Tip 25 - You are not alone

URL: http://half-life.morat.net/tfc/guides/

Clans. Being a part of a clan is not what it once was, but it's still a good way to get to play in some very good games with organised tactics - and end up friends with a bunch of people.

Now, lets start from the beginning. FAQ style.
First joining a clan, then running one.

Q. What is a clan?
A. A clan is a grouping of people who play games - usually as a team. A clan is more than the sum of it's members.
Clans also tend to be identified by having wabpages listing all their members, often with additional ego - such pages are invariably in black brown and green (a hangover from the days of quake1) or metallic shades (for those who prefer quake3)
Ok - the better clans have nice webpages usually, though a webpage is hardly criitcal to a clan - I just couldn't resist taking a stab at them :)

Q. So, why should I be in a clan?
A. To play in a league.
Playing with organised teammates against an organised team - the game simply plays at a whole new level. Far deeper tatics, real opposition. The best public games are better than the worse clan games, but the bet clan games blow you away.

Q. How do I get to be in a clan?
A. Eh. Get invited in - or ask to get in and be accepted. It's ridiculously easy to get into 'a' clan. But you don't want that.

Q. What DO I want then?
A. You're learning the type of questions to ask now :)
You want to pick a clan that suits you. First of all, you will rarely have much fun if you are clearly a superior player to ALL of your teammates - especially because you will end up playing against clans with roughly the same skill.
OTOP, you don't want to be completely outmatched by them either - you'll never get a game.

There are other considerations which are possibly even more important. Can you get along with ALL the memebrs of the clan? It's hard to be teammates with people that you end up hating.

How committed are you? Some clans play once a month, some weekly, and some have at least a practice every night, and a real league match most nights. Pick a clan that will give you roughly the right amount of play.

How much of the trimmings do you want? Some clans go whole hog, with military ranks, disciplinary proceedings, oages and pages of rules and regulations - to them it's all part of upholding the ethos of a clan. Other clans say "Turn up on IRC at 7pm, and we'll announce who we're playing against, at 7:15"

You'll most likely want a middle ground of organisation.

Q. So I picked a clan. DW (or some other massively famous clan) sounds perfect to me! Now what?
A. Now just hold your horses. Be realistic. Famous clans get LOADS of applicants - and generally pick and choose the best players from other clans that disband. Your chances are low. By all means, if you think you are good enough, go for it. But think REAL hard about going for a more moderate clan to start with.

Q. Ok, so I picked another clan. Now what?
A. Well, there are two ways to go about it. Get scouted, or ask.

Q. Scouted?
A. Play on a public server where some of their members hang out. Wait for them to invite you in.

Q. And if that's not working?
A. Ask :) They'll have a contact address on their webpage. Don't ask mid game, it's at the least rude.

Q. I got invited to join a clan! I was just playing and...
A. Whoa. Think HARD. Is it a clan you've never heard of? At least look at their webpage before syaing anything.
Did the person asking you have PVT (private) or TRIAL in their name? If so, they're probably not meant to be inviting people. Is the person innviting you simply because you're wiping the floor with him? Is he a llama?
Just be careful, that's all I'm saying. Having been in a clan marks you for life - you don't want to join one that gets you a bad reputation.
If someone real invites you, and you think they're a fun clan, then by all means go for it!

Q. So what next?
A. Usually there will be some kind of trial - maybe they'll invite you for a match or two, maybe they'll do something a bit more formal like pitting you against their best deathmatchers. If a clan accepts you without trial, without having watched you on public servers for a time, then run away from them before it is too late.
A trial isn't just a way for the clan to evaluate you, you can use the time to evaluate them. Get a feel for the atmosphere, the way they work, and whether or not you'd be happy there.
Don't be afraid to turn them down.

Q. I've tried, but all the clans I want to join are full!
A. Ah, he old 'sorry but we are full' excuse :) It may even be legit - but it might mean that you have your sights set a bit too high. If a clan really wants you, then they will make space.
There's always room at the top

Q. Always room at the top?
A. Yup - if all else fails then you can start your own.

Q. ...
A. I'm about to tell you :)

Starting up a clan is tricky. You will NEED a reputation to get started.

Best is starting with three or four people who you know reasonably well - any less than that and it will be reasonably obvious that you aren't a 'real' clan.

Recruit POLITELY. Main forum pages generally get spammed up with clan ecruiting messages - and no one wants to read "We're starting a clan, we're gonna be well top" for the millionth time.

Specific clan recruiting forums are good - as is just letting people come to you (though that is slower)

Make up a clan name, and a tag ( [, three letters, ] - no more) and start playing on servers with it.

People who play with you frquently will notice, and ask you about it - and THEN you can explain that you are starting a clan.

Make sure that you've got logging turned on, because you will be inundated with "Cool!" and "Can I join!"
You can do a basic prefilter on the riffraff by ignoring everyon with a l33t name, or who uses h4X0r words in their replies to you.

Make sure that you have a webpage tyo point them at - obviously it won't have much on at this stage, so a 'coming soon' page is good - all that's REALLY important iss a short statement of intent (roughly how often you're going to play, what region, what leagues, server time, TPF morals etc.) and a contact address. Anything else on a clan page is just window dressing.

Hold an open test. Try not to use too public a server - but at this stage you are unlikely to have your own server.

Do NOT use a listen server on your own machine, it really shows you up in a bad light. Take the time to get in contact with some admins and book some server time.

Advertise the test a few weeks in advance, and don't worry that not enough people turn up.

Play some TFC. Be polite, but don't over flatter these people. Remember, they came to YOU. They expect leadership, not butt kissing. Kick some obvi0ous lamer out of the test early on, impress upon them that you are decisive.

And DO filter out people you don't want. The founding members of a clan will generally be with it till the end. you need to be able to get on with these people.

Those who accept your invitations, deal with PROMPTLY.
If someone says "sure I'll join your clan" and then doesn't hear from you in a week will likely assume that your fledgling clan has gone the way of so many others, and go elsewhere.

Arrange a friendly with another small clan, better still this helps you find servers to play on :)
Have a practice, whatever - but make it soon.

They have joined your clan to play games, so give them games.

It will be a LOT of work, especially early on before you can trust many of them with much responsibility (once you can farm match arranging out things get easier)

But if you DON'T give them matches, then they will leave.

Now - what follows ISN'T hard and fast rules, it's simply ONE way to run a clan. Other ways are possibly valid, but I do NOT support them. I've tried to be non-judgemental about it up to now but...

Here is how to keep a clan running.

One person is in charge. If any arguments happen, then they and they alone will deal with them. And by they, I mean you.
This person MUST be capable of not abusing their power.

Now, sometimes it is unavoidable, and life will get in the way. For these times, a deputy is useful. They inherit all of your power and responsibility while you aren't there.

Make DAMN sure none of these times happen in the first few months of running the clan. The leader needs to turn up to every practice and talk - especially at the start.

Now, the way this works, is that arguments DON'T happen. Keep explaining things, discuss things, take note of everyones opinion.
And if you've chosen your clanmates wisely, they'll all agree with you.

Now, there are a few jobs to running a clan which you can farm out.

Oh, note that one person can do more than one job.

The website. Let someone who LIKES that sort of thing do it. Tell them what you want, but tlet someone with a clue do the design bit.
Match arranger. Usually the same person as the deputy - this person has responsibility for booking servers, choosing maps, and arranging for opponents to be there while you are. It's a lot of work. They may also arrange practices. Other things they have to keep track of are which clan members are available when, so that you can field a full team.

Coach. Training, strategy discussion, deciding what to practice, which areas you need to improve in. Will also arrange practice sessions, and shout at people who don't turn up.

Offence / defence coordinator. Mid match there is no time for discussion. This person makes the call, and his squad acts upon it. Argue about what calls to make, what strategies are good and so forth, but do it OUTSIDE the game. Inside the game, the word of the coorinator is law. This means that if they aren't very good at the job, then you will lose matches.
Make sure that they are up to the job, and recognise when someone might be better at the job than you.

Overall coordinator. Deciding to move a man from offence to defence or vce versa takes an overview of the entire match situation. This person should NOT overlap with either coordinator. They should rarely have to give a call, but when they do, the entire team must act on it smoothly. (You'll want to practice this) This person should probably be you.

You can probably think of other responsibilities that you can farm out. Be aware that giving someone a small responsibility will make them more loyal to the clan - but that giving somone more than they can handle will drive them out.

Right - what else?

Be there for the clan - make the time. It is a big commitment. If the leader loses inerest, then the clan usually disbands.

Play games. A clan that exists in name only is nothing. Play on public servers together to have fun, if nothing else - play play play.

Arranging games - if you aren't in a league, then just showing up on a public server and doing well will often get you challenged.

Mercs - just say no to clanwhoring. Refuse to allow into your clan someone who has other loyalties.
Wear your clan tag with pride - Don't hide it - don't dishonour it, make it a mark that others would be proud to wear.

Imposters - Yeah, some people just add your tag to their name, either to ego boost themselves (semi harmless) or to drag your clans reputation through the mud. They usually stop quite quickly. But make it clear to people that it ISN'T your clan doing it.
The best way to do this is to make sure the REAL players outnumber the fakers on the server - people will realise that it isn't your clan being an arse, just a faker.

Ego - Remember, you were also not in a clan once. People not in a clan aren't lesser than you. Mock them, and they'll never join :) And a lot of veterans play with seperate names once in a while to see what happens...
Stay humble, and be respected. Brag, even if you ARE the best in the league, and people will think less of you.

Go. Stop reading my tips. Get a mind of your own.



Still here? Still obeying me?

Then go play TFC scum!

i