Herald and Emissary Programs (Revised)

After careful consideration of the feedback from players, we have decided to move forward with two separate player volunteer programs. As you read, please take note that the program called the "Herald Program" is similar to what the player volunteer program was two years ago. The "Emissary Program" is what had been previously called the Herald program. Those who have already expressed interest in being a part of a player volunteer program will be asked which they would prefer to be a part of. We are still accepting applications for both programs.

Herald Program:
Purpose:

The purpose of the Herald program is to provide a connection between the player community and the developer in a story form. Heralds are active members of the game community interested in reporting on happenings within the community they serve.

Responsibilities:

* Heralds create special reports on events in game, write stories about their community and help enhance the roleplay aspects of the game through their work.

* Heralds have a special section on the website for posting articles. These articles include, but aren't limited to, reports about events, spotlights on a guild, community or player, and stories about special events in the lives of the community members. While there is no set guideline for how often these articles are required, keeping the news current on the page is expected.

* There is one Herald for each shard (Chaos, Order and Blight), but a Herald may request to have an assistant or two if they find that they can not cover the news on the shard by themselves.


Emmisary Program:
Purpose:

The purpose of the Emissary program is to utilize the experience and knowledge of volunteers from those who play Istaria for the good of the community as a whole. Emissaries express interest in being a part of the program, but are chosen by the Virtrium team.

Responsibilities:

* Emissaries are active members of the playing community. This means that they maintain an active forum account and game subscription.

* Emissaries read the forums regularly and report posts to the proper developer should an issue arise that requires developer feedback. They also communicate with the players on items currently in development, and maintain an internal “known issues� list so that they can communicate with players the direction the game is going in the future.

* Emissaries help to test for bugs in new content, verify bug reports, and summarize player feedback about the game through frequent reports on an internal forum set up for Emissaries. While it is not required that Emissaries play on the Blight shard, it is expected that Emissaries have at least one copy of their character on the Blight shard that can be used for testing purposes.

* Emissaries also help build the Knowledge Base portion of the website. They assist in knowing what questions are frequently asked and how to answer those questions.

Becoming a Herald or Emissary:

* Someone interested in becoming a Herald or Emissary will submit an application to the Community Manager for Istaria.

* Heralds and Emissaries are volunteers, and players of Istaria first and foremost. Thus it is important for them, and for other players, to remember that they need time to just enjoy the game as well. They should use their own discretion in revealing their Emissary status while in game. Heralds must, due to the nature of their role, be known in the community in which they serve, but only as their Herald character.

Heralds and Emissaries are an valuable part of the Istarian community. They are an important link between player and developer. Those interested in being a part of the Herald or Emissary program are asked to send an email to [email protected].