Post by themister420 on Apr 22, 2014 19:48:05 GMT
It's been a while & a lot has happened, so let's get right to it.
I will warn everybody that personal statements are of my opinions only & does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Death Lords MC.
- Departures came at a rapid pace during one fateful weekend. We had already lost Bravos, then Countryboy decided to depart as well (not as surprising to me; a great dude but not a crew dude). Well, one alliance attempt & a few choice words led to the departure of ProHitman. These turn of events, combined with the last one-two months of witnessing my crew lose their way, led to my sudden departure. So let's take a little bit of time & examine these losses:
Hitman's depature was met with sadness, yet a huge sense of relief & a turning point for the DLMC. You see, I have nothing against Hitman personally; in fact, I would still talk to the kid & hang out with him during a game session. He was fun to hang around & a lot of times came off way more mature than his actual age. Of course, his signature "Meeerrrrrr" is still used frequently, on-game & IRL. He made me laugh & he was always understandable (if not upset with me) whenever I would lecture him for his transgressions, not to mention that he is simply one of the best shooters on the game. I never enjoyed him being in the DLMC because of his stellar K/D ratio or his weaponry skills, I enjoyed having him in the crew because he was always a joy to ride & cause mischief with.
But for all his positives & his awesomeness, both as a crew member & as an online friend, he is what he is: a squeaker. He antagonized rival crew members on our Social Club page, despite complaining about them doing the same. He, more than anybody else, blatently ignored the rule prohibiting excessive crew-on-crew violence & was responsible for one or two rides not taking effect due to carelesness (i.e.: blowing up other crew members' motorcycles during an attempted ride). His only main point of interest was the total destruction of the Reapers Chapter MC (RCMC) & their President, Tomstahz, & we ended up being his willing muscle. He went into game chat with the pure intent of hearing other squeakers talk shit about us. But the biggest gripe that persisited was his sense of self-worth. Hitman, knowing he's good, also had the approval of adults regarding his skills. Already having self-inflated his teenage ego to enormous heights, this further drove him to the most extreme levels of cockiness, & this went over the line when he started bragging to his fellow crew members about how other rival crews would run us down as garbage & that he was the only good player on the squad, & that they would invite him to their crew. Well, as you can see, this dropped morale in the crew & really ballooned his ego to mammoth proportions.
It really comes off like shit-talking, but it's simply the truth, & while Hitman was one of the most valuable crew members in the DLMC, his departure has turned into a brighter future for the DLMC: no more senseless wars, no more squeaker-like tendencies, & a sudden growth in the overall unity of the crew. Everybody now has more fun, members are more carefree & not griping with each other, & most of all, assisting other crew members who might need RP or money instead of blowing all of that shit on fighting a crew that will proclaim victory regardless of whoever wins. The fun has come back into the crew since his departure & while we will still unite together for epic battles whenever the situation calls for it, the long-burned out idea that we have to be the war-mongering crew has thankfully been cast aside.
As far as Hitman goes, I did keep him on my XBL friends list since, as previously stated, I have no personal beef against him. However, he made the decision to completely separate himself from any association with the DLMC, which could possibly stem from his knowing that his welcome in the DLMC has been worn out from his actions. His recent friendship with members of the Werewolves MC (WWMC; group of disgruntled ex-Reapers) & the 0617 crew indicate a possible union with either one of them, & I encourage it to the fullest. The reason: those crews are tailored-made for Hitman. Both crews are in the midst of major wars with the RCMC & are war-mongering players. These would suit his playing style & his actions on the Social Club & on the game. I wish Hitman nothing but the best in the future, but facts are facts: NOBODY is bigger than the Death Lords MC. We may be a small (& I mean SMALL) crew, but I dare you to find another MC that has the feeling of brotherhood like us.
So this leads into my departure & eventual return, my departure of which I discussed in my War & Peace sized resignation letter (since deleted from the forums). To condense everything on my end, I was tired of the loss of fun, tired of the drama, tired of the endless work I put into crew, only to see it (in my own opinion) go by the wayside, & it was best for me to step aside. I had entitled the letter "The Long Ride Home" & that ride took all of two-three days. Within those days I endured conversations with everybody & I was really surprised by the sadness that took over the crew. Then followed a few key points that made me decide to come back home:
1.) Johnny had taken my final considerations to heart & implemented them. It's really cool to know that he was considerate enough as President to still act like my opinion still meant something; he could have gone the standard "I'm a dick" route & said "You left the crew, so blow your recommendations out your ass!".
2.) Johnny reassured me that the fun was coming back to the DLMC, & that Hitman's departure would ensure that the days of endless battles were behind us. I hate to poke at Hitman again, but given his nature I took Johnny's promise with 100% confidence that this would be true, & it certainly has been since my return.
3.) I had a heartful conversation with Belasko, & without presenting the whole discussion, his words of wisdom really lifted my spirits. He assured me that everybody wanted me back in, & not to worry about my main concern of pulling a Michael Jordan & returning to the crew just mere days after leaving; really came off like I was crawling back. He referred to me as a den mother (or, in his words, a "den mister"
) & that, for some reason, really warmed my heart.
4.) Having played one night with the crew with no patch felt REALLY weird. It may not be a big deal for somebody who has only been with the crew for a matter of weeks, but for somebody who has been with the crew since October 2013 & has flown the DLMC banner really high, it was quite the mind fuck.
5.) My wife (Turpsichord) was REALLY sad about me leaving & reminded me that I was in too deep, and she's right. You don't ride with people for 4-5 months or whatever & not get to know them personally, & this crew (especially Johnny & Belasko) has been my online family for quite a while. I really couldn't leave my family behind now, could I?
So I came back & here I am, typing up another long-ass news report for the crew.
Where does this stand from a hierarchy prospective?
When I left, I recommneded that Belasko take over as VP, & Johnny made it happen, so when I came back I took the Lieutenant position. However, I still possess a VP-like voice, so in essence I would label myself as "Interim VP", aka "Vice-President when Belasko is not online." This is an unofficial label; Johnny did not approve this.
It is worth noting that with this transistion, I am no longer able to promote, demote, or kick/ban members anymore from a Social Club perspective, so if anybody has any issues/questions regarding members, or if somebody catches any member representing another crew (my one main sticking point) please send all inquiries to Johnny & Belasko.
- With Hitman's departure came the official closing of the PSN Chapter. Honestly, this was something that probably should have been done the moment acedia & crew took the Chapter to the back of the shed with the proverbial shotgun. All attempts to revive the PSN Chapter have been met with mixed results; a couple moments of success overshadowed by huge moments of failure (including an attempted alliance with the Mortals MC that only failed due to the actions of their leader), & we have been trying to dig the corpse up in futile attempts to resuscitate it. The members we did have were no longer active, & this discouraged Hitman & myself from wanting to play on the PSN side. Funny enough, I still occassionally play on PS3, so in a very small way the DLMC will always be represented on that side of the fence. This, of course, serves as a reminder that any invites from PSN players will have to be rejected.
Whew. I'm more than sure I'm missing a lot of shit, & I'll probably be going back & editing this over & over again, but the main points have been covered. See y'all on the road.
Ride on, Death Lords.
themister420
Death Lords Lieutenant
I will warn everybody that personal statements are of my opinions only & does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Death Lords MC.
- Departures came at a rapid pace during one fateful weekend. We had already lost Bravos, then Countryboy decided to depart as well (not as surprising to me; a great dude but not a crew dude). Well, one alliance attempt & a few choice words led to the departure of ProHitman. These turn of events, combined with the last one-two months of witnessing my crew lose their way, led to my sudden departure. So let's take a little bit of time & examine these losses:
Hitman's depature was met with sadness, yet a huge sense of relief & a turning point for the DLMC. You see, I have nothing against Hitman personally; in fact, I would still talk to the kid & hang out with him during a game session. He was fun to hang around & a lot of times came off way more mature than his actual age. Of course, his signature "Meeerrrrrr" is still used frequently, on-game & IRL. He made me laugh & he was always understandable (if not upset with me) whenever I would lecture him for his transgressions, not to mention that he is simply one of the best shooters on the game. I never enjoyed him being in the DLMC because of his stellar K/D ratio or his weaponry skills, I enjoyed having him in the crew because he was always a joy to ride & cause mischief with.
But for all his positives & his awesomeness, both as a crew member & as an online friend, he is what he is: a squeaker. He antagonized rival crew members on our Social Club page, despite complaining about them doing the same. He, more than anybody else, blatently ignored the rule prohibiting excessive crew-on-crew violence & was responsible for one or two rides not taking effect due to carelesness (i.e.: blowing up other crew members' motorcycles during an attempted ride). His only main point of interest was the total destruction of the Reapers Chapter MC (RCMC) & their President, Tomstahz, & we ended up being his willing muscle. He went into game chat with the pure intent of hearing other squeakers talk shit about us. But the biggest gripe that persisited was his sense of self-worth. Hitman, knowing he's good, also had the approval of adults regarding his skills. Already having self-inflated his teenage ego to enormous heights, this further drove him to the most extreme levels of cockiness, & this went over the line when he started bragging to his fellow crew members about how other rival crews would run us down as garbage & that he was the only good player on the squad, & that they would invite him to their crew. Well, as you can see, this dropped morale in the crew & really ballooned his ego to mammoth proportions.
It really comes off like shit-talking, but it's simply the truth, & while Hitman was one of the most valuable crew members in the DLMC, his departure has turned into a brighter future for the DLMC: no more senseless wars, no more squeaker-like tendencies, & a sudden growth in the overall unity of the crew. Everybody now has more fun, members are more carefree & not griping with each other, & most of all, assisting other crew members who might need RP or money instead of blowing all of that shit on fighting a crew that will proclaim victory regardless of whoever wins. The fun has come back into the crew since his departure & while we will still unite together for epic battles whenever the situation calls for it, the long-burned out idea that we have to be the war-mongering crew has thankfully been cast aside.
As far as Hitman goes, I did keep him on my XBL friends list since, as previously stated, I have no personal beef against him. However, he made the decision to completely separate himself from any association with the DLMC, which could possibly stem from his knowing that his welcome in the DLMC has been worn out from his actions. His recent friendship with members of the Werewolves MC (WWMC; group of disgruntled ex-Reapers) & the 0617 crew indicate a possible union with either one of them, & I encourage it to the fullest. The reason: those crews are tailored-made for Hitman. Both crews are in the midst of major wars with the RCMC & are war-mongering players. These would suit his playing style & his actions on the Social Club & on the game. I wish Hitman nothing but the best in the future, but facts are facts: NOBODY is bigger than the Death Lords MC. We may be a small (& I mean SMALL) crew, but I dare you to find another MC that has the feeling of brotherhood like us.
So this leads into my departure & eventual return, my departure of which I discussed in my War & Peace sized resignation letter (since deleted from the forums). To condense everything on my end, I was tired of the loss of fun, tired of the drama, tired of the endless work I put into crew, only to see it (in my own opinion) go by the wayside, & it was best for me to step aside. I had entitled the letter "The Long Ride Home" & that ride took all of two-three days. Within those days I endured conversations with everybody & I was really surprised by the sadness that took over the crew. Then followed a few key points that made me decide to come back home:
1.) Johnny had taken my final considerations to heart & implemented them. It's really cool to know that he was considerate enough as President to still act like my opinion still meant something; he could have gone the standard "I'm a dick" route & said "You left the crew, so blow your recommendations out your ass!".
2.) Johnny reassured me that the fun was coming back to the DLMC, & that Hitman's departure would ensure that the days of endless battles were behind us. I hate to poke at Hitman again, but given his nature I took Johnny's promise with 100% confidence that this would be true, & it certainly has been since my return.
3.) I had a heartful conversation with Belasko, & without presenting the whole discussion, his words of wisdom really lifted my spirits. He assured me that everybody wanted me back in, & not to worry about my main concern of pulling a Michael Jordan & returning to the crew just mere days after leaving; really came off like I was crawling back. He referred to me as a den mother (or, in his words, a "den mister"
) & that, for some reason, really warmed my heart.4.) Having played one night with the crew with no patch felt REALLY weird. It may not be a big deal for somebody who has only been with the crew for a matter of weeks, but for somebody who has been with the crew since October 2013 & has flown the DLMC banner really high, it was quite the mind fuck.
5.) My wife (Turpsichord) was REALLY sad about me leaving & reminded me that I was in too deep, and she's right. You don't ride with people for 4-5 months or whatever & not get to know them personally, & this crew (especially Johnny & Belasko) has been my online family for quite a while. I really couldn't leave my family behind now, could I?
So I came back & here I am, typing up another long-ass news report for the crew.
Where does this stand from a hierarchy prospective?
When I left, I recommneded that Belasko take over as VP, & Johnny made it happen, so when I came back I took the Lieutenant position. However, I still possess a VP-like voice, so in essence I would label myself as "Interim VP", aka "Vice-President when Belasko is not online." This is an unofficial label; Johnny did not approve this.
It is worth noting that with this transistion, I am no longer able to promote, demote, or kick/ban members anymore from a Social Club perspective, so if anybody has any issues/questions regarding members, or if somebody catches any member representing another crew (my one main sticking point) please send all inquiries to Johnny & Belasko.- With Hitman's departure came the official closing of the PSN Chapter. Honestly, this was something that probably should have been done the moment acedia & crew took the Chapter to the back of the shed with the proverbial shotgun. All attempts to revive the PSN Chapter have been met with mixed results; a couple moments of success overshadowed by huge moments of failure (including an attempted alliance with the Mortals MC that only failed due to the actions of their leader), & we have been trying to dig the corpse up in futile attempts to resuscitate it. The members we did have were no longer active, & this discouraged Hitman & myself from wanting to play on the PSN side. Funny enough, I still occassionally play on PS3, so in a very small way the DLMC will always be represented on that side of the fence. This, of course, serves as a reminder that any invites from PSN players will have to be rejected.
Whew. I'm more than sure I'm missing a lot of shit, & I'll probably be going back & editing this over & over again, but the main points have been covered. See y'all on the road.
Ride on, Death Lords.
themister420
Death Lords Lieutenant
