Breakfast Topic: Have you tried your hand at running a guild?
by Aiden James Kosciesza 
Dec 5th 2010 at 8:00AM
It happens to all of us at one point or another. You're riding into Stormwind, perhaps admiring the dragon head that someone has strung up on the gates, and you're headed to the auction house when your eyes light upon the Visitor's Center. Inside, a bright-eyed young hero, very much like yourself, is speaking to Aldwin Laughlin, the Guild Master. Suddenly, you think, "That could be me. I could be in there, buying a guild charter and designing a tabard. I could found my own guild."
You dismount, take the first two steps at a bound -- but suddenly, you stop in your tracks. All at once, you stagger under the weight of responsibility. The trouble with starting a guild, you realize, is that once you do it, you actually have to run a guild.
Of course for some, this isn't a drawback -- it's a perk! There are plenty of aspiring guild masters out there who have a vision, execute it, and become great leaders. Then there are those of us who consider starting a guild but balk at the particulars; others who create small, friends-only or alt guilds just to have a fun guild name or a guild bank; and many more who are happy to leave the burden of leadership to someone else.
Have you thought about starting your own guild? If you went through with it, how did it turn out? Is the guild still around today? If you thought better of it, what stopped you? Or are you still making up your mind?
| Yes, I've been a GM. | |
|---|---|
| Yes, I've been a guild officer. | |
| No, but I'd like to get more involved some time. | |
| No way! I'd rather just play and have fun. |
Filed under: Breakfast Topics, Guest Posts
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Knob Dec 5th 2010 8:04AM
Yes, back in TBC. I'd joined the guild in late Classic, and I ended up being a Class Officer, then an Officer and finally the GM when the then-GM had to head out to the Army.
Long story short, I never want to be a GM or in any sort of Officer position again. I deal with peoples' problems day-in and day-out at work, I don't want to do that while I'm playing a game too.
Hob Dec 5th 2010 12:23PM
That's a very good point ~ when you're an officer or GM, it seems like you spend more time managing other people and "putting out fires" than doing anything fun or personally constructive. If you already do that at work, it's a double-dose of suck (IMO). I'm a teacher in adult education, and I swear it's more challenging than dealing with actual kids. The attitudes are worse, the sense of entitlement is greater (because they're paying for the class), and the excuses are just... ugh. To try and login after work and deal with that... AGAIN... is not something I'd look forward to.
bloodfyr Dec 5th 2010 3:58PM
This.
I was officer of a guild whose GM went on a two week vacation that lasted five months and left me in charge. After the third month, she came back to give me GM officially. I tried to keep the guild running...I really did. But dealing with massive burnout on my part from trying to organize a steady 10-man group, to dealing with the immaturity of some of the people in the guild, to putting out fire after fire after fire, to having to deal with an intense semester at school, I just couldn't handle it anymore. The guild fell apart. GM bitched at me about it when she showed up one day, I told her to fuck off, and then me and six or seven other people that were cool from the guild went Horde.
Thander Dec 5th 2010 8:53PM
I think many of us have been in the same situation. Senior members start quitting wow/taking breaks and before you know it, you're the new GM. I've found the hardest part is making your guild unique from all the rest of them. There's plenty of other guilds for your members to join. It's hard work to make your guild compelling enough for people to stay there over the countless others. I'm hopeful the new guild leveling system will keep guilds together a little better.
erin Dec 5th 2010 10:43PM
My guild and I transferred to another server together. We were a small close-knit guild and when about 4 of them left WoW for real life, we basically fell apart. The guild was given to someone in trade chat, and I bought it back from them in case everyone came back. Inevitably right before the expansion they did, and now I'm the guild leader.
Noctune Dec 6th 2010 3:19AM
I agree, the Loot frenzy, the drama queens, the planning, the longterm strategey of the guild, recruitment.
Before i had my first son i had some spare time for this. Now i don't.
Anyway i realy can't understand why ppl get in to Loot arguments and starting to act like my 3 year old. Screaming and stomping.
In my world N/G works -- Need if you need greed if you like the item but not sure.
Be friends, say Gratz even if you just lost the roll.
Don't expect it but if he offers you the gear say atleast thanks.
It's just a couple of pixles on a screen nothing to get cooking about.
The friends you make in game if you treat them right you might meet them in other games aswell and will make you enjoy the game even further.
Play nice, Have fun, Its a game.
(there is a reason why we had a 18y min. age limit exept for kids to our members). That way we could stay way clear of most of the tantrums, even if some of thoes i saw i realy question the mental age of thoes persons).
transrelativity Dec 5th 2010 8:10AM
Hurrah! I actually managed to get on the first page for my own article!
Guild leadership has had its ups and downs for me, but so far, they've been more up than down. The guild I founded is young but going strong and I've found I enjoy the job more than I expected to. Sure, the work takes up some time, but it's worth it to be part of a guild whose philosophy exactly aligns with mine.
Rufio Dec 5th 2010 3:32PM
Great article. Missed an opportunity to be totally meta and praise/criticise your own article though. That would have been a mind-funk. :-D
Comito Dec 5th 2010 12:27PM
Yeah I'm currently a GM of a guild that was passed onto me after the previous one not being up for it! But after an average run of content with the guild, the social aspect of it has been pretty good for me, though raiding progression has what made it fail.
So just before cata starts, the guild has been informed already of its disbandment in due course, and all Gbank funds have been shared out too :)
I'm hoping to sit back in a new guild as a member only returning to casual gameplay :)
ViVi Dec 5th 2010 8:23AM
A group of friends and I in the very near past grew fed up with our previous guild and not wanting to run the risk of joining another guild that would offer more of the same, decided to start our own guild. I'm thankful that it's the small group of us that runs the guild's workings and not just one person obviously being GM and the others obviously guild officers. So far the guild has been going well over-all and I'm very happy with it :)
Darky Dec 5th 2010 8:17AM
Im about to start a RL friend guild with some friends, im not really the GM but i'll be dealing with all the social squabbles, should be interesting to say the least :P.
cormaminclamito Dec 5th 2010 8:19AM
I have been a guild officer and later I started my own guild which I have ran for a long time. In fact yesterday my guild, The Stone Council of Alterac Mountains, just celebrated our third year of running. Such is not for everyone. Some people love being officers and others hate it. More are in love with the idea of being an officer or guild leader than handling the responsibilities. If you do like this kind of thing though it can be very rewarding.
Nawaf Dec 5th 2010 8:21AM
I'm too casual to make a real guild that'll be good.
Although I was GM once, but it was more of a guy who wanted to get rid of it. He invited me, made me GM, then he quit the guild. After a few days I did the same to another guy. It was a pretty lame guild and I was level 21 while he was 18.
I'm thinking about making an RP guild one day.
psycho.knight Dec 5th 2010 8:30AM
Im a gm of a new guild now go
Greeni Dec 5th 2010 9:22AM
I've tried that several times, but I've never really been successful.
Successful = more than 5 members who are actually active...
Chucks Dec 5th 2010 8:25AM
I started the Conjurer Tyren Fan Club but no one will join so I'm the president, vice-president but I need a secretary who can take names after I kick butt.
Xantenise Dec 5th 2010 9:04AM
You might find that the Champion Vranesh Fan Club is even worse off than you are.
Arrowsmith Dec 5th 2010 8:31AM
Four times I have been a guild officer, and three times out of those four the guild has fallen apart. It's getting to the point where if I am offered a leadership position of any sort, I get really, really hesitant...
mazca13 Dec 5th 2010 8:31AM
When I used to play Dark Age of Camelot I was all over it, I was an officer in a big guild for a while and later the GM of another. The key was simply to have regular time to play and a willingness to do some people-herding when it becomes necessary.
Given that I primarily came to WoW because it's much more rewarding to play casually, I can't say I can see myself taking on responsibilities of running a significant guild again.
mdumoulin.home Dec 5th 2010 8:32AM
On a unrelated note, i feel obligated to post this short video, considering the countdown to Cataclysm :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsOPHyuAuT0