Forum-Wide Guidelines

[ThaChukkles]

First and Foremost, welcome to Guild Launch Forums! We are happy you chose to join our insane group to discuss World of Warcraft and the likes. As with any forum, you will have rules and guidelines to follow if you want to become and remain a member of the forums. Please review the information below. If you have any questions or concerns, please create a new thread in the Support Forum.

SPOILER: Click to show

Forum-Wide Guidelines

• Forum Rules
• Posting Guidelines
• Miscellaneous Guidelines
• Moderation Policy
• Becoming a Moderator/Staff Member
• User Groups and Ranks

[ThaChukkles]

Forum Rules

• Be Respectful Being respectful is important not only on the forum, but also in real life. All members should respect each other. Here are some examples of ways you can respect each other:
  • Assume that everyone is smart, or knowledgeable about specific topics.
  • Look for opportunities that allow you to connect with and support other members.
  • If you disagree with someone, explain in detail while you disagree. Don't be rude about it.
  • If you are wrong, admit you are wrong and apologize.
  • Be knowledgeable about time when posting replies. Some posts may need fast responses.
  • If you don't like someone, keep your feelings about them off of the forum.
  • Engage with other members both on and off the forums.
• Privacy Personal privacy is both important and necessary when posting on all forums. These rules are in place for your own safety. Do NOT share any of the following information with any member. The only exception to this is during the holidays; if you wish to participate in the Christmas Card Exchange with other members. Even then, do so at your own risk. Do NOT share the following information with any member of this forum:
  
  • Full Name
  • Physical Address
  • Credit Card Information
  • Passwords to any account that belongs to you
• Discrimination Discrimination is prohibited everywhere on this forum. Discrimination is defined as "an action that denies social participation or human rights to categories of people based on prejudice. This includes treatment of an individual or group based on their actual or perceived membership in a certain group or social category, "in a way that is worse than the way people are usually treated." This includes but is not limited to race, religion, sexual orientation, sex, social status, financial status, etc.
• World of Warcraft Gold Sales Using this forum to buy or sell World of Warcraft gold is prohibited. As Blizzard does not allow the option of purchasing in game gold, and you are liable to have your battle.net account frozen for doing so, you are NOT allowed to advertise or look for people to buy or sell WOW gold. This is a ban-able offense and if caught you will be banned from this forum permanently.
• Harassment Harassment is prohibited on our forums. Harassment is defined as "a course of conduct which annoys, threatens, intimidates, alarms, or puts a person in fear of their safety. Harassment is unwanted, unwelcome and uninvited behavior that demeans, threatens or offends the victim and results in a hostile environment for the victim."

[ThaChukkles]

Posting Guidelines

• Offensive and Illegal Content Do not post any thing on this forum that is illegal or offensive to other members. The posting of illegal content is punishable both by law and by an immediate permanent ban from our forums. The following includes things that are offensive, or illegal to post on our forum. This is not a complete list; but, if you use common sense, you should understand what is considered "illegal" and "offensive."
  • Anything that promotes the use of or the sale of illegal drugs.
  • Anything that promotes strong violence or murder.
  • Pornographic materials.
  • Links to pirated copies of music, movies or software.
  • Hacking.
  • Discrimination (see forum rules).
• Grammar and Spelling While we are not grammar and spelling Nazis, we expect our members to use common sense when posting. Please try to use the correct spelling of words when posting. Your posts should be as grammatically correct as possible. Our forum has a built in spell checker; be sure to use it.
• Spamming Spamming on our forum is NOT allowed. Spam is defined as posting unwanted/unwarranted links or information that does not directly relate to a topic.
• Duplicate Threads Before creating a post, be sure to use our "Search" feature. Search the forums to make sure the topic you are creating is not a duplicate topic. If a topic has not received a post in six months or more, then you may post a duplicate topic.
• Swearing While playing World of Warcraft; swearing is inevitable. However, please be mindful of other members. Try to keep swearing to a minimum. Do not swear directly at someone. This is disrespectful.
• Advertising Advertising is not permitted in any of our forums. If you would like to share your website, you can edit your profile and enter the name and URL of your website for members to see. You can also post a link to your forum or website in your forum signature, which is also editable via your profile.
• Bumping Threads Generally, bumping a thread shouldn't be necessary. However, if you have posted a thread in the support forum, or elsewhere on the forum that needs immediate attention and you have not received a response within 48 hours, you may bump your thread.
  
• Posts Should Include Sentences When posting on the forums, your posts should be substantial. Your posts should include a minimum of 1-2 complete sentences and they should enhance the discussion you are responding to. This will help keep members engaged in your topics.

[ThaChukkles]

Miscellaneous Guidelines

• Backseat Moderation Backseat moderation is NOT allowed on this forum. If you see a post or thread that has broken any of our forum rules, report the post so that our forum staff can review it and take care of it. To report a post or a thread, simply click on the "gear settings" icon and then select "report post." If you report a post or a thread, please explain in your report why you are doing so.
• Multiple Accounts Multiple accounts are not allowed on our forum. You should not have a need to create a second account. If you and another user in your household, who use the same IP address, are members of this forum, please PM ThaChukkles and give them a heads up. This will prevent your account from being banned.
• Forum Signatures Forum signatures may include images and links. If your signature includes an image, the image should not stretch the width of the forum. The maximum height allowed for a forum signature image is 100 pixels. You may post links to your forums or websites in your signature. However, if you post a link, your links should NOT include an enlarged font size. This is not an advertising forum.
• Private Messages Our "Mail," or "Private Messages" system is here for you to chat with other members. You are NOT allowed to use private messages to advertise, promote, or sell any forum, website or product. Do not harass, demean, spam, or troll other members by way of the private messaging system.
  • Private Messages to Administrators While you are allowed to send private messages to administrators, please do not send any private messages related to forum support, feedback, or suggestions. Please use the forums for that.
• The Like Feature Our forum utilizes the like feature provide by our host. If you read content that is substantial, informative, or helpful, please feel free to like the post. Do NOT like a post just because you like the member and you are trying to increase their like count.
• Complaints Face it, at some point everyone complains about something. If you have a complaint about a member of our forum please refer to the following:
  • Member Complaints If you have a problem with a member, please attempt to resolve the matter via Private Message and not on the forums. If the problem persists without any fix, you may contact a staff member to help you. We encourage our members to attempt to resolve issues with other members before we step in to take action.
  • Staff Member Complaints If you have a problem with a moderator or other staff member on this forum, you should try to resolve the problem via private message. Do NOT use the forums as a means of solving a problem. If, after talking to the particular staff member, you have not determined a common ground or resolution, you may send a private message to ThaChukkles. Make sure your message is as detailed as possible and be sure to provide proof of what has occurred.

[ThaChukkles]

Moderation Policy
Our forum rules and guidelines are posted to help you understand what is acceptable and what is not. Having forum rules and guidelines includes actions taken against those that break said rules and guidelines. We believe in the "three strikes and your out" motto. Be sure that you understand the following Moderation Policy:

• Automatic Permanent Bans Generally, forums do not utilize the automatic permanent ban. However, on this forum, if you break any of the following rules you will automatically be permanently banned from our forums.
  • Posting offensive or illegal content and images.
  • Spamming.
  • The buying or selling of World of Warcraft in game gold.
  • Harassment.
• First Offense The first time you break a forum rule (with the exception of ban-able offenses), you will receive a courtesy written warning via Private Message from either an administrator or other staff member. This message will include a link to the Forum Wide Guidelines and will specify which rule you have broken.
• Second Offense When a member has a second infraction of rule breaking, they will receive a private message from a forum administrator or staff member linking them to the Forum-Wide Guidelines. The private message will explain which rule they broke and will announce that this is the second infraction by the member on the forums. The user will also receive an official warning.
• Third Offense Anyone who breaks the forum rules a third time will receive a temporary seven day (one week) ban. Upon returning to the forum, your posts may require approval for a short period of time.
• Fourth Offense After a member has returned from a seven day (one week) ban, if they break a rule a fourth time, they will be banned from our forum permanently.

*Note: Keep in mind that infractions are not limited to specific rules. Any time you break a rule, regardless of what it is, it counts towards how many infractions you have received. After four infractions you will be permanently banned from our forum.

[ThaChukkles]

Becoming a Moderator/Staff Member
At some point in a forum's lifetime, the forum needs more than one person to ensure the success of the forum as well as enforcement of the rules. When this happens, the administrator will promote members to moderators or another staff group.

When a staff position becomes available on the forum, an administrator will post an announcement on the forums that will include an application for the position(s) we are looking to fill. Our members are encouraged to read about the position and apply if they think they meet the specified requirements for that position.

Aside from the position(s) specific requirements, anyone who wishes to be considered for a position must meet the following requirements:

• Be a member for a minimum of 30 days.
• Contributed at least 50 substantial posts to our forums.
• Must have knowledge of the position/subject matter in which we are hiring for.
• Cannot have any rule infractions.
• Be and remain an active member of our forum community.
• Be a positive influence for the members of Guild Launch Forums.
• Be courteous and helpful to other members when they are in need.
• Proactive

*NOTE: Please be advised that applying for a moderator/staff position does not guarantee you a spot on the team. All applications that are submitted will be reviewed by current staff members and approved based on whether or not we agree that you meet the specifications required for the position you are applying for.

Administrators reserve the right to promote, demote, and overturn any decision related to staff selection. We reserve the right to reject any application and we have the right to do these things without cause or reason. However, generally, we will give you an explanation if you are promoted, demoted, or your application is rejected.

[ThaChukkles]

User Ranks and Groups
Take a look at the following user ranks and groups. Be sure to read the rewards for each rank achieved. Instructions for receiving your rewards can be found at the bottom of this post.

User Ranks

• Inactive You are an inactive user if you have less than 10 posts on this forum. You will not have access to editing your forum signature until you reach Newb status. Anyone from 0-9 posts is considered inactive.
• Initiate When you have achieved at least 10 posts on our forum, you will be promoted to Initiate. As an initiate, you will gain access to editing your forum signature via your personal profile. If you have between 10 and 49 posts, you will be classified as an Initiate.
• Newb When you obtain your 50th post you will be promoted to Newb. As long as you have between 50 and 99 posts, you will remain a Newb.
• Warrior When you reach 100 posts, you will be promoted to Warrior. As a warrior you will be able to request a custom title that can be seen in both your profile and mini profile. If you have between 100 and 499 posts, you will be considered a Warrior.
• Marauder You will be promoted to Marauder status when you obtain 500 posts on our forum. After obtaining this status, you may request a bold username. You will remain a Marauder if your post count is between 500 and 999.
• Norseman When you have reached the 1000th post mark, you will be considered a Norseman. As a Norseman, your ranking images will change from the typical yellow default star to a lime green star. You will remain a Norseman if your post count is between 1000 and 4999.
• Hersir The last rank available to our members is the Hersir rank. You will be promoted to this rank when you reach your 5000th post. As a member of this group you can request a username color of your choice which will be for only you. You cannot choose a color that is already taken and you will have to provide the hexadecimal code for the color (EX: #538353). The username color that you choose should be easily readable while browsing the forums.

*NOTE: Please be aware that if you reach a rank, you are entitled to the rewards in the rank above you as well as the rewards you can receive for achieving your current rank.

To claim your rewards, simply reply to the thread Rank Reward Claims. When you reply to the thread, please post the user rank you have achieved and the rewards that you are owed. If you are entitled to a custom title, include the custom title you wish to be displayed. If you are entitled to a colored username, provide the hexadecimal code for the color you wish for your name to be.

User Groups
There are two types of groups on this forum. There are open groups which are groups that any member can join. Then there are private groups which are groups designated to staff roles. Any member can join an open user group if they wish. These are our groups.

Open Groups

• Horde This group is an open group for members of the Horde faction in World of Warcraft. Any member is eligible to join this group at any time. For the HORDE!!!
• Alliance This group is an open group for members of the Alliance faction in World of Warcraft. Any member is eligible to join this group at any time. For the ALLIANCE!!!

Private/Staff Groups

• Valkerie Members of this group are moderators of specific boards on the forum. They tend to one or two specific areas, are helpful to members and are knowledgeable about the boards that they moderate. They enforce the rules and are outstanding forum members. If a user has a green username and green ranking stars, they are a Valkerie member.
• Officer Members of this group are essentially global forum moderators. They watch over all of our boards. They enforce the rules, keep our forum spam free, and they are outstanding members on the forum. They are always courteous and helpful. If a user has a white username and silver ranking stars, they are an Officer.
• Guild Master A Guild Master is essentially a forum administrator. An administrator takes care of all of the administrative tasks of the forum. Some of their duties include but are not limited to: Forum Design and Layout, Custom Pages, posting announcements, starting and running contests, rewarding members, etc. Forum administrators are typically the forum owner and one or two other select members who have earned their Administrator title. If a user has a red username, they are a Guild Master.