The Rubi-Ka Marriage Registry – a guide.

The Rubi-Ka Marriage Registry – a guide.

Every day out there on Rubi-Ka people find someone who understands them, a friendship grows and perhaps one day this friendship evolves into something more, something different. Love. Then one day while hunting those daunting creatures that inhabit the planet you find an engagement ring which makes you think: “Wow! This ring is a perfect symbol of my feelings for him or her! I wish there was someone who could help us show the world how we feel about each other.”

Well look no more. The Rubi-Ka Marriage Registry is here to help you celebrate the joys of marriage in these dark times, and I am here to help you through the process of requesting a wedding ceremony, give a few tips and some information about the service of the RKMR.

What to know when planning your RKMR wedding:

Location:

The first step in planning your wedding in Anarchy Online (after deciding who you are going to marry, be it a man, an atrox or a woman) is to decide where your wedding is going to be held. There are a number of locations to choose from both on Rubi-Ka and in the Shadowlands.

Weddings can be done anywhere on Rubi-Ka, including in player apartments, bars, and towns, but under no circumstances can they take place in dungeons, missions, near or around a Dynacamp or in PvP areas. Weddings in the Shadowlands can only take place on a few select locations due to the safety of the couple, guests and of the RKMR Registrar.

You can view some of our more popular Rubi-Ka locations and all of the Shadowlands locations on the ARK website by following this link: http://ark.funcom.com/Public/ARKsite?page_id=20

It is also possible to get a tour of the different locations by a member of the ARK CR Weddings Team or a RKMR Registrar if you really can’t decide on a suitable location.

Scheduling:

The second step in planning your wedding is to decide when the event should take place. Be sure to discuss this with your partner as well as your wedding party guests to make sure the time is convenient for everyone involved.

While we require you to submit your wedding request at least 72 hours (3 days) before your ceremony, ideally you should submit your request at least one week in advance to allow the RKMR to select a Registrar available for your ceremony time.

You will be contacted online as soon as a Registrar commits to perform your ceremony and they will be available to answer any questions you might have. The sooner we receive your weddings request, the sooner you will be contacted by your registrar.

To help the RKMR find a Registrar fairly quickly, it is important that the time you tell us is given in GMT/UTC time, not in your own time zone. For this you can easily take advantage of one of the many websites that help convert time, one such could be: The Time Zone Converter or Timeanddate.com.

Selecting your vows and ceremony type:

You have a few options when choosing a ceremony to be held. You and your partner can choose to write your own vows, or use a set of pre-written vows specific to each faction. Clan partners can choose from either clan oriented or neutral vows, Omni partners can choose from omni oriented or neutral vows, and Neutral or mixed couples are encouraged to use neutral vows. We also offer a Nature ceremony and a Technology ceremony to all factions, both with vows already written.

The difference between the ceremonies is most pronounced in the OmniTek ceremony, which is presented as a Merger between two parties, in a most profound business sense. The Neutral ceremony is very close to what most would consider a "traditional" wedding ceremony (based on love and peace), and the Clan ceremony is similar with more emphasis on honor and loyalty. The Nature ceremony is very much like a pagan ceremony, calling on the elements to witness the union and the Technology ceremony is less about love, than about the mutual commitment of intellect and trust.

Submitting your request:

On the ARK website you can find a description of the details we need from you to process your wedding request, and for us to do this best it is important that all the details is listed, especially that the time given is listed in GMT and noted as such. If you are unsure of the correct GMT time you can give the time in your own time zone, but then remember to list what time zone you live in and we will assist you in converting the time.

The details needed are:
Names of the couple, date and time (both listed in GMT), dimension you are on, a suggested location for the wedding, type of ceremony and vows you want and finally how many guests you expect to be invited.

A tip for easier contact with the RKMR Registrar, who will be assigned to your wedding, is to tell us when you are counting on being available in game. The more days and times you give us, the better. A good rule of thumb is to add as much information as possible, and ask if you’re in doubt.

Additional plans:

If you want to have a party/reception after your wedding, the RKMR Registrar can unfortunately not help you plan that but he might be able to give you a few tips on what to do to make it memorable for you.

Some couples wish to have live entertainment or music for the ceremony and/or reception, if you would like that then you could contact one of the local radio stations of Rubi-Ka (the most prominent being Gridstream Productions and Excess Radio). Keep in mind that RKMR cannot contact or schedule these extracurriculars on your behalf, you must do so on your own, and signing up for events with the radio stations might require you to contact them by a much earlier deadline (perhaps weeks in advance).

What to expect from RKMR:

Once we have all of the required information to plan your wedding, we will begin the process of finding a registrar to perform the wedding. At least 24 hours before the wedding, you can expect to be contacted by your registrar to go over the ceremony with you and to answer any last minute questions you might have about the ceremony.

The Registrar can even help you out with a few things to make your wedding a special day. Marriage rings, flowers and assisting with a shared last name are just some of the things that he can provide you with.

If your wedding party is expected to be a large one, you may be contacted by the RKMR with suggestions and plans to make your wedding both manageable and memorable.


You may also email weddings@aoark.org you have any questions about weddings on Rubi-Ka or if you wish to schedule a particular time to meet with someone from the team.

To help you choose the right kinds of vows, here are some examples of the premade vows:

Neutral:
We offer joy and happiness for our beautiful couple who stand so proudly before us.
We wish that they will always find ways to strengthen their love for each other.
..
Do you take your beloved as your partner in marriage...
To never falter in your love and trust, through both good times and bad...
To remain committed in that love, come sickness, war or poverty...
Do you swear these things until the time of permanent death?

Clan:
May the strength and spirit of the Clans be with us here!
Today we shall join these two in one of the most noble bonds!
..
Do you take your partner as your beloved in marriage
To never falter in your love and trust, through both good times and bad,
To remain committed in that love, come sickness, war or poverty,
Do you swear these things until the time of permanent death?

Omni Contractual:
These two are entering the contract of marriage. I shall now read the Matrimonial Contract at the end of which both parties will be asked to agree
This is an Oral Contract, legal, binding and enforceable under the laws of the Omni-Tek Corporation...
1. The parties agree to do nothing to purposely harm either in body, spirit, or mind, and agree to take action to protect each other from such harms.
2. They agree to nurture this relationship and grow together in the ways of the Corporation, providing strength and willpower to both each other and to the cause.
3. The parties agree to live in accordance with the traditions and values of the Corporation, and to further the aims and goals thereof.
4. They agree to work together to expand their financial profitability to support each other, and the Corporation.
Do you agree to abide by this contract, for as long as you are able?

Omni Traditional:
Brothers and Sisters within the family of Omni-Tek!
We offer our thoughts for a moment, to the happy couple, who today shall be placed in marriage before us.
We offer them emotions of happiness, to eternally find happiness within each other, and Omni-Tek.
..
I now ask you each to agree to these Marriage Vows.
Do you take your beloved for your wedded partner...
to love and cherish them from this day forward, for better or worse,
for richer or for poorer and in sickness and in health?

Technology:
I ask you both now to step forward to stand before me, as two creatures of intellect, equals willing to undertake the responsibility of this decision.
..
Please turn to face your partner and repeat after me.
I vow to you that I will forever strive,
To seek with you the perfection of being.
To discover with you the full power of intellect.
To seek enlightment in our one unified mind.
I offer myself to this pact, with trust and intellect.

Nature/pagan:
The two of you stand here before your friends, the elements and the Ancient Ones to join together as the beginning of a family!
..
Groom, What do you have to offer this person for their love?
I present to this person my love and my pledge.
May I never knowingly or willingly do such a thing to harm, nor grieve them in any form or fashion.
Accept this my ring, as a token of my trust. Like its metal, may my faith be as strong.
Like its craftsmanship may our love be enduring, and our fight together be successful.
Accept it my love, for that which is mine is yours.