The Nation of Gau Dring is a fairly new nation to the Realms. It is currently made up of nine members: Joshua Fitzgerald, Rosemary Campbell, Joshua Whelan, Patrick Bucior, Cory Roy, Lisa Lacroix, Edward Lynch, Gabriella Leon, and myself, Elizabeth Ferraina.
Personally, as becoming a new member to the realms, I’ve had many great experiences when it came to creating my character, and finding which path I wanted to go down. I had very little knowledge as to what a nation truly was all about. I had met the members through Joshua Whelan, who had also brought me into the Realms. I am currently a citizen, for I am still developing my character Crystal.
The Nation of Gau Dring, being a fairly new nation, has great potential to grow. Since the nation is made up of a diverse selection of members- fighters, casters, both experienced and new, this allows the opportunity for us to grow together as a whole.
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Photo by Jesse Gifford
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We work well as a team, because we have patience, and keep an open mind on areas we need to improve. When the going gets tough, we think of ways we can work together, instead of calling quits. We are also open and honest with each other, and aren’t afraid of constructive criticism. Our nation leader, Josh Fitzgerald said “In truth our groups ability to do any job given to us and work as a team. This has been apparent to me since Folkstone Questing 2014. We work together unnaturally well for a young group and everyone is willing to pull their weight without question. It it's either that our how much we want to improve ourselves as a nation or individuals.” This will be our nation’s biggest strength is it continues to grow- because each of the members individually put in their time and effort to find ways we can stand strong together. Nation member, Gabriella Leon says- “In character, only time will tell because this is relatively new, out of character, brings a sense of togetherness and family, while also fostering existing positive traits like work ethic, or teamwork etc. I want to be able to grow via adaptation, to fit in almost everywhere, and to not be afraid, or shy to accept a higher roll, or to move up wherever I could be in however much time that could take.”
However, being a newer nation leaves a few areas of improvement- such as the newer Realms members to become more skilled and strong. Member, Patrick Bucior agreed- “For weaknesses, we have a good member base, but the majority is newbies. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but there's still a lot to learn.” Also, member Gabriella Leon states “our weakness- we’re on the small side, newer nation, needs a lot of training in order to kick serious butt.” With a nation as determined as ours, we won’t let each other fail, we will support each other as we improve.
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| Photo by Jesse Gifford |
What attracted me to Gau Dring was the idea of a newer nation forming together. Being friends with the larpers who started the group also gave me an insight as to what they wanted their nation to become. The energy behind the individuals and their hospitality is what put the icing on the cake. Being able to grow as a member, along with several others who were also in the same position. Even being a citizen, I was able to have a part lending a hand when needed.Member Lisa Lacroix explains “The fact that we are all close friends who put together the nation makes for a good foundation for growth.” Our second in command member Rose explained how she also benefitted from Gau Dring- “Joining the nation has had a couple benefits; one being that I get to be a part of a group growing and that's pretty awesome, the other being that the people we worked with before anyways are now a bit more organized. People have a purpose, a goal, and they want to work towards it.” Even though we rely on each other in the nation, we don’t have the constant feeling of obligation to do everything as a group.
Becoming a citizen member of Gau Dring has been beneficial to me both in character, and out of character. In character, it has taught me how to strategize, work cooperatively with the members, and to understand more of what a nation truly was. Because we are able to work so well together, and we all support each other, this allows us to grow, while feeling the comfort of each other’s company. Nation member Cory Roys explains how it benefits him- “This nation has helped me grow. Knowing I have people who will be there to support me is very helpful. I no longer need to feel as if I have to do everything on my own I trust the people in Gau Dring with my life every event we go to knowing that they will try there hardest to help me when I need it.” Out of character, I had the opportunity to get to know the members. We have all become close friends, who I am very thankful to have in my life.
