--- Addendum ---
Some things to remember when you area mentor:
1. Remember that if you go down in battle and your sidekick is still there fighting, don't go to the hospital or base for rez. Your removal from the mission map will put your sidekick at risk of being defeated. Lend a hand by feeding inspirations to them or do some targetting for them. They might live and they might still be defeated, but at least you allowed them to be the hero for once.
(Others to follow)
I want to make sure that this guide doesn't get deleted. Anyone know what I need to do?
Absolutely nothing. What's psoted in guides, stays in guides
------------------ Santa Laws' Book of Mentoring --------------
--- Preface ---
So you asked for a mentor, huh? Well, with Levels does not always come wisdom. So, before I sidekick you, please read over this basic Book of Mentoring. It should give you everything you need to know about the Mentor/Sidekick relationship.
--- Contents ---
Chapter 1 - What is a Mentor?
Chapter 2 - Choosing a Proper Sidekick
Chapter 3 - Team Leaders & SG Leaders
Chapter 4 - What to give that Sidekick
--- Chapter 1 --- What is a Mentor? ---
Although most people consider a mentor someone of a minimum of level 10 and at least 3 levels higher than you, there is so much more to being a mentor. Sure, there is the mindless droning out of power-levelling where mentor and sidkick stay in a safe location and let a hero gather and beat the living daylights out of an entire maps worth of baddies. But why? Cheap and quick levels? This is where a true Mentor stands out.
A Mentor is defined as a wise and trusted counselor or teacher. A relationship will develop between the Mentor and Sidekick - beit as a plutonic relationship where both want to play on the same team or a true Teacher relationship where the Mentor is showing the student playstyle, rules, places, situations, and/or general information before sending them out on their own.
Mentorship is not to be taken lightly. In an online game, you can still enjoy playing, but keep in mind that a new player will mimic their teacher in every way. The way you respond to others in chat, the use of emotes in distatseful ways, the ways to circumvent the flow of the game, and even how to disrupt public events like a costume contest or a Hammi Raid.
Even in a team, if everyone is within the same level range of each other and no one is sidekicked, the Team Leader is looked at for all intensive purposes as a Team Mentor. The Leader should make sure that the integrity of the team stays intact. After all, it is he or she that selects the mission. They should also make sure that confllicts are resolved. I cannot tell you how many times I've witnessed a disgruntled Defender or Controller puposefully let a team member die because of a disagreement.
The Mentor also has a place in the SuperGroup. Each SG has levels assigned with different permissions. Power corrupts - absolute power corrupts absolutely! Giving power to the wrong person can spell disaster by getting every on a lower rank kicked from the SG or ticking off a more deserving person. The first example happened to a SG I was in. To this day, we do not know for certain who it was, but we do know two things...
1) We went from having 75 members to less than 14 in a matter of 20 minutes.
2) People who were kicked were extremely mad and most never returned figuring someone did not like them.
So being a Mentor is a serious job, but also much fun. Watching the chat window light up with amazement as they see something for the first time, or when you show the Sidekick how to handle situations are a couple of those high points.
--- Chapter 2 --- Choosing a Proper Sidekick ---
When you reach level 10, you are immediately ready to be a Mentor. Or are you? Because of the burden and responsibility, there are couple of steps you need to take to prepare for your Sidekick. In addition, you also need guidance in selecting your Sidekick.
First, check out the makeup of the team. Look at the level range, type of missions, and most of all - personal feeling of the rest of the team. It will make a huge difference in selecting your sidekick and easing the team through the mission.
Level range is highly important when you combine it with Mission Selection. For example, going through a Task Force or Strike Force. The biggest waste of time is before the first mission is accepted. We all have experienced having a Member that was too low for the TF mission level range. Then you have to find a way around it, then invite new people to replace the impatient people who left. Take a few minutes to research what the team is going to do and what levels are acceptable.
The next step is to find out what percieved needs are desired in a team member. How many times have you started a Task Force and found out that you do need an Empath Defender instead of the Dark Defender you got? How many times have you started a Respec mission and found out that you do not have a single member with TP or Rez? A couple of minutes doing research will save you countless hours in a hopeless cause and the result will be less debt and quicker levels.
Second, overall personalities of the team is important. You don't want conflict while the team is trying to complete a timed mission. Generally, a good rule of thumb is team with people you know. Those are the one's you will get along with and most of the time, they will get along with each other.
Pick-up Groups (PUGS) are especially vulnerable to the personality crisis. A mish-mash of attitude and a chaotic feeling can be both exhilarating and stressful. Make gentle suggestions to the Team Leader to get the proper information on what they feel is the need of the team. Then help them look. Don't just entertain yourself. Remeber, a successful mission comes from a successful team.
If you happen to be the leader, do not dismiss the suggestions of a player so easily. I was part of a PUG and the leader wanted to get another Empathy Defender. I reminded him that I had been through that exact mission 17 times in the last week and that we had enough Empathy, we only needed another blaster. Well, we got an Empath and we ended up with team wipes multiple times.
When it comes to choosing that Sidekick, keep in mind you need to select someone that trusts you. Even though a potential Sidekick has got a level 50 peacebringer, keep in mind that the toon they are playing, they may not have a lot of experience running. That is why I suggest mentoring a Sidekick of a compatible AT. There is a valid reason why also. With the Mentor/Sidekick system, a Tanker sidekicked to a Defender wouldbe a bad combo. What would happen if the Tanker is in Melee combat and the Defender has to get away from the action to Teleport a defeated Team Member for a Rez. That's right! The Tanker can lose his Sidkicked status and get into much bigger problems. There are multiple bad combos out there.
Once you have decided that taking a Sidekick is beneficial to the team and the Sidekick, and you have found a potential Sidekick, you then need to communicate with the Team and Sidekick. Make sure all parties are aware of the situation and agree that this is a good addition.
A good Sidekick will communicate with you, so make sure the candidate does so regularly. Some goodtips for finding good candidates are looking right in your SG window. They typically will be on good behaviour because they are representing the SG to the Team. An SGs reputation is often formed by the members of teams that SG members are on with. I know of several SGs on the Protector server with the reputation of Power Levelling. This reputation has spilled over andthe Protector server has a reputation as a Server of Power Levellers. The fact that you can find within the forum posts in the Protector threads many people that disdain the thought of power levelling, means nothing to people form other servers. Another example is the Role Player server. Where did it get that reputation? You got it! From a few SG on that server having that reputation.
Also, your Sidekick and you do not have to constantly chat back and forth. A little less chat makes for an easier time by the Mentor to do the job he was brought on the team for. The questions and general Chit-chat can be saved for the downtime. Granted, friendly chatter goes on and sometimes in the middle of a battle. It is the discretion of the Mentor. A Sidekick should not distract the Mentor and as such, the Mentor should take charge if the chat takes away from his abilities.
--- Chapter 3 --- Team Leaders & SG Leaders ---
Team Leaders generally have good intentions, butthey have to watch out for the whole team. A good Team Leader will rum missions from each person instead of his and a friends. As a whole, the other Team Members feel they are contributing even if they aren't in a battle standpoint. There might not be much XP in a mission that is 5 levels lower, but you still get to test your build versus other baddies, or for viability. People will respec according to their current needs and forget that ifthey Sidekick to someone else, they may not be as suitable for that type of damage or they may help a friend and find out they no longer have the protection they desired from other types of villains that they once had.
So picking a variety of missions helps the overall feel of the team but also contribute to their general comfort levels in their Team Leader. A low morale towards the Team Leader means that the team members will change often and much of the time garner feeling about that player for many levels to come.
SG Leaders also suffer from morale issues. Sometimes an SG Leader will Apathy towards accomplishments. They can even have issues arise from overlooking certain members who are deserving. SG Leaders need to make sure they reward those that help the SG through recruiting, event organization, web-site programming, running teams, and being Mentors to other Sg members. The Key is to recognize and reward beneficial people to the SG.
A bad SG Leader will not have a large following. Instead he will drive people away and into better SGs. A bad Team Leader will have a negative impact upon the reputation of his SG and that will in itself negate recruiting of that person regardless of the SG Leadership.
Good qualities in Team and SG Leaders are the same as good qualities in people and business professionals. Honest, friendly, hard working and problem solving are the best attributes.
--- Chapter 4 --- What to give that Sidekick ---
This topic has a wide range of responses. You can best answer it by asking yourself what would have helped you be a better player if your Mentor was to give you something. Most would answer influence/infamy or enhancments. Although these are not entirely right, they do not allow someone to be a better player. They simply allow the player to do more of what they already do. Sometimes advice is the best gift you can give.
I personally save influence/infamy and enhancment gifts for Sidekicks that I see are trudging along in SG mode - helping the SG with Prestige. That is a good "Thank You!" for their hard work and dedication. It also builds good relationships in the Teams and SG. It also is infectious.
One of the hardest lessons you can teach your Sidekick is when to call off the Sidekick mentality. Too often, people get used to the idea that they can Sidekick to a Mentor and forget about gaming. This is referred to as Power Levelling. When that player gets to level 50, they will immediately create their Kheldian and start Power Levelling again. After that challenge, it is off to build another and another toon. They only have experience as a SideKick and their only contribution is to PowerLevel other people. Teaching them to be that 'Hero' or 'Villain' is the most important moment of that toon's life and often reaches into their Real Life. Arguably, some of the best in-game players are some of the best Real Life people. Use that time to create a true Hero or Villain.
I recall a movie by the name of 'Unbreakable' with Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson. In it, Samuel L. Jackson's character states that he could not be the person he is without finding that one person that is to be his Arch-Nemesis in life.His opposite. Incidently, the movie is about comic book heroes and I would recommend everyone to view it if you get the chance. After all, when faced wit ha situation, it is the choice you make that will define you as an individual.
--- Hope this guide helps make your SG, Team and Sidekick/Mentor experience better ---