House Dinaari Quaestor Report #32 - December 28, 2008

Greetings all,

<p>Okay, I'm pretty pissed off because I got a quarter of the way through this report and accidentally went back a page, erasing all of my work thus far. I'm working from my usual laptop but without a real mouse (embedded touch-mouse) and on a crappy wireless connection to boot. Annoying. In addition I accidentally edited my last report so it's exactly the same as this one. Frustrating night. Sorry, had to rant a bit.

<p>Anyway, the year is pretty much over and it was quite average. I'll spare you all an "end of year review" as most of you are Equites/Elders with more time in this place than me. As you pretty much know we're all preparing and trying to rest up for the upcoming Great Jedi War ("Unification"). Yes, yes, I'm sure you're getting a little tired of hearing about the upcoming Vendetta but since these things are pretty important it makes sense to keep on bringing it up. Recharge your batteries and have a great New Year's Eve party/experience and be ready for the GJW which will start at either the end of January or the beginning of February 2009. This GJW will consist of many different DJB events spanning six weeks; gaming, fiction, run-ons, battleplans, ACC, etc. Essentially there is something for everyone to participate in.

<p>This is where you prove your loyalty, Journeymen. Right here. You want that next promotion? A big merit medal? Perhaps the chance to take over my job when I retire in a few months? Not going to happen unless you work your ass off during the GJW. No one's asking you to skip work or school for this thing (although we wouldn't complain) but yeah, this is where it counts. In the days and weeks leading up to the GJW you'll be receiving hints, tips, and other good stuff that will maximize our chances to win. Well, the odds are in our favor already but no need to go easy.

<p>There's probably little need to bring it up again as Shadow already brought it up in a somewhat lengthy e-mail thread, but be on the lookout for recruiters from other Clans. It's typical behavior that occurs before a Vendetta where desperate Clans offer the promise of positions, promotions, and medals. This is not new behavior and while (for the most part) it's not in violation of the Covenant, it's still a scummy thing to do. I don't think it'll be a problem again but if someone from another Clan starts making you offers be sure to let myself, Tarax, Sklib, and Shadow know immediately. One of the great things about this Clan is the unbelievable quality of our members; there is so much damn potential in our members and most of you would make excellent leaders. What's even more incredible is the loyalty our members tend to have - many could leave the Clan and take leadership elsewhere in another (and thus inferior) Clan, but they don't. THIS is why we' re the First Clan and why we always win Vendettas. Yeah, we get idiot members and other scum but they tend to get drummed out within a few months anyway; we're better off without them. I am very grateful to be a leader in a Clan where we have so many valuable and loyal members. My thanks to you all.

<p>As you've probably noticed, the Herald and Deputy Grand Master have been releasing new lightsabers and robes (and even some Warbanner options) for the general membership. A lot of these new items have rank requirements which is just motivation to put in more work to earn these perks! Not to mention you get more points to use on your character sheet. Plus it makes you look good for positions and whatnot.

<p>Get some rest, enjoy the new year, and get ready to kick ass in the upcoming Great Jedi War. Oh, Dante (the Gaming Tribune) is running some console competition - if you own Call of Duty 4 and/or Halo 3 for the XBox 360 you can play other people for Clusters of Fire I assume? I dunno. Go browse the news page or something. Now.

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<p>House Dinaari and Clan Taldryan proudly recognize the following individuals on their recent honors ...

<p>A handful of members earned Clusters of Fire for their gaming activity over the past week. Congrats to Nihilus (x8), Tarax (x2), Ben (x3), and Jac (x3) for their efforts.

<p>Tarax earned a Crescent w/ Topaz Star and Nihilus earned a Crescent w/ Emerald Star for participating and doing well in some competitions. Well done!

<p>A new member, Vega Usale has been busy; he completed several Shadow Academy exams (Hand-to-Hand, Starfighter Studies, and Brotherhood Basics) and was promoted to the rank of Novice for his efforts. Nice job!

<p>Finally, Darth Bias earned Legion of the Scholar for winning a round of drunken Grand Master IRC trivia, passed a Shadow Academy exam (Capital Ship studies), and earned a Dark Cross for being ... biased? Kidding. He's not biased. Well done, Halc. Seriously, he's not biased (we think).

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<p>Just a quick side note for you to think about. If you pay attention to minute details like I tend to do, you may have noticed our Clan roster stands at less than sixty (60) individuals distributed among two Houses (Dinaari and Ektrosis). If you were to look at other Clans you'd see that their numbers stand at about ninety (90) or even up to one hundred (100)! There's nothing to worry about ... our Clan actually conducts AWOL checks to weed out inactive/dead members. It's nothing personal, just a way to make things easier to manage. If the other Clans actually ran real AWOL checks (i.e. make their members respond by filling out a short survey) they'd be in the same (or probably worse) boat. Just wanted to let you know.

<p>Not much else to say ... enjoy whatever time you have off and get ready for the Great Jedi War. If you have any questions right now be sure to let someone in leadership know and we'll give you an answer. If you don't, great! Go get drunk and beat up some hookers or something.

<p>To finish up I recommend getting on Internet Relay Chat (IRC) to talk with your fellow Taldryan members (and the rest of the DJB if you so choose). For our Journeymen there is a wealth of competitions going on right now so if you want to get ahead start participating! Your rank is determined solely by you. Have a great week!

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<p>DB-Wide Events

<li> Gaming Nights (Ongoing; Ends on 12/31);

<li> Inter-Club Training Event (Saturdays; Ends on 12/31);

<li> [T:G] There Can Be Only One (Ends on 12/15)</li>

<p>Clan-Wide Events

<li> Taldryan: Resurgence (Ends on 12/31);

<li> A New Hope: Tal Trivia (Ongoing; Ends on 12/31);

<li> Caption Contest (Ends on 12/29);

<li> EaWesome The Second (Ends on 12/31);

<li> Taldryan Night at the Improv (Ends on 12/31);

<li> Taldryan Holiday Caption Contest (Ends on 12/31);

<li> Taldryan NPC Origins (Ends on 1/31)</li>

<p>House Dinaari Events

<li> Dinaari's Christmas (Ends on 12/24)

<p>For more detailed descriptions of the above competitions, please visit the Tal.net competitions listing by clicking here.

</p><p /> -> ~ Important Links ~

<p>Clan Taldryan | Clan Codex | Competitions Page | IRC Guide

Dark Jedi Brotherhood | Antei Combat Center | Shadow Academy

Message Boards | DJB Wikipedia | Dark Side Codex</p>

<p /> -> For Taldryan,

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