Over the years the virtual world of MMORPGs has given birth to a wide array of guilds, groups of like minded players.

So if you’ve always wanted to form a guild, but never quite had a basis to start from, then reading this will be a good start. Likewise, if you’ve been looking for a good intro into the various kinds of guild leadership or membership, or perhaps just want something to fuel your discussions of the ‘best’ guild type, then you’ve come to the right place. Well then… on to the rest!

 
Corporate

These guilds tend to operate by means of a core group of members who are considered to be the staff. These generally assume voluntary roles such as those of recruiter, webmaster or event organizer. In this format there is always a guildleader (or CEO) and (s)he’ll be very busy during the first few weeks. People will not simply join a guild and assume responsibilities of their own right away, it takes time, which means the guildleader is usually taking care of everything on his own initially.

Most corporate style guilds tend to employ schedules, some more strict than others. This means they’re properly organized and allow for their members to easily see when events or gatherings are planned. As the guild grows larger and older it will become increasingly autonomous and the guildleader will start having an easier time. These kinds of guilds are particularly good for busy people, who like to have a clear and correct schedule for all activities, which means they won’t miss out on everything all the time. It’s also one for people who like to keep things properly organized, with quick reaction times but still giving power to members, rather than having a single guildleader hog it all.

Democratic

This is arguably the most popular, and least successful, guild format right now. This kind of guild is ordinarily started by a group of people intending to share full democratic control over all aspect of guild leadership. In many cases this even means going as far as regularly rotating random members into a giant council of sorts, essentially forcing responsibilities on regular members. Any democratic guild will make all of it’s decisions by majority, or unanimous, vote - clearly the slowest and least effective means of leadership, but also more fair than any other.

Some drawbacks of this archetype are it’s lack of focus due to a constantly changing leadership, as well as the lack of immediate decision making capabilities, which are essential in some MMOs (e.g.: EVE Online). Most importantly - members will need to be interested in guild leadership, because they will have to participate in the decision making process. Not the most ideal kind of situation for someone merely interested in playing alongside like minded individuals, while leaving the leadership business to others… that’s never going to happen in a genuine democratic guild.

Dictatorial

A form of leadership which is common among 12 year olds and FPS clans, it basically entails one person assuming control over everything. Members will not be bothered with any decision making, but then they don’t have any say in the guilds’ progress either. It’s the complete opposite of a democratic system - yet not a whole lot better. There are very few successful dictatorial guilds (not so for clans however), mainly because it relies entirely on a single person to handle everything and not upset any of the guilds’ members. A task not easily undertaken.

Now you could consider any one of these superior to the others, but the truth is: none of the above are perfect. People have their own preferences, and most successful guilds don’t really belong in any specific category, but mix between the three. There’s also size to consider, for where a dictatorial system might work well with 20 members, it won’t suffice for a 100 member guild. Similarly a democratic system tends to fare better in a larger guild, whereas a corporate system works well in any situation.

My personal preference lies with a mix of all three - featuring a strong leader who can keep everyone in line, with plenty of opportunity (but not duty) to participate for members and a well structured environment. Most of all I would consider the traits of a corporate type guild to be preferable, if only because I don’t have all the time in the world and would like to see things get done, but still have some say in guild matters. Others might prefer a fair democratic system where everyone gets their turn to lead, or a dictatorial system where one person takes care of everything - so the members can just do their thing and have fun (as long as the leader does his job well).

Which do you prefer? Maybe you know of another archetype I’ve failed to mention? Or would you like to see some more on guild leadership on this blog? If so, then by all means: leave a comment! Just remember: if any one guild type were to be superior to all others, then all guilds would be alike, and that just wouldn’t be any fun now would it?

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