THE GREAT BRITISH HOBBIT LEAGUE NEEDS YOU!

"The hour grows late, and The Great British Hobbit League comes seeking your counsel..."

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To many of you The GBHL is simply a Facebook page in which hobbyists share tales of woe from their latest crushing at the hands of the Vanquishers of the Necromancer, or seek inspiration from the great painters and craftsmen of the virtual halls. But to others, it's a network of tournaments which seeks to unite gamers, hobbyists, and Tolkein fanatics across the country by putting on regular events centred around the Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game. There's a competitive element to this, ranking players by the most wins and podium finishes they receive, but also keeping a tally of the Artisans and Friends of Middle Earth (more on the rankings here).

To make all this run smoothly there's a White Council of volunteers who co-ordinate events so they don't clash (we want to make sure as many folk meet as possible!), publicise them, look after rankings, arbitrate on any issues between Organisers & Players; and all other sundry.

But, unlike the White Council, there are no supreme beings to decide whether we should advise or rule over the Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game's premier league; instead we host bi-annual elections.

Anyone can be elected to a position in the league and the process is voted for by the dozens of people who arrange tournaments in the League (which in turn, could be anyone - see here if you want to host a GBHL Tourney).

Elections are on their way, and we're always looking for people keen to get involved. I took on the role of Marketing Co-Ordinator last year, and it's been great fun being involved in a group dedicated to improving this group we all interract in.

So, what are you waiting for?!

Roles to be Elected:

• League Co-Ordinator (Essentially the Boss). The Co-ordinator chairs meetings and pulls together all the information from the other committe members. They are responsible for overall strategy, queries among other numerous things.

• Rankings Officer (Spreadsheet Whizz). This is someone who LOVES spreadsheets and is adept at using them to keep the complex rankings system up to date after each tournament.

• League Secretary (Rulespack Sub). This is someone who has a keen eye for any potential concerns about tournament rules or other issues relating to Rulespacks. They check each rulespack to ensure they're balanced and don't give anyone unfair advantages towards winning League Points.

• Treasurer (Mr/Mrs Moneybags). This is the member who checks the financials of the league. Each Tournament contributes to a pot which pays for prizes for the winners of the league, including Most Sporting and Best Painter of the season, the treasurer also keeps track of income and expenditure in a transparent way.

• Scheduling Co-Ordinator (Calendar Boss). This is someone capable of juggling a complex (and ever expanding) schedule of tournaments. We want to encourage events to not clash, and to make sure players competing have a chance to balance life with tournament play (i.e. not having three competitive tournaments back to back or on the same weekend!)

• Regional Co-Ordinators (Friend of the TOs). These are three roles (North, Central, South) to assist Tournament Organisers. They are experienced TOs themselves and can assist new and old events with any issues. That could be getting terrain, submitting scores, promotion, or simply advice on rules restrictions etc.

• Marketing Co-Ordinator (Me... Awks). This is someone who loves the game, and can't stop talking about it. They have to be an adept writer and be able to update this blog and post regular league updates in the GBHL Page. They're also encouraged to promote the league in other ways via Social Media Influencers. Good communication is key, as you'll have to translate complex rulings or results into fun prose, as well as edit anyone who submits an article to the blog.

And that's It, do any of those sound interesting? Have you got ideas about ways you'd want to change things? Would you like to give it a bit of a shake up?

Get in touch, we'll advise you on the process (it'll involve a written summary of what you'd bring to the table and what relevant experience you have).

YOU HAVE UNTIL NOVEMBER 22nd TO REGISTER YOUR INTEREST - CONTACT US: GBHLevents@outlook.com.

(Or in the pinned post on the GBHL Facebook page.)