First of all, the clan summit and I want you wish you all congratulations and many thanks on an awesome turn-out for this competition! We’ve always wanted the membership to feel like they can contribute to their clan’s set-up and lore, and over the next few weeks, you will see some of these membership-generated suggestions and ideas added to the wiki. As Arden stated in a previous report, we do reserve the right to tweak and modify your suggestions - but I will say that some of the stuff we got was so intriguing and so cool that we may not alter much at all. Thanks for making our jobs easier!

Since I am not a savvy graphics dude like Slaggy the Herald, please bear with me as I present good ol’ data in an old-fashioned, text-based way.

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Participation

After going through the tracker, we saw that, in total, there were 20 participants out of 58 clan members, sending in 108 submissions with an average of 6.5 events per participant. This gave us a 2.25 ratio of total number of entries per member of Plagueis.

Not a bad turn-out, though I will say, more is always better. We hope to continue providing you fun little competitions like this in order to keep you engaged and enjoying yourselves.

As far as house results are concerned, it looks like Karness Muur blew Ajunta Pall out of the water, with a total of 69 submissions versus Ajunta Pall's 39! Hmmm...mayhaps there’s room for some more friendly competition between the houses? Your Dread Lord and I will have to discuss this…

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Individual Placements

Below are the individual placements for both weeks of Mysteries of Aliso. Congratulations to all those who placed in the top three for each event!

Week 1 Results

A Secret Message (Cryptogram)

• 1st Place: Ronovi Tavisaen
• 2nd Place: Gaius Julius Caesar
• 3rd Place: Brimstone aka Seabr’imsto’nedansr

Beauty of Aliso I (Puzzle)

• 1st Place: Tahiri Thorne Morte Tarentae
• 2nd Place: Furios Morega
• 3rd Place: Kryy Vitaan

Where We've Been (Trivia)

• 1st Place: Ronovi Tavisaen
• 2nd Place: Furios Morega
• 3rd Place: Gaius Julius Caesar

The Search for Artifacts (Flash Game)

• 1st Place: Ra’gnar
• 2nd Place: Furios Morega
• 3rd Place: Brimstone aka Seabr’imsto’nedansr

Aliso NPCs (Lore Development)

• 1st Place: Gaius Julius Caesar
• 2nd Place: TuQ’uan Varick
• 3rd Place: Silent

Aliso Locations II (Lore Development)

• 1st Place: Ronovi Tavisaen
• 2nd Place: TuQ’uan Varick
• 3rd Place: Vivackus Kavon di Plagia

Through the Eyes of an Alisoan (Poetry)

• 1st Place: Azmodius Equesinfernum
• 2nd Place: Furios Morega
• 3rd Place: Tarenae Rhode

Week 2 Results

Beauty of Aliso II (Puzzle)

• 1st Place: Furios Morega
• 2nd Place: Tahiri Thorne Morte Tarentae
• 3rd Place: Silent

Where We Are (Trivia)

• 1st Place: Ronovi Tavisaen
• 2nd Place: Kelly Mendes
• 3rd Place: Furios Morega

Revealing the Mysteries (Graphics)

• 1st Place: TuQ’uan Varick
• 2nd Place: Silent
• 3rd Place: Azmodius Equesinfernum

Dread Lord’s Blacklist: Hunt the Plagueians!

• 1st Place: Azmodius Equesinfernum
• 2nd Place: Ra’gnar
• 3rd Place: Furios Morega

Ascendant Legion and Fleet NPCs (Lore Development)

• 1st Place: Gaius Julius Caesar
• 2nd Place: Wrathus
• 3rd Place: Furios Morega

Ascendant Squad (Lore Development)

• 1st Place: TuQ’uan Varick
• 2nd Place: Gaius Julius Caesar
• 3rd Place: Furios Morega

Something Rotten in the State of Aliso (Fiction)

• 1st Place: Malice
• 2nd Place: Furios Morega

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What Comes Next?

As your Dread Lord mentioned in his latest report, we are very interested in restarting the clan run-on, but with a clearer storyline. Obviously, we want it to remain open-ended, though we are setting up the premise with these fictions and by introducing Sevrin Arce. Sevrin is a clan NPC who will be making quite a few appearances in the next storyline.

As far as collaboration with other units is concerned, Arden has been hard at work making that a reality, too. He’s got most of the deets, and I don’t want to spoil them. But let’s just say we might be fraternizing with a clan we haven’t really had the chance to fraternize with in quite some time.

The Plagcast Returneth!

Ladies and gentlemen, it has been one hot minute since Episode V of the Plagcast came out. And with our lost episode by Viv perpetually on hold due to editing issues, it may have seemed like the podcast had reached an untimely end. But fear not - for we have a new editor in TuQ, a new chief moderator in me, and a new regular in our Dread Lord and Conseal, Arden!

We are also interested in adding a fourth new regular and will be opening up applications (and potentially auditions?) for the role. The next episode will be pretty casual and chill, mostly giving you guys an opportunity to ask your clan summit questions while we also badger each other about both DB and IRL-related shenanigans. It’ll be fun!

So expect an #asktheplagcast hashtag in the oncoming weeks!

Lightning Round: DB News!

Folks, I'm going to make this quick, as my report is already rather long. Check out the news page on the Brotherhood website for more details on these headlines!

• First, our Deputy Grand Master and Herald have unveiled the Shroud Syndicate, which is our graphics society. If you haven't taken the initiation exam, you can find it by clicking here.

• Farrin Xies has stepped down as Headmaster, and so Daniel "Seraphol" Stephens has stepped in! He's got some great ideas for the Academy and some stuff to think about regarding its fictional role in the Brotherhood. You can read his first report here.

• The Herald's Office put out some pretty awesome shinies in the aftermath of the premiere of the movie, "Solo" - which I haven't seen yet, don't judge me. Go check 'em out!

First Leadership Seminar...Discussion...Round Table...Thing!

I’ll Come Up With A Name Eventually.

Folks, on June 15th, at 9 PM EST, I will be hosting my very first leadership discussion as promised in my first report. The session will take place on Skype, and everyone is cordially invited to attend.

During this discussion, we will talk about the proper tools and techniques to be a strong leader, and I will also answer questions in regards to concerns about becoming a leader and staying a leader. As I am not by any means a perfect example of a leader, I also invite all current and former leaders of Plagueis (and maybe even outside of Plagueis!) to join in so we can have an engaging conversation.

If you’re interested in joining me, please contact me on Telegram or email me at [Log in to view e-mail addresses], so I can get your Skype username (if I don’t have it already!).

Awards and Accolades

Once again, time for the obligatory list of accomplishments! These are all the things our clan has achieved besides its participation in Mysteries of Aliso. Lots of clusters, passed exams, and crescents for competitions. I am very proud of you all.

Kelly Mendes

• 816 Clusters of Fire
• 8 Pendants of Blood
• 5 Clusters of Ice
• 8 Clusters of Earth
• 5 Clusters of Graphite
• 2nd Place: “May the 4th Be With You!: Gaming”
• Passed Chamber of Justice 101: A Primer on Member Conduct SA exam

Brimstone aka Seabr'imsto'nedansr

• 2nd Place: “Scorpion Solitaire”

Obsidian

• Passed Sentinel Legends SA exam
• Passed Krath Legends SA exam
• 1 Cluster of Ice

Tahiri Thorn Morte Tarentae

• 8 Clusters of Fire
• 3 Clusters of Graphite
• 3rd Place: “Pilot for Hire”
• 1st Place: “[MoA Week 1] Beauty of Aliso I (Puzzle)”
• Passed Chamber of Justice 101: A Primer on Member Conduct

TuQ’uan Varick

• 1 Cluster of Fire
• 5 Clusters of Ice
• 5 Clusters of Graphite
• 3rd Place: “Pranks Galore”
• Passed Chamber of Justice 101: A Primer on Member Conduct SA exam

Lo-Kain Vamielaga

• 2 Clusters of Fire

Gaius Julius Caesar

• 1st Place: “May the 4th Be With You!: Galactic Hospitality Services”
• 3 Clusters of Graphite
• 1st Place: “Pilot for Hire”

Areticus Altainatus

• 1st Place: “Exozoological Discovery”
• 2 Clusters of Graphite

Abadeer Taasii

• 2nd Place: “Exozoological Discovery”
• 1 Cluster of Ice
• 2 Clusters of Graphite

Azmodius Equesinfernum

• 3rd Place: “Exozoological Discovery”
• 2 Clusters of Graphite

Tarenae Rhode

• 2nd Place: “Pilot for Hire”

Kul’tak Drol

• 8 Clusters of Earth

Ra’gnar

• 3rd Place: “[FIST] Pac-man Mobile Gaming”

Oric Ral

• Passed Consular Legends SA exam

Closing Thoughts

It’s that time again to look at another good idea and bad idea for leadership. This week, we will be focusing on competitions and participation. One surefire way to get members engaged is by modeling the behavior you want to see from them - so here’s what to do and what not to do.

Organize or participate in competitions that most members can enjoy or be good at.

Organize or participate in competitions that only you or a select few can enjoy or be good at.

Again, seems really rudimentary, but we’ve only just started this segment, so we’ll be going deeper into leadership priorities and strategies as we go along. The Dark Jedi Brotherhood, for all intents and purposes, focuses somewhat on placement and shinies in order to progress in both rank and status. However, it is certainly not the only thing it focuses on. Participation can ensure you become a leader, get you an award and promotion, and jazz up your membership so they see you as an example of activity and good sportsmanship.

So my advice is: Don’t get too caught up in placing in a competition. As a writer, I do get my fair share of shinies from doing what I’m good at - however, that doesn’t stop me from running competitions with puzzles and flash games and Sudoku and gaming challenges, which I’m not so good at. Being able to coorganize Mysteries of Aliso was a blast for me because I got to see so many people enjoying themselves. Watching Zuser jump on the “hype train” and having members compliment the beautiful puzzles was worth more to me than a crescent ever was.

Run events that you know your membership will enjoy, and diversify competitions so everyone has a shot at doing well. And if you don’t always place, that’s okay! You will be recognized for your leadership, organizational skills, and enthusiasm - things that we want everyone in Plagueis to strive for and succeed at.

Thanks for reading, y’all, and happy start to your summer!