AIE Guild Guide
The following guide is a work in progress and is based on two posts from the AIE General Communication Forums. We suggest you visit the forums to see the full discussion and the original posts as they were written.
Tips for AIE Newbies: Don't Get Lost in the Shuffle by Despair
Getting the most out of your AIE guild experience by Lanctharus
AIE is a huge guild with a ton of new folks joining recently. As kind and generous as all our members are, with the number of people in this guild, we can see where a new person might fall through the cracks.
To begin with: What you get out of AIE is directly proportional to what you put into it.
But, you ask, what do you mean by this?
What we mean by this is that AIE at its core is a social organization and in any social organization it is all about networking. Connecting with people in order to get something done that is beneficial to everyone.
How does one go about this networking?
By getting involved in guild chat, the forums, vent and actively seeking out people. The officers did some informal research awhile back and did you know that only about 15% of active members in the guild participate in any of the forms listed earlier? People who do not participate seldom get asked to join in on things. AIE tends to reward individuals who actively seek out new challenges, friendships and camaraderie.
But, you say, I am too shy and introverted to do such a thing! I am afraid of looking foolish!
/pulls cord "Lanc says"
Poppycock! Actually to be truthful I am introverted and shy myself. I stutter, indulge in to many fancy shmancy foods and kinda goofy looking but that does not stop me from actively seeking out people in game. As for looking foolish, just ask anyone I run with about the hilarious moments (aka death, wipes, etc.) that I have caused because I was fooling around. It has actually become an endearing thing about me to my friends that I play with. Just ask Stigg about the time he had to play melee DPS or to Hikikomori about the time my s key got stuck on my keyboard in a middle of a pull. Hilarity ensued.
Tips From a Guildie
Make friends in your level Bracket!
Don't expect there to be a pool of high level players just waiting to give Newbies run throughs. While our guildies are very generous, you'll make more friends and establish better bonds with folks if you put together appropriate level groups for running instances. These people are likely to be in your level bracket the entire time you are leveling and when you all hit 80 together, you've got an instant Raid group!
Not all Lowbies are new guidlies!
Keep in mind that most of the 80's in this guild have numerous alts. Just because someone looks new doesn't mean they are. If you group with a lvl 20 for WC and you were an awesome team player, that person may be a 80 with lots of connections who will spread the word about you.
Be friendly, professional and polite in gchat!
Scott and Randy have a particular sense of humor on the Instance and there are a lot of like minded individuals in the guild. There are also a lot of people who aren't, and that's ok! The tag over all our heads reads "Alea Iacta Est", not "The Instance's Guild". Gchat is not the place to showcase how funny or cool you are. It's a place to make initial connections and ask for and offer aid to fellow guildies. Once you get to know members of the guild, you can be as whacky and outlandish as you want to be in party chat, your own chat channel, or the Questing channels in Vent.
Get Ventrillo and a Headset!!!
Hang out in the Shady Tavern and meet your fellow guildies in Voice. Or, if that's not your thing, at least have these options available for running instances. You will make better connections and build stronger bonds when you can actually talk to your fellow guildies. We have these tools available to you for free (well, you gotta buy your own headset), use them! (Also, remember that the Quest, Raid, and Battleground channels are Do Not Disturb. Stick to the Shady Tavern or the RP channel unless otherwise invited.)
Attend Guild Events!
Guild events are a great place to meet fellow guildies! Don't worry about your level, dying is half the fun! Fear not, we will Rez you if the need is called for. There are always a bunch of higher levels around to help you not die so much, and here in AIE, we look out for our own! Pay attention to the forums for Event dates and times and watch your in game calendar.
Make /who alea your friend!
You'll notice right away that not everyone shows up on the guild list.