To begin, I felt it was necessary to choose a name that was unique and short. With thousands of different tags and clans/communities with a variety of names, I found that something simple and easy to remember was an important factor. Because of choosing a multi-platform gaming base, I needed to have a name and tag that was easy to type and could fit in a small space. Aer served both factors as it is both short and is its own tag. I also choose Aer because of my affinity for the 4 elements, and how it’s immediately recognizable as “air” if not anything else.

Being in several clans, I understand the need to have a screening process to allow only the ones who can fit nicely within that said clan. However in a community this screening acts like a barrier and inhibits growth. If I were to decide that there is a certain criterion that needs to be met for you to “fit” in, I may as well make a clan instead. That being said, I’m giving everyone the chance to join Aer Gaming without the cumbersome screening process or rituals that slow clans from growing. I understand that I risk allowing bad eggs within the community; however this is unavoidable even under the best circumstances. To counter this risk, I will maintain a competent and socially adept staff that can communicate with a variety of members. In the event that a member actively seeks to damage the community, the staff will speak to this member and make a compromise or remove him/her from the active population. Even exiled (banned) members are still considered to be within the community, but have been restricted certain privileges to prevent additional issues and/or drama.

I choose to make Aer Gaming a community over a clan as clans have memberships and a relatively unique identity. Clans can serve their purpose when remaining small, as it is easy to maintain the bonds and qualities necessary to remain as that one clan. I instead wanted to create something with more than one quality and set of ideas. Simply put, clans cannot be as dynamic as a community without mixing its own identity in the first place and “diluting” itself. I plan on having a community greater than a few dozen members, so it is important to have a community structure that can grow unlike clans that have a theoretical ceiling in size (before splitting and/or failing).

The reason I choose to use policies instead of rules is that rules sound…to ruley. I wanted to give the impression that Aer Gaming policy doesn’t rule its members but guides them. This decision was less about function and more about appearance (Doesn’t hurt to make yourself as appealing as possible).

Firstly, I apologize for that. I easily go overboard and can obsess over the smallest things. That being said, I wanted to give as much information and detail as possible. For those that don’t care about depth or detail of thought, this won’t make a difference. However those who are attracted to communities with well thought out and clear motives are more likely to stay. Also it makes it easier to go back and see why you did something in the first place, instead of forgetting and losing that original message. Finally, it doesn’t hurt to be detailed when communities become large.

There is TO MANY CLANS THAT ARE DOING THE SAME THING. That and WoW doesn’t have the same characteristic as fps shooters where you can connect and frag at any time. In WoW, You must have designated times to play together, thus restricting people from playing at different times because of what the event is or how popular it is. Also, many members can’t pay a subscription or are too young to use a credit card. For the time being no WoW. Perhaps down the road but as Aer starts we will not have it.

Well in actuality, I do. I do not want to appear as if I am all powerful or the only important person within the staff, so I choose to use my power and access as needed and NOT AS I PLEASE. If the community needs something to happen, then it is my responsibility to see it through. If the community wishes me to do or not do something (and I mean the majority, not the 2-3 angry people who consistently bicker about everything), I will do my best to serve them. So in the end, yes I hold the keys and yes I can end the community if I wanted. Do I want to exercise my power like some playground? I certainly do not and will not.

PayPal myself at windwalker2089@gmail.com . I do not take cash, credit or checks. Any amount is appreciated! (well .10$ is a bit strange) The PayPal is directly connected to all assets, so your donation will be automatically used from domain names to servers. If you would like to buy something specific for the community, please speak to me and we will discuss what to do. For anything to have Aer Gaming in the title or name, it must be directly sponsored and paid for by the leadership. This means if you donate to us a private scrim server, it may not have the Aer Gaming in its title, unless I or another leader has purchased it for you (with the funds you gave us). The reason for this is because we must have full access and control over all assets, having even partial access is not enough. Another note, as a donor your title is changed from Active Member to Donator permanently.

If big means something along the lines of additional assets or mergers, it would be a leader. If you want to talk about the website or server, talk to either the server or webmaster. When in doubt, speak to me and I’ll gladly listen. I am available almost 24/7 for emergencies (Granted School and Work may prevent me from doing anything) but if you realllllly need to talk to me, I should be within reach.

As for the meaning, Aer is the Greek prefix for wind, air or mist. So by loose translation, Aer Gaming is to have some of the same qualities (hopefully not the bad ones) of wind, air or mist. Those qualities can be but are not limited to: dynamic, free flowing, unrestricted and open. Like air, Aer Gaming is to be able to change form and shape with ease. Like wind, it is to be constantly moving in many directions. Like mist, it is to be something that holds substance and depth while maintaining dynamic features. These qualities are the very foundation of Aer Gaming and how it is to be started, to be run and to be ultimately ended.

Firstly, nothing. Once you take your first step into the community, you have permanently influenced Aer Gaming in a small/big way and nothing can change that. You may leave us behind at any time without fear of repercussions. It is simply lunacy to punish people for wanting to leave; as I feel it’s the community’s and staff’s fault for failing to keep you interested in the first place. So go ahead, the doors are open to allow the breeze to take you where you want to go (However I do prefer people staying, people leaving makes me sad). One thing to note is that it is not preferable if the staff use this freedom as a revolving door, leaving and coming back expecting a position. This won’t be tolerated by me or the community.

TALK TO US. No matter how much we would like to think, we still can’t know about everything in the community. I would rather confront the issue directly instead of letting it fester. If there still can’t be a compromise to be reached, I apologize but not everything can work out. If you can’t speak to a leader…then we must have screwed up somewhere to make that happen.

The official tag for the staff is “Aer” without quotes. You may use it as well if you choose so; however admins are required to use only this tag for recognition purposes. As for yourself, feel free to use any sort of tag imaginable with any placement at any time. There is no initiation or ritual needed for you to place a tag in your name, so be creative and use whatever suits you. I do ask however that you keep in mind that as long as you tag up, you represent the entire community everywhere. Your actions outside Aer Gaming’s community speak far louder than words.

Show us you can do the job. I have elaborated in detail about each position and its expectations. If you can exhibit this knowledge and experience, (with the community’s overall consent) you shall be given the job. There is of course the discretion of the administration and leadership to ultimately place you in that position, so being on bad terms with the wrong people will more than likely prevent you from getting the position. Remember that becoming a staff member is NOT a right or privilege. It is quite simply a job that the Aer community has allowed you to hold for the betterment of Aer Gaming. If you fail to meet expectations or are just idling, you will be replaced in a timely manner. Those who are used to entitlement and special treatment will be gravely disappointed, this is not grade school. I will not also hold your hand constantly, you must learn for yourself if you intend to become an adult in life. In terms of staff, I treat it like a business, do your job well and you can continue to do it for as long as you can or like. If you can’t do your job well, you will be removed (I don’t like being mean but I will do it for the betterment of Aer).

It must be first and foremost popular, second it most have a highly developed multiplayer. It is better if the game is newer, as it allows for more time to settle into the gaming community associated with that particular game. Older games with already established communities are far harder to penetrate for growth and thus are not as suitable for selection. Don’t hesitate to ask or talk about it, the idea of Aer Gaming is to expand freely and openly. We are always looking for the next great game.

Firstly, it is to allow members to stay in contact with each other through many different means. Xfire and Steam both have the capability to allow you to chat and join other players already ingame. Facebook is now considered a standard in social networking, so it just makes sense to use it as another base for Aer to grow from. To be clear, you don’t need to have anything to be a part of the community, but it certainly augments the experience you get when you have many different ways to chat with other people. Secondly, it is so other communities and clans can see us. To be publically visible is important to me, so that means have more than just a single website for you to learn about us. For twitter, it is so if we wanted, we can have an active following of people who are curious to see what Aer Gaming is up to without reading a million paragraphs.

5$ Donation per month. We have limited mailbox space but I can purchase additional slots if given the donations.

Approximately 300$ a year (for the 1 current server). If you want to know specifics please just ask me personally, and I’ll gladly indulge in the details.

By proving yourself to be a well rounded and a dedicated individual. It has no perks or duties, but is a thank you from the staff that you have spent your time here at Aer. As for criterion, the only thing at the moment is any ex-staff member is automatically placed as a veteran for their service. There will be more ways to become a veteran as Aer progresses, so come back to this question later.

Certainly, everyone is always welcome to join in on the fun regardless of prior engagements. I don’t care about double tagging, as it’s not my business and is a policy of mine to not dictate what you use as your name. I do recommend however that you double check with your own clan/community to make sure it won’t cause issues on your end, as that can bring in bad mojo from your current clan (I don’t want trouble from anyone, so please leave your drama at the door). This also applies to subclans and the creation of them. The only exception to this is the staff, where they must not be in any current clan/subclan or community. Because the staff has jobs to do, I prefer that they only have one priority over several.

More than likely yes. As we grow I will continue to create new and unique jobs for those who are willing to perform them. This applies to the community as a whole. I will say however that I wish to keep things as simple as possible, seeing as how it’s already complicated to begin with. I wish to only create positions that we NEED and not want. Possible positions in the future: Recruiter, Senior Something, etc etc etc.

This is a difficult question because it depends on the game being played upon. If it isn't one that is officially being supported, then I will personally not fund a private server and additional assets to assist those playing in the league, tournament, or whatever else it may be. As a compromise, you may donate money and server to Aer Gaming and allow the staff to have full unfeathered access in exchange for it having Aer Gaming in it's title. I am not going to stop someone for playing a league under our name as we can't enforce it directly. I will however ask that you extend us this courtesy as a gesture of good faith. In short, if it has Aer in it's name, I would like to have control over it to maintain consistency. For games that we officially support, we may have some sort of competetive league or team if there is enough demand for it (meaning the community has to want it and not 5 people).