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What constitutes an "Active" member. I highlight in red the majority of what the membership will fall under. In blue I highlight what a smaller portion of members will fall under, the rest is pointless for most.
Section 2.0 Membership
Membership in the NWC is totally free.
The club membership is divided into armies that represent the major powers of the Napoleonic Wars. Club members may only hold one active commission in one of the club’s armies at any given time, but are allowed to transfer between the various armies under certain conditions. Regardless of the army affiliation chosen, there are no restrictions on which side a member may play in a given battle. A member may play any side in any battle in which they are engaged. Whereas most members generally tend to play the same side as the army in which they are commissioned, this is not a requirement.
Role playing is encouraged to portray the natural rivalry and positions of the French and the Coalition. Friendly banter is encouraged, but rude and antagonistic behavior, or cheating, will not be tolerated.
It is expected that our members will actively contribute to the benefit of our club in some manner. In order for a member to be considered as ‘Active’ in the NWC, a minimum of one of the following conditions must be met at all times:
1. Maintains Regular Contact with Both His Superior, and Subordinate, Officers.
This is a requirement of leadership. It refers to the ‘active’ participation in the club’s chain of command. An officer would be ‘active’ under this criteria if he was mentoring and guiding his subordinates, while monthly reporting his activities in this regard to his superior officers so that they may remain well informed of his actions for the benefit of the officers under his direct command. This is decidedly different from simply sending an Email Reply to a muster request which in itself is not sufficient grounds to be considered as ‘active’, as there is no benefit to our club from such an activity alone. This requirement is mandatory for all Army Commanders and Army Commanders in Chiefs.
2. Maintains a Registered Game in Play at All Times.
Games are an integral part of our club. Any officer that actually meets this criterion will certainly be considered ‘active’. To qualify, the game in play needs to be properly registered in the DoR System. Army, or Club, Command may request a copy of the email and game file exchanges between opponents at any time a question arises as to whether or not a game is actually in play.
3. Maintains our Club, or Army, Webpages.
The webpages of the NWC are maintained by a small pool of webmasters in accordance with Section 3.3 of the NWC Club Rules. Any officer that is performing these duties will be considered to be an ‘active’ officer, as our webpages are a direct benefit to all of our members.
4. Designing New Napoleonic Game Titles.
Although not directly contributing to our club, game designers are a critical component for the continuation of our hobby on which our club directly relies. Any officer that is actively employed designing new Napoleonic game titles will be considered an ‘active’ officer.
5. Playtesting New Napoleonic Game Titles.
This relates to Item #2 above, as playtesters will nearly always have several games in play at any given time. The difference is that these games cannot be registered as the scenarios are under development and considered secret at the time of playtesting. In this instance, a game file cannot generally be requested to verify the games in play, but these individuals are dedicating their time to ensure the future of our hobby, just like the game designers listed in Item #4 above. Any officer that is actively employed playtesting new Napoleonic game titles in conjunction with an ‘active’ game designer will be considered an ‘active’ officer.
6. Posting in Our Club’s Forums.
Like the interaction of our members during their games together, our forums are a major source of social interaction in our club. More than that, they serve as a visual element to pique the interest of potential new recruits which are always needed to replenish our ranks. Active forums keep our club interesting. Officers who regularly post in our forums contribute to this social interaction. Any officer that consistently places four informative or entertaining posts a month (i.e. one per week) will be considered an ‘active’ officer.
It should be noted that reading our forums is a passive activity, and would not, in itself, constitute active participation for the enhancement of our club. If no one actually posts, there is nothing whatsoever to read.
An ‘Active’ member will be allowed to post in the Club’s Forums, register games in the Club’s Department of Records (DoR) System, and will always retain the command of a unit in a specific army. Any member failing to meet the requirements of an ‘Active’ member, will be considered to be an ‘Inactive’ member. ‘Inactive’ members will have their Forum and DoR Accounts deactivated, and will be removed from the command of a specific unit and placed in the appropriate army’s reserves. The Forum and DoR Accounts of ‘Inactive’ members will be deactivated on the same day that the members are determined to be ‘Inactive’. ‘Inactive’ members will be removed from an ‘Active’ command and placed in the army’s reserves within two weeks if the member fails to subsequently meet the criteria of an ‘Active’ member as listed above.
Each member is required to submit a fully completed Recruitment Form to his Army Commander, with a copy to the Club’s Cabinet, before receiving a commission in the NWC. Any member that has been classified as ‘Inactive’, will also need to submit a fully completed Recruitment Form to his Army Commander, with a copy to the Club’s Cabinet, before being reinstated as an ‘Active’ member.
Now think about it and think about what I highlighted and made larger in black in the first entry. Is simply mustering no longer acceptable?? If folks have other things going on for a while, but still want to be members, are they to be removed per this statement?? I think clarification is needed on this. Number 2 is fine, but what happens if someone takes a break for a number of months to do other things?? This may be the only Club or activity for some, but not for all.
Number 6 you can't force participation, there will also be a fair portion of people who only wish to sit on the sidelines and play games.
What type of Club do we want is what we need to ask ourselves....do we want to have room for the casual gamer who could take it or leave it?? The majority of gamers out there are that person. This in my eyes creates a class system in the Club and though the intentions are good, I think can led to issues and confrontations and combined with aspects of the election process create a more closed off system. Unless you really are proactive in getting guys who have dropped off, if you happen to see them come back someplace else, the numbers will decline overtime. I can't state it enough, we are entering an age of decline. We need to be careful how we approach these matters.
I was on the AGEOD forums a month or two ago talking with the people there. AGEOD is a gamer maker and one our Club supports with Napoleon's Campaigns. The question posed to me, that you all should ask yourself was, "Why should I join your Club?" "The critical mass (meaning the place to go) for where the players of our games is here...."
Again just some extra things to think about as this process goes along.
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The back and forth of the ideas is good I think, as everyone sees and reads the same things differently.....which is why I think more people should engage. You know I value your input very much Colin.... 