As everyone hopefully knows, the staff consists entirely of volunteers who contribute their time to the game as a labor of love. It can, however, start feeling like a job or a grind at times. There are ways you can help! They are listed below. Not everyone has to do everything, but if you can contribute, it is much appreciated.
HELP FILE EDITING / ADDITION
We have commands for anyone to submit a new or edited help file to the staff for review. If you think we are missing a help file, or there is something outdated or in new of updating, check out 'help @new-help' which runs you through the use of the command. You can also run '@missing-help' to see help files people request, that we do not currently have. It's a good way to identify what help files we may be missing.
LORE EDITING
We have commands in the MOO for anyone authorized to submit new or edited lore content for review. I'd say roughly 50% of the lore on the website comes from player submissions. To be a lore editor you need to have been playing for a while, and have a strong understanding of the lore. If you're interested in contributing in this way, please check out this BGBB thread https://sindome.org/bgbb/game-discussion/new-game-features/new-lore-system-476/ and 'help lore' for the requirements and how to request access.
FIX IT
The Build Team needs help brainstorming and writing messaging for objects, rooms and more. Anyone can join, all you need to do is put in a service request to be added to the channel. There isn't always something that needs doing, but having a pool of players ready to help if the builders need it, is great. Many projects have been sped along by player support in this manner. If you're already on the channel you can type '@xstatus fix' to see if there are any current projects in need of help.
SUBMITTING BUGS
Taking the time to submit a detailed bug report when you encounter an issue is an excellent way to help the game improve. You can read more about what a good bug report looks like here: https://www.sindome.org/bgbb/game-discussion/new-game-features/how-to-submit-a-good--bug-429/ and how our bug system works by checking out 'help @bug'
REVIEWING BUGS
We have two types of bugs. Public and private. If a bug is private, only admin and the submitter can see it. If a bug is public, anyone can view it. Some of you already take advantage of this to leave comments on bugs with additional information or context, steps to reproduce, or to clarify that something isn't a bug, which saves coders time!
For example '@vb 1319' has comments that helped me close this bug that were left not by the original submitter, but by another player. There are several examples of this in @bugs and it is truly helpful. If more people do this, we will be able to fix more bugs more quickly.
HELPING WITH TESTING AND DEBUGGING
We have a very large codebase, and as some of you can attest, we often have to reach out to players to understand how a system is working so we can understand how to fix it. Being supportive and available to help the staff when we need an actual player to test fixes or understand why an issue is happening is really helpful. Especially when that player is more of an expert in the specific systems usage than we may be.
GAME-HELP
Be kind and patient on Game-Help, and doing your best to answer questions. Before we had game-help all these questions were being asked on xhelp, and it was very time-consuming for the staff. Crowdsourcing these responses has led to faster answers for players and less drag on staff. Thank you. Keep it up.
@REVIEW-CLOTH
This helps us reduce bloat while also keeping cool player made items. We used to have to do this manually, as a staff. It saves us a ton of time to have players help. Check out 'help @review-cloth' for more information.
BE A GOOD BGBB CITIZEN
Being a constructive contributor on the BGBB, answering questions, looking at things from multiple perspectives, recognizing that staff are volunteers, time is limited, and we have good intentions, is important. Staff try to respond to BGBB threads where possible, but it can take a lot of time and the conversation moves quickly, and most of the time we spend on the game is usually on the MOO, doing puppets and writing code and building. The more that the BGBB can be a place for discussion without being a distraction that requires moderation, the better. The same goes for the Discord server.
You can read this BGBB thread to understand our BGBB policies and expectations: https://sindome.org/bgbb/open-discussion/anything-really/how-to-bgbb-1090/
BABBLEON SCRIPTING
We don't always need new scripts, but there is nothing stopping anyone from submitting ones we didn't ask for. If you're really interested in rewriting an existing script, for instance, you could start a discussion in that Forum, and eventually reach out to the staff to see if there is interest for that.
This section of the BGBB has lots of info and a guide for how to write these scripts: https://sindome.org/bgbb/development-discussion/script-development/
OOC CHAT AND BGBB MODERATION
It isn't just admin that can (and are) moderators in both these areas. If someone has shown an even temperament, measured responses to difficult questions or situations, and is interested, we can provide them with OOC Chat Moderation tools or BGBB moderation tools. There are some strict requirements and expectations for being allowed these tools. You can find out more in 'help moderator'. And if you feel you are a good fit for one of these roles, you can put in a service request to talk to a $justice about it.
BECOMING A SUPPORT GM
If you're doing some or all of these things and still find yourself with time to spare, and after a year of playing, you could consider submitting an application for Support GM.
We maintain strict standards for who can join the staff. And we review a person carefully before we even set up an interview. This is because a staff member has access to tons of information and the ability to misuse the commands available to them. We've had staff members betray the community's trust in the past. We're wary of allowing it to happen again. Staff cohesion is also important. It only takes one hostile person on staff to drive everyone else away. And of course, availability and commitment are important. Numerous times we've spent a long time training someone as an SGM, only to have them stop signing in. That's not a good use of anyone's time. It's a careful balancing act, and it requires due attention and care when we seek to bring someone new into the fold.
SEE ALSO: help @new-help help lore help @bug help @review-cloth help moderator *Last Updated: 02/22/25 by Fengshui*
