Event History

Riku was given the task of auditing the Department of Flight Studies which included Starfighter Studies, Capital Starship Studies, Astronomy Studies, and Freighters/Transports Studies. All in all, this is over 20.000 words of content that he's had to fact-check, spell-check and rewrite. That means going through every statement and every statistic and comparing it to the Wookiepedia (and his own considerable knowledge) to ensure it was still canon. In addition he's gone through each revised course word for word, making sure that the whole course flowed well as it was read. I even made him redo Starfighter Studies when Rogue One and Possessions came out.

Riku didn't stop there though. He's gone through every single exam too, making sure that their subjects and desired answers were still on-par with what he had written in the course notes. One of the goals of the Audit was to remove the dreaded 'answers vary' answer keys, which Riku replaced with concise and clear descriptions of what the intended answer should look like. Combining all these tasks, it takes roughly eight hours per course to finish them completely, including markdown coding. That means he's spent 32 hours pouring over wiki articles, rewriting courses, looking for images, and coding SA articles.

That amount of effort deserves a reward in my opinion, so I am happy to lend my recommendation to award Riku with his first ever Sapphire Blade. Congratulations!

-Marcus Kiriyu
Praetor to the Headmaster

This is overdue. I inherited Riku from the previous administration, who had been going through some real life time constraints. As a result, this man's accomplishments kept getting missed and glossed over. I'll take some of the blame for this, based on my old-school mindset and push toward larger and larger rewards. At the end of the day, it has been 9 months as Aedile that he has served quite admirably.

Riku has been my left hand since I have decided to unretire. He has been in almost constant contact with me, despite a five hour time difference and hectic work schedules. In the rebuilding of Marka Ragnos, he has been instrumental in helping to run the Siege of Heaven competition, between brainstorming, planning, grading and writing the official fictional account of the event, That was a month's worth of meetings, plotting and planning and several thousand words of work on it's own, given it was the first major project of its kind in HMR for some time. Pushing forward, he has helped to brainstorm and plan the currently running 'Sands of Time' event, constantly in discussion with me about particulars and possibilities for the event. In addition, he has worked behind the scenes on numerous updates and tweaks to the existing HMR fictional entities (like Kar Alabrek and the cathedral) and works (such as the Tarthos reborn planning doc), bringing them up to date and modernizing them. In addition, he has helped to proof and direct DarkHawk in his fictional direction as well as proofread and tweak my own fictional releases.

For the raw numbers portion; Riku has 16 competitions that he has helped to organize or grade. You could also look at his great record of participation himself (as I am a huge proponent of 'leading from the front') of having participated in 44 competitions since taking on the role, accumulating a tidy pile of crescents and clusters, including two of the pretty difficult to acquire diamond crescents. this shows a dedication to many of the aspects of the leadership of the House. In addition, he has served on the Shadow Academy staff, but his work there would be better elaborated by the Headmaster.

His work has been critically useful to my plans for the house, for the preparation of our members for greater involvement in the club, including the runup to the coming wars. He is one of the best Aediles that I have worked with, which is saying something, considering how little on-the-job training he had prior due to circumstance. I am more than happy to request that Riku Keibatsu be awarded with a Sapphire Blade for his efforts thus far, and as thanks for being such an integral part of the summit.

Thank you, Op.

~Muz Ashen, the Lion of Tarthos

Riku has spent the last 9 months working two jobs for the Brotherhood, first as Aedile of House Marka Ragnos, where he has learned on the job, most notably from the previous Grand Master. Secondly, Riku has served 6 months as Magistrate to the Headmaster, where he was heavily involved in rewriting courses and the auditing process.

Riku is hard working, dedicated and is always available to his members. He gives his opinion frankly and openly with Clan events, competitions and fictional direction. We can rely upon him to always give us feedback.

I consider Opie a good friend, both within and outside the Brotherhood. He's come far since joining Naga Sadow, even though he doesn't realise it. Riku is one of those members who puts themselves down, instead of realising and admitting just how great a member they are. Sure, he may have spammed the Voice's inbox with his constant CS changes, but I'm sure they'll get over it.

Locke has spoken amply about why Riku deserves this Sapphire Blade and I'm pleased to support it. Riku provides succour to me as a member, he listens, he advises and he helps. His members, his colleagues in the summit and his compatriots in other units via telegram in the Fiction, Art and Gaming channels.

Riku has worked his arse off, and yet he's sadly been missed due to changes in leadership. Despite that, Riku has continued to serve, refusing to slow down, even talking about postponing date nights to get the job done. Sometimes you have to remind him to put real life first.

Dedication, kindness and camaraderie.

Riku has them in spades.

Congratulations on your Sapphire Blade, Riku. You've done me proud, you've done CNS proud and you've done yourself proud. See this Sacramental as a token of our appreciation for your hard work.

Proconsul of Naga Sadow

In my six month term as Quaestor, I was able to choose an Aedile to help serve the House of Marka Ragnos. The one I chose was Riku. Together we tried to provide some entertainment and fun to the house through a competition event called Rest and Relaxation House Marka Ragnos Style. The event lasted a month and took about a week of planning, editing, and submitting. He helped with organizing, gave solid ideas and thoughts, and helped me as a judge in a few of the competitions. If you give him a gameplan, he will take it and run with his own flair of creative ideas added to the mix.

He also worked hard to encourage participation. As part of a boost and revitalizing activity within our house, Riku would send out emails every week to check activity and encourage our members who may not have telegram to participate and enjoy their time in the house. It helped me to find a bit more time working on other projects for the house members and reduced the stress of having to worry about activity all the time. I always had a report that I could use to see what areas we could strengthen and create a better environment for our house. For that, I thank Riku very much.

Overall, I have really enjoyed working with him on competitions, love his encouragement to participate and can't wait to see what he can come up with next as an Aedile to the new Quaestor.

Congrats to you, Riku!

This could not have come to a better person. Raider Keibatsu has significantly helped me throughout his time as my Aedile. He has guided me through my time as a Battle Team Leader with whatever issues that have come up. He also went out of his way and guided and aided me throughout my first comp organization, promoting said comp and finalizing that comp with grading. He has made me more eager to organize competitions on my own and gave me tools to get my Battle Team more involved in participating them. For me, as a BTL I see no reason why great things should not be bestowed upon Raider Keibatsu as his willingness to help towards the HMR and battle teams is without question truly an asset we cannot lose.

Warrior DarkHawk BTL Night Hawks

Since his last merit award, 9 months ago, Master Sith Bloodfyre-Tarentae has participated in 18 competitions earning 1 Crescent with Sapphire Star and 1 with Emerald Star and 4 Clusters of Earth and no less than 8 Clusters of Ice.

As Proconsul of Clan Tarentum, Bloodfyre has helped Farrin when he was Consul and now helps me run Tarentum. He's the greatest adviser a Consul could ever want with years of experience backing him up. Beef, as his friends call him, has posted 10 news posts or reports and has organized 11 competitions. Among those competitions the's a big event which Bloodfyre and Farrin have organized clan wide with great success called March to Dathomir. He has written the fiction for the event and has amounted 4200 words under his belt since his last medal. Sith Bloodfyre is in charge of the fictional development of Tarentum and is now in the process of organizing a inter-clan feud which I hope will have the same success as the last one he organized with Clan Plagueis: Forged Alliances.

Beside being the Proconsul of Tarentum, Bloodfyre has found the time to be the Left Hand of Justice and a Fist Staff Magistrate. All of that while being a father of two beautiful kids. If that's not amazing, I don't know what is!

Bloodfyre has been in Tarentum the entire time I've been here, and has always been the Ghost Dragon, the Grand Chamberlain, one of the most prominent Tarentae, at various times Consul or Proconsul, and throughout that time he has consistently been one of the leaders and guiding voices in Tarentum. We would not be anything like the same without him. He's our cheerleader, our mentor, our historian, and above all our friend. He works tirelessly for the betterment of the Clan and all its members.

The March to Dathomir event was largely his doing, involving a long running story arc and a series of competitions that drew the entire Clan together in battle and furthered our Clan's story.

Sith Bloodfyre-Tarentae (Beef) is one of Tarentum's pillars. He was there, part of our past, he's here now, creating our future.

You could look at Beef as Tarentum's godfather. For many Tarentum is not just their Clan, it's their family, and Beef is more than often the one who's making that bound last.

Beef is always thinking two steps ahead when it comes to Tarentum's future, gladly bringing in new ideas and listening to those of members.

I'm here for little more then a year now, meeting lots of people. But none left an impression on me like Beef did. His vision, his dedication, his friendship... few of the many reasons that I'm proud to serve alongside him on Tarentum's Summit.

Beef, more than anyone, you deserve this Sapphire Blade as recognition for your efforts to make all of Tarentum shine, over and over again.

I am honoured to be recommending Beef for this Sapphire Blade. He has been a hard working and dedicated member of my staff since I took on the role of FIST. Constantly active and driven, he has helped me settle in as well as continuing to help members of the Brotherhood in the gaming environment.

During his time inside of the FIST Office he has constantly been around to give feedback and input into new ideas inside the Telegram channel, as well as constantly monitoring the updates for gaming platforms that are coming out. He also keeps active and involved inside of Star Wars The Old Republic, though with changes taking place to that game, I find myself turning to Beef for advice and guidance on how to adapt for members of the Brotherhood. With the constant updates and changes that have taken place here Beef has now stepped out of his comfort zone.

Before being dedicated to TOR he has now become a full time Magistrate, and has already jumped straight into the work load. Since stepping up in the Office he has already got involved in the wiki audit, commenting and recommending changes instantly reading over each of the Wiki pages that the gaming office has under its control and bringing to light the information that is out of date, incorrect or needs editing and began to compose a full list for the task to be handed out to members of the FIST Office.

Beef also continues to answer members' questions on Telegram, helping to give them guidance and direction with gaming questions. As well as motivating members to game, this is something I always love to see inside of my office and one that I always try and maintain.

For his guidance, efforts behind the scenes and his hard work I am happy to see Beef receive this SB. Keep up the hard work buddy and keep pushing yourself everyday, I continue to look forward to working with you inside of the FIST Office in the future.

FIST of the Brotherhood

In the years I’ve known Warp, I’ve found him to be a man of many talents. As Battleteam Leader of the Nighthawk, he has kept his members consistently engaged and active, supplying a slew of activities that leaves no one missing out on the opportunity to participate in the activities available to Dark Brotherhood members.

But one thing that Warp is passionate about is being a contributing member of the DB Gaming Community, and in that capacity, he has provided numerous competitions, not just for the Nighthawk, but for all of Arcona and the Dark Brotherhood itself to enjoy. I will let others speak about Warp’s contributions to the DB-wide Gaming Community. It is his impact on Arcona that I want to talk about today.

In every major DB-wide or Clan versus Clan event, there is one sphere of activity that always features in it, and those are the gaming competitions. With this in mind, Warp has created a series of competitions for his fellow members to participate in and sharpen their gaming skills at various platforms; Arcona Gaming Dominance.

The AGD event is a series of competitions that run for eight weeks and features various gaming platforms that is supported by the Dark Brotherhood in two parallel series, allowing our members to participate in virtually any platform they desire in the Free Play series of the competition; a Cluster Race in which all platforms are supported. The second series focuses specifically on various games for each week, oftentimes focusing on certain settings and modes that members might be weak in, other times favored settings in which fun is the ultimate goal.

The numbers speak for themselves. In AGD #1, there was a grand total of 17 participants, 16 competitions hosted, and 104 unique submissions! By any standard, this is an excellent outcome for a major Clan competition! AGD #2 is now under way, with 16 competitions currently set up!. I am very excited to see the results and everyone having fun with it! What I do know, though, is that due to his passion and ability to rally members, Clan Arcona continues to have over 2/3rds of the GMRG Top 9 each Quarter over the past Year.

A Sacrificial Blade is a recognition of one’s outstanding service to their Clan and/or to the Dark Brotherhood. For Rulvak ‘Warp’ Qurroc, it is in recognition for his hard work and passionate service for both Arcona and the Dark Brotherhood. And it is very well deserved! Congratulations, Warp! I look forward to seeing you reach even greater heights!

Larrik Dul’vak Aedile of Galeres

When I first met Warp I didn’t know how much of an impact he would have on my day to day life. Another member I was playing Destiny with (Esca/Arcia) grabbed his friend so we could play one of the weekly strikes. My first impression was “damn, this guy is good.” Time passed on and he had helped us finish an incredible amount of activities. He finally joined the Brotherhood and even then I still underestimated him. I thought he would just be there so we could submit clusters and not really participate in much else. How wrong I truly was. While Warp is one of the best gamers, especially in shooters, that we’ve got in the Brotherhood he has shone as a leader and producer.

On top of nonstop Telegram activity and grooming his Battleteam for success he recently ran an extremely successful Destiny event which had 19 unique participants across 8 competitions. This was a great help to the Fist Office, because of it’s popularity and our ability to focus on promoting additional games.

Warp is one of the most patient and helpful guys you’ll ever play with. He’s always willing to help you accomplish your goals. Since he was last recognized he has completed a multitude of Raids, Strikes, Crucible matches, and other activities that don’t award clusters. He has impacted an astounding 29 members within the Brotherhood including: Sarin, Turel. Celahir, Dracaryis, Mako, myself, and many others. This adds up to hundreds of hours helping us all gear up, reach that next light level, improve our skills, or just have fun.

We can’t thank you enough for all your contributions, Warp. I’m honored to help add this Sapphire Blade to your plethora of medals. Congratulations!

Ernordeth Puer-Irae Praetor to the Fist

I don’t get to really chat with Warp much, don’t have too many chances to just sit down with the guy — but that’s not a bad thing. I don’t much chat with Warp because he’s always working on something. He’s always working to improve the gaming community and promote gaming activity somewhere and somehow. He’s not the type to be loud about this work, except to invite others to join him, participate, and find friends. He’s not the type to ask for or expect anything, except to see his fellow Brethren logging into Destiny or whatever other game, with their DJB gamer tag live, ready and raring to play and advertise our club. He’s the type of person who, at the end of the day, has quietly accomplished multitudes, whether it’s in bringing home Clusters, running his gaming competitions, or discussing specific gaming training and scheduled gaming nights in a thirty-something email chain. I don’t get to chat with Warp much, but when I do, it’s always to see him doing more of the same — good work, and dedicated work. We could ask for no more, and could give no less than is appropriate.

Congratulations on this Sacramental, my friend. And thank you.

Atyiru Caesura Entar

Consul of Clan Arcona

The Sapphire Blade is awarded to those who show long term commitment and loyalty to their unit. Warp does this in a quiet way, letting his actions and consistency speak for themselves. On paper, his statistics support everything you look for in both a leader and battleteam leader. His reports are always informative, on time, and thoughtful. Beyond that, he is an invaluable facet of some of the DB’s most popular platforms. As a fellow Destiny player, Warp is always the first person to offer a hand to any member looking to get into Destiny. This willingness to help others adds to his stellar activity record, and leads him to have an endearing and positive impact on the Brotherhood Gaming community on the whole. When you think of gaming in Arcona, Warp has been the poster child and forerunner. He leads by example, and encourages others around him to do the same. And that’s what you look for when awarding a Sacramental.

Congratulations, Warp. I’m so proud of how you’ve grown as a member and leader from the time you decided it would be cool to join this crazy club just to get credit for Destiny. You’ve become a big part of the unit, and the larger club, and I’m proud to serve alongside you in Clan Arcona as a classmate and friend.

Combat Master DB Gamer Scrub

Since becoming Shan's Aedile in February, I've had a front-row seat for Mako's influence over the House and COU in general. I think A'lora aptly covered the specifics in terms of Crescents, Clusters, and competitions, but there are a few items that I think deserve special attention.

Mako came to Satele Shan with an explicit philosophy that the House Summit should lead from the front. He's done that, not only through general participation, but by doing 9 of the 11 competitions in the Odan-Urr/Plagueis feud. That's the second highest participation in the House and one of the highest in the Clan.

Mako was tasked with developing a moon or planet for the House in the Clan's new system, and the way he handled it demonstrates his qualities as a leader. Mako struck a difficult balance between promoting active conversation among House members and keeping that conversation friendly and useful. Once we had an idea of what our members wanted out of the new planet, Mako was steadfast in ensuring that their wishes were foremost in our minds during the development of the planet. And, although he did have help from the rest of the House Summit, Mako is responsible for the majority of the Shan planet's final write-up.

When it comes to general impact, Mako has been one of the Clan's most active members on Telegram and constantly urges members to "Get it! GET IT!" and participate in whatever activities they can. He's a fixture in the COU gaming scene and a great friend to many in Odan-urr.

Congrats on the award, Mako. And thanks for being a great role model for a very green Aedile.

I am honoured to be recommending Mako for this Sapphire Blade. His hard work and contribution towards the FIST staff has been outstanding and deserving of recognition. Always giving his all towards the work he does in the FIST office and setting an example to members around him.

Mako is always hard working and a key part of the FIST Office, he provides members with competitions to get involved in as well as making sure members get rewarded for the Galaxy of Hero Competitions. Every discussion that has been made since I stepped into the FIST Office he has been a part off. It's key to get the input of everyone of my staff members before deciding what to do and Mako is no exception. Honest and open he always brings new ideas to the discussion table. Mako steps up to the mark in gaming channels helping people with questions to get an answer quickly. Always trying to bring a better experience to gamers of the Brotherhood. As part of my FIST staff Mako also helps processing the gaming submissions that come into the office, keeping the queue down as always helping things run smoothly from day to day.

For his hard work and dedication I am happy to see Mako receive this Sapphire Blade. Keep up the hard work dude and it's a honour and privilege to have you on my FIST Staff.

Mako Henymory is one of the most shining members of Clan Odan-Urr. A stalwart leader and a steadfast member. Mako has not only displayed an extraordinary level of activity (participating in numerous competitions, accumulating hundreds of Clusters and Crescents and running multiple competitions himself, what has been mentioned by A'lora Kituri), but has also proved himself to be an excellent and dedicated leader of House Satele Shan as well as superb Magistrate to the Fist.

What is more, Mako is always there to provide invaluable advice to other members and leaders of the Clan. He expresses his opinions and thoughts in a mature and precise way, always being a voice of reason.

A Sapphire Blade is awarded for "consistent long-term service to one's Clan". I believe tha Mako has more than fulfilled this requirement by his dedicated service to our Clan. Congratulations!

I have one word for Lexiconus Qor: Dedication. Lexiconus's activity speaks for itself, but what is really impressive is how much work he is willing to put towards fulfilling the role of Quaestor. He will do whatever needs to be done to ensure its success. I applaud his attitude towards the House and its development. It has led him to take on tasks that not everyone has been willing to take on. A great example of this is wiki work. Wiki work can be a horrible burden for some, but Lexi takes to it like a squid in water.

Additionally, I appreciate his open-mindedness in my feedback as to how to improve the House and help everyone in it. It speaks a lot to his character and willingness to work together with others. Overall, his attitude, work ethic, and dedication to House Imperium paired with his lead from the front attitude with activity are more than deserving of this award.

pours bottle of sriracha over Lexi's head

Congrats my friend. Or rather as I prefer to call you: Sushi. Well deserved! Bravo! GG!

~AED Blade Ta'var

Lexiconus has never ceased to impress after joining CSP as a summit member and it's been great to have him on the team. It can sometimes take a while to adjust when people join a new clan directly into the summit, but Lex wasted no time in engaging with the Scholae community and integrated immediately. Lex leads from the front, maintaining an excellent participation record himself while inspiring others to do their best for the house. Under his command, Imperium dominated the house feud with Excidium and were an excellent force in the clan feud against CNS.

Lex is always coming up with new ambitious ideas for competitions, events, and fictional background for the club. Regardless of how many of these go ahead Lex is always willing to suggest new things, and is a very valuable member of our summit. We're very happy to have him with us.

Elincia

Lexic was quick to offer his help in any way possible and keeps that promise open whenever needed. Unlike many he has a work ethic that helps him see things through to completion. He assisted in updates to multiple NPC Character Sheets and Wiki pages in support of the Voice Staff earlier this year among busy efforts on other activities, with little oversight. His proactive approach was appreciated and if only one small example in a body of accomplishments, it's worth noting as a piece of what makes this award make sense. Congratulations Lexic.

Evant Taelyan, Voice of the Brotherhood

There is much to be said about Lexiconus. A caring friend, a dedicated leader, a blazing bonfire of activity. It’s hard to not go on and on. He is the kind of guy who will rush into a burning house for his clanmates. Ever present and always active, his mind is constantly analysing the situation; considering how to improve his house, how to ensure his wards are content and entertained, how to improve himself and aid those him do the same, etc. CSP and House Imperium would be much different places without his influence. He is constantly involved in clan-level decisions and isn’t afraid to speak his mind, an important trait for any self-respecting leaders. Always, he stands by his people and ensures they are treated with the utmost care.

He is the kind of guy who seeks out the opinions of others not for a pat on the back but because he genuinely cares about development and doing right by those he calls friends. Few concern themselves with the effect they have on others, yet he does, and always thrives to be better. If he stumbles, he gets back up, redoubling in efforts. Few are as ambitious as he is in the way he runs his House and the frequency at which he conjures up excellent ideas.

He has effectively led House Imperium not only through a House feud (Subterfuge) but through a demanding inter-clan vendetta. Despite such an heavy charge, he launched head first into conflict ensuring that he did as much as humanly possible to aid his clan achieve victory.

We are lucky to count that puffed-up, cake-loving squidface amongst our ranks.

A most hearty congratulations to a hell of a guy!

Lexiconus Qor, a name that was once unknown to the Clan of Scholae Palatinae 10 months ago. When Lexic submitted an application to be an Aedile, As Xen stated, it was apparent that we had to ensure that Lexic was a part of this great Clan. He became the Aedile of Imperium, in close collaboration with Dante to make Imperium the best it could be. Once Dante stepped down, it was time for Lexic to step up and take the reigns of the House that he just got his feet wet with. however it was much more as Lexiconus took the responsibility in full stride and put himself in front for the benefit of others in his house. His efforts have paid off and he brought his house to victory against Excidium in the House Feud. He demonstrated what it is of having great leadership. He continues to strive with open collaboration with peers on multiple forms of contact and updates with monthly reports. He ensures that members are entertained through various competitions and motivating events.

He demonstrates a lead by example attitude through his participation in 124 competitions. A lot would think that is a large number and it is, because he has also participated in various competitions such as 21 fiction competitions and 13 gaming competitions, just to name a few of the many. He has also organized 17 competitions while co-organizing one competition. he has also earned a dark cross.

I could go on but I have a feeling that this is the beginning of what I have seen and will continue to see from Lexic. Lexiconus Qor, a name that quickly became one with the Clan and is now well known in the DB community and everywhere in the Scholae Family. He is well respected among his house and I have deep respect for him and look forward to our continued collaboration in each house and for the future of the clan of Scholae. Congrats on a well deserved Achievement! Drinks are on You!

Squidward, you have always been a driving force here in Imperium and a lot of members have looked up to you for it. You continue to prove day in and day out that Xen made a good choice as our leader. I may not have always been the easiest to talk to but you have handled your self admirably. This is long overdue and you are very deserving. Shadow Guard stands behind you.

Lex, the Squid... what can I say about him. We reached leadership together and we have been very close since then. We have "grown" together and I've seen how he was able to take the reigns of House Imperium and turn it into an extremely dynamic force able to take on anything. A charismatic leader, a man who knows when to speak and what to say, for me Lexiconus is an example of what a leader is.

He led his House to crush ours, and then he moved his unit once again to win a Clan feud. He never fails, and is one of the pillars of Scholae Palatinae. Without him in the Clan Summit, none of us would have been where we are.

I serve next to him with pride, and I look forward to the future of this clan with him as my brother in arms. Well done, Lex!

“Consistency is far better than rare moments of greatness.” Zakath is one member in Arcona who is consistently exceeding expectations. Ninj provides consistent greatness to the entire clan.

He’s simply one of the most caring people I know and is always willing to help everyone in any way he possibly can. Dan is always on Telegram contributing to conversations, answering questions, and providing feedback. This isn’t just with members of the summit, but each and every member in our clan. His unwavering commitment to daily tasks astounds me. Not only does he send regular communication to the members of his Battle Team and House Summit, but he asks questions about other’s roles to have a better grasp on the Brotherhood. One such example, I recently worked as a Guest Speaker for the Post-DJK Mentorship Program in Arcona, where I gave a detailed look into the Office of the FIST. Ninj not only provided excellent questions, but helped me come up with the idea of creating a ten minute instructional video to better explain what we do. When he isn’t doing something like that, he’s proofing fiction for members, getting commissions for multiple characters (that are not him) and has bought games for people just so they can earn clusters and have fun. It’s not the money that stands out. It’s his character and willingness to help.

Zakath has been a great friend to me and become one of the members I trust most. I’m pleased to see you progress. Congratulations!

Ernordeth Puer-Irae Praetor to the Fist

A classic Sapphire Blade recommendation will tell you that a member has shown great, consistent effort for their clan or position over time. Ninj - or Larrik, Zakath, Dan, whatever you may call the man aside from "friend" - is an extraordinary example of that statement. His outlined personal activity in the space of half a year is already commendable, but it's a drop in the bucket of all that he does. Many of my fellow summiteers have talked about how at its core, this club is its people; that if nothing else here interests you, the people will. They will engage you and befriend you. And that, I say today, is Ninj's greatest quality.

Ninj is one of those members that sincerely gives everything - and then some - back. He incorporates countless ideas into competitions, not only his own, but those of the teammates he speaks with, both in soliciting feedback and just from casual discussion; if someone mentions they wished they had some prompt to work with, Ninj is the first to write it down and sprint to the MAA office. He's equally attentive in other affairs, always talking with his clanmates and brethren from around the db, trading a constant stream of friendly chatter and encouragement in turns with reminders about competitions or driving fictional and character development discussions. He's a big supporter in the DB Art Community and now vocal in the DB Fiction chat as well, offering what advice and cheer he can and contributing practice drawings and fictional queries. Besides this, Ninj is also an active and aspiring leader, previously a Battleteam Sergeant and now Leader, working tirelessly on member engagement, identity development, fiction updates, and reports. And yet, little does all mentioned here seem to really encompass the spirit of Ninj's generosity and caring, how much he really tries to give to everyone around him.

We can only hope, in the end, that these accolades in some way show it, and our appreciation for him. Thank you, Dan, for all you strive to do better and better each day. Know we're proud.

Atyiru Caesura Entar

Consul of Clan Arcona

Dan is an individual to aspire to, his record with regards to activity I think others have covered quite extensively already. I'd like to use this opportunity to speak of him as a leader and a close friend.

Most do not know of his personal struggles and I think that speaks for itself, Dan is never one to burden others but seems to have an affinity of knowing when his members are struggling. It's like a knack or an instinct he has, he just knows and has an amazing way of being able to get in touch and supporting you when you least expect to see anyone. I have never gone a week without him and that has been a part of my life since I've been a part of the DB.

He's always there, always keeps in touch and aware of how his members are keeping. He's never forceful with activity and yet has a way to make you want to do more and works with his team to support whatever projects they are hoping to get off the ground.

Not only the above, he has essentially created a Battleteam from scratch, I don't think many within our community can boast of such an achievement in the first place. Yet he has managed to create something unique and exciting.

The Tal'mahe'Ra has many sources of inspiration but is also a great testament to his ability to work with others. Compromise is a skill that few ever learn but also knowing when to stand one’s ground for the things that are important is equally valuable, Dan is and has always known when to balance the two.

Dan also values the fact that his members have different skills and tastes when it comes to their hobby. It's a tricky thing to balance and yet he seems to be able to do it without finding it difficult. Again it is something the whole team is grateful for. Be it character development to gaming no one is left wanting for something.

As someone I consider a close friend I'm so proud to see Dan's hard work be recognised by writing this. To me he is family both within and outside the Brotherhood, and it is my hope that I will be able to write many more recommendations such as this one in the future.

Nath Agrona