Guild By-laws

Preamble

All Recruits and Members must abide by and agree to all the rules set forth in the Guild Charter and By-laws, both of which may be revised at anytime with the consensus of every Officer in the Guild.

Invites

All Recruits before joining the Guild must meet the following requirements: (exceptions to these rules may be made on a case by case basis for friends and family. Friends are defined as someone you know in real life, or have been grouping with regularly for at least 6 months in game. If you wish to seek an exception, you must first speak to the Guild Invite Officer or a Guild Leader and a decision will be made ASAP):

• Level Requirements:
  • ALL classes must be at least level 40 or higher.
  • Alts are exempt from the Minimum Level requirement.
• Prior to any invite to the Guild, the Recruit must take the time to go to the Guild Website,  read the Guild By-laws and Guild Charter. 
  • If an invitation is extended, the recruit will be on a 3 week probation to make sure that he or she fits in the Guild and that the Guild fits with the Recruit.  During that time period, the Recruit must complete the following:
    • Review the Guild By-laws and Guild Charter and be prepared to take a quiz on them.  You can ask at anytime to be quizzed while a Recruit.
    • Register and post on the Guild Website in the Join SoV section of the forums.
      • When the recruit posts, he or she must be sure to include the following information to allow us to better get to know them:
        • Character's name
        • Character's level
        • Time zone and playing times
        • Why he or she is interested in joining SoV
        • Brief history of their character on the server
        • Level or role-play (Though we are not a strict role play guild, some like to be in character at times)

All new recruits to the Guild will carry the rank of Initiate.  After the 3 week probation period, if the recruit has fulfilled all the obligations to make full member, they can notify any Guild Recruiter or Officer that they believe that they are ready to take the Guild quiz.  Once notified, the information will be passed on to the Guild Membership Liaison Officer for verification that all other obligations for membership have been met.  Promotion from the rank of Initiate to Member will again be based on Guild Officer and Member feedback.  This promotion will not happen prior to 3 weeks membership in the Guild, this is non-negotiable, so please do not ask.  If after 3 weeks, the overall opinion of the Officers and the Guild that the Initiate is a good fit, and after completing the previously mentioned criteria, the promotion to the rank of Member will be approved.

It may appear that this process is long and drawn out, but our goal is to recruit quality not quantity of players.  In turn we hope that this is what you are seeking as well.

Mains / Alts / Secondary Characters

• Every Member of the Guild MUST make a note in the in game roster of who their Main Character is, and who their alts are.
• SoV also encourages players to play their main character more often then not. There is no restriction as to how often you play your alternate characters as long as your Main Character (the one invited to the guild in the first place) meets all other requirements, and you still level and improve that character for the betterment of the guild as a whole. You must register your alternate character on the guild roster with in one week of being tagged.
• Members have the right to change who their main is, we understand that along the way your playing styles may change and an alt may very well become your main.  All we ask is that you update the in game roster so that all know who your main is.
• Promotion to the rank of Senior Member will be made after the member has been in the Guild for 9 months and is in good standing.

Removal / Leaving Guild

The Guild has had occurrences where people have left, and rejoined the Guild, and then leaving again when they wished. In order to prevent this, the following rules have been created. (These rules are here because we want loyal members).

• The 1st time a Member / Officer leaves the Guild they will be allowed to rejoin if they choose, we all make mistakes every now and then. There are some requirements to this however.
  • You must have left the Guild in good standing, if you left on a bad standing, you will not be welcomed back.
  • You will come back at the rank of Initiate
• You will be on a probation for at least one week before you are promoted back to Member.
• If an Officer leaves the Guild and then comes back, they will not be eligible for any future Officer Positions.
• If a Member leaves the Guild for a second time, he or she will only be welcomed back upon explaining to the Officers at a meeting their reason for leaving the Guild. They must have a good explanation, and everyone who wishes to join for the second time will be handled on a case to case basis.
  • You will come back at the rank of Initiate
  • You will be on probation for at least two weeks before you are promoted back to Member.
• If a Member leaves the Guild three times, he or she WILL NOT be welcomed back under any circumstance.
• Removal from the Guild may happen for different reasons and can be decided at any time by Officers, some basic rules that can result in your removal are as follows:
  • Badmouthing or claiming false accusations against the Guild or any of its' Members.
  • Being a constant problem for the Guild, or to any other Guild / Player in the game.
    • This includes consistently having a negative attitude towards the Guild or any of its Members.
  • Stealing from the Guild Vault for personal profit
• Before being removed from the Guild, the Officers will try to prevent the removal by going to the person who is under review and telling them what they need to improve. That person has the option to try to improve their performance, or leave the Guild if they wish.
  • Before permanently removing a Member / Officer from the Guild we will do the following disciplinary actions:
    • Informal Warning: this is not recorded officially, however, that person is expected to improve.
    • Formal Warning: this person is officially warned and must improve their error, upon acquiring three formal warnings the Guild will automatically suspend the member.
    • Suspension: after three official warnings the person being suspended will be notified and suspended for the period of time issued. They may then return if the choose to do so.
    • Removal: after a Member has been suspended, they have no room for error. If they do, they can and will be removed from the Guild.
• "Rage Quitting"
  • Just don't do it, it does reflect badly upon you.  We do realize that the game can be stressful at times.  Should there be an issue, let a Guild Officer know before it becomes a major issue.  Should you still decide to "rage quit" you will be approached by a Guild Officer to discuss what happened.  Please be warned that if during the course of "rage quitting" you were disruptive, you may be asked to remove all remaining alts as well, and possibly not welcomed back.
• If a Member is removed, they will more than likely will not be welcomed back into the Guild. On an odd chance we do welcome you back, you will be on a permanent probation (handled on a case by case basis)
• Removal due to roster cleanup
  • Any Recruit character that is inactive for 30 days will be removed from Guild.
  • Any Member / Senior Member / Officer / Senior Officer / Guild Leader character that is inactive will not be removed from the Guild, we are a family and we want to make sure you have a house to come back to so to speak.  If you know you will be absent for an extended period of time, please let an officer know when you think you will be returning.

While the above rules will be followed whenever possible, the Guild Leaders reserve the right to remove any member immediately for the protection and good of the Guild.  This action will not be taken lightly and will only be used under dire circumstances.

Raids

To help eliminate wasted time and tensions the following must be adhered to:

• All Raid Requests should be posted in the Raid / Instances section of the Guild Forums
• There are two types of raids, member raids and Guild raids.
  • Member requested raids should be requested two weeks prior to the planned date for the raid. This is to ensure that enough time is given for the requester to do the necessary research for a raid, and give ample notice to all in the Guild of the intent of that member to raid a specific location.
  • The request will only be honored if the request is sent either via in game mail to both Raid Officers, Foos and Meaghan,  or posted on the Guild website in the forums.  This must be done to ensure someone's request is not overlooked, we are all human and sometime we forget things that people tell us.  If you put it in writing, we can make sure that it is acted upon.
• The requestor must post any and all research information on the Guild Web Board for review by all interested parties for that raid.
• The requestor must post if any items / specific level are required to go to a raid location.
• On the day of the member raid, either the member that requested the raid, or an officer will be in charge of the raid. If an Officer is in charge of the raid, the member that request the raid will advise the Officer.
• Many people have been working on Quests, while these are not specifically "Raids" they do sometimes require more than one group to achieve the desired outcome. We would ask that if you require more than one group to have this scheduled like a raid so as to help alleviate the stress this causes for both you (to get that many people) and the Guild (people having to drop what they are doing).
• Guild Raids that are normal raids like bring out Your Main Night, etc.. will be announced at least a week prior on the Web Board, Guild Calendar, in the Guild MOTD when logging into the game, and via in game mail. 
• There will be a Raid signup in the Raid / Instances section of the Guild Forums.
  • Please identify which toon(s) you are able to take
  • Please identify which toon you plan on rolling on loot for
  • Please note, that if you do not sign up for the Raid, it does not necessarily mean that you will be unable to attend it.  It just means that those that do sign up for it will have priority over those that do not.
  • One final note, if you sign up with a toon that just isn't required for the raid, and you do not have an alt / are unwilling / unable to play an alt, your position in the raid my be forfeit for that week.  Let's face it, we just can't go into a zone with 10 tanks, just won't work.  Should you be passed over for the week, you will have priority for the next scheduled raid.

Guild Vault

• The Guild Vault's primary function is to provide our members with good equipment and abilities.
• All members are encouraged to donate any equipment, spell scrolls, rares, collection items, crafting scrolls that are not needed when possible.  You can put them directly into the Guild Vaults or mail them to  and Guild Officer to put in when space is available.
• An Officer will hold items until there is space to put them in the bank, and will also clean and restock the Guild bank weekly.  There is one exception to this, due to limited space in the vaults.
  • Collections are held in the Guild Vault, if you need a specific collection item, please post in the Collection Items thread on the Guild Forums.  If you have extra collection items, please send them to Cynder.
  • Adepts are held by Kaposvar, when you hit the "9th" of each level, a Adept Care Package will be sent to you with whatever spells we have for your class for the next 10 levels.  If you have extra adepts, please send them to Kaposvar.  Please note that these will only be for the level range of 60+.
  • Crafting scrolls will be held in the Guild Vault.
• Items from the Guild Vault that are taken must be for the Guild member's use.
• Items from the Guild Vault cannot be given to Alts outside of the Guild, Friends, etc.
• Items from the Guild Vault cannot be sold or  used in the production of something for which you will then sell on the market.

Loot Rules

• The aim of the Guild is to try and equip all our members in a fair and equitable manner.  We are setting forth the following to try and ensure this happens:
  • At the beginning of a Guild Raid, you will be asked to send a tell to a specific Officer declaring if you are going to be rolling for a class other than what you are currently playing.  If you already noted this on the Guild website and there is no change, you will not have to do so.  Failure to do so will mean that you will only be eligible to roll for the class that you are currently playing during the raid.
  • All loot for normal Guild Raid will be distributed under the need before greed rule.  All members that can use the item are eligible to roll.  If no one needs the item then it will be open to all to roll on.
  • Every member for the Guild Raid is eligible to win one of each of the following class of items during the course of the Raid night:
    • Fabled Pattern
    • Fabled Item
    • Master Spell
    • Legendary Item
    • *Transmuted component (if no one can use an item, rather then let it rot, we will transmute it if a transmuter is available).
    • SPECIAL NOTE: Resist Gear - The Raid leader reserves the right to distribute resist gear without an open roll based on raid need, only after a consensus between either the 2 Raid Officers is made, or in the event only one Raid Officer is present the Raid Officer and a Guild Leader.  We don't play favorites it's for the good of the Guild....So please don't say otherwise.
  • Rolling Order
    • Mains present on the raid or designated mains if an alternate was requested that have not yet won an item for the different categories.
    • If no one needs, those present that have already won something in that category may roll.
    • Alternates, not present in the Raid that have not won something in that category.
    • * Crush it and anyone that has not won my roll.
    • If no crusher, Raid Leader will /ran 24 it and assign it to someone to do as they wish.  (This does not count towards loot quotas)
  • Rolling for Alts not in zone or just outside zone
    • If you are planning on rolling for an Alt that you are not playing in the Raid, that Alt must be camped either in zone, or just outside the zone.  It's not fair to make 23 others wait for you to get your alt to the zone to loot.

Drill Sergeants and Guild Recruiters

• Drill Sergeants
  • Drill Sergeants are members of the Guild that have stepped forward and volunteered to assist any and all Guild Members whenever they can in any area of the game.  All appointed Drill Sergeants report to the Senior Drill Sergeant for guidance.
  • Currently the Senior Drill Sergeant position is held by: Darsalai
  • All Drill Sergeants work directly for the Guild Membership Liaison Officer
  • Guild Members are promoted to the rank of Drill Sergeant after they have notified wither the Guild Membership Liaison Officer or a Guild Leader. 
    • After being notified, the Guild Officers will review the candidate and make a decision.  Should the decision be favorable, the member will be promoted.
• Guild Recruiters
  • Like the Drill Sergeants, Guild Recruiters have also stepped forward and volunteered to assist the Guild by actively recruiting for it.  Guild Recruiters are responsible for making sure that those they recruit are properly guided along the path towards making Guild Member.  When they are sure that the recruit has passed all the criteria to make full member, they will contact the Guild membership Liaison Officer on behalf of the recruit.  If the Guild Membership Liaison Officer is not available, then he or she will let another Guild Officer know.
• Special note:  Both positions Drill Sergeants and Guild Recruiters are not considered Officer / Jr. Officer positions, they are however positions of great trust as they actively represent the Guild.

Officer and Co-Leader Elections

From time to time there comes the need to either fill vacant officer or Co-Leader positions.  At all times SoV will maintain a minimum of two Co-Leaders with a maximum of three Co-Leaders.  The third Co-Leader position will be filled if the need arises and there is a consensus amongst the Guild Officers that there is a need to fill that position.

• Rules for promotion to Officer:
  • When the need arises and the Leaders of SoV announce the positions to the Guild, a call for nominations from the members of SoV will be taken.  Any full member (non-recruit) can be nominated via secret ballot to the Co-Leader in charge of tallying the nominations.  Nominations will be for a set period of time.  Once the period of time for nominations has closed, the Co-Leader in charge will make known the nominations to the other officers via the Guild website in the Officer section.  From there, the nominees will be contacted by Co-Leader of SoV to discuss their nomination and to see if the nominee is interested in filling the position.  If they accept the nomination, a secret vote will be taken by the officers to elect the nominee they feel best fits the position to be filled.  The vote is not a popularity contest, it is based on who the officers feel would be the best person for the job at hand.  The winning officer will be announced at the next scheduled Guild Meeting and promoted at that time.
• Rules for promotion to Co-Leader:
  • When the need arises to fill a position of Co-Leader in SoV, a call for nominations will be made to the officers of SoV for a set period of time.  The nominees for Co-Leader will be posted on the Guild website in the Officer section, and the nominees contacted.  The nominees that accept will be put forth for a vote by the Officers and the winner will be announced and promoted at the next scheduled Guild Meeting.

Officer Roles

The Guild has several Officers that you can contact for any reason should the need arise. Below is a list of the Officers and their specific roles in the Guild. If the matter at hand pertains to their role as an Officer, we encourage you to contact them first.

• Guild Leaders
  • Kappo
  • Overseer of Guild patronage
  • Maintainer of Guild Website
  • Holder of Adepts
  • <Currently Vacant>
    • Assist guild members as needed
    • Help out in all aspects when an officer is needed but not available
  • <Currently Vacant>
    • Assist guild members as needed
    • Help out in all aspects when an officer is needed but not available
• Guild Membership Liaison
  • Donaldii (Officer)
    • Oversees the invites of new members to the Guild
    • Oversees promotion of Guild member from Initiate to Senior Member
• Guild Vault Officer
  • Cynder (Senior Officer)
    • Guild Vault Chairman
      • Monitors and maintains the Guild Vault
      • Selling Guild loot for Guild Bank
• General Officers
  • Epiku (Senior Officer)
  • Patibulaire (Senior Officer) (On hiatus)
  • Falko
  • <Currently Vacant>
  • <Currently Vacant>
• Master Craftsman
  • Kiric (Senior Officer)
    • Assists all members in trade skills
• Raid Officer
  • Sets up dates for Raids
  • Helps members get setup for and plan their raids
  • Assist in organizing and leading
  • Distribute Raid loot
    • Foos (Officer)
    • Sulan (Officer)
• Events Officer
  • <Currently Vacant>
    • Assists in planning and organizing Guild events and contests
• Guild Ambassador
  • Toejoh (Senior Officer)
    • Maintaining the peace in Guild
    • Dealing with complaints in / out of Guild

Additional Rules

• Remember that this is a game, have fun and enjoy it.