Defender Ranks

[U4ea]

OK, so here's the thread where we discuss rehashing our Defender points thing. From what I can tell, it never really worked that well to begin with. You can find an explanation here if you're curious about anything I may have not mentioned here.

 

I'm going to start a post about each piece we need to talk about, just because one long ugly post with lots of pieces makes me nuts! Sorry for the multiple posting, if it bugs you!

[U4ea]

The Ranks:

 

Recruit- Newly raised Green sister who has yet to earn her shawl.

Soldier- Green sister who has completed the IC initiation requirements. Full-fledged member of the Battle Ajah.

Defender- Prestigious rank awarded for combat experience, bravery, and an excellent grasp of tactics.

Banner-Captain- aka Sitter. These are experienced women who have seen their share of battle and now put their wits and experience to good use in the Hall.

Captain-General- Ajah Head who serves as a central command for operations in the field and within the Tower.

 

 

Recruit:

 

When a new sister is first raised to the Green Ajah, she is taken to the office of the Captain-General and petitions to be accepted as a sister and a comrade. Every young woman, regardless of talent or dedication, is turned down by the Ajah Head in the presence of the Sitters. Most sisters find this distressing. However, they will soon learn that every Green sister for thousands of years has endured the same rejection and the same initiation period that follows. Because the Battle Ajah requires its members to be tougher, stronger, harder than their peers, it subjects a new recruit to a grueling "apprenticeship" period that can last anywhere from a few months to over a year. Each recruit has a person running their initiation who is usually, but not always, a Sitter.

 

The first thing that happens after the petitioner is rejected by her Ajah Head is a tour of the Green quarters so she can meet her sisters-to-be. The initiation leader introduces the recruit as "bound to the Green, but not yet one of us", and allows a few moments for interaction before moving on. After that comes several months of instruction on strategy, tactics and other Greenish things (not RPed out). During this period the recruit is seen only a step or so above Accepted by the Greens and is expected to behave accordingly. Think of the way Cabriana Mercandes behaved in New Spring if you want to get an idea of what's appropriate. Towards the end of the initiation the recruit is instructed in Battle Weaves, then undergoes a sleepless night of vigilance in the presence of a full sister of her choice. On the dawning of her second petition the recruit presents herself at the Hall of Swords and asks again, in front of the entire Green Ajah, to be accepted. She is then given her shawl and the Ajah welcomes her with gifts and praise. No one is ever turned down at the second petition.

 

It is important to note that none of these RPs are required, but regardless of whether a new member RPs them out they are considered to have happened. A Greenie can go straight from writing her Oaths to RPing as a soldier if she likes, so long as she keeps in mind that the initiation period has happened for her character. However, we do strongly encourage new members to complete the initiation RPs because it's both good character development and earns you points towards one of the later ranks.

 

 

Soldier:

 

This is the rank held by most Green sisters. Having earned their shawls and endured the hardships of the initation period, they are well-trained, battle-ready women capable of unleashing some serious whup-ass on the minions of the Shadow. Soldiers are expected to defer to Defenders in the field and to Sitters and Ajah Head at all times, but are otherwise free to do whatever they want.

 

Note: The maximum number of Warders a Green can have, regardless of rank, is three.

 

Defender

 

The best way to describe a Defender is as a "special operative". A Defender is an exemplary veteran who has proven her worth in the field time and time again. She has a superb grasp of tactics and reconnaissance, the kind of woman you would entrust with the most dangerous aspect of a battle. She is well suited as a combat general or as the leader of a crucial task force, but she does not fulfill the same niche as the Captain-General or Sitters. If the Captain-General wants a battle won, but, being confined to the Tower, is not able to do it herself, she sends a Defender. They're field operatives rather than strategists or politicians. Courage, intelligence, experience, wisdom- these are the things that make a Defender who she is.

 

Defender is an IC only rank that can be earned by accumulating in-character prestige via a points system. You get points by any combination of the following: large-scale RPs, moderate-scale RPs, completing the initiation RPs, holding an OOC rank, teaching battle weaves, or through a creative proposal of your choosing. A sister is considered to have completed her initiation when she has RPed out:

 

-The first petition (usually done in tandem with the oaths)

-The Green Ajah introduction

-Battle Weaves

-Midnight Vigil

-The second petition

 

The purpose of the Defender rank is to encourage fun and activity while rewarding those who put the effort into making the Ajah a better place. Anyone can be a Defender, but it takes time and effort to earn it.

 

 

Banner-Captain

 

Self-explanatory, really. B-C is what Greens call their Sitters. A Banner-Captain may help organize military campaigns from within the Tower, but other than that they don't really do anything Sitters from other Ajahs don't do. Besides help with initiations, that is.

 

 

Captain-General

 

Ajah Head. Not too different from the other Ajah Heads, except Greener.

[U4ea]

OK, things I would like to change about the ranks:

 

 

1- Recruit- (BRS 0-3): I would like to make the Battle Weaves a requirement to get beyond this point. This would be the BRS 4, I believe, on the new scale. In the previous set up, these requirements were all tossed out and someone could walk in and start tearing things up without ever having taken the BW class. This will be after the First Petition, which is part of the Oath ceremony.

 

2- Soldier- (BRS 4): This is where anyone not wanting to go through the Initiation RP's will be ranked.

 

3- Defender- (BRS 4+): This is where anyone who decides to do the entire Initiation will be ranked. Those RP's include: Initiation, Midnight Vigil, 2nd Petition. This rank is the only rank allowed to be a mentor to a new Initiate.

 

 

 

The Sitters and Head thing seem pretty ambiguous, they're just Defenders with extra responsibilities. LOL

 

 

What I would like to do is create a ranking system within the Defender Rank. There are 3 more BRS levels that can be reached beyond 4. I'm stealing these from Elgee's post in the Hall, but i'm sure if I dig around there around here somewhere, too:

BRS 5 - 7: For full AS only. Both the WT and WY GLs must approve it, and will only be granted in exceptional circumstances

 

BRS 5: Basic Weapon Handling (the old WS 4 & 5)

Basic Weapon Handling: an introduction to the basic forms of a single weapon, or max 2, choice of knives, staff or sword. A spar can be included in this lesson, main objective is to become acquainted with the forms as they can be found on the Gaidin website. Beginner forms.

A spar with a trainee of WS 3-6, have the outcome be random and make sure to have a few rounds in the spar to cover all the basic forms and the things you have learnt.

 

 

BRS 6: was: The Open Road (the old WS 6) / propose: Defensive Action

 

was: An RP in a hostile (to AS) area. A conflict occurs to which the Aes Sedai must choose to battle either with OP (and reveal herself), with a weapon or try to find a more peaceful way out of the situation. How well does the Aes Sedai handle this situation? Must encounter 2 PCs from another RP Group. (Min 16 posts for the entire RP)

propose: A conflict occurs and the Aes Sedai must lead her group to safety without using attacking Weaves. Must encounter 2 PCs/NSWs from another RP Group. (Min 16 posts for the entire RP)

 

 

BRS 7: was: Quid Pro Quo (the old WS 7) / propose: Battle Action

 

was: An Aes Sedai and/or Tower Guard (Warder is okay) is sent on a mission. They are placed in a situation where they must rely solely on their WY training and the help of the other. (How well do they work together? If OP is used, what are the consequences? Do they still risk it?) Must include 3 other PCs. (Min 18 posts for entire RP)

propose: A conflict occurs and the Aes Sedai must lead her group into battle. Must encounter 2 PCs/NSWs from another RP Group. (Min 16 posts for the entire RP)

 

 

Now, what I would like to do is create a system within the Defender Level where we give people credit for the extra work they've done, whether it's being someone's mentor and helping them through the initiation process, helping create Ajah RP's, or earning a higher BRS. I would like the Defenders to be the only people who can be a mentor, simply because if you haven't RP'd those things, how can you help someone else do it?

 

 

I'll be honest, I'm a bit at a loss of how to do this. We already have rank names here and the BRS is using numbers. LOL Do we use military ranks, then? Lieutenant, Corporal, etc? Maybe stars? "Loraine, Four-Star Defender" ? A star for each rank you earn? *rubs her temples* What do you think?

[Kathleen]

I will make this quick since I'm not supposed to be here, but I've been trying to figure out what BRS stands for. Sorry if I should know this, but I don't. When I get more time I'll take a better look through this stuff. I'm supposed to not be on DM...but I am addicted, and feel like I need to check everything all the time..gotta go skating now, be back later!

[U4ea]

LOL I promise I won't tell a soul. ;)

 

BRS= Battle Readiness Score. It's replacing the Aes Sedai Weapon Score, since we are the weapon... ;)

[Elgee]

BRS - since we are the weapon

 

Man, that would make an awesome Green Slogan

[Kathleen]

Wonderful! Thank you for clearing it up. I knew it was something meaning that but I couldn't sort out the wording!

 

This is the only part I had a chance to read, but it looks good to me :) By the way skating was great, my dad showed up and we got to stay late after her class left and then we took her back to the school. I'm waiting for my husband to come in so we can go get stocking stuffers, and I'm about to go sweep. yeah..and I'm still not here *looks around*

[Rasheta Ardashir]

BRS - since we are the weapon

 

Man, that would make an awesome Green Slogan

 

Elgee...I'm stealing that! I needed a siggy for my Rasheta this side of things. LMAO

 

Right okay Lor lets see,

 

I would like the Defenders to be the only people who can be a mentor, simply because if you haven't RP'd those things, how can you help someone else do it?

 

I like that idea a lot. I've done the whole mentoring thing multiple times now though so I'm Defender status via that in the new system? *is clearing this up in her head*

 

Do we use military ranks, then? Lieutenant, Corporal, etc? Maybe stars? "Loraine, Four-Star Defender" ? A star for each rank you earn? *rubs her temples* What do you think?

 

I don't really like the "stars" thing. Lieutenant, etc seems to work well for our Ajah but Loraine, Lt defender...well I was going to say it didn't sound right but saying it out loud I rather like the ring of that. So if its a choice between one and the other I like the military ranks better.

[U4ea]

Hey, she was quoting ME! *pokes Rasheta and laughs*

 

 

 

Technically, you're a Banner Captain, already, so you're already on the next step above Defender. For the sake of argument, though, the only one you haven't done is the 2nd petition, right? Since that's really just a party that we make you stress out about first, that can very easily be handled and you don't have to worry about it. :) Wanna start the thread and get it done by New Years?

 

LOL, I was actually liking the stars thing. I think too many rank-names will get confusing (ie, the Band... I have no idea what people are talking about when they start bragging about earning a rank... *sighs*). I'll go with the majority, though (No pressure, Kathleen. *laughs*).

 

 

PS- If/when you can see the Hall of Swords (I asked Elgee about it yesterday, so I'm sure she'll be passing that along to the admins soon!), you'll see I'm playing with the format of reporting Defender threads there. I'm using mine as an example. I'm thinking, once we figure out how we're going to add "points" to earn ranks, we'll add that next to the "personal," "mentor," etc. I'm trying to keep it uncluttered as much as possible. What do you think?

[Elgee]

*nods* Sent an email to Tay, but not sure when she'll get to it, as I think she's on vacation.

[U4ea]

Not a problem! :D This is hardly something we're going to get ironed out in the next few days. LOL

[Kathleen]

I was wondering why I could suddenly see the Hall thread...

[U4ea]

'cuz I'm a tricksy one, I am. ;)

 

Thanks, Elgee and Tay! :D

[U4ea]

Alright, somehow this one got tabled and I'd like to get it in stone and working by the end of my maternity leave (let's say mid-October for the sake of argument). I know that makes it sound like we have a lot of time, but it'll be gone before you know it.

 

So, here are the things we need to get straightened out:

 

 

1- Rank names- If we go with military ranks, which set are we going to adopt? Here's a good collection of each US branch's ranks. The way I see it, we need 3 more ranks beyond Defender and it'll be phrased (as Rasheta mentioned above) Lieutenant Defender Loraine Kilaine. Which set do you like?

 

2- I also noticed a little discrepency in the BRS #'s in my post with ranks above. So, the ranks would look like this:

 

Recruit: BRS 0-3: This is where everyone who hasn't finished the Oath Ceremony and First Petition. Basically, the almost Aes Sedai...

 

Soldier: BRS 3: This is where everyone who gets through the Oath Ceremony and First Petition will start. If you decide NOT to do the full initiation set of RP's, then this is where you will remain.

 

Defender: BRS 4: This is where everyone who goes through the full set of initiation RP's will be. The full set includes: Oath Ceremony, First Petition, Initiation (the Tour of the Green Halls), Battle Weaves, Midnight Vigil and Second Petition.

 

 

*Defender+1: BRS 5 (RP options listed below, each completed RP will add +1 BRS)

*Defender +2: BRS 6 (RP options listed below, each completed RP will add +1 BRS)

*Defender+3: BRS 7 (RP options listed below, each completed RP will add +1 BRS)

 

 

RP Options:

1- Basic Weapon Handling (the old WS 4 & 5)

Basic Weapon Handling: an introduction to the basic forms of a single weapon, or max 2, choice of knives, staff or sword. A spar can be included in this lesson, main objective is to become acquainted with the forms as they can be found on the Gaidin website. Beginner forms.

A spar with a trainee of WS 3-6, have the outcome be random and make sure to have a few rounds in the spar to cover all the basic forms and the things you have learnt.

 

 

2- The Open Road (the old WS 6) / propose: Defensive Action

 

was: An RP in a hostile (to AS) area. A conflict occurs to which the Aes Sedai must choose to battle either with OP (and reveal herself), with a weapon or try to find a more peaceful way out of the situation. How well does the Aes Sedai handle this situation? Must encounter 2 PCs from another RP Group. (Min 16 posts for the entire RP)

propose: A conflict occurs and the Aes Sedai must lead her group to safety without using attacking Weaves. Must encounter 2 PCs/NSWs from another RP Group. (Min 16 posts for the entire RP)

 

 

3- Quid Pro Quo (the old WS 7) / propose: Battle Action

 

was: An Aes Sedai and/or Tower Guard (Warder is okay) is sent on a mission. They are placed in a situation where they must rely solely on their WY training and the help of the other. (How well do they work together? If OP is used, what are the consequences? Do they still risk it?) Must include 3 other PCs. (Min 18 posts for entire RP)

propose: A conflict occurs and the Aes Sedai must lead her group into battle. Must encounter 2 PCs/NSWs from another RP Group. (Min 16 posts for the entire RP)

[Rasheta Ardashir]

I like the Marine Corps ranks, but that is a given since I am pretty close to the Corps. *laughs* Anyway otherwise Lor the rest of the stuff looks good. :)

[U4ea]

I'm cool with the Marine ranks, too (though don't EVER tell my Dad I said that, as he's retired Navy and would never forgive me. lol).

 

Let's avoid the tags on the ranks, though, to cut down on confusion (and because we only need three ranks).

 

So... Marine and Army are almost exactly alike when we take out the tags:

 

Corporal Defender (BRS 5)

Sergeant Defender (BRS 6)

Sergeant Major (BRS 7) (leave off the Defender here, as that's a mouthful and sounds kinda funny...)

 

 

 

Let's not go Navy or Coast Guard, I don't like calling anyone Petty... *coughs*

 

Air Force is either Airman or Sergeant (with various tags).

 

 

 

 

 

So yeah, looks like there's our answer! *laughs* Unless ya'll want to come up with some Old Tongue words to use, instead?

[Rasheta Ardashir]

So yeah, looks like there's our answer! *laughs* Unless ya'll want to come up with some Old Tongue words to use, instead?

 

*laughs* Oh no! Those look good to me! You rock Lor! :)

[U4ea]

Alright, let's see how this'll work, then. When you get a chance, will you all take a second and create your thread in the Hall of Swords forum? You can use mine as a sketch. Let's start working out the kinks with reporting so we can have it worked through pretty quickly...