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Hunt Leader’s Guide

Quick Guide

  • ‘Scheduled’ hunts are our standard weekly hunts.  Any other hunt is considered ‘Unscheduled’ (even if it’s on the calendar)
  • Command Rank Members can lead hunts to any venue
  • Senior/Command Rank Members can volunteer to lead one of our weekly scheduled hunts
  • Any member can lead Feluccan champ spawns or host events
  • Know the venue
  • Have UOAM loaded
  • Set the example for others to follow!
  • Arrive early
  • Form balanced lances of 3-4 members
  • Check for Lance Balance and ensure all LL’s are in UOAM
  • Make sure all members make it through the gate to the venue (and back again at the end of the hunt)
  • Hunts always end on the hour!  The faster you form up, the longer you can hunt.
  • Command Lance’s job is to keep an eye on the other lances – not to get tangled in spawn!
  • Seniors and up can be friended to the castle to handle gold dividing.  Get friended before your hunt!
  • Ensure all candidate interviews are done and reports filed
  • File a proper hunt report
Scheduled Non-Scheduled Standard Vet UltraVet Doom Gauntlet Champs Peerless
Member No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes(*)
Senior No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes
Command Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

* Must be accompanied by a Senior member or above.

Detailed Hunt Leading Guide

What does it mean for a hunt to be ‘Official’, ‘Unofficial’, ‘Scheduled’, or ‘Unscheduled’?
Scheduled Hunts (also called ‘Official Hunts’) are several hunts that we host every single week on the same days and same times.  They are led by our Senior and Command Rank members, and volunteered for by those members in a thread set up each week by the Master of the Hunt in the Hunt Lodge forum.  We do these to ensure that we have a minimum number of hunts for our members and candidates, and that these span multiple time zones.

Unscheduled Hunts (also called ‘Unofficial Hunts’) are any other hunt scheduled by our members to any venue.  However – it is still very important to note that not everyone can lead a hunt (see the next section).  This is because we need to ensure that all of our hunts – scheduled or unscheduled – are ran to the same consistent standards.

Who can Lead Hunts?
Hunt Leaders are members that have proven their leadership capabilities and are prepared for bigger roles on the guild hunts. In addition to the responsibilities of being lance leader for their command lance, they also have to ensure the safety of the entire hunting party.  They also have to be responsible for all of the candidate interviews, resolving any issues in the lances, and filing a hunt report.  Leading a hunt is not something that should be taken lightly – and this is why we have rules in place to ensure people with the right experience are placed in these critical leadership roles.

  • Any member can host a non-hunt event, Doom, Gauntlet, Peerless* or lead a Champ Spawn.**
  • Senior Members can lead any unscheduled hunt to an Easy or Standard venue.
  • Command Rank members and above can lead hunts to any Venue – including Veteran venues.
  • Command Rank members are asked to volunteer for our scheduled weekly guild hunts.

* For Peerless, regular members must be accompanied by a Senior member or above.
** Feluccan Champ spawns are specifically exempt because they do not follow normal hunting procedures, nor are interviews and reports done at the end of one.  Ilshenar Champ Spawns are treated like any other Veteran PvM venue (Command and up only)

How to run a hunt:
Before running a hunt on your own, we recommend that you tag along in the command lance with an experienced Hunt Leader.  Once you’re ready, the tips and guidelines shown below will help you ensure a successful hunt.

  • Pick a relatively easy venue you know well for your first hunt. Make sure you have a rune to the venue (or verify we have one at the castle), and are in UOAM.  It’s also suggested that the hunt leader have runes to various locales within the venue so command lance can respond swiftly to any issues that arise.
  • Arrive at the castle 15 minutes early and see what kind of crowd you have. At about 10 minutes till the hour, begin forming up.  Count the heads and divide by 3 – this is your number of lances. Also – it’s better to have too many lances and have to merge some than to have too few and scramble for Lance Leaders.
  • Lances are always 3-4 folks including the Lance Leader.  The exception is Command Lance, which may include 2-4 people at the discretion of the Hunt Leader.  Do NOT make larger (or smaller) ones – trial and error has proven that this does not work. Also – remember hunt cap is 28 folks – first come first serve (seven lances of 4 each, including command)
  • Call out for Lance Leaders to the line. Assign as you see fit to the various lances. For your first hunt it’s best to pick experienced Lance Leaders. All Lance Leaders MUST be in UOAM
  • When referring to Lances, always refer to them by their totem statue name – i.e. ‘Cow Lance’, ‘Ophid Lance’, etc. – not by color or by name of the Lance Leader.  Doing so causes confusion, and we need to be consistent in this..
  • See which Lance Leaders cannot resurrect with bandages or spell. Make sure you include at least one rezzing lance member in these lances.  Two is even better.
  • Call Bards to the line, and spread them out accordingly.  Note which ones are bard/mages vs. Bard/warriors.  You ideally want to end up with a good warrior/mage mix in all of your lances.
  • Call mages to the line. Spread them out, and ensure you have a good mage in Command Lance to act as your gater.
  • Assign the remaining folk as you see fit. Just remember not to have any single lance too heavy on archers or warriors. The ideal lance is two crosshealing warriors, a mage, and a bard.  Two warriors and two mages, or two warriors, a mage, and a Paladin/Archer work well too.
  • Make one last call to the lances to make sure there are no problems, and that everyone has rezzers and that there are no balance issues.
  • Verify that all Lance Leaders have partied up.  Ensure Command Lance is partied.  Do this verification verbally (i.e. `Lich Lance Ready?` `Aye Ready`).
  • Make sure all Lance Leaders are in UOAM – have each of them say ‘hi’ and verify it.  Ensure anyone other than Command Lance and the Lance Leaders is out of UOAM
  • Have your Command Lance mage or a mage from another lance open the gate to the venue. Send them through and tell them to form up when they arrive. Ensure ALL folks get through.  As Hunt Leader, you are the second to last to depart.  The gater comes through last.  For lances, the Lance Leader should always be the last to step through for their lance.
  • Make sure all lances form up. Ask which lances are ready. Once they are ready, send them out. Space them about 30 seconds to a minute apart so we do not lag to death.  Command lance always goes last.
  • Once in the dungeon note the time. Hunts end exactly on the hour (the faster you form up the more hunt time you have). Call out remaining time in 10 minute intervals. Check on their status using UOAM. You should also always be aware of their position in the dungeon.
  • Another note to add is that as command lance, you will spend about half of your time managing the hunt.  It’s important that you do not go and engage challenging monsters or areas, since if you are lost or distracted, the hunt can quickly fall apart.  Play it safe, and focus your energies on supporting the other lances.  Ideally, Command Lance is the most boring lance to be in.
  • At 10 minutes out tell the Lance Leaders to wrap things up. At 5 minutes out have everyone evac to the entrance. Make sure everyone arrives at the starting point.
  • Once all folk are out of the dungeon and back at the starting point, verify with each lance leader that their entire lance is present.  This step is extremely critical.  We do not leave people behind.
  • Gate them home.  As with forming up, the hunt leader and gater are the last to depart.
  • Once back at the castle, use the silver ‘Friends’ chest to divide hunt gold and store donations.  Make sure the main chest is empty (i.e. all gold moved to a sub-pack) before starting.  All Senior members and above are entitled to be friended to the guild castle.
  • Make sure all Lance Leaders either log in the performance of their candidate/M*F members (if they are a senior member), or make their report to you so you can get it logged in.  In the latter case, you may also want to arrange a debriefing with the Lance Leaders.  Remember, it is VERY important that candidates are properly logged since this directly impacts their chance of getting into the guild.
  • Some Hunt Leaders prefer to be present for all interviews, and some prefer to delegate some of the interviews if the Lance Leader is a Senior member or above.  Such details are left to the Hunt Leader’s discretion.
  • Finally, As the Hunt Leader, ensure your hunt is logged!  This directly affects people’s promotions so it is very critical.  All Senior Members and above can log hunt reports.
  • Go have a drink and congratulate yourself on a job well done!