- "Tell me what you regard as your greatest strength, so I will know how best to undermine you; tell me of your greatest fear, so I will know which I must force you to face; tell me what you cherish most, so I will know what to take from you; and tell me what you crave, so that I might deny you"
- ―Darth Plagueis
First designed in 2010 to replace a defunct Master/Student Program, the Plagueian Path is a new system under which Ascendant Journeymen receive fair and complete instruction from a body of Masters and Summit members. Originally designed as the Rule of Two Program, the Path was not implemented in Old Plagueis due to Summit squabbles and administrative gaps but has since taken its place as the educational program for House Plagueis.
Overview
In light of both the recent and long-standing flaws with the prior Master/Student Program of House Plagueis, a change is clearly needed. When the Brotherhood of Darkness became weak and dysfunctional, Darth Bane's Rule of Two cleansed away this weakness and ensured strength. In honor of that cleansing and the power that came from it, the new Master/Student Program for House Plagueis will be called the Plagueian Path.
In this program, we will remove what is a defunct system based on ineffective management and archaic rules and requirements. We will instate a system that focuses on friendship, skill-building techniques, and the betterment of all the members of House Plagueis.
Basic Principles
The Plagueian Path consists of four main segments: Management, Masters, Students, and Prospects. Each segment is essential to the program as a whole, but can easily be maintained and managed with the loss of members at unexpected intervals.
The Management segment consists of three main tiers. Primary management of the program will be overseen by House Rollmasters, or a House Rollmaster should one exist at the time. Next up is the House Summit, who they will report to at weekly or bi-weekly intervals on the status of the program. The House Summit will then submit monthly status reports to the House Summit based on these, unless progress is requested by the House Summit before the month is up.
Masters are members ranked at Dark Jedi Knight and above and are a key component of the program. As the name suggests, they are the primary teachers, though the term Master applies only to the program. In general, Masters vary widely in style, personality, tastes, and talents, but most rely on set methods of communication and a personal student or students. The exception is the Taskmaster, a Master devoted to the education of Prospects as a whole.
Students are members between the ranks of Protector and Jedi Hunter, advanced beyond the teachings of the Prospects and awaiting instruction from a specific Master. If a Master without Students is unavailable, a Master can oversee several students at once and the Taskmaster can also assist them. Students also have the option to approach the rank of Dark Jedi Knight without a Master, if they so choose.
Prospects are members between the rank of Apprentice and Acolyte, representing the newest and least-experienced members of the Brotherhood. They are taught by the Taskmaster, who introduces them to the methods of Brotherhood activity and helps to orient them in the ways of the Club as a whole. Prospects are indoctrinated quickly and helped into the world of the Dark Jedi Brotherhood with as little friction as possible.
Key to the program is the concept of freedom. Students entering the program should enjoy the full benefit of having someone to help them on their path, Masters should have the opportunity to be rewarded by the Management, and Prospects should be helped along as smoothly as possible. Only the Prospects have to recieve the emails and communication of the Taskmaster; Upon attaining the rank of Protector, and at any rank above, being part of the program is completely optional and their decision will not be held against them. They are welcome to rejoin at any time.
The program will help to bolster activity in the House, all the while bolstering the ties of friendship, skills, and interests of Plagueis' membership base. At any point, should the House Summit deem the program's numbers insufficient or sufficient once more, the program can be deactivated and reinstated with minimal effort needed to establish new records.
The Duties of Oversight: Management
The strength of the Plagueian Path lies in its ability to adapt to membership changes and unexpected departures. As such, the duties of Management fall primarily to the Rollmaster, as well as the House Summit. Each group has their own specific part in running the program. While everything involved in their duties is absolutely essential, it is all streamlined and easily maintained to ensure the smoothest transition possible between the Leaders of the House.
Rollmaster
The Rollmaster is the main administrator for the program. They maintain the rosters of Masters, Students, and Prospects. Also, they help Students find Masters and vice versa. They submit promotion requests for members to the Dark Council for approval, appoint Masters to the program when they volunteer, and are a source of reward for Masters of the program. The specific duties of the Rollmaster are:
- Maintain Rosters of Masters, Students, and Prospects in a Word Document or similar text document that can be transferred to the next Rollmaster when their service is concluded.
- Help Students and Masters find suitable pairings, and mediate disputes between them.
- Actively seek out Masters for the program.
- Send Weekly or Bi-Weekly reports to the House Summit on the status of the Program, including rosters and pairing status.
- Work with the House Summit to identify and reward outstanding Masters.
- Submit promotion requests for Students and Prospects.
- Remove Masters from the Program that are a negative influence on Students, based on evidence of inappropriate behavior or Student request.
- Act in the duties of Taskmaster when/if no Taskmaster is available.
The House Summit acts as assistance and a sort of safety net for the Rollmaster, keeping record of their status reports, helping them to reward Masters, and temporarily maintaining their duties between Rollmaster appointments. Also, they can help to promote Students and plan events to keep the Plagueian Path's membership busy and having fun. The Specific duties of the House Summit are:
- Recieve and keep record of the Rollmaster's reports, to a minimum of three months' worth at a time.
- Submit Monthly reports to the House Summit on the progress of the program, using data from the Rollmaster's records.
- Help the Rollmaster to promote Students and reward Masters in times of high activity.
- Reward the Rollmaster for exceptional work in the management of the program.
- Maintain the duties of the Rollmaster when no Rollmaster is yet appointed.
- Remove Masters from the Program that are a negative influence on Students, based on inappropriate behaviour or Student Request.
- Deactivate and reactivate the program depending on overall effectiveness and House activity levels.
- Investigate the progress of the program when needed by requesting an update directly from the Rollmaster.
House Summit
While the House Summit's main role in the Plagueian Path is that of logistics, they hold the primary power to activate or deactivate the program at any time. The decision to do this will be based both on records from the program and data gathered by request of the Quaestor and Aedile. The Quaestor and Aedile do not have the authority to force anyone to participate in the program, though they may ask Masters that are derelict in their duties to leave the program temporarily or, in the case of extreme offense, for good.
All branches of Management are required to keep anonymity and confidentiality in regard to Student and Master requests or complaints, unless otherwise allowed by said Student or Master. This is to protect the members of the Program from undue harassment and to keep disagreements and poor choices from spilling over into larger conflicts. Regular progress data and reward data does not constitute confidential information.
Mastery
Masters are the primary element of the Plagueian Path. A Master oversees anywhere between one and several students at a time, befriending them and helping them to advance toward success in House Plagueis and the Dark Jedi Brotherhood. Requirements for Mastery are as follows:
- Rank of Equite 1 or higher without prerequisites; Equite ranks should already have sufficient skills and maturity to teach.
- Rank of Dark Jedi Knight, pending one month of Knighthood and Management approval.
- Submission of one Primary Skill, two Secondary Skills, one Preferred Communication Method, and a Preferred Student Capacity for roster purposes.
Once appointed, a Master within the program is recognized as such for the duration of their involvement with the Plagueian Path. Formal Plaguian Path emails and communications, as well as fictional events involving the program, will refer to them as such. The term Master or Mistress, assigned by gender as default but changeable if the Master in question so pleases, will precede their last/middle and last names in these formal situations. The specific duties of a Master are as follows:
- Keep in regular contact with their Student(s).
- Help their Student(s) progress toward the rank of Dark Jedi Knight.
- Help their Student(s) grow in areas of interest and skill within the Dark Jedi Brotherhood.
- Provide assistance to their Student(s) or others in need when possible, or direct them to assistance.
- Write promotion requests for their Student(s) when due and send them to the Rollmaster for submission to the Master at Arms and Dark Council.
- Keep the Rollmaster up to date on the progress of their Student(s).
- Act appropriately and maturely toward their Student(s) at all times.
- Assist any Student(s) unassigned or assigned to different Masters when needed.
Based on promotion rates for their Student(s), skill progression in their Student(s), and Student feedback and requests, Masters will be rewarded suitably with Merit Awards and other such rewards for their efforts in the program. Extended service and success will be treated as a factor in the promotion of Masters.
Taskmaster
- Main article: [[Taskmaster|Taskmaster]]
The Taskmaster(or Taskmasters should the need arise) is recognized as a Master of the Plagueian Path, and is addressed as Master/Mistress or Taskmaster/Taskmistress at their discretion in formal communications. Typically, for fictional events, Taskmaster or Taskmistress is preferred to avoid confusion among participants and observers. The Taskmaster is possessed of more generic duties, though in greater volume, than those of a typical Master. They oversee the Prospects, teaching them all the basic lessons of the Dark Jedi Brotherhood and helping them along the path of their first promotions. In addition, they oversee the Students of the House that are without Masters. The requirements to become a Taskmaster are:
- Rank of Equite 1 or Higher.
- Management Approval.
- Email turnover of 72 hours or less.
Duties
The specific duties of the Taskmaster are as follows:
- Welcome Prospects to the Brotherhood and the Plagueian Path.
- Introduce Prospects to the basic facets of the Brotherhood, such as IRC, the message forums, the Shadow Academy, and other activities.
- Steer Prospects toward their initial promotions and write requests to be sent to the Rollmaster, who will then submit them to the Master at Arms.
- Teach Prospects about being a Student and identify Prospects with high potential early.
- Direct Students toward Masters; teach Students who deign not to be Masters toward their next promotions.
- Keep the Rollmaster up-to-date on Prospect performance and progress.
- Send documents used to instruct Prospects to the Rollmaster for safekeeping and use in between or in lieu of Taskmaster appointments.
Taskmasters will be rewarded primarily on Prospect feedback and general success rate, though the duration of their service will also be a source of appropriate Merit Awards. Also, their past service as Taskmasters will be noted in the event that no Taskmaster volunteers, and they will be asked before other Masters to assume the duties.
Furthermore, while Equite 1 is the preferred rank for any Taskmaster, should an enterprising Dark Jedi Knight apply for the slot, Management reserves the right to appoint them under probationary guidance for a three month period, with a permanent slot beyond that should they be confirmed.
Students
Upon attaining the rank of Protector, a Journeyman ceases to be considered a Prospect of the Plagueian Path and is offered the choice to become a Student. They can decline, as well as revise their choice in the future, at their own discretion. If they choose to become Students, they will be instructed by a Master, though the Taskmaster and Rollmaster are also available for assistance outside their main instruction. The requirements to become a Student are:
- Achieve the rank of Protector.
- Submit a statement of Student interests for use in rosters, reports, and Master assignment and selection(Optional).
Upon reaching the rank of Dark Jedi Knight, Journeymen complete their term as Students. After one month of active Knighthood, they are welcome to apply for Mastery. In the span of that month, they are welcome to request the advice and teachings of Masters to ready them. However, the Masters can choose to politely decline without repercussion.
Students and Masters will typically forge a bond of friendship during their time together. However, if a Student is mistreated, harassed, or otherwise abused during their tutelage, they have the right to seek help from the Rollmaster, House Summit, and any other body of Brotherhood Leadership. They can choose to end the partnership at any time, and their statements will be kept confidential. Should their accusations bear sufficient evidence, they are of course allowed to pursue the help of the Chamber of Justice against the Master. Also, Masters who mistreat students can either be put on probation or removed from the program entirely based upon the severity of their offenses.
Should Students and Masters simply not get along or find themselves incompatible with one another, they can request reassignment or mediation from a Summit member at any time without repercussion or prerequisites of any sort.
Prospects
As the most common group of Journeymen and the hardest to retain, any member between the rank of Apprentice and Acolyte is automatically part of the Prospect group. In this group, Prospects learn how to navigate the Brotherhood website, introduced to its many activities and IRC, and helped through their initial promotions. Once a Prospect reaches the rank of Protector, they are given the option to become Students.
It should be noted that the Prospect group is not meant to belittle members or imply a lack of ability. It is not a group meant for members with lesser skills or younger members. The purpose of Prospects is simply to reduce the loss of members in the early ranks and speed members toward success more smoothly and efficiently. Should a Prospect so choose, they can ask to cease their involvement in the Plagueian Path and go about things on their own. At any time they are welcome to rejoin the mainstream program, and the Taskmaster will provide them help at their request. Also, these members will be considered as Students at the rank of Protector regardless of their former decisions.
Venues
In fictional terms, the Plagueian Path is acknowledged not by name, but as the Force- and Lightsaber-specific training given to members of House Plagueis. As the House and its Dark Jedi hide their identities as Officers of the Jusadih System's Stratocracy government to protect them from the prying eyes of the Galaxy at large, each Branch of the Plagueian Path will have a fictional venue hidden from the public. These may be any facilities, but are typically set as temples, ruins, or other remote sites of Force knowledge. In fictional terms, these venues are top-secret, and the risk of them being revealed would constitute a crisis within House Plagueis.
Rosters
Rosters will be maintained for the Masters, Students, and Prospects of the Plagueian Path at all times. These will be maintained by the Rollmaster, or by the House Summit if a Rollmaster is unavailable.
The Roll of Mastery will contain the following:
- Dark Jedi names and Formal Program Titles for all Masters.
- One Primary Skill for each Master.
- Two Secondary Skills for each Master.
- One Primary Communication Method for each Master.
- A Preferred Student Capacity number(in the format of x-y, with x being the preferred minimum and y the preferred maximum) for each Master.
The Roll of Students will contain the following:
- Dark Jedi names of all Students.
- A list of interests, submitted by the Students to help with Master Selection.
- Any additional notes by the Rollmaster or Students, unless the Student in question disapproves.
The Roll of Prospects will contain the following:
- Dark Jedi names of all Prospects.
- Any additional notes by the Rollmaster or Prospects, unless the Prospect in question disapproves.
Conclusion
The Plagueian Path will combine streamlined efficiency, adaptability, survivability, and enjoyability to create a fun and engaging experience for the members of House Plagueis, Journeyman, Equite, and Elder alike. Working in accordance with member strengths, compatibility, and approved Promotion Guidelines from the Office of the Master at Arms, it will ensure everyone progresses properly, learns what they need to, and is rewarded for their time and effort.
During times of inactivity, informal Master/Student pairs can be maintained by Rollmasters in lieu of Plagueian Path records, and venues can be treated as basic landmarks or still as generic training sites. It is up to the discretion of the Quaestor and Aedile to determine whether the Program can succeed or not.
- Original concept and document written by Kal di Plagia Vorrac, #7288, on 05/19/2010.
- Revisions to reflect Independent House Status and proper formatting effected on 3/27/2011 by Tra'an Reith, #9050.
Any modifications or updates will be listed as they are instated. Any renovations or modifications done by members on House Summit authority will be noted here.