Meán Fómhair (September) 2013


Cead Mile Failte!

It's that time for another Ceannard Notes and this month things are getting hot! It's that crazy month when the kids go back to school, business resumes as usual, and our population returns to a normal level. It also marks a very special occasion for me personally.

On September 13th, 1993 -- yes mark that 20 years ago (Yikes!) -- I launched my first website titled "Football Central" which has gone down in history as the first sport oriented website on the internet. It originally posted every Pro, College, and my High School's football schedule. It later grew to contain more than 14,000 pages on every football team in the world. Yes that''s right, Every single team I found I created a page for documenting their basic information and links to their website. Back in that day there was no PHP or MySQL. There was Perl and CGI. I did it all by hand one page at a time. Oh how times have changed and things have advanced. So 20 years later I now have a whole slew of sites on the internet, none of which outshine the Gaiscioch site. The Gaiscioch site has always been my lab rat, the place of innovation and testing. Every script I have written has been tested here first. With my nearly 6,000 beta testers every bug was found and squashed quickly.

Building this site has taught me a lot about web design, web programming, search optimization, and more importantly motivating an online community to work together. Being online for 12 of those 20 years the Gaiscioch site has become my longest lasting website. It has out shined every site prior. I owe that all to you guys and gals who use and break it daily. While the Gaiscioch doesn't make me a living it does allow me a platform to advance my professional & leadership skills. So I'd like to give you all a huge thank you for helping me see the vision and reach for it. 20 Years ago I never thought I'd be where I am, and Gaiscioch has been a large part of that story. Thank you all for being a part of this family and helping me grow to be a better person and leader.

So lets get into some of the good stuff in store for this month!

PAX Prime 2013
Come Have A Pint With Us!

Are you attending PAX Prime in Seattle, Washington this year or live near the area and have a free Sunday Night? Join us at Fado Irish Pub & Restaurant for fun times and socialization with some of your favorite Gaiscioch. Festivities begin at 8pm and will go till we all get tired and go home. There will even be some guest appearances from game developers of past and present!

Fado Irish Pub & Restaurant Seattle
Address: 801 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98104
Phone: (206) 264-2700
http://www.fadoirishpub.com/seattle/

Learn more at:
http://www.gaiscioch.com/tavern/family_news/post_62121.html



ExtraLife 2013
Help Give A Child A Second Chance At Life

This year marks the 3rd year that Gaiscioch has participated in the ExtraLife event to raise money in a 24-hour game-a-thon for the Children's Miracle Network. In the past 2 years the Gaiscioch has raised $16,783 for the CMN and continues their support this year aiming to raise $10,000. With your help we can achieve this goal.

Even if you can't donate yourself, you can help us raise money by tweeting, facebooking, and bloggings about what we're trying to achieve. Simply register an account as a participant in the event and then on November 2nd join us for a 24-hour Family event in Guild Wars 2 or a game of your choice. (P.S. You don't actually have to play 24-hours straight, you can break it into segments of 2, 6, 8, or 12 hours, to total 24 hours.) Our event leaders are coordinating a full 24-hours of Gaiscioch Events for Sanctum of Rall in Guild Wars 2 so be sure to come out.

Help us make this our best year yet. Whether you want to play 24 hours of Guild Wars, RIFT, Neverwinter, Final Fantasy XIV, Farmville, or even Justin Bieber Rides A My Little Pony Online your contributions will be appreciated. In addition all participants in this years event who raise or donate 1 dollar or more will receive the Total Amount Raised in the form of Contribution Points. So if we meet our $10,000 goal, you can look forward to 10,000 contribution points.

Join the team at:
https://www.extra-life.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=register.start&eventID=512&teamID=10689

Learn more about our charity events at:
http://www.gaiscioch.com/charity/



August 2013 Gaiscioch 101 Livestream
Gaiscioch Community Overview Recap

For those that missed last month's Community Overview Livestream fear not. We have posted it for viewing along with a full recap notes at: http://www.gaiscioch.com/tavern/family_guides/post_63070.html

September Gaiscioch 101 Livestream
Becoming a Gaiscioch

On September 7th at 12pm Pacific the Gaiscioch will host a joining the family orientation for all new members or curious community. If you have a friend who's interested in our community please let them know about this event.

This event will cover :

  • A general overview of Gaiscioch

  • How we're structured

  • Our rules, credos, and guidelines

  • How to register

  • How to receive an in game invitation

  • How to maintain your spot in the Guild Wars 2 roster

  • What to do if you were removed in game

  • A quick overview of the key features you'll have access to

  • How leveling up within the family is done.

This event kicks off at 12pm sharp and will be live streamed at:
http://www.twitch.tv/thegaisciochfamily/

If you can't make it be sure to watch it later at:
http://www.youtube.com/user/GaisciochNaAnu

Monthly Meetings
Saturday, September 7th, 2013

For those looking to join us for the monthly meetings we will be holding them on Saturday, September 7th, 2013 on RaidCall: 1101. Please feel free to join us if you are available.

  • 12PM PDT: Becoming A Member Livestream
  • 1PM PDT: Warlord & Commnders Meeting
  • 2PM PDT: Elder Meeting
  • 5PM PDT: Gaiscioch Family Pubcast Live

For this months topics on the Pubcast we will be discussing Free-2-Play vs Pay-2-Play models, cover the PAX Prime wrap-up, and highlight this months latest news.

New Elder Announced
Jessica Joins the Elder Council

I am certain not many of you are surprised by this. This month the elders voted to bring on one more Elder for the days to come as many of our existing elders have had to step away recently. Many of you already have considered Jessica as part of the elder team. She has gone out of her way to help people, lead fun and friendly events, and has handled the stress of crazy people with flying colors. She has helped us test multiple games over the past year and has provided developers critical feedback that has gone into making better products.

Jessica is an ideal representative of the Gaiscioch Way and has lived by the code since she joined. She has been a wonderful support for our eldership over the past year and we have been watching her for this very role for some time. I believe she will make a wonderful addition to the eldership team and look forward to having her support.

As an elder she will have to accept the Elder's Credo which is the highest credo in the Gaiscioch Family.

The Elders Credo
"I understand by accepting this credo that I am a protector of the Gaiscioch way of life. My actions directly ripple through the family. I swear to approach every obstacle with a calm mind and a clear head and view it from all angles before making a decision. I understand the amount of work that is involved with this position and will do my best to provide my fair share of support to the elder council and family. I will act out of selflessness and compassion, I will put others before myself, and I will go out of my way to help those in the communities the Gaiscioch exists within. I will represent the family in the highest of honors. I will not act out of rage or anger. I will not use my authority to gain power and control. I understand that as an elder those below me should be tended to first, that our strength comes from those we help."

 

Being an elder is not about power, or control. It's about inspiration and being the vision of the family personified. We must put aside personal gain to become part of the success of the whole. It's our job to protect the way of the Gaiscioch and keep the family moving forward. Sometimes this means making tough decisions and owning up to the effect of those decisions, other times it means being an ear for a person even when you don't want to.

I would like to say thank you to Jessica for her continued support and I look forward to working with you in the future.



Guild Wars 2:
Gaiscioch Family Photo

This month Guild Wars 2 did something we've all been waiting for. They removed culling all together! Now you can see each and every one of us. To commemorate this on September 7th we will hold our first ever Guild Wars 2 Family Photo day! We attempted this in RIFT but culling prevented us from seeing everyone, Guild Wars 2 also had the same problem and the only way we could was to get everyone in WvW which has a hard cap of 80 people. But now that Culling is completely gone we can hold a mass family gathering and get as many as we can into one screenful of people! We will form up at 4PM Just before the Gaiscioch Pubcast at a location TBD.

Recent Updates
Guild Wars 2 August Updates

August 20, 2013
Clockwork Chaos

What surprises and excitement await you among Queen Jennah’s most esteemed guests at the Crown Pavilion? The Krytan Queen is preparing to address the celebrants and emissaries attending her royal jubilee, but someone else has plans for the Queen’s speech!

Rewards:

  • Birthday Gifts!

  • Infinite Watchknight Tonic

  • Twisted Watchwork Shoulder Skin

  • Twisted Watchwork Portal Device Recipe

Features:

  • World vs. World XP and Point adjustments

  • World vs. World Trebuchet Mastery

  • The End of Culling in PvE

Read More At: https://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/releases/august-20-2013/

Full Patch Notes: https://forum-en.guildwars2.com/forum/info/updates/Game-Update-Notes-August-20-2013

August 6th, 2013
Queen’s Jubilee

A celebration of ten years of Queen Jennah’s rule is about to kick off in Divinity’s Reach! The queen has commissioned a new gladiatorial arena for the occasion—the Crown Pavilion—as a shining symbol of her people’s endurance.

Take a hot air balloon ride with dignitaries from across Tyria to the capital of the Krytan nation, and be there for the opening ceremony. Join in the festivities and compete in ceremonial combat in Her Majesty’s honor!

Rewards:

  • Watchwork Mechanisms

  • Mini Watchknight

Features:

  • Account Wallet for Currency

  • PvP Solo Queue

  • Bonus Rewards for Dungeons

  • Champion Loot Updates

  • Mini-Game Rotation System

  • Improved Effects Level of Detail System

  • World vs. World Supply Mastery

  • Permanent Finishers

Read More At: https://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/releases/august-06-2013/

Full Patch Notes: https://forum-en.guildwars2.com/forum/info/updates/Game-Update-Notes-August-6th-2013

Coming September 3rd, 2013
Prepare to Get Schooled!

The asuran genius Moto is back with his new and improved Super Adventure Box! This virtual reality simulator was designed to educate young asura, but anyone can enroll! Face new challenges and new enemies in World 2, or put your skills to the ultimate test with the aptly-named Tribulation Mode!

Rewards:

  • Complete Your Super Weapon Set

  • King Toad and Storm Wizard Weapons

  • Mini Princess Miya

Features:

  • Craft Ascended Weapons

  • Legendary Weapon Updates

  • Account-Wide Magic Find

Read More At: https://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/releases/september-03-2013/

Welcome our newest Commander
Naleth earns the honor of being the next Gaiscioch Commander

After careful evaluation of Naleth's leadership ability and personality we've decided to award him the honor of being one of our official Gaiscioch Commanders. We send him our deepest thanks for his continued service and support!




September 10th 2013 at 6PM Server
The Great Tyrian Adventure Continues in Season 2!

Season 1 ended several weeks ago and with much fanfare. More than 500 people attended the first season of the Great Tyrian Adventure and accumulated over 200 prize giveaways. For the next season we're getting a bit more ambitious.

This season our goal is to put rewards in everyone's pockets. By using the Guild Mission system we can achieve this and ensure that every week all participants walk away with 2 gold, 8 rare items, and 6 guild commendations which they can use to buy ascended gear. We will be welcoming the entire server to join SOR Community Events [SORC] for the duration of the event. In addition we will have our weekly raffle at the end of the event.

Learn more at:
http://www.sanctumofrall.com/great-tyrian-adventure.html

September Event Calendar
Join Us For One of Our Many Guild Wars 2 Events

September is here, school is in session, and people are getting back to business as usual. Usually in September we see an increase in population and activity. For those of you rejoining the family after your summer adventures, be sure to log into the site and mark that you are or are not playing Guild Wars 2. If you've been gone a while the system would have flagged you as no longer playing due to inactivity. Simply mark that you're playing Guild Wars 2 and click "Request Reinvite" and an invite will be sent off to you as soon as possible.

Sunday

  • 12-2AM: ClubGaiscioch in WvW w/ Foghladha

Tuesday

  • 6-8PM: Community Guild Missions in SORC w/ Foghladha

Thursday

  • 10-11:30AM: Community Guild Missions in SORC w/ Jessica

  • 6-9PM: ClubNight with the Tuatha in WvW

Friday

  • Pre-Reset WvW Commander Training w/ Foghladha

Saturday

  • 12-2AM: ClubGaiscioch in WvW w/ Foghladha

  • 12-1:30PM: Guild Missions in Rall w/ Prissy

  • 6PM: Breaking the Ice in WvW w/ Spartan

  • 11-12AM: Community Guild Missions in SORC w/ Foghladha

For more events see our full calendar at:
http://www.gaiscioch.com/events/

 

Chapter 5 Outlook
The Elder Scrolls Online

This month we've finally seen some movement in the form of news about Elder Scrolls Online. With GamesCon, Quakecon, and PAX Prime all lined up for a 3 conference blitz ZeniMax Online was holding gems for each conference. I know theres been a bit of "YAY!" and a bit of "What?" going on with this game and I want to first remind everyone that this game has a battle going on with it.

First and foremost it has to win over the Elder Scrolls fans. For nearly 20 years the Elder Scrolls have played a part of PC & Console Gamers lives. With it's first title Arena launched in 1994 it was well known for having a massive story behind it and unparalleled choice vs outcome decisions. Skyrim alone exceeded 10 Million copies sold in the first 2 years of being on the market. The Elder Scrolls Series has a massive following and for it to succeed it will not only need to impress those who want the next-gen MMO but more importantly those that want Elder Scrolls VI or a Multi-Player version of Elder Scrolls.

What can you expect? You can expect a rich story, lots of books throughout the game to read and learn about the lore. You can expect choices where your decisions directly affect the outcome of your adventures. You can expect the game to be action oriented and offer hundreds of hours of gameplay. It will have a massive and rich crafting system and have 20 years worth of lore backing it's story.

What shouldn't you expect? You should not expect to come into this game thinking it will be your traditional MMO. The Elder Scrolls series simply does not lend itself well to the "Traditional MMO" gameplay. For example. In the Elder Scrolls series many times you will make a choice that will directly change the world. If you were to do that on a mmo scale what would stop every troll on the planet from ruining your experience by making his actions bleed into your gameplay. This is where things get tricky for the ZeniMax team. How do they create a world that is shaped around the player's choices while not imposing those choices on everyone around them?

Elder Scrolls is a hybrid. 2 parts Elder Scrolls and 1 part MMO. You will find it leans more to a traditional Elder Scrolls game than it does to an Everquest or World of Warcraft. How this will play out we really won't know until it gets closer to launch. Things at this point change from livestream to livestream. One minute a feature is there, the next it's not, then the next it's back again. ZeniMax is actively listening to their testers and their community and building their game from observations and feedback. We won't know how it all shapes up into a final product until closer to launch.

That said, we will continue to watch the development of this title and fill you in on any news we find as we find it. This month there were a few things to hit the wire.

Recent News:

In Closing

We are rapidly approaching our 12th year birthday as a community and things are looking bright for our future years. I thank you all for making this community special. I would like to encourage you all to go into the world and do something unexpected this month. Buy someone's coffee, help a new player out, give someone a hand, do something to cause a positive change in this world. Remember we are only as strong of a community as that which we put into it. Spread caring, compassion, charity, and most importantly happiness and the world we live in in-game and out will be a good one. You just might be the catalyst that turns a drop of water into the ocean into a tidal wave. I am so very proud of all of you, in becoming true Gaiscioch and you breath life into the spirit of the family well. Thank you for your continued support.

 

 

Slan Go Foill!
(Goodbye For Now)

Benjamin "Foghladha" Foley
Ceannard De Gaiscioch Treubh