Rules and Guidelines on The Syndicate

[JaggedJimmyJay]

General community rules

Slurs, hateful speech, and discrimination
- Under no circumstances whatsoever will any language widely recognized as hateful or as a slur be tolerated on The Syndicate. This includes but is not limited to matters of race, gender identity, sexual orientation, nationality, age, disability, and religious beliefs. Violations of this rule may be grounds for an immediate and permanent ban from all Syndicate community spaces.
- Similar language may also not be posted in non-hateful contexts, no matter how innocuous they may seem. This includes but is not limited to movie quotes, song lyrics, and poetry. Violations of this rule may not result in bans, but they will result in swift moderation.
- Discrimination on the basis of any of the same indicators, such as race, gender identity, sexual orientation, nationality, age, disability, religious beliefs, etc., is also not allowed. Hosts of any events occurring in any Syndicate space (Mafia games, movie events, music events, etc.) must not bar participation from any user on the these bases.

Gender and preferred pronouns
- On The Syndicate we accept gender as a complex social dimension with more than two values. Each user profile includes slots for everyone to indicate their gender identity and preferred pronouns. These slots may only be used for precisely those indicators, and they must be used seriously if used at all. No jokes are permitted in these spaces. Violators of this rule will be immediately asked to change their profiles to meet the requirements, and if the violation is egregious enough then active moderation or bans are possible.
- Likewise, users must make their best effort to respect the preferred pronouns that users have indicated for themselves across all Syndicate spaces. Mistakes will happen here sometimes, we understand, and individual errors will not be moderated. If an offense becomes consistent, repeated, and benefit of the doubt is no longer applicable, then harsh action may be taken up to and including bans. Such a violation inevitably becomes a violation of the rules listed under "Slurs, hateful speech, and discrimination".

Illegal activity and proprietary law
- All users are responsible for respecting and adhering to the laws of their respective nations, states/provinces/regions, and localities pertaining to Internet activity in all Syndicate spaces. As a general rule, do not engage in copyright violations, plagiarism, or similar proprietary violations.

Explicit images and words
- Gratuitously violent images are not permitted on The Syndicate. Gore and slaughter have no place here.
- Pornographic images are not permitted on The Syndicate. This shall be defined as any images depicting nudity, exposed human genitals, female nipples, etc. Likewise, images depicting explicit sexual acts even if not overtly nude are not permitted.
- These rules apply to all Syndicate spaces, including within posts, user avatars or signatures, and on Discord.
- Neither images nor direct links to offending images or sites will be permitted.
- In addition to images, raw text depicting any of the same may be subject to moderation depending upon context and severity.
- Violations of any such rule will be subject to moderation up to possible bans.

Gambling
- Users may not engage in any form of gambling with real currency or material assets in any Syndicate spaces. This applies to Syndicate events with uncertain outcomes, such as but not limited to Mafia games, and also external events relating to sports or anything else. Violations will be subject to moderation up to possible bans.

Privacy
- Users shall always refrain from revealing personal information about other users without their express and public permission. This refers to Personally Identifiable Information such as name, geographic location, address, email address, telephone numbers, and any other such indicators.
- Likewise, users' privacy must be respected on other matters discussed in private spaces to include but not limited to medical conditions, mental health, age, or anything else.
- Personal information pertaining to minors (users under the age of 18) may not be revealed at all under any circumstances whatsoever. Minors themselves may not reveal personal information.
- Violations of these rules will result in prompt moderation up to and possibly including bans.

Spam and advertisement
- Users may not engage in deliberate spamming in any form in any Syndicate space. This includes egregious abuse of the caps lock key, posting the same things over and over for no contextually appropriate reason, overloading another user's private message inbox, or any similarly obnoxious behaviors.
- Users may not post advertisements for products or services of any sort without first receiving permission from a member of the site staff unless they have already played multiple games on The Syndicate and showed that the advertisement isn't their only reason for being here.
- Violations of these rules will result in prompt moderation up to and possibly including bans.

Politics
- Users may not engage in political dialogues outside of designated spaces. Currently on the proper Syndicate website, that is nowhere. Just don't do it. We understand that not everybody defines "what is political?" the same way, so to be safe just avoid dialogues that even seem like they could be tangentially political. If a staff member interprets a dialogue to be politically oriented and intervenes, please do not protest or argue. Just stop. Our Discord server does offer a world affairs channel for these sorts of conversation, and it has its own set of strict rules and guidelines that must be followed. The Discord staff maintains close oversight of this channel and will not tolerate violations.

Other
- We reserve the right to remove anyone from the community for infractions committed here or even elsewhere if egregious enough. We are under no obligation to explain our decisions and sometimes will not for the sake of confidentiality and protection of users. Appeals may be directed to JaggedJimmyJay.

[JaggedJimmyJay]

Rules relating to basic interpersonal treatment, or the Code of Conduct
Including but not limited solely to Mafia game play

Treat others with respect.
That's it. That's the rule. Refer to the manifesto and definitions below for a more complete view of what we mean by "respect".

A Syndicate Mafia culture of respect

Click here to access our manifesto, mission statement, and vision for respect on The Syndicate

What is respect?
We'll borrow from Oxford for an operating definition: "due regard for the feelings, wishes, rights, or traditions of others".
- Respect is treating other people with humanity.
- Respect is treating other people with civility.
- Respect is paying due reverence to the sense of community and competition that pervades all Syndicate spaces.
- Respect is swallowing one's own pride when frustrated or angry with another user and remaining level and constructive.
- Respect is a tip of the cap to those who have defeated you.
- Respect is a gracious reception of those who you have defeated.
- Respect is a mutual acceptance of responsibility alongside those who have been defeated with you.
- Respect is a mutual acknowledgement of the contributions of those who have been victorious with you.
- Respect is a lack of undue interference in another user's right to play how they wish to play.
- Respect is sportsmanship.

What is disrespect?
- Disrespect is anything in direct conflict with the items listed under respect.
- Disrespect is insulting others on a personal basis.
- Disrespect is speaking ill of the skill level or performance or strategies of others. Suggesting different approaches is fine. Telling people they're stupid for doing what they do is not.
- Disrespect is placing unconstructive blame upon others for their perceived failures.
- Disrespect is excessive gloating.
- Disrespect is lashing out at teammates after defeat.
- Disrespect is refusing to allow others to play the way that they wish to play without harassment.
- Disrespect is a lack of sportsmanship.

I think a violation has occurred. How do I report it?
You have two primary options.
Report an offense to a Moderator on Duty/Game Facilitator.
- Every Mafia game on The Syndicate receives oversight from at least one Moderator on Duty (MoD) from the site staff. This person is tasked with keeping an eye on a game to ensure it is remaining within the parameters of respect we expect and that all site rules are being followed. Likewise, the MoD is our preferred first means of conflict resolution, and is always happy to receive personal messages wherein players express grievances, vent, or directly report offenses.
Use the "Report this post" feature.

[computer]

[mobile]
- In the top right area of every forum post, you will see a menu of icons like the one above. The exclamation mark icon is the "report post" icon. Click this. You'll be directed to a page to describe your report, as seen below:

- Follow the prompts provided and a brief explanation for your report in the box. Then submit.

How do I know moderation has occurred for something I have reported?
- You should receive a notification when the report has been closed. This means a staff member has seen it and is addressing it as they feel appropriate in accordance with the community rules and guidelines.
- Generally, moderation actions are not made public. We do not keep a public log. Even when someone has violated a rule, we still have a responsibility to respect their privacy. Trust that the staff is handling the matter as well as they can. If you have any reason not to trust this, then contact the staff privately and express your concern. We will listen. If you feel your grievance is not being respected, contact a site administrator.

[JaggedJimmyJay]

Shortened version and reference for game hosts

Game hosts should include the following blurb in their game rules and guidelines, and players should be conscious and respectful of site rules at all times during Mafia games.

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Remember that the premier rules in any Syndicate Mafia game come straight from the site rules. Review those rules below, and direct any concerns you may have to the host or moderator(s) on duty.

[Link] Rules and Guidelines on The Syndicate

Also always be mindful of the culture of respect that must be maintained in all Syndicate spaces at all times, to include this game thread and any external communication spaces relating to the game. Players must be respectful to one another, to the game host, to the members of the staff overseeing the game, to the game itself by way of its rules and spirit, to the Syndicate community in general, and ideally also to themselves. Respect is never optional. See our full manifesto on our culture of respect below.

[Link] A Syndicate Mafia Culture of Respect