I. Ranks and Responsibilities

[Guild Leader] - The [Guild Leader] is the final arbiter and control in the guild. Under normal circumstances, the [Guild Leader] will coordinate the [Delegates] work with them to come to decisions. The [Guild Leader] will handle the of changing guild controls, or if some issue arises that the Delegates can’t reach a common decision on, the guild leader will have the authority to make any final decisions necessary.

[Delegates] - The [Delegates] are representatives of the roles that they fill. They will work with the guild leader on decision making and ensure that the interests of each role are considered in every decision. The Delegates will manage raid invitations in order to fill the raid quickly and efficiently. They are responsible for keeping tabs on which raiders are performing well and which are not. If a raider is underperforming they will refer the raider to information sources such as websites or guildmates that can help. They are not responsible to know all of the theorycrafting and stragegies for all classes, however when faced with a question they will know where to find the answer, whether that be a fellow guild mate, website, forum, or other resource. They are responsible for resolving any human relations issues. (Although if there are issues with the Delegate themselves the issues should be addressed with the Guild Leader) They are responsible for Recruitment for the specific role. They will report to GM regularly with updates on the state of the role.

[Admin Officer] - These guys manage the bank, sell BOEs in trade / AH. Maintains guild exchange programs, post WWS, manage attendance, administer the website, etc.

[Raiders] - [Raiders] are the basis of the guild. Members are expected to meet gear-level minimums and to help the guild get raids and other planned events going on time and smoothly as possible. [Raiders] are the base power in the guild and will provide feedback on new members, certain guild policies, and have the ability to speak up about whatever issues they see as needed for the guild. [Raiders] have full raiding rights and get invite priority over anyone below them in the hierarchy. An exception is when an Delegate determines that in the interest of class balance and the overall good of the guild, someone below a [Raider] may get priority.

These individuals exemplify most of the following characteristics:

• This individual is someone who can be thrown into most circumstances in game and react well, they have strong situational awareness, and they perform any role we request of them well.

• Damage or healing output similar to our current raid force.

• They attend a couple raids per week.

• They show up prepared, snacks for their characters and their RL avatar too.

• They take raiding seriously, but are still able to have fun.

• Raider rank players enjoy world of warcraft and have fun outside of raids chatting and playing with their guild-mate cohorts.

• Raiders have a tenure in the Guild of a month or longer.

[Casual Raiders] We understand that not every great player will choose to pursue a full-time raiding schedule. This rank is for the people that we would like to raid with us, however they choose not to raid full-time with us. We will not recruit for individuals who desire attain this rank.

These individuals exemplify the following characteristics:

• Solid communications skills.

• Strong positive attitude.

• Solid DPS / TPS / HPS that is comparable to our current Raider status individuals.

• It should be emphasized that we must also require strong situational awareness and the ability to live through fights.

[Initiate] This rank is for new players who desire to become [Raider]s with Epilogue. This rank will be maintained for two weeks, at the end of which they will either be promoted to Raider, or removed from the Guild. Note: Exceptions to this may be made at the [Guild Leader]'s discretion.

[Citizen] – A [Citizen] of Epilogue is a member who is not part of our primary raiding force. A [Citizen] is a fun leisure-time character, but is not a main character and does not come along on raids. This rank includes current friends and family of current [Raiders].

[Alt] - Each [Raider] designates their main character. All other characters controlled by that player are given the rank of [Alt]. At the discretion of the [Raid Leader], an [Alt] character may be given invite priority if his/her presence is considered necessary for class balance.

The [Guild Leader] and Delegates will work on the creation and enforcement of guild policies. Certain policies require input from the [Raiders] and will be passed on to the membership to review, comment, and vote on. Any [Raider] who has an idea or concern is encouraged to talk to the [Guild Leader] or [Delegate]s.

L. In the case of an unforeseen circumstance that isn’t covered by guild policies, the [Guild Leader] and/or the Delegates will make any decisions needed at the time and consider an adjustment to the charter to ensure that problem doesn’t come up again in the future.

II. Recruiting

Epilogue’s overall goals include expanding and taking on the end game content in WoW. To meet that end, Epilogue needs to recruit and maintain quality players. While we strive to get to the end game content, we are not willing to take on any player just to fill out our ranks. Epilogue is looking for talented and friendly players. People that we all like to play with, and people that we all would be glad to be grouped with. The procedure to become a member of Epilogue is followed for all new applicants and will not be curtailed for any particular individual.

1. Apply to Epilogue. This can be done by submitting an application in our website http://epiguild.guildomatic.org. No registration is required to submit an application.

After a brief review by the Delegates (this is normally just a formality to ensure that the level, class, gear/quest, and status meet our stated needs), and input from the guild members based on prior experience with the applicant, an Delegate will talk with the applicant in game to get a better idea of whether he or she is a good fit. If that goes well, we will run an instance or two with the applicant to see how his or her play style fits with us. If there are no problems there, the new applicant will be guilded as an [Initiate] for a minimum 2-week trial period, during which they need to be available to attend and on the waitlist for at least 4 raids. It is our goal to be able to evaluate the Initiate’s performance in Raids during their trial period.

2. Upon joining Epilogue a feedback thread will be created internally for all full members to give thoughts and opinions on the applicant. An applicant will not be accepted if more then 3 guild individuals publish negative feedback. (if there are enough members against an application, then it is showing us that the person might not be a good fit with our guild).

3. Once the initiate has been on trial for two weeks the Delegates will hold a private vote in the Delegate forum. If there are too few YES votes, or more than one NO vote, the Delegates will review the situation and decide whether an exception should be made or the applicant de-guilded and not accepted as full members.

4. Once the trial period is completed and the applicant has the votes for full membership, the feedback thread will be removed from the public forum, and the applicant will officially be promoted to [Raider]. At this point, they are considered full members.

Main Role / Character Swapping

If a Raider desires to change their main role (i.e. a paladin who is currently a tank wants to heal) or their main character (i.e. a druid changing to a mage) in the raiding environment we need the opportunity as a guild to review that individual’s skill level and ability to perform in their new role. Ultimately it’s important that the individual be able to perform their new role so as not to hold back the rest of our raiding force.

In order to facilitate that review we will initiate a two week trial period. At the end of the two week trial period we will place a vote on the Delegate forum. Provided there are not any “NO” votes the individual will re-assume the Raider rank. If there are any “NO” votes the Delegates will determine whether the trial period should be extended or if the player must return to their former main spec / character.

III. Raids

Thirty minutes before the raid the Raid Leader will invite Delegates, and open the waitlist. Depending on the content for the night and class balance the Raid Leader will give each Delegate their quota of players to fill for class balance.

Each Delegate is then responsible to fill those spots. The Delegate is given discretion to fill those raid slots based on the needs of the raid for the night. Priority is given to raiders when possible.

Delegates work hard to be fair with invitiations and include as many people as possible while maintaining balance.

It is our goal to be able to evaluate an Initiate’s performance in a Raid environment during their Initiation period. Due to the fact that our initiation period is short we will guarantee them a raid spot during that time.

i. Invites will start about 30 minutes before the raid starts.
ii. At that time we will ask people to put themselves on the waitlist by sending a tell to the Raid Assistant.
iii. There are certain quotas of classes to fill depending on the encounter.
iv. If we don’t have a full group or we’re missing an essential class and we know there’s someone we want to try out with a character of that class, we will invite that person.
v. If someone goes offline for >5min, we will boot them from raid and replace them with someone waiting.
vi. Raid members may be removed from the raid at the discretion of the Raid Master after 5 minutes of AFK or LD without the prior permission of the Raid Master. Stealth AFKing (particularly during boss encounters) is taken very seriously and, after repeated offenses, removal from the guild.
vii. When the raid is full, anyone asking for an invite will be put on the wait list. We would like people to get in the raid in the order they were put on the wait list, but class needs will dictate who gets in first.

3. Raiding with other guilds

a. We do not want our members raiding with other guilds. Primarily, we don’t want people to use Epilogue as a stepping stone or a holding area for another guild. When you apply to Epilogue, you are doing so because you want to be a part of us, not because you’re waiting on an application to go through for some other guild. There may be rare circumstances where you have friends in another guild and they need to fill spots, and they invite you. In this event, consult with an Delegate to see if it’s okay. But generally, it’s a no. If you repeatedly raid with other guilds without saying anything, you will be kicked out of the guild. We don’t want to be harsh, be we have to be clear we are not doormats.

B. Raid Etiquette

1. Spam to /g. That means, if you’re not a leader, or telling people that you’re dead or oom or any other raid-relevant info, say it in /g not in /ra.

2. Send tells for buffs; don’t do it in /ra. Give that person a bit to buff you before demanding it again. Everyone knows how to press their buff button so just be patient.

3. Show up ready to raid. Make sure you have the necessary reagents for buffing, poisons if you’re a rogue, projectiles if you’re a hunter. Make sure to repair before you show up.

4. Do NOT start a 5-man instance run before a guild raid if you want to be on the guild raid. Inevitably something always happens in these runs that extends the expected completion time. If you do start a run and you want to be on the guild raid, we suggest being prepared to drop the small raid at any time in order to get to where you need to be in order to be in the guild raid. Asking 24 other people to wait for you is not fair to them.

5. If a new patch has come out and your mods still work fine, it’s a bad idea to go install the new version of the mod 15 minutes before the raid will start. Wait until the raid is over or do it an hour or two before the raid starts.

6. Be ready at raid start time. If you’ve gotta go AFK, get inside the instance and then go /afk. If you go /afk for >10 minutes without making it known why, you may come back to find that you’re no longer in the raid, so make sure someone knows why you’re gone. USE /AFK! CTRaidAssist displays when people are afk so it helps us know that now isn’t the time to advance. You can also type a word after /afk (e.g. “/afk bio”) to indicate what you are doing while AFK, and it shows up in CTRA.

7. Take AFKs at opportune times. We all know that AFKs happen at inopportune times, so make sure to use your /afk and let someone know why you’re leaving and how long it will take you to get back.

8. If a raid leader asks you to do something, don’t give a song and dance about why you can’t. Just do it. If you REALLY can’t do it, offer an explanation why. If we want you to be the MA but you don’t have gold for repairs, say so and we will try to work it out. If I need you to pet pull something but you’re low on food, say you’re low on food.

9. Don’t pick raid time to discuss a non-raid issue with a raid leader. Keeping 25 people organized is a big job.

10. If you disagree with something a raid leader tells you or tells the team, send a tell to your [Delegate], then let the matter drop and discuss it later. We’ve all done a lot of research and know the encounters well. We’re always willing to discuss tactics, but not when we’re trying to position 25 people and tell them what their roles are.

11. Do your research. If you’ve never been in an encounter or instance before, check out our tactics forums, there’s a lot of information in them.

12. Do your part. If you’re an alchemist and you’ve got some free time, go gather some herbs for mana/health/fire absorb pots. Wanna make friends in a hurry? Give them pots … trust us, it works.

13. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Try your party first; if no one in your party has an answer for you, ask an Delegate next. Ask the raid leader last, as he/she is always the busiest. The only exception to that rule is when the raid leader asks if anyone has any questions.

14. The first pull should be about 1 min after the official start time.

D. Joint Raids

1. Sometimes, out of fun or necessity, we may find ourselves raiding with other guilds, be it only one member, or almost a full raid’s worth. Since they are offering their time to help you out, they should be shown respect and not be treated any different from a fellow guild member. They should be allowed to roll on anything they need (within reason, e.g. plate-wearers shouldn’t be rolling on cloth).
2. If you are a guest on another guild’s raid, follow their raid leader’s rules.
3. Make a good impression. You never know, you might be raiding with potential future recruits.

IV. Loot

A. General Loot Rules

1. Epilogue operates on a Zero-Sum DKP system.

2. Often, items will drop, such as Bind-on-Equip set pieces, or class-specific items such as a Codex: Prayer of Fortitude, that no one on the raid needs, but would be useful to others who aren’t there. Such items will be sent to the [Guild Bank] to store for future use. Please use the Bank Request section of the forums to request these types of items.

5. Exceptions

a. Mixed raids with out-of-guild members but led by our guild - If the raid is formed and led by Epilogue guild members but includes a minority number of our non-guild mates, Epilogue loot rules will apply and will clearly be explained to non-guild members before the raid begins.

b. Pick-up raids with out of guild members - If Epilogue members are not a majority on a raid or if an Epilogue member is not the leader of the raid, then our loot rules DO NOT apply. Recommended loot policy for pick-up raids is that all green and BoE items are randomed among only those that need, and if nobody needs then randomed by all for selling. All BoPs should be passed on and then randomed among those that need only, and if nobody needs then randomed by all for selling.

c. Quest items - certain quest items will be just rolled on as they pop up or handled on a first-come-first-served basis. The raid leader should make sure items are going to those that have been contributing to the guild and not just the luck of the roll. If a member has the rest of the quest items needed and is only missing an item as their last part, priority should be given to them for the drop.

1. Unwanted loot on fully Epilogue raids will be disenchanted, and the resulting materials will be sent to Epibank. This will provide the guild with a large pool of shards, dusts, essences, etc. so any guild member can request any enchantments that are available in guild, free of charge.

C. Guild Bank

The guild bank is there to strengthen the backbone of our guild. It is full of enchanting mats, armor pieces, librams, recipes, gems, spellbooks, and more. If you need items from the guild bank to enhance your gear, you need only fill out a request form on the Bank Request section of the forums.

If you are on an instance run composed entirely of Epilogue members, then anything you disenchant, or mats you gather, should go to the guild bank, unless you have an immediate need for them yourself. If there is an Delegate with you, give the mats to the Delegate. It is only by this that the guild bank can operate at all; we cannot rely entirely on our Delegates to stock the guild bank by themselves.

There are certain mats, such as ones that can only be found in raid dungeons, that the Delegates will distribute in way that will most benefit the guild.

We truly appreciate members who volunteer their own time to go gather herbs, ores, essences, shards, and so on. This kind of cooperation keeps us going.

We don’t like to see guildmates charging other guildmates for mats and services. We are not here to make money off each other. If you choose to do this, it is your prerogative, but you may want to read our Good Guildmate policy first. And if there is a guildmate who could really benefit from a drop you find, please consider giving it to them rather than selling it on the Auction House. We understand everyone is saving for an epic mount, but we stress the idea of need before greed.

V. Ethics

A. Specs

1. We cannot state enough that we do not force you how to spec your character, but don’t confuse this with us bending over backwards to accommodate your spec. We want you to have fun, but we also have to make sure everyone is having fun, and we will almost always consider the greater good over the individual’s. We will be happy to have any of you along on raids, but we also have to make hard decisions at times to invite certain classes and specs over others. Sometimes we need more healing; sometimes we need more DPS. It varies from raid to raid, so all we ask is that you understand that we try to do what’s best for the guild as a whole.

B. Guild Chat

1. Please carry on in guild chat as you would in any public forum, and realize that although we are all a family of sorts, we don’t know each other well enough to know each other’s full intentions. If you take offense to anything said in guild chat, please sort it out in tells with the person or people, or failing that, ask an Delegate to step in. We have seen other guilds implode from guild drama, so please, keep guild chat clean. If you get extremely upset about something, then just log out of the game and let off some steam. We’re willing to work with you to keep the game fun, and drama is not fun for any of us in the guild.

2. We also want to make it clear that our guildies shall not use sexual, ethnic, religious, or any other kind of slurs in either public or private channels. This falls under our zero-tolerance policy, outlined below in section VI.

C. Individual Performance

1. There is a wide variety of skill levels in this guild. We insist that if someone makes a suggestion to you on how you may do something better, please don’t take it as an insult, but as constructive criticism. We all come from different backgrounds and have different ways of doing things. However, if poor gameplay becomes a repeated problem for everyone, the Delegates will have a conversation with you on how to improve. If you take steps to improve, then there’s no problem. But if you don’t, and even worse, have a poor attitude about it, then we will suggest that perhaps Epilogue isn’t the best fit for you. Just keep things civil, have an open mind, and everything should go fine.

VI. Discipline

1. We all want our experience in Epilogue to be a harmonious one, so it is important to us that our players do not go against that ideal. Making a concrete list of all possible offenses is unrealistic, but there are definite unacceptable attitudes and behaviors that the Delegates will take action on. Some examples would include:

· Applying to and/or raiding with other guilds while wearing an Epilogue tag
· Excessive drama
· Harassing other players
· Ninja-looting

The list goes on, but no one should be in any danger of disciplinary action as long as they behave like they would in public. If you need further clarification on this, please read the Blizzard Code of Conduct, found at http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/policy/forum-coc.html. Epilogue adheres to the same rules Blizzard does.

Should we find someone to be acting contrary to guild interests, we will take the following steps:

1st offense: Private warning
2nd offense: Removal from guild.

2. Epilogue also has a zero-tolerance policy on the issues that Blizzard outlines in its “Highly Inappropriate” section in the above link. If you are in violation of those guidelines, you will be removed from Epilogue. This is not a power we wield lightly, but we act swiftly to ensure that everyone in the guild continues to enjoy their time in World of Warcraft.

VII. Good Guildmate Policy

1. We are all in this together. We all want to build up the best-equipped characters we possibly can, but we all recognize that we can’t achieve our goals without ensuring that ALL of us are well-equipped. At various times in the game, every player puts in time and effort that benefits some other guildmate more than him or herself. It is not possible to write a comprehensive set of rules that will fairly cover every circumstance. Before deciding to roll for loot, please ask yourself if you are being a GOOD GUILDMATE:

A. You are a new member of the guild or you are playing an alt that recently reached 80. You are on one of your first runs, and many of the drops are upgrades for you, in fact you’ve already won one or two upgrades because most of the others in your class, had the items and didn’t roll against you. A very rare item drops in your class, that would be an upgrade to yourself but also to one of the more seasoned players in your class. The difficult, but right thing to do is to pass on the roll, and reward the more seasoned level 80, who has been escorting newer players for months.

B. You are in a raid with another player in your same class when a set piece drops for your class that you both need. It would be your first piece of the set, it would be the last piece of the set for the other player. You should offer to pass on the roll.

C. You are playing an alt that recently reached 80, another member of the guild is playing their main who is the same class as you. Your main is typically brought on major guild raids, and not your Alt. You are both on one of your first runs, and a set piece drops that you both need. If the main gets the piece it will be used to all our benefit on the next guild raid, if you get the piece it will be in the bank while you are playing your main on the next guild raid. Pass the roll to the main.

D. A new level 80 in your class just passed on the uber weapon you have been trying to earn for two months, giving it you! You know that newer level 80 needs lots of gear. Make it a point to schedule something that you will help with, to ensure that this newer player who did the right thing, gets paid back for his or her generosity to you. Encourage good guildmate behavior!

E. At the end of a raid, ask yourself which members of your group were the least rewarded for their participation in the raid. Make an effort to acknowledge selfless members participation and try to give them extra consideration of future events.

These are just a few examples, and these aren’t rules that can be enforced; often the situation will come up when an Delegate isn’t present. These are merely guidelines for being a good guildmate. The vast majority of guildmates behave like this without any prompting. The social aspect of this game creates an inherent court of public opinion, so even if you are not breaking actual rules, a lack of proper decorum will get you on many people’s bad sides. In the long run, the good karma always comes back to you!

2. The Good Guildmate Policy is the heart and soul of Epilogue, and all matters should ultimately fall back on this. The advancement of the guild is paramount to individual gains, so we want all our members to keep each other in mind in all they do as part of Epilogue. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.