Brotherhood of the Front

Give us a brief description of your guild and why you chose the name you did.

My guild is based primarily around defeating the Withered Ægis, we are very action oriented and encourage strength and valour. Our strength comes from being as diverse as possible; from different Races to different Craft and Adventure schools we seek all people who are willing to fight the undead menace. We chose the name because we are a brotherhood who fights on the frontlines of the war, we do not simply kill undead near towns but we push the line back.

What is the main focus of your guild?

The destruction of the Withered Ægis. We also wish to ensure the prosperity of the Living Races and to do so we build settlements and items to help others.

How long has your Guild been around?

In thought it has been around since the Blackout, in practice it was not created until around May of 2003

How was your guild founded and who are some of the founding members?

It was founded by my friend Blake and I who decided that the other guilds seemed primarily interested in ‘peace’ or ‘archetypal evil’ and we wished to be different and pay attention to the real threat: The Withered Ægis. Our first members where he and myself, we then quickly grew as the idea spread. Look on our website for our latest roster, it is found under HOVault, Player Vault, and here on WarCry.

What kind of structure does your guild have in terms of leadership and roles they play?

Basically we encourage our members to RP as Tolkiens Rangers, we have little central leadership and allow our players to make their own decisions. All that Blake and I do is organize assaults on the undead, but for the most part members are allowed to do as they please so long as it does not misrepresent the Guild or jeopardize our mission. My view is that everyone who helps us fight in our war has an equal vote; from newbies to seasoned veterans, from guild members to unaffiliated, you are all welcome to participate.

What resources do you provide to enhance interaction between members of your guild?

There is no membership fee, the only requirement is a desire to kill undead. As for resources our guild will be trading freely amongst each other and we even have ‘suppliers’ in some of our allies who will barter at a low price.

What are some benefits to being in your guild?

The sense of fellowship and determination of purpose, knowing that each one of your Brothers and Sisters (we do have female members and do not exclude them, despite our name) wants the same thing you do. People choose our guild not because we look nice but because they believe in us and our goals are the same.

What single moment in your guilds time, have you found the most memorable?

Well that is hard to say since the game has not started. My favourite part so far though is getting to know the people who join, it really promotes a sense of comradery and fellowship, something that will be extremely helpful in the upcoming battles.

What event has changed ‘you’ the most, since you have been in the guild?

How excited I was when we got our first member that I did not know in real life, it made me realize that my friends were not just being nice and joining, but that others shared the same values as myself.

Does your guild have or will your guild have planned gatherings, and if so, how often? (In game and/or Real Life)

Oh my yes, actually we plan to have as many meetings as we can. They will largely involve the consumption of our confectioners wares, they may even be informal, but everyone is invited to come or not attend. Even if you are not in our guild, whether you are in another guild or just want to come, I will post our meeting times and places as often as I can remember. Each meeting is more of a party than anything, although there may indeed be times when we get serious and have strategic councils.

In a short paragraph, tell us why someone should join your guild.

We are an active guild, we care for others, and we offer protection to our Draconic allies and members. Join us if you wish to make a difference in Istaria, whether you become an official member or just fight with us, we will treat you well.

If someone is interested in joining your guild, what application process (if any) must they go through?

E-mail me at MelkorGuardian@yahoo.com or post on our EZBoard forum at pub151.ezboard.com/bbrotherhoodofthefront

What games has your guild been a part of to date?

Well this guild has none, though I did create other guilds in other games so I do have experience.

What attracted you to Horizons and where to see your guild in the world when Horizons starts?

I wanted to be a Lemurian! Then the blackout came and Blake and I decided on this incarnation of the guild. We will be a guild that will help our allies claim their initial land for their homelands, after that we will be driving back the forces of ‘evil’ and helping to ensure the survival of the Living Races. The first major thing we want to do, although it will take a while and we realize that, is we want to free\find the Dryads.

Have you ever been a Leader of a Guild before? What MMO and what was the size of the Guild at peak?

Yes I have. At our peak the BotEF was over two hundred people, we were on Praxus server of EQ, but that was years ago.

Tell us a little about your gaming experience and role as ‘guild master’.

We accepted all people and all classes, we had only one rule: have fun. We became very powerful and had lots of fun, organization was non-existent. My friend Blake created a guild on NWN, but I forgot how big it got.

As a ‘guild master’, tell what is the hardest set back you’ve had to deal with and how you handled the situation. (Which MMO was it and what was the out come?)

Hardest work I have had thus far was getting a guild emblem (thank you Meg), creating a website (I had no prior experience) and getting HO Vault to list us (which they still have not done)

What would you like your guild’s role in Horizons to be?

(in a nutshell and simplified) Kill undead -> take land -> give land allies-> allies develop land-> share benefits and spoils-> grow stronger to kill harder undead-> repeat

Where you do see your guild a year into the game?

Hopefully evolved to a new aspect as we hope to have killed off the undead by then. After they die we will face the new challenge to our people in the same way, by being on the front lines and risking our lives for people.

Any other details about your guild that you would like people to know?

Our charter on the website is basic and vague, but like the US Constitution this allows freedom and individuality. None of the ‘leaders’ will ever force anyone to do anything, we all have to vote on important issues. Only recently were our colours and bird decided, it took months of debating to finally settle the issues. Our allies are important to us as well, whether as large as the Imperial Order to as small as Tranquil Unity, all matter to us and receive equal attention and loyalty.