Ambassador - Lesson 6
Maintaining a Healthy Community
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Hello there and welcome back to the Ambassador Program for Star Wars™: Unlimited.
As always, I’m your host Jonah, and in this lesson, we will first take a look at what a healthy community means and why it is important before diving into some overarching strategies and specific tips for achieving it. Developing and maintaining a community isn’t easy - there are always new challenges, and each interaction, while you can build on previous lessons, will require a fresh approach.
Maintaining a community means knowing what you want the atmosphere and environment to be, which includes knowing your audience and who is a part of your community. A college club should have a different atmosphere from a league where parents and their children play as a team. It means being comfortable with the fact that your community will shift in size - sometimes seasonally, based on when school is in session, sometimes less predictably, based on the success of the set or other factors you can’t prepare for.
It also means being prepared to deal with disruptive members of the community - some of whom may be deeply invested and not aware that their behavior isn’t appropriate. Having expectations for your community starts simple enough, but enforcing those standards can be very difficult - you’re not going to be able to satisfying everyone, and it means you’re going to lose some of what you’ve built.
It also takes a toll on you - managing your own well-being, preserving your own health and comfort with the community is hugely important, and managing the community can be very taxing. Developing systems for resilience and support are key in long term success.
That’s a lot to talk about, so let’s dive in.
Defining a Healthy Community
There are many ways to think about what makes a community space positive and healthy, but for this lesson, we’ll focus on two core elements. First, it must be a place where people can genuinely enjoy themselves and feel welcome. And second, for the environment to last, the community itself must participate in maintaining that positivity. Let’s take a closer look at each of these ideas.
A major part of a positive environment is ensuring that different types of players can find their own version of fun. Even in Star Wars: Unlimited, people show up with varied motivations - some love big, flashy plays and epic moments, others enjoy clever mechanics or flavorful deck themes. Some want to express creativity with unique builds, while others are driven by competition and self-improvement. A healthy environment makes space for all of these styles and avoids dismissing or belittling certain formats, decks, or approaches to the game. No one should feel that their preferred way of enjoying Star Wars: Unlimited is second-rate.
Another key piece of a positive space is how it treats new and returning participants. Star Wars: Unlimited, like any strategy game, has a learning curve, and new content is always coming out. People will make mistakes in front of others, and that can feel embarassing. It’s far better when errors are treated as opportunities for learning, rather than something to feel shame for. Experienced members of the community can make a huge difference by being approachable and supportive. Growth comes from helping people feel like they belong - not from squeezing out short-term advantages.
Finally, a lasting positive environment is one where the community actively supports people of all backgrounds. That includes being welcoming to community members of different genders, identities, cultures, ages, abilities, finances, and beliefs. It’s easy to assume inclusion happens on its own, but in practice, it takes intention.
Crucially, positivity needs reinforcement. Setting the tone isn’t enough - there must be follow-through, so that respectful and welcoming behavior becomes the norm. When that culture takes root, it begins to sustain itself, making every event a place people want to return to.
Why It Matters
A healthy community doesn’t just feel good - it determines whether your space survives and thrives. When people enjoy themselves, feel supported, and know they belong, they keep coming back. They bring new players, invite friends, share content, and contribute ideas. A positive environment becomes magnetic, drawing in participants who add new skills, perspectives, and energy. It also reduces friction - fewer conflicts, fewer misunderstandings, and fewer stressful situations for organizers and leaders to clean up later.
On the flip side, neglecting the health of a community can create slow, quiet damage. Players may not openly complain, but they drift away. Newcomers might show up once and never return. People who feel excluded may never say a word, and yet they - and those who might have followed - are lost. Toxicity or unchecked negativity creates pressure that others can feel even if they’re not directly involved.
A healthy community also gives you room to grow and adapt. When participants feel ownership and pride, they help shoulder responsibilities and uphold standards, rather than expecting a single leader or organizer to carry the weight alone. This shared investment makes the group resilient through challenges, changes, and conflict. It gives leaders time to rest and think bigger instead of constantly putting out fires.
Ultimately, a healthy community enables everything else - events, content creation, local scenes, and long-term engagement. Without it, even well-intentioned efforts fall apart. With it, almost anything becomes possible.
Managing Trust
While working in this space, some important concepts to understand are the “Trust Thermocline” and how much work it takes to repair a falsehood or a betrayal. You may not plan to betray anyone (I hope not!), but sometimes a strategic and impersonal decision can feel calculated to undermine someone. An accidental miscommunication or unintentional lapse can feel like deception, even when intentions were innocent.
Repairing lost trust takes patience, transparency, and consistent follow-through. Start by acknowledging the impact your actions had, rather than focusing solely on intent. Explain the reasoning behind your decisions when appropriate, and invite dialogue so affected individuals feel heard. Actions speak louder than words - demonstrating reliability over time is essential.
It’s also important to recognize that trust isn’t rebuilt overnight. Some members may remain cautious or skeptical for longer than you expect, and that’s natural. There’s an old adage that says it takes a hundred truths to repair a lie, and while this may be extreme, the underlying concept is accurate. Maintain professionalism, stay consistent in your communication, and show through repeated behavior that you are committed to fairness and community well-being. By taking these steps, even mistakes and misunderstandings can become opportunities to reinforce a culture of accountability and mutual respect.
It’s also important to listen to discontent - people will let you know that they’re dissatisfied, but it won’t be enough to push them away initially, especially if you have a reputation of listening to feedback and adapting and growing. If you keep pushing in the same areas where you’re getting that feedback - running events that are too competitive, having seasons that are too short, focusing on trends rather than the established niche that the community wants - you’ll eventually break their trust in you. The trust thermocline is a concept that describes a critical point where trust suddenly collapses, despite no sudden change in behavior.
Growth and Decline
Communities are living systems - they expand, contract, evolve, and sometimes plateau. Understanding this makes it easier to adapt rather than panic or overcorrect. Growth can come from a new game release, a charismatic organizer, a consistent event schedule, or even a single enthusiastic member who brings in their friends. But growth is not always steady, and it’s rarely predictable.
Decline is just as natural. School schedules shift, local players move away, interest in a format dips, or real-life responsibilities take priority. None of these are failures - they’re signs that your community exists in a changing world. The important thing is recognizing patterns and adjusting how you show up. A smaller group might need more flexibility and personal outreach, while a larger one might require structure, delegation, and clearer communication.
Seasonal or cyclical attendance shouldn’t be seen as a crisis. Instead, it’s an opportunity to recalibrate expectations and plan for renewal. Ask what returning members will want when they come back, or how you can re-engage lapsed members without pressure. Likewise, when you're in a period of growth, avoid overbuilding systems that only work at maximum capacity. Leave room for contraction without collapse.
Communities that last aren't the ones that grow the fastest - they’re the ones that treat change as part of the process. Accepting that expansion and decline both happen helps you respond with intention rather than fear.
Community Moderation
Every community eventually faces behavior that threatens its health - sometimes from newcomers, sometimes from long-time, well-meaning members who don’t realize the impact of their actions. Effective moderation isn’t about punishment - it’s about protecting the atmosphere you’re trying to build. That starts with clear expectations. People are far more likely to act responsibly when they understand the standards and see them upheld consistently.
Addressing disruptive behavior early is crucial. Small issues, if ignored, can quickly become norms. A community member who talks over others, dominates conversations, dismisses feedback, or makes insulting jokes may not think they’re causing harm - but the people around them feel that impact. If left unaddressed, others may leave rather than confront the problem.
Moderation also means recognizing intent versus effect. Someone deeply invested in the community may genuinely not realize they’re creating tension. Approaching those situations with empathy can preserve the relationship while resetting expectations. Still, not every person will respond well, and not every conflict will end cleanly. As the leader or organizer, you must accept that you can’t satisfy everyone - and that enforcing standards may cost you members in the short term.
Importantly, moderation isn’t the sole responsibility of one person. A healthy culture empowers community members to hold each other accountable and model appropriate behavior. The goal is not control - it’s sustainability.
Managing Your Investment
Running or supporting a community takes time, energy, and emotion - and those resources aren’t infinite. Many leaders burn out not because they don’t care, but because they care too much without building systems that protect their well-being. To maintain a community long-term, you have to maintain yourself as well.
Start by recognizing your limits. You don’t need to attend every event, answer every message immediately, or personally resolve every conflict. Delegating responsibilities - and trusting others to follow through - creates resilience. Even small roles, like welcoming new members, organizing carpools, or posting reminders, can relieve pressure when shared.
It’s equally important to set boundaries. Not every idea needs to be implemented, not every disagreement needs mediation, and not every player is a fit for your space. Learning to say “not right now,” or “I need help with this,” is a sign of strength, not failure.
Support systems matter. That can mean co-leaders, rotating responsibilities, or simply having someone you can vent to without judgment. When you take breaks or step back temporarily, the community should be able to keep running - that’s a sign you’ve built something durable.
Finally, reconnect with your reasons for doing the work. If your joy, motivation, or sense of purpose starts fading, that’s not a signal to push harder - it’s a sign to recalibrate. A thriving community shouldn’t come at the cost of the person who helped build it.
A healthy community doesn’t just grow - it lasts. It supports its members, evolves with them, and remains a place people are proud to return to.
And that wraps us up on the Level One Ambassador lessons! We hope that you find the time to help develop your local community, find cool new ways to engage with the game, and develop friendships and partnerships that last.
If you’re watching this on YouTube, and you want more lessons in your feed, go ahead and subscribe. Join us after new lessons on twitch.tv/swu_judges for live broadcasts covering the content of these lessons as they are released, and join the Star Wars: Unlimited Judge Program Discord to join the community in discussion of this and much, much more.
Until next time, good luck and have fun!