Now Taking Gamemaster Applications!!

[Rowana]

Hello Layonara Community!
 
 It has come around to that time again, where we look around for interested individuals to help grow the Layonaran experience for the community as a whole. If you are interested in giving back to the community that has provided you with countless hours of entertainment, this is one way to make that happen! Below are listed the qualifications, the required duties and the list of questions that we'll need answered so that we can evaluate if you are a good match for the world. Please take some time to consider all of these if you are interested in becoming a Gamemaster for Layonara.
 

Gamemaster Qualifications:
 
You qualify for GM application if you meet the following:
 
• If you have been a community member in good standing for at least four (4) months
• If you can work well on a team but can also take independent initiative
• If you act responsibly both individually and within teams
• If you understand both the rules and the spirit of the server
• If you enforce the spirit and rules of the server when necessary
• If you communicate well in text in an online environment.
• If you can commit to perform GM Duties as either a part time or full time GM

Gamemaster Duties:

 You will need to be able to commit to ALL the following:

•   Commit to the Author-Publisher Agreement. This means the rights to what you write, run as a quest or otherwise provide in your time as GM belongs to Layonara. You will be required to sign off on this and supply the document to Layonara. This is required to protect Layonara Studios and all of our community members.
• Run impromptus, CDQs and quests, reward RP, assist players in game, or otherwise be active in game with your GM avatar (Part time: 1 hour/week ; Full time: 2 hours/week)
•   Properly research and include world lore for events that require it. This can require that certain kinds of quests be written up and approved by head team members (such as EdtheKet and Leanthar) prior to running them.
•   Communicate any long term absences from the world to the team, ahead of time if possible. “Long term absences” is defined as more than two weeks consecutive where you will not be able to reached for any reason. (We certainly understand that emergencies happen and for our enlisted members, you don't always get that opportunity. In case of the latter, please make us aware in your application that this is a possibility.)
•  Write up quests after they are completed with detailed information for tracking.
  
• Check the forums regularly for GM specific content. (Part time: at least 2 times/week ; Full time: at least 5 times/week)
•  Spend at least 2 hours per month working to help the team and community on IRC or forums (e.g. Character approvals, disputes and grievances, answering questions, moderating forums or IRC, providing other assistance to GMs or Players).
• Participate in GM team discussions (these are largely forum based). Examples include discussion of changes to policy, weighing in on World Leader eligibility, and communicating various issues to the staff as a whole.
• Keep appropriate records of character profiling, player interactions, etc.
• Communicate with individual players who may need help understanding the rules or spirit of the server.

Application Questions
(please answer in a response in this thread)
1. How long have you been a member of Layonara?  (The minimum is four (4) months of active time in the community.)

2. Are you applying as a part time or full time quest GM?

3. Why do you want to be a GM team member in Layonara?

4. Please describe any GM experience, including any NWN GMing experience. GMing experience, digitally or PnP style is not a prerequisite for a GM position!

5. Please read carefully through the GM team duties and qualifications, if you have not already. This community has always supported the ethic of 'real life comes first' but we will need to know, realistically, if your real life can support your interest and commitment to the world. Please describe, either Layonaran or real life, responsibilities that may conflict with your Gamemaster commitments. Membership to other teams such as LORE or Character Approvals are examples of Layonaran commitments.

6. Please submit an example quest in a PM (addressed to EdtheKet, Rowana and Dorganath). Your quest should be a brief outline of the set up and expected important events during your quest. Please include a few foreseeable side paths players might take and your intentions for working with players on those initiatives. This should be a quest you could run if you are accepted as a GM, though it is by no means required. Your sample quest summary should be between 300 and 500 words in length. Summaries less than 300 or more than 500 words will not be considered and you will be asked to submit again with the proper word length. Applicants without a quest submitted to the Team by the deadline will not be considered during this pass.

The applications will close on June 30th, 2011, Midnight Eastern Daylight Time. All qualified applicants will be contacted for an interview by July 5th, 2011. Interviews will take place either in game or via IRC. Interviews must be final by July 20th, 2011, in order to offer invites to new GMs in a timely manner.  
 
 We look forward to hearing from you all!
 
 The GM Team

[Rowana]

Some questions typically crop up during the application process that I will go ahead and repeat the answers to now for interested parties.
 

 Q: Are you looking for a specified number of slots to fill?

A: Absolutely not. We do not have set number of 'slots' that we will fill and have to refuse the rest, nor will we take candidates that do not meet standards just to fill those 'slots'. If we have ten qualified  candidates we will take all. If only one person were to meet standards then we would only take that one applicant.  
 

 Q: Is there training? I've never Gamemastered anything before/I've never Gamemastered online before and I'm afraid I won't be able to do the job without training.
 
 A: We are offering a mentoring process to get new Gamemasters started to teach all aspects of GMing that we can. Experience is always a great teacher but we won't be tossing you in to figure it all out on your own. Something else to keep in mind here, the Gamemasters here at Layonara continue to learn long after their initial acclimation to the job, and we continuously rely on each other for support in that department. There is no set time we expect anyone to become an 'expert' Gamemaster.
 

 Q: Do I have to be an expert on lore, though?

 A: Absolutely  not. With regards to the world lore, what we require is that you are willing to do the research to keep consistency and be willing to make quest proposals to EdtheKet, our LoreMaster, when you find your quest idea isn't yet supported by published lore. It does mean you should probably brush up a bit on some ideas before you run an impromptu as well, but we will never require you to attempt to memorize the whole lexicon of Layonaran lore just to be a Gamemaster.
 

 Q: I am interested in giving back to the community but this is my first roleplaying experience and I don't think I have enough experience to become a Gamemaster.
 
 A: A lot of the principles of Gamemastering can be taught and there are a great many styles to GMing. A simple review of our GM roster will tell you we've got a fair variety already. Some GMs that you have grown to love had their first roleplaying experiences here. Clearly there is personal comfort level to consider, but if you feel you are ready to jump in, the Team is ready to equip you with the needed skills to be a successful Gamemaster. We don't expect or even want every quest to be an Earth-shattering Epic Event, so starting out with small simple quests to learn from is perfectly acceptable! You may not think it, but the community loves these sorts of quests just as much as the plot level events. (Just look back on your own experience and you'll see what we mean, we're sure!)
 

 Q: I am interested but I don't really know what to expect. I see all over the forums about how busy GMs are all the time but I see that the below minimums are actually very small. Can you explain a little more about the time requirements of the job?
 
 A: We require a pretty limited amount of time that you MUST be engaged with the community as a GM, it's true. However, there is a lot that goes into Gamemastering that people do not see, and the overall commitment is not small. You could probably easily plan to spend eight to ten hours a week fulfilling your duties as a part time GM. Some manage with less and some spend far more. If you do not have at a minimum of five hours a week to give consistently, there may well be a better way for you to give back to the community instead of GameMastering. (And that's perfectly fine! We have tons of ways for people to contribute, so please don't hesitate to ask if you are interested!)
 

 Q: What are these other tasks that take so much time for GameMastering?
 
 A: Quest write ups, Quest set ups, Answering related PMs and forum posts as related to you quests, writing character profile updates so other GMs can appropriately credit/use/help/allow characters to use their background and development, Quest planning (and sometimes submissions for approval of quests!) are all tasks that can use up a lot of our volunteer staff's time just related to quests. If you assist with other departments such as grievances or character approvals, those have their own set of tasks that can take up a lot of time as well.
 

 Q: Well, I see you are opening up Gamemaster applications but I was looking to do one of the other jobs. Will you be opening up anything else at the same time?

A: We are only opening Gamemaster applications at this time. Character Approvals and Lore Team positions will not be opening up, at this time. However, if you have interest in Project Team or Writers Team let us know, as those don't have an official 'open application' period and have different requirements. It is worth noting that as Gamemaster, many of these other teams can be apart of what you will do anyway, depending on how you choose to donate your time. However, the primary purpose of the applications at this time is to find new (or returning) Gamemasters who can help us run quests on a regular basis (and their associated duties).  
 

 Q: If I'm turned down, does that mean you just don't want me as a GM here?

A: Most emphatically, no. We would love to have a full staff of GMs here but sometimes we think there are some basic needs that must be met before we can accept you on to the team. Don't worry, we won't leave you in the dark. If you are not accepted on the team as a GM, we will give you the option to find out why that is and you are welcome to work on that(those) issue(s) until the next time we open up the application process.  
 

 Q: Alright, I'm in. I'll start writing my quest and filling out the application. Is there anything -else- I can do, especially while I am waiting for my interview to be scheduled or the answer to come back from the Team?
 
A: Yes! All of the following are good to do before your interview or even just as a good practice for general community members.  
 
 If you are not already familiar with LORE, please become so. Dig around for various things until you have a pretty good feel for using the site. If you have questions, certainly feel free to ask. Search up your favorite kingdom, or maybe NPC. Try out the links at the top and maybe peek at some of our maps. Did you know Layonara has it's own measurement of distance?
 
 Please read over the public primer. It will give you a head start on your 'homework' as a GM too, because we have to have the GM version completely read and understood before you can run quests anyway! It's not terribly long but will provide you with valuable information that you will fall back on frequently.
 
 If you are unfamiliar with IRC please do some investigating there, and perhaps come hang out in the channel a bit, maybe work out any kinks that may be present. Don't have an IRC client? That's alright, use LORE to search out recommended IRC clients to connect to us with. Two birds, one stone! (hint: there is also a guide to setting up a permanent client so that you can connect readily whenever you need.)
 
 If you are not familiar with the GLR (Gnomish Log Rotator) please take some time to get it set up and running. This will be useful to you even if you are not selected as a GM. If you are selected as a GM it will assist you with a good number of your GM required duties. The set up can be a little tricky, especially if you are not as technically inclined as some, but there are many members around the community happy to help, so post for assistance if needed!

 Please go through and familiarize yourself with the various policies we have such as, Grievances (look through the collection of stickies), Character Approvals (the various stickies), and The Rules. Even if you have done these things before, it's never a bad idea to refresh your memory on these or take periodic reviews as all of these are updated or changed from time to time.

Hope this helps! If we've missed something, please don't hesitate to ask.

[Alatriel]

Application Questions
(please answer in a response in this thread)
1. How long have you been a member of Layonara? (The minimum is four (4) months of active time in the community.)

I joined the community back in March 2008, so.... *squints* 3 years, 3 months.

2. Are you applying as a part time or full time quest GM?

Full time

3. Why do you want to be a GM team member in Layonara?

I've been a player, and then a World Leader, and I know how much work there is to do around here to keep things running smoothly and to keep things entertaining and engaging for the player base.  I'd like to help with that.  There is a lot of things that I can do as a world leader, and even just as a player to do this, but I hope that as a GM, I'd be able to do just a little more to give back to the community.  I can't always donate monetarily to things that I love, but I can donate my time and my creativity.

4. Please describe any GM experience, including any NWN GMing experience. GMing experience, digitally or PnP style is not a prerequisite for a GM position!

I have very little to no GM experience at all, to be honest.  The closest thing I have to GMing experience is as an assistant GM on a free-form, IRC based rpg (Mud?) called SWEF:  Star Wars Elite Forces and that was about oh... 10 years ago.  I have helped out behind the scenes on a few different games, however, including SWEF, Macon Twilight Theater (MTT)- a Vampire: The Darkages LARP Campaign, SOLAR (Southern Organization for Live Action Reenactments)

5. Please read carefully through the GM team duties and qualifications, if you have not already. This community has always supported the ethic of 'real life comes first' but we will need to know, realistically, if your real life can support your interest and commitment to the world. Please describe, either Layonaran or real life, responsibilities that may conflict with your Gamemaster commitments. Membership to other teams such as LORE or Character Approvals are examples of Layonaran commitments.

Real life first:  I'm a stay-at-home mom of 2 and a wife.  While this gives me more flexibility to be around on irc, forums, and even in game at times, there may be times when I'm called away if something unforeseen happens.  I'm also attempting to finish my schoolwork for Medical Transcription, a program that I hope to be completely finished with by December.  (I um... sorta have to... but I'm close!)  I also sometimes make custom dolls and doll clothes when they are ordered, so there may be days when I'm working on that sort of thing, but it shouldn't be long term in each case at any rate.

Layonaran life:  I work with the project team as an area builder and I manage the Housing Remodel forum with Dorganath.  I also co-manage the Toran forum.

6. Please submit an example quest in a PM (addressed to EdtheKet, Rowana and Dorganath). Your quest should be a brief outline of the set up and expected important events during your quest. Please include a few foreseeable side paths players might take and your intentions for working with players on those initiatives. This should be a quest you could run if you are accepted as a GM, though it is by no means required. Your sample quest summary should be between 300 and 500 words in length. Summaries less than 300 or more than 500 words will not be considered and you will be asked to submit again with the proper word length. Applicants without a quest submitted to the Team by the deadline will not be considered during this pass.

PM to be sent as soon as I finish here.

[Ravemore]

Application Questions

1. I have been a member of Layonara for a little over 5 years.

2. I am applying for a full time GM position.

3. I want to give back some of the enjoyment that I have been able to reap on this server.

4. I have been a long time P&P DM (23 years), with experience mainly in Dungeons and Dragons, but some time with Shadowrun and a little Call of Cthulu. I still currently DM for my kiddos when they have the time. I have a keen interest in the dark and macabre. I have a little experience with the NWN toolset and GM'd briefly on one other NWN PW before I decided the world itself was not my cup of tea.

5. I have no other Layonaran commitments, except for playing. In real life I have to be away for 2-3 weeks occasionally to do disaster duty for my job.  Usually 1 to 3 times a year (property and liability insurance adjuster), but other than that do not have anything of significance.

6. Will be submitted as soon as complete, and within the deadline requirements.

[Ravemore]

Sample Quest submitted via PM. Ed's Mailbox is full right now and is not accepting new ones, so I'll have to try to resend his copy in a day or two...

[Rowana]

Don't worry about sending it Ravemore, I've re-posted it where he can see it.

Thanks!
~row

[lonnarin]

1. How long have you been a member of Layonara? (The minimum is four (4) months of active time in the community.)

Since Oct 2004.

2. Are you applying as a part time or full time quest GM?

Part time at the moment.  one scheduled 3-hour quest per month plus at least an hour of impromptus.  Going to be heavy on the impromptus.  Want to reward those players logged in at random, increase the incentive to be actively involved.  My usual off work times are between 7-11pm est weekdays, and all day weekends.

3. Why do you want to be a GM team member in Layonara?

To give back to this community which has entertained me for nearly 7 years.  I consider myself a patriot of this server.  My nationality in the MMORPG community is first and foremost here.  I love the feel of the place, the style of it, and it's longevity against all odds.  I want to entertain these people, show them that World of Warcraft doesn't mean piddly squat compared to the intricately woven plot lines and twists that a custom-made quest can offer.  This place is incredible, and to be a part of it, helping expand the world would be an honor.

4. Please describe any GM experience, including any NWN GMing experience. GMing experience, digitally or PnP style is not a prerequisite for a GM position!

I have GMed tabletop D&D 2.0-3.5 & Pathfinder for the past 16 years.  Shadowrun and my own Star Trek adaptation of it for around 7 years.  Currently my most active tabletop game is in Shadowrun with a very Michael Mann meets John Woo theme.  I was once, long ago in ages past a GM of this server as well.  I think that lasted around 6-8 months.  Before then I was a GM for Lands of Acheron for around a year and a half.  I already have experience with the GM toolset for NWN, though will likely try to join the mentoring program for learning new GM-tool nuances and getting the feel for it again.

5. Please read carefully through the GM team duties and qualifications, if you have not already. This community has always supported the ethic of 'real life comes first' but we will need to know, realistically, if your real life can support your interest and commitment to the world. Please describe, either Layonaran or real life, responsibilities that may conflict with your Gamemaster commitments. Membership to other teams such as LORE or Character Approvals are examples of Layonaran commitments.

I do have my hectic work schedules at times, but as long as I schedule for sundays mid-day EST I should be able to fulfill at the very least the part time requirements for hours here.  When I GMed before I was far less organized, mature and professional than I am now.  Now that I deal with doing the billing for an entire college computer tech division, answering frantic emails from a hundred different professors who want order status of requisition forms that they faxed over 5 minutes ago, my patience and temperament have developed greatly.  I understand the necessity for timely paperwork and sticking to procedure.  I may have some "crunch periods" where I am dead to the world for a week at a time, but my Sundays should always be free and I can at least get my quest time in then.  Once our back-to-school & end-of-fiscal-year paperwork rush is done come July, my position should be much more lax and ready to fulfill the responsibilities here.  June will always be hectic for me, the rest of the year will be a slow trickle at work rife with forum browsing.  And especially quest heavy on the government-mandated holidays!

6. Please submit an example quest in a PM (addressed to EdtheKet, Rowana and Dorganath). Your quest should be a brief outline of the set up and expected important events during your quest. Please include a few foreseeable side paths players might take and your intentions for working with players on those initiatives. This should be a quest you could run if you are accepted as a GM, though it is by no means required. Your sample quest summary should be between 300 and 500 words in length. Summaries less than 300 or more than 500 words will not be considered and you will be asked to submit again with the proper word length. Applicants without a quest submitted to the Team by the deadline will not be considered during this pass.

Will do so in the next week or two.

[merlin34baseball]

Contemplating.... mmhmm... contemplating being a GM.....

[jrizz]

Do it Merlin. I would be going for it again if RL was not so heavy right now. It is a great job!

[merlin34baseball]

Fine... Lonarin and Teo convinced me. More coming tomorrow...

[merlin34baseball]

Ha! I really wanted to do this, but it seems I am way to cramped for time. My apologies and good luck to those who apply!

Merlin34

[Xaltotun]

Application Questions/Answers

1. How long have you been a member of Layonara?

   Join Date: 01-17-04, so, 7 years 5 months

2. Are you applying as a part time or full time quest GM?

   Full time, and would prefer to be gm for GMT friendly time zones

3. Why do you want to be a GM team member in Layonara?

   After many years of playing happily on Layo, I would relish the opportunity to be able to give back some of the fun I have had to other players.
Layo is a brilliant world and is all the better for still drawing players in the face of games like WoW and LOTRO, etc. I would love to be able to add to the wealth of experience on the gm side and keep the rp rolling for as long as possible.

   As some may know, I have struggled on a few occasions with some of the concepts in Layonara, but have been fortunate enough to be able to rely on the community to explain it to me. This means I have a better experience and understanding and so feel more able to help guide other players through this rich world.

4. Please describe any GM experience, including any NWN GMing experience. GMing experience, digitally or PnP style is not a prerequisite for a GM position!

   I have been a P’n’P DM for over 30 years and built and ran my own workd for friends on Neverwinter Nights and used to run LAN games for them with me as GM. I have also gm’d Call of Cthulu, Cyberpunk, Warhammer and a SciFi based rp game which I have forgotten the name of. However, D&D-style is still my favourite and I would love to become a gm on Layo.

   I also helped DM and coach my son’s school team get to second place in a national D&D competition some years back.

5. Please read carefully through the GM team duties and qualifications, if you have not already.

   My work-life balance has shifted over the past few years and I can now fully and realistically commit to the role of GM without any issue. I am currently a member of Ed’s Project Writers team, so recommitting to the Author-Publisher Agreement is not a problem. I can get lots of spare time during the day, which makes it ideal for running impromptu quests, rewarding players, helping out or just being in-game. 2 hours/week is easy for me to manage now. Doing the research and getting approval for quests via the team is no issue and is welcome to make sure the games would be running in the correct contexts anyway. Writing up games, keeping notes, communicating and participation are understood as part and parcel of the role and welcomed.

6. Please submit an example quest in a PM (addressed to EdtheKet, Rowana and Dorganath).

   Sample quest sent as requested.

[Pseudonym]

Application (Thanks to Xaltotun for the format to copy and paste)

1. How long have you been a member of Layonara?

   Join Date: June-July 2006?

2. Are you applying as a part time or full time quest GM?

   Part time. I want to approach GMing like I approach most other things in my life. Half-heartedly.

3. Why do you want to be a GM team member in Layonara?

To run quests.
To have input into the direction of Layonara.
To assist in decision making on matters of importance.
To make forum posts pointing players to scheduled quests on the calendar that should earn maybe 6-10 thank you's each time.

4. Please describe any GM experience, including any NWN GMing experience. GMing experience, digitally or PnP style is not a prerequisite for a GM position!

I have been a GM on Layo previously.

Many players would be able to account for me being the greatest Quest GM Layo had ever seen.
Okay, some players might be able to account for me being in the top 10.
Okay, would you believe one or two players thinking I was in the top 50?
Forget all that, let's just say I have been a GM here before. I'd like to think I left without burning any bridges.

I have also DM'd PnP campaigns since before many players here were even a twinkle in their daddy's eye. Except Mix and Jrizz - they're pretty old.

5. Please read carefully through the GM team duties and qualifications, if you have not already.

Done. My other Layo-related duties are pretty much just with my main character as a WL. This is a duty I take seriously (even if Ark wouldn't) and wouldn't apply for a GM position if I thought I was unable to meet the obligations for both. I am of the view that a WL's responsibilities and a GM's responsibilities should be viewed discretely from each other. If you only have time for to run quests or be involved in the MMO, then that is what you are and your WL position may be the sacrifice. I believe I will have time to meet the minimum obligations of both duties.

I do work full time in a job that sometimes requires some long hours and some short notice non-negotiable time obligations but these shouldn't significantly impact on my duties as a GM. I also have 3 kids and a wife that tolerate my company now and again. That said, I am a man and am happy to give an undertaking not to meet my fair share of household and parental duties for the duration of my GM tenure.

6. Please submit an example quest in a PM (addressed to EdtheKet, Rowana and Dorganath).

On its way.

[Rowana]

Just a reminder that there's only a little more than four days left on this before we will close applications. Please have applications and quests submitted by that time!

Thanks to those who have already applied!

~row

[lonnarin]

Whew!  Assignment turned in 12.5 hours before the deadline!

[Rowana]

Thank to those that applied: Lonnarin, Xaltotun, Ravemore, Pseudonym and Alatriel. You will be contacted via PM very shortly regarding your interview times.

The application opportunity is now closed. Good luck to our applicants.

~row