There isn't a lot I can say about Arden, as I believe Viv has it summed up. A fantastic PCON and also Magistrate to the voice, he excels in all he does. He seems to have taken it upon himself to be the first and foremost when it comes to having fiction entries proofed and does it with great gusto. One can always rely on Arden to make sure your i's are dotted and t's are crossed whenever you ask for help. He's always been there to lend a helping hand to anyone who needs it and will go above and beyond the call of duty to make sure people in the Brotherhood are happy, be they Plagueis or otherwise, and is approachable and friendly. He is one of those rare people that one always finds it easy to get along with, even if you bug him or vice versa. I recommend Arden for a Sapphire Blade. This man is amazing and should be awarded for his work to the Brotherhood.

Arden has been an excellent Magistrate, assisting in multiple projects since the end of Fading Light. While the majority of both his tenure as a staff member, and mine as Voice, has been swamped with Vendetta-related activities, Arden none the less has demonstrated consistent activity that is deserving of acknowledgement. From his first days on staff, he and I have been planning projects and working together to make the Brotherhood a better place. He has focused on on two important projects as of late, both aimed at improving transparency in Voice office expectations of membership competitions and character sheets.

First, he has written up the Voice competition approval guidelines. Arden noticed quickly that while we were consistent in what and how we were remanding competitions, new members seemed to struggle with requirements the Voice's staff had for competitions. While we had previously talked about such requirements in reports, we did not have a single place to store them. Arden changed that, creating a Wiki page and writing up our requirements. Second, Arden undertook an evaluation and updating of our character sheet approval guidelines, focusing initially on aspect length, though it has since branched into a larger review and update of our guidelines to better assist members, hopefully limiting remands they receive. Arden consulted forty randomly selected aspects, catalogued the length and membership information, and reported the median and mean values for aspects, important information that allowed us to make a decision on recommended aspect length, and requirements on Aspect length in response to staff feedback on Aspects getting unwieldy. Furthermore, he streamlined sections of the guide and attempted to improve uniformity in language use, improving clarity and readability.

While I can't speak directly to Arden's work within Plagueis, his work for the Brotherhood as a whole has been exemplary so far. It is my honor to be part of his recommendation for a Sapphire Blade. Congratulations, Arden!

I start with a fact: without the neverending contributions, dedication, hard work, and loyalty of Arden, Clan Plagueis would not only be a very different place but it may well not be a clan at all.

During the Plagueis house feud “Sphere of Influence,” Arden was instrumental in its crafting, promotion, and success. He assisted Solus and myself in generating the plotline, helped write profiles for the NPCs, and most importantly pushed their house members to participate. The entire point of the feud was participation, and the work of the house summit was invaluable in generating that activity. He didn’t just tell people to participate, he participated himself- in nine of the eleven events (placing in the Top Five in most of those nine). Arden's efforts paid off.

Arden was promoted in November '13 for his leadership and participation during the Dark Crusade, and one need ask anyone in Plagueis to hear about how he hasn’t stopped being awesome since.

First, after Plagueis resounding success during the Crusade, Arden assumed the vital position of House Rollmaster. Not an easy task, as any will tell, but he took up the call with vigor and eagerness. He crafted a great welcome email that he fired off to new joins within mere hours, following up as they moved through the early ranks. His clear organization and system of records through Google Drive made the transition to me as Rollmaster an easy one. Bigger still, Arden was key in developing Plagueis’ system of using the battle teams as training grounds for new members, almost House Rollmasters, until members have masters to guide them to DJK. Arden served as BTL and knew the importance of the position; as Rollmaster, Arden continued to support and encourage our BTLs even when the position can seem fruitless with dead joins.

Then the leadership went to work on our clanning proposal document. Monty, Bubba, Arden, Teylas, Slagar, and myself all participated in debate, discussion, and drafting of the proposal that was received well by Muz and Raken and turned Plagueis into a clan once again. Arden was a clear choice for a Quaestor position, and took up the mantle in House Karness Muur.

His performance is exceptional. There’s the usual - reports, hosting some competitions, keeping in touch with members, helping the BTL guide new joins into the experience, helping guide me into the RM position. Then there’s the extra awesome -- Arden is a crucial piece of Clan Plagueis’ fictional system of lore and history, working closely with Slagar and Teylas to develop our quasi-feudal system and craft our “masters from the shadows” style of roleplaying we now use. He is a strong and firm hand of Dread, even if HKM is fictionally the “subtle” ones.

This Sapphire Blade is a long time coming. Arden is one of Plagueis’ most active members, most lively members, most energetic members. He is a key piece in the puzzle of who we are, and for all of this work I am proud to put forth his first sacramental reward. Congratulations, Arden!

There's so much good I could say about Teylas and I'm sure a lot of it has been said by others. I'm not going to focus on the extensive list of things he's done to benefit both Plagueis and the Brotherhood as a whole. While there is no denying Teylas' efforts have been key to Plagueis getting to where it is today, I'm going to focus on something else, character. In short, Teylas has it in spades.

Despite our intense fictional rivalry, Teylas is someone who in actuality I value very much. He's always someone that looks out for the good of the unit, often above his own interests.Dedication, that's definitely a word that comes to mind when I think of him. Dedication to the clan, dedication to his friends, dedication to the Brotherhood as a whole. On top of all that, he's also one of the more meticulous and organized people I know. I've worked with him on several projects and he's always the one reminding me what I need to get done. He's always pushing me and others to do their best and that's a quality few people truly have.

For all his work while being such a great guy, he more than deserves this. Now, how do I keep him from plotting against me further...

Teylas is an enigma. Our Quaestor and Magistrate to the MAA, he does exatly what it says on the tin. He runs Plagueis with an iron fist, but wears velvet gloves to do so. He can kick some when it comes to getting people to do what needs doing, but is kind and gentle when people are in trouble and in need of help. He has been a rock to me as I stepped into the role of RM for Plagueis and without his help and a few others, I wouldn't have made the grade and would probably have stepped down. But now, thanks to his help, I am going from strength to strength with another move on the way shortly. Teylas deserves recognition for his leadership abilities, his willngness to help anyone and everyone and his guidance to all and sundry. If anyone needs help, Teylas will and can. Of his Magistrate appointment I know little of it's responsibilties. But if he excels in the role as much as he does elsewhere, I'm sure he is a fine Magistrate. On this basis, I recommend Teylas for a Sappphire Blade. He deserves the recognition to show he's loved and cherished for what he does.

I came across Farrin around the time Aabsdu returned to the staff as a Professor. The History Department was an outdated disaster in desperate need of a full overhaul. Considering the amount of work involved, Farrin was brought in to assist Aabsdu in his efforts and he truly impressed us all. Instead of patching up the existing courses, this duo started from zero and built a series of 8 courses that are completely separate from what we had before. This included research as well as writing a massive mountain of text. This project has become one of those milestones for the Academy. It has completely altered the way we look at creating courses as well as updating them. Where in the past, we remained within the structure of an existing course and just reworded or alter segments. This project has started a trend where we start from 0 and build a new replacement course to take the place of the outdated one. It also revolutionized the concept of future updates as it is written in such a way that we can easily insert segments as canon demands. An example would be the ease in which we will be able to insert content that will arrive with the “Revan” expansion of SWToR.

Based on his superb performance in this project, Farrin became a Magistrate to the Headmaster and he has yet to slow down in his assault on the outdated segments of the SA. I am not going to repeat everything the Headmaster has already mentioned, I am merely going to ask that anyone reading this goes to look at the History Department and the Core Department and look at the results of his work. Then realise that you can only “see” about 35% of everything he has done for the Shadow Academy. You will come to the same conclusion we have when we set out to award him this sacramental award.

There are few in the DJB, and even fewer in Scholae Palatinae who have shown the consistent long-term service that Dante has. You really have to look at all the places he touches to truly appreciate what he does. He is a leader, a teacher, a gamer, a writer, a strategist, and a friend. This request for a Sapphire Blade was earned for more than six months of competitions since the start of the year although it’s what started this recommendation, he’s seen plenty of medals for his participation in competitions already, but from over two solid years being a pillar and a leader in Scholae Palatinae without fail.

To go over his many accomplishments, he has participated in 34 competitions so far this year since he was last recognized for his efforts. This included all 7 events in both of the most recent Looking Home House wide events on Caina and Antenora, placing 1st and 3rd overall in both of these events through his quality entries in addition to his many crescents. During which he has earned countless clusters of fire and pendants of blood, and finding himself among the first list of members who protect a Dark Councilor.

He has spent the past 18 months as a Battle Team leader in the House. The majority of this running the second of the two Battle Teams along side me as BTL of Acclivis Draco. He set an example to all those in his team, promoting events, communicating and maintaining the team, running competitions as the need arose to provide content for the House membership. Most recently he stepped into the role to take on a 3rd Battle Team in the House, at the helm of the newly opened Battle Team Dormad Sol where he has quickly re-established the old fictional identity from his own past, managing his new team.

On top of this positional leadership, he remains a great resource of information from the past and his opinion is invaluable as we work to Imperialize the Royal House and sort out our past which he was part of to get our wiki up to date which will be key in larger scale DJB events the House will participate in. He was instrumental in a project I personally saw to completion to completely modernize and restructure our Scholae Palatinae Military to accommodate the new Acclamator ships with units he also helped to select and submit for purchase. The quality of the work that was accomplished in my project would not have been as high as it was without his valuable input. Beyond this project, he provides the same quick response and feedback to question after question about the House’s past and why things are the way they are to help shape our future. I can’t imagine not having this valuable resource around for the current summit.

He helps out more than the summit, he helps out the members as well. Taking on apprentices whenever asked, and pushing and doing whatever he can to develop them. He is constantly available on IRC and helping out members and teaching to expose all the great knowledge and skills he himself has developed over his long and expansive career in the DJB.

There are so many facets that make Dante a complete member who is truly invaluable. He continues on for his loyalty and faith in Scholae Palatinae and his own drive to make it better. It may have taken years to really fully be able to step back and see what he has done, what he has accomplished, without reward, for so long, but I think that it’s time now to see it all recognized with a Sapphire Blade. Congratulations Dante. I can’t imagine Scholae Palatinae without you.

Dante is the wily old codger of the House. He is one part mentor, one part military genius, one part best friend, one part genial uncle, and three parts vodka. To say that Dante has had an influence on House Scholae Palatinae and the DB is to undermine the sheer scale of work this man has put in. I team up with him regularly to wrestle the House's military into a working, well-oiled killing machine, and I think we've done a great job so far. Most of this work, honestly, is done in Dante's mind. I can provide colour commentary and suggest an idea or two, but the bulk of the military genius in the House resides with him. With his guidance, our military is on par with Clans who have won GJWs recently (thereby receiving more fleet points). And in a battleplan event, I'd give us even odds against any comers.

Dante is a magnificent beast of an individual, whose moral fiber and stalwart dedication to the House is an inspiration to us all. Thank you for your service.

Tarax...many things can be said for Tarax. But let's keep it at this.
Tarax is a long and hard pillar of Taldryan, perhaps even the Brotherhood as a whole. Tarax is the kind of stand-up man that is not afraid to voice his opinion, he isn't a "yes man" that will just sit back and nod silently. He actively contributes on many levels for Taldryan. To shed a light on what I mean: I struggled with my health for a good month earlier this year, and Tarax (on his own accord) stepped up to keep things in Dinaari going in orderly fashion. Whether that was by hosting competitions, keeping other members informed, or - even on the most basic level - just being there as an approachable quasi-summit member.
I have gotten to know Tarax since the start of the Crusade a good year and a half ago, and I can honestly say that I am happy to know him, and that I often strive to be the same kind of person he is. Sometimes he'll complain about having to complete so many activities, but at the end of the day, my inbox is filled with emails from everything that he does. But he a standout member, a member you can count on, and a member who will contribute to every aspect of the clan with an honest integrity that many lack. I wish there were more of his kind in Taldryan. It may be a louder place then, and it's possible that it may sometimes give me a headache, but it'll be a place filled with people I can count on to keep Taldryan a healthy and fun environment.
Tarax, never change. You've deserved this award, and I feel that it is overdue.

Tarax...many things can be said for Tarax. But let's keep it at this.
Tarax is a long and hard pillar of Taldryan, perhaps even the Brotherhood as a whole. Tarax is the kind of stand-up man that is not afraid to voice his opinion, he isn't a "yes man" that will just sit back and nod silently. He actively contributes on many levels for Taldryan. To shed a light on what I mean: I struggled with my health for a good month earlier this year, and Tarax (on his own accord) stepped up to keep things in Dinaari going in orderly fashion. Whether that was by hosting competitions, keeping other members informed, or - even on the most basic level - just being there as an approachable quasi-summit member.
I have gotten to know Tarax since the start of the Crusade a good year and a half ago, and I can honestly say that I am happy to know him, and that I often strive to be the same kind of person he is. Sometimes he'll complain about having to complete so many activities, but at the end of the day, my inbox is filled with emails from everything that he does. But he a standout member, a member you can count on, and a member who will contribute to every aspect of the clan with an honest integrity that many lack. I wish there were more of his kind in Taldryan. It may be a louder placer, and it may sometimes give me a headache, but it'll be a place filled with people I can count on to keep Taldryan a healthy and fun environment.
Tarax, never change. You've deserved this award, and I feel that it is overdue.

I have known Tarax for a number of years, and have seen him in different situations. It is astounding how much he has grown over the years, and has truly become an integral part of Taldryan. Since Taldryan has become a Clan Tarax has been at the forefront of both activity and leadership. Although not in a specific role as leader, he has continued to push others to participate and motivate where he could. He is a veteran of the Clan, and acts in a manner befitting that status. His role in creating activity for the entire Clan with his little competitions is a great example of that.

Also, his own personal activity has been great. When called upon he is always there to help out the Clan, and has played important roles in some of the more recent wins that Taldryan has garnered. He is active in all sorts of manner, equal to many in this club, and is a mainstay on IRC. Her personifies this Clan, and we are lucky to have him.

Tarax has been a dedicated and loyal member of the Dark Jedi Brotherhood for as long as I can remember. This dedication is often overlooked, but it should not be. Tarax is a constant force on IRC, a participant in all major events, a leader within his Clan, and one of the most active Dark Brotherhood members in term of news page commentary and visibility.

It is actually mind blowing that Tarax does not have a Sapphire Blade and this award is long overdue. Congrats buddy.

Trying to explain what Tarax means to Clan Taldryan isn't something one can easily do. I'm sure other people will list out the amount of activity Tarax generates for the Clan so that I don't have to. I'm sure other people will try to address just what it is that Tarax brings to us. What it is that he contributes. Some idiots out there might believe that Tarax is nothing more than a troll, that all he does is done to cause chaos and for his enjoyment.

Those people are only 20% right.

What Tarax is, beyond any other measure, is a motivator. His constant needling of the people around him and above him on the chain of command is nothing short of brilliant. He simply recognizes one simple thing: that in this place where we're constantly being told your shortcomings are okay because you're just a volunteer, motivation is key. If we're constantly being held to the standard that mediocrity is okay, we'll never grow. Tarax doesn't accept mediocrity, and he'll never allow us to simply sit on our laurels: he needles us until we grow, until we address our shortcomings, or until we rage-quit.

But that alone? It's not enough to justify the awarding of a Sapphire Blade, well, at least it's not enough to justify it to Tarax himself. Tarax doesn't compromise, which makes him a bit of an outlier in today's Dark Brotherhood, and along with not compromising, Tarax holds himself and others to a higher standard. He views what he does as nothing short of what an average member should do. Tarax doesn't think he's a standard that other people should aspire to, because he doesn't realize that his contributions, and activity, are far above what the average member does. He doesn't realize that, because that's how good he actually is.

The single biggest reason for Tarax to be awarded this Sapphire Blade is his self-sacrifice. Tarax is a servant of the Brotherhood. He serves it without any desire or need for recognition. He's recognized that ultimately, he's probably progressed as far as he'll go. But he still serves. He still constantly asks me for projects for him to work on. He asks me to help out with policy. He acts as a leader of men with no position to "justify" his leadership, because Tarax is a leader.

For the past few months, Tarax has been working on a guide to help new members understand and navigate the DB's Web properties better. He's been building this guide in his spare time, on top of all of his other commitments and activity. He's been building this guide simply because it might help us maintain a more accurate roster, and active membership. Most importantly, he's working on this not because someone asked him to, but because he saw the need and just stepped up to help.

Tarax deserves recognition for all that he does every day, and even more so for believing in his heart that he's not worthy of such recognition.

** thrust **

He is a black sheep, a permanent pariah. He asked no quarter of the bosses and none was given. He learned no lessons; he acknowledged no mistakes; he is as stubborn a Pole as ever stumbled out of Plagueis to take up the banner of Taldryan. He brooked no authority. He did what he wanted to do and he said what he wanted to say, and in the end he gave us the activity.

When thinking about writing this, it occurred to me that Tarax is an odd member. It isn't that he's a terrible human being (and he is), but rather, he exhibits all of the characteristics of a member far, far beyond his rank and positioned experience in the Brotherhood. He is able to advise our newest members on how things work (through his near constant IRC presence), and he offers both broad and specific policy and procedural advice to Adepts and Masters. Specifically, Tarax was an important part of the team that helped write (and proof) Taldryan's clanning document that was submitted and approved in early 2014.

In terms of raw activity - Tarax participated in all three major ACC activities this year (closed and open beta, as well as the Fading Light tournament), earning himself a buttload of Clusters of Ice in the process. He also participated in, was on the winning team (earning a Gold Nova), and was the MVP for the Fading Light run on. With that last distinction, Tarax earned himself the Sith Sword named Revelation. Finally, Tarax ran three clan wide competitions for Taldryan, driving further activity for our clan.

For his long serviced to Clan Taldryan and the Dark Brotherhood, Tarax should be awarded a Sapphire Blade. Congratulations!

To most throughout the Brotherhood, Tarax seems just a troll. For that matter, when I first returned to the Brotherhood, I thought this as well. But this last year working with Tarax has completely changed my mind. Tarax has shown himself to be among the most active members of Taldryan, and while his propensity to speak his mind and do as he wishes may not always earn him friends outside the Clan, he has earned my respect for his dedication to the Clan.

Tarax's accomplishments since the end of the "main phase" of the Crusades are many. To name just a few: he was on the recent winning team for the Fading Light Run-On and was the team MVP, he was a main writer in Taldryan's clanning document, he has maintained consistent activity in Brotherhood-wide events in the ACC(betas, and Fading Light), and he has participated in many Clan competitions. Tarax has always been an active participant at all levels of the Clan and House. Recently, though, Tarax has done more, and gone further. Seeing that both Kaz and I were otherwise occupied, both with illness and other commitments, Tarax offered to run several Clan competitions. During this period, Tarax continued to participate in competitions and assist in other ways as well, including constant communication to members through his presence on IRC and over email. It is not just that Tarax is a novae-winning member; it is also that he is committed and dedicated to seeing his House and Clan succeed any way he can.

Congratulations, Tarax! Now go name this one, too.