Raiding.
Jungle Style is a raiding guild. During a raid all players must be focused, prepared, and ready to work as a team. Everybody's full attention is necessary to be at our best, and real life distractions should be limited. We are a friendly and often silly bunch, but when the raid starts, it's time for everyone to put on their game face and get down to business.
We raid three nights a week. Every active member is expected to be available for almost every raid. We understand real life happens, and the occasional absence is fine, and the rare emergency is fine. Things like vacations, finals, new children, etc are fine. The other side of this coin is that a consistent team works much more efficiently than a team that changes every night. So excessive absences or extended leaves, for the good of the group, will have to be factored into recruiting decisions. The officers will do their best to balance the needs of the guild with the needs of each individual.
The goal of all of this, of course, is to have fun. Efficient progression is fun. Becoming part of a team is fun. Learning and growing as a player and as a person is fun. If something or someone is taking away from your fun, please bring it to the attention of an officer or the other player where appropriate.
Some things to keep in mind during, and after raids:
Work to improve your play. Regardless of how well you think you did, there's always something you can do better. Look at parses from other guilds. Think about utility you can add (for example, could you cleanse or interrupt to help the group?). Practice your techniques on dummies, in 5 mans. Read forums (such as EJ), strats, and watch videos, where available. Keep abreast of upcoming changes to your class so you can adapt to them quickly. Experiment with mods and interface tweaks to optimize your performance. Finally, if somebody outperforms you, find out why. Don't be afraid to ask them for help.
Be open to constructive criticism and suggestions, and be prepared to offer constructive criticism and suggestions to other players. Talking shop, and in general, communication, is very important in maintaining a strong team. Nobody is "magical" - we all play the same game, and everyone is capable of performing close to the same level as anyone else, if they put in the time. Sometimes things like gear or class imbalance may be the reason for a gap, but never assume that's the case.
Consider the guild as a whole above yourself. Put away your ego about where you place on the meters. This doesn't mean ignore them... topping the meter is nice, but it's just a part of the equation. It's easy to top the meters by dragging one's feet on other important mechanics. For example, not switching to adds, standing in fire to get that one last spell off, assuming someone else will just cleanse everything, etc. We care about execution, and it's often those very things - little things - that make the difference between a kill and a wipe. There have been very few times where we've wiped to an enrage timer from lack of overall dps, or where a huge healing throughput from a single player has carried the raid to victory. More often, it's executing the specific encounter mechanics that makes the difference. So focus on that.
Stay positive, and be patient. Don't get in a funk over a wipe or if you mess up. It happens to everyone. Learn from it. Every attempt should be a potential kill, not just putting in your time until the raid ends. The journey is the destination. One shotting new content is boring. Working with your team to defeat a true challenge is fun.
Application Process
First, be max level and appropriately geared. Know your class, and think long and hard about whether you can commit the time needed to raid endgame content.
Read and understand the mission statemenet, charter, loot policy, and raid guidelines.
Fill out the online application form at www.junglestyle.net. Spend some time on it. We can tell a lot about a player by how they answer things.
After reviewing your application, an officer will contact you and either extend an invitation or tell you why you are being denied.
Recruit Period
After receiving an invitation, recruits will enter an evaluation period. These three weeks are a chance for the recruit and guild to evaluate each other. Impress us. We hope to impress you, too. If during your period, you feel it's not working out, or that raiding isn't really for you, that's OK. Let us know. No hard feelings.
Keep in mind that we will primarily be evaluating your performance in raids, but we also expect everyone in JS to be compatible on a personal level. Be as outgoing as possible, so we can make sure your personality is a good fit.
Promotion
When the officers feel they have enough information to make a good decision, they will either promote, or deny a recruit. If you get promoted, congrats! But, continue to impress your new teammates. The recruit period should be representative of you, not a flash in the pan that will dim down to mediocrity.
Ranks
Recruit
The entry point for all guild members. This rank indicates that a player is in their evaluation period. Their guild note will reflect this as well. Recruits are expected to actively participate the same as full members.
Alt
Members and Raiders can bring alts into the guild in order to participate in guild activities when they are not on their main. Alts that are not played will be removed. No problem, if you pick it up again we can re-invite them. Alts will have a guild note reflecting their main.
Friend
This rank is for those that want to be a part of Jungle Style but who are unable to devote the time necessary for raiding. This rank includes long time members who have seen changes in schedules and new friends that want to hang out with us in our fantastic guild chat. Friends that are gone for a long time, or new ones that don't interact with anyone will be removed unless special circumstances exist.
Member
Full members of the guild. Members have full rights to all guild activities and form the majority of guild membership. Members may recommend new recruits and should take an active role in helping to evaluate new recruits on instance runs and in raids.
Raider
A full member of the guild who has shown extra dedication to raiding by going the extra mile. Raiders are given priority in invites.
Officer
Officers are responsible for setting the tone and direction of the guild. All decisions will be made collectively among the Officers and the Guild Master. Officers should embody the spirit of the guild and be readily available to assist guild members with any issue. Officers are expected to help lead raids.
Guild Master
The executive of the guild. In many ways, the GM is equivalent to any other officer, but also serves as a "tie breaker" and is expected to take the initiative when appropriate to provide strong direction for the guild.
Required Mods and Software
Ventrilo. If your role requires something to be called out over vent, be ready to do this.
A threat meter such as Omen.
Dependable boss mods such as DBM. Please be as familiar as possible with your boss mods so you don't blow up the raid! :)
Anything else you need to effectively do your job. This depends a lot on the player. Some prefer a more bare bones interface and some like to modify it extensively. Lack of interface is never an excuse for poor play - make sure you have the tools you need to succeed.
Conduct
All players reflect the guild. JS has a reputation for honor and maturity, and we want to keep it this way. Be especially mindful of this any time you interact with the community at large - either leading a PuG raid, posting to the Windrunner forums, etc.
Please keep guild chat and vent PG-13 and reasonably tasteful.
Conflict
Players are expected to attempt to work out differences in private first. If this fails, officers will become involved as mediators.
Under no circumstances is it acceptable to vent grievances in guild chat or flame on the forums. Passive or active personal attacks will not be tolerated. The officers are open to suggestions and criticism of guild policy as long as it is done in an appropriate manner.
Drama
Starting or encouraging drama will not be tolerated anywhere. If you have something to say but are unsure if it qualifies, ask an officer.
Complaining
When you join JS, you agree to be bound by the rules of the guild and to follow the lead of the officers. Complaining about decisions made by the officers is not constructive, so please don't do it. This especially applies to raid invites. If you're not invited, you can ask why, after the raid or on the forums in a private message. Sometimes, we have two equal players and have to pick one. That is unfortunate for the player not picked, but it is the cost of raiding every night instead of missing a raid every time someone is absent. If you want to be mad at someone for this, be mad at Blizzard for not inventing raids that scale with raid size.
If you do wish to discuss a decision the officers make, please bring it up in a private message. Some decisions are not up for discussion, but some are. We will try to consult the guild when appropriate.
Inactivity
We strive to keep our roster current to promote a lively guild atmosphere. Players, at any rank, who disappear without warning for a long time will be demoted to friend or removed completely. So please let us know if you need to take a leave from the game. In addition, for the good of the guild, raiding members who disappear without notifying us will be recruited around.
Removal
We hope to not need to remove anybody as a disciplinary action. But if necessary, it will happen, at the officers' discretion.
Communication
The forums are the main place for communication with the guild. Everyone is expected to read them and participate. A guild that communicates, wins.