We have received word from leaders of one of the oldest guilds, The Syndicate, that members are busy celebrating seventeen years of existence as a group. 

Seventeen years ago, in February 1996, a community known as The Syndicate (www.LLTS.org) was formed. That community was founded with the hope, belief and dream that players would want to come together as a team of friends; who wanted to stick together for years; and who would be able to work through the challenges that often tear communities apart. Right from the beginning, the community faced big hurdles. Initial recruiting practices were abysmal with an applicant merely needing an email address to join. Sometimes they didn't even need that because entire other guilds wholesale merged with The Syndicate. Those were challenging times but as player expectations were low back in those days, we were able to weather that storm. Now, 17 years later, we look back on those mistakes as opportunities we were fortunate to have as they helped shape us into what we are today. 

While there are other successful, fun loving and friend focused communities in the online gaming space, The Syndicate is very proud of its unique achievements within the gaming and community space.

Read the history of the group on The Syndicate's page.

Really tired of seeing these guys glorified here every few years.

How about doing some research into other guilds that have a long history and taking the time to cover some of them as well? This focus on The Syndicate is really getting old to those of us who have been here for any substantial period of time.

Just a thought.

Originally posted by Kost

Really tired of seeing these guys glorified here every few years.

How about doing some research into other guilds that have a long history and taking the time to cover some of them as well? This focus on The Syndicate is really getting old to those of us who have been here for any substantial period of time.

Just a thought.

It's not that we wouldn't focus on the other guilds, but the folks at Syndicate actually send out press releases, and despite what you may think of them... 17 years and the rest of their accomplishments should mean something to every MMO player.  Even if you don't like them personally.

I remember that they actually got the head of the syndicate to actually do a few articles. He was clueless then, and why we continue to write about them now is just as funny as it was back then.

They actually said they beta tested tsw, if they did it was not any servers that I or any of my friends were on.  

Originally posted by BillMurphy

It's not that we wouldn't focus on the other guilds, but the folks at Syndicate actually send out press releases, and despite what you may think of them... 17 years and the rest of their accomplishments should mean something to every MMO player.  Even if you don't like them personally.

Doesn't mean shit to me TBH... A guild that's been around for 17 years with 5K+ members is only a name by now. Members (if they're even active...) don't even know eachother, play the same games and such. Honestly, I'd rather be in an unknown guild with far less members (60-100) what are actually active and focus on one or two games at most. Actually, been in such a guild twice (Co1 - L2/Devianne & Aeon Knights - LotRo/Snowburn), and I had the best time playing those MMOs...

Reminds me of another useless super-guild, Sturmgrenadier. The only 'pro' such 'guilds' have is numbers, so you usually can find someone who belongs to the guild online *somewhere*.

That's not much of a positive. And as for 'press releases', what does that say about the 'guild'? Nothing good, that's for sure. Megalomaniac leadership? Check. Fun guild? Not so much.

And yeah, I'm tired of hearing about this 'guild'. They bring nothing to the games we play, and serve as a bad rolemodel for other guilds to follow. There's many bad things that have lasted far longer than this guild, and I don't want to hear about them either.

I am the leader of an organization that was also formed in Feb 1996. We have been going strong as well for 17 years, and have been quite successful in all the games we have played.

The reason you have never heard of us is because we do not feel the need to inflate our own egos by sending out press releases, writing books, cajoling devs to give us face time, or sue people who use our name in some way.

We do not do these things because we would much rather focus on what is important, and that is the men and woment that have made us a great for all of these years.

Simply said, I have always found the syndicate pathetic in every way.

News@mmorpg.com

Yes, I'm serious.

Hopefully no one besides them would feel the need to put out a press release to celebrate how long they have been formed.

My guild on EQ2 has been around since 2007 and we are number 2 world wide on progression. Where's our news article? Or do we have to be pretentious and send out press releases? Heres the URL to our site if you want to do some leg work.

www.eq2revelations.com

Originally posted by BillMurphy

Originally posted by Kost

Really tired of seeing these guys glorified here every few years.

How about doing some research into other guilds that have a long history and taking the time to cover some of them as well? This focus on The Syndicate is really getting old to those of us who have been here for any substantial period of time.

Just a thought.

It's not that we wouldn't focus on the other guilds, but the folks at Syndicate actually send out press releases, and despite what you may think of them... 17 years and the rest of their accomplishments should mean something to every MMO player.  Even if you don't like them personally.

If they dominated every game they played during those 17 years people might be impressed. Simply existing for 17 years isn't impressing anyone.

Originally posted by Reizla

Originally posted by BillMurphy

It's not that we wouldn't focus on the other guilds, but the folks at Syndicate actually send out press releases, and despite what you may think of them... 17 years and the rest of their accomplishments should mean something to every MMO player.  Even if you don't like them personally.

Doesn't mean shit to me TBH... A guild that's been around for 17 years with 5K+ members is only a name by now. Members (if they're even active...) don't even know eachother, play the same games and such. Honestly, I'd rather be in an unknown guild with far less members (60-100) what are actually active and focus on one or two games at most. Actually, been in such a guild twice (Co1 - L2/Devianne & Aeon Knights - LotRo/Snowburn), and I had the best time playing those MMOs...

agreed. ive seen these " online gaming communities " who call themselfs as guilds, wich like been said dont know each others and no matter if you have 1000 active posters on website only the core members who actually found it at the first place is being noted, rest posters whatever they may say dont count , sure you can tag along and use the name as tag but everything else , dosnt exist.

Don't want to knock syndicates achievement as its a great effort.

Just want to challenge their claim as the oldest online community.

I setup The Power Empire back in 1994, primarily as an online community within the usenet newsgroups and amongst other stuff we played the pre UO games (as well as growing to the largest hacking community on the net but that's a different story). We beta tested UO, went to Atlantis but settled on Catskills. Since then been active in number of games ranging from 500+ mmbers to smaller tight knit groups of 20. 

Had 8 beer fests around Europe including uk, Sweden, Germany.

Not saying we want a wookie cookie, just challenging oldest online community tag.

Recently relaunched website and I will be adding our history over coming months.

Just thought I would share and if mmorpg want some press releases I'm happy to contribute my experience :) if not, I will leave the glory to LLTS, they always did take the lime light while we killed people and robbed people's homes...

WE formed Clanuk around the same time (1996).  Just as Diablo 1 launched.   We petitioned UO to open european servers, successfully bringing Chesapeake to its knees.

We also have had numerous beer fests, have seen members get married, have kids of their own etc etc etc and no, we have never felt the need to blow our own trumpets. Although if you look hard enough our Chessy escapade is still on the net somewhere. 

You got to wonder why this group is sending out press releases at the seventeen year mark?  Seventeen?!?  Why not wait three years?  Perhaps...just perhaps...Syndicate might not even last three more years.

To me, a press release like this looks like desperation.  I think Syndicate and groups like it are in a kind of existential crisis now.  Syndicate was last generation's guild of choice, for a different kind of game: a kind of game that, for all intents and purposes, doesn't exist anymore.

I think times are getting harder for the old game-hopping mega clans like Syndicate.  First of all, the games have changed.  It used to be that the guild who could marshall 40 people for a marathon raid were the players who tended to do better.  It used to be that the guild who could get a camper at every camp spot tended to do better.  It still works for games like WoW and AO.  But the games that are coming out these days don't reward marathon raids with a ton of hardcore gamers.  The mass of MMO enthusiasts see that style of game as a barrier to fun, not fun.  The games these days are designed for the single person waving a credit card, not for the powerguild.

That doesn't mean that powerguilds are going away, but they are now in the form of professional eSports teams, teams that are just straight up, no-nonsense business, and not mega-fraternities.  Those are the guilds the industry wants to hype and reward.  You also have loose interest group mega-clans, groups like the Goons from SomethingAwful.com.  They boast just as many people, with just as big of a presence, without all the snootiness.

Seventeen years is just about a generational shift in demographic terms.  You have to wonder if the kids coming up really think Syndicate is "cool." 

Originally posted by Beatnik59

You got to wonder why this group is sending out press releases at the seventeen year mark?  Seventeen?!?  Why not wait three years?  Perhaps...just perhaps...Syndicate might not even last three more years.

they seem to be announce this every year

UO's Oldest Guild Turns 16

http://stratics.com/community/threads/uos-oldest-guild-turns-16.260535/