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Admin are expected to be polite and helpful with players and to not let their personal feelings (OOC feelings) or their Player-Alts IC feelings affect their interaction with players. If a player becomes agitated with a specific admin, that admin should then request another admins presence to take over the situation.
If no other admin is available the player should be notified that this situation is something that must be discussed with another admin when they become present on the MOO.
Admin are expected to be impartial and while this can be looked at as easy in theory, it is not always easy in practice. Admin are people too, and can be expected to have emotional responses to various situations including but not limited to:
In any of these cases the admin should realize that they cannot be impartial and remove themselves from the situation if possible. This can involve tapping another admin to take over puppeting, xhelp responses, OOC-Chat, or Game-Help responses.
Only one admin at a time should engage a player in a conversation over xhelp. More than one admin responding to a player (especially when the player is being questioned, punished, or chastised in some way) can have negative effects such as:
It is important that we are patient and civil with players, they often just need to be put on the right track.
Admin are expected to maintain their impartiality on the BGBB in the same way they would On-MOO.
Admin can have normal conversations on OOC-Chat, but they should be aware and make players aware of the following if they see this behavior:
Admin should not engage in controversial conversations on OOC-Chat, such that it may create a bias between the admin and players involved, or vice versa. If an admin wishes to take part in these discussions they should do so with their player account, not reveal they are an admin, and make sure they do not offend anyone wherever possible.
Admin aliases on OOC-Chat are always prefixed with 'Staff' by the MOO itself. This cannot be circumvented.
Many times admin will be tempted to reveal IC info to a player over xhelp, especially if that player is upset because they feel as though they were wronged OOCly, killed without RP, etc. Most of the time, this is because the player does not see all the RP that goes into their killing, the plotting, etc. Which makes the temptation to reveal this to the player (which would, in turn, defuse the situation) high. This should not be done. Instead, the player should be told something along the lines of:
I understand where you are coming from, and from the point of view of your character, it may seem as though you were just randomly killed. Without going into details I can tell you that was not the case and that a great deal of RP that you did not see, did in fact happen. The best thing you can do for the game is to look at your character's death, not as your own death and something to resent, but as a catalyst for roleplaying and a job well done on your part for helping further that RP. If you feel as though something like this is happening on a regular basis, please feel free to let us know again so that we can take a look at the situation and make sure everything is on the level--but as it stands now--there is no wrongdoing and everything is above board.
There are times when a player will ask over xhelp for a puppet. This is to be discouraged. Ask them to make a puppet request instead.
Admin, especially new admin, should review all an NPCs admin notes (especially new ones) before puppeting, as well as the NPCs mannerisms/personality traits stored in @facts. This allows all admin to give each NPC the same personality instead of having them appear schizophrenic.
All guests should be greeted with @greet guest-name within a few moments of signing in. This lets the guests know that the game they are playing has an active admin staff.
Newbies should be offered a generous amount of help. Many individuals coming to the game for the first time may not be familiar with the degree of roleplaying we require. Be supportive of their learning process, being clear and instructive.
If a newbie or a guest is not finding RP on their own -- it is within an admins rights to xhelp active players and let them know that there is a newbie at the Drome, or at the gates, etc.
Newbies that are killed (gangers, rats, dogs) can be brought to Fuller Med and resuscitated or Genetek and Corpse Cloned, ONLY ONCE. No more than that or they will never learn.
@cell is used when a player has potential or definitely broken the rules and needs to be removed from the game for a discussion with admin, or if a punishment of game removal is to be instilled. It can also be used if a player encounters an emergency IRL and cannot get to a safe place before disconnecting.
@coffin is to be used when a player is found disconnected in an area they would not normally disconnect -- either they disconnected due to connection issues, or left their character out by accident.
If a player is employed at a secure location or runs a business with a secure area, advise the player that repeatedly using the location as a sleeping (disconnect) place is not permitted. This can be done ICly in most situations, but should be done OOCly if needed.
An admin is never allowed to puppet for their own character. Admin Alts are required to use puppet requests just like everyone else. Admin should never ask another admin to do a puppet for them, or imply a specific result or outcome in relation to a puppet for their alt.
Admin should refrain when possible from puppeting NPCs in the same room as their alt. See the WHO WATCHES THE WATCHMEN document for more info on conflicts of interest.
If an admin alt does something significant -- there should be a admin note left regarding it.
If an admin puppets ANY NPC, there should be a admin note left on the NPC and the players the NPC interacted with (@add-note npc-name player-name player2-name) regarding the interaction. There is NO exception to this rule. It is imperative to the other admin and the game.
This applies to NPCs reserved for the use of a single, specific Admin as well. They are NPCs and not PCs. EVERYTHING needs to be noted in detail as if they were any other NPC. NO exceptions.
No admin or admin alt should partake, influence or otherwise help the perma-killing of a non-admin alt under any circumstances unless they have gained approval from a Justice.
You are NOT allowed to perm another player for 3 months after you end your tenure as staff regardless of how long you have been staff or the positioning of the moon.
The only exception to this is if a character is willfully walking around without a clone for longer than two weeks when they have the resources to get a clone. Then the restriction on perma-killing is at the admin discretion though it should be discussed with other admin first.
Examples of things not allowed:
Examples of things that are allowed:
It is best practice for all admin alts to perform a clone-check prior to killing another character to ensure that this rule is not violated. A clone check can be performed two ways:
Admin will keep updated a BGBB thread where we post the results of suspensions and bans without IDing anyone, we will say what the infraction was, and what the punishment was. This will increase transparency, and let us reiterate our rules when needed. We also call these out in the town hall every 6 months.
In the course of being an admin and reading notes, bit-chat, and puppeting, an admin will be exposed to the inner workings of the game and as such, be omnipotent to the game world in general. It is important to keep what you know as an admin and what you know as a player separate. It is the job of every admin to police the other admin in this regard and no admin should be above being questioned about their alts motivations, or logical leaps by another admin. It should not be seen as an insult, but instead as transparency and checks and balances.
Admin should not be seen interacting with their alts in any way. Testing should be conducted with players if straight forward and not overly burdensome on the players, as it involves the players in the improvement of the game. If more control is required, NPCs should be used and other admin's alts as a final solution.
Admin are allowed to have the rent of their alt up to 3 months in advance. Put in a service request and someone else will handle it.
Admin alts are not expected to maintain a minimal or spartan lifestyle, but they should keep each other in check and lead the players by example. No admin should tolerate all or the majority of an item being the sole possessor of rare items. (e.g. ceramic composite katanas) If we would want a player to recycle their unused possessions, we must expect the same of ourselves.
Players become Admin, it is rare (though known to happen) for an Admin to be Alt-less. Therefore it is important that each Admin, regardless of if they themselves have an Alt, be on the same page regarding what an Admin-Alt is, how they are treated by other admin, and how the Admin playing the Alt should treat the Alt.
It is normal for each person playing a character, admin or not, to become attached to their player alt. That being said, the alt should be offered no more support from other admin than any other player. In fact, if an admin alt and a normal player are both in need of GM attention, be it puppeting, or otherwise, the normal player should always come first. This is a sacrifice that all admin must make when they get their bit. Admin are expected to put the game before their alt character.
Aside from not perming other characters (without Justice approval), or generally twinky behavior such as killing or robbing random NPCs for gear, admin alts should be treated by the staff and by other players, in the same way, that any other player character would be.
This means that if an admin needs to speak with an admin alt about their behavior, it should happen over xhelp, the same as it would any other player.
If an admin alt needs to flag an issue, bug, ask for help, etc. they should use the same tools/channels available to players, and never use admin channels for it.
Everyone became an admin to help support and grow the game and its playerbase -- they should be allowed to reap the benefits of their contributions to the game, as well as enjoy the game itself from the playerside.
Regardless of each admin's personal opinion on the matter, alts are not NPCs, though they can be considered second class citizens when it comes to resource management. As was stated above, no admin should devote resources (puppeting, etc) to an alt, when a player is in need of them. Only when the player has been taken care of, should the requests of an alt be addressed.
An alt has every right to get involved in the thick of RP, but the admin must be careful that they are not using IC info that they gained through their bit to get the upper hand or influence the way the RP pans out. If another admin has a question regarding the motivations behind an alts actions, they are expected to address it over xhelp with the admin alt in qusetion. The same goes for if there is a question of how an Alt obtained IC information. The admin whos alts actions are being called into question should look at this not as an attack but as an issue of transparency that all admin with alts are expected to submit to.
If one or more admin is of the opinion that an admin alt is interfering, taking control of, or otherwise limiting RP for other players (via power gaming, IC age, or some other means) then the admin(s) should address that on bit-chat and work out a scenario where the Alt is not involved, to benefit the RP or the players.
If one or more admin is of the opinion that an admin alt is interfering, taking control of, or otherwise limiting RP for other players (via power gaming, IC age, or some other means) then the admin(s) should address that on bit-chat and work out a scenario where the Alt is not involved, to benefit the RP or the players.
There are limits to how many alts can be in a faction/sub faction/corp/gang/etc. These depend somewhat, on the size of the faction. More alts, for example may be allowed at NLM (which has many sub factions within it) than would be allowed in NLM Corpsec. The staff as a whole have a responsibility to discuss this, and this can be a factor when we determine if we can bring a new SGM on who's alt is in a faction which already has admin alt(s) in it.
If the staff determine that a group (which can be as small as 2 people) of alts is having a negative impact on RP, be it in a faction, or in a group the alts have formed (before or after becoming admin), the staff can discuss and determine if an IC reason to break that group up is needed. Care must be taken here, as these groups usually involve non alt players who may not understand why it feels like a group that was gelling really well is being push apart.
Admin alts must be careful that doing what is IC for their character does not overly insert themselves into the plot or development of another character. Alt's are not expected to change their personality, but to avoid situations where their involvement may detract from (or eliminate) a plot, plot thread, or challenge that is being presented to another player.
On Occasion a player will contact an admin off-moo (help@sindome or adminname@sindome) to chat about a build project, ask for advice or solicit feedback. These discussions should not involve IC info, player politics, etc. If the conversation goes in that direction kindly tell the player that a conversation like that needs to be had over xhelp so that there is a log of it.
If the player has a gripe about another admin -- that should be taken care of on XHELP or, by sliding to the player directly in-game and speaking with OOC, or they should email a senior staffer directly.
Admin are expected to defer to Agent / Justice bits on matters of policy and plot though discussion is always recommended and expected. We are a team. We work together to create an amazing and stimulating game world. We all have ideas and all of them have merit, some may just not fit with the theme of the game. If that happens to you, do not take it personally.
The Arch Justice is the be-all, end-all in terms of admin. Johnny has a mostly hands-off style but will step in when other senior staff are not around, or as he sees fit. The Arch Justice should only be called in when a final decision needs to be made on something game-changing/breaking. Routine questions should be run up the flagpole of available admin before the Arch Justice is involved.
Handle day to day operations of keeping the game online and the community in a healthy state.
Senior Staff are the admin who have been with the game a long time and have a high level of commitment. They act as a board of directors of sort for the game and discuss high-level game agendas. They are advisory in many capacities, deferring in most cases to the voted positions such as Head GM, Quartermaster, Head Coder, though they may also hold some of those positions. They have a private Slack Channel where their discussions happen and have been known to have the occasional voice chat meeting to discuss topics of note.
Typically Senior Staff are folx who have been with the game for 3+ years. Senior Staff may not always be on the game daily but they have a long-term commitment to the game.
The senior staff will, upon deciding someone is ready to be added to their ranks, submit the person to the group, discuss the merits of adding them, and make a decision by consensus.
Routinely auditing all admin activities and making sure everything is legit, in line with the rules, and kosher from a third-party point of view.
We currently operate as a self organizing team. Be a productive member of it!
Records were not always kept so up until Slither becoming Head GM the dates may be spotty.
Jinkoeri - 2002-2004
Iga - 2004-2008
Slither - 2008-2014
Sable - 2014-2014
Cerberus - 2014-2015
Storm- 2020-2020
The Head Builder is responsible for coordinating the design, development, and implementation of new areas of the game. They are the Go-To person for build projects and are responsible for training new builders.
The Quartermaster is responsible for balancing, specifically of the economy (pricing, rarity) and of weapons + attacks. The Quartermaster is also responsible for training new admin in gear fulfillment and is the go-to for questions regarding pricing and availability of items or for balancing issues.
The Lore Master is responsible for the lore. They will be the go-to person when it comes to needing information on a person, situation, or faction.
The Webmaster is responsible for the upkeep of the website and social media platforms relating to Sindome. They create, update, and publish content whether it be guides, polls, or any other form of website content.
Tenured admin are responsible for training new admin and passing on their knowledge. A tenured admin is a trusted authority.
Tenured Admin and Senior Staff are different. See Senior Staff section.
Every GM is going to have a tendency toward one thing behind the curtain or another. As you become more specialized you'll end up doing work for one senior admin more than the others. There are several categories but if you boil them down and strip away the one-off things it's: building, balancing, coding, macro plotting, micro plotting.
Macro plotting is big picture, behind the scenes, guiding hand type stuff.
Micro plotting is in the trenches, ground level, blood splatter type stuff.
Some combination of preferences will become the kind of GM you are. Perhaps you prefer big-picture plotting and then getting in the trenches and helping to get it done but you can't code and you hate building. Well, you'll be spending a lot of time with the Head GM and Lore Master. What if you're a coder? The Arch Justice will have a use for you. Perhaps you like the idea of taking an existing system and tweaking it, balancing it, and then seeing the ramifications of your changes play out on a macro scale. The Quartermaster will be your primary GM. If you like plotting and building, you'll probably be working with the Head Builder. If you like the mythos of Sindome and you want to contribute to it and learn more about it the Lore Master is who to talk to. As your role as an admin is defined and developed, we'll do our best (with your help) to find the best place to utilize you in a way you find enjoyable, fulfilling, and rewarding.