by Jeff Woleslagle on Aug 17, 2009
Loading... is the premier daily MMORPG news and commentary newsletter, only from Ten Ton Hammer.
This week we'll have some exclusive content from the Syndicate World Conference 2009 in Austin, Texas, but some of the most valuable insights I uncovered during my time there dealt moreso with guild leadership. Thoughts on how a guild can stay together for 12+ years and why the majority of guilds fall apart in 12 days in today's Loading... Syndicate World Conference 2009.
Coyote addresses all things geek with his own trademark wit and widom daily with It's All Geek To Me. Today's topic: 3 ways that geeks should NEVER attempt to make money...
You vote with what you view at Ten Ton Hammer, and the result is the Ten Ton Pulse (What is The Pulse?).
Here's today's top 5 Pulse results:
World of Warcraft Champions Online Aion EverQuest 2 Age of ConanBiggest Movers today :
Guild Wars (UP 3 to #17) City of Heroes (UP 3 to #14) Lineage 2 (UP 3 to #15) Recent MMO Releases 7/13 - Darkfall NA launch 7/21- FFXI "Moogle Kupo d'Etat" Addon (release date) 8/4 - World of Warcraft Update 3.2 (content patch)Important Dates
8/19 - 8/23 - Gamescom Cologne 8/21 - 8/22 - BlizzCon '09 9/4 - 9/6 - Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) 9/15 - 9/18 - GDC Austin Upcoming Releases 8/25 - CrimeCraft (release date) 9/1 - Champions Online (release date) 9/9 - Dungeons & Dragons Online Eberron Unlimited (release date) 9/9 - Fallen Earth (release date) 9/22 - Aion (release date) 10/9 - Cities XL (release date) Early 2010 - APBFor those of you just joining us, I spent all weekend with The Syndicate guide at their 8th world conference in Austin, Texas. They're a great bunch of people, and Austin, despite never getting below 92 degrees, was a nifty countercultural setting for the conference. SyndiCon continues to grow too, in prominence if not in total size (since the event is only open to The Syndicate's guild members. Richard Garriott, John Smedley, and Curt Schilling made an appearance at this years event among others, and all had some surprising things to say. You'll see some of that as my content rolls out this week before Blizzcon, but some will have to stay behind closed doors for now.
The Syndicate still numbers only in the six hundreds despite receiving over a thousand applications a week, a problem exacerbated by their repeated appearances in Second Skin - the MMORPG documentary set to make its DVD debut later this week. I interviewed Sean "Dragons" Stalzer on how the guild keeps it fun despite a growing emphasis on the business side of the guild - they just opened their own print guides studio in partnership with Prima and have something of a consulting service going with several developers - but I was treated to seeing some of the diplomacy in action as Sean and the guild leadership dealt with a hotbutton issue that arose during the con.
Sean encouraged everyone to speak their mind, noting that the longer it stays behind closed doors, the longer it festers, the harder it'll be to deal with. It wasn't done for show or for my benefit either - I wandered in in mid-argument. It was fascinating to watch it unfold though - while Sean is fond of noting that The Syndicate is not a democracy, it was clear that no one was afraid to speak up. Sean's wasn't always taking the devil's advocate position, but presented counter-points and supporting data as necessary, and ultimately kept things in perspective by saying that if the hotbutton issue didn't work itself out to their satisfaction, it wouldn't change who they are or what they're doing. It makes me wonder if Sean's second book won't be a Guild Leadership for dummies style book that would greatly benefit some of the guilds I've been in and (to be completely honest) that I've led.
What's been your longest experience with a guild? What made it work for so long? Or conversely, what was your shortest, unhappiest experience with a guild, and why did it fall apart? Feel free to stop by the Loading... forum or email me with your thoughts.
Shayalyn's Epic Thread of7 new MMOG hand-crafted articles today! 54 in August! 914 in 2009!
New MMOG Articles At Ten Ton Hammer Today [Thanks Phil Comeau for links and Real World News]
Aion In-Depth Class Interview - The ClericGiveaways:
Runes of Magic Item GiveawayHottest Content:
Guild Wars - Rediscovering Tyria Star Trek Online Closed Beta to Begin in October? Champions Online: Exclusive Interview on Sidekicks, Super Groups, and Supervillains World of Warcraft - New Expansion = New Tamable Pets? World of Warcraft - Vanity Pet Collecting Checklist Age of Conan - A Year Later, Part 2 The Hollywood Cycle: Comparing the MMO Industry with the Silver Screen Flight or Fight: A Look at Advanced Flight and Combat in Aion The Co-Op PvE side of Global Agenda: A Q&A with Exec. Producer Todd Harris An Advanced Guide to Crafting in AionThanks for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer network!
-Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle and the Ten Ton Hammer team