11-12-2013, 01:56 PM
Allow me the pleasure of introducing . . .
The Mentor Program
The Mentor Program
. . . An all-new, but very simple initiative. Many new players come to the server, unfamiliar with the Lore, with the game, with Warcraft, or roleplay altogether. There is no lack of guides, but the learning process isn’t all about theory; it requires practice, and this is where the Mentor Program comes in! True to its name, we’re recruiting mentors for the first time!
What's a mentor?
A mentor is an experienced player who has agreed to help new players by showing them the ropes and keeping them company. The mentor’s role is to be the new player’s guide, providing support, advice, and constructive feedback along the way. Experimentation is key to the process of learning, and we hope that the mentors can help disarm any fears or reservations about making mistakes. After all, we’ve all been there!
We also hope that a personal relationship will form between the mentors and the new players, and that the mentors might even introduce their charge to their social circles. Of course, the mentor doesn’t have to watch them every move every second they’re online, but they should be easily accessible to the player.
For mentors
There’s no limit to how many mentors we accept, though there are certain prerequisites:
- They must be at least Grunts.
- They should have been on the server for at least 6 months.
- They should have a good track record.
- They should be confident with the existing Lore.
- They should be active.
- They must have Skype.
Players are different, and we expect our mentors to be, too. The question about the new players’ favorite class and race will become more relevant than before, in that it will be used to match them up with mentors who share their preferences. A result of this is that the matching process is not entirely random, and that mentors with a certain interest might outnumber the peons. Furthermore, the number of new players per mentor depends entirely on the mentor, and on whether they can handle the workload of one or more additional charges. To distinguish the mentors, we're implementing a new award system. The Mentor award can be seen on the users' profiles and postbits (to the left of each of their posts), so that being a Mentor can overlap with your current usergroup, rather than being exclusive to a single usergroup.
You might wonder about the last requirement there, but that is simply for communication reasons. Should there be any information for the mentors, we'll be keeping them up to date through there. That way, we are also easily accessible for the mentors.
Adopt-A-Peon!
After submitting an application in a subforum soon-to-be-implemented, you will be evaluated for becoming a mentor. Unlike forum helper applications, all players we deem suitable for becoming mentors are accepted. There’s no competition. On the other hand, becoming a mentor is a very important contribution to the server, and we want to be sure that the hopefuls are up to the task, hence the application process. Not everyone is suited for the role of being a mentor, but that doesn't mean that being rejected the first time will ruin your chances of becoming a mentor in the future.
The form to apply can be found below:
Code:
[b]What is your forum name?:[/b]
[b]How long have you been active on the server?:[/b]
[b]Tell us about yourself; What makes you a good mentor?:[/b]
[b]What races are you good with?:[/b]
[b]What races would you consider yourself bad with?:[/b]
[b]What classes are you good with?:[/b]
[b]What classes would you consider yourself bad with?:[/b]
[b]What is your Skype name/ID/account?:[/b]
[b]What is your time zone?:[/b]
[b]When are you available (server time)?:[/b]The Workshops
The Workshops (separate from the Workshop subforum) is another new element. Twice a month, in the 1st and the 3rd week, there’ll be arranged out-of-character meetings in-game where players can freely discuss various roleplaying concepts, ranging from simple character profiles to entire storylines. It's also a meeting place for players to exchange ideas and find others with similar interests.
The Workshops are open for anyone, whether they're mentors, peons or have no relation to the rest of the Mentor Program whatsoever. Everyone is welcome!
Voluntary
It's important to note that participating in any part of the Mentor Program is voluntary. We don't want to force it on anyone, and just like mentors volunteer to participate, fresh peons are able to opt out. The introduction template will have an added question to reflect this policy.
IMPORTANT: As stated, new players are able to choose whether they want to participate in the program or not. However, any player who feels that they could benefit from a mentor's help is welcome to post a request in the PD to be added to the program. This applies to anyone; whether they're peons registered before today, or grunts, or returning players who feel rusty. Anyone is welcome to request a mentor.
Mentor Activity
It's very important that our mentors are active, and therefore we want to be notified if a mentor is going to be absent from the server for a prolonged period, so that we can demote them and keep our lists up to date. Failing to do so will result in extermination demotion after a period of inactivity. Upon return, one can appeal for having one's mentor status restored.
With all that said, we're looking forward to seeing your applications!
Love,
Rowgen
