Theorycrafting on Managing FCs: The Old, the New, and Looking at the Tough Questions

With patch 2.2 and an expected influx of new players from the PS4 release, FCs deal with new and recurring challenges. Out of insomnia, I will proceed to analyze FC management and offer solutions or at least highlight issues.

In some ways managing a FC is like managing a corporation in a state of nature. This brings up the fundamental assumption behind how one views MMO players, and those in charge of actual corporations: People are naturally selfish. This assumption is the basis for corporate law: It's really hard to remove a member of a Board, they are in charge of a lot of money, and thus can easily enrich themselves at will without the existence of laws and regulations to prevent self-dealing, etc... This is like leaders of a FC, who basically can't be removed either and may control resources (statics, money, etc...)

So, what can be done? First, lets look at 3 worst-case scenarios for FCs (I'm sure there are more, just picking 3):

Scenario A: Too Many Alphas

This happens when a "hardcore" FC devolves into many statics that do not cross-pollinate; it's one of those situations where it's a FC in name only, and everyone runs with the same group of people and practically never venture beyond their static. Ironically, some of these players are calling for 24-man raids; these kind of FCs will likely break apart the instant that they need to cooperate to get a major game objective achieved (CT doesn't count because the gear is obsolete). Imagine putting 3 parties of 8 people, full of hardcore players who never really talked with each other, who always did their own thing, and now have to do something together. The instant something goes wrong, there will be a ton of finger pointing and it is likely that the leaders of each static will be at loggerheads defending the members of their own static while blaming everyone else.

Scenario B: So Tightknit that They Die Out

This highlights a problem with smaller FCs: The founding members and whoever was there early on become so tightknit that no matter what they try to say publicly, in practice they play as their own little group; when a new player finally wants to play with them, they find some excuse or way out, and eventually these new players get fed up and what's left is that same little group. The instant one of those "founding" members quits or stops playing for an extended period of time, the rest of the group look around and see that they really have nothing to draw on as a replacement, and either are forced to merge or disband their FCs and people just go their separate ways.

Scenario C: The New York Knicks, Nepotism Gone Wrong

This scenario is pretty intuitive: The leader(s) of a FC maintain tight control over statics and/or party assignments, and end up simply handing spots or doing favors for people that they know personally or through another connection. The problem here is that new players without connections will practically always be on the outside looking in, and for any old players that aren't part of the "inner circle," there's plenty of room for abuse (taking the benefits of crafting/leveling the FC/etc... and not rewarding that player with anything because the leader doesn't know them personally). This often leads to internal and external drama (ex: forum-bashing).

Possible Solutions:

1. Pure Skill-based Merit-based System

A lot of hardcore FCs are probably trying to reach this ideal. This management structure is akin to what top investment banks try to do: Make promotions and spot assignments solely based on performance. However, this often falls apart into scenarios A or C the instant nepotism creeps in, whether in real life or in-game. The instant someone in control gives a spot, a promotion, or some kind of reward to someone based off a connection or personal relationship, that's the instant the "merit-based" system is practically a sham and the time ticks on the drama clock.

2. The Confucian Ideal: Hope for One Good Leader

A lot of mid-sized FCs rely on this. Basically, a huge burden is placed on one morally upright and nice person to proactively work with everyone in a FC, including new players. That person will sacrifice the benefits of nepotism and "unregulated selfishness," such as farming with a static all day, to work with others and make sure everyone is included. The obvious problem with this is that it's hugely reliant on just one person: That one person basically IS the "corporate law" for the FC, and without that person the FC will likely quickly far apart. In other hands, that one nice officer/leader is the only thing holding back people from acting solely on their self-interest and devolving the FC into one of the worst-case scenarios.

Conclusion: I don't have a good solution. Obviously in a MMO you cannot implement the strict sorts of regulations and laws to prevent most people from ultimately acting on their self-interested natural impulses. What usually ends up happening is that mid-sized FCs end up becoming "feeder" FCs to the hardcore groups: Those who progress quickly while working with that one good leader don't end up "paying it forward" or giving back, and instead take what they learned/gained and just proceed to static farms, while those who don't progress fast enough are left behind. The hardcore groups, as long as the membership remains stable and they can continue to operate at a micro-level (don't have to cooperate with other hardcore groups), continue with their own devices until the inevitable drama/inactivity happens. Mid-sized FCs will be on the firing line: It will take lot of courage and altruism to fight the cycle. No one "good" person can do everything at the end of the day.