Most people come up with something meaningful and maybe a little trite for a recommendation in their opening section, and I'd like to avoid that. So. Here is a list of reasons why Atra Ventus has earned this Sapphire Blade and also why he is a top bloke.
Atra is easily the consummate leader in a social club. His leadership and organisational skills are impeccable; he takes on his massive workload and handles it without complaining or any fuss. He is always professional even when he has no need to be due to personal involvement and never lets his feelings get in the way of his work. He knows the ins and outs of the DJB and always puts his Clan before his personal wants. He tirelessly works for the betterment of the club as a whole as best he can, volunteering for a number of different positions just to make sure the job is done correctly. He is knowledgeable and friendly, highly approachable and personable at all times.
More importantly, on a personal level, he has been one of the four people that has shaped my career in the DJB directly thanks to his example. He has always provided me the best possible advice that he can give. Whenever I have silly ideas or something I want to present to my Clan Summit, he is my constantly available point of contact. Whatever means I require to get in touch with him, he willingly provided to make sure I could be more efficient and have my voice heard. He made sure my ideas maximised their potential and eliminated anything erroneous or extraneous. He helped me with my Tenebrae proposal and made sure my concepts were sound. He sat me down and taught me the ACC - heck, he did an entire battle with me in one night just to make sure I got qualified. He taught me a lot about TOR and Jedi Academy and how to improve my skills. He offered me feedback on writing. He helped with my graphics skills. Who else but someone who actually cared about his member base would do these innumerable things and more? These are signs of a man with limitless patience to put up with a total newbie, to make sure that they feel like they're getting involved and improve his Clan to its utmost. All of these sound like little things, but why else do we document these so that people can see the image of the person in their day-to-day work and each of their aspects?
If anyone in the DJB ever wants to be a leader, Atra Ventus is the person to admire. It is with great honour I write this recommendation for a Sapphire Blade for someone who has given me the support to come as far as I have. I hope that these words, Atra, are enough of a thank-you for everything you have ever done for me. I would not be here without you.
--Mirus Pepoi Cavataio, Battleteam Leader of Tenebrae
Ever since I rejoined the DJB and Naga Sadow, Atra has been one of the most communicative and open people I have encountered. Always open for new ideas and always ready to hop in and help with issues or questions I had. In my eyes he has been a proper Proconsul in everything he did, from encouraging the membership to join in the Crusade, to opening Clan projects to me and including me in Summit talks about them.
So far what I've seen from him is commendable and I have seen him included in every major current or past Clan or House project. He is giving his all to this Clan and more importantly, to this Club. I would, humbly, like to insert my footnote in the long list of recommendations for this award. I don't know anyone more worthy of it. Congrats my friend, and I hope you keep Naga Sadow on it's feet for a long time to come.
Proconsul Atra Ventus is one of those leaders that make the Brotherhood what it truly is, an enjoyable and social diversion from real life. To accomplish this, one must dedicate a lot of spare time and effort, which he always has and continues to do. His has always led Clan Naga Sadow by example, pushing every member to their potential. A perfect testament to that claim is his recent performance in the Dark Crusade, going 11/11 in all of the offered events. Another aspect of Atra that has always stuck out amongst others is his commitment to the development of CNS lore. While he has spearheaded a lot of Summit projects in his tenure, one recent project stands out amongst the lot. Along with Consul Locke Sonjie, he has been able to hammer out the details and guidelines and reintroduce Naga Sadowâs Black Guard. Using the Dark Crusade to gauge activity, he rewarded our highest participants with commissions to the new Black Guard, who once again defend the Summit of Naga Sadow. The transition from Quaestor to Proconsul has not once slowed Atraâs stride or performance. Since his last promotion he has been the recipient of many awards, both competition and merit, including a collection of Novae and Dark Crosses. Atra continues to bring initiative and leadership that Clan Naga Sadow ultimately benefits from. It is without hesitation that I request that Proconsul Atra Ventus be rewarded a Sapphire Blade for his leadership and contributions to CNS.
OT Kairus
Quaestor of House Shar Dakhan
Atra is one of the few members of Naga Sadow who I can honestly say is working for the benefit of the Clan and Club before all else. His work has largely been behind the scenes working alongside both DC and senior members of the Clan alike to get things in place which will benefit his membership and make them want to participate. Throughout the first two chapters of the first phase of the Crusade he has been a constant voice on the mailer offering support and direction for people who are unsure of how to proceed. All while doing this, maintaining a flawless 100% completion of these events on his own, he has been working on projects such as restoring Naga Sadow's Battleteams, the Order of the Black Guard and an internal ACC Dojo to improve members combat writing as they've requested. Atra's work has succeeded in bringing quite a few of our younger members to the forefront and rewarding them for their efforts by bringing them into projects alongside the summit. While these efforts are seen by our increased presence in events like the Crusade and the mailer or are even applauded by the masses; it is often simply a pat on the back saying "Good Job." It is for this lack of a proper response in the face of a man who has done so much for our Clan and the Brotherhood at large that I lend my recommendation with the others gathered here in awarding Atra for his efforts. Congratulations, my friend, you've earned it.
Exarch Methyas Pepoi L'eonheart
Consul Emeritus, Naga Sadow
As of writing, Atra Ventus, or Snowy as he has now renamed himself, has been a member of the Dark Brotherhood for 2 years, 8 months, and 18 days. I'll say that again: 2 years, 8 months. While to the average teenager that probably sounds an astronomically long period of time, to the rest of us two and a half years is short enough that we can count it on our fingers (assuming we have any left). Why do I dwell on this? Simple: because despite having only been a member, and now leader, of Clan Naga Sadow for a comparatively short period of the Clan's total history, given that the Clan dates back more than 14 years to the late 1990s, Atra has very rapidly risen through the ranks and established himself as one of the foremost figures in the Clan, a quality that has been most valuable to Clan Naga Sadow during a period when it - as well as the Dark Brotherhood as a whole and even the Star Wars brand itself as it now moves into new ownership and into new waters with products such as The Old Republic - have together all been moving very fast, changing and evolving into something that could only have been dreamed of back in those early years when Tron first founded the Clan. To be able to weather this change, to adapt with it, to constantly be at the front of things, is a difficult thing to do, but one that Atra has succeeded at with much gusto.
Whether it has been Atra's successful leadership as a Quaestor, and now Proconsul, of the Clan, or his personal activity during the Dark Crusade, or in the Clan's extended activities and internal storytelling, or his forward thinking and ingenuity in assisting in projects such as the run-on guidelines he drafted for the whole club, or his enthusiasm and setting the example in his delving into the world of video games or the regular competitions and run-ons from the VOICE's office. Whatever it is, Atra has jumped in, and, much more significantly, Atra has taken others with him on the ride, his appetite consequently rubbing off on them, bringing them into the world that is the Dark Brotherhood. These are all the qualities of a person who has readily established himself as a successful and efficient leader and as a role model that can, and indeed should, be held up for others to take inspiration from.
For all these things, and the many more that cannot be covered comprehensively, I extend my personal recommendation to this award and look forward to seeing what more is in store for Atra Ventus.
Congratulations, Snowy, you deserve it!
Darth Vexatus
Son of Sadow
There are only a few that climb the ladder of ranks very fast; Atra - Xue Long - is one of them. Not only he is a member for "just" 2 years and 8 months, he is furthermore already in the leadership position of a Proconsul. This is quite a straight forward career. He listens to people and considers their opinions - even if they oppose his. He is able to see what is best for the clan - and puts the needs of the clan above all. This is showing a huge devotion and loyalty. A trait to make people respect and look up at him.
On top he is an excellent writer - a fact he proved/proves by very often winning medals in writing competitions. He is no lazy Proconsul - he actively promotes activities and takes part himself. Whenever he takes part in a runon, he is thoughtful of getting people involved - often pushing his own character development aside - giving people the freedom to use e.g. the development runon as a playground for their own characters. He knows when there is the need to involves people in runons, walking the fine line of your own character development and helping others to do so.
I am also jealous of his numerous medals for playing ToR! Xue helped me in ToR for a bit with my own character.
Now to a side I never had suspected on him: Graphics. He has a knack for vectorising pictures and made even a version of Sildrin (I still need to put that one up on my Wiki :) ). He teached me how to do that. He has helped opening a door to a new area: the digital art - (even though I still feel way more comfortable with a pen and a sheet of paper).
You really deserve this Sapphire Letter Opener....errr... Sapphire Blade, Xue. I am proud of you! Keep up with that work.
Congratulations,
Xia Long (Sildrin).
Atra is the epitome of the word 'dedicated'. He is my right hand in Naga Sadow, and sometimes my left as well. Atra is the purveyor of many advancements and ideas in the Clan. He is always around and helps anyone he comes into contact with wherever he can. This is not limited to only Clan members; I have witnessed him helping others on IRC as well. In addition, Atra is highly active, setting a great example for regular members.
As Proconsul, Atra meets the requirements of his duties and more. He's come up with or made major contributions to multiple projects, which I'll mention here. First, the Black Guard: this thing has been mostly Atra and was his idea. Now, we've had projects to try to change or revitalize it before, but this is the first time that it has been seen through. We now have a new Black Guard roster, new fiction for them, and a new process in place to select new members of it, all largely thanks to Atra. There's no way we'd be near this far if not for him. Other projects include the War Report video that was released for CNS after Khar Delba. Atra headed and organized this project, which turned out to be a really cool thing for the Clan. He also led the discussion about the Clan's new motto and followed through with it to make sure it got done.
This is the thing I love most about Atra. He gets stuff done. He doesn't just talk about it. He doesn't start a project and let it slide into inactivity. Atra starts AND finishes things, most often in less time than it would take other people to brainstorm, and they're still high quality ideas. I don't know where I'd be without him. Probably still wondering how to make the Black Guard work...
Anyway, that was just a fraction of what Atra does. In order to completely realize how essential he is to the success of the Clan, I would have to cut off my hand (Proverbially, of course!), and live without it for a while. Atra has been this way for the nearly six months he's been Proconsul now, as well as before when he was Quaestor.
But that's not all. One might call someone a great leader for getting so much done. Or for having a fast turnaround time on recommendations, emails, or any other question I might pose. Or for having a solid thought on nearly everything. But Atra is more than that.
He competes, too. Atra fully completes everything that's thrown at him. Feuds with other units? Check. Crusade chapters? Check. Brotherhood-wide Runons, Clan competitions, Shadow Academy courses, basically anything that says 'active' in the Brotherhood? Check, check, and check.
And all that is in no small part why I feel Atra deserves this Sapphire Blade. He may never wield it, but at least it will match those awful blue robes he wears all the time.
Congrats, Atra!
- KAP Locke Sonjie
Consul of Clan Naga Sadow
Epis Locke Sonjie, 2013-04-12 16:04:24 UTC