If you read the title you should know exactly what I'm asking.
I'm curious, what reasons would you have for not joining a guild?
You're also welcome to share feedback on why you would.
I'm trying to grow as a Guild Master and better grow my guild, Chefs, but to do that I need to figure out what the pros/cons are of Guilds and see what can be combatted.
More reasons not to join:
More reasons to join:
I didn't join a guild for the longest time (3 or so years), and the only reason I joined one was because I really liked what they stood for as a community.
My reasons for not joining guilds were:
Then Echo of Silence happened and I've been here ever since. The fact it's a small guild of really great people who don't really require you to donate really piqued my interest, but the fun shenanigans that don't cross boundaries and the general "matured" feel of the guild is what won me over. Too often guilds are a mess of different interests, so the calmer, low key, and fun atmosphere is what I wanted in a guild.
I'm so glad I did join a guild though, it opened up so many horizons that I would've never had otherwise.
I used to be a guild leader on SK 3 years ago and never really joined any guilds.
reasons to be a guild leader:
- being in charge is fun if you prefer leading more
- designing the guild hall and where rooms went (I enjoyed working on the guild hall and was always open to opinions on how the hall could or should look)
- never have to worry about being kicked out or taking drama from trouble causing members
reasons not to be a guild leader:
- if you don't have many members donating at all chances are you may have to pay the upkeep by yourself
- you might end up paying the most for installing expansions and rooms
- you have to handle every guild complaint as fairly as possible to maintain a good image for the guild
- dealing with drama causing members can be a huge pain if they are harassing other members and some will try to steal from the guild if you have energy wells
overall I quit being a guild leader 3 years ago cause I was already a end game player and at the time the community was very toxic and unpleasant. it was worst before the Iron Guild Hall Update cut upkeep costs. paying over 60k crowns mostly on your own could be a huge pain.
I’ve been known for being one and if not the only active SK player that has never joined a guild ever since I created this account. Literally just starting off I was never interested in joining one because in the beginning I wanted to see how the game is like done by myself.
Like how everyone stated those are reasons why I never joined a guild and the main one I go with is that I’m a strong, independent knight that doesn’t need other’s help to get through the game. Heck I’ve done several difficult parts (danger missions, SL’s, event missions like March of Torto’s and Grinchlin Assault) by myself with almost no problems.
However I do get the fair share of guild invite spans and “convincing” to join a guild, heck even the more prestigious ones like Nj one time for EoS pressures me to join without having to apply on their thread. For each and every one of them, I declined with an emotionless face and just stare at my screen like I just destroyed someone’s hopes and dreams.
Even though I never experienced how it’s like to be in an SK guild (other games I’ve been in guilds) so I never got a chance to physically be in the old guild halls besides seeing them through pics, I’m not all that by myself. I still have a group of friends that help me out whenever I can and sometimes I don’t mind company which is usually fulfilled by them or at times I just leave the party open and anyone can join in whenever they want. When it comes to LD I never joined GvG games and some did want me for how I perform but failed to bring me in.
I’m not saying being in a guild is no fun because of drama and sometimes it fails to grow and just falls apart, but I’ll say that it depends on those if they’re looking for a guild or not. The game can be done entirely by yourself in terms of gameplay and economy if one gains the skills to do it, but being in a guild gives you a stronger sense of communication, friendship, and close ties so that whenever you need help they’re almost always there for you.
For me personally I plan to stay guildless because I enjoy being a free bird to do whatever I want with no one telling me to recruit or do whatever, and in those invites I’ve been recommended to be an officer guaranteed upon joining or even a GM. It’s nice and all to have those perks but I like playing most of the time by myself and plan to experience new content solo until I feel like doing it with company.
Finally not being in a guild on my part, I was able to obtain things that one in a guild wouldn’t be able to and in terms of inventory and game experience I have enough to even start a guild myself and still be considered the most experienced. But you’ll NEVER see any t text under my name. xP
I started a guild because I saw it as a way to contribute to the community. I enjoyed helping new players and wanted a guild that did, too. Plus, if you wanted to do challenging runs like a shadow lair, it was a nice way for players to band together for their mutual benefit. Also, I knew the guild halls were coming, and I wanted to have fun building one up. Now the player base is so low that I don't think it makes any difference. But there was a time . . .
"Can you help me out with this mission?"
...
No fam, I'm busy
I never liked joining guilds because most guilds I joined were inactive and others that ive saw didnt last for very long plus i was a bit of a shy guy when it came to chatting with guild mates. After the i stayed with one guild before it died after a year, joined Terminators and left because i didnt like it, joined Tinkering Gremlins because GM invited me because of my grem costume and I enjoy the guild because everyone is friendly, help each other out, (also gremlins) and was very active before the game started to die down even more.
Been to guilds, it was hella fun. Some people are just fun to hang with and there's no better way to meet knights and maintain contact than in guilds, thats why you join. I didnt have any trouble even as a solo player.
I really dont see how most complications mentioned in this thread are not completely avoidable. Dont want people dropping in your run? Lock party. Dont want to donate crowns? Get a decent guild who lets officers handle this. Party invites? Just refuse. Dont wanna deal with recruiting? Just tell the higher ups you're not gonna deal with recruiting.
I really dont get these. All of this is potentially solvable just by typing "NO". One word. Two letters. What the hell, guys.
If drama ensues, you can just, like, leave or request a ban? It doesnt have to be more complicated than that. And if some knight is banned and proceeds to start a dramastorm around it, why do you care? Who's gonna care about some dude throwing a tantrum, other than other dudes who would also throw tantrums, and therefore shouldnt be in your guild in the first place?
This is important because MMOs are social games, yet so many somewhat or actually active vanguards are not in guilds. This allows players to more easily drift away from the game. If I were in a nice guild I'd play more oftenly, and surely would a lot other people you and I know that slowly dropped SK over time. Its somewhat far fetched, but I cant see the downside of a bunch of active hoppers making a collective effort to build a decent guild (and Im not speaking crowns).
The only unavoidable possible annoyance is that the chat is always visible.
I Don't join a guild because i'm already in one. Even if my guild is kind of inactive for now, i don't want to leave my comrades.
We just got through a lot of thing together, and i want to keep it that way, and they are very important to me.
But, if i wasn't in a guild it would be hard to join one, because i'm kind of shy. But i think it would be nice, i guess.
/Salute
I think some of the biggest reasons to not join guilds are already listed, like possible chat spam, crown donations, etc. Some other reasons I was skeptical of guilds for the longest time was specifically that; they all expected me to donate and throw things toward something I really didn't care much about or need. Then, of course hammering in this train of thought even further was when I was scammed out of my Veteran Statue. It left an extremely sour taste in my mouth and led me to....distrust, for lack of better words, guild owners and their potential intentions. If not for currently owning my own guild I'd probably remain guildless and still hate the premise of them.
@Zantaclaws
Judging an entire group of individuals based on the actions of one....you are beyond help. Good riddance.
@Thread
I wouldn't join a guild for expected donations or officer chat spam. Aside from that, I don't hve any qualms.
Judging an entire group of individuals based on the actions of one....you are beyond help. Good riddance.
I despise this type of thinking, Christians always bring this one up when they debate me. 'Oh you shouldn't generalize Midnight!".
Look, if I have to go to every church in existence, talk to every Christian in the world to give my self the right to judge them. Then we might as well never debate about anything at all. For the experience in one lifetime is probably not enough to cover every facet of that religion.
So let's say we force Zantaclaws to join every guild possible to prove him wrong, it would just be a matter of time when one guild scams him again. The question is, why bother going through all this to just prove a point? If Zanta does not want someone in this game to hold a proverbial gun at his head, then he should have the right to do so.
Actually, After I met someone on a completely separate game they offered me their old guild since they had quit. I've since turned it into my own guild, one that doesn't care to focus on the guild hall itself, and instead I use it as a way to help newer players reach 3*~. Once they get to that point I typically let them know they're in a good position to start looking for other guilds, and i'm happy to say that's been somewhat successful (Although I almost always tell them they can keep me added if they ever need help with later missions, such as Vana). Of course my guild is typically empty/dead because of that, aside from maybe 1-4 active newer players who I would be helping. Well, that and my other close friends who are also guild masters.
And yes, Midnight has a point there actually, and thank you for the comparison you made- I was actually thinking the same thing. I -AM- aware that there are decent guilds- i'll be honest some of which I was curious about for a while, like Echo of Silence, however I just don't see it as a worthwhile risk to look into, given the things I had to deal with in the past. Also, I don't mean to be argumentative, but that's actually pretty messed up to say, Lethal-Bunduru. Just because I've had a hard time you try to patronize me and say "Good riddance"? Not only is that not correct, since I myself own a guild now, but I'd argue that even with my doubts around some guilds I'd be a pretty good addition to them, probably moreso than you.
That being said, I actually did have one suggestion for The-Curious, about his guild, that I didn't throw in before. Something that I've always thought about with guilds is that the players in them are a reflection of the guild itself. I'm not entirely sure what the focus of Chefs is, but I'd say if you can keep the upper-members of your guild involved and friendly- and be sure to deal with players that might ruin the image of your guild, you might eventually just attract more friendly and involved players from that alone.
There's probably more reasons than this, but this is what I got so far:
- I don't wanna be involved in or know about random drama. I play Spiral Knights to hang out and have a good time with my friends, not to gossip/fight like school girls. Last thing I wanna hear is someone's personal problems against another player(s). I'm too old for that high school shit tbh.
- I enjoy my privacy now a days. Having a guild/friends list means you literally will never get that. There are times when I do like to banter with the fam, but I can just go to Haven and get that experience.
- I don't wanna feel obligated to do things for people. I don't wanna donate, I don't wanna let noobs in my runs, and I don't wanna get asked for favors. If I say no, I might be labeled as the bad guy or that douchey dude. By not being in a guild, I can avoid all of this.
Long story short, I enjoy my freedom to do whatever I wanna do without being judged. c:
I've tried for a long time to be part of a guild in any game, and never to much success.
While I didn't particularly mind having to pay a bit every now and again for the weekly GH fees, what really killed it for me was all the drama headed my way by other guildmates, for one petty reason or another; even if the drama stopped, it permanently soured my experience of the guild.
Also, can we talk about those guilds that disallow the use of swear words in guild chat, even though the game itself has a built-in filter of those words for those that are sensitive to them? Like, am I the only one that finds such rules not only pointless but also hurts the guild in the long run?
Anyway, I've been guildless since and I like it much better that way, since I don't have to abide to any sort of socially-loaded shenanigans. I might go ahead and make my own one-man guild though, just so I don't have to be bothered by guild invitations...
Reasons not to join a guild:
Reasons to join a guild: