Jealous Sky Recruits for Highmaul Raiding and Beyond

Now that the latest expansion for World of Warcraft has been out for a few months, throngs of adventurers are relieved to have finally hit max level 100 only to find themselves with the grueling task of finding a group of mature, amicable people to raid with on a regular basis. Here with us today, we have Tidesroyale, GM of Jealous Sky. They are rebuilding their raid team after taking a break at the end of the expansion last. Tidesroyale tells us what they are looking for in potential recruits for the guild Jealous Sky.

Can you tell me a bit about Jealous Sky?

Hullo, everyone. Jealous Sky started raiding ever since the end of The Wrath of the Lich King. Come Mists of Pandaria, we started raiding late due to faction changing from Horde to Alliance and server transferred from Kil'jaeden to Proudmoore. We have cleared everything in Flex mode and as for normal mode, we have all downed Garrosh, but as a guild only group we have cleared Thok and all bosses prior. After taking a break at the end of Mists, we are now ready to rebuild our guild after losing the majority of our raid team to other games such as Diablo and Destiny, or to real life priorities. 

What are you looking for in a recruit?

I'll start out by telling you what we're NOT looking for. That way, I can make it clear upfront what we don't want in our guild. We do not wish to take up arms with people who have an elitist mentality. What I mean are people who:

• insist there is only one way to down a raid boss
• nag fellow raiders and insist that they choose X talent
• rage after a few wipes in a raid
• try to control the raid

Now I'll tell you about the qualities in a raider that we think set them apart from others and make them truly shine in a raiding guild:

• respect for others
• maturity
• amicable and sociable either in ventrilo or guild chat
• makes an effort to learn how to effectively play their class
• invests time in researching boss guides
• makes an effort to optimize their character (enchants, gems, flasks, pots, etc.)
• commitment to raid times (reserve raiders exempt) 
• patience

Could you tell us about your raiding philosophy?

We want to provide an environment where everyone feels welcome and we want the raiding experience to be an enjoyable one, not one in which you feel nervous and are prone to getting yelled at for making a mistake. We want to have fun whether we're downing a boss or dying alongside your comrades. Overall, we want the raiding experience to be a creative team-building experience and a rewarding, learning experience. 

There are two WoW terms I'd like to discuss that although are very embedded in WoW raiding guild vocabulary, are two words I would like to not apply to our guild, and it is for the meanings that the majority of WoW raiders derive from them:

1) casual ~ Most WoW raiders think this term refers to guilds who want to have more fun and not properly execute raid strategies just because they don't have absurd four-hour long raids that spans four days a week. I like to say that although we don't harbor elitists in our guild, we still do expect everyone on our raid team to always try their best, to constantly challenge themselves while at the same time keeping in line with an atmosphere in which the true reward is the joy of defeating a boss as a team, not the loot.

2) core ~ Yes, we are building a "core" team, but I do not agree with this word. Instead of recruiting for core slots, we recruit for committed slots. When someone sees the word "core slot," they think of a slot on an elite team that outperforms, outshines, and gets treated better than "casual" or reserve raiders in the guild. In our guild, just because your real life work and family obligations don't allow you to commit to our Friday and Saturday 7:30 to 10:30 PM server raid times, we don't think you should be treated any less. Everyone that makes a contribution to the guild (whether through daily questing, trade materials, feast, flask, etc. donations, dungeon runs, guild chat conversations, etc.) is valued in the guild.

Thanks for the chat. Are there any final thoughts you'd like to share with future guild recruits of Jealous Sky?

"Offer me your sword and spells, and I shall bring you victory.  Offer your companionship, and I shall give you loyalty.  Offer your service, and together we shall gain honour. We are Jealous Sky."

 

Jealous Sky

Last night in ventrilo I explained why I changed our guild name.  The only thing that has changed is our guild name.  Our aim, philosophy and dedication remain the same.  I feel this new name ties in better with the names of the ranks than our former name, Perpetual.  Also, if you look up Perpetual on wowarmory.com, you'll find that there are already twenty five guilds sharing the same name.  I want for us to stick out.  If you'll search our new guild name, Jealous Sky, you'll find that we're the sole guild bearing this name.  I have found that a few of you may have been upset by the unexpected guild name change, but honestly I have every right to change the guild name to what I deem best for our guild.  I formed this guild five years ago and only very few of you know the sad events in my life that led to the beginning of this guild.  I have seen this guild form from just two die-hard LOST fans to become a guild about four times our present size that supported three ten-man raid teams on our former server.

I was listening to an old favourite song of mine, Fields of Gold by Sting, and upon hearing my favourite lines of the sun in his jealous sky, there was a twinge in my heart and I instantly thought I had to change our guild name.  It just felt right.  The name––like the song––is a very sad and intimate one.  Beauty through melancholy.  Most see the word "jealous" for its negative connotations.  The way it is used in the lyrics of Sting's song and in our guild name is much different.  There are many ways of interpreting Sting's song and by all means, the song isn't the only reason I chose the guild name but it sure was an inspiration.  The sun can be seen as jealous because he is the most prominent being in the sky and the manner in which he rules the skies is what makes the sky jealous and out of this jealousy we get a beautiful skyscape. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, jealous can be defined as:

Zealous or solicitous for the preservation or well-being of something possessed or esteemed; vigilant or careful in guarding; suspiciously careful or watchful.

The words in this definition are admirable and I think they tie in well with our guild name.  You are all a group of people that I take pride in and care about.  I look forward to every raid night with you or to anytime spent just conversing with you in ventrilo or doing non-raid activities.  The friendly, respectful raid atmosphere that I have always longed for when I first started the game back in Vanilla, I've found in you.  The camaraderie and the challenges of vanquishing raid bosses I found in you.  The laughter, names and nicknames I've learned to inclulcate into my daily vocabulary and the audible smiles in ventrilo I found in you as well.  You are all very much a part of my life albeit digitally yet so much more than that––I know I will remember you and I will take great care to guard our Jealous Sky.

Offer me your sword and spells, and I shall bring you victory.  Offer your companionship, and I shall give you loyalty.  Offer your service, and together we shall gain honour. We are Jealous Sky.

Respectfully,
Ken, Mattie, Mira and Tides