Change of Command
Very little I'm about to say in this post isn't common knowledge already. That said, I would encourage you to read it anyway.
As many of you know, and as I announced four or five days before I actually did anything with it, the GM of the guild is no longer the character "Xella," but rather Basanti. Very little was supposed to occur with that change; it just left the Xella character open to potentially get more from end-game-considering I've been contemplating quitting the server and/or game because of a lack of ability to do end-game (MC, etc), and considering I've been anguishing over this for a VERY long time, I didn't think this decision would surprise anybody.
But apparently it did, because while I did my best to make sure that nobody was around when I /gquit on Xella to join the end-game raiding guild of my choice, apparently not having all eight of my characters on alliance-Bloodscalp in LJ meant the world was ending for some people.
I don't understand this, to be perfectly honest. The Journalists have never been touted as an end-game guild, EVER. I came to grips with that a long, long time ago-I was under the impression that at least most of the rest of you were also aware that we would never have the numbers to do end-game. We started as a guild of alts; most of us continue in that capacity. We exist because a man, long long ago and in a galaxy far far away, said "hey, we should get a bunch of LiveJournal.com users together on one server since we're all so cool."
Why, then-and you'll have to excuse my language as I am, at this point, too angry to censor myself-am I constantly being given shit in-game, when I log onto Xella to raid, or on Basanti or Lynnlita, or Nira, to level? "Rumour on the streets" is that LJ is disbanding... that we're merging with (insert guild of choice here)... that nobody but ninjas and CGFs are left. That's bullshit and you rumour-mongers know it. So stop spreading the rumours.
Those of us who left the guild did so because there was NOTHING LEFT that we could do without it. I'm sure many of you are well aware that I was leading open raids on Onyxia. I don't like leading raids, especially pick-up raids-it's a lot of stuff to deal with all at once. And let's not even get into Molten Core... actually, do let's. The Journalists have had many, many alliances with various guilds for MC-all of those alliances have died when the other guild disbanded, the other guild got enough members to run it in-guild, or never went anywhere from the start. Our closest attempt at success was with Dawn of Truth, when I was given-at most-three hours of warning for when they would need us. It's a logistical nightmare. I didn't want to have to deal with it. I wanted to sit back and do what I enjoy doing in this game-HEALING. I didn't want to take DKP, I didn't want to enforce others' class roles, or even give them those roles. So, when given the opportunity to run these end-game instances with a guild who has their shit together, where I could truly just sit back and be one of the healers, so I could finally do the things I wanted to do in this game, but never could... should I not have taken that opportunity?
I would love to say that nothing has changed by having one of my eight characters leaving one guild and joining another. I was hoping beyond hope, when I did it, that it would be the case-it was the best-case scenario. The only time I wouldn't be in LJ guild chat was when I was in those end-game instances (and to be honest, I usually turned guild chat off when I was running MC or the open Onyxia anyway). But... it wasn't. Those of us who left, if we even hear from you at all, are given shit. CONSTANTLY.
And I'm getting fed up with it, to be honest. I'm tired of logging onto Xella or Basanti or Lynnlita or Nira and being guilt-tripped for trying to find happiness in a game. I'm tired of the guilt-trips, of the direct blame, of the snide remarks, of the shuns. Have I really changed because of this move? Has Pingling? Dajoey? Cricket? Do we deserve your scorn?
I would love to say that I'm in guild chat just as often as I was before I moved. And when I first did make the move, I was... but it's really hard to stay in an environment that is deliberately attempting to make you uncomfortable. So no, I'm not in guild chat as often. I've been spending a lot of time on Skywall (albeit alliance) and Scarlet Crusade.
This guild was, since January, my baby. It wasn't mine by birth, but I adopted it-the second day, I was working in earnest on the tabard. I try to organize guild events, get us a working webpage (with the help of Joey, who hosts it AND who has been been the subject of your pissiness just as much as the rest of the "traitors"). I do what I can to make this guild a fun place to be, even if inevitably everyone will more than likely leave it at some point or another, just like I had one of my characters do. But I'm getting tired. I'm getting tired of spending so much time and effort and energy on a baby who just grows up to be a surly teen who attempts to disown me when I make a mistake-even when no real mistake has been made. I'm tired of being railed on.
...would you like to elect a new guild leader?
If that's what you want, as a guild, I'm willing to let you rule yourselves. You don't need me-you never have, and you never will-and in the past couple weeks you've shown that quite clearly. If you want, I'll set up another tabard-like system by which you can elect your next Bloody Tyrant. As far as I'm concerned, I've been impeached... and it's just about time for me to resign anyway. This whole ordeal has made me go from not wanting to leave, EVER... to making me be = close to not wanting to have anything to do with this guild. I know so many of you are great people, but there are too many assholes who have crawled out of the woodwork with this, and I've lost so many friends over such a stupid reason as the tag over my head, that I'm almost to the point where I don't know whom I can trust anymore.
That said, until you decide who you want to be your next guild leader, you will continue to play by the rules that we have set out over the past nine months. If you do not like my rules and my policies, you are more than welcome to /gquit yourself until the remaining members find themselves a new leader.
(If you're looking for more in-depth reasoning as to why I'm pissed, it's all in xella's recent entries, and linked therein as well. It's not hard to find).
As many of you know, and as I announced four or five days before I actually did anything with it, the GM of the guild is no longer the character "Xella," but rather Basanti. Very little was supposed to occur with that change; it just left the Xella character open to potentially get more from end-game-considering I've been contemplating quitting the server and/or game because of a lack of ability to do end-game (MC, etc), and considering I've been anguishing over this for a VERY long time, I didn't think this decision would surprise anybody.
But apparently it did, because while I did my best to make sure that nobody was around when I /gquit on Xella to join the end-game raiding guild of my choice, apparently not having all eight of my characters on alliance-Bloodscalp in LJ meant the world was ending for some people.
I don't understand this, to be perfectly honest. The Journalists have never been touted as an end-game guild, EVER. I came to grips with that a long, long time ago-I was under the impression that at least most of the rest of you were also aware that we would never have the numbers to do end-game. We started as a guild of alts; most of us continue in that capacity. We exist because a man, long long ago and in a galaxy far far away, said "hey, we should get a bunch of LiveJournal.com users together on one server since we're all so cool."
Why, then-and you'll have to excuse my language as I am, at this point, too angry to censor myself-am I constantly being given shit in-game, when I log onto Xella to raid, or on Basanti or Lynnlita, or Nira, to level? "Rumour on the streets" is that LJ is disbanding... that we're merging with (insert guild of choice here)... that nobody but ninjas and CGFs are left. That's bullshit and you rumour-mongers know it. So stop spreading the rumours.
Those of us who left the guild did so because there was NOTHING LEFT that we could do without it. I'm sure many of you are well aware that I was leading open raids on Onyxia. I don't like leading raids, especially pick-up raids-it's a lot of stuff to deal with all at once. And let's not even get into Molten Core... actually, do let's. The Journalists have had many, many alliances with various guilds for MC-all of those alliances have died when the other guild disbanded, the other guild got enough members to run it in-guild, or never went anywhere from the start. Our closest attempt at success was with Dawn of Truth, when I was given-at most-three hours of warning for when they would need us. It's a logistical nightmare. I didn't want to have to deal with it. I wanted to sit back and do what I enjoy doing in this game-HEALING. I didn't want to take DKP, I didn't want to enforce others' class roles, or even give them those roles. So, when given the opportunity to run these end-game instances with a guild who has their shit together, where I could truly just sit back and be one of the healers, so I could finally do the things I wanted to do in this game, but never could... should I not have taken that opportunity?
I would love to say that nothing has changed by having one of my eight characters leaving one guild and joining another. I was hoping beyond hope, when I did it, that it would be the case-it was the best-case scenario. The only time I wouldn't be in LJ guild chat was when I was in those end-game instances (and to be honest, I usually turned guild chat off when I was running MC or the open Onyxia anyway). But... it wasn't. Those of us who left, if we even hear from you at all, are given shit. CONSTANTLY.
And I'm getting fed up with it, to be honest. I'm tired of logging onto Xella or Basanti or Lynnlita or Nira and being guilt-tripped for trying to find happiness in a game. I'm tired of the guilt-trips, of the direct blame, of the snide remarks, of the shuns. Have I really changed because of this move? Has Pingling? Dajoey? Cricket? Do we deserve your scorn?
I would love to say that I'm in guild chat just as often as I was before I moved. And when I first did make the move, I was... but it's really hard to stay in an environment that is deliberately attempting to make you uncomfortable. So no, I'm not in guild chat as often. I've been spending a lot of time on Skywall (albeit alliance) and Scarlet Crusade.
This guild was, since January, my baby. It wasn't mine by birth, but I adopted it-the second day, I was working in earnest on the tabard. I try to organize guild events, get us a working webpage (with the help of Joey, who hosts it AND who has been been the subject of your pissiness just as much as the rest of the "traitors"). I do what I can to make this guild a fun place to be, even if inevitably everyone will more than likely leave it at some point or another, just like I had one of my characters do. But I'm getting tired. I'm getting tired of spending so much time and effort and energy on a baby who just grows up to be a surly teen who attempts to disown me when I make a mistake-even when no real mistake has been made. I'm tired of being railed on.
...would you like to elect a new guild leader?
If that's what you want, as a guild, I'm willing to let you rule yourselves. You don't need me-you never have, and you never will-and in the past couple weeks you've shown that quite clearly. If you want, I'll set up another tabard-like system by which you can elect your next Bloody Tyrant. As far as I'm concerned, I've been impeached... and it's just about time for me to resign anyway. This whole ordeal has made me go from not wanting to leave, EVER... to making me be = close to not wanting to have anything to do with this guild. I know so many of you are great people, but there are too many assholes who have crawled out of the woodwork with this, and I've lost so many friends over such a stupid reason as the tag over my head, that I'm almost to the point where I don't know whom I can trust anymore.
That said, until you decide who you want to be your next guild leader, you will continue to play by the rules that we have set out over the past nine months. If you do not like my rules and my policies, you are more than welcome to /gquit yourself until the remaining members find themselves a new leader.
(If you're looking for more in-depth reasoning as to why I'm pissed, it's all in xella's recent entries, and linked therein as well. It's not hard to find).