I’ve heard this term to be used, been wondering what it means ? 
The most dominant clan.
1 Like
But how is measured? Is it like who have the most level 60 members in the clan? Or who has the most bases? Or who has beaten the other clans?
I actually read an interview recently with the researcher who coined the term Alpha.
He was interestingly annoyed with the commonly incorrect use of the word alpha.
He explained how people use it a lot when they should be using the term bully. Usually Alphas are the more fair and diplomatic protectors. Often the strongest physically but not always. They make everyone feel they will be treated fairly and protected.
Just saying.
I have also noticed that the newer server I am playing on seems to have two alpha tribes who are big and powerful but very reasonable. They dont start fights with clans but they finish they do finish them. The server is full and very fun. Both of these clans have good alpha leaders. They arent just good fighters, builders or farmers. They have a sense of how many clans are forming and what type of clans are building.
4 Likes
About 90% of my time I have came in contact with “bully” alphas,which either wipe random clans or pretend they are nice but secretly supply bombs to other clans to raid,then they share the loot. (this happened with my current server and they messed up on the log and got caught). Basically it is the biggest clan with the most control of the map in Conan. I have however seen Alphas go mad bored and wipe whole servers which later started anew,but I have come in contact with very nice Alphas maybe once or twice,which are true Alphas.
My clan was alpha on a server. We kept law and order. Some players liked it, others did not. We got bored and restarted on a very active server and have just been raiding every day. We’re not yet the “Alpha Clan” on this new server, and if we did, we would probably move somewhere new if content became scarce.
My clan is alpha on my server. We’re stern, but fair.
…Okay fine I’m the only person on my server.
3 Likes
I’d be interested to see the article, cause I’ve known the term to go back as far as over 20 years ago. To describe alpha clans/units in Netmech, clans in Battlenet, and guilds in the first gen MMORPGs.
Suffice to say, it always means what the dictionary means for it to mean. The strongest individual or group.
Wanna be alpha’s call themselves alpha’s, posing with the legend of real Alpha’s
Aplha clans are just masked as alpha’s but will not prevail a such.
Alpha’s are not in clans, are supreme, carry the burden of the eye of all sight, you will not hear nor see them.
Oke, part from this text. 
A true alpha:
- builds public map rooms and protects every obilisk with anti-grief barriers.
- greets and get’s to know each and every person on the server. Usually friends with everyone.
- destroys enemies who threaten others and the integrity of the whole server.
- Is so rich, they offer gifts of superior tools, repair kits and thralls to those in need.
- preserve the land and keep public areas available, i.e. silver spawns and brimstone lakes.
- is usually an alpha not by tyranny, but by being able to afford altruism, through wisdom and experience.
- cannot be slandered, for all on the server know him.
- cannot be challenged, for challenging him is challenging the server itself.
- is only superceded by chuck norris.
1 Like
The servercommunity itself builds together, one should share when asked,
but not force it upon players as you see on almost every pve-c server there is a village idiot offering all for free.
Narcists spamming the server with their awesome walls and builds.
Not my cuppa tea.
Yeah. Being alpha isn’t about overcompensating or being macho. It’s about sustainable and symbiotic control.
In a world with an infinite supply of fresh water and renewable resources, there really shouldn’t be any conflict. Conan Exiles is an opportunity for us to re-assess ourselves.
The most powerful alphas always have the interest of the server at heart, which is why challenging a beneficent alpha is like challenging the server itself, unless you too are a beneficent alpha, at which point no conflict is needed.
Only tyrants challenge a beneficent alpha.
Like BabyDriver said:
When there are 2 alphas, they co-exist, until one of them either quits or corrupts.
When an alpha corrupts, there is usually a succession war.
If an alpha quits, with another alpha in existence, it’s usually either a consolidation, unification or inheritance.
Only animals can have 1 alpha at a time cuz it’s in their firmware, but humans are capable of having multiple alphas in one faction, especially if they are all wise. They are usually known as councils.
The touchy feely nonsense is rather sickening to say the least. But let me expose why we’re seeing it in this thread. First let me explain what I’m targeting.
“An alpha has the best interest of the server in mind”
“An alpha is not a tyrant”
“An alpha is not a bully”
These are the words of players who are incapable of challenging a clan properly. So they use shaming and insults to try to get the behavior they wish out of others. Its no different than the petty terms of Casual Player and Hardcore Raiderr that popped up about 17 years ago to describe Everquest players.
Back then prior to Shadows and Luclin, and Planes of Power (latter made this more pronounced). You had vastly different varying levels of geared players playing together. For much of the vanilla, Kunark, and Velious content, slapping on whatever weapon you could find, getting some banded armor crafted, and filling in jewelry from a crafter for a hundred plat or so would be good enough.
Fastforward to the end of Luclin and beginning of Power, and you had problems if people in the group did not have better gear than the vary basic I mentioned. In Power you even needed some light raiding to be done to get some gear needed to just survive.
The problem is people were now being turned away from leveling groups due to gear or didn’t have their epic weapon or better. In disgust, these players started doing something similar to what we said here. Instead of fixing the problem, they insulted the ones who turned them down. Calling them hardcore no life raiders. Insisting they were casuals who had a life, job, kids, ect.
Of course later in WoW the raiding communities owned the term hardcore and started calling the others filthy casuals in response.
We’re seeing something similar here. People are trying to mislabel the alpha clan title in order to shame people into better behavior.
Let me tell you all something. That doesn’t work. First it doesn’t make sense. The definition of the word is clearly strongest not nicest. And second those asshats that bully and terrorize are simply going to laugh at you.
You want them to conform? Do it the real way. Make them conform. Don’t use petty words and passive aggression. Use actual actions. Hell follow them server to server and chase them off each time. I guarantee that will be far more satisfying than simply throwing words like bully around as you watch them chase noobs out of the game.
That last one is the worst part about this thread and the people in it. You all would sit there throwing insults as innocent players are getting chased off. Just because you lack the gall to stand up for them or yourselves.
This doesn’t apply to everyone here. But the fact that we’re resorting to mere words proves that some of you are. Those of you who have taken action. You have my respect.
As does anyone who is an alpha of a decently populated server. Bully or protector. Its takes effort and work to get there either way. Good or evil, both deserve respect. You cannot have benevolent protectors without malevolent marauders.
1 Like
On Conan Exiles PVP servers people call the strongest, most dominant clan “alpha”.
They word alpha doesn’t describe if they are nice or not. Normally after some period of time you will read more and more often in chat that “clan ABC is the alpha here”. Once this happens and most players agree you got your alpha.
My clan was the alpha clan so many times that I can certainly tell that this title is nothing to be proud of in Conan Exiles at all times. Atleast not when you look at the way alphas become alpha on official servers. This is were bullying comes into the discussion. I can just exploit and grief people to the point were they just give up and leave the server. Et voila! I’m alpha. Or I can just farm T3 and build for months until everyone is so bored and I’m the only one left = alpha.
On private PVP servers however on which at the same time several clans with 5 to 10 active, skilled members fight each other this becomes a different topic. If one clan manages to defeat all others (which is hard to tell) constantly this clan slowly becomes the alpha clan. But if this is the case they often don’t call themselves alpha. It’s a title others grant you either by stating it verbally or by their actions = not raiding you, not fighting you, giving up and leaving the server for example. If this thought comes up “Nah, better not challenge clan X because it won’t end well for us in the end.” it’s likely clan x is the alpha clan.
1 Like
You’re definitely right that Official is a different ball game.
The way I see it, anythign that doesn’t get you outright banned on official is fair game. Players wanted a Pure Unmoderated server. That’s what you get on Official. You can offline raid, you can foundation spam, and there is nothing stopping you from running other players out.
Thats why people choose Official over Private, so they can engage in those things. They ought not cry foul when someone outdoes them in it.
I will try to find links. I read something the guy wrote and watched a ted talk he gave about alpha’s. Again he basically said one of his huge annoyances is how often the word or term has been miss used since it’s inception.
So it boils down to an opinion at most. And mostly irrelevant due to the nature of PVP. A competitive environment in which this game (or rather the servers in question) are based around.
This topic was automatically closed 7 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.