In an unexpected development, Mabel has declared her retirement from the Water Vikings. As one of their longest-serving leaders, this announcement highlighted a sense of surprise within the community, as she decided to embark on a new journey.
Designed by MasterDS
Mabel first stumbled upon the army community in October 2020, joining the Water Vikings. Even though she is mostly recognized for her work in WV, she had been in other armies, such as the Trojans and the Wet Army Penguins. However, the Vikings never left her heart, which led the army to be her primary one. Almost two years after she arrived in the army, former commander Aaronstone42 announced her promotion to the leadership position. Such a decision remarked Mabel’s commendable work and dedication within the army.
Mabel Reacting to Her Promotion
After leading the army for more than a year, Mabel was a key individual behind some of the Vikings’ successes. Under her leadership, the Water Vikings partook in several tournaments, such as the Christmas Chaos XII, and Legends Cup XIII, even making it to the Grand Finals of the AUSIA Arena: Summer Edition. Most recently, the Vikings surprised the community by taking home the coveted trophy of the Christmas Chaos XIII tournament. Therefore, given her hard work and dedication as a leader, Mabel was inducted as Viking Legend in December 2023 alongside her co-leader Dino.
Nonetheless, the time comes for every leader in Club Penguin Armies. Minutes after the New Year Bonanza tournament ended, Mabel formally announced her retirement. A special goodbye event was held on February 2nd, with 36 penguins showing up to bid her farewell.
Mabel’s Retirement Event
Club Penguin Armies sat down with Mabel to learn more about her retirement and future endeavors.
So, what led to your retirement?
Honestly, just life. For awhile I knew I wanted to probably stop my leadership after Christmas Chaos, but I stuck around a bit longer to see where I went progress-wise with my life. Recently got a promotion at my job, so I’m going to be a lot more busier than usual, but also I just want to focus majorly on the mental health so I know it’s declined a bit over the few months, being one of the reasons why I had to take a few leaves during my leadership.
How do you think your retirement will impact WV?
Frankly, I’m not sure. I know I’ve made a big impact on Water Vikings even before I became leader, such as being one of their top VC leaders. Of course I still plan to stick around as advisor, I already learnt my skills as leader and I want to continue to see the progress of my own staff and HCOM and see where they go. Everyone seems completely fine, and of course I’m still helping the leadership in what I can do, just not as another leader of theirs anymore.
Do you feel like you’re leaving behind any “unfinished business”? If so, do you believe that advising WV will help bring a sense of accomplishment?
I know I could’ve done so much more if I stuck around sooner. There are definitely some parts of Water Vikings that I wish I could have done, or at least bring some sort of more input into them. Most people after they retire just straight up retire. My advisory will just bring to the table of my knowledge I already freshly have. Winning a major tournament and seeing multiple weeks of #1 on the Top Army isn’t something the average leader sees nowadays in the community. I can safely say that despite me knowing I could’ve done more, I know I’ve done enough and I can definitely say the same for the rest of my former co-leaders, as we’ve all put in so much effort for this army.
Is there any situation where you see yourself un-retiring from advising and returning to leadership/HCOM?
Only if it’s absolutely needed and I can handle it. I definitely plan on returning to maybe even leadership in the future if I get the opportunity to do so. I’ve enjoyed my time as leading, and like I’ve said in my announcement post, Dino has been one of the greatest co-leaders I could’ve ever worked for, despite it being one of my first times leading an army. I’ve definitely enjoyed my experience leading and I definitely would do it again if I was given the opportunity to do so.
Similar to your answer, what’s a favorite memory of yours from your time in WV?
Honestly definitely the day I first became leader. It was a bittersweet day for me and I was excited to see where my leadership would take me. I was still pretty much under Aaron’s wing at this point, and he believed in me a lot more than some of the other leaders I was under in the past had. Definitely can’t have one favorite memory, but another favorite of mine of course would be winning Christmas Chaos. Seeing those final results and then being rewarded as Viking Legend is something I’m extremely proud of, and something I’ll remember forever about this army.
What is the best thing about being the leader of an army?
Getting to watch troops you’ve recruited move up the ranks definitely. It is such an amazing moment to watch a new recruit get so interested in what the army is about, and then moving up the ranks, sometimes even getting into HCOM. It just shows me true dedication and that some people genuinely do care even if it’s just another online community to some. I know it is not a common answer from some, but it’s just a similar experience I had when I first joined the army after being recruited by Change.
Any advice you’d like to give to fellow WV troops/staff and/or the army community at large?
Just be patient with a lot of things. Be patient with your recruiting, your troops, your sizes, anything that keeps the positivity going in your army. Genuinely, nobody likes to go into the server of an army that is always so negative because a leader had a bad day since they only recruited 2 troops that day, or they maxed lower than usual. Water Vikings started off last year in 2023 being temporarily shut down, and then ended the year off by winning a tournament. It is not going to take a day to build your army, to train your troops, to get your staff to learn the new recruiting method you and your leaders created. I learnt and done so much for Water Vikings because I had the patience to see our numbers grow, and I’ve taken even a few minutes of my day talking to confused staff on vc when it came to recruiting or even welcoming.
Even though Mabel’s departure did seem sudden and surprising to most, it is comforting to learn that she is willing to return once she has more time. We, at Club Penguin Armies, wish Mabel the best in her future endeavors and hope to see her back soon. Mabel’s case is certainly an example of prioritizing real life over armies. Do you think we will see her back in a leadership position soon?
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The content on this page was last updated on February 5th, 2024 (9:36 pm)
