What’s going on?

Hello, yes, this is Wally with your monthly report on all things Voice. Things have been a bit hectic for me in real life, so I’m sorry this is late.

News

GJW XII Eplilogue

The long awaited epilogue to the GJW XII: Retribution story arc is published and complete. The first part was written by Sarin as part of offering closure on the storyline he headlined for years. I was able to cover the rest of what was needed to round things out, and I’m quite pleased with how it came out. Thanks to everyone who helped with the updates and your patience with getting things done correctly and not haphazardly.

• GJWXII: Retribtuion - Epilogue.

From here, we will be looking to launch a new story arc that will act as the overarching macro storyline for the DB. While the arc will be labeled with the [The Collective] tag, this is more to hammer home the point that they are still very much involved as an antagonist and rival organization to the Brotherhood. They do not simply appear for the purpose of a Vendetta, and will be the primary antagonist for the foreseeable future. Myself, the DGM, and GM are all working together with the respective unit leaders to make sure that the DB’s storyline syncs and works in time with Clan storylines to ensure better continuity while also allowing for flexible character development for members of all levels of interest. We strongly encourage micro-level story arcs and storylines for units and subunits, and have a few ideas with adding some new third-part factions (like the Collective) to help grow our in-club universe’s roster.

Vyr will be heading up the next fiction updates. Be on the lookout for those, and if you have questions, feel free to ask your Consuls as they have direct lines to Vyr, Mav and I.

Fiction Chat Calendar Update

We made a quick update to the Tuesday daily theme question for [Fiction Chat - Log in to view join link]. Tomes Tuesday is now “Theater Tuesday” and will be a improv-based prompt that encourages you to answer or respond to a quote or question in character, just like as if you were at a table roleplaying the character to others.

“Sometimes, I wonder if Atra truly enjoys asymmetrical attire for the sake of combat flexibility, or simply because he knows that it bothers me.” — Marick Tyris

Collective Chronicles

Collective Chronicles concluded on a bit of a slouch in terms of participation numbers. That said, I’m still very proud of everyone, but congratulations to the top finishers overall and the crescent winners: Gaius Julius Ceaser, Tali Sroka, and TuQ’uan Varrick.

These types of competitions are entirely reliant on you guys as members. A great example of these types of competitions paying off is when I needed a Collective POV for the Epilogue fiction. Instead of inventing a brand new character from scratch, I called on an NPC that was created by our very own Anubis. When we run competitions like this based in world building, it is my attempt to get more of the regular membership involved. I’m happy to create things myself (it’s my favorite part of being a leader in the Fiction Society) but I do not want to hear excuses down the line that opportunities were not given. The DB is something that you put into just as much as you take out of it. It’s symbiotic and the key to avoiding stagnancy in our creative processes. Keep your eyes out for more world building competitions in more concentrated bursts.

Thank you again to everyone who came out for the Collective Chronicles.

Atra Awarded

He hates when I do this, but I am going to again call out Atra Ventus and his recent Emerald Dagger. There really aren’t enough words or pixel-based-awards I can throw at Atra to show my gratitude for what he does for this club. He’s one of the hardest working members and leaders in the DB, and I’m lucky to have him as a friend and coworker on projects and administrations here. Please take a moment to congratulate him, but also know that how he handles himself is the way that any future Elder or leader in this club should behave.

Projects

In the interest of not boring people with this section, I’m going to share the Google Sheet I’m using to track all relevant Voice Projects. Some of these are things my staff and I are working on, and some are things I’m working with other DCers on. That said, I encourage anyone that applied for a Magistrate spot previously or that is still interested in helping out to reach out to me if they see a project they are interested in. Especially in any section where you see “Volunteer work.” This is where I either need people willing to create and invent things, or they will simply wait until I have time to get to them myself.

• Project Tracker

I like sharing what I work on with membership, and try to maintain as much transparency as I can. That said, there are certain things that I only discuss or work on with the DC, but I’m always excited for opportunities to share my workflows or process with membership.

If you are interested in a project, please ask. I don’t need activity at this point in my career, so I’m happy to share tasks of all sizes with you guys to help with your advancements or engagement with the club.

If you have ideas for projects you don’t see, please feel free to send proposals my way. I’m happy to read over and review anything, even if I don’t agree with the idea initially or have my own reservations. I confer with the DGM and GM on anything I greenlight, so don’t be afraid to submit things to me, but just be aware that doesn’t mean I will simply implement or greenlight something because “I feel like it.”

Wiki Updates

There have been a few updates to the Wiki. Make sure to congratulate Bentre on his new role as Wiki Tribune. I know he will do a great job. I look forward to continuing to work with the Wiki staff on improving the Brotherhood’s lore and documentation on our wiki.

The Collective Chronicles

With the Collective Chronicles coming to an end, the few entries we had for Collective Report turned out to be excellent additions to the Collective Wiki. It was very rewarding, after all the work I had put into creating them, to see members add their own creativity to the background and founding of these organizations. Really humbling, and I’m grateful to everyone who submitted. You will be able to see their work on the Collective Wiki.

Org chart created by Gaius Julius Caesar for the Collective Report competition

Check out the individual updates to each of the three sub-factions. This was mostly made possible by the entries from Collective Chronicles.

1. The Liberation Front
2. Capital Enterprises
3. Technocratic Guild

The Inquisitorius

With help from the new GM, I've altered the wording slightly on the opening paragraph of the Inquisitorius wiki page.

"The Inquisitorius is the secret society of agents formed from the ranks of Brotherhood Clans that has been tasked with identifying, hunting down and eliminating threats to the Dark Brotherhood. Inquisitors are granted access to the Dark Brotherhood’s greatest secrets and technologies in order to execute the Grand Master’s will against internal and external threats."

The language was updated very slightly, but will fit in more with what Vyr and the coming fiction updates will feature. Mostly this will solidify that, like originally intended, the INQ is meant to identify, hunt, and eliminate threats to the DB. They are just as much an advanced intelligence network as they are hunters and assassins. So, your character could just use their INQ resources for intel and espionage if they are a non-combative type. While the Voice leads and oversees the Inquisitors' operations, the Councilor is still executing the Grand Master's will.

So, if someone betrays the DB, they will be hunted. This is not limited to any one group or path or order, and is just a general statement of operation that should give a bit more flexibility without turning the Inq into "softies".

I can explain more if needed, but just wanted to shout out that I did the edit. (Yay transparency).

Fiction Competitions

Check out the club-wide fiction competitions that are being organized by members.

Running

• Mundane Musings
• Planet Reborn
• Galaxy At War
• [NEMESIS] Shadow Politics
• [ACE] Jervada Asteroid Belt
• And They Shall Know Thy Name

Upcoming

• The Tide Turned
• Death Before It’s Time
• Hobby time!

Currently Watching

My Hero Academia (Boku no Hero Academia) Season 3 anime has started. If you somehow haven’t started the series, fix it immediately and go catch up. As a shonen jump series (published where Bleach, Naruto, and One Piece are) it really is unique in how it incorporates American superhero style and culture and fuses it with anime themes and tropes. The manga is great, and the show/series has been excellent at character building, world building, and avoiding filler arcs. It’s got amazing action animation and sequences, but the writing really shines in a genre that has long since become mired in repetitive tropes like winning because of the power of friendship (Believe it!).

I’m up on the latest manga and broadcast (I prefer Funimations Dub in this case, but the subs are also excellent).

Wrap-up

That’s all for now. Please read the report, volunteer for projects that you’re interested in, and keep those eyes up. I’ve also seen Infinity War twice; make sure you see this one in theaters. Trust me.

Thank you,