I am concerned.  On a much more serious scale I am concerned about H1N1, Iran and another Conservative government in Canada (not on equal levels – I’m pretty sure Mr. Harper isn’t into nuclear genocide)  But in my own little world at my desk, I am more and more pre-occupied by the state of the “guild”

Your guild is the place where you login and play with your “internet friends” in your favorite game.  Your guild is who you team up with to tackle an elite boss or wage war against an opposing faction.  You guild are your brothers and sisters who you can’t wait to hang out with each and every day after a long day of work, or school.  At least that is what a guild was.  There was a time where I lived for my guild.  I ate, slept (and dreamed when I did sleep) and breathed my guild.  When you move to a new city and don’t know anyone, you aren’t moving away from your guild too – they are right where you left them when you last logged off.  I invited members of my guild to my wedding, they shared the most intimate and precious moment of my life with me.  I think THAT is what a guild is supposed to be.

Today a guild is a word.  It is also a vessel, and a transporter.  As a word, your guild now means the place where you beg for help, borrow game money and watch the chat fly by while you wait for someone to say it’s time for “raid invites”  As a vessel it holds all your potential possessions, because that guild bank is definitely yours – you worked hard for a piece, and god damit you’re gonna get what’s yours.  And most gravely of all, your guild as your transporter is the train you take to bigger and better things.  Sometimes you never get off the train you are on, but a train is a train and so long as it’s moving in the direction of YOUR destination you will stay on it.  Heaven forbid the train stop to refuel, or meet a destination of its own, you switch trains to keep you on your marry way.

The unfortunate thing about switching guilds is the people who you leave behind.  But – today that doesn’t seem to be such a problem anymore does it?  They weren’t getting you to where you wanted to go anyways, so who needs them?  You will find more internet friends riding on the next train.

We need to somehow get back to the whole point of MMO’s which is to bring people together for a singular purpose and cause.  The uniting of players on a single banner and to be entertained.  Alas most guilds are NOT united, NOT of singular purpose and eventually the game you play fails to entertain – I would suggest as much due to the company you are keeping, as the game itself.

I pose this question then.  Think about your “guild” or “legion” or “community”  Are these people your friends?  Do you eat, sleep and breathe your guild?  Do YOU intend to get off at the next stop when you know your guild is taking a short layover?  Do you care about the people who you are leaving behind, and is your greed stronger than your loyalty?

Play nice – have fun.