What is Beskar?

Beskar is a Mandalorian-themed guild created specifically to play Bioware’s forthcoming MMORPG, Star Wars: The Old Republic (or TOR, as it gets called), due to be released later in 2011.

How do I become a member?

First, be sure to read this page and other information like the About section along with this post. Sign up on the forum, submit an application and then prepare for a Q&A with Beskar members.

What are Mandalorians?

Mandalorians are a nomadic group of clans consisting of members from multiple species, all bound by a common culture. They are well-established throughout most Star Wars lore.

How old is Beskar?

Beskar was created in December 2008, a few months after the TOR forums first opened for business, once the guild leader was satisfied that the concept was worth people’s support.

What faction will Beskar choose in TOR? Sith or Republic?

Ever since the Bounty Hunter class — the most Mandalorian class in TOR — was announced as a Sith-only option by Bioware, Beskar has proudly declared itself to be a Sith guild.

So I have to be a Bounty Hunter with a Mandalorian background to be in Beskar?

Not at all. While we are proud of our Mandalorian theme, that doesn’t mean everyone in Beskar is expected to be a Bounty Hunter or even promote themselves as a Mandalorian. We agree that it would be nonsensical to be a Bounty Hunter-only guild or a Mandalorian-only guild.

Huh? So you’re a Mandalorian guild… but not a Mandalorian guild?

*Chuckle* Look at it this way: We think it’s nonsensical to have a Mandalorian guild that tries to suggest that all these Sith Lords and Imperial Agents standing alongside our Bounty Hunters are, somehow, Mandalorian as well. Not only is it unrealistic in terms of Star Wars lore in general (for example, go and find a Mandalorian Sith Lord in Star Wars lore, let alone a whole guild full of them, hanging out together), it’s also very limiting to creativity, too. It’s a big galaxy out there, after all.

So how does that actually work out in practice?

The Beskar backstory (which will be published on this website later in the year), explains how Beskar is a private military contractor — run by a Mandalorian — which features the talents of not only Bounty Hunters, but also Sith Warriors, Sith Inquisitors and Imperial Agents as well. In this way it doesn’t take the cop-out explanation that everyone in Beskar is a Mandalorian. For the role players in the guild, Bounty Hunter characters will typically portray themselves as Mandalorians, while some Imperial Agents might as well, but no Sith Lord characters will portray themselves as coming from the ranks of the Mandalorians. Non-role players need not notice any of this at all, of course.

Do you have Ventrilo?

Yes, we have our own Ventrilo server. Infact if you look to the right of this text –> you can see a handy dandy real-time guide to our server; its channels; who’s on; etc. We also have a text-based chatroom integrated into our forum if people would rather chat in text as well (useful for people in workplaces! shhh!) in addition to, of course, communicating on the forum itself.

Does Beskar focus on one area of gameplay over another?

No. We have attracted fairly equal amounts of PvE, PvP and RP members. Our philosophy is simple in this area: Generally speaking, the PvE people will band together; the PvP people will band together and the RP people will band together. But if anyone from one camp wants to go and experience another play style for fun, such as an RP person wanting to go on a raid, they will be more than welcome to try. So long as all members respect each others gaming choices, it’s all good.

So you respect all playstyles, but what kind of server will you choose in game?

Good question. We have selected an RP/PvE server because we feel this plays to all three kinds of gamer — or someone who has all three elements in themselves. That is, it’s a RP server for the roleplayers… it’s a PvE server for the PvE people who don’t want “open world” PvP… and there will still be enough PvP on our server for the PvP fans (which we will ensure with the careful selection of allies and adversaries prior to game launch), so that all playstyles will be satisfied in one way or another; something that a pure PvP or PvE server couldn’t ever hope to achieve.

Your forum looks kind of small. Why?

Non-members can only see our “public area” which is, essentially, a recruitment forum. Inside there are a ton of other sections for members-only to enjoy a large variety of conversations in private. Also, in terms of overall posts, the forums have only been online since late August 2010 (when we had to replace an older forum), so if the post count seems low for a guild started in 2008, that’s why!

I heard you don’t have ranks in the guild? Why?

Easy. We’re not 12 years old and need to reward ourselves with ridiculous titles to feel good about ourselves. We just don’t need them. Beskar has a leader (blur), who makes the ultimate decision on guild issues, once members have had their say — and everyone is a member. So, there’s no “power” to aspire to. No power that you need to knife people in the back to get, or be knifed for. To put it in simple terms, you either want to be a member within Beskar, or you don’t. That’s all there is.

So how do I get guilded in-game? Who can move forum posts in the wrong place? Just blur?

Not at all. We’ve implemented a team of six people we refer to as Ori’vode (or Ori’vod in the singular, which is Mandalorian for “older sibling(s)”), who are people acting as volunteer helpers within the guild. That is to say, they hold many of the powers of traditional “guild officers” but, unlike traditional guild officers, don’t act as any sort of ruling council with blur, away from the rest of the guild. Any decisions not made by blur alone, are still open to all guild members, whether Ori’vode or not.

I also heard you have some sort of naming policy, what’s that about?

Yes we do. When it comes to the Beskar forums, you can have whatever username you like (within reason, of course), however, in TOR itself, we’re aiming to eliminate “silly” character names and present ourselves as a mature guild. In this context, “silly” means names that would look out of place in a Star Wars novel, or comic. Names like “Doofus”, “Jedi’Killah” and “Doinit’Fortheloot”, are examples of this. So if you already have a character name in mind, ask yourself if it would be realistic to see that character name in a Star Wars novel or comic. If you think it would, chances are your character name will be fine with us. Honestly, we’re pretty cool with most names — just not the stupid ones.

I’ve seen you promoted in the past as a “sandbox” guild. What does this mean?

Think of “sandbox” MMOs where you can choose to play the game your way. That’s Beskar. Because we’ve gone out of our way to not have ranks, and not have people telling you what to do in game, Beskar members — just like the people who play sandbox MMOs — will need to be more proactive that “the average” MMO fan who turns up at ‘x’ time in his/her guild and is spoon-fed a raid or a PvP session. If you want a raid or a PvP session in Beskar, you create it. We realise this might terrify some people and be a real turn-off — and that’s fine with us. We want people who can think and create their own fun, not rely on people like a “Raid Officer” or a “PvP Officer” to be doing it for them. We will give members everything they need — a sizeable group of gamers, a great forum, an online chat channel, an online voice channel, a calendar — to be successful. The rest is up to them.

What other MMOs does Beskar currently play?

Beskar is designed to be a one-game guild so, technically speaking, none. That doesn’t mean that members aren’t currently engaged in other games outside of Beskar, of course.

Is there a minimum age to join Beskar?

Yes there is. Based on a decision made by the entire guild, members should be 18 years of age, or older. And before you say it, we’ve already heard every variation of why you might be the most mature 15 year old in the known universe and perhaps have even won trophies for it. Bully for you. No amount of arguing or egotistically thinking, “That’s what they say, but they’ll bend this rule for me…” will actually work. Please respect our member’s wishes and find a guild that actually wants under-age members. We don’t. And wouldn’t you rather be somewhere that you’re wanted?

I’ve seen you knock back applicants. Are you for real?

Yes indeed we’re “for real” when we knock back applicants — and it’s a sad indictment on MMO communities that it’s apparantly so “shocking” if a guild does that. It seems so many guilds are desperate to have members, they will take anyone, so people now see guild memberships as a right, not a privilege. Well, it doesn’t work like that at Beskar. Here’s the deal: this is OUR home. If you want to be a guest in OUR home, we’d like you to be, (i) Friendly, and (ii) Like-minded. If you don’t want to play by the same rules we do, that’s your choice — but we aren’t going to let you in. We never have been, and never will be, so desperate for members that we will take just anyone.