Five years ago today, I received the last promotion I would ever earn.

Since then, I've made friends of some people, enemies of others. I've had the pleasure and the duty to make the hard calls. I had to make the gutwrenching decision to step us all back into houses from clans, to make us all pause and re-examine what we were doing, why we were doing it, and look for ways to get better, rather than just assume we were doing just fine. I have had to be the bad guy, the one who had to tell people that they couldn't do something, or that what they were trying to accomplish just wouldn't work. My chair was where the buck stopped, and that rapid decelleration has hurt a few people, no matter how you try to phrase it constructively.

We've tried out a lot of new things, from bringing back independent houses to changing up the way vendettas roll out. We had an Order on Order three way war, we've had a ladder style Rite of Supremacy. We watched as Revan grew and thrived, and watched it fall to slumber shortly after. We watched as an April Fool's gag became something more, in the form of Odan-Urr. We've celebrated as two houses became clans again, and watched the vast differences in how they operate. We've created comics to tell the story instead of relying on monstrous fictions alone. We've built fictional realms that any author would love to be a part of. We went a little mad, and did a long-haul vendetta across the span of an entire year, and still managed to break records with participation, with results. We've all learned a lot, by trying these new things, by risking a little something, so that we fight that much harder for what we love here.

I've watched good friends grow, their lives taking them to other places in the world than just the Brotherhood, simultaneously mourning the loss of their work and celebrating as they found things in their life that they always wanted: college for some, new careers for some, children for others still. I have seen people fall in love with the brotherhood, and with each other, watching lives, friendships, relationships built beyond the virtual here. I've watched as people took the term 'Brotherhood' quite literally, helping each other out with things well beyond the scope of any other internet fan club out there.

All too often, we hide behind segregation that we created, behind clans and houses, orders and ranks, because we need something to aspire to, we need something to compete against...But at the core, we are here because we are all brothers and sisters. Our love for Star Wars was only what drew us here. What we find, what we make of it, is so much more.

I'm an older brother in real life. I have two younger brothers, each with their own personalities, quirks and all. Growing up with them was simultaneously aggravating and rewarding. There are points where you're completely irritated with them, dragged down by their attitudes, their stubbornness, annoyed by their faults. On the flip side, you feel great pride in what they do, share in their successes, feel their victories as if they were your own. Then you have moments where you'd bleed for them, and lay waste to anything else that dares come against them, because they are yours. We hate each other. We Love each other. We give each other grief, we help each other through the rough times.

That is Brotherhood.

Our name isn't just another word.

This past year has seen some outlandish things, and some results unlike what we have seen before. The Dark Crusade was a heck of an event, and while the story is not done yet, many people have had their chance to shine.

The past few weeks has been particularly eventful as well. With the results from 2013 in hand, and having watched things develop over the past couple years, it was time for us to look at some things with fresh eyes again.

Invitations were sent out, and the results were outstanding. There was little that could be misconstrued, little that needed clarification. There was no need for endless debate, only a quiet reading and simple acknowledgement. It is time.

Two Houses become Clans today.

New eras have been brewing over the past year, the threat of dawn soon approaching. Blood, sweat, and tears flowed from these two houses as they reached to become paragons of the Brotherhood. As the sun rises on them anew, all can see the fruits of their labor.

Ascend, Clan Plagueis!

Stand and be known, Clan Taldryan!

To commemorate my fifth year on the Iron Throne, I've loaded some goodies into the site today. If you are so inclined, you can find the armored Pride robes and the sharp Mane saber in their respective selectors.

It's around this time every year that I take a look at the last year, as evidenced by the big speech above. Looking back, I see with some clarity the talent that I have amassed on the Dark Council. The amount of work being done is just astounding, and beyond that of rather high quality, even in those contentious programs.

This year has seen continued enhancements to our website, a completely revitalized join process (with more changes coming), the launch of the Shadow Academy Society, big changes to the Royal Guard, and constant work towards projects like the Saber Guide, hand to hand guide, possessions, and countless other items. That's in addition to the creation, running and marking of Dark Crusade events.

It's been a hell of a year.

I am fond of handing out recognition where it's due, and today is a good day for that.

First on my list is Valhavoc. Since taking up the mantle of Fist, he's fought an uphill battle on a couple fronts, before he finally strongarmed them back into a groove again. He's been cotinually tweaking the rules, the way we do things for the Gamers in our organization. He's added a pazaak game that literally everyone in the brotherhood can enjoy. He's adjusted the scoring documents and the Code of Conduct more times than I want to go check. More than that, he's been a mature voice ont he council, another set of eyes when we need it. He gets visibly worked up when people start bending the rules to get away with unfair stuff, which just shows how much he cares about the club and making sure that everyone has a fair shake. It is my pleasure and honor to award Valhavoc with his first sacramental weapon, a Sapphire Blade as a token of our appreciation. Thank you.

Another consistently performing badass on the Council has been Solari. He's been the Rock of the DC, pun absolutely intended. His organizational skills help keep us all on track, and his ability to get work done in a quick timeframe is insane. He's been one of the big reasons that we were able to get the crusade results out so fast, and was the one in charge of tracking participation numbers throughout. Further, he's always been there to calm people down, temper their animosity before they do anything regrettable. He's also been a big driving force on the new member process, helping to streamline things so that hopefully, we get more and more people through it and into the clouses. It's been a lot of work so far, and Solari shows no signs of slowing down. To show our appreciation for all that he's done, I am happy to award him with an Emerald Dagger.

On the topic of people that have pulled more than their weight, it would be remiss to forget Pravus. Over the course of the past year, Sarin/Pravus has been central to many of the projects that have been working through. He's been the guiding hand behind the phenomenal work of the ACC reconstruction team, helping to make sure that it is both familiar enough for most to work with and enjoy and yet different enough to throw off the shackles that the recent history of the Centre has had. Pravus has also been the point man on all things fictional. He's written the intel packets for each of the crusade planets. He's done more fiction marking than even he wants to recall. He's helped to guide the work behind the ever moving plotline for the brotherhood. He's gone back in time, tightening up the myriad inconsistencies in our historical lore. All while maintaining a stressful real life, two really cool children, and a fresh love for FIFA. Most overlooked is his ability to separate himself from his current roles and be able to advise me as only a former grand master can. It's been necessary, and much appreciated. For this intense workload, for his continued drive to help us make the Brotherhood great, I am honored to present him with a second Emerald Dagger.

And then there's my right hand. Since taking up the mantle of Deputy, he's been a driving force on the DC, helping push forward projects that otherwise would have stalled out due to indecision. He's focused teams on what was important, and made clear those things that aren't worth our time. He's been instrumental in the grand undertaking of the Dark Crusade. I could talk for hours about the projects he's done, contributed to, or the ideas that he had, fostered into projects, and unleashed on the Brotherhood to improve the way we do business as a club. That on it's own face is enlugh to warrant the promotion to Dark Jedi Master he is to get today. But further, he's done most of this in the dark, quietly working behind the scenes, away from the limelight, away from the bluster and the ego that comes all too often with that sort of work. He's not doing it for the pixels on his dossier. He's not doing it for recognition. He's doing it because it's what is needed, it's what the club needs. It may not be what the club thinks it needs, but he knows that it still needs doing. It's a purer perspective than many of us get to have, and it's been incredibly useful to the brotherhood. He's been my conscience, my rage, my nemesis, my apprentice, my master, my brother, my friend. I could not have done this last year without you. Thank you.

The past few go-rounds, I've heard a couple questions about how we deal with promotions beyond the very cut and dry journeyman ranks. It's been difficult for many people to wrap their heads around getting promoted past Dark Jedi Knight, probably because there are so many ways to do it, but none of them are actually checklists or guidelines like they are used to.

I have had long discussions with several summits over the years, and I think it'd probably be a good idea to bring it out into the public eye again.

There is a difficulty, a culture change coming from DJK. We all understand that. You've had your whole career in the club up until that point, be it six years or six months, guided by a clear set of expectations. It's black and white: get these things done and you'll get that next rank, you'll get more robes, more sabers, more points on that character sheet. It's simple, laid out.

Then you earn that saber, and you're left out in the world. You've graduated into the world, and now you have to find your way. Some people double down on what they have been doing all along, grinding away at competitions, at vendettas, trying to earn rank that way...and for a few ranks, that can work. Keep attacking the enemy, rack up clusters, crescents, novae. But that just pushes back the inevitable stumbling block a rank or two.

There are a few things I want to impress on those of you who aim for higher:

1.) Consumers versus Producers. The biggest difference between a lower equite rank and a higher one is mindset. From join until Knighthood, all you've ever had to do is participate. Enjoy what we have here. It's a Consumer mindset. Those who get beyond those ranks have shifted to a Producer mindset. It's a heck of a change, going from someone who just enjoys it to someone who is making the things for others to enjoy.

It's hard work. It's frustrating. It's rewarding as hell, though. This is how you make your mark, it's how you build your own legend, it's how you get those ever harder-to-attain ranks and awards. It's also critical to the club's long term survival. If all we have are people who consume, we'd run out of things to consume.

2.) Leadership is action, not position. So many people come to me and say 'I can't produce, how do i get promoted?' And when i ask 'why can't you produce?', the answer is almost always 'I didn't get X position, so i don't have the access/authority/rank to get stuff done.'

To be blunt here: that's a cop-out. It's an excuse you can use to sit on your hands and not do anything. You don't need a position to do anything. You can get involved in projects. You can look for things to improve in the brotherhood (we're far from perfect, after all) make a plan, show me, and get your own team to get things done.

A bit of trivia here: the only position that I ever applied for, i was rejected on. I have a 100% fail rate on applying for positions personally. But that never stopped me. I still did the work that i would have done in the position, and it got noticed. I didn't sit down and grouse that someone else got the gig, i didn't mutter about politics keeping me down, or the fact that I'm from CNS and not part of the 'ruling clan' that could have gotten me the nod. I just did the work.

It's in your hands.

3.) Get Out More. The brotherhood is more than just your house, more than just your clan. It's a pretty big place, actually. Focusing on your unit is great, don't get me wrong. They certainly can use as much energy as you can give it. But there's a stopping point thatw ill come... Working for your clan only gets you so far. And honestly, if all you've ever done was stay insular the whole time and not talk to anyone outside of your unit, when you do get outside your comfort zone to try to get something done, you'll be at a disadvantage. You'll not know any of the other clans, their quirks, their people, their lore.

And you may already be tainted by then. For a long time, each unit had it's own particular brand of cool-aid.

"We're the best, anyone not from here is worthless, don't trust them."

"We're still the greatest, the most talented. We only lost because the others cheated."

"A Quaestor in our clan means more than a Consul in any other clan"

"We're better than the Brotherhood."

Each of the above are actual quotes i have heard from people. Each and every one of them may be intended to make people proud of where they come from. They're also Lies, and damaging ones. Believing them will hurt you, and eventually... hurt your clan.

If you genuinely believe that your own clanmates are the only talented ones, you can't go very far. We can't trust anyone to grade competitions for the brotherhood when they only look at where the entries are from. We can't trust people to be neutral when they have a bias toward their home.

So, if you have designs on upper equite ranks, or even the elder ranks, it's best t o get out of your comfort zone and have meaningful discussions with people who are from elsewhere. It broadens your scope of understanding, it helps grow you as a member, and gives you experience that you are going to need later on... and keeps you from overdosing on the cool-aid and making it so that we can't get you into positions later on.

4.) The Elder Quandry. So, maybe you've read/done all this and you go 'well, I'm equite 4, and I've been asking for the work to get elder, but it still hasn't happened yet. There's a list a mile long of people who are just waiting to get slotted into a high level project for them to earn their elder rank. That's not going to happen.

"Wait, what?"

If you want to be an elder, you need to be a leader. If you're just begging for the opportunity to earn something, but lack the vision or insight to find your own work, you're not really a leader, you're just doing work as a follower. If I have to tell you what you need to do to earn Elder, you're not ready for it. It's the catch-22, the elder quandry.

There's nothing wrong with being a follower. There's absolutely nothing wrong with doing the work under another person's banner. But I'm guessing that if you're reading this, that you have aspirations to more than that.

So you have to move around the brotherhood with open eyes. Find something that needs your touch, that needs improving. Don't just complain about it, though. Create a plan on how to fix it. Bring it to me. No, not every idea is good. Sometimes the projects aren't going to work. It happens. Bring it anyway.

And if you get that going, Deliver on your word. Get the work done. Don't come to me with a plan, and then do nothing, leaving the work to the staff and then wonder why you don't get the recognition afterward. It's about the work, not about the plan.

So, as I'm done venting my spleen and pontificating about how the elusive promotions through the equite ranks and the elders really work, I hope that you have taken at least one little nugget of wisdom away from that huge diatribe.

Ask the GM time.

Kooki asks Will the Dark Council kill off anyone's character in any vendetta? with or without consent?

Well, that's a loaded question. The answer is yes, but it's more complex than that. Generally, people will volunteer their characters for a meaningful death, if they know that they are changing out their characters from the ground up. Sarin is a good example of this... Sarin's character died to make way for Pravus. There's a pretty good stock of examples for this. On the flip side of that, anyone who gets kicked out of the Brotherhood can be used for a death. Some good examples of this are Zoraan in Horizons vendetta, and Raidoner in the Great Jedi War. We don't kill active characters without permission, though.

Ood asks Does your behind get numb from sitting on an Iron Throne without cushioning for so long?

Funny thing about that. Muz has never sat on the Iron throne. He thinks it's either cursed or a bad omen or something. Everyone who has sat on the throne in recent times has either died or been forced through great sorrow. Muz doesn't take the throne lightly. As such, most of the fiction (and in the comics), Muz is never sitting on it, but standing next to it, sometimes touching it. There's been several fictional points where Muz is pacing the throne room, giving it dirty looks. It kinda encapsulates the characters feelings toward the political side of things.

Pravus asks Muz, the Great Jedi War Plot has many twists and turns. Can you let us in on any secrets that are shaping the next GJW?

In case you missed it, Pravus is actually involved in the writing there, so he's asking what we can publically let slip. Some things we play close to the vest, so that they have maximum impact when it does happen. That said, I think we all know that we're going to Korriban, so there's that. Above and beyond this, all I can say is that we should expect an unlikely and old enemy, and being up to speed on the Brotherhood's history might be a good thing to be.

For those of you who managed to slog through the whole thing, thank you. For those of you looking for the bullet points, here you go:

TL;DR

1. Five Years as Grand Master
2. CLAN Taldryan
3. CLAN Plagueis
4. Valhavoc gets a Sapphire Blade
   
5. Solari Gets an Emerald Dagger
   
6. Pravus Gets an Emerald Dagger
   
7. Raken Gets Promoted to Dark Jedi Master
   
8. New robes and sabers in the selector for the five year anniversary
   
9. Some clarification on the equite ranks +
   
10. Ask the GM.
    

Thanks all, and have fun.