Meridian 59 User's Guide
Managing Your Guild
Once you've established your new guild, you conduct all Guild business from here on out through the Guild window. To reach this window at any time, select Guild from the Actions Menu, or type Guild in text line, and press Enter. The Guild window offers you a variety of different options, depending on your rank within the guild. These options may include:
Membership
This list shows all the guild's current members. Click on a name, and the selected person's rank appears in the text box at right.Rank
In addition to showing the selected person's rank, leaders in the top two tiers of the hierarchy can use the Rank box to promote or demote lower-ranking members. You cannot grant promotions any higher than the level just below your own. To grant a promotion or demotion:
- Press the down arrow beside the Rank field to view all hierarchy levels.
- Highlight the new level you want to assign to the promotee/demotee, and release.
- The affected member will receive notice of the rank change when you leave the Guild window.
Exile
Leaders in the top two tiers can also exile a member -- that is, kick them out of the guild as a punitive measure. To do this, select the member's name in the membership list, and click Exile.Support
Guilds don't have formal elections. Instead, voting goes on constantly, as group support shifts informally between one leader or another. The leader with the most popular support holds the Guildmaster position -- but only until someone else can get the support of 50% or more of the guild members.The Support box is where you indicate who you'd like to see as Guildmaster. This information is secret: nobody else can find out who you support. You can change the name in this box as often as you like, and support anyone in the guild you choose, regardless of rank. If a simple majority of your fellow guild members also enter this name in their support boxes, this person automatically becomes the new Guildmaster, and the old Guildmaster is notified of his or her removal. Ousted Guildmasters are demoted to the guild's second-lowest rank.
To change your support, choose the name of your new candidate from the membership list, and click the Shift Support button. The message that appears confirms the switch.
Whenever guild leadership changes, your Support box is cleared.
Abdicate to:
This button appears only on the Guildmaster's screen, and is used only once: to issue a voluntary resignation and stand down in favor of another member.To abdicate, click the name of your successor on the membership list. Then, click Abdicate. Your abdication takes effect immediately after you leave the Guild window, and the new Guildmaster is notified of his or her ascension.
All former Guildmasters automatically assume the guild's second lowest rank, though they can be re-promoted by someone in the top two levels.
Leave Guild
Choose this option when you want to resign your membership in your current guild. A warning box appears, offering you the chance to back out. Click OK to resign, or Cancel to stay in the guild.This option does not appear in the guild window of the reigning Guildmaster. Guildmasters can't leave the guild unless they abdicate first.
Alliances
This command allows you to declare the guild's official posture in relationship to other guilds -- that is, to publicly announce alliance, or identify enemies. These decrees can only be issued by those in the top two levels of guild leadership.Clicking Alliances brings up a new window offering three separate lists. Every guild in Meridian 59 appears on one of these lists:
- Allied Guilds are guilds you regard as friendly. Members of allied guilds are granted free access to your guild hall. If you are declared an ally of their guild in return, you have access to their guild hall as well. Since the Guild Creator looks kindly on guilds which maintain a standard of chivalry and pacifism, he will reduce your rent slightly for each alliance you have declared. (On the other hand, having lots of allies leaves you open for betrayal.)
- Unaligned Guilds are neutral guilds with whom you are neither friendly nor hostile.
- Enemy Guilds are those with whom you have hostile relations. The benefit of declaring your enemies is that if a member of an enemy guild should attempt to raid your guild hall, every member of your guild -- as well as the members of every allied guild -- will be instantly warned of the attempt. The price of this security that for every enemy your guild declares, your guild hall rent rises another notch.
To find out how another guild feels about your guild, click on the guild's name. A message appears to let you know whether this guild regards you as an enemy, an ally, or unaligned.
Invite
This is the window you use to invite new members to join your guild. It appears in the Guild window if you belong to one of the top three levels of the guild hierarchy. To issue an invitation:
- Click the Invite tab. This brings up a list of everyone who's in your local area at the moment.
- Select the name of the prospective new member, and click the Invite button. This issues the invitation automatically. It appears as scroll in their inventory.
- The prospective member has two minutes to Use the scroll, thereby accepting the invitation. After two minutes, the scroll disappears, and the invitation is rescinded.
You may issue a guild invitation to a citizen who is not eligible to join, either because they are relatively new to Meridian, or belong to another guild. However, an ineligible citizen will be prevented from accepting your kind offer.
Change Guild Password
This option is available only to Guildmasters who are in charge of guild halls. You'll use it to change the password of the door that leads to the guild's storage chest.To change the password, click to the Guildmaster tab and click in the Change Password field. Type the new password and click Done. The new password takes effect immediately.
Abandon Guild Hall
This button appears if you are the Guildmaster in charge of a guild hall. When a guild disbands, this command is equivalent of the last one out turning off the lights. Simply click this button, then answer Yes when the warning box appears.Before you abandon your guild hall, make sure you clear out your storage chest.
Disband Guild
Using this command dissolves the guild's charter, closing the guild. This command is available to all Guildmasters. Click Disband Guild, and answer Yes when the warning box appears.
