Antonia the Builder
Private
I'm here with Sierra Sola who is currently ranked 3rd on the player ranks of Sinerania. She has proven herself a workhorse in leadership roles, in GvG and in GBG. Recently she made the shocking move of leaving Terrain Titans to join Synergy Factor in a leadership role. But who is she?
Antonia: So, Sierra, who are you in Forge of Empires? How did you get into the game?
Sierra: I saw a commercial at a pub one night for FoE and thought: "Hey, why not try that out?" Next day I did and I’ve been playing pretty much daily ever since. That was...hhhmmm....June 2016 I think. My first world was O but once I got up to speed there, I started a new city on M and set up my own guild (The Crows) to help newbies learn the ropes. It was a great guild, lots of fun and laughs, but I needed to grow more myself and most of my guildies were a few ages below me...so I left for the bigger top guilds. I played in several there, switching now and then , learning new things, getting super good at GvG , meeting lots of lovely (and some not so lovely) people from around the world. When S started, I was one of the crazy people here on day 1 and it was a hoot with everyone getting set up, guilds popping up all over the place .... mayhem....but fun! Started my own guild but quickly disbanded (within a couple of hours) in favor if leading MoM with Order Within Chaos. Unfortunately, that didn’t quite work out for me so I joined Terrain Titans where I quickly took on leaders status....and here we are today.
Wow, quite a whirlwind tour there, but who is the real Sierra?
Well, she’s 5 feet tall with red hair lol. She smiles and laughs a lot that’s for sure! That’s the extent of my physical description lol. I live in Canada, born and raised in Newfoundland and anyone who knows Newfies will know we are a hardy and super fun breed! I currently live in Calgary, Alberta in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Wish I could show you the view! I work from home and my work involves health data in Canada. I get to work with the World Health Organization (WHO) which entitles me to some nice trips - Tokyo, New York ... lucky me
Sounds like a fantastic life, I'm a bit jealous. What is that you like most about the game? You clearly invest quite a bit of time into it.
This would have to be the people I interact with daily here. My friends. I have learned a lot about different countries and customs, met so many interesting people. Even if just virtually, the friendships you develop are still real here. Big hug to my besties in FoE!
You've been the only non-SF player in the top 6 or 7 for most of the time, what is that like? Did it ever feel threatening knowing that if a GvG war broke out, that surely you wouldn't stand a chance?
Well, honestly, it was kind of cool. Gisk and I would banter about his guild vs mine. We had fun with that, even changing guild names to TT rejects and SF Refugees one day. HaHa! Many players approached me about not being in SF...asking why wasn’t I there? Some expressed they were happy to see me ‘not’ in SF. In any case, I think it made me noticeable here in Sin which is good as it’s lead to many chats with a lot of different players...making more friendships, helping people grow or learn, and just chatting about strategy or anything under the sun
I wasn’t concerned about a war or anything as we had an agreement (SF and TT) that we wouldn’t hit each other.....for now
Mmm... 'for now'...
I believe you started off in MoM early on, and for a while MoM was doing quite well. What happened? Why did you leave?
Yes I did and MoM was second back then I believe. It was very early days though. Startup in MoM was a bit overwhelming... so many people coming and going, newbies not knowing what to do, disagreements, etc. I just didn’t want all that at the time so I left. I’ve stayed good friends with some members and especially Chaos (although not sure anymore with my current guild status if he’ll talk to me again lol).
You've since spent most of your time in TT, with great success, the guild cementing it's second position overall, and with their recent domination of GBG and your contributions in GvG. How have you found that? Are you proud of what you've contributed to?
I am overwhelmingly proud of TT. Don’t let the fact that I left discount that. It’s often been said that TT wouldn’t be where they are without me. I don’t agree with that. Yes, perhaps in the beginning my efforts were very significant, but TT is a strong team now. They work very well together and it’s been my pleasure to be a part of getting that guild so high.
I guess this is the big question now, you've jumped to SF. Why?
TT is at the point now where they are gunning for top spot. And I’m hoping they do challenge SF. Would make for some real good old fashioned in game rivalry and FUN. So why did I go to the enemy? There a few reasons...not all I’ll share....but one is so TT can demonstrate that they are a success without me, that they are a strong guild. Another is Gisk. I’ve gotten to know him and he’s actually a very nice guy....not the ogre or evil overlord that people think he is (lol, sorry Gisk!). He has great gameplay skills and I think it would be very interesting to work alongside him. And finally, I just love this game and moving to SF just makes it all the more interesting....don’t you think? Can the top spot be held ? Are we entering a brutal war? What’s going to happen in TT? Will new alliances be formed? Will others make a guild change? Fun times ahead
It will certainly be interesting, that's for sure. Do you feel like you've betrayed TT members at all? How do you think they feel about you now?
No, I don’t because it’s a game. People may feel upset, angry, frustrated, let down, unsure of their path, whatever....but betrayal to me is a harsh word. I have friends in TT and hope we stay friends. I’m writing this before the move so not sure how they’ll react, but I do expect some PMs that I may not like...and not only from TT members. Overall, as I said, it’s a game and I’m still the same ‘me’ just playing differently now. What’s wrong with that?
So what does the future look like for you and SF? Surely now SF will have an unbeatable lead in GvG. Any plans for improving SF's GBG performance?
Right now I’m just going to get up to speed with SF overall, get to know the members and settle in. Definitely GvG and GBG will be discussed. I’ll not say more than that let’s just wait and see as the dust settles....
Thanks so much for your time Sierra, it's great to let people know what's going on so thanks for your candid responses.
Antonia: So, Sierra, who are you in Forge of Empires? How did you get into the game?
Sierra: I saw a commercial at a pub one night for FoE and thought: "Hey, why not try that out?" Next day I did and I’ve been playing pretty much daily ever since. That was...hhhmmm....June 2016 I think. My first world was O but once I got up to speed there, I started a new city on M and set up my own guild (The Crows) to help newbies learn the ropes. It was a great guild, lots of fun and laughs, but I needed to grow more myself and most of my guildies were a few ages below me...so I left for the bigger top guilds. I played in several there, switching now and then , learning new things, getting super good at GvG , meeting lots of lovely (and some not so lovely) people from around the world. When S started, I was one of the crazy people here on day 1 and it was a hoot with everyone getting set up, guilds popping up all over the place .... mayhem....but fun! Started my own guild but quickly disbanded (within a couple of hours) in favor if leading MoM with Order Within Chaos. Unfortunately, that didn’t quite work out for me so I joined Terrain Titans where I quickly took on leaders status....and here we are today.
Wow, quite a whirlwind tour there, but who is the real Sierra?
Well, she’s 5 feet tall with red hair lol. She smiles and laughs a lot that’s for sure! That’s the extent of my physical description lol. I live in Canada, born and raised in Newfoundland and anyone who knows Newfies will know we are a hardy and super fun breed! I currently live in Calgary, Alberta in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Wish I could show you the view! I work from home and my work involves health data in Canada. I get to work with the World Health Organization (WHO) which entitles me to some nice trips - Tokyo, New York ... lucky me
Sounds like a fantastic life, I'm a bit jealous. What is that you like most about the game? You clearly invest quite a bit of time into it.
This would have to be the people I interact with daily here. My friends. I have learned a lot about different countries and customs, met so many interesting people. Even if just virtually, the friendships you develop are still real here. Big hug to my besties in FoE!
You've been the only non-SF player in the top 6 or 7 for most of the time, what is that like? Did it ever feel threatening knowing that if a GvG war broke out, that surely you wouldn't stand a chance?
Well, honestly, it was kind of cool. Gisk and I would banter about his guild vs mine. We had fun with that, even changing guild names to TT rejects and SF Refugees one day. HaHa! Many players approached me about not being in SF...asking why wasn’t I there? Some expressed they were happy to see me ‘not’ in SF. In any case, I think it made me noticeable here in Sin which is good as it’s lead to many chats with a lot of different players...making more friendships, helping people grow or learn, and just chatting about strategy or anything under the sun
I wasn’t concerned about a war or anything as we had an agreement (SF and TT) that we wouldn’t hit each other.....for now
Mmm... 'for now'...
I believe you started off in MoM early on, and for a while MoM was doing quite well. What happened? Why did you leave?
Yes I did and MoM was second back then I believe. It was very early days though. Startup in MoM was a bit overwhelming... so many people coming and going, newbies not knowing what to do, disagreements, etc. I just didn’t want all that at the time so I left. I’ve stayed good friends with some members and especially Chaos (although not sure anymore with my current guild status if he’ll talk to me again lol).
You've since spent most of your time in TT, with great success, the guild cementing it's second position overall, and with their recent domination of GBG and your contributions in GvG. How have you found that? Are you proud of what you've contributed to?
I am overwhelmingly proud of TT. Don’t let the fact that I left discount that. It’s often been said that TT wouldn’t be where they are without me. I don’t agree with that. Yes, perhaps in the beginning my efforts were very significant, but TT is a strong team now. They work very well together and it’s been my pleasure to be a part of getting that guild so high.
I guess this is the big question now, you've jumped to SF. Why?
TT is at the point now where they are gunning for top spot. And I’m hoping they do challenge SF. Would make for some real good old fashioned in game rivalry and FUN. So why did I go to the enemy? There a few reasons...not all I’ll share....but one is so TT can demonstrate that they are a success without me, that they are a strong guild. Another is Gisk. I’ve gotten to know him and he’s actually a very nice guy....not the ogre or evil overlord that people think he is (lol, sorry Gisk!). He has great gameplay skills and I think it would be very interesting to work alongside him. And finally, I just love this game and moving to SF just makes it all the more interesting....don’t you think? Can the top spot be held ? Are we entering a brutal war? What’s going to happen in TT? Will new alliances be formed? Will others make a guild change? Fun times ahead
It will certainly be interesting, that's for sure. Do you feel like you've betrayed TT members at all? How do you think they feel about you now?
No, I don’t because it’s a game. People may feel upset, angry, frustrated, let down, unsure of their path, whatever....but betrayal to me is a harsh word. I have friends in TT and hope we stay friends. I’m writing this before the move so not sure how they’ll react, but I do expect some PMs that I may not like...and not only from TT members. Overall, as I said, it’s a game and I’m still the same ‘me’ just playing differently now. What’s wrong with that?
So what does the future look like for you and SF? Surely now SF will have an unbeatable lead in GvG. Any plans for improving SF's GBG performance?
Right now I’m just going to get up to speed with SF overall, get to know the members and settle in. Definitely GvG and GBG will be discussed. I’ll not say more than that let’s just wait and see as the dust settles....
Thanks so much for your time Sierra, it's great to let people know what's going on so thanks for your candid responses.