One of the most frequent questions I get via email is about how to get "the thing that shows who's talking in Vent" to show up on your screen. It's called an overlay and while it is native feature of Ventrilo, it is also built into the voice chat program we use: Mumble.

Why Mumble?

The way I describe it is: Mumble is like Vent, only it doesn't suck.

Low latency. High quality. Easy to use. Better administration features. Mumble has everything Vent has, only more and better. But ultimately the latency and the quality are the two biggest features.

I tried out two different Mumble hosts before settling on the service MMO-Mumble.com, which I believe to be the best of Mumble hosting providers. Check out their site for a full Mumble vs. Ventrilo comparison.

I'm warning you though, once you go Mumble you won't go back to Vent.

Absolutely not. The natural tension that happens between people in stressful situations is certainly a compelling story to tell. No doubt there will be instances of tension arising but we will not fan the flames of drama.

Ultimately my goal is for this to be a show about great people accomplishing amazing things and overcoming logistical, tactical, and interpersonal challenges along the way. I expect to grow as a person and to have my teammates grow with me, and I want you along for the ride to see and experience our growth.

The vision for Big Crits is authenticity and I've got to quote "Old School Rules" by Danger Doom & Talib Kweli who sum it up nicely:

And I might be buggin but it seem to me that cartoons be realer than reality tv.

That’s a good analogy. Think like Season One of Real World—back when that format was fresh. No staged challenges, no “The Situation” or drama mammas, and no script.

Big Crits is about everything that happens when you take strangers from all different ages, races, religions, and genders and get together to accomplish the greatest feats in-game. It's what you've experienced in every guild you've ever been in since you started playing MMOs: the tension, the excitement, the collaboration, the conflict, the things that happen when real people conquer a virtual world.

Our challenges come from facing best the end-game content. And we’re not making a show about GIFT so leave your fist pump at home. Drama will happen as it does in any guild, but we’re not specifically inviting it into our house. We’re pulling all the juicy, fun and exciting bits out of two weeks worth or raiding, compressing down to a short webisode, and giving online entertainment a swift kick in the ace.

No. The Guild is a sitcom--and a hilarious one at that--about MMO gamers. It's like the Seinfeld of gaming: extreme personalities in unlikely and wacky situations and hilarity ensues. The Guild is a scripted and professionally shot show. Big Crits is unscripted, shot in-game with web-cam interviews and professionally edited.

No. While we will be tackling the hardest content in the game we’re producing episodes about the interaction of our raiders—how we work together (or sometimes not) to get things done. It’s not about "10 yards apart in the air-phase." It is about how people interact when everyone does actually spread out and we move on to the next phase.

TL;DR : It's a reality show about an end-game World of Warcraft raiding guild. You could be a part of it if you're so inclined, have the skills, and we have room for you.

Be sure to read more about us or just watch some episodes.

Absolutely not. This guild is first and foremost a raiding guild. in order to accomplish the raiding objectives teamwork is required. We want people to join us because they want to raid and have fun doing so. if you want to be a part of what is going to be the best web show in 2010 then all the better.

Absolutely. This is definitely part of the plan. Down the line we’d like to have a separate show featuring a highly skilled arena team. In the meantime arenas are definitely encouraged and BG events will be organized on off-nights. PvP helps sharpen skills, shorten reaction time, and deveiop playstyle-flexibility, all of which have a tremendous positive impact on raiding.

We’d love to be a world top raiding guild, but for right now we have our sights set on hard modes and progression, while balancing our real world commitments. Stoney, for example, holds down a full-time job and works 50+ hours per week, plus blogging on Big Hit Box and WoW.com and producing this show. Down the line gunning for a top rank would be awesome, but for now we expect to be among the top guilds on our realm. Come on board to get hard modes, fresh kills, and phat loots.

Not initially. Starting out this is entirely self-funded so your participation is just like it would be for any guild: voluntary. Down the road as this takes off there are provisions for raiders to earn a share of the revenue. But first we've got to cover costs like hosting, storage, web video platforms, and editing. We’ve brought on two experienced full-time editors to make this vision a reality, and they don’t come cheap. Once we've covered costs we'll be offering revenue share based on participation levels. It all depends on having a great group of raiders that make for an interesting and entertaining show.

Join because you want to raid and be a part of something extraordinary. Show your commitment to the guild and the guild will share the benefits with you.

In my experience "package deals" of raiding couples work out less than half the time, and that's optimistic. For Big Crits, each applicant will be judged based on their individual merit. If one does not meet the standards we're looking for in end-game raiders then they will be denied membership, regardless of how well the other performs. If you can both hold your own as individual players then you are most welcome to apply. Give serious consideration to your application; if one is not as interested in raiding then a viable option would be for one to apply as a Raider and the other as Friends & Family.

We strongly encourage both male and female end-game raiders to apply. In Stoney’s prior guild the GM was female as were nearly 1/3 of the raiders. It made for a great combination and a lot of fun banter between the sexes. In game and IRL Stoney manage a team of all races, religions, genders, and sexual preferences. All are welcome to apply to Big Crits and all will be treated as equals.

It’s the great thing about MMOs: you’re judged first on the strength of your play and second on your ability to play well with others. Everything else is secondary.

We are not able to accept applications from anyone under 18. We have nothing against minors; it's a legal thing.

Yes. We expect to pull a majority of our raiders from all across the realms; you will not be the only transfer in the guild. In fact, Stoneybaby along with one other founding member started as Alliance on Muradin. The realm and faction transfer process is quick and easy. I had three characters moved and changed inside of two hours.

Please apply first, let's talk in Vent (or Mumble) and ensure this is the guild for you, then when you're approved set the transfer process in motion.

If you have any questions about applying you can reach Stoneybaby on US-Sen'jin on:

• Stoneybaby (Troll Shaman)
• Finnmcool (Tauren Druid)
• Nixhex (Undead Warlock)

You can join Big Crits if you are an active end-game raider geared up to at least roughly an i245 level and have raiding experience. The application process is:

1. Apply on our guild website: http://www.bigcrits.guildlaunch.com
2. Wait for an officer to review and respond to you
3. If you have questions feel free to create an alt on US-Sen'jin and contact and officer outside of raid times
4. Speak with an officer in Vent (or Mumble) to review your application
5. If all goes well, initiate transfer and join the Big Crits crew!