Ranger Archive
Thread: Minutes of the First InterGalactic Ranger Conference!! (Warning: very long)
I present to you the minutes of the first ever Intergalactic Ranger Conference held on August 29th, 2003 at Corellia location 0,0 !!!
(Warning!! This post is long and if you have absolutely no interest in an all-encompassing, cross-galaxy Ranger PA/Guild/Alliance/Coalition/Whatever, then don't waste your time reading this, go on and reread the 1000th complaint about our camps not working) 
However, if such a Ranger only union, I mean association, does peak your interest - then this and the previous posts on this topic will provide you with a lot of information about what we are trying to accomplish. If you have not been keeping up with this topic, please read the following posts first, which will answer many questions that others have had and will give you an idea of what was to be discussed during this meeting:
Minutes of the first Ranger Conference:
http://forums.station.sony.com/swg/board/message?board.id=ranger&message.id=7303
Topics for this conference:
http://forums.station.sony.com/swg/board/message?board.id=ranger&message.id=7910
Minutes of the First Intergalactic Ranger Conference
This second Ranger meeting was another great success and many items/issues were debated. We had representatives from Flurry, Bloodfin and Intrepid. What a historic event - thanks to all who attended!!
The meeting started off with a few camps of Sharnaff Bulls getting the bad end of a gang of Rangers!! Once everyone settled down from the hunting, we started off the meeting with a recap of the PA names up for vote:
Circle of Rangers Elite (CoRE) - Getting most of the votes lately but with reservations about possibly being seen as lEEt. Independant Rangers Coalition (IRC) - had a good start until even the suggester realized the coincidence of the acronym Intergalactic Circle of Rangers Elite (ICoR) - not too bad - also getting a lot of attention. Intergalactic Ranger Network (IRN)
This was a last-minute suggestion posted by Felton, who reminded us all of the following: Antarian Rangers (AR) - Taken straight from Star Wars. "A para-military group based on several planets, including Toprawa, they were formed to assist and aid the Jedi Knights. They were trained to be masters of any environment, in order to help the Jedi in any way possible. During the Clone Wars, whole groups of Antarian Rangers were killed off, and many of the survivors scattered and went underground."
We postponed the vote for the PA name for a while to give everyone time to think about the choices. Besides, I had several items that needed to be covered and didn't want everyone leaving as soon as the name was decided 
.
The following topics were discussed (for information on the lead up to these questions, see previous posts mentioned above). Some of you will say it's a bit premature to discuss them, but we need to at least lay the groundwork for many of our concepts/goals. This way players have an idea of what we want to accomplish with this association and can decide ahead of time if it is right for them. The actual details will be ironed out at future meetings:
- Where do we plunk down the PA Hall? There were several suggestions, Naboo, Talus, Tattooine. But, overwhelmingly, Corellia was the favorite. The main reasons given were: a) it is easily accessible by most clients b) it is the central hub to most planets and therefore also easy for us Rangers to travel for missions c) "I just love Corellia" Although we all agreed Corellia is the best 'planet' due to convenience, we also unanimously agreed that the PA Hall itself should be located in a beautiful remote location worthy of a Rangers hike!! Most agreed high on top of a mountain would be appropriate. We decided to tour Corellia for the next few days while the hall is being built. Now if we can just find a plateau large enough...
- How do we pay the upkeep for the hall and the various shops we will have on the planets? a) Each member pays a day - This one puts too much pressure on Rangers - we're supposed to be having fun, not having to remember to pay maintenance. We will need an accountant to keep track of payments!! And what happens if someone doesn't pay - do we hire a Bounty Hunter to get the moola!! b) Weekly/Monthly dues - Basically same reasons as above, but more traditional. Possible option if needed. c) Percentage of sales from our vendors - not sure how this will fit in with our prices, but this is a possible income source d) Periodic advanced planet hunting missions - By far the most Ranger-like suggestion and the one that got everyone's nod. The missions on advanced planets could pay for a month or more of expenses at a time!! We could make them guild events with all proceeds going to the guild. Plus, we could sell the hide or whatever resource we get during that event for additional income. We would, of course, change the planets from hunt to huntfor variety. My only thought on this is I want to make sure all members participate, not just the same 10 Rangers everytime doing all the work for the rest. Details at a later time.
- How best to sell our resources? a) We were all in agreement that we have vendors/shops outside the major cities. b) We will have a standard price structure based on quality, exact pricing schedule to be determined. c) The easiest way to accomplishthat (until we think of a better way) is to have members offer their wares at the going rate to the vending machines and a designated admin will move them over to the public sales. This system also frees up Rangers from having to find their own clients and doing cold-calling, which I personally hate to do. I'd rather just plop my goods into the vendor and be done with it. However, since vendors require 3rd level business degrees, very few of us Rangers will be able to contribute the vendors. So, we will need to make alliances or deals with some Merchant 'middlemen'. Details to be figured out once we get that far. c) Although initially selling just harvested items, I also envision us manufacturing crates of HQ camps, traps and, of course, camo kits and offering them at discounted prices to our members. This will help us be the premier guides for those high-level missions and stuff. Again, something for down the road. d) PA sponsored promotions and discounts were also suggested.
- Do we allow our members to resell their resources separately from the group? All members must sell at the listed price (regardless of whether they sell through our vendors or privately) in order to prevent undercutting and competition amongst ourselves. The only exceptions are current clients/contracts to whom members have obligations. Any members found not complying with the stated list price will be reprimanded/punished in some way (to be determined later). You shouldn't have to worry about quantity discounts since all your stuff will be sold through the PA. Just put your 10k of insect meat on the vendor and sell for full price!
- Do we provide discounts for our own members? Everyone agreed there should be discounts (and possibly freebies for grinding). However, we don't want you to place your stuff on the vendor only to find out it was sold for half the price or whatever to another member! The nature and process for the discounts will be determined later.
It was at this time we decided to vote for our PA name. First, everyone picked their top three choices out of the list. From all those entries we selected the top three, which were Circle of Ranger Elite (CoRE), Antarian Rangers (AR) and Intergalactic Circle of Rangers (ICoR). And finally, everyone voted for their top choice out of those three. As the votes came in, I quickly saw a trend forming. History was being made as we were about to resurrect the Antarian Rangers. And so it was, Antarian Rangers (AR) was the majority and the Rangers PA was born!!! Evidently, having a Star Wars history - and such a cool one at that, was a large factor in peoples decision. I am proud to call myself an Antarian Ranger!
Once everyone had settled down and gotten over the initial excitement, it was back to work....
- How do we update the changing resources? Until we have the time to build a web site, we will use the in-game email system to report. We want a simple, yet efficient sytem for reporting. Each planet will send in their stats for the various resources (wooly, herbivore, etc.) for the current shift. From that list we will know which planet is presently dropping the best quality for each category. We can then farm the resources and offer various qualities to the community.
- Due to the value of such a list, how do we control it's dissemination? Only members of the PA get the list and, of course AR members that belong to other guilds. If someone is found to be passing the list to unauthorized recipients or otherwise abuses the system, there will be some type of reprimand, possibly even being booted. Details to be determined.
- What type of style/format of governing body should there be? It was decided that there shall be a guild leader, one or two assistants, and a council of five or so. Council and above must be masters since they will be determine the course for the other rangers and, therefore, must show their full dedication to the profession. In addition, there will planetary leaders (qualifications to be decided, but probably must have mastered at least one tree) and various officers such as treasurer, secretary, etc. I also imagine there will be some committee chairs that would be in charge of such things as membership, outreach, events, etc. We will start with a small group of officers and grow from there as needed. I would like to suggest that although the leaders and council should recommend and enforce policies, when determining new policies, all members should be able to vote on them. I feel this is only fair and makes members feel they have a say in determining the course of the association. Just a thought.
And there you have it!!! The results of the First Intergalactic Ranger Conference!!! Once again, despite the range of different opinions, everyone acted with the respect and dignity befitting of a Ranger. And although we did veer off course a few times, I salute each and every one of you for your efforts in making this a very productive and fun (for me) meeting!! Thank you everyone!
I am proud to be a part of the Antarian Rangers!!!!
After the meeting, we had another Ranger hunt of Sharnaff Bulls - which didn't stand a chance!! Lookout Endor - the Antarian Rangers are coming!!!
P.S. - All comments are welcome. However, please read the previous posts to avoid asking questions that may have already been covered. Thank you.
At this point, I ought to make a similar note to the disclaimer from your signature, Zkull... My thoughts on this guild and really guilds in general are absolutely not intended to insult or dissuade -- they are just my thougts.
Overall, I love the idea of banding together with my fellow rangers to enjoy the SWG universe. The rangers that I have met have all been great folks, and I respect you all. However, those that know me best have probably noticed that I am pretty hesitant to take the formal step of actually joining a guild/PA. I have no problems with the concept of guilds themselves, its just that the formal structure of a guild organization tends to rub me the wrong way. For example, I love the idea of not requiring dues, and instead having organized hunts on the advanced planets periodically to pay guild expenses. However, my ol' noggin gets hesitant when words like "mandatory" come into play. I would be happy to participate in such fund raising expeditions because it would be a lot of fun -- but I wouldn't want anybody to feel like they *have* to do it.
I feel similarly uneasy about number 4 on the list. I hunt and harvest primarily because I *enjoy* it, not as a source of income. I have never sold the resources I get, instead opting to give them away to friendly artisans that I have connections with. I realize that many scouts/rangers sell harvested resources for their primary source of income, and that's cool, but the way I see it, whoever harvests the resources should be able to do whatever they want with them (especially after "ninja harvesting" and not taking turns on harvests become non-issues as group harvesting goes into effect). Having a guild standard pricing scheme for the guild operated vendors is fine, but to me it seems like members should not be *required* to sell through these vendors, or asked to follow the guild pricing scheme in their own personal dealings. Anything other than a free-market economy just feels wrong to me.
At the end of the day, I guess that what I would like to do is wish the Antarian Rangers well, and good luck in their future endeavors. I would enjoy meeting you all, and would gladly offer my services as a fellow master ranger, as well as (nearly master) rifleman on some of those fund-raising hunts! That is, if you can put up with a cantankerous lone-wolf wookiee hermit, like myself...
Quick question... does anyone know if there will be an Antarian Rangers chapter opening on Valcyn anytime soon? I'm currently guildless (I have yet to find a serious guild there...) and considering the rangers I've met on the server so far, I definitely wouldn't mind being part of one.
(And I'd rather not be the one to open it, as I'm definitely not leader material. )