Clan:Elfscape

Elfscape (also referred to as simply The Elves; originally known as the Elf Nation) is a Christmas-oriented specialist clan that originally launched in November of 2010 under the leadership of Master4377 (currently known as Naerim; also previously under the alias of NaeroMinded). It is a seasonal clan that is "designed to bring the Christmas spirit to RuneScape as an unofficial event", which tends to be most commonly active during the Christmas season.

The clan is currently dormant, but official plans have been announced by Naerim to run a more long-lived stint of Elfscape for this year's upcoming holidays.

Original Establishment
Elfscape was originally founded by Naerim (under the alias of Master4377 at the time) on November 20th, 2010. Being deprived of the plentiful membership activities, Naerim stated "There was not much for me to do being limited to free-to-play features, and I was inclined to going on a longer hiatus of inactivity until I was compelled to start a widespread "trend" in RuneScape; upon the innovation of an elfish uniform, I wanted to disperse the design all throughout RuneScape, and also starting a Christmas clan in conjunction with it, to see if it could become prominent

throughout the Christmas season."

After devising the elf uniform, Naerim took the initiative to advertise the uniform, conveniently in the Varrock Clothes Shop, as well as setting up a clan chat (dubbed as Elf Nation, originally) for internal communication for those interested in the trend. The clan chat rapidly prospered in numbers and rose to prominence in Varrock (due to the advertising territory being situated in the Clothes Shop), eventually being referred to Elfscape as a nod to their dominating presence within RuneScape for the holiday season, particularly on World 1 in Varrock.

Surging Growth and Prominence
The growth of the clan was predominantly the focus early on, so although there were a multitude of events intended for clan members to partake in, none were put into motion initially as efforts were being focused on recruitment until the user count was "borderline maximized", as Naerim intended. The population would rapidly increase, but events were still run minimally due to Naerim being the sole administration of the clan at the time, which hindered him from dedicating time to organizing events due to the burden of maintaining a steady population as well as attempting to maintain an orderly chat.

The Varrock Palace was eventualyl declared the base for any elfscape members to converge at, specifically by Naerim; this was met with opposition by othes clans, residing in Varrock, who quickly took notice to the newfound clan. The clan' chat was subject to attacks by antagonistic members of other clans, and the clan's declared territory was constantly invaded by conflicting clans. Despite negotiation efforts made between Naerim and other clan leaders to assure them that "Elfscape does not intend to antagonize or cause a rift between other clans.", as the leader stated, some disorderly clan members from various parties would not comply, thus the misconduct would persist.

Chaos and Incident of Power Abuse
Although the lone Elfscape leader was fully aware that more moderation was needed as a preventative measure against the attacks, there was skepticism on his part on what clan member could earnestly be trusted with kicking powers, therefore he reserved kicking powers for only generals until there was a more organized staff structure. As the affairs escalated, as well as anarchy in the chat when the leader was absent, the standards were contemporarily loosened for promotions to general, and several clan members attained that rank soon.

While usage of the power was seemingly stable initially, it was not too long until it was used in an abusive fashion to elfscape's demise; all members of the clan were kicked when the leader was absent, which eventuated in the disabling of kicking powers for generals until the ordeal was remedied. Only two generals were reported to be online, therefore it was an ambiguous case (kicks were done anonymously at the time, due to no public automated message being announced when a member was kicked), but Policeunit56 (currently Silvicae) would later confess herself to be the culprit behind the scandal. The motive was apart of a conspiracy of an opposing clan in Clan:Imperium_Solanum, led by VMI Moon (currently Moondaa), who wanted to eliminate clans that they viewed as a nuisance (including Elfscape).

Aftermath
Elfscape slowly recovered itself, but kicking powers remained disabled as trust has been dispaired for some of the ranked members, and the lone leader still remained detracted from clan events due to upholding a populated user count as well as trying to neutralize all of the ongoing conflicts, inside and outside of the clan. All of the hardships of leading the clan with minimal aid caused Naerim to contemplate disbanding elfscape, but he intended to withstand it until at least Christmas day.

Elfscape Disbands
Naerim would ultimately abandon elfscape, in an abrupt manner, when his membership was renewed on December 14th, 2010. This decision was met with a lot of controversy, but Naerim explained "I have not had membership access in years, and although Elfscape brought a lot of enjoyability to my free-to-play gameplay, there are a plethora of member activities that call for me to dedicate my time to. Elfscape, however, isn't necessarily dead; I'm just stepping down as the leader, but others are welcome to step up to the plate to lead their own branch of Elfscape". Several new iterations of Elfscape were made after Naerim's clan chat were abandoned, but none had as much traction, and the trend of Elfscape eventually faded away.

Post-Elfscape era
With the concept of Elfscape hardly intact within the network of World 1 clans, it remained dormant for a long time. The original founder, Naerim, contemplated relaunching it multiple times after his membership expired, even announcing plans for relaunching it soon to many former members of the clan. However, he ultimately went inactive from RuneScape entirely before the clan was resurrected.

Attempt of Revival: 2011
In November of 2011, Naerim announced in a forums thread that it would be officially revived following that year's Thanksgiving holiday. All former elfscape ranked members, who were active at that time, were contacted and Naerim made efforts to "Take a more formal approach by adopting a more organized staff structure, and having other co-leaders readily available so it would launch in a much more orderly fashion than last year", as stated by Naerim.

Although events and a regular basis of recruitment were not planned until after Thanksgiving of 2011, Naerim still visited Varrock, on World 1, on the weekend following the announcement to recruit members as "an official announcement of the clan's resurrection to those residing in our base territory." New members were recruited into the Friends Chat, due to Naerim already being in a clan in AOA, which was a feature that was not available during the original stint of Elfscape.

This stint of elfscape appeared to be more firm than the last attempt at resurrecting it, but it was a short-lived attempt as Naerim has once again went on a long hiatus from RuneScape entirely on short notice, before the official date set for the clan's revival.

Uniform
Elfscape requires its members to wear a distinct uniform, which is preferrably composed of the following:



 Male:  Female (top/leggings being the only different components): The customizable outfit's coloration was originally inspired by the Tri-jester Hat, which was obtained in the 2005 Christmas Event. Naerim explained that "With a long-unobtainable item [the Tri-jester Hat] in my possession, a couple of my friends (one of them male, the other female) would poke fun at me, calling me an elf, to which I responded by asking them to come along with me to the clothes shop, and customize an outfit to closely resemble it. The prototype, as well as the female counterpart, was designed on the spot, and seeing a group of players, albeit small at that time, motivated me to see if this could become a widespread trend, which it did to at least our base world at the time."
 * Headgear: Tri-jester Hat (if the player has completed the 2005 Christmas event); Red Voting Hat.
 * Top (customizable): Timeworn Polo, with Cooking Apple coloration.
 * Necklace (optional): Any scarf obtained in the 2005 Christmas event; Ice Amulet (if the player has completed the 2008 Christmas event).
 * Leggings (customizable): Tunic Bottom and Leggings, with Crimshoun Hellhound coloration.
 * Boots (optional): Silly Jester Boots (members only, but most closely resemble elf boots); Zombie Boots (ironically, they look elfish as they are slightly pointy); Mime Boots; any black boots players can get their hands on.
 * Gloves (optional): These are considered an insignificant component, and players are free to sport any type of gloves or none at all.
 * Cape (optional): Another insignificant component, but any cape that compliments the coloration of the uniform is slightly more preferred.
 * Top (customizable): Herbalist's Gansey, with Cooking Apple coloration.
 * Leggings (customizable): Long-grass Farmer's Skirt, with Crimshoun Hellhound coloration.

Originally, the torso and leggings slot for the male uniform was comprised of a Woolen Vest and Plain Trousers, respectively. This was eventually remodeled to the modern elfscape uniform.

Events/Activities
Christmas-traditions and socialization were the basis of events and activities conducted by Elfscape. The most famous organized event of Elfscape was considered the "Christmas parades"; Master4377/Naerim would arrange a chain of Elfscape members following him, and parade all over free-to-play areas with pro-Elfscape chants, as well as advertisements of the clan to players in the viscinity of the parade. They were considered conspicuous due to it being a partial measure of the clan's population.

Other events included "Christmas carols", which were done by reciting lyrics of Christmas songs (real and/or custom) in different areas throughout Varrock. Socialization was often the focal point of Elfscape activities, commonly gathering at their own declared base in Varrock Palace to converse with each other. However, due to the ongoing burdens of Master4377/Naerim being the sole administration of the clan, as well as continuous recruiting to maintain a populated user count, all events were not done as frequently, or even introduced, as much as intended.

Elfscape strictly adopted a "no clan-wars" policy, despite constant requests by other clans and members of Elfscape; this was imposed to "reflect on the peaceful nature of elves" and to "focus on the actual basis of the clan in Christmas-themed activities and socialization", as Naerim stated. This stance was often criticized, due to an immense user count in the chat, which many believe would be a formidable advantage against other clans. Naerim responded by stating "Due to the theme of Elfscape, it attracts many low level players of whom we don't mind accommodating for. Although we may appear dominating on paper, this clan simply is not built as a clan wars clan, and if you're seeking a dominant clan wars clan, we may not be the clan for you."

Clan Oppositions
Although the Elfscape leader's intent was to minimize antagonism with other clans, other clans had a differing stance, mainly due to the antics of unruly Elfscape members. After a day of dwelling in Varrock, Elfscape and its leader immediately had confrontations with various other clans of that world. Clans and members within Elfscape often proposed to settle their disputes on the venue of Clan Wars; Naerim declined this because Elfscape is a non-combat clan, to "reflect on the peaceful nature of Christmas elves" and also because "We could defeat other clans in a clan war, but that would not forcefully harmonize our relationship with them - we've seen how unruly members of any clan can be."

Spartans
The Spartans, under the leadership of Watp x3 (currently Mket) were one of the first clans to confront Elfscape, and have arguably been the most persistent opposing force since their confrontation. The Spartans established a reputation as a rowdy, aggressive, and antagonistic; they were widely regarded as a boisterous clan who strived for dominance by various methods.

On the second day of Master4377/Naerim's efforts in recruiting elves, the Spartans have taken full notice to clan, and were discontent with its recruiting methods (usage of auto-typers for recruiting new elves and instructing the dress code), which is a popular advertising area for clans that mandate a custom dress code. Additionally, they intended to compete against the Elve's declared territory in Varrock Palace, as it is considered a high-ranking structure that is typically coveted for a clan base. As Elfscape was a clan on the rise, the Spartans were utmost intent on causing havoc and diminishing them.

In attempt to gain Master4377's attention, Watp x3 initially directed his clan to spam the Clothes Shop with their own clan's advertisements, as well as to deride Elfscape and its leader in the process, which achieved its desire effect; Master4377 took notice to the disruptive actions, and although his clan members raised the issue, Master4377 advised them to ignore it. Watp x3 was not as insistent on dismissing the feud, and he took further measures by directly contacting the Elfscape leader, proposing a war. However, the war request was declined due to the "non-combat" policy imposed within Elfscape, and also because Master4377 believed it was "More so an attempt to prove superiority, rather than an attempt to settle the dispute."

While any combative competition was repeatedly declined, the Spartans continued to terrorize the clan by rigorous means, which would include: advertising their own clan in Master4377's clan chat among other unsolicited messages, invading their base, flooding the Clothes Store with demeaning messages about Elfscape and its leader, among other disruptive actions. Despite Master4377 and other ranked clan member's suggestions to ignore it rather than reacting in a panicky manner, it was often an overwhelming point of concern discussed in the clan chat; Elfscape members also chose to retaliate by invading the Spartan's clan chat and base on their own accord, relaying what information they could discover, thus furthering the tension between the two clans. The Spartan's actions played a major hand in impelling Master4377 to enable kicking powers for other ranked members to assist in moderating the chat, which were subsequently disabled again due to abuse of a ranked member with that privilege.

Although the conflicts between the two clans were never fully quelled, the rivarly eventually died out as Master4377 stepped down from leading Elfscape, and all branches of the clan disbanded due to no further longevity of players leading the clan. The Spartans would proceed to focus their efforts on other opposed clans that were comparable in size, including the Romans, Greeks, 24z mofoz, Assassins, and Vengeance.

Vengeance
Vengeance, under the leadership of VMI Moon (currently Moondaa), were infamous for orchestrating the kicking and banning spree to Elfscape's members.

Vengeance was one of the more silent oppositions, who conspired to eliminate massive clans that they viewed as a nuisance, including Elfscape, the Romans, Spartans, among others. Although Master4377/Naerim believed to be on reasonable terms with VMI Moon, after interactions with him on multiple occasions of his visit to the clan chat, the latter objected against the rowdy behavior of unruly Elfscape members. Most of the operations in regards to destroying the Elves were done in secrecy, but VMI Moon was known to publicly address his problem with the poor control of Elfscape members on occasion.

Once their plan was put into motion, all regular members of Elfscape were kicked and temporarily banned from the clan chat under the doing of Policeunit54 (currently Silvicae). The clan's population slowly recovered afterwards, but this event hampered Master4377's trust in granting other ranked members kicking powers, which would never be re-enabled before he personally chose to step down as the Elfscape leader.

South Pole Elves
Clan members, who were disatisfied with Elfscape's management and/or its user base, often sought after another World 1 clan or another elfscape variant. Rebels of the clan tended to refuse to adhere to the dress code in one fashion or another; turning their Voting Hat to blue was one subtle act of disobedience which would inspire a spoof clan of Elfscape known as the South Pole Elves.

Members of this clan were remembered to sport the Elfscape uniform, simply with blue coloration to compliment the blue Voting Hat. Contrary to Elfscape's notion, they were willing to engage in combat disputes and they deliberately raided other clans directed by its leadership; Elfscape was the primary target, and possibly the only suspected one. They commonly tried to serve as a diversion to Elfscape's recruitment in Varrock's Clothes Shop, by instructing prospective recruits and current Elfscape members to don the blue uniform they used.

In theory, the South Pole Elves and Elfscape were conceived by various players to be perfect adversaries, comparaoble to Yin and Yang, due to being polar opposites. However, the former did not have as much traction as the latter, and its user population was dwarfed by Elfscape's, thus it was short-lived. The uniform was still sighted on occasion, due to the continuation of the "rebellious gag", but any organization of the clan seemingly disappeared.

Trivia

 * The original base for the clan was designated in Varrock West bank basement. However, there was a faster growth rate than expected, so shortly afterwards they settled in the Blue Moon Inn to commensurate for more clan members, which preceded their final movement to Varrock Castle.Elfscapebases.png