Guidelines
This code of conduct expands upon and includes by reference our Terms of Service.
The Unioverse community is more than just a gathering of like-minded individuals. All of us share the responsibility to create a welcoming environment where individuals can work together to help create the next great community.
To that end, all users must ensure that their actions facilitate, encourage and do not deter from our members' ability to:
Contribute to the building of the community and games.
Participate in the testing, expansion and promotion of the community and games.
Learn, mentor, and network with one another.
Share their gaming or related experiences.
Enjoy the community and games we are all building together.
The Basic Rules for Forums and Chat:
1. Be Nice! Be respectful. Focus on the argument, not the person posting. Personal attacks and insults have no place here. At all. Ever. Constructive disagreement in a friendly, collegial, academic fashion is encouraged. However, constructive disagreements are characterized by a sincere recognition of the other side's positive aspects and a respectful description of points of concern with supporting evidence.
2. Be Shiny! Everyone here is starting over fresh- all shiny and new. Past drama from other websites, games, etc. belongs in those other places. It does not belong here. Descendent Studios is not a place for rehashing old grievances against anyone. We are here to build something NEW.
3. The Unioverse is our respectful host, we owe the same respect in return. Use of this site is a privilege and Random Games is under no obligation to allow anyone access to these resources. As in all cases, constructive criticism and disagreement is welcome- but ideological crusades, purely derogatory statements, insults, threats, character assassination, and stereotyping will not be tolerated against Random Games or any of its staff, users, or guests.
4. Please keep the language under control. We have a number of younger members and members for whom profanity is disruptive and hurtful. While we want people to express themselves and sometimes words slip out, we need our members to self-moderate and keep the profanity under control.
5. Harassment, threats of harm, hate speech, discrimination, bigotry, doxxing (posting personal information), pornography, incitement to criminal activity, and intimidation are harmful to our members and are serious violations of our core principles that can not be tolerated.
a. Remember- posting links to inappropriate content is just as problematic as posting it directly!
b. If it should probably be labeled "NSFW", it probably doesn't have a good reason to be here.
6. Please keep your posts on topic and avoid spamming and repeatedly posting similar things. Our moderators have a lot of work to do and fixing improperly located posts or kicking chat spammers is an unnecessary waste of everyone’s time.
7. If you spot a potential violation of these rules, please use the REPORT button. The report function is reserved for sincere concerns of inappropriate conduct- misuse or abuse of the reporting function is a violation of our user code of conduct. Please do not use Personal Messenger to contact Moderators or Staff about violations of these rules unless they initiate the conversation.
8. Random Games puts limits on user access for a reason. Going around those limits, creating multiple accounts to bypass restrictions, hacking user accounts, and any other use of Random Games’ systems aside from that offered in accordance with studio policy is a serious violation of our core principles and can not be tolerated.
9. Please refrain from discussing moderation decisions and support tickets in the forums or in chat. These matters are private and are best handled through direct contact with the Lead Moderator and/or the Unioverse Community Team. We will do our best to explain any necessary actions directly to the person(s) involved.
10. Posts on or to systems run by Random Games are volunteer content submissions and the act of posting indicates consent for Random Games to use the content you submit.
Please note that these general guidelines are not intended to cover all possible situations. These rules are constantly evolving and our moderators may have to take action in the event of abuses or usurpations not expressly covered by the written rules. That is why it is very important that all users abide by not just the letter of these rules, but their spirit- the goal of creating a friendly, collaborative social and creative space.
Penalties:
We hate having to talk about penalties, but sometimes people decide they don't want to follow these rules. Moderators have the discretion to assign "strikes" to users who violate our core principles- for instance by personally attacking a user or derailing a thread to demonize someone. In cases where a violation is clearly a mistake and/or where the user takes personal responsibility, apologizes, and works to restore a healthy community feel, our Moderators have the discretion to use lesser methods of enforcement. Questions about strikes should be directed to the Lead Moderator.
1 strike - 24 hours
2 strikes - 7 days
3 strikes - 14 Days
4 strikes - permanent ban
A few notes on offensive language:
One of the topics that is frequently debated in communities is words that carry racial or lifestyle connotations, especially when they are used as an insult. For example the use of phrases like "That is so retarded" or calling someone a "Fag" or the like.
It is common to think that these words are just words. It is also common to believe that those take issue with these words should just get over it, or grow a thicker skin. However, something to remember is that there really are people still alive today who have been physically attacked, even severely injured, while being taunted with these words. For those people or people who grew up in communities where that was common, these words are more than just words. Please respect them and their experiences enough to not cause them to have to relive them by being careless with your words. They are reminded too frequently in other places about how they are treated differently- please, let's make this place a welcoming one.
Another topic that often needs to be addressed is those who will call upon the first amendment or cry "Freedom of Speech" while violating these rules. Yes, you have the right to say or publish anything you want. However since this is a private community run by and for The Unioverse and Random Games, we have an equal right to kick you to the curb and erase any sign you were ever here. We do not want to have to do this, so please do not make us.