This was a fun post to read. Really brings back my memories of so many fantastic leaders I had the privilege of playing with (and against) when I was active in this community.
I'll be first to say 1v1's were never my forte nor my interest. For all my perceived ability I was never good at outflanking an enemy line in a 1v1 setting. Many of my members, myself included, were reenactors drawn to the large-scale public linebattles. We strove for historical authenticity and were far more attracted to large-scale drill and tactics than individual skill. There I felt we performed our best and had the most fun. That's where we found NW to be unique and most exciting to us. If this is a contest of 1v1 leadership I'd certainly be near the bottom.
We did enjoy 1v1 success in the first year of NW when I lead the 1stFKI but that was far more a testament to the skill and dedication of members like Mack, Coconut, Pepper, and many other members who went on to do awesome work in the NW community.
To be honest, commanding in events is the easy part. The hard part of being a leader in this game is putting your community's needs and wishes ahead of your own. The role of a leader in this game is to give their members a good time. Promoting community outside events, recruiting new members, and showing yourself to be a mentor and a friend. That's where I found NW to be exhausting - and rewarding.
I failed many times though. There were times I allowed my own ego and personal metrics for success silence others. Many times friends of mine felt compelled to leave my regiments and form there own. Pepper and IceArmy left to form the 1erPLG. Mack left to form the 9y. In the end, I'm very glad they did since they (and their fellow officers) both went on to establish fantastic regiments. These failures taught me life lessons and allowed me to grow as a leader and a person. Would these failures, rooted in my sometimes inability to change the direction of my community, knock me down this list? I can't decide.
And that's perhaps the core of the philosophy I developed over leading regiment in Mount and Musket and NW. There is no single quantifiable metric to state that X leader is better than Y leader. What are your most fond memories of this game? Mine certainly arent the line battles, it's the fond memories of playing games with my friends. The regiment leader's job is to be humble and foster a community and a safe space for their members to thrive in. I can't think of how you'd put that on a list.