12 Oct 2014 at 11:53 - 1297
Congratulations, Max. Your dual-reduction shield collection is the finest of its kind. You have earned a spot in the eternal pantheon of Guild Wars collectors. As the game continues to find its way forward, your name will be whispered in hushed tones by those who continue the quest to sit in the presence of Guild Wars' ancient soul. They will claim to have known you. They will claim to have seen the relics you lovingly preserve. For the players who remain, you and your collection have become part of the history they will try to unearth. You are not leaving the game. You and your collection have become part of it. Thank you for sharing your treasures with us one last time.
It is time for you to pursue other challenges. Before you go, I'd like to acknowledge some of your achievements that can't be seen. Years ago, Guild Wars faced challenges that are not unlike those it faces today. Greed and ignorance are not new forces in the trading/collecting universe. Under the weight of those forces, an older generation of collectors had faded from the game. The gentlemanly trader was becoming a rare and dying breed. The history of the game (as manifested in its ancient relics) was becoming lost, relegated to rumor and legend -- much of which focused on players whose accounts had been annihilated by well-deserved bans. The game, its economy, as well as its history were crumbling as a result of rampant greed and ignorance.
At this critical point, you were hand-picked from the flock of fledgling traders and brought into [PhD] for your intelligence, integrity, and humor. You appreciated items not only for their rarity and market value, but also for their value as historical artifacts. You understood the importance of preserving that history and making it accessible to everyone who sought to understand it. You understood that this mission could not be accomplished by collectors who did not hold the respect of the Guild Wars public. You contributed to that mission with the single-finest dual-reduction shield collection ever assembled. You assembled your collection in the finest tradition of the gentleman trader.
In doing so, you helped to preserve not only the history of the game, but also a way of being in it. A revitalized community grew up around you. As the last officer of [PhD], you have helped to guide the guild through the last couple of years. Our roster has grown enormously through your efforts. Under your hand, a once-small and semi-secret guild has assumed a more public character, while maintaining its vision, focus, and integrity. [PhD] has been a labor of love for me and I want to publicly thank you (as I have privately many times), on the occasion of your official retirement, for laboring alongside me, Kabong, and our [PhD] brethren to ensure that the ancient soul of the game never perishes from Guild Wars.
