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Part 1: What is an Elder?

If you’re reading this, you are either A) an involved person who believes in reading updates (in which case, good for you!) or B) owner of a potential elder. So I’m sure that you’d like to know what that potential is all about!

Basically, Elder is the highest stage a Soquili can attain. It’s purely optional, and only attainable through rp. Buying a life cycle Soq doesn’t mean you’ll get an elder if all you do is stick that pet in your sig, so don’t get bent out of shape that yours never makes it that far. Becoming an Elder is an RP PERK.

So, you have your pet and you rped it and now have all 100% stats. Why would you want to go elder? What are the benefits?

For starters, you get a new stage of your Soquili. A stage that only a few others have achieved so far. There is male and female elder art [see the Elders Information thread for images of other Elders], and elders will be upgraded to this beyond-adult stage that they might look as regal and dignified as they now are in their new in-character state.

Secondly, elders, being bigger and tougher than regular adults, are also capable of bearing more children! In any breeding where a parent (be it one or both) is an elder, that breeding will yield THREE baskets, guaranteed, plus have a chance at getting a whopping FOUR! (And for comparison, normal adult Soquili can have two baskets, three if they’re lucky, so this goes to show the breeding perk!)
------*However, owners are still only allowed to keep one basket each; this just means more to give away!
In addition to this elders now get 6 breeding slots!
------*These slots may be used with a lifemate or with flings and the stats of the partner don't effect the ability to use a breeding but remember no soquili can ever exceed 6 breedings.

Now, by this point, you’re probably thinking, “GREAT!” Who doesn’t love art and baskets? Why, I want EVERY SINGLE SOQ I OWN TO BE AN ELDER AS SOON AS THEY HIT 100%

Wrong answer. Sure, the perks are nice. But beyond the perks, there are a few basic elder truisms that need to be remembered.

Most importantly, the very name elder implies something about this stage. An Elder is often a leader; be it religious, or spiritual, political, or merely formal, Elder implies that the person (or in our case, Soquili) is an individual worthy and fit to have this role. Elders are leaders among the Soquili, individuals who can be looked up to by others and exhibit the necessary traits for the important role of elder. Just because they may be a kalona does not restrict them from becoming an Elder; if they fit the role within their breed, then they too are eligible. Roleplay development of these Soquili are key to a good Elder. And Elder cannot be customed or born at that rank, they achieve the status after hard work and development to obtain such a high standard of status.

Basically, elders are leaders/leadership material. Keeping this in mind, not all Soquilis are meant to be Elders. We hope that owners will be using their best judgment in putting Soquili candidates for elderfication forward, and to help you all decide whether or not to go elder, we’ve put together a basic list of what will be looked at when considering that Soquili for elderfication.

Remember:

Responsibility and leadership. Obviously the elders need to be able to handle themselves and situations that come up; they are the ones to which other Soquilis will look in times of trouble, so they need to be up to the challenge. The definition of responsibility and of a good leader varies from breed to breed, and this will essentially be looked at on a case by case basis. What makes a Kalona responsible might be different from a Regular, and so on and so forth.

RP development. Elders are supposed to have grown and matured to the elder stage through rp (see, it all links back to roleplay). Consequently, the roleplay of the Soquilis in question will be checked to determine whether or not the Soq in question has grown into a character worthy of being an elder. If all you have is mate-finding rp…chances are you won’t be elderfied.

All RPs should be started before the Elder Applications open in order to be counted for that seasons applications.
RPs started before the opening date may still be completed during the elder applications.

All RPs must have takes place within the Soquili shop boundaries (the IC RP section of the guild or in teepees) and not from other places on Gaia or on other sites. ((Logged IM or PM RPs are still fine so long as they are posted in the IC RP section of the guild or within a teepee.))

So, keeping that in mind…

Rules

• Read the above. If you don't, we won't read your entry.
• This is a free service, Elders cost nothing.
• There is no pre-determined amount of Elders we accept each time.
• Custom edits always appear on Elders. You can request Trading Post items to be re-added freely, to match the previous adult stage or altered.
• If your Soquili doesn't get picked, take it like an adult. We don't reject for petty reasons like "OMG THAT PERSON TOTALLY RIPPED ME OFF IN THE EXCHANGE" (though if you are that person, I will be dealing with you later), but we reject based on required criteria missing from your entry. If you would like to discuss what you can do to improve for next Elder opening, we would be happy to give pointers/advice if you PM this account.
• The colorists currently doing Elder upgrades *vary* - you do not get to choose who does your upgrade. When possible the original artist will have first choice of doing the Elder.
• You may only apply once per opening. That means one soquili per owner per opening.
• Keep your applications to 20 RPs MAX. Any applications with 21 or more RPs will be disregarded.

If you have any questions, please PM Uta.

Open! Good luck everyone!

Name of Soquili and Link to Image: Taarab
Link to Teepee: http://www.gaiaonline.com/guilds/viewtopic.php?t=15175157
Do you remember when your Soquili first maxed out? I can’t remember exactly when: It was Either in 2012 or 2013. According to niss, June of 2013
Links to RP(s) that show how the Soquili has grown over time, proving his or her development into an Elder: (20 max)
Foal: The starting point
1. [PRP]Two of the Flock {Nakita & Taarab}: Observing the frustration of Nakita, one of the hooved members of the flock, young Taarab gets an idea: if someone doesn't have claws, why can't you just make them some claws?
Between these, Taarab’s brother is swept away by a flash flood in a mostly dry creek bed.
2. What are you making? : Taarab and Galla talk about art, as he tries to fight back the pain of his brothers 'death' and the reduced time with his parents by focusing on something he can control: his art.
Between these rps, Taarab’s been continuing to hone his work obsessively, and taking classes with his father on increasing intervals.
3. Hand Crafting a Better Life: In his third year of foalhood, just a year from being considered a full adult, Taarab gets back from his discussion with the Queen: The artisan guild concept has been giving the okay! (Early development of RP)
4. On ancestral grounds: After the guild has been set up for a while Taarab was handpicked by the queen and escorted to see the Oracle Aylin in the homelands of the Flock, far away from the new territories.
5. A bit of spring cleaning: Continued from Ancestral Grounds, Taarab is working with the Oracle to help set things up to try and rebuild from the ashes of the cataclysm, Taarab shows he's not just a pretty face with nimble talons, but a sharp mind and good source of information.
After this, Aylin (in an rp unrelated to any Taarab is actually involved in) informs his mother of her intention of making him her protected pet due to the feeling she has of him having value to the flock that needs to be carefully monitored.
6. Delicate workings: Vanya requests Taarab's help with a project (but has an ulterior motive as well). Here you get to see some of the advancement of the Artisan guild he has created first hand, and the amount of respect he has started to gain from others in the Flock.
7. Boarders of Fear: His daughters in danger, Taarab risks his life to fight off a skinwalker despite not being a fighter.
8. Fault of differing opinions: After the fight, Taarab comforts Vanwyn with the authority not usually given to most flock stallions, and vows to himself to learn to fight so not fail his people.

Why would your Soquili (IC) choose the Elder path? While he wouldn’t personally expect to ever be chosen by the spirits to be transformed into an Elder, He’s sort of fallen into the role of an advisor, teacher, and leader, despite being a male born into the Flock. He’s actively turned his childhood hobby into a more fulfilling life for the males of the Flock, and has unknowingly been changing the direction his entire cultures evolution in this new territory. In a culture where males hold no rank and are considered ‘weaker’ and easier to corrupt, He has become respected by not only his peers, but by those that, culturally, would be seen as his superiors, his advice not only listened to, but requested by even some of the highest ranking mares in the Flock.
So why would he choose the path of the elder? He wouldn’t actively choose it, it chose him.
Why have you chosen the Elder path for your Soquili OOC?Out of a lot of my soquili, he’s honestly one of the very few who I think are even REMOTELY close to being ‘eldership material’. I’m choosing him out of those who I feel fit is because he’s one of two who have reached maxed stats, and out of those two he’s had the most Rp that actually shows some of the stuff.
The reason I’m currently entering isn’t necessarily because I feel he’s finished his story. Not In the slightest. But I’ve come to realize he’s developed a lot over time and If I waited until I felt completely satisfied, he’d never be entered, since even if he became an elder before I expected it, it wouldn’t change the fact I plan on continuing to rp and develop him. If he becomes an elder, he becomes and Elder. If he doesn’t I can find out how close he is from “The Great Mother Spirit” of the Flock is from choosing him for her gift.

Name of Soquili and Link to Image: Aquitaine
Link to Teepee: Teepee
Do you remember when your Soquili first maxed out? September 2012
Links to RP(s) that show how the Soquili has grown over time, proving his or her development into an Elder:

A Chance Meeting - Aquitaine's family has taken a trip away from their beachside home. During this trip Aquitaine wanders away from her parents and encounters another foal, Agave. Up until now Aquitaine has lived a fairly sheltered life and doesn't have a full understanding of the world. What the foal tells her truly opens her eyes and makes her realize that the world isn't perfect after all.

Dangerous Encounter - While out looking for some herbs Aquitaine and her goat familiar, Gaul, are attacked by a skinwalker. While the skinwalker eventually leaves Aquitaine is badly injured and is scarred both mentally and physically from this ordeal.

You Don't Belong Here - Traveling away from her home Aquitaine finds herself in the area where she first met Agave, and when she seems him again their reunion is far from perfect. However, she can't help but offer him help before he runs her off.

Beachside Horrors - Aquitaine meets a stallion who attended a festival on the beach and they speak of various things including her odd appearance and she shares with him some things about what its like to be strange looking and to be judged by appearances alone.

Overdue Reunion - Agave arrives at the beach injured but free from his mother. Aquitaine is overjoyed to see her friend but is also concerned by his wounds.

Making Adjustments - Aquitaine works with Agave to attempt to help his transition into his new life. This is the first chance she has had to bring an individual away from their old life and to become socially accepted. It is not easy but Aquitaine is determined to see it through.

Second Life Lost? - Aquitaine starts to develop feelings for Agave, and Agave starts to fall for Aquitaine. But will his past break them apart?

Conquering Fear & Moving Forward - After battling nightmares and crippling fear brought on by the skinwalker attack Aquitaine is ready to put it all behind her. So she takes her familiar, Gaul, who had been with her when the skinwalker came, back to where it all happened to face her fears. Along the way she tells him about her goals in helping others, especially those who are mutants.

Big Decisions - The time has come for Aquitaine to begin the next phase of her life, one that will set her on the path of finding those in need and helping them with their issues. But first she must tell Agave and get his blessings.

Children of The Tunnel - Aquitaine meets another offspring from the twisted tunnel and shares some of her knowledge with the mare. The conversation leads them both to wanting to learn more about this strange device and how it affects others. Perhaps if she can find out how it affects Soquili she can better help them.

A Little Advice - During one of her journeys away from home Aquitaine encounters a young colt who is having some issues dealing with being different from his father and sister. Aquitaine offers her own experiences of being different in an attempt to help the colt out.

Keep Believing - While going out in search of those who may need her help Aquitaine finds a young mare named Alarion. Striking up a conversation with the mare Aquitaine soon finds out they have a lot of common, including their beliefs about not judging someone based upon looks, but Alarion is having some doubts about that. Aquitaine helps to reinforce those beliefs and also offers some advice on other issues that Alarion is dealing with.

Broken Hope - While out with her daughter, Ipswich, Aquitaine finds tracks that lead the pair to a stallion at the bottom of a ravine. Knowing she had to help Aquitaine leads her daughter down a dangerous and narrow path in order to give aide to the stallion below - who at first is hesitant of her presence and then accepts their help.

Renewed Hope - Having spent days healing Prism, it's time for them to bring him home to continue with his recovery. After he tells them his secret, the trio must then learn the fate of his basket. Once that knowledge is gained, they continue on, with hope for the future, to Aquitaine's home so that she can see through the rest of his recovery and get him reach for the next stage of his life.

Consequences - Helping another doesn't always end in success, that is something Aquitaine has come to learn. Yet even she wasn't expecting the ramifications to her good deed trip for her mate Agave. It will take everything she has learned to see herself through this experience safely.

Changing Perspectives - It has been no easy task, but Aquitaine has slowly begun to change the opinions of her captors. Now comes the greatest test of all, having them truly accept that not just herself, but her family as well, poses them or anyone else no harm and that perhaps they can work together for the greater good.

Why would your Soquili (IC) choose the Elder path? Aquitaine has been through a great number of things in her life. She knows what it means to be ostracized due to looking different and yet being well loved by family and those close to her. She knows what fear feels like and knows what peace is. She has struggled and she has helped others as they struggle. It is her understanding nature that has allowed her to cross each hurdle and continue on with new knowledge of things. From her various experiences, especially those tied to being a mutant, she had come to realize her place in this world. What matters to her most is helping others, and though a lot of that help is focused on those with the same affliction as her - offspring of the twisted tunnel, Aquitaine is willing to help any who need it. Her focus now is finding others who are both the product of and have been in the twisted tunnels, offering advice on how to cope for those whose looks have been altered by it, helping parents who are struggling with raising mutant children, letting them know that there is a place in this world for them, they just need time to find it. She is a pillar of understanding and acceptance for the mutant community in the Soquili lands, helping them to become more social, accept who and what they are, and educate others that looks don't always equate to what can be found on the inside. Each Soquili she helps adds to her knowledge and experience, something that will be of value to her with every step she takes in her life and it is something she cherishes deeply. Life is full of new experiences, new things to learn, new individuals to help, obstacles to overcome and Aquitaine is ready to do all of those things.
Why have you chosen the Elder path for your Soquili OOC? Initially I had no plans of pursuing Elderhood with Aquitaine. She was incredibly special to me from the moment I got her as a basket and even more so when she emerged but I didn't see her as the Elder type. However once I started to RP her and forming plots for her I realized that she wasn't just special, she had the potential to be an Elder. After a few RPs with her I found a niche for her to work with. Being a mutant of a non-mutant family was something not necessarily unique but something that would take her far. Through both pleasant and unpleasant experiences she learned what it is to be a mutant, that many judge others based upon their looks and won't always give them a chance to show who they truly are. I developed a large number of plots for her to help move her from a quiet sheltered life to an advocate for the mutant population. Though I have given her lots of RP and plots it is really only the beginning for Aquitaine, whether she makes Elder or not, she will continue to grow and move through various plots.

Well, it's that time!

The spirits have read through the applications, done some discussing, and have come to their conclusion. For any of you who have not made it, please don't get discouraged! Elderhood is not easy to obtain. Do not think of this as rejection, but an opportunity for additional development. Some of you were very, very close, but still require a little more polishing before it's time to shine. Keep it up, and you'll be there in no time!

That being said, please congratulate She-Ra of Etheria and her Aquitaine! The spirits believe this mare has worked hard and is ready for a new role. She's gained strength, wisdom, and maturity through her trials and tribulations; she's been a friend to many, and has helped get others out of bad situations. She has not let her differences define her, but instead has become a mare with a mission and purpose.

Good job, Aquitaine -- we look forward to your new role as an elder.

She-Ra, the colorists who are able to elderfy your mare are as follows:

ATh e a r t
Uta
Deejaye
Mindsend
One Over Three

If you want to pick a colorist for Aquitaine, please let us know, so we can talk to them and make sure they think they can do Aquitaine justice. Otherwise, we'll assign you one and have them contact you for details.

Congratulations!

Congrats! =D heart