Promotion Guidelines

The following guidelines have been set forth as the path for new members to follow on their journey through the ranks. Completing the activities indicated in each of the following steps will qualify a member for promotion. The purpose of these various items is to provide a solid base of knowledge for new members that will allow them to succeed in the future.

Journeyman Guidelines

The list of activities that are provided are a series of examples of members' accomplishments that will qualify an individual for promotion - but promotions at the Journeyman level are not limited to these tasks. Substitutions for items on these lists are acceptable on an individual basis, so long as the substituted work is of similar or equivalent effort. If a member completes the tasks as they are defined below, they will be promoted accordingly, but it is not the only way.

Apprentice to Novice

One basic activity, such as:

Pass a Shadow Academy course (except Test of Lore and Advancement Survey)
Submit to a competition
Reach Trust Level 1 on the Forums (see below)
Have an approved character sheet on record
Earn a competition award (Crescents, Novae, Legions of the Scholar or Pendants of Blood)
Earn one (1) Cluster of Fire

This is just an example. You need to do any one activity that shows that you are active and ready to proceed. The activity done here can be counted for the next promotion as well.

Novice to Acolyte/Disciple

Complete three of the following:

Total of any two (2) Shadow Academy exams (excluding the Dark Brotherhood Basics Shadow Academy course and courses listed in the Journeyman Hall). This can count up to two times if a total of four (4) Shadow Academy courses are completed
Participate in any Dark Brotherhood competition. This can count up to two times if you participate in two (2) competitions
Earn five (5) Clusters of Fire. This can count up to two times for ten (10) Clusters of Fire
Logon to IRC and visit your Clan channel
Logon to the DJB Voice Server
Sign into the Dark Brotherhood forums, and reach Trust Level 1 by entering 5 topics, reading 25 posts, and spending 5 minutes reading posts
500 word Character Development Fiction submitted to your Master or House Leadership, this can count up to two times if a 1000-word fiction is submitted
Any four (4) Journeyman Hall Shadow Academy courses, this can count up to two times if a total of eight (8) courses are taken
- Courses in this hall do not count towards any other Shadow Academy requirement

Acolyte/Disciple to Protector

Complete the Dark Brotherhood Basics Shadow Academy course (this course is excluded for all remaining Shadow Academy course guidelines)

Complete three of the following:

Begin to outline your character history for eventual posting on the Brotherhood Wiki, and have this outline approved by your House leadership or Master
Total of any six (6) Shadow Academy exams (excluding the Dark Brotherhood Basics Shadow Academy course and Journeyman Hall courses). This can count up to two times for a total of twelve (12) courses
Participate in three (3) total competitions. This can count up to two times for a total of five (5) competitions
Earn ten (10) Clusters of Fire. This can count up to two times for twenty (20) Clusters of Fire
Earn one (1) Cluster of Ice. This can count up to two times for two (2) Clusters of Ice
Have an approved character sheet on record
750 word character development fiction submitted to your master or House Leadership, this can count up to two times if a 1500-word fiction is submitted.
Logon to IRC and visit your Clan channel
Logon to the DB DJB Voice Server
Any eight (8) Journeyman Hall Shadow Academy courses, this can count up to two times if a total of sixteen (16) courses are taken
- Courses in this hall do not count towards any other Shadow Academy requirement

Protector to Guardian/Defender

Two weeks at Protector

Complete six of the following:

Interact with members of the Brotherhood in a social setting: this can include visiting your clan channel on IRC, using the Brotherhood voice server, posting a constructive comment on the Brotherhood site, or a constructive post on the Brotherhood forums
Total of any twelve (12) Shadow Academy exams (excluding the Dark Brotherhood Basics Shadow Academy course and Journeyman Hall courses). This can count two times if twenty-four (24) courses are passed
Participate in three (3) total competitions. This can count two times if you participate in five (5) total competitions
Earn a total of twenty (20) Clusters of Fire. This can count two times if you earn forty (40) Clusters of Fire
Earn a total of two (2) Clusters of Ice. This can count two times if you earn four (4) Clusters of Ice
Complete Antei Combat Center Basics Exam and your Character Sheet if you have not already done so - ACC basics can count towards your Shadow Academy exam course total
Qualify for the Antei Combat Center
Reach Level 2 (GMRG:II) in the Grand Master's Royal Guard
Reach rank II (Freshman) in the Shadow Academy Society
Minimum 750 word character fiction to be approved by your House leadership or Master, this can count up to two times if a 1500-word fiction is submitted
Work on your character history document for eventual posting on the Brotherhood Wiki, and have this effort approved by your House Leadership or Master. This should include significant updates to the character's pre-Brotherhood life
Create a competition and run it with the assistance of your leadership. This can count two times if you run two competitions. Competitions must be in compliance with the requirements outlined in the Notes on Running Competitions section below
Earn a Merit Medal. This can count two times if you earn two merit medals

Guardian to Jedi Hunter/Padawan

Three weeks at Guardian

Complete nine of the following:

Interact with members of the Brotherhood in a social setting: this can include visiting your clan channel on IRC, using the Brotherhood voice server, posting a constructive comment on the Brotherhood site, or a constructive post on the Brotherhood forums
Participate in five (5) total competitions. This can count two times for ten (10) competitions
Pass a Shadow Academy leadership exam from the Department Of Leadership Studies. Pass two exams for this item to count two times
1000 word character fiction to be approved by your unit leadership or Master., this can count up to two times if a 2000-word fiction is submitted
Earn two (2) Pendants of Blood. Counts up to two times for four (4) Pendants of Blood
Complete two (2) Antei Combat Center matches. Counts up to two times for four (4) matches
Reach Level 3 (GMRG:III) in the Grand Master's Royal Guard
Reach rank III (Sophomore) in the Shadow Academy Society
Place in a competition. This can count two times for placing in two (2) competitions
Have a total of fifty (50) Clusters of Fire. This can count two times for 100 Clusters of Fire
Have a total of five (5) Clusters of Ice. This can count two times for ten (10) Clusters of Ice
Earn a merit medal. This can count two times for two (2) merit medals
Create a competition and run it with the assistance of your leadership. This can count two times for running two (2) competitions. Competitions must be in compliance with the requirements outlined in the Notes on Running Competitions section below

Jedi Hunter/Padawan to Dark Jedi Knight/Jedi Knight

Four weeks at Jedi Hunter/Padawan

Complete eleven of the following:

Earn a merit medal. This can count two times for two (2) merit medals
Earn either two Legions of the Scholar of a major competition award (crescent or novae)
Earn two major competition awards (crescents and/or novae)
Participate in eight (8) total competitions. This can count two times for fifteen(15) competitions
Create a competition and run it with the assistance of your leadership. Running two (2) competitions counts two times. Competitions must be in compliance with the requirements outlined in the Notes on Running Competitions section below
Pass two Shadow Academy leadership exams from the Department Of Leadership Studies
Assist your House or Clan summit with a project
Complete five (5) Antei Combat Center matches. Ten (10) matches counts two times
Reach Level 4 (GMRG:IV) in the Grand Master's Royal Guard
Reach rank IV (Junior) in the Shadow Academy Society
Have a total of 75 Clusters of Fire. Counts two times for 150 Clusters of Fire
Have a total of 7 Clusters of Ice. Counts two times for 14 Clusters of Ice
Minimum 1,500 words of character fiction to be approved by your House leadership or Master, this can count up to two times if a 3000-word fiction is submitted.
Earn three (3) Pendants of Blood. Counts up to two times for six (6) Pendants of Blood
Earn a Shadow Academy Degree (excluding the Dark Pundit Degrees)
Using the Character Page Template, complete a quality character article. Contact the Wiki Staff to review your completed wiki page for approval
Serve successfully as Battle Team Leader or higher for at least one month

General Notes

For the purposes of counting competitions, the Promotheus tool general keeps track of these competitions. This has not always been the case, and the website note displaying all of a member's participation must not impede their progress. When recommending a promotion for a member, simply note that the website is incorrect.
IRC trivia competitions, when participated in or hosted by Journeymen for the purpose of promotion, shall count as one-half of a traditional unit (or Dark Council) run competition. For instance, if a member wished to fulfill the Jedi Hunter/Padawan promotion guideline for participating in ten (10) competitions using only IRC trivia, then that member would need to participate in twenty (20) competitions.

Competitions

In order for a competition to count towards a promotion, it must meet the following criteria:

Award 4th level Crescents or higher
Trivia and Flash Games are not allowed to be used for these requirements
The competition will count towards the promotion requirement only once it has been completed, scored, and awards have gone out

It is recommended for DB-wide competitions that the Journeyman approach someone outside of their Unit (such as a member of the Dark Council) for feedback on the proposed competition and so that the competition can be advertised on the news page of the site to encourage greater participation.

Leadership

Holding a leadership or administrative position in the Brotherhood is an important achievement for a member, and it also serves as an important marker for evaluating member progress by the Master at Arms staff. We do recognize that direct unit leadership is not always possible, either through a lack of opportunity, or a desire to do something else. This should not adversely hamper a member's chances for promotion. Therefore some equivalencies to three months (these are all predicated on the notion that the member is successful and active in their role) as an Independent Unit Leader are:

Six months as an Independent Unit Deputy or Sub-Unit Leader
Seven months as a Sub-Unit Deputy
Nine months as a Battle team Leader
Nine months as a Rollmaster
Six months as a Praetor
Nine months as a Magistrate, Shadow Academy Professor or Docent, or Antei Combat Centre Judge

There are other positioned and non-positioned activities that a member can engage in that are in keeping with the spirit of the above. These include (but are not limited) to: working and actively contributing to the large-scale Brotherhood projects, non-positioned Shadow Academy service, and mentoring member to the rank of Dark Jedi Knight/Jedi Knight.

Further, all of the above positions and associated timelines are meant to show transparency in the Master at Arms staff thought processes. There is no guarantee that a member will be promoted upon hitting the number of days in a position.

Equite & Beyond

Promotions beyond Dark Jedi Knight/Jedi Knight are decided on a case-by-case basis. The Master at Arms looks at the whole record of the prospective promote including but not limited to competitions entered and hosted, medals awarded and why, projects completed, leadership, and administrative experience. The latter two often holding a greater weight with each subsequent rank. Attitude and how one interacts with the larger Brotherhood also plays a role as it represents ones growth and maturity in the club. Strive to establish your strengths and never be afraid to test your weaknesses.

The Deputy Grand Master may promote up to Dark Side Adept or Force Adept. Beyond that, all higher promotions are determined in consultation with the Grand Master.

There are no activity lists for Equite promotions, and the time in rank provided is meant as an average minimum. Rare members will meet expectations early, but most members will take at least the time provided and usually longer. Activity is expected to be recent. A member who has been an EQ1 for over a year but only returned to active status two months ago is unlikely to be promoted. Large scale activity may make up for time in rank, however, including Brotherhood wide vendettas or prolonged projects that reach conclusion.

There is no clean path toward an Equite promotion, no absolute rules or expectations. Be active. If you want to know what you can do, speak to your unit leaders and ask to assist with projects. Apply for leadership positions, experience that is required for the upper Equite ranks. Leadership is evaluated based on consistency, achievements, and the satisfaction of your superiors.

If you are striving to earn EQ2, look at other members who hold that rank as an example of how they earned it. EQ1 may be earned by sustained activity over a period of months, but a sub-unit Quaestor will not earn EQ4, which requires a wider impact on the Brotherhood as a whole. Those who go the furthest are the ones who work together for the betterment of the group.

The Master at Arms encourages members to keep personal activity logs that can be shared with your leaders periodically.

Leaders looking to submit an Equite promotion are encouraged to first contact the Master at Arms to determine the member’s eligibility while consulting the MAA Policy: Writing Recommendations examples.

Rank	Expectations
Warrior / Templar / Priest / Scout / Duelist / Savant	5-6 month minimum sustained activity
Battlemaster / Prelate / Archpriest / Ranger / Warden / Seer	8-9 month minimum sustained activity
Battlelord / Exarch / Epis / Shadow / Peacekeeper / Chronicler	One year minimum sustained activity; Three months of leadership
Warlord / Primarch / Pontifex / Watchman / Blade Master / Cleric	Fifteen month minimum sustained activity; six months of recent leadership

Credits and Version Information

Currently in version 3.2'

3.2 version update by Aabsdu, Evant, Rial, Teylas, Howlader, James - 11 February, 2015
3.1 version update by Kalen - 17 January, 2014
3.0 version update by Howlader, Kalen, and JaM3z - 26 November, 2013
2.0 version update by Korras(with Kalia and Frmeoc): major edit, to reflect ToR as a major platform. - 26/02/12
1.4a version updated by Korras: changed EQ requirements
1.4 version updated by Korras: Removed obsolete items (histories on dossiers are no more), added EQ guidelines, altered time requirements. - 10/02/11
1.3 version updated by Kaek: changed note about running competitions as participation to require leadership to tell me when this occurs. Updated links to DB Basics and ACC Basic - 7/24/09
1.2 version updated by Kaek with modifications: Shadow Academy double-dipping policy clarified; Shadow Academy courses completed beyond the base promotion requirements but before the actual promotion can be applied to the next level of promotion per new language; the Master At Arms will no longer assign House tasks but can still be contacted to assist new members; fiction length requirements lowered - 7/7/09
1.1a version updated by Kaek in order to clarify language. Requirements remain the same - 11/13/08
1.1 version updated by Kaek based on feedback and analysis - 10/21/08
- Originally derived from the promotion guidelines of every Clan. Compiled by Sklib and Tarax. Initial revisions/additions by Kaek. Subsequent revisions/additions by Sarin, Muz, Kir, Kaek and Raken. Final revisions/additions made by the entire Dark Council: Sarin, Muz, Kir, Kaek, Aabsdu, Shikyo, Jac, Sashar, Braecen, Phoenix, Chaos, Anshar, Ashia and Ashura - 10/14/08