Professional Progression System of The Green Company
The order has a rank progression system that rewards planning, hosting, and participating in in-character events to promote roleplay in-game and on Discord’s order roleplay forums. However, promotion above a certain rank comes with responsibilities, which are primarily hosting themed events, again both in-game and via Discord roleplay forums. To qualify for promotion, a certain amount of participation as a player or host must be accumulated, and a specific number of events must be planned and hosted. These come as Commendations, Professional Points, and Mentorship Points.
Commendations
In-game Event Awards: 2pts
Discord Event Awards: 1pt
Artisan Bonus: 2pts In-game and Discord
Impromptu groups announced and created on the LFG channel in The Green Company Discord qualify for 2 commendations with the following conditions: There must be at least two guild members involved, an officer must be in the group, and the activity must run at least an hour long. Note that this does not need to be a scripted, outline-submitted event. You simply group with fellow guild members and optimally attempt to communicate in character.
Commendations are rewards for participation in both in-game events and Discord roleplay posts. The members will use this form of currency for promotion and meet other prerequisites within the advancement system. Participating in an approved in-game event will yield a reward of two commendations, while an approved and successfully closed Discord roleplay session will yield one commendation. Additional commendations may be awarded to members for outstanding roleplay when witnessed by any officer of senior and above rank after said officer submits an award request and a summary of the reasoning behind it to the Master of The Order. There is no cap on the number of commendations a member can earn, and they may participate freely in any official activity.
Commendation Purchases
Promotion Applications: Upon accumulating a certain number of commendations and successful planning, completion, and running roleplay events to earn leadership points in various categories (as described within the requirements listed in the rank descriptions), the order member may be eligible for promotion. Leadership points and commendations are listed on the characters’ individual profiles on The Green Company Discord for reference. Unlike leadership points that continue to accumulate, commendations are subtracted as they are spent.
Upon completion of the event, the hosting member will submit @Master EVENT COMPLETE with the names of all attending for recordkeeping purposes.
Artisan Requisitions (Currently Inactive): Via Discord roleplay session with one of the order artisans, a member may purchase from a select list of services the crafter offers as a reward for diligent brethren. The cost in commendation points will depend on the item’s power and rarity and will be clearly displayed in the artisan’s merchandise listing.
Upon successfully transferring the item to the purchasing member, the artisan will @Master ARTISAN SALE OF (item name) TO (name of order member). The appropriate commendation points will be subtracted from the order members, and half that number will be awarded to the participating artisan.
The reverse can also be true, with the artisan creating an event requesting the collection of specific materials to generate items of some quality. To prevent this mechanic from being abused, it is important that specific goals, quantities, and rewards be defined in the event’s body. For the order members participating, this is supposed to be for fun and roleplaying purposes above all else.
Hosting Events
In-game Event Awards: 2pts of Professional Leadership or Mentorship Points
Discord Event Awards: 1pt of Professional Leadership or Mentorship Points
Artisan Bonus: 2pts In-game and Discord for Professional Leadership or Mentorship Points
Only by actively organizing and hosting events in-game and on the Discord roleplay forums can one advance to the officer ranks. The prospective member must complete a certain number of events and a minimum number of events must be hosted each month to keep the rank. Officers (members with an R4 rank or higher in their profession) must complete at least three monthly guild events. Dedicating an hour of your time once a week to further the order’s role-play atmosphere should not be a hardship. If you are traveling and cannot be online for an extended period, please alert the grand master, and an arrangement can be made. Frequently using this as reasoning as to why you cannot commit to your hosting duties as an officer will not suffice.
Failure to maintain the minimum number of events will result in the officer being placed in an assistant category, leaving an active vacancy in their current rank that can be filled. Assistant officers do not lose their leadership points but are no longer the active head of their professional group and cannot roleplay as such until the debt in hosted events is met. Another player or NPC will fill the role if no other eligible person is available. If an NPC currently holds the position, the assistant officer can reclaim it once they can host events. If it is a player character, the rank will remain with the current officer until promotion, demotion, or retirement.
Note: It is unnecessary for you to host a major undertaking, such as a champion spawn, especially if you are at a career status where it wouldn’t go well. It is perfectly fine for you to plan something within your capabilities and can be a simple as roleplaying a scene were we need to travel through the countryside to reach an objective that is narrated by you, and face only hostiles native to the region being traveled to. This is roleplay. Use your imagination. Furthermore, to encourage participation, regardless of what profession an order member belongs to, they will receive commendation credits for attending any official guild function despite the activity.
Hosting members cannot earn more than one reward from the same leadership event type per week, and you may only receive official credit for a leadership type that is required for promotion to the next rank. For example, you can’t host three professional leadership events of the same type in a week because you need them for promotion. Please explore the other themes and help create a well-rounded experience.
Furthermore, nothing is stopping guild members from getting together and forming impromptu groups to explore and enjoy the content. That is not what hosting is attempting to do; rather, it is to provide consistent and organized platforms for not only enjoying the content but also rewarding organizers for promoting roleplay in the structure of The Green Company. That is perfectly fine if you aren’t interested in a progression system and are just here to roleplay. You can simply participate and enjoy playing out the scene as it progresses.
To receive credit for participating in a hosted event, a member must sign up for it on the event channel and present when it launches. You should arrive at least 15 minutes prior.
Event Submission
Before hosting an event, either in-game or within the Discord roleplay threads, DM the Master of The Order with a basic outline of what you intend to do following the below structure:
A. Event Title:
B. Event Type: Professional Leadership or Mentorship
C. Platform: (In-game or Discord)
D. Location(s): Region, City, Town, Grid Coordinates, etc.
E. General level of difficulty (skill levels will vary, and it is useful to know what to expect)
F. Summary of Intent: Goals defined in more than a paragraph.
G. Define the beginning, middle, and intended ending storyline.
H. Describe how you intend to include guild members in the event.
I. Identify NPCs that will be used if, via Discord roleplay, Tuppers may be generated for the event.
J. Upon approval, the (Event officer) will start an introductory roleplay thread, messaging the host that the space is ready. From there, the host may set the stage, introduce the appropriate NPCs involved, and allow a minimum of a day or two for an in-character response from other guild members personally involved in the scene. Otherwise, if the event is an open sign-up, it will immediately be posted in the event channel, awaiting sign-ups from order members interested in the activity.
Note: No more than one of the same event types can be officially claimed for credit regarding the progression system per week. You may be the participant in said event, but hosting an event type will only count toward your promotion once a week. This encourages roleplay and varying activities across the broad spectrum of possible in-character roles.
Types of Events
Professional Leadership
Professional roleplay aspects are suggestions for planning in-character roleplay sessions that may spark an idea for a planned event or turn into an impromptu scene that the members act out for fun. For the character to receive credit for hosting such an event, they must submit the event template and be approved by the order master. Upon approval, there will be a short roleplay post in Discord to officially announce the instance, followed shortly after by a sign-up post in the event channel announcing the date, time, and particulars.
Note: This is a separate section from mentorship; although a member may select a period of professional instruction to meet this leadership requirement, the mentorship requirement must still be conducted separately, as professional roleplay aspects are meant for order-wide purposes where any interested member may join the activity, and mentorship is focused on instruction with a single trainee or multiple trainees from the profession. Members are encouraged to develop some of their own ideas regarding professional roleplay aspects. If approved, the character will be given credit as they normally would. Also, please refrain from running the same professional roleplay scenario repeatedly. Explore the list of categories and help create a well-rounded presence within the organizational structure.
Mentorship
Order members expecting to rise through the ranks must be capable of training the next generation of brethren so that the culture and what it stands for may be preserved and perpetuated throughout the ages. Therefore, it is imperative that officers possess the patience, skill, and desire to instruct junior members properly.
To satisfy mentorship requirements and be awarded a point, the order member must personally host an event for each mentorship topic listed in their profession for a single subordinate in one-on-one training. The master of the order will establish a file to track your progress in this endeavor. If an actual player within the order is available for that profession, they will be assigned to the host as their training officer until the mentorship requirement has been fulfilled. If no actual player is available, a Tupper persona will be generated, and the requirement may be met via Discord roleplay with an NPC. To assist in preparing an event, books on each topic mentioned in the mentorship sections of each profession may be available on the lore page of the website, especially when the offerings begin to grow due to player submissions.
The exceptions to this are the ranks of squire within the knight profession and senior apprentice in the magister profession. These trainees will remain under the direction of a single mentor until they are promoted to rank 3 (knight and magister), whether this be a player character knight or an NPC alias assigned to the task. NPC alias mentoring must be done via Discord roleplay.
Note: Discord roleplay provides an asynchronous way for order members with different schedules to interact meaningfully. It will be far easier to coordinate leadership and mentorship scenes via Discord than what will typically be possible with in-game events, especially the mentorship requirements. If an in-game event posting occurs and no one signs up due to lack of interest and or scheduling issues, the host will have the option of transferring the event to Discord roleplay, and a cast of Tupper aliases will be generated to play the scene out, roleplayed by an officer.
Rules Regarding Events
Inclusivity: Any order member who desires to participate in an event will be welcome. Some events, especially those of the Discord Professional variety, will be oriented toward activities about specifics of the host subgroup and may not be perfectly tailored toward everyone. Nevertheless, the option will remain available. Hosts should attempt to craft an event involving as many order members as possible while remaining true to their selected category. Regardless of suitability, the student still earns commendations and is expected to show up, be fully engaged, and be responsive in character during the scene if they wish to receive credit. Theater of The Mind: During roleplay, to make events as streamlined as possible, they will be conducted as a theater of the mind by the host, who is responsible for providing scene flavor and details and leading the roleplay elements. They are not there to control your character’s actions but rather to set the stage and provide prompts for participants to work off and respond to. This will be more important during Discord Roleplay threads than real-time, live-action-adventure events.
Time Commitment: To receive in-game credit for a professional leadership event or mentorship scene in the form of commendations and leadership points, a live event must be at least an hour’s length minimum and follow the guidelines detailed in the outline submitted to the Master of The Order. Discord roleplay scenes are different and can take days to complete, especially if multiple members are involved. As a result, Discord events should aim for completion between three and seven days. The following would be an appropriate rough outline for a Discord period of instruction:
A. Scene establishment and background
B. The Lecture Material, topic by topic
C. Student responses to the topic
D. Teacher responses to each student’s reply
E. Repeat steps B through D until all topics are covered
C. Summary of what was learned and closing statement
Post Frequency: Although the purpose of the asynchronous play-by-post nature of Discord roleplay is to allow people with conflicting schedules to participate meaningfully, we still need to finish the events reasonably. Thus, when you agree to host or participate in a Discord roleplay event, you also agree to post at least once per twenty-four hours.
Scene Setting: The host is responsible for setting the stage of the scene, which includes an initial post describing things such as sights, sounds, temperatures, weather, and any other environmental effects that will add life to the thread and make it immersive. When the thread is created by The Master of The Order, the scene will generally be the second post within it.
Length of Posts: At a minimum, two sentences or more forming a paragraph would be an appropriate prompt. A one-liner would not be. Be expressive in your replies, describing things such as movement, body language, and facial expression, and react to the host’s actions, the atmospheric prompts described, and your fellow order members present.
Discord Roleplay Post Format
During play-by-post, we aim to create immersive and engaging scenes that read like a novel. It’s important to adopt a writing style that enhances the storytelling experience to achieve this. We encourage participants to adhere to the third-person perspective, present tense, the use of quotation marks, and the bold syntax option for spoken words. Additionally, out-of-character statements should be placed within double brackets to distinguish them from in-character narratives. Let’s delve into each of these elements in more detail:
Third Person Perspective: Writing in the third person perspective means narrating the events from an external viewpoint, using pronouns such as “he,” “she,” or character names instead of “I” or “me.” This allows for a broader and more objective description of the scene and the characters’ actions.
Present Tense: Writing in the present tense brings immediacy to the storytelling. It creates a sense of being in the moment and allows the reader to experience the events unfolding. Instead of saying “he rode,” use “he rides” to convey the ongoing action.
Quotation Marks for Spoken Words: When a character speaks, enclosing their words within quotation marks is important. This helps differentiate dialogue from narrative and adds clarity to the scene. For example, “Greetings,” he said, “I seek an audience with the Lord of the Keep.” Any writing between the double asterisks on either side of a word string will be bolded once you enter it into Discord.
Example:
Sir Dasien Velamorte, astride his midnight-black destrier warhorse, rode up to the towering gates of the keep. The heavy iron gates creaked as they slowly swung open, revealing the inner courtyard bathed in pale moonlight. He dismounted, his armor clanking softly, and approached the guards stationed at the entrance. “I request an audience with the Lord of the Keep,” Sir Dasien announced, his voice filled with authority and determination.
Out-of-Character Statements: To include out-of-character information or comments, enclose them within double brackets. This helps distinguish them from the in-character narrative and ensures that players can communicate with each other without disrupting the flow of the story. For example, ((This is an example of an out-of-character statement.))
Actions Within Theater of The Mind: The host is essentially the narrator in charge of the pacing and outcomes of actions within an event. If your character wishes to act, such as using a skill or attacking, the host will tell you if you succeed or fail and to what extent. The acting character will then craft a responding post detailing what happens to their character in their own words.
By following these guidelines, we can collectively create a rich and immersive roleplaying experience where the scenes unfold like the pages of a captivating novel.
Special Promotional Requirements
Promoting to certain high-ranking officer positions within the order requires the creation of an in-character treatise on a specific topic from the profession’s mentorship categories to add to the Green Company lore. These literary contributions elaborate on components of mentorship expertise passed down through the ranks. When accepted, it is added to the website’s lore chronicles, creating a legacy that future generations, both in and out of character, can use to direct their own stories.
While staying true to Britannia’s canonical past, imaginative writers can reasonably expand elements left out of the published records. Before writing a complete work, aspiring authors must first submit an outline to the master of the order. The member may proceed with the work if there are no content issues. Fact-checking and editing may improve the final published content to better fit campaign backstories, including historical information, modern knowledge, and official Ultima Online lore, to ensure that the scenario avoids being too far-fetched.
Nonetheless, fertile ground remains for writers looking to expand plotlines with fresh scenarios. Whether one’s fiction sparks a server-wide plot or only influences a single patrol’s encounter in the woods, this approach allows members to have a direct impact on ongoing story arcs and leave a lasting presence that may be seen for years to come by others that follow.