The Combat Master closed down his datapad, the room going dark, his crimson eyes, glowing in the dark, the only sign an active mind.
"It has begun."
Over the last week, he had taken stock of the ever-increasing ranks in the Antei Combat Center, studying the latest reports and census thoroughly. There had been an increasingly popularity among new members concerning various exotic fighting styles he had brought to the ACC, and it pleased him to think that these new styles might bring a more varied pitch to the battles which abounded in his domain. Victory was always the goal, yet it was the manner in which that victory was sought which made a battle worthy watching, worth recording. Indeed, the new styles ought to make Combat that much more appealing. My agents are out there, teaching these styles to new and out members alike. The only question remaining is how far they will spread. Time alone will tell. [1]
Additionally, he hoped the new holocam systems installed in the various halls would draw more attention to the battles, make them more interesting to those curious members who wished to learn more about the ways of the Combat Center. [2]
Time, also, will reveal whether or not naming the various Lightsaber forms will encourage people to explore them further. After all, one can only become so enthused about learning Forms designated by number alone. The ancients in their animalistic nature revealed the creatures of Mother Earth. With the styles remembered but the names long buried under the sands of time, new names had been created, the forms designated by the creatures of nature whose actions embodied those styles. [3] It was but one of many changes with which he planned to sweep the Combat Center.
The final point to consider was the members of exotic species who had begged admission to the ACC. Some were male, some were female; hell, some were neither. [4] Each had their own system of measurement devised by their people, which made comparison of fighters exceedingly difficult. I hope I have resolved that, at least. This "metric" system is so archaic that I doubt anyone will argue about its enforced use. [5] On top of that,the species of the galaxy were too numerous to keep track of and, in some cases, death warrants were posted for the entire species. This, of course, led to people lying about their origins. His response had been swift. He remembered it now, verbatim.
"Some of you may argue that confidentiality ought to be expected, yet I ask you this: what of the money of our investors and the lives of our fighters? The money they spend on the Center is pissed away if they gamble on the wrong fighters - and we can't afford to let them lose the money. We have no control over the outcome of the fight itself. What we can control, however, is the flow of information about the participants, directing it in a manner which will be most beneficial to the center. In this case, that means making sure our investors know everything possible about these fighters. My judgment is final."
It had caused quite a stir, but the new policy was finally in effect. [6]
At least the stir was less than would be caused by the new judging guidelines. [7]
In addition, he hoped that the new combat schemes he had instituted would draw new members to the Halls on Antei, as well as allowing them a chance to train their skills before facing death. Having a surge of new recruits did no good if they all died in their first engagement. Its the same fault as with those damned TIE Fighters. What does having a huge force of willing fighters, ready to prove themselves, accomplish if they are destroyed the first time they encounter an X-wing? Likewise, what good will all these new recruits do if they die before they learn the basics of combat? [8]
Shaking his head slightly, Mal'ari'carun stood and quietly exited his office. The road to revitalization was long and arduous, but it was a start. Indeed, it was a start.
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This is the first phase in a project I have penned (with quite a bit of input from members of the DC and the staff of the ACC), known as Operation: Reconstruction. The purpose of this project is to revitalize the Antei Combat Center by instituting sweeping changes in the manner of its operation. Over the upcoming months, I will be announcing new changes every few weeks (after people have a chance to get used to those already in place) in the attempt to attract more attention and members to the ACC. If you have ANY suggestions on how to better the Antei Combat Center, feel free to send them to me at the address listed in my dossier (#91). Your suggestions will always be welcome. Besides, it will benefit you - how will your wonderful ideas ever be put into place unless you let us know about them? :-D
These are the OOC explanations of the changes mentioned above:
[1]I have created six new Combat Styles which you can now choose from (the explanations of which are currently being added to the ACC Compendium). They are: Shadow Fist, Teras D'ni, Klarin Chi, Wampa Do, Knifist, and Carinor. Echani is also now restricted, only usable by those who have the permission of the Combat Master. To explain: Echani has been well-established in the novels as being all-but extinct - how realistic, then, is it for nearly every member of the ACC to use Echani? Those few who knew it would be loathe to admit to their knowledge, as it would suggest they were former members of the Emperor's Royal Guard (the only way in the known regions they could have learned it) - a fact which nearly all Royal Guardsman were loathe to admit after the death of the Emperor Reborn (after all, they had failed him twice). With Echani being such a powerful combat style - such a devastating one - any who wish to continue using Echani are required to e-mail me with an explanation of how, why, where and when their character learned Echani. If it is judged both plausible and creative, you will be allowed its continued use. Otherwise, it is suggested you switch the style listed on your character sheet.
Note: The same rules (as those for Echani) go for any Cortosis Ore or Force-utilizing weapons. These are exceedingly rare and are therefore subject to the sole approval of the Combat Master.
[2]Assuming everything is working correctly (I have not had a chance to check), the e-mail which you receive when your opponent posts in a battle should now contain the content of your post. Hopefully, this will make it easier for those of you with limited Internet access to post, as you can download the e-mail, get offline, write your response, then just log online to post the response once it is done. The idea is to save you all time and therefore increase activity.
[3]The following are the names of each Lightsaber Form:
I. Sarlacc
II. Ysalamir
III. Mynock
IV. Hawk-Bat
V. Krayt Dragon
VI. Rancor
VII.Vornskr
Hopefully these will help people remember the forms and use them to more detail in their posts.
[4]Members now have the option to chose "Neuter" for their gender. This is useful for those races which reproduce asexually (like Hutts) and are therefore neither male nor female.
[5]The metric system is now standard for all character sheet measurements (Height and Weight). There is a link to a conversion chart from the character sheet manager for your convenience, but in case you are wondering, it is:
1 meter=3.3 feet
1 pound=.45 kilograms
Or, if you would rather not do the math, simply go to http://www.metricsucks.com. Fun, eh?
[6]This change is simple. The Dark Jedi Brotherhood is a Star Wars club, therefore all races ought to be from the Star Wars universe. Those of you who wish to use a non-Star Wars race (ie: races from other sources or original races) need to e-mail the Combat Master with your history. After it is reviewed by the Combat Master, you will receive word on his decision. If you have a long-standing, well-fleshed out character it is likely you will be approved. The object of this is not to stifle creativity - just the opposite in fact. It is to convince people not to lazily choose races unrelated to Star Wars simply because they don't want to pick up a book or look online (such as Dwarves and Hobbits and Pixies).
[7]Battles will henceforth be judged on the following criteria:
30%Ingenuity
25%Continuity
25%Realism
20%Language
*Ingenuity: Creativity in actions and circumstances
*Realism: Were the actions taken realistic, given the circumstances and character sheets involved?
*Continuity: If you lose a hand in one post, you don't have it back in the next.
*Language: This is a composite of the spelling and grammar in the post, as well as the style and word choice. For instance, look at the following:
Alaric walked up to Arania. She spat on his shoe. He struck her. She died. He died too.
In grammar and spelling, this piece is 100% correct but it obviously lacks a bit in style and structure. Language is a mixture of all four.
[8]This point refers to two new types of "battles" which are opening in the ACC. The excerpt below explains them:
The first is cooperative, and rather self-explanatory. One combatant will challenge another in the co-op hall, and when a judge starts the match, they will choose a goal (a place, recovery of an item, elimination of a target, etc) suitable to the locale. They are judged under the same guidelines as normal (realism, continuity, etc), except that the death post is how they finally achieve their goal.
The second is called Managra Tablets, or Anagram Battles. I have seen a steady rise in the popularity of anagrams, which is what fueled this idea. The first contestant will post an anagram, to which the second will have 48 hours to reply with the answer and his own anagram. This will continue until one person fails to post in 48 hours (ie: they are stumped), or until they each do 5 posts. If each does 5 posts, the winner is picked based on the following criteria:
Average length of anagrams (A)
Time to reply (T)
Number posted (N)
(A/T)*N=Total Score.
The person with the highest score wins.
Hopefully, these new opportunities for "combat" will increase interest in the Antei Combat Center.
Again, if you have any questions or suggestions, please do e-mail me.
Royal Guard comment : "I did not fail the emperor. It isn't my fault the old fool was weak."
:P
All changes sound interesting and I hereby apply the "Oscura Seal of Approval" to all this as Combat Master Emeritus. (Not to be taken seriously, silly me.)
As for combat styles, you could think of a way to allow members to create their own, or customize it further. Of course, gives freedom but you would have to create limitations and remember that this is a Star Wars club (btw, I'm happy to see your on the same line of thinking as me. SW club ain't for medieval fantasy)
I like the lightsaber styles naming, but if you check the Star Wars Encyclopedia, each already bare a name. One problem though, find somehing better then Hawk-bat, all are good but this one. Hawks and Bats don't exist in Star Wars. I would have suggested the Vornks for this but its taken already.
We went over adding people's own styles, especialyl as some made up their own races, but that will have to wait until Rebirth (yeah, I know I know).
I would suggest we set up meeting dates where at least the three of us can show up (seeing Alaric requested my help and yours Arania)
Nonetheless, I think the ACC is back on a good path again.
(Btw, THANK YOU for getting rid of the Cortosis crap)
Perhaps Cortosis-weaved weapons, echani combat style and such could become rewards from winning certain competitions or reaching a certain rank? (Ranking would not work for Cortosis-weaved since a DJK and above have a lightsaber and have not)
Let me know about the next meeting, I'll be there.
By the way: some of you may have noticed that your rank changed. Do not worry, you did not lose skill points. In fact, many of you have gained skill points. This is part of a reworked rank system that McKenna and I created. If you have any questions, comments, or complains, e-mail me. Oh, and make sure to go and resubmit your character sheets, to get those extra skill points!
Or wait until McKenna has verified that the number of extra points is correct. But go and fix your sheets anyway... too many of you got the Echani stuff still.
The points have been adjusted and the rank of "Combat Master Emeritus" has been removed. Cyris, Xizor, refrain from changing your character sheet for the time being, please.
Why exactly WAS the rank of Combat Master Emeritus removed?
I am combat master emeritus, I see no reason why it should be taken away. Please give me whatever rank I should be getting as I have changes to make for the GJW.
It was probably removed for the same reason Baron Emeritus was removed. What that is, is beyond me :-P
It was probably taken away because there SHOULDN'T be a CME rank. Think about it. You get bonuses for being CM, then you get bonuses for retiring? It shouldn't happen. However, CME "could" be a rank, if it meant that was what you had to be in order to keep your bonuses. They shouldn't be removed for retiring, but you shouldn't get anything extra from it. If CME stays a rank, it should just be the equivalent of current CMs points-wise.
Personally I disagree with "Emeritus" ranks in principle, because they're just not used anywhere else in the club. Does that mean I disagree with people who retire keeping something? No, just, I don't think we need to go making a long list of people who once held a job- because in the long run, two years down the line, it'll look silly with two dozen people holding the rank.
To be quite honest, I disagree with the staff of the ACC getting bonus points to begin with, for it is similar to giving a bonus rank to someone just because they get made Quaestor, or Consul. Getting a position may open you up to higher reward, but it should still need to be EARNED at the end of the day. You don't get free Force powers through promotion to any other position, I don't see why you should get free skill points here either. To be honest, I find it rather stupid that as an Elder and a Dark Adept I can only max out I believe it is three or four skills at level five, while some people at Dark Jedi Knight level might be filling out every available skill row.
Currently, I'll put up with it. When we bring in Force Power Rankings, is the same system going to take place? Will you get bonus points for Force powers just for holding a job, or for "having" held a job? I should sincerely hope not, as Force Powers are a privaledge of rank...
Anyhow, I'm sidetracking here. My point is, you don't see Consul Emeritus, or Quaestor Emeritus, or Obelisk High Commander Emeritus, or Commander of the Guard Emeritus. Its just not done.
What you CAN see is "Envoy" or "Guardsman" or "Krath Pontifex", something that the person may well recieve as a reward for their services. If you've been an excellent Envoy, you might well get given the title of Envoy simply as an honourary thing as a sign of the services you performed. Likewise, some members may retain an honourary rank within the Grand Masters Royal Guard, be it Guardian, or perhaps Praetorian, depending on which is more appropriate for their role. Similarly, a Consul might get a promotion to Pontifex, or Prelate, or Adept depending on their service.
In my eyes, if a Society wants a "retirement" rank, it needs to be different, or built into the current system, not some special unique rank for people who have served in some job. The Grand Masters Royal Guard generally builds in retirement with the current ranks, so if you were a good Commander of the Guard you may get put higher up the regular ladder. Likewise with the Envoys if you were a good Envoy you'll get the honourary title of plain Envoy.
Clearly the Antei Combat Centre is a little different, as its not something you can really 'retire' from as such, as you'll always have the option of playing battles. What I would suggest is that either retired Combat Masters get a higher rank on the regular scale, say Shogun, or Warlord, or whatever seems appropriate for them, or there is another rank created, but plain "Emeritus" sounds somewhat overly flamboyant. More worryingly, it sounds almost like an official advisory position, which in the wrong hands gives someone power they shouldn't have access to.
Still, personally, I don't see why having served as Combat Master should net you bonus points, else soon everyone will have them. Will we create a Trainer Emeritus role? A Senior Trainer Emeritus? A Judge Emeritus? Senior Judge Emeritus? Simply because we don't want people losing their points?
If you have Combat Master Emeritus, you really need to be fair on the ones further down the ladder too... which is when it will clearly get silly, as EVERYONE will more or less have maximum points, meaning nobody will care for the regular ranks.
Thats why I disagree with giving bonus points for administrative roles in the first place, the whole point of a ranking system should be that it is there for those who earn it through activity. I have an Imperial Star Destroyer currently, that doesn't mean when I retire I can claim I'm the High Warrior Emeritus and should get myself a private Star Destroyer together with personal jet and support staff. I'll have to face fact that I'll be a norm again, and have to live do with my TIE Fighter. I think the same should really apply here, else we create a top heavy system that doesn't give enough to the regular member further down the ladder.
When the PRESTIGE system is released, you'll get 'some' points for previous positions held, but only some. You might get a flat 100 bonus points for having held a position for six months at some time, regardless of what it is, though would get more like 300 for actually being a Consul, or 400 for a Council member at the current time. I don't see why here should be any different really... yes, while serving if you really must, go and give yourself bonus points, but, when you retire that is part of what you retire from, the privaledges and prestige. Perhaps you get to keep a little more than most, perhaps you get to be promoted up from Knight to Knight Lord or whatever it may be, but to outright keep everything you held as a member of the Dark Council isn't really right... because that should be a privaledge for, and only for, the serving Combat Master.
Goat, join the combat center and write long posts like this in battles :p
Asides, I want CME back. It worked until now. Meh.
And nope, I didn't read this long comment... too tired :o)
Alaric or McKenna which ever of you two takes care of the ranks, give me back my Senior Judge rank. I earned it in the past and Alaric took it away to give me Combat Master Emeritus. Just return me to my old rank.
I'm not [ACC : SDR]. I'm not a bloody soldier, I'm a Senior Judge.
The reason, plain and simple, for them to have kept the bonus points was a matter of roleplaying: if you were good enough to be the Combat Master, what are the chances that as soon as you stopped being CM, you'd forget all of your old skills? Its really irrelevant though, because the rank doesn't exist anymore. ;)
I don't have a problem with the bonus points so much as the number of bonus points kept after leaving the position. I mean Cyris has twice as many skill points as I do and we are both KAP. So some bonus is right the bonus points now seems a bit much. A KAP should stand a chance against another KAP even if one was a former CM. Besides I didn't get a retirment package when I left Baron :-P
Spears, the only things skill points affects are weapons so you can still kick my ass. After all i don't really care for the bonus points, I don't use more than the minimum of weapons. Its what the ACC owes me for what I have done. Screw the bonus, I am still Senior Judge and Combat Master Emeritus. I deserve at least a rank to stand out. AT LEAST Senior Judge.
Unless Alaric decided to fire me for no reason.