Hi all! It's been a while since we've clearly and directly gone over the rules with everyone, and since we're getting new members all the time it seems like it might be time for a brief refresher. <br />
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I started the forums in early 2000, and at that time I established three rules: <b>Keep it civil, keep it clean, and keep it on topic</b>. Those rules are essentially the same rules the admins and mods use today in the course of their duties. <br />
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Let's look at each one briefly:<br />
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<b>Keep it civil</b>: Don't engage in personal attacks, name-calling, or blanket generalizations in your discussions. Say how you feel or what you think, but be careful about ascribing motives to the actions of others or telling others how they "should" think. People seeking to engage and discuss will find themselves asking questions, seeking clarifications, and describing their own opinion. People seeking to "win an argument" sometimes end up taking cheap shots, calling people names, and generally trying to indimidate others. My advice: don't try to win. <img src="images/smilies/smile.gif" border="0" alt=""><br />
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<b>Keep it clean</b>: Don't use obscenities, don't use clever tricks to run around the profanity filters, and don't link to sites with inappropriate content. The "acid test" Russ and I use is the "Grandmother Rule" -- if it would be inappropriate to say to or show to either of our grandmothers, don't do it. I want a typical 13 year old kid to be able to come here and participate if they want to without feeling uncomfortable. This should be a minor-friendly place. Think about it this way: how do you act around strangers or work acquaintances? You watch your language and you're on your best behavior. That's the ideal we're shooting for here. <br />
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<b>Keep it on topic</b>: Ok, so it's not that we actually forbid off-topic conversation. But keep in mind that this is a D&D and D20 site, with many sub-forums on lots of related topics. Try to put your posts in the right forums (it helps people find stuff, for one thing). By popular demand, off-topic polls (not posts -- polls) are forbidden. And in this category I should mention the "no religion, no politics" rule -- please refrain from discussion of a religious or political nature. This last may seem a rather draconic rule, but it has helped keep the peace around here for a long time. There are plenty of places on the internet where one could have those sorts of discussion. <br />
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Thanks for reading! If you have a question or comment about this post, please start a thread in the Meta forum.
Eric Noah
