WoW Insiderhttp://wow.joystiq.comWoW Insiderhttp://wow.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gifWoW Insiderhttp://wow.joystiq.comen-usCopyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only.Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/WoW Insider ShowEvery week, the WoW Insider Show brings you news and views from the World of Warcraft and the site that covers it all, WoW Insider. We introduce a panel of rotating guests, including bloggers from WoW Insider and other WoW blogs, and many popular personalities from around the WoW community. From the live listener chat and polls during the show, to the emails direct from listeners (reach us at theshow@wow.com), right on to the "meat" of the show -- in-depth discussion of the most popular news and posts on WoW Insider -- the WoW Insider Show is a terrific source of news and entertainment about what's going on with Blizzard and their World of Warcraft. Listen live every Saturday at 3:30 pm Eastern on our Ustream page (http://www.ustream.tv/channel/wow-insider-show) or subscribe to the feed and let us know what you think by reviewing the show right here in iTunes.Officers' Quarters: How to earn respect as a teen officerhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/05/21/officers-quarters-how-to-earn-respect-as-a-teen-officer/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/05/21/officers-quarters-how-to-earn-respect-as-a-teen-officer/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/05/21/officers-quarters-how-to-earn-respect-as-a-teen-officer/#commentsFiled under:

Teen prince Anduin Wrynn in Stormwind
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

Teenagers as a whole have a terrible reputation in online games. In WoW, they are blamed for everything that's wrong with the community. People say they have no patience, they don't know how to play the game, they ruin chat channels with mindless chatter, and they're selfish, whiny, lazy, disrespectful, and entitled. Certainly some of the people who fit these accusations are teenagers.

However, not every teenager acts this way, and a good portion of the people who do are actually adults. On the internet, unfortunately, perceptions tend to win out over reality. This week, a teenaged officer asks how she can earn the respect of her peers.

Hello there Scott-

Our guild currently is going through some major issues at the moment when it comes to who shall be running what when it comes to what is occuring in the guild. ... About a month or two ago, our guild leader ... decided to call it quits for the time being, our guild was going downhill at that time, and people starting to abandon us. We reasonably thought that sooner or later this guild was gonna expire sometime in the future, and that nothing could stop it.

However, it came to the point where some of our officers and such managed to pull back the guild together through emails and messages spread across multiple medias. Our guild, in my mind, finally has settled back into what it was before, however without the guild leader to guide us. All of us (the officers) decided to take the role of leader. ... Things were going pretty smoothly.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: How to earn respect as a teen officer

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: How to earn respect as a teen officer originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 21 May 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quartersraid-leaderraid-leadingrespectteen-officerteenagersteenswow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 21 May 2012 13:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: How to avoid the feeder guild labelhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/05/14/officers-quarters-avoiding-the-feeder-guild-label/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/05/14/officers-quarters-avoiding-the-feeder-guild-label/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/05/14/officers-quarters-avoiding-the-feeder-guild-label/#commentsFiled under:

A fern feeder moth in Grizzly Hills
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

No community wants to be known as a feeder guild. No raid team wants to see its best members leave for more progressed guilds when they have the opportunity. No guild leader wants to fall victim to poaching over and over again. It's an embarrassing place to be. How can you stop the bleeding and shake the label? Read on to find out! But first, this week's email:

Hi Scott.

I'm GM of a guild that is not a hard core raiding guild. We have been around since Ulduar and were founded at the break up of a guild that existed since vanilla. ... The founding principle of the guild was no drama and keep it casual. This has crystallised into my own rule as GM: advice for other players is fine if you ask if they want it first. Unsolicited "you are rubbish" comments are not allowed.

... One advantage of the guild is that the atmosphere of advice and support over criticism means that "OMG you Noob" players either change their tune or leave. This mean the relations between guild members generally remain good even after people move on. So on to the issue.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: How to avoid the feeder guild label

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: How to avoid the feeder guild label originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 14 May 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildscriticismcriticism-culturefeaturedfeeder-guildguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipnot-diabloofficers-quarterspoachingraidingwow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 14 May 2012 17:00:00 EST4 lessons from 5 years of Officers' Quartershttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/05/07/4-lessons-from-5-years-of-officers-quarters/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/05/07/4-lessons-from-5-years-of-officers-quarters/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/05/07/4-lessons-from-5-years-of-officers-quarters/#commentsFiled under:

Postcard showing the officers' quarters at Fort Des Moines
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

Amazingly enough, exactly five years ago today -- at 11:15 a.m. on May 7, 2007 -- the very first Officers' Quarters went live on WoW Insider. It was so long ago that I actually used Thottbot links. Since then, yours truly has composed more than 250 OQs. At about 1,000 words per column, I've written enough words on the topic of guild leadership to fill up a large fantasy novel. (Of course, I've also written an actual book on the topic.)

For this column, I briefly thought about pulling out the best and worst of OQ to share my personal favorites (and my shame) from the past five years. I decided against it. Maybe some day I'll do that -- maybe right before I hang up my WoW Insider columnist sash -- but that day is not today.

Rather, I thought I'd do something more personal. OQ has always been about learning how to do a better job as an officer and a guild leader, both for your members and yourself. During the past five years, I've done my best to give advice on exactly that.

However, I've never claimed to have it all figured out. I've also learned a lot, too. On this anniversary, I'd like to share four things that I've learned over the past five years. (Five would have been better, but I'm long-winded.)

Continue reading 4 lessons from 5 years of Officers' Quarters

WoW Insider4 lessons from 5 years of Officers' Quarters originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 07 May 2012 11:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsfeaturedfifth-anniversaryfive-yearsfive-years-of-officers-quartersguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershiplessonsloot-dramaofficers-quartersofficers-quarters-fifth-anniversarytipswow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 07 May 2012 11:15:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: From girlfriend to guild leaderhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/30/officers-quarters-from-girlfriend-to-guild-leader/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/30/officers-quarters-from-girlfriend-to-guild-leader/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/30/officers-quarters-from-girlfriend-to-guild-leader/#commentsFiled under:

Thrall and Aggra
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

Oh, boy. Let me sit here for a moment facepalming while I take in what I've just read. It's been a while since I've received an email with this much fail, so forgive me if I ease into it.

I'll warn you that the email is long. I've chopped it down as much as I dare. You really need to get the full story to appreciate what happened here. Without further ado, let's jump in:

Hey Scott-

I've been an officer in this particular guild for a long time and a member for several years and recently things have become very taxing for myself and several officers.

A little background on the guild. We are a large PVE/PVP guild on a PVE server. We have around 500 members... It's a crazy collection of hardcore players and newer players... We have several raids going 4 nights a week in addition to pugs and rated battle grounds going almost non stop when raids were not in session.

Now the problems in the guild started last fall right before the launch of SWTOR... Our guild leader and his wife had done a great job leading the guild. She was the CO-GL in name only as she really was the leader. Our guild leaders and several other officers and guild members decided they were going to quit...

This is where problems started creeping in...

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: From girlfriend to guild leader

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: From girlfriend to guild leader originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 30 Apr 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsfeaturedgquitguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipleadership-failofficer-promotionsofficers-quarterssuccessionwow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 30 Apr 2012 12:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: Dropping the drama totemhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/23/officers-quarters-dropping-the-drama-totem/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/23/officers-quarters-dropping-the-drama-totem/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/23/officers-quarters-dropping-the-drama-totem/#commentsFiled under:

Troll totems have unhappy faces
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

Selecting players for slots is always a sensitive situation, whether it's for a Rated Battleground or a heroic raid. That situation can be magnified when other factors -- such as cliques -- come into play. This week, a guild leader finds himself torn between friendship with a member and loyalty to his raid leader after a shaman protests a benching.

My guild was dying on our old server, so me (guild leader) and 8 other raiders, who I had been raiding with for 4 years, transferred to a new server. We needed a new dps/healer as a backup and a new tank, and set out recruiting. The new tank has worked out well, but our ele/resto shaman hasn't worked out as well. He's a nice guy, someone who I view as a friend, always shows up on time, often shares volcanic potions with other raid members etc. He's been in the guild now for 2 months and has helped us progress through Heroic Warship, Spine, and Madness.

Anyway, last Tuesday, we sat him for H Spine to bring in someone else, and with the 15% nerf, we 1-shot Spine, something he was bitter at missing after spending two weeks with us ... progressing and missing out on the kill. We did a few attempts on madness and looked forward to our Thursday run. On Thursday, we spent about an hour and a half progressing on Spine. Our holy paladin (and also an officer) was getting angry over some in-game stuff and was making mistakes. He finally logged off in frustration and we brought in the shaman and he helped us progress throughout the night (8% wipe).

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: Dropping the drama totem

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: Dropping the drama totem originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 23 Apr 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsdramafeaturedfilling-slotsgquitguideguide-to-officersguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quartersraid-slotsraidingwow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 23 Apr 2012 12:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: A clash over Battlegroundshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/16/officers-quarters-a-clash-over-battlegrounds/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/16/officers-quarters-a-clash-over-battlegrounds/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/16/officers-quarters-a-clash-over-battlegrounds/#commentsFiled under:

Silvershard Mine
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

It's not often that I get questions from PvP guilds. Your questions are usually quite different from those of raiding guilds, so I'm intrigued whenever I hear from you. This week's issue, however, may be all too familiar to those who raid.

Hi Scott -

I'm really struggling right now with a Guild member who wants to be included as a member of our Rated Battleground group, but seems to be unwilling to put in the necessary time and effort to become a good PvP'er.

Some background...two in-game friends and I run a small, casual PvP Guild on a medium population server. The Guild consists mainly of working adults who PvP for fun. We're a friendly group, not elitists, and are happy to accept people into the Guild who are new PvP'ers, or who choose not to PvP at all.

A few months ago a long-term WoW player with almost no PvP experience joined the Guild and decided to start gearing up for PvP. She thought the idea of Rated BG's sounded fun, so we were happy to explain the concepts of acquiring Honor and Conquest Points to her... As soon as she acquired the Resilience minimum, we added her to our twice-weekly RBG sign-up roster. Also, a few of our members took her under her their wings and began helping her do Arenas for points.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: A clash over Battlegrounds

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: A clash over Battlegrounds originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 16 Apr 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsdramafeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quarterspvpwow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 16 Apr 2012 16:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: Suggestions for dramahttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/09/officers-quarters-suggestions-for-drama/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/09/officers-quarters-suggestions-for-drama/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/09/officers-quarters-suggestions-for-drama/#commentsFiled under:

A paper shredder labeled
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

Some members, whether by their attitude or their behavior, don't give us much choice but to kick them. That doesn't mean their complaints are always wrong. This week, a guild leader wonders whether a recently kicked member might have had a good point about her guild.

Hello Scott,

First of all, thanks for the awesome and informative blogs!

Lately there have been some issues in my guild. The issues have been solved now (I hope), but I'm wondering about something.

The member that has been causing the issues has been known for being dead-set on getting a position as an officer. She had been there from the start and each time the previous GL promoted someone to officer, she'd whisper him with words like "Next time you're promoting someone to officer, it's me!" She never got that promotion for obvious reasons. Last week she caused an uproar in the guild about not being happy with there being a 'Supreme Ruler' (the guild leader) and gave the previous GL and another officer an ear bashing about it . . .

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: Suggestions for drama

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: Suggestions for drama originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsdramafeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quarterssuggestionswow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 09 Apr 2012 12:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: Desperate appointmentshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/02/officers-quarters-desperate-appointments/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/02/officers-quarters-desperate-appointments/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/04/02/officers-quarters-desperate-appointments/#commentsFiled under:

garrosh hellscream
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

It's certainly no rare situation when a guild leader has to scale back his or her time due to offline obligations. The right thing to do is appoint someone who's willing and able to cover your own slack. But what if that person isn't even an officer? This week, a guild member wonders whether it's time to panic.

Hi Scott!

Recently I joined a re-roll guild that has been around since the first of January. The premise of the guild is simple: new members can only join with a level one character and must level up within the guild without the help of outside resources. For a while, this worked out well. Everyone became fast friends and the guild grew to be called "the fam." But now we are approaching another month of "re-rolls," and drama has reared its ugly head.

Our GL just announced an impending life change and since then he's been markedly absent from our roster. One member posted on our forums noting that activity had declined, and another responded with suggestions on how to improve the current state of affairs. A few of the officers replied agreeing and disagreeing with various points, but the general consensus was that the members were not happy with things as they were. Before I go any farther, it helps to understand the... unique, way in which our officers are appointed.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: Desperate appointments

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: Desperate appointments originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 02 Apr 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsburnoutdramafeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipofficer-rolesofficers-quarterspromotionswow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 02 Apr 2012 15:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: 6 qualities of a successful raiding guildhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/26/officers-quarters-6-qualities-of-a-successful-raiding-guild/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/26/officers-quarters-6-qualities-of-a-successful-raiding-guild/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/26/officers-quarters-6-qualities-of-a-successful-raiding-guild/#commentsFiled under:

a guild poses after defeating deathwing
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

Recently a reader asked me, "What do raiders typically look for in a guild?" My initial reaction was to balk at the question. All raiders have their own preferences and pet peeves. What possible common factors could there be?

However, I realized I was approaching the question from the wrong angle. Players might not agree on the details, but there are essential qualities that every raiding guild should strive toward in order to attract and retain members. Below, I have outlined six.

1. Stability A stable roster led by stable leadership is the ideal situation for a raiding guild. It's also incredibly difficult to maintain. Life, drama, and boredom can poke holes in your roster and your officer corps at any time -- and there's often little you can do to anticipate or prevent it. The best way to establish stability is by gathering like-minded players who find value in accomplishing goals as a team. Commitment is much easier to earn when your members are on the same page and enjoy raiding together.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: 6 qualities of a successful raiding guild

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: 6 qualities of a successful raiding guild originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 26 Mar 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quartersraid-leadingraidingraiding-successrecruitingsix-qualitiessuccessful-raidingwow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 26 Mar 2012 14:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: Guild transfer anxietyhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/20/officers-quarters-guild-transfer-anxiety/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/20/officers-quarters-guild-transfer-anxiety/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/20/officers-quarters-guild-transfer-anxiety/#commentsFiled under:

a duel at the dark portal
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

One of the biggest decisions a guild can make these days is whether to stay on a struggling server or transfer to a new realm. The risks are substantial, and the benefits aren't guaranteed. This week, one guild member is asking for advice about transfers and also about whether or not to accept a promotion to raid leader.

Hey Scott,

Recently our guild hit a fairly major bump and we're attempting to sort everything out. While I have no doubt that we as a guild will make it though and continue back to HM progression; its a excruciating slow process recruiting and we are losing players who are impatient to continue raiding the way they like . . .

It was decided that as we were not picking up recruits on our server, and that our guild had obtained a reputation as a guild that gears players for the top 200 guilds while just being short of it ourselves. While we know we would lose some of our good players who have ties to the server, it was decided mostly by top officers that our guild should server transfer to a higher populated realm. In addition from the enthusiasm of those same officers it seems as if this is something that will happen.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: Guild transfer anxiety

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: Guild transfer anxiety originally appeared on WoW Insider on Tue, 20 Mar 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quarterswow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsTue, 20 Mar 2012 12:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: Rock bottomhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/12/officers-quarters-rock-bottom/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/12/officers-quarters-rock-bottom/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/12/officers-quarters-rock-bottom/#commentsFiled under:

a shipwreck on the ocean floor
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

Guilds in WoW are a precarious fleet at this moment. With player activity stagnating, many guilds are like sinking ships. They survive only if their officers can bail water fast enough by replacing the players they've lost. Fickle players are quick to jump overboard and swim to a guild with fewer leaks, only to find that their new vessel isn't quite as watertight as it first appeared.

Today's email is from a guild leader whose hull has hit rock bottom. She wants to know whether to dredge up the wreck or shop around for a sturdier boat.
Hi Scott,

I am the leader of a guild that sadly has no more active members. My fiance and I started it to try out Cata raiding at our own pace with people we knew IRL but at the peak of the guild activity we could only get about 7 people together and getting everyone motivated to get their item level up high enough to attempt a raid was even tougher! I love playing a mage but found myself rolling a paladin and gearing up to be what the guild needed...tank or heals. I eventually got super burnt out with lack of effort and took a break from the game. Recently I have come back to a dead guild.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: Rock bottom

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: Rock bottom originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 12 Mar 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quartersrebuildingrock-bottomwow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 12 Mar 2012 09:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: The importance of finding 'me time'http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/05/officers-quarters-the-importance-of-finding-me-time/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/05/officers-quarters-the-importance-of-finding-me-time/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/03/05/officers-quarters-the-importance-of-finding-me-time/#commentsFiled under:

murozond's hourglass
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

Something most nonofficers don't realize is the amount of time that officers spend dealing with guild business when we're otherwise off the clock. Nights with no official events can seem like a great time to log in and enjoy a relaxing solo play session. You plan to work on an alt, level a profession, or earn some achievements.

Then a member whispers you about a loot issue, someone else needs a few alts invited, a third member wants to talk strategy for the next raid, and so on. Suddenly your night is gone and you haven't managed to finish anything you actually set out to do -- especially relax. This week, one guild leader wants to know how to carve out some time for herself.
Hi Scott,

I assumed leadership of our social/casual guild early in the winter, and with the help of two senior officers have resurrected that which was once essentially dead. We have enjoyed the process of breathing life into our little community, and welcomed new guildies with open arms. As the weeks passed interactions between the members increased, guild chat started being used, dungeon runs and retro-raids started happening again, and each week more players entered the fold.

Then with the addition of the spouse and friends of one of our guildmates, we embarked on a raiding career. We are now 5/8 DS 10N, and run regularly two or three nights a week. As is so often the case, we now have more DPS that are interested in raiding than spots available, so we have stepped up recruiting to find enough raid-ready people so that we can start a second raid group.

I sometimes find this process exciting and rewarding, but more and more I am feeling overwhelmed. In addition to raiding and leading the guild, I am also an extremely serious alto-holic. I love questing. I have all the professions covered (some more than once), and on top of seeking out and collecting all the professional recipes, I also collect mounts and pets.

I don't mind putting my responsibilities to the guild and the raid team before my own playtime, but I am finding it harder and harder, with the growth of the guild, to carve out any time for myself.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: The importance of finding 'me time'

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: The importance of finding 'me time' originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 05 Mar 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsburnoutdndfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quartersTime-managementwow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 05 Mar 2012 13:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: A tempting offerhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/27/officers-quarters-a-tempting-offer/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/27/officers-quarters-a-tempting-offer/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/27/officers-quarters-a-tempting-offer/#commentsFiled under:

Mimiron's big red button -- do not push
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

It's not easy being anything less than a max-level guild in this era of perks. Most guilds can't wait to hit that final level and have access to all the bonuses that players of long-established communities have enjoyed for the past year. This week, one guild leader has an opportunity to skip the guild leveling process -- practically by pushing a button. Should he take it?

Hi Scott,

I messaged you awhile back in regards to guild realm transferring (this was before the service was implemented). We've done well overall and our progression has been fantastic overall, making us relatively competitive in Heroic Raiding.

Currently, I have an interesting option available to my guild. One of our officers has access to a level 25 guild, while we are only in the mid teens (we are a small, tight-knit group). He has offered, rather graciously, for us to move over to that guild and change the name of both of our guilds, so we could keep our guild name.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: A tempting offer

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: A tempting offer originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 27 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-levelingguild-managementguild-officersguild-perksguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quarterswow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 27 Feb 2012 12:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: Should Blizzard hold a guild summit?http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/20/officers-quarters-should-blizzard-hold-a-guild-summit/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/20/officers-quarters-should-blizzard-hold-a-guild-summit/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/20/officers-quarters-should-blizzard-hold-a-guild-summit/#commentsFiled under:

a guild shows off their tabards
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

I'm not an Old Republic player, but one thing I appreciate about the game is BioWare's active approach to supporting guilds. During the game's development, BioWare offered a pre-launch guild registration and the ability to test the game with guildmates. Now the company has announced a weekend-long summit where guild leaders can meet and discuss the game with BioWare staff.

I've always thought Blizzard could do more to support guild officers. Thus, when I first saw that article on Massively, I was happy to see BioWare taking steps toward that end. Then I read the comments below it, and I realized that not everyone feels the same way I do. Should Blizzard institute its own guild summit? Let's look at both sides of the argument.

The threat of influence

The argument brought up by those opposed to the summit is that guild leaders -- and especially the leaders of the largest guilds -- are usually raiders. Allowing them this type of access may give raiders an undue influence on the future development of the game.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: Should Blizzard hold a guild summit?

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: Should Blizzard hold a guild summit? originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 20 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-influenceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguild-summitguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quarterswow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 20 Feb 2012 12:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: 6 tips for new guilds in the era of perkshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/13/officers-quarters-6-tips-for-new-guilds-in-the-era-of-perks/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/13/officers-quarters-6-tips-for-new-guilds-in-the-era-of-perks/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/13/officers-quarters-6-tips-for-new-guilds-in-the-era-of-perks/#commentsFiled under:

level zero guild
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

Two types of guilds in WoW are having the most difficulty right now: 25-man raiding guilds and new guilds of every sort. For officers, competing against established, max-level guilds can be incredibly daunting. Success in this game is never a sure thing. However, you can take steps to help your guild to survive and grow.

1. Establish your credentials.

You are the face of this new enterprise. Asking players to give up all their shiny perks is a big deal these days -- bigger, honestly, than I ever thought it would be. Luring people away from that into your brand new organization all hinges on their confidence in you and the other officers. They can't just assume you have a plan and the background to pull it off. They have to know.

You wouldn't buy a car designed by a guy who never learned how to drive. Likewise, players aren't going to join your guild if it's clear to them that you don't have the appropriate level of experience.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: 6 tips for new guilds in the era of perks

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: 6 tips for new guilds in the era of perks originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-levelGuild-Levelingguild-managementguild-officersguild-perksguilds-guideleadershipnew-guild-tipsofficers-quartersrecruitingwow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 13 Feb 2012 13:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: A gkicked player takes revengehttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/06/officers-quarters-a-gkicked-player-takes-revenge/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/06/officers-quarters-a-gkicked-player-takes-revenge/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/02/06/officers-quarters-a-gkicked-player-takes-revenge/#commentsFiled under:

lord godfrey fires his pistols
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

Here at OQ, I receive emails all the time about people acting like jerks. Jerks are everywhere, and MMOs certainly have their fair share. Of all the jerks I've heard about, the player from this week's email has to be among the all-time worst. Fortunately, his terrible behavior has a bright side: By sharing this guild's story, other officers can avoid the same fate.
From the start one of our members started to complain about the guild at the start of raiding early cata. However the officers and GM has brush it off as him being annoyed at the game because he hated the expansion. Things went from bad to worst when we started Firelands.

He started to make plans to overthrow the GM of the guild and made fun behind him. He complains the GM is never there supporting the guild because he took a month off due to work reasons. He made fun of our progression even though we manage to get at least 1 heroic mode down. When we got to dragon soul he stop raiding with us all together. Which is fine because our guild is a casual raiding guild and members are free to choose to raid or not. However he complains even more that people in the guild are stupid and we won't ever progress. It got to the point where we kicked him from the guild but the problem didn't stop there.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: A gkicked player takes revenge

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: A gkicked player takes revenge originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsdramafeaturedgkickgkickingguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguild-websiteguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quarterssecuritytrollingtrollswow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 06 Feb 2012 14:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: The plight of 25-man raiding guildshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/30/officers-quarters-the-plight-of-25-man-raiding-guilds/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/30/officers-quarters-the-plight-of-25-man-raiding-guilds/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/30/officers-quarters-the-plight-of-25-man-raiding-guilds/#commentsFiled under: ,

Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available from No Starch Press.

With today's column, I'd like to illustrate a point by getting personal. Normally I don't like to do that very often, but my guild's own experience is dovetailing too neatly with an overall trend.

In reviewing the guild experience in Cataclysm and in looking forward to improvements we might see in Mists of Pandaria, I've mentioned how hard it's been for 25-man raiding guilds to survive in the current environment. I've noticed people voicing the opinion that if you like 25-man raiding, you can go find 24 other people who do and make it happen. I can understand how someone might believe that -- and in an ideal world, it should be that easy. Finding those players isn't easy these days, but that is in fact the easy part.

The hard part is finding people who want to lead said group.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: The plight of 25-man raiding guilds

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: The plight of 25-man raiding guilds originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>25-man25-man-raid25-man-raidingbuilding-guildsfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quarterswow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 30 Jan 2012 13:00:00 EST7 wishes for guilds in Mists of Pandariahttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/23/7-wishes-for-guilds-in-mists-of-pandaria/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/23/7-wishes-for-guilds-in-mists-of-pandaria/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/23/7-wishes-for-guilds-in-mists-of-pandaria/#commentsFiled under: ,

pandaria landscape
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available now from No Starch Press.

For officers, the improvements and new systems that Cataclysm brought to guilds were a game-changer in many ways. The sweeping changes to raiding that came with it brought on some difficult challenges. Fortunately, WoW does not stagnate. The Mists of Pandaria expansion gives Blizzard a chance to add new features, make important changes, and improve on what the developers gave us in Cataclysm. Here's my personal wish list:

1. Treat legendary items as guild rewards, not player rewards. As guilds in WoW have matured over the years, I've heard from officers less and less frequently about loot drama -- with one huge exception: legendaries. Every legendary in the history of WoW has caused problems for officers. For some, the legendary drama itself has become legendary.

It's time to change both the reality and the perception of these powerful items.

Continue reading 7 wishes for guilds in Mists of Pandaria

WoW Insider7 wishes for guilds in Mists of Pandaria originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-achievementsguild-adviceguild-hallguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguild-tabardguilds-guideleadershiplegendarylegendary-weaponsofficers-quarterstabardwow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 23 Jan 2012 15:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: Guilds struggled after Cataclysm's raid changeshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/16/officers-quarters-guilds-struggled-after-cataclysms-raid-chan/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/16/officers-quarters-guilds-struggled-after-cataclysms-raid-chan/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/16/officers-quarters-guilds-struggled-after-cataclysms-raid-chan/#commentsFiled under:

bastion of twilight
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available now from No Starch Press.

As predicted, Cataclysm has had a massive impact on guilds and guild leadership. The changes to guilds in this expansion will continue to have consequences throughout the lifetime of the game. Of all those changes, none have affected PvE guilds more than Cataclysm's new raiding systems and philosophy.

The new endgame

In April 2010, Blizzard announced a major shift in its design philosophy for raiding: The company intended to combine lockouts for 10- and 25-man raid sizes, while placing the exact same items in both. When the changes were first announced, the community -- including part of WoW Insider's own staff -- unleashed an understandable outcry. Memories of the transition from vanilla's 40-man to The Burning Crusade's 25-man cap haunted us. We worried whether our guilds could survive another monumental change.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: Guilds struggled after Cataclysm's raid changes

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: Guilds struggled after Cataclysm's raid changes originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildscataclysm-raidingfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-adviceguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguilds-guideleadershiplockoutsofficers-quartersraid-finderraid-sizeraidingwow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 16 Jan 2012 13:00:00 ESTOfficers' Quarters: Cataclysm's benefits for guild organizationhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/09/officers-quarters-cataclysms-benefits-for-guild-organization/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/09/officers-quarters-cataclysms-benefits-for-guild-organization/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/01/09/officers-quarters-cataclysms-benefits-for-guild-organization/#commentsFiled under:

the scrapped guild talent trees
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available now from No Starch Press.

As I predicted back in the summer of 2009, Cataclysm changed WoW's guilds and the guild experience more than any other expansion in the game's history. Many of these changes were a boon to officers, but even the positive changes sometimes had unfortunate drawbacks. Other changes were not as welcome. Let's look back and see how each of these shifts in game and guild design have affected us as officers over the past year and how Blizzard could improve them in the future.

What we didn't get

Every expansion has its list of announced features that don't make the cut. Two guild features that eventually got the axe were guild talents and guild currency.

Despite arguing in favor of guild talents, replacing them with universal perks was probably the right move for Blizzard at the time. With all the other upheaval that guilds had to endure during Cataclysm, choosing talents would have been one more unwelcome source of stress for officers. However, I still believe that providing us with more in-game ways to distinguish one guild from another is desirable and good.

Continue reading Officers' Quarters: Cataclysm's benefits for guild organization

WoW InsiderOfficers' Quarters: Cataclysm's benefits for guild organization originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>building-guildsfeaturedguideguide-to-officersguild-achievementsguild-adviceguild-currencyguild-finderguild-leadershipguild-managementguild-officersguild-reputationguild-talentsguild-uiguildlevelingguilds-guideleadershipofficers-quarterswow-guidewow-guild-managementwow-guildswow-leadershipScott AndrewsMon, 09 Jan 2012 09:00:00 EST