I appreciate the questions Neuro, I'm also very curious about all this. Hopefully a Blue can drop in and at least point us in the right direction.
I'd like to have a go at answering these questions. I'm doing so as I read through my many notes and the many quote grabs I've saved away, so hopefully it should be somewhat close to the reality of the situation.
Define: ASSOCIATION
from:Caspian#3850 12/28/17
These are organizations which generally provide a service to the community or to the governments. These range from preservationists to religious organizations. ... Because it is expected that all revenue is consumed for the purpose set forth by the association, these organizations typically do not pay income tax. ... There are no common criteria around size and distribution of associations, as their purpose dictates such things.
Aspects: Member driven. Has a stated goal/purpose. No skill requirements, unless the purpose requires it. Can be communal or private. Approval and acknowledgement from local government is required to avoid full taxation.
1) Is there a specialized structure for associations?
A) Before answering this bluntly, there's an important caveat to add that it depends on the purpose of the Org. But for the sake of the discussion, if we put that aspect aside, my answer would still be "Yes, they have a specialized structure.". I obviously can't confirm this and the name of the structure has not been determined. But in my mind, I simplify things by just calling it a "clubhouse" for now. Hopefully that helps you too. We can delve further into clubhouses in further discussion if people want to.
2) Can Guild Tokens be applied towards an Association? I have a few I want to consume for myself.
A) I'll humbly admit this is a question that is only answerable by someone at soulbound, but my guesstimate is that the answer is yes. As far as I can tell, Guild Tokens are for Organisations as a whole, not just skilling Guilds. Although I could be wrong on this, and the intent may but to introduce early skilling guilds into the game history as an attempt to make Launch smoother.
3) What kind of specificity can an Association have? I intend to set mine up as a place to receive training, a place where where maps and journals can be gathered and compiled, a bit of a storage space and commissary for members, and a place where we can take requests or follow up on reports of interesting activity nearby.
A) The rules of an association can mimic those of "Guilds" and "Schools" in real life, but they're often viewed with a little less validity as people assume the successful Associations would just become Guilds and Schools in of themself. This is accurate on most counts, but the idea behind an Association, even in real life, is that they're less institutionalized. Meaning, the relevant governments aren't dipping their fingers into your day to day business, and instead of that it's run by the most dedicated members. Just like in real life. This means the concept you shared with us could work. To directly answer the question on specificity, you have almost total freedom. Even if you state a goal and have a purpose, most casual members will simply view it as another job or a place to find work benches for skilling. In other words... as long as you have places for people to use and grow their skills, it will work, even if its tangential to your actual stated purpose. Does that make sense?
4) Are there formal rules for enforcement of names and themes?
A) I don't know, but I'm very confident we'll see some common restrictions in place. Like being unable to name an Org something because: "name is already taken". As for your example on another branch of the same Organization splitting off and trying to pretend like they're the original Org and the founders, I'm betting they'll add something in to prevent those kind of exploits, but if not... well... this is where business stops being buttoned up and polite and gets real.
5) Do associations get additional benefits as they grow and progress, ones different than those other organizations may see?
A) Again, I'm not a dev so I can't give you anything outstandingly useful. But I'm definitely expecting high-tier Associations to come with their very own style of buffs and elements. A Guild might increase skilling speed. A School might increasing research speed. So, an Association might have something a little more 'universal' for each playstyle to leverage, such as reputation (for example). But that being said... I think people will generally prefer to buffs from Guilds and Schools, which are likely to translate directly into your skills and skill ramps.
6) What can I do with EP to build up, supply, staff, and bolster my association?
A) Available job openings. What this means in game terms is work benches, resources (or trade/areas to gather) and leasing work places and shoppes for cheap to those looking for work. To be less general about it, for you that could mean EPing in structures and work benches that the Association trades WITH, rather than simply stacking the shit out of your own group and structure. Apart from that, if youre a total baller, I'd just buy the highest quality work benches and tools you can, and kiss that mountain of EP goodbye in the process.