I was inspired by the comments on my latest post about the Top 5 Myths about GMs. Some really agree that there are a lot of players who feel that all employees are GMs. Also, I got support and feedback that indeed, GMs are understaffed and over-worked.
I agree. With a lot of tasks that a GM has to do, there has to be some sort of “assitance” needed.
That’s precisely the point why I (together with GM Garamond and the RF team) started the RF Vanguard program. And this is what empowerment is all about
The Vangaurd program was actually an offshoot of a prototype player-assistant GM program which we did in 2004-2005 for Ragnarok. Sadly, that didn’t take flight. But the RF program did. Now, I’m asking the other games to follow suit and adapt the success of the RF Vanguard program.
Now, what exactly is a “Player-Assistant GM” such as a Vanguard?
Well, here are the responsibilities:
- Player Assistance – the “Guides” are generally tasked to assist noobs. Sometimes, they give out “tours” of the game world and often give noob-friendly items such as pots and stuff. Their main responsibility is the sharing of information so that a beginner will feel welcome and can get off the jitters of the first few days.
- Event Assistance – Vanguards also help the GMs run in-game events, such as controlling pre-made characters (yep, you can call them ‘human-controlled NPCs). More often than not, they do crowd control in ingame events. Especially now that there are tournaments for LIVE 2007, their efforts are greatly needed (and appreciated).
- Enforcement - Assistant GMs are also tasked to do enforcement duties. Simply, put they have a “direct-line” to the GMs and will send recommendations to ban offenders such as scammers, PHP traders and other violators of the gaming code of conduct.
- Community Monitoring – Vanguards also help monitor the sentiment of the community on current events and game issues such as bugs, imbalance, etc. This way, they get to cascade this information to both the Brand Manager and the Community Manager. They are included in the monthly meetings so that the game team makes informed choices.
Assistant GM powers are also regulated. There are strict rules to follow for security reasons (such as not logging in your vanguard account in a public PC, etc). Also, these types of players DO NOT have the full GM powers of their counterparts.
This job is not for everyone and is strictly voluntary. No, we do not pay these people huge sums of money for their services. Most do it as a “labor of love”. It just shows how passionate these types of players are about their game.
It’s hard to find players who can qualify for the job. But I’m sure you’d love to know how to be one, right?
But that’s for another post…
To all Vangaurd volunteers – keep up the good work! and thank you so much for your dedication and loyalty!
Strength and Honor!
GM T