GM Guide
Planning a Clan[edit]
The Legend Clan system is a very flexible, player-driven system. Clan formation and functioning is entirely player-controlled. This provides for a great deal of freedom, but might also leave you feeling a little overwhelmed and wondering where to start and how to be successful. You may also find some interesting reading in Sandra's talk on Clan Building that can be found in the Lecture Series archives.
You should ask yourself a few questions before you form a clan.
What kind of clan are you forming? Will your connections to each other be religious (following a particular RP deity or worldview), social (i.e. a family, a group of friends, a mutual alliance), economic/professional (practicing a certain trade or performing a given set of services), ideological (aspiring to some certain set of ideals), etc. Are you able to establish bonds with existing clans, whether as friends, allies, rivals, or enemies? How would you state your clan's purpose, in a sentence? How would you describe your clan, in paragraph form? How many members would you like to have, ideally? How will you obtain them? You might start with a core group of five that you trust, then vote in more people gradually, it might be by invitation only, or you might choose the other fourteen based on a set of applications. What kinds of requirements will you place on members prior to joining? Possible requirements might include reputation, skill, role-play, and/or financial contributions. What kinds of requirements will you place on members in order to stay in the clan, if any? Are there certain rules they must follow or be removed? Examples of this include activity levels, behavior, or regular contributions to the clan hall. Try to get all your basics up on a web page or somewhere for potential members to view, as soon as possible. Be sure to include the address for the page when you advertise for your clan.
Forming a Clan[edit]
The vital commands to know in forming a clan are as follows:
FORM <pk|rp> <clan keyword> <full clan name> The keyword is mostly for internal purposes, but will show up when you speak on your clan channel and when people are seeking to join the clan. After you form a clan, four people must:
SEEK <clan keyword> and you must induct them into the clan with INDUCT <name> within 10 ticks for the clan to become permanent. If you decide not to accept their request to join, you can DECLINE <name> If you think you've made a mistake, you can OUTCAST <name> a clan member. The member does not need to be online for outcasting to work. You can check to see who is seeking to join your clan by typing RECRUIT Clans must have at least 5 members at all times, and can have a maximum of 20 total members.
After you successfully form your clan, make sure that you enter the following information:
purpose <description of clan theme> claninfo <additional information> clan_url <website address> These three pieces of information can be viewed by the general public with the clans command and will be included on the Clans page in the Community section of these web pages.
All clans have the following benefits:
a clan channel the roster command to see who is in the clan the ability to have a clan board the ability to have a clan hall the anonymous pledge system to choose leaders
Maintaining a Clan[edit]
To deposit into the clan bank account, you type CLANDEPOSIT # where # is the amount you wish to deposit. Money deposited into a clan account can only be used for clan housing and cannot be withdrawn. There is no system in place for you to transfer money from your personal account directly into the clan account without paying the banker's cut. However, you can set a TITHE level -- each time someone deposits into their bank account, a percentage of their deposit will be deducted from the deposit and put into the clan account instead. The maximum tithe a GM can set is 10%. Members can also set their own tithe amount in excess of the required tithe, up to 100%.
You can add clan friends, and enable them to use your halls. This may serve as a good inducement for an alliance, or a way to expand your clan's membership beyond the 20-member limit. Clan friends can use halls, rent there, and drop things, but cannot listen to the clan channel or view the roster. Choose your friends very carefully.
Clans die quickly without effective leadership and regular maintenance. Whatever the unifying force in your clan might be, it must be maintained. If your members joined expecting RP, then encourage clan-related RP. You might start by devising ceremonies, symbolism, or holiday celebrations to go along with your rules and standards.
Keep a watch on your membership roster -- if your members archive, they'll be automatically removed from the clan, whether they want to be or not. You may need to advertise to keep your membership at a healthy level.
Don't forget that publicity is self-perpetuating -- if you have an active set of members and your clan has regular activities associated with it, people will want to join, and your members will be more likely to stay.
Clan Publicity[edit]
Publicity is important for all clans -- you want to attract members, but you want them to be the right kind of members for the kind of clan you're building. You want to keep a high enough profile that as members leave for whatever reason, new ones can be found to take their place. In addition, it never hurts to get a little credit for your members in the mud-community at large.
A few publicity ideas: RP, RP, RP! Nothing builds an identity and awareness like having something going on that people want to watch and be a part of. Sponsor an event or activity. It could be a contest of skill or chance, a helpful service, or just an open party or gathering. Consider developing public displays of clan affiliation. Perhaps you have a certain style of greeting each other or a clan insignia to wear. Depending on your clan, you might try illusions, signs, or leaflets. Use the built-in gm commands to keep your entry in 'clans ' up to date. Make a webpage about your clan. Post to boards and the LT with the latest news about your clan.
Developing a Clan RP This is a topic which could be discussed for many hours -- here's a few tips to get you started.
Communication builds a shared identity. Consider a clan board, clan hall, newsletter, website, mailing lists. Know each other. Encourage members to develop a background story on their characters, and share it with the group. Publish member backstories on the clan's web pages. Have a crisis (no, really!). For example, one of your members could be missing. Was he kidnapped by a rival clan? Was she killed? Has he been brainwashed? Is she a traitor? Conflict and struggle are a great way to keep busy. Have a goal. Do your members seek power, knowledge, respect, enlightenment, a better cup of tea? Have an event, or even better, regular events. Is there a holiday related to your clan? Can you make one up? Get your events posted in the online calendar of events by dropping a note to LadyAce or posting it in on the LegendMUD Club calendar.
Dealing with Problems[edit]
In any human organization, struggles and conflicts are inevitable, even for the best GM. Your clan will benefit from open communication lines, clear standards of conduct, and a GM who listens to all side of a conflict. If you need help in arbitrating a problem, you might consider calling on a trusted third party.
Whatever rules and standards you have for your clan should include a decision-making process -- a method to determine whether someone will be allowed to join the clan, a way to decide if rules have been broken, a set of accepted punishments, and a friendly way to transition between GMs.
Remember that the number of pledges, given via the PLEDGE command, is what determines who is the GM. If you'll be leaving or stepping down temporarily, you may want to ask a few people to pledge to your chosen successor to ensure a smooth transition. If the GM is archived, clan members will default to pledging themselves. Pledges can happen when the person being pledged to is offline.
Clans disband automatically. If the time comes to put an end to your clan, and you wish to do so manually, the DISBAND command will take care of it.
RP Clan? PK Clan? Deciding whether your clan will be PK or RP may be difficult or easy.
You should consider the following distinctions between PK and RP clans in making your choice.
Under a combined system of PKE and PKOK, RP clans may in fact be PKOK clans or pure RP clans. PK clans are comprised purely of PKE members. The interactions between PK clans and PKOK individuals differs somewhat from interactions between RP clans and PKOK individuals. In a PK clan, the clan's accept list is controlled by the GM, and will override the personal accepts of the clan members. This may gain you some respect when it comes to clan wars and ease the matching of accept lists when it comes to defending clanmates, but it will remove some of the control your members have over their pk interactions with PKOK individuals.
In an RP clan, the GM can add to the clan accept list, but clan members can remove entries AND their personal lists will override the clan's list. Please be sure that you fully understand the pkok system before making a pk clan.
PK clans and RP clans also tend to have different outlooks and different cultures. PK and RP are not mutually exclusive, but some people prefer to only do one or the other, and they tend to populate the clans corresponding to their views. Think of the clan types as two overlapping circles -- there's a middle zone where both RP and PK happen, and there are two outer zones where only RP or PK happen. Where you fall in that continuum is up to you, but the type of clan you choose will tend to pull you in one direction or the other.
You can convert the clan from RP to PK (read help rptopk for info on this), but you can't go back the other way. The safest route for new clans and new GMs is to start out as an RP clan and then consider making the clan PK if the membership and other conditions support the change.