During the period of March to August of 2013 we received over 1400 applicants for ShackTac. Due to limitations with Arma’s netcode at higher player counts, and concerns over how large we can grow as a community without risking harm to what has allowed us to be so tightly-knit, we can only take in a very small number of new people each year. After a great deal of deliberation and careful selection, I ended up picking 35 people out of those 1400+ applicants. They received their acceptance e-mails earlier this evening – check your spam filters just to be safe!
To say that it’s difficult to choose from such a volume of high-quality applicants is an understatement. Each name is a potential friend, a comrade, someone who could turn out to be a tremendous addition to our community. I take this process very seriously, spending hours reviewing, debating over, and selecting the finalists. The choices I make in selecting them help to define where the group goes in the future – the people who move forward as pFNGs will become part of our culture and ultimately our history. I believe I’ve chosen wisely, but only time will tell.
What we face as a community at this point is not something I was ever expecting, and if you’ve read my prior thoughts on the matter, you’d know that a great deal of thought has gone into proceeding the way we have. I thank everyone who respects these decisions and understands what it means to stay true to your vision without compromising.
As I said last cycle – if you did not make it into ShackTac, it is not a negative reflection on you as a person. There are many great people who couldn’t be fit into this batch, and my sincere hope is that they filter throughout the broader Arma community and find a place they enjoy and can contribute towards the success of. The way I said it previously hit the nail on the head, so I’ll quote it again here:
If our join inquiries are any indication, there are plenty of quality people out there looking for a good Arma experience. Have a look around the Arma scene, see if there are any groups that you agree with. Make sure you keep in mind the guidelines I listed here regarding what to watch out for in groups. Some of you may have thought about starting new groups – while this isn’t a trivial thing to do, the time is ripe for it. There’s nothing stopping some motivated people with the right ideas, vision, and perseverance, from creating something special.
As to the next join cycle? We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. We need to see what these 35 bring to us first, get them integrated into our community, and allow them time to develop as members. Don’t expect to see another full-scale cycle for quite a few months.
To those of you who didn’t make selection this cycle – thank you for applying, and I am humbled to see how many would like to be a part of our community and how passionately you’ve shown that. Wherever your paths may take you going forward, I hope that you find the enjoyment you seek.
