While we all patiently wait for Blizzard to unveil the last two tiles of the Battlecry Mosaic, the team surprised us by kicking off a new series of player interviews on the World of Warcraft five-year anniversary site. The first Q&A is with Shadowclan, a roleplaying guild on the Ravenholdt server.

Shadowclan is a guild that consists entirely of orcs and the few trolls who prove their worth and dedication. Whether you roleplay or not, the interview is a fun read. You can check it out after the jump.

It looks like the next player interview will be with Palehoof, who is a member of the forum MVP program. We're also still waiting for Blizzard to continue its series of developer interviews and post its Q&A with Production Director J. Allen Brack on the anniversary site.

The Shadowclan, a role-playing guild with a long-standing membership and commitment to immersion in MMORPG environments, has had a strong history in World of Warcraft. A guild consisting entirely of orcs and the few trolls who prove their worth and dedication, Shadowclan focuses on having fun and enriching their own unique place within the Warcraft universe. We recently asked them to share their experiences as a World of Warcraft guild with the larger community.

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Shadowclan appears to have been around for a long time and survived through multiple games on the market. How did this group initially form?

In 1997 a small group of now-historical individuals (we call them Elders) playing Ultima Online wanted a more intelligent enemy to fight than the NPCs. They ended up putting on NPC orc armor and helms, playing as orcs, and becoming that intelligent enemy for others.

What is it about World of Warcraft that drew the guild in to begin with?

Orcs! That we could be orcs again was one of the first things that caught our attention. Of course world PvP, the shine of a new gaming world, and the quality of the game were important too.

Is there a particular event or memory for the guild that stands out from their time in World of Warcraft these past five years?

For many of us, some of our best memories are of early PvP experiences or events, such as the Yeti Cave defenses in Hillsbrad, or the assault on Duskwood when we ended up holing up in a barn just outside of town while swarms of Alliance characters fought to get inside and wipe us out. Some of us also fondly remember the six weeks after launch, during which we spent large amounts of time in-game testing new members, holding basic boot-camps (new member training), and putting the clan together in-game.

In World of Warcraft, you maintain a strong hostility toward the Alliance, being on an RP-PvP realm, but you also remain a clan of orcs untrusting of the Horde’s other racial alliances (reportedly aside from the occasional troll who has proven his or her worth). Does this present you with a challenge with any aspects of gameplay given your limited access to World of Warcraft classes?

Class limitations have definitely been a challenge (probably more so in the past). But Shadowclan overcame these obstacles by learning how to use what we had and work together as a team. We defeated the Dwarf Army room in Blackrock Depths when everyone said it couldn't be done without a mage. We cleared Upper Blackrock Spire with all-orc raids, when again it was claimed to be impossible. We defeated Mechanar with a four-orc group of three shamans and one warrior. We even ran through Heroic Shattered Halls with one troll priest and four orc warriors! It does require a certain stubbornness, and a willingness to keep trying and alter strategies to fit our group composition. Some players who are more loot-focused can get frustrated with this sort of play style, but often those victories were a lot more satisfying then the times when we were able to blaze through dungeons with no troubles at all.

Beyond maintaining strong characters and storylines while in the game, on what types of gameplay is Shadowclan focused? Do you raid a lot, focus on Battlegrounds, attack enemy capitals, or compete in the Arenas?

All of the above and many more. Besides the standard gameplay, questing and Battlegrounds and such, we also hold various events, such as Grunting Expeditions (a sort of in-game leadership test before advancing a member to a higher guild-rank), world PvP events, story-telling trips, RP games (usually held in Outland), intra-guild tournaments, PvP practice, fishing trips, boot-camps (working new members into the clan), our Drinkee Fest, and cliff-jumping competitions. (Included is a picture of one of our cliff-jumping teams as they prepare to start. Cliff-jumping consists of finding a high point with a sharp drop off, and then jumping. Respect is earned for those with the longest jumps, best falls, and most spectacular deaths. As there's always a lot of dying involved, they're almost always done naked.) We do whatever the players are interested in doing. And, though we have a clear leadership hierarchy, day-to-day activities aren't entirely governed by the leaders. Any Shadowclan player can work on organizing trips and events for activities that they enjoy.

The act of role-playing is often little understood or sometimes misrepresented by those unfamiliar with this type of in-game interaction. How has Shadowclan dealt with this over the years; and what types of reactions do you get from other players on your realm given that you focus on rich character and guild storylines?

The reactions on the Ravenholdt server have been very welcoming. And, the nature of Shadowclan and our guild history makes us a very inclusive guild. We invite anyone to RP with us. We have RP interactions with other guilds, and often have pleasant interactions with even the non-RPers on our server. We've learned that the best way to react to the occasional unpleasant interaction is to stay in-character. It's not uncommon for non-role-players to drop into character when confronted with a steadfast role-player. And many a pick-up group has had a crash course in Orcish (or at least our version of broken-English) while working their way through a dungeon.

What kind of leadership structure is in place to resolve any conflicts between members of the guild and keep it a tight organization?

Shadowclan has always had a designated quality control team, a group of players responsible for handling conflicts between members and enforcing our rules of conduct, while doing their best to allow everyone to have fun. In each game Shadowclan plays (called a 'branch') we have a single branch leader responsible for ensuring that the branch follows the Shadowclan rules, meets the Shadowclan standards, and stays true to the Shadowclan 'vision.' Branch leaders are carefully chosen by the Clan Helm (our clan leadership council) and have demonstrated, usually through long years of previous leadership service, that they 'get' what Shadowclan is about, so we keep a consistent guild 'feel' in each game. .

How has the guild evolved in World of Warcraft over the past five years, particularly given that a lot of the lore in The Burning Crusade related to the back story of your guild’s foundation?

As the game gains more lore, the Shadowclan adapts to that lore. We work it into our backstory, use it in our role-play, and interact with the world as much as the game allows us to. Though backstory doesn't come up much in day-to-day role-play, it's always there when needed. With the game changes, and as new games come up, over the years our member interest in World of Warcraft has surged and receded, but we've always had a steady presence here, and probably always will. There's even been a renewed interest lately -- a return of members who tried other games but decided to come back. .

Given that the game is in a constant state of evolution, how do you anticipate your guild will react to the changes coming in Cataclysm?

That depends on the exact nature of the events that will be coming forth in Cataclysm. From the rumors about how Garrosh Hellscream will be taking over, some of our characters will be enthralled with his leadership and view him as a much stronger leader than Thrall. Pre-Cataclysm, we've had some prominent players within our clan who had the fall of the Lich King send them on a journey of self-discovery which has proved interesting. The leaders and members of this branch keep a close eye on news about Cataclysm. We are even having discussions about possibly allowing goblins into the guild.

For those interested in elements of role-play or becoming a member of Shadowclan, do you openly recruit new players? If so, how can players get involved?

Shadowclan has always had open recruitment. That means that anyone can join us. All that's needed is a willingness to role-play and the ability to create a character based on our guidelines. Some basic knowledge of guild rules and structure is also helpful, but that can be learned in-game. For someone who knows nothing about us, all it takes is a few minutes checking out the World of Warcraft branch of our website at www.shadowclan.com to learn everything they need to know.