>Don't Break the Shadowbind! is our Wed-weekly column brought to you by Omoikitte. Endgame isn't just killing mobs and splitting up the drops, that is the easy part. Omoikitte will provide her insight on how to do the hard part: the administration and planning of events, deciding on how to divvy up the drops, and how to deal with that one whiny LS member that just won't shut up about their abjuration. In this post I want to take a look at how you actually structure events to please both the veterans and the newcomers of your linkshell.
Every linkshell tends to fall into tiers. At the top is your leadership hierarchy, then you have your top end linkshell members, who come as any job, are keen, dedicated and good at what they do. Then you have the middle layer of membership. These are members who are slightly less polished than your elite players but generally make up the bulk of your ls. They show up to events, carry the weight and help you get things done. Finally there are the floaters. The people who you can't quite work out why they are in your ls, they don't really care and can be more a hindrance than a help.
What ever tier you fall into, at some point you are either a noob or a veteran of the linkshell you are participating in and everyone (particularly Americans) have their opinions on their rights and entitlements within the structure of the linkshell.
To a degree, this is correct, while we have no official charter drawn up that states what rights your members have in your democracy/dictatorship/senate (My linkshell is run on the benevolent dictatorship theory)for a linkshell to succeed you need to minimise the amount of corruption at the top therefore allowing the members to believe they are getting a good deal from the situation.
There are things I feel you are morally obliged to do when you decide to be a linkshell leader. Of course not everyone adheres to things like this but that is a personal decision and potentially leaves a lot to be desired about your personality. Screwing over other people is never a pleasant thing whatever the "justification".
I have always believed that to be a good leader, my members come before me. Which is why when people leave Versus getting angry at me, it is always intriguing as to why they are very upset at me, which is invariably the case. Presumably because I am not giving anyone favouritism. Another thing I wish to avoid at all costs, whether you are the person who started last week, or the member who has been in the shell for 4 years, I expect everyone to be a valuable member of the linkshell.
Of course I will tailor my expectations to be flexible, there is a learning curve you can allow for the newer members that you would haul your older members up for, but I don't shy away from admonishing veterans who does stupid things. Being in the linkshell for a long time should not excuse you from silly mistakes and errors, you have been there long enough and really should know better.
In amongst all this, before I digress too much, heheheh, is the tricky act of balancing your events. You need to do events tailored to both the Veterans of the linkshell AND the newer members of the linkshell. The interesting point about Versus currently is that we have been doing things for so long now that it is very easy to get the easy stuff very quickly.
Its the ultra-rare drops there is a queue for. This can cause an air of dissent, the Veterans want to be entertained and not made to feel like all they are doing in your linkshell is playing catch up to a bunch of noobs who may or may not remain in your linkshell after getting that 1 drop they have waited 3 months for.
Sadly we have had a LOT of members who have used the linkshell as a stopping point to clean up and move on, you can't predict who is going to do that and it is very hard to be vigilant against such abuses. It is frustrating, however the best thing you can do is move on.
The thing I think I struggle with the most is the senior members who think that doing certain zones, such as Sky, is an event that is beneath them. I don't agree with them at all, I think that encourages an attitude of complacency, and just because you do Salvage/HNM/anything fancier or more expensive than god abjurations, doesn't mean that it isn't the best gear for other people until they can hit the same stride as you.
The decision to pick what is best event wise for the linkshell is hard as you will receive a lot of pressure from those ensconced veterans who are like Waldorf and Statler from The Muppets. Crotchety old men who like to heckle about how it wasn't like that in my day. Don't let them cower you into submission, remember ultimately you are still the boss.
You need to find a path that juggles everyone's happiness so that you don't have people leaving or causing problems, its a narrow path to walk but it is possible. Good luck its a fine line but if you do it well your linkshell will follow you anywhere.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Don't Break The Shadowbind!: The balancing act.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Morning in Vana'diel: Hijack!
Morning in Vana'diel is your daily dose of FFXI and all things Vana'diel. Give us your thoughts on the interesting topics of the day! Where are they now?
I've been going through all the old Versus archives recently, which means flicking through musty bits of paper dating from the middle of June 2005 when the linkshell first started. I actually didn't keep any official records until August and BOY was I a messy archivist back then, LOL I've spent some time looking at what I recorded going.. umm.. what was I REALLY aiming for here.
Maybe not a perfect advertisement for my record-keeping, although it has VASTLY improved since then with inclusions of different bits of data, although this was birthed through necessity when Devious quit and I had to look after the ls bank. Payment details require detailed records to back it up, AS does the lotting systems. As soon as they became my responsibility my information explodes.
The most fascinating part of all this is undoubtedly looking back at all those old players and wondering where they are now?! Butcher was one of the original leadership team in Versus and the first member to get haidate from Byakko. Still playing and branching out, it is with some amusement I look at his much wider variety of jobs as he used to SWEAR that MP would never go above 0 on any of his jobs, he lives in BBQ now. Jokerr another former leader now seen rattling around in Limit Break.
The lists go on and on, those who have quit, those who still play, the good, the bad and the intriguing. It is a wonderful snapshot of a bygone age of Versus and a study in how we have progressed, evolved and changed into what we are now. Versus so much has been used as a stepping stone for a lot of people into HNM shells, which is the only thing we won't do.
Similarly we provided a refuge for those who no longer wanted to be in the angst-ridden world of HNM camping. It is fun to be nostalgic for a little while, it really can give you a bit of perspective on what you have achieved, and how far you have come in the game. Memories are after all what en-rich us both in real life or online.
Don't Break the Shadowbind! The Joys of Pizza.
Don't Break the Shadowbind! is our Wed-weekly column brought to you by Omoikitte. Endgame isn't just killing mobs and splitting up the drops, that is the easy part. Omoikitte will provide her insight on how to do the hard part: the administration and planning of events, deciding on how to divvy up the drops, and how to deal with that one whiny LS member that just won't shut up about their abjuration. Today, tantalising tastebuds mmmmmm.
I was strolling home the other day thinking about HOW good pizza is. Its so great it even gets a +1 in FFXI with Marinara Pizza +1, a pizza that provides vast amusement to myself as it is a fish pizza, or as I like to think of it a Tuna fish pizza which apparently most Americans seem to think is a travesty of a pizza, but personally I think is delicious.
Feeling hungry yet? The perfect pizza should have a light fluffy golden crust that is does not cling to the roof of your mouth and is infact crisp with olive oil to give it just the right amount of moisture without creating an overpowered flavour to enhance the topping.
This should be a lightly smeared tomato sauce to ensure the base doesn't dry out and to give your toppings something to adhere to in cooking, and what a wealth of toppings you can choose from. Whether you prefer simplicity itself in the margarita pizza of mere cheese, or extravagantly experiment with the heady delights of alternative flavours and tastes, onion, extra cheese, olives, anchovies to name but a few of the more traditional toppings.
When we went to the Fan Fest in Hollywood, CA this year, Ring, Iz and I ate out at the California Pizza Kitchen which as a pizza chain I very much enjoy when I am in the states. The pizzas are cooked to perfection and they offer a large selection of more avant garde flavours and options to whet your appetite to a fine edge. An even better option would be to go with many people and order selections and share, then everyone can dip into an assault of giddy heights on the tastebuds.
It used to be a while back, that you could buy ready frozen bases from the supermarkets here, and you could then add on your own toppings, I used to LOVE doing this. A small pot of tomato sauce usually reserved for eating with pasta, a tin of sweetcorn and half a block of cheese. It was gooey, it was overload but it was soooooooo yummy, unfortunately the business of selling their own "home made" pizzas took over and the bases vanished from the shelves, I suppose I could make them myself but that is a fairly intimidating prospect.
The best way to cook a pizza at home, whether frozen or fresh made is on one of those aerated baking trays, that lets the base cook without just being sat on a circle of heat, much better flavour and less chance of drying out the base, which is so easy to do with frozen pizza. Mostly frozen pizzas fall down on the base preparation, but if you hunt around you can find some that can be nearly as nice as that fresh out of the oven feel in a pizzaria.
At this point I am sure you are wondering what does this have to do with end game, leadership, linkshells or any/all of the above. Other than possibly as a menu guide to what the typical gamer eats when engrossed in that fight against X monster. However in reality it has nothing at ALL to do with FFXI, or end game, or linkshells or membership problems or and of the other minutae that build up around running an end game ls.
THAT IS THE POINT! Let go, remember life isn't only about your linkshell, relax your grip and keep perspective, you will enjoy it and so will your membership.
Friday, August 07, 2009
Don't Break the Shadowbind!: Its GREAT to be back!
Don't Break the Shadowbind! is our Wednesday (or as close to as can be) column brought to you by Omoikitte. Endgame isn't just killing mobs and splitting up the drops, that is the easy part. Omoikitte will provide her insight on how to do the hard part: the administration and planning of events, deciding on how to divvy up the drops, and how to deal with that one whiny LS member that just won't shut up about their abjuration. Today, beach analagies abound as we discuss those troublesome floating members every end game linkshell attracts.
I have internet again, I am sooo happy. LoL after the drought it is a veritable flood of delight to be back in the swing of things and knee deep in FFXI. Infact I logged on and straight back into a Versus event for Limbus. It was marvelous!
I can't think of a neat and sassy way to lead that into what I wanted to discuss today, it is far too early in the morning and my brain is slowly petrifying from the sheer monotonous boredom of doing the data processing required at work, there is an end in sight, but I've already done around 5,000 forms, I'm getting very bored with it all now.
The thing I wanted to cogitate on today was what to do with those members of your linkshell who are serial linkshell hoppers. I am sure everyone at some point comes across them.
They tend to fall into two distinct categories. The Driftwood and the Useful although sometimes it can take a little while to figure out which is which.
The Driftwood are like the dead pieces of wood that float in on the tide, and float out again with it, unafraid to get all covered in that nasty scummy froth that can be made. These players apparently have ants in their pants with serious commitment issues, unable to settle on one linkshell in particular they hop from one to the other bringing their erratic and unhelpful behaviour into your linkshell.
It is not that uncommon for these particular types to be invariably only in it for themselves making it easier for them to but down no roots, they may live in your linkshell for a considerable period of time, but it does not disguise their own self interest enough, eventually they will get what they came for then they are off again.
Others in the driftwood category manage to alienate virtually everyone in their linkshell and so can't set roots due to the fact that everyone else is tearing them up again. These people may run around with the air of being "hard done-by" or "put upon" by the evil villany of those who fail to appreciate their rather unique approach to things. So they drift from community to community until the entire server hates them, their own attempt at setting up a linkshell fails and they migrate to Remora.
These members are easy to deal with to be honest, you can either not accept them into your linkshell in the first place, with a bit of judicious asking around into their past behaviour and attitudes. If they do end up in your linkshell most of the time they won't last long, if everyone else hates them enough it will make them move on that much quicker, although you do run the risk of causing a lot of discontentment within your loyal members over the acquision of gear and whether it is worth the effort they are putting in to reward these freeloaders.
The problems come with the second type of floating ls member. The somewhat useful members who when in your linkshell are good/great members of the team. But for what ever psychosis/misunderstanding/paranoia/all of the above, they quit, regret and want to rejoin.
Usually their method of leaving will be fairly drama laden due to the fact that they tend to want to go that way, they LIKE being in your linkshell but other things keep getting in the way of functioning, such as unrealistic expectations or if its the second time around, a paranoia that everyone hates them for quitting in the first place.
Fears which are hard to allay when you aren't listened to, particularly as good members of the linkshell are always welcome, regardless of whether they left the first time around in bad blood. People are very willing to forgive and forget and just get on with the business of end game if they feel that you are a valuable member of the linkshell.
The biggest problem I have encountered with these people is that they ARE essentially good people, they aren't really trouble makers, their own neurosis just get in the way a bit and sometimes I am just a little too preoccupied to deal with it. They provide good support in the linkshell, they are dedicated and consistent its just their Achilles heel is a pretty darn big one, Colossus of Rhodes size infact.
Knowing when to just say no is important, otherwise they just consistently think it is ok to up sticks and leave you in the lurch every time they get into a humph about something and leave you all alone at the prom without a ride home, and that creepy kid is grinning at you again.
These are hard decisions to make, personally I definately don't like being jerked around like that, do it once too often and you pretty much burn all bridges with me and I will just point blank refuse to even entertain the notion it is a good idea to have you back. You could be the best player on the server with the creme de la creme of gear and I still wouldn't say yes because I am tired of being played.
As I see it, my job is to provide a consistent and stable framework for people to do end game, while juggling unusual decisions with keeping it as fair as possible in the broadest sense, as you can never please everyone. It is NOT to sit there blowing smoke up someones rear so they can feel that little bit more superior to everyone else. I understand that you need a good rapor with your members, however it is still a balance, you need to retain objectivity and not let your judgement become clouded because of X, Y and Z. And THAT is extremely difficult to do.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Don't Break the Shadowbind: Lazy Days and Sunshine.
It is blazing sun outside, I am at work, and my room at home is a bombsite due to the impending chaos of moving on Friday. How is this all relevant and connected? AHA!
Well, I am definately feeling lazy today and I generally believe that the sun has 2 effects on people. The first, is to affect a certain air of disgruntlement and idleness amongst the masses who would much rather be outside enjoying the clement weather than being cooped up at work, the second is bring every dried-out, emotionless crone, every ill-tempered and highly strung waif and every slightly insane and demanding loon out from out under their rocks, that they hibernate under for the winter months and inflict them at large on people in the service industry.
I suppose this impending air of restlessness is stemming from my forced absence from FFXI for the next two weeks as the slow cogs of bureaucracy edge into position to breathe life back into my internet connection after moving.
It throws into sharp profile an interesting point that every linkshell leader needs to consider. No one person should ever try and shoulder the entire responsibility of running a linkshell, you will burn yourself out if you do that.
However, the path to chosing a new sack holder in your linkshell is a delicate and difficult path to follow. Your choices should not be spawn from obsequeious fawning or a misplaced opinion that it is a fellow members given right to that postion.
Instead you need to pick a team you can work with, and who can work with you equally to keep your linkshell running smoothly, whether you are there or not.
Inspiration for your leaders might not always come from the most likely sources as far as the linkshell entitiy is concerned, but as a leader you can single out those who have caught your eye or your attention for a particular reason.
It might be that they are reliable, consistent and communicative, or have some quality that lends you to believe with enough coaching and support they can become a fully functional and stable leader.
Leadership is a responsibility as well as a privilage, one that your sack holders need to be aware of, as the prime leader your decision IS final, regardless of what anyone else says, but you have to make sure that it is a situation of give and take.
Respect your team's opinions, even if they run contrary to your own. It is a good thing to have a melting pot of opinion and people who are prepared to stand up and say I disagree with what you are doing. Of course at the end of the day they do need to understand that if you decide against their favour, they have to accept that and equally if it becomes devisive, you have to accept that it could result in the person leaving.
Personalities are a complex thing to harness and use to their full advantage in a situation like this, it is about delegation of responsibility so your team feel like they actually meaningfully contribute, while you pull the overall strings that keep the linkshell on the straight and narrow.
Leaders have come and gone in Versus over the 5+ years of its history, through one means or another, all in their own respective right brought something positive to the linkshell at one point in time. What is interesting is seeing how some choices prove excellent, while others flounder and mire themselves in horrible detail and problems.
Not everyone is suited to the task, it is a mine field, but one that you have every capability to cross if you wish, after all you retain the right to change your mind on a decision. As hard as it can be, if it is having a negative impact on yourself and the morale of the linkshell you need to reverse that decision.
Cater to your needs as well as that of the linkshell, and swap and change the scenery until you have a stable, commited team and you will enjoy a much smoother and happier linkshell.
Thursday, July 09, 2009
Don't Break The Shadowbind!: The Thin Line of Responsibility.
Don't Break the Shadowbind! is our Wednesday column brought to you by Omoikitte. Endgame isn't just killing mobs and splitting up the drops, that is the easy part. Omoikitte will provide her insight on how to do the hard part: the administration and planning of events, deciding on how to divvy up the drops, and how to deal with that one whiny LS member that just won't shut up about their abjuration. Today, Omoikitte reflects on what it takes to be a good leader besides lots of shouting and loot whoring.
Its a funny thing, being a linkshell leader. I mean, sure you might have started out with noble, or spurious intentions, depending on your character stock, but look where it has gotten you now.
I know when I started out, it was more of a vague saunter than any real predisposition to want to lead an endgame linkshell, curiosity and slight amusement at the request to spearhead the linkshell "because all the good linkshells have female leads" - Lordlotuskiller, was the primary spur behind investing this amount of time into Versus.
I didn't really know what I was getting into at all, certainly nothing would have made be believe where it has lead me to now. Some of it is definately for the better, I can't help but feel that some of it however has been to the detriment of my personal character.
I used to have an almost undentable belief in the best of people, regardless of the situation, I would always find some reason or way to allow the mitigating circumstance of their life to influence my reflections and handling of situations and currents around problems or issues.
I am definately more jaded now, something that leaves me feeling sad and a little wistful for times gone past. I am sure there are those of you who whole-heartedly believe that its time I grew up and lived in the "real world", but honestly, the real world is only what you make it to be and nothing more. If you expect ghosts and hostility in every action, you will find it.
I still do strive to maintain a balance between fairness and resonable responsibility when approached with matters that require my attention, I don't think I am always successful in that but the willingness to engage is still there. I definately am more prone to be a shade more cynical about things these days though.
Running the linkshell has given me an excellent grounding in a practical work ethic I have found. The need to constantly be prepared to deal with a lot of difficult situations, personalities and records for so long consistently and effectively to instil confidence has instilled in me a deep need to be honest and scrupulous about my dealings with other people, whether in life or online, at the end of the day it is still a living, breathing human being with feelings, thoughts and emotions that you can stir to happiness or tear down. Words are still words whether spoken behind someone's back at the water cooler, or over an online game, they can quicken the pulse and emotion like no other, as much as we would like to disassociate ourselves, words DO affect us. Why wouldn't they, it is a fundamental method of communication?
The longer the linkshell runs, the harder I find it to ever really get time to not be responsible, there is no break from me, I can't sit back and do something else, without feeling as though I am letting other people down. Perhaps this is down to pride as well as my own crazy stubborness, for those less well ken, it would be assumed to be an addiction that I am unable to let go of and that this is unhealthy, maybe it is unhealthy, I CAN go out if something specific takes place, like dinner with my sister, or a BBQ at work. But I can't sit there and read a book at home knowing that my linkshell is doing events. That to me as a leader feels irresponsible to the duty that I agreed to shoulder, however unwittingly when I agreed to sign up for leadership of Versus.
If you do this, don't expect to be the same person who went into it at the beginning. It will change you, the question is whether it is for better or for worse, and whether you chose to embrace these lessons learned.
Sunday, July 05, 2009
Don't Break the Shadowbind!: The distribution of rewards.
Don't Break the Shadowbind! is our Wednesday column brought to you by Omoikitte. Endgame isn't just killing mobs and splitting up the drops, that is the easy part. Omoikitte will provide her insight on how to do the hard part: the administration and planning of events, deciding on how to divvy up the drops, and how to deal with that one whiny LS member that just won't shut up about their abjuration. Today, Omoikitte considers how to distribute the loot without pissing everyone else off.
Loot! We all want it, we all need it, we all covet it in the depths of our hearts. Even if you "are not interested in lotting and just want to do end game because you miss it" you want in on the loot! Whether its just from monetary rewards to those highly prized and sought after pieces of gear there is something there that keeps you coming back for more.
What usually spawns from this is a system of distribution, that varying from linkshell to linkshell can be labyrinthine in its complexity or relatively simple and easy to use. Often the simplest of systems require the most planning out before hand to make them run smoothly, what you see on the front as a user-friendly interface in reality is run off a much more complicated and sophisticated engine, such as Obsidan's bidpoint system for dynamis.
There are a few things you want to consider when creating a lotting system for your linkshell, whether you decide that points are the way to go or whether you are just going to make everything free-lot, you should consider how you plan to action this.
Consistency.
This is extremely important. If you are going to create a system, make it apply to everyone. From the newest member of your linkshell up to the shell holder, rules need to be relevant and apply to everyone. The more inconsistent your linkshell is when it comes to the distribution of gear, the less likely it is that people will want to stick around and be an active participant in what it is you are attempting to achieve.
Accountability.
Make sure that your leaders, your friends and your sycophants are just as accountable to the rule system as everyone else, it doesn't do to create divisions of favourability within the linkshell, are you doing this because you want something or because you want to help others? If you plan on just rewarding the few who perhaps have not genuinely earned it, be prepared to accept that you will quickly lose your best players to other linkshells who are more willing to share the rewards evenly.
Accessability.
Make sure everyone can understand your rule system, if only you can understand it, there is no transparency in what you are doing, that will only lead to rifts and suspisions when members disagree with your decisions. Lotting above all else is core to your linkshell being successful, creating a system that just confuses your members will result in arguements and resentments which can result in a rift in your linkshell.
A lot of thought, time and effort can be put into deciding how and what type of lotting system is appropriate for you linkshell as is right, this at the end of the day will be the grease on the wheels that keeps your members coming back to your events until you gain that core loyal membership. Even after that it is still important to remember that everyone in your linkshell has to like the system or at least accept it as being the rules that govern your events.
The Systems
The Points System
Points systems are one of the most common ways of distributing gear. Set a value against an item, and a value against the time and effort you put into the linkshell, accumulate said points and spend on said item. The premise is fairly simple when broken down. However add in the human equation and suddenly it can become considerably more complicated.
Obsidian has one of the most sucessful bidpoint systems I have seen ingame. Gawayne has created a very well-run database containing all the information any Obsidian leader would need to maintain, administer and run their events, while on the front end, is the actual bid interface. This of course is a very sophisticated bid system and one that is not available to everyone, maintaining records of your points is important whether you do it in ink or digitally.
Tiered layering, generally is something you should try and avoid, it makes it a lot more complicated for people to understand, you want your points system to be as accessible and understandable as possible or it will just engender resentment and suspicion.
Pros - A very simple premise to use and maintain your linkshell with. Accessible by all and a clearely deliniated progression path for those who wish to know where they stand within a linkshell.
Cons - Points punish those who are unable to play often, not everyone is available to play constantly and will be rapidly left behind by those who have considerably fewer commitments outside of FFXI.
The Free Lot System
This is rarely used in big events, mostly being found in dynamis shells, particularly now where AF is considerably more widely available. Essentially you have no points you have no ties, you just show up, state your preferences and then lot if it drops.
This can put you in direct competition with everyone else, whether they have been there for 1 run or 700 runs, its all in the luck of a random and nothing more. Generally this type of system is a bit unstable for anything outside of dynamis. Drop rates fluctuate wildly from linkshell to linkshell on the more desirable items and as a result these items tend to be more coveted if rarely seen. This can lead to strife if people start thinking more about what they are not getting over the general effort of the linkshell. As long as you can maintain that equilibrium of desire and commitment this system can hold its own quite successfully.
Pros - Everyone is equal, you show up and have a chance to win. Its all down to Lady Luck.
Cons - Rarer drops can polarise opinion and create divisions of trust and commitment over ideas of "ownership" of drops and who should and shouldn't get what.
The "Other" Systems
While the majority of linkshells fall into the first two categories, there are a few that run outside of these systems, instead running on a more varied lotting agreement, such as Versus where attendance is the main drive for lotting, or relevance to jobs you have for the gear you wish to lot.
Not everyone can deal with these slightly more vague guidelines, that are more often tied to the leadership of the linkshell than able to be run as an independant entity from the linkshell.
Pros - Rules in the "other" category tend to be more forgiving of individual circumstance than points, allowing members to progress faster than normal.
Cons - Extremely open to abuse if your leader allows themselves to be compromised, it takes an iron will to maintain the rules without allowing personal preledictions interfere with the decisions that need to be made.
This is an extremely basic guide to looking at rules and guidelines for running a linkshell, but it is a start to be expanded on, whatever direction you chose to take when running your linkshell, ultimately resposible decisions are needed to govern and maintain what is happening. You will never be able to please everyone, but finding the medium and giving the broadest coverage from that is the safest way to make sure that you are getting the most out of what you are doing at events.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Don't Break the Shadowbind: People management.
Don't Break the Shadowbind! is our Wednesday column brought to you by Omoikitte. Endgame isn't just killing mobs and splitting up the drops, that is the easy part. Omoikitte will provide her insight on how to do the hard part: the administration and planning of events, deciding on how to divvy up the drops, and how to deal with that one whiny LS member that just won't shut up about their abjuration. Today, we look at the complicated issue of people management in the linkshell.
Whether you like it or not at the end of the day, your linkshell needs people in it to function as its intended purpose. Otherwise you just wasted 8k to not look like an RMT. In an endgame linkshell you need a large pool of raw material to pull from to effectively achieve anything. The raw material being the players of FFXI.
These are your team to back you up on your grand schemes and plans, in the constant effort to strive for better gear, monitary rewards, new titles or just for the simple pleasure of a fight and kill well done in an accomplished manner, there are many many reasons people join linkshells at end game.
Understanding the moods and currents of opinion in your linkshell is vital for an effective leader to be able to predict how far you can push your membership and when to slack off, as a leader your duty is to balance both the stern and authorative figure as well as knowing when is the best time to bend like a reed and sublimate your own personal opinions and give way to the popular opinion.
Knowing that you can't force anyone to do something is paramount, you can only be a guide, what your linkshell ends up being is a collection of individuals who are willing to be guided by you and trust your judgement or tactics to win the day. There is of course frictions and undercurrents of opinion that you will not always be aware of, the disgruntled few, but in a solid linkshell, those few dissenters have a way of working themselves out of the linkshell and on to other things reasonably quickly and you have a strong core still with you.
Flexibility is extremely important in any situation when dealing with people, regardless of your personal opinions, you shouldn't be letting that cloud your judgement or you end up undermining your own position of authority and it is extremely difficult to come back from that.
You need to be able to remain objective and clear-minded, accepting that your linkshell is a melting pot of personalities and opinions, not all these opinions will be parallel to your own, nor will you be joined at the hip with every single member in your shell, but that is not a good reason to ignore or neglect the other members, making sure they still feel appreciated or a part of things is just as important as them showing up to events. Without them, your linkshell isn't going to be doing anything except soloing rarabs outside Windurst, and you want to be reaching for the sky and tearing down AV instead!
Inevitably, you will run into problems with people, over time this is just the nature of what happens, simple misunderstandings that are easily resolved in person are more likely to be blown out of proportion online where a whole facet of human communication is missing, the minute interpretations of body language, tone, pitch, eye contact and non-verbal signals are no longer there as a safety net, so as a leader it is important to be prepared to overcompensate for that lack and be slightly more sympathetic, it is your job to look at the whole picture and not mire yourself down in irrelevant detail that at the end of the day is only preventing you from doing an effective job more than it is assisting you in directing the linkshell forward.
Open lines of communication with your linkshell and keep them open, the membership will feel cut off and ignored if they have no-one to talk to and that will result in a lack of interest in events and participation. Even if that means that they will talk to your sub-leaders rather than you, you still have the responsiblity to deal with the issue in a delicate fashion, charging in there guns blazing is more than likely to inflame the situation than fix it if there is an issue, look at your options and consider the best way to move forward, plan ahead if need be but don't ignore it or you will have a far bigger problem on your hands over time.
If you as a leader are going to do something controversial, make sure you have a good reason to do it, one that is justifiable, not just "because I said so". That will never be good enough and lead people to desert your linkshell. Even if they don't like the reason, it is still an authentic and verifiable reason and most of the time that will be enough. You will inevitably come up against the 1 member who really insists on making an issue out of it, but as long as you keep a clear head and a cool tone and don't allow things to escalate it should never become an issue.
We are all in the end, doing the same thing for very similar reasons, part of the excitement of being in a linkshell is that you ARE a part of a smogsboard of cultures, attitudes and opinions, as a leader, accept and control the situation rather than trying to force people into an unnatural method and you will end up with a far healthier linkshell, at the end of the day it is another person behind the pc, with real feelings and real emotions, and while we are limited to communicating over "a game" what you say still has the power to cause delight or pain. Effective leadership recognises the time and the place for each of these and when you should, and should not abuse the situation.
You are going to get critisized, you are the leader, as silly as it sounds if something goes wrong YOU are responsible, there can be varying reasons as to why you ended up at that point, but you are the person who is struggling to get to a goal and taking everyone else with you, the longer your linkshell exists the less likely you are to get people who say happy things about the linkshell and more likely to complain about why something hasn't happened for them yet, it is just an effect of human nature, what is key to surviving this is to not make it personal, remain objective and above all, don't let it break your spirit. More often than not it is more likely to be some unexpessed frustration and you just happen to be in the way at that time, the worst thing you could do is get frustrated back. Try and reason, hold your ground and remember that it is never a bad thing to make an ls member feel important, treasured and vital to the cause, every single member in your linkshell is important.Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Don't Break the Shadowbind!: Linkshell 2.0
Don't Break the Shadowbind! is our new Wednesday column brought to you by Omoikitte. Endgame isn't just killing mobs and splitting up the drops, that is the easy part. Omoikitte will provide her insight on how to do the hard part: the administration and planning of events, deciding on how to divvy up the drops, and how to deal with that one whiny LS member that just won't shut up about their abjuration. Today, Omoi tries to find out what you think you want out of your LS.
So, you think you are a contender for being a linkshell leader. You have your 8,000gil clutched in your sweaty little palm and you are standing by the two Mithra waiting for them to stop ignoring you and sell you an unopened linkshell, as it is inevitable that you are going to arrive when their bazzar is closed.
At this point you should be asking yourself a series of fairly important questions.
Why do I want a linkshell.
What am I going to do with said linkshell.
What kind of goals am I going to strive towards with said linkshell.
Invariably of course, the only 2 questions you really ask yourself are, what colour is it going to be and what should I name it. Then you fiddle around for 40mins with the 3 colour sliders and realise that there are only 2 varieties of colour for linkshell pearls:
Option 1 - Some vibrantly disgusting electric colour, or
Option 2 - Any shade of blue.
After you have finished playing around with the sliders and your colour is finally locked in, the momental task of naming your linkshell comes into play. This is a fairly important decision to make, it is definately one of those kind of determinations that WILL affect you for the life of your linkshell. So, calling yourselves 'The Flower Babies of Babylon' may be a choice that comes to haunt you when you are trying to be a serious linkshell.
There is definately a wish for a dramatic and powerful sounding name, that will catch your attention and hopefully the imagination of your subsequent members, inspiring morale and taking your dreams to dizzy heights of success, which has manifested itself in some of the more traditional and predictable names, usually starting with "The"or "Guardians" and also containing "of". If you actually look at some of the more successful linkshells and their naming conventions, it isn't a long word or usually even many words, and if it is, it is easily abbreviated.
CRX
BBQ
Critical
Unsent even.. dare I say it ..
Resurrection
(yes yes, ok so I will get shot if I don't put this in there as well. LOL)
Versus.
Its catchy, immediately grabs your attention and isn't that easy to forget. All important in marketability for your linkshell and attracting a membership base. FFXI has been around now for a sufficient amount of time that most end game ls' across the servers are well established, so it is a fairly murky world that you are settling into already and extremely tough to get going on. The one saving grace is that most of the end game linkshells tend to be disinterested in some of the older game content, such as Sky and even Sea is getting to be like that now. So you can fill that void as long as you are prepared to grind at that for a while and establish a good reputation before being able to expand.
Examining end game linkshells they quickly can fall into roughly 4 categories. (For the geeks)
The Microsoft Windows Vista Category.
These are the big flashy linkshells on your server, which for Odin, would be BBQ, TK, Limit Break. Known for their ground breaking techniques as much as they are for their infestation of drama, membership quarrels and problems. These behemoths camp everything and anything and dominate popular imagination with their exploits and deeds not just limited to single server awe, but able to transcend the gap between servers to become the topic of conversation. They affect everything and anything they come to touch and are very much an integral part of your game life whether you realise it or not.
The Linux Solution Category.
These small, open source linkshells rarely end up doing anything large scale, instead they have a relatively small and fluid population inputting into the shape and direction, which can waver from SCNM's to Limbus and everything small and inbetween, hopping from event to event with no real specific purpose other than its cool and fun to do, and you can do it with a bunch of your mates and it be relatively hassle free, there is no real commitment, it just requires a big enough congregation of idle players for it to happen. These also serve mostly as a pleasant social linkshell that occasionally does really NEAT stuff for the dabblers of FFXI.
The MAC OS10 Category.
These end game linkshells come across as a bit more exclusive and intensive, generally being very stable and consistent with their memberships, maintaining a certain attitude and reputation while avoiding the pitfalls of massive drama that come with the slightly more flamboyant linkshells on your server. You have a core die-hard membership who come to everything regardless of what they get, and are a refuge for those wanting to get away from the HNM scene but still keep involved in end game events.
The Netscape Travesty Category.
These are the kind of end game linkshells you just want to avoid, a sort of sleezy conglomeration of leaders who will inevitably only fall apart on you, there is no co-operation with ANYONE else at all, they seem to think they exist in a sphere of delusion that the server rotates around them and they are god's gift to the game. Invariably these kind of linkshells can be found doing improbable and impractical shouts for membership in Whitegate or Jeuno.
Whether you are starting out in an attempt to create your own linkshell, or just become part of the end game scene, you should definately consider what directions you DON'T want to go in as much as the directions you DO want to take, a bad linkshell can make or break your gaming experience where as a great linkshell will make you put down roots and never want to leave.
Choose wisely.
#1 ~ Monk
#2 ~ Samurai
#3 ~ Ninja
#4 ~ Dragoon
Chaotic Pellucidity
Teabags and KY Jelly
The Bloggaru!
