Rise and shine, Scholae Palatinae

Welcome to my first report as your newly appointed Proconsul. Today I will touch on a few different subjects. As you might remember, following my initial appointment at the end of February, I sent out a General Interest Survey. I will reveal what I take away from your answers and offer a full listing of the results. I will also be touching on upcoming events and my personal goals for this clan.

First and foremost, I would like to quickly introduce myself for those of you who do not know me. I have been a member of the Dark Jedi Brotherhood since its early days. I returned from a decade-long hiatus in September 2015. Some of my past credentials include positions such as Combat Master (4th), Herald, magistrate to the Grand Master, and several clan leadership positions across the DJB. I have a particular love for writing, character development and roleplay. I have also been known to churn out some decent artwork in the form of character pictures, avatars and a large quantity of the DJB’s award graphics. I was also instrumental in the addition of several key ACC features, the creation of the Warbanner system and the inception of the robes system.

Since my return to the DJB, or more specifically since my appointment as your Proconsul, I have been hard at work catching up with the endless changes that were made during my time away. And boy were there a lot of them. Sometimes, I feel right at home. Other times, I feel like a man out of time. That being said, I can make one promise to you: if ever you need help, if ever you need information, don’t be shy to come to me. If I do not have answers for you, you can be certain that I will do all in my power to get you those answers.

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Setting Things Straight

Due to a rapid succession of position appointments and the start of the Subterfuge feud, Xen and I failed to address Cyris’ canonical arrival and appointment as Proconsul of CSP. While we plan to release a proper fiction in the coming month to really establish everything, I wanted to give a quick summary of what happened.

Around 8 months prior to the events of Subterfuge, a scouting party was mobilized to the remote, uncharted system of Oedon. They found trouble on the moon world of Vanir II. After reporting that they had experienced terrifying hallucinations and claimed to be hunted, communications were lost. Another team was then dispatched, this time lead by a group of Force-practitioners. They discovered a world swallowed by the Dark Side of the Force. There, they encountered a powerful and mad Dark Jedi, one whose powers were greatly heightened by the world itself. After a bloody game of cat and mouse, they managed to capture this Dark Jedi.

He was then detained in a secret location until further information could be gathered from him. It was a top secret DNA analysis that finally revealed his true identity: Cyris Oscura, also known as the Black Hand. Indeed, this was a character straight out of history books. A man out of time, who had waged war upon the Galactic Republic nearly 500 years before the Battle of Yavin. This mysterious figure had resurfaced in the early days of the Dark Brotherhood and countless archived reports told of a long, fruitful, and all too secretive legacy.

This sparked the interest of the Emperor, who began to secretly visit this Cyris Oscura. No one knows what words they shared, few are even aware of Oscura’s return, let alone that the Emperor met with him. Yet at the tail-end of the Subterfuge crisis, Xen shocked his people by appointing this new-comer, Cyris, to the rank of Grand Marshal. The duo’s first public appearance coincided with Xen’s speech that put an end to the House Feud.

Xen would go on to hail the return of this would-be legend that was Cyris Oscura.

Yet, perhaps not all was as the eye could see…

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Survey Review

First I would like to thank everyone who took the time to answer the General Interest Survey that I sent out at the beginning of March. We had a solid 22 responders, which gives your clan summit a solid outlook at what truly interests you.

For a full report, you can download the following PDF here. I do apologize for the formating. I was able to generate this report, but I am currently lacking the tools to really dig in and fix the layout. So there might be some unfortunate page jumps and such. For now, I have to make due.

Writing was by far the most popular activity with 100% of responders checked it. 59.1% checked gaming which is quite respectable in and of itself. This makes for a nicely rounded clan. Now let’s make sure we reach our true potential in all these activities.

On the writing front, general fiction (short stories) was the most popular choice with character development and run-ons tied for second and third. I am happy to report that nearly all of responders have an approved character sheet and wiki entry. The few who do not are working on it, so kudos to you. If you need help, just ask. Finally, I was informed that squid-faced creatures enjoy cake. News to me!

For gaming, things are a little more diverse. Only Star Craft II and Xwing series fell behind in terms of main platforms. Interesting. With little surprise, it was revealed that most people played on PC’s. We do have a small presence on all current-gen platforms. Plus one to PS4 for me. Once comment was particularly pleasing, which simply stated: I want Blade to teach me. I’ve got good news for you, buddy. She has offered to train any clansmen willing at JA. Take her up on that offer and learn from one of the best!

Again, thank you to everyone who responded. I am not closing this survey, so if you haven’t yet answered, you are welcomed to do so.

We will continue to review this survey and make good use of the information found there.

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The Black Hand’s Vision

My vision is simple: Nurture our family. Establish an environment of cooperation and growth, and tap into every ounce of potential that we have as a clan, as houses, and as individuals.

Each and every single active member of Clan Scholae Palatinae have shown me over the last month that they have the spark in them. Some are brilliant gamers. Others are incredible writers. We even have some impressive, budding artists, which is a rare commodity in this club. And then you have those who can just do it all.

I want Scholae Palatinae to be known as a place where you go to thrive and elevate your skills to the next level. I am confident that each and everyone of us are capable of achieving exactly that.

But how do we go about achieving this?

Imperium’s Aedile, Blade, has the right idea. As one of our best Jedi Academy duelists, she has taken it upon herself to train any clansman willing to elevate their skills in JA. Therein lies the secret: if you excel at something, pass that knowledge unto your clansmen. Give advice. Coach them. Give of yourself. All of us stand to gain from one another. You’re an excellent writer? Offer to proofread others. Don’t stop at the syntax and grammar. Dig in. You’re an artist? Share your work, answer questions. Comment on other people’s work. You are a cunning pazaak player? Get a group together and show them just how you do it. Share the thought process behind your victories. Battlefront? Get some matches going and train these troopers.

And on the flip side: ASK for help. Team up. Cooperate. Share.

Greatness lies in unity.

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Journeymen: Rise and Fight

I’ve got a mission for all of you fine journeymen out there in CSP. In the coming month, our esteemed Combat Master will be hosting an ACC Tournament for members of Journeyman rank (Knight and under). I would like to see each and everyone of you try your hand at it. Experienced or new, get out there and show the rest of the Brotherhood just what we are made of here at CSP. Our clan boasts some of the greatest up-and-comers in this club. I want to see that potential nurtured.

You are not going into this alone, that much I can promise: I will make my services to coach and proofread any one of you participants who so desire my help. And I am certain without a shadow of a doubt that you will find other helping hands within our clan. We have some solid writers out there. Let’s put them to work.

In the meantime, I urge you all to qualify via the Shadow Academy if you haven’t already, and get some practice matches going. I will be available to comment on these matches if you so wish.

On a related note, the Combat Master has requested that I pass on the following: Going forward, he asks that all questions concerning the ACC (be it functionality, Force power usage, grading questions, etc.) be directed to [Log in to view e-mail addresses]. He will no longer be answering such questions directed at him via telegram, personal mail, etc. This will help create an environment where your questions are answered quickly and effectively, without the need for Wally to be available 24/7. This way, the entire staff is involved and the ACC itself remains functional in the absence of its head huncho.

Take note of this and go through the proper channels. As always, you can come to me for help and I will see to it that you receive genuine answers.

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Character Development

One of the most important aspects of writing good fiction is to be able to create and flesh out compelling characters. If a reader cannot relate to a character, if this character evokes no semblance of emotions, the story can never reach its full potential. Without solid characters, your hooks, your twists, your plot, it all falls flat.

Going forward, I will be hosting regular competitions that have for goal to promote character development. I will challenge you to flesh out not only your own characters, but also potential NPCs and companions. Such competitions will come in many forms: short stories, character sheets, biographies, wiki entries, etc..

The first of such competitions should arrive mid-april. Keep your eyes peeled for it. I hope to see high participation!

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And So, In Closing

I want to give a quick shout out to everyone who took part in Subterfuge. Xen organized an excellent competition and I hope that you all had fun taking part in it. Imperium was simply incredible. Lexiconus, Blade and Delak, the three leaders within the House shone with their outstanding participation. That’s what real leaders are made of. They talk the talk and they walk the walk. Proverbial hats off to you fine folks.

Now before I end this report, I do wish to stress this final and important point: if you need help of any kind, if you have issues, if you need coaching, if you need proofing, you can always come to me. I will make time to help you.

In darkness we thrive,

Dark Adept Cyris Oscura
Proconsul of Clan Scholae Palatinae
Grand Marshal of the Empire

I now leave you with this amazing piece Zehsaa made of Miley Cyris Oscura