Site Rules

From HN Wiki

Welcome to Hogwarts Now!!! While you're here there are a few customs that we (the Staff) hope players will be aware of and abide by. These customs are in place to keep the playing experience enjoyable for most (not all, unfortunately, since we can't please everybody) of the people who come across our little realm on the Internet. Follow them and we can all have a good time.

Without further ado, here they are:

Rules

Rule 1: Don't act like a n00b (idiot)

You'll be fine as long as you read the FAQ (all of it!), the Help Me I'm Lost section, the MotD, and don't ask stupid questions like, "why is my gold missing?" I guarantee you that failure to read it will most definitely result in an endless barrage of ridicule! If you owl the staff members or Petition for Help with questions answered in the FAQ they will be ignored. If you message the staff for favors you will most presumably be ignored and/or punished.

Rule 2: No cheating

Trying to hack into the server, trying to crack other user's passwords, or otherwise doing something detrimental to the integrity or security of HN is strictly forbidden. Do not use scripts or bots to automate game tasks as they may burden the server. You must report any bugs or exploits you discover using the Petition for Help link. Failure to do so will result in a temporary ban. Those who report bug abuse or means of doing so will receive a reward. A bug is a problem in the game code that permits you to gain an unfair advantage over other players, it is a form of cheating.

Rule 3: No excessive harassment of other players

Do not harass other players (ridicule is allowed to an extent). The use of offensive or sexually explicit language in chat and owls is not allowed. Do not use innuendos and do not name private body parts. Please mind your attitude and language at all times. Be polite and have fun. Taunting opponents is fine as long as it is roleplayed, but personal attacks are not allowed. Personal attacks (bringing someones real life into it) and insulting remarks should be kept off the public channels such as the forums and the chats. It is preferable that you keep arguments off the site or ignore players that irritate you.

Just because a word you say is censored does not mean it is OK to say it. Censoring is just a means of masking the word from younger players.

Rule 4: Drugs and other Bannable Subjects.

Any reference to illegal drugs, alcohol use (other than site-related), cutting, suicide or other forms of self-mutilation will not be tolerated. There is no need for any of that on this site. NO sexual content. Holding hands, hugging and some kissing are allowed however we do not need details and descriptions. Innuendo needs to be close to nil as well. Anyone caught "cybering" in owls will most likely be instantly banned, since we have many players below the age of 18 of this site, and cybering with them is a felony under U.S. law. Because we cannot prevent those players from receiving adult content in owls, we must disallow any sexual content anywhere on HN. Also, any reference to rape is an instant ban. Included in this rule is any controversial subject such as politics, religion, abortion, etc. If ANY subject is causing a disruption in chat, staff will stop it and mute those players that continue.

Rule 5: Spam/Advertising

We define spam as useless and repetitive posting. We generally we do not mute for this, unless you do it over and over.

Excessive/Nonsense Comments

Posting such things as "shsdfgesrhshsryery" or "Hiiiiiiiii!!!!!!" are spam. We have a general guideline of using only 3 of the same letters/numbers/characters or 3 of the same series of letters/numbers/characters in a row. Using too many strung together can stretch the page for some players and for those that use a screen reader, it can cause problems. If you continue to post this way after repeated warnings, you can be muted.

All Caps

All caps is only to be used by Staff when announcing an event, news, etc. Caps Abuse is considered as using caps in more that 2 short words.

Advertising

Do not advertise other websites in chat or in owls. If you want to advertise your website, use the Link Exchange.

Excessive discussions about other websites is considered advertising and is also prohibited in chat. The only sites that are allowed to be discussed at the moment is Hogwarts Now. Any other sites have to be approved by Alex. Again, one or two posts is fine if it comes up in chat. Do NOT make it the topic of the day.

If you are reported by several players with evidence that you are randomly owling them websites, you'll most likely be warned or muted.

Petition Spam

Due to past abuse of the Petition system, abusing the Petition System (sending multiple similar petitions, sending nonsense petitions, etc.) will result in a warning or ban! We have enough problems with the site to deal with, we don't need junk cluttering up genuine support requests.

BBCode Spam

With the introduction of our Global BBCode system, using BBCodes excessively on text is not allowed. A few BBCodes are fine, but please use them within reason. In addition, there may be special BBCodes reserved for use by staff which normal users are strictly not allowed to use. If you discover one of these BBCodes, it is your responsibility not to use them or risk punishment.

Rule 6: Chatspeak

Chatspeak is not allowed. You can try it as much as you want, but we guarantee you that it will be filtered, if not when you do it, soon after you do. ;)

Rule 7: Alternate Accounts

Alternate characters (alts) are not allowed UNLESS authorized by the Staff. That sort of cheating is just in bad taste. If you share a computer, Internet connection, or network with another player we will assume there is only one person at the keyboard and you will be held responsible for all activity that originates from your account or IP address.

Rule 8: Personal Information

Your contact information is private. Posting your email, phone number, address etc. in a public chat is not only against the rules of the site but puts you at risk. If you wish to share this information with others on the site, please use Owls to do so.

Rule 9: Drama

Drama is defined as any discussion which causes a disruption in chat, such as arguments or use of inappropriate words. ANY drama brought into the site will earn you a warning, and will quickly escalate if the conversation continues.

Drama is also defined as taking an owl conversation into chat. If you have a problem with an owl someone sent you, you're encouraged to file a Petition for Help, or send an owl to an admin.

Rule 10: Staff Symbols

Throughout Hogwarts Now, you may see a player with a symbol in front of their title. This symbol represents a particular position they hold in staff. If a player holds multiple staff positions, they will have their highest rank's symbol in front of their title. Please note that it is expressively forbidden to impersonate a staff member, through chat, using a staff symbol in your title, or otherwise. Doing so will earn you an instant permanent ban from Hogwarts Now. For your reference, here are the staff symbols and meanings, in order from highest to lowest rank:

Staff (appear on Staff List)

@ - System Administrator (sysadmin): Access to all aspects of the server, including but not limited to Hogwarts Now
@ - Developer: Access to almost all aspects of Hogwarts Now administration and development
@ - Administrator: Access to almost all aspects of Hogwarts Now administration
& - Head of House: In charge of their house's matters. Also serve as chat moderators.
? - Support Team: Access to aspects of Hogwarts Now pertaining to providing players with support

Non-Staff (do not appear on Staff List)

# - Head Boy/Girl: In charge of their house's Prefects. Have access to general support features.
! - Prefect: A Head of House-chosen student representative of a house.
+ - Non-Player Character: A computer-controlled character, which may interact with other players.

Note: Since there are so few of us, sysadmins, admins, and devs all share the @ staff symbol. If you need to know which a staff member is, look on the Staff List.

In the end, listen to the admins and other staff, do not argue with them. Regardless of the aforementioned rules, the admins (@) reserves the right to make their own judgments regarding behavior on Hogwarts Now, and to take actions that they feel are appropriate. If you have an issue with a staff member, please Petition for Help so another staff member can handle/look into it. If you decide to lash out at a staff member, argue with them in chat or disregard their authority, you will be punished. These rules are made so everyone can enjoy their time here on HN. Please abide by them so all players can have fun. Usually, you'll get a warning before you're muted, but in some cases staff CAN decide to instant mute you.

That's about it for the summary. Some of the staff can delete comments, so if one of your posts disappears consider it a warning.

Once again, welcome, and good luck in your quest!

Discipline

For reference, the following is a list of the actions one should expect to be taken if one violates certain rules. Depending on the severity of a violation, one or more of the "steps" may be skipped. All actions have a 30-day probationary period that is applied when the action is taken. That means if you get a warning for spamming in chat, then you spam in chat within the next 30 days, you will receive the next action, a 3-day mute. If after 30 or more days, you spam in chat again, you will "reset" back to getting just a warning. Finally, actions taken for one certain violation may be taken into account when a different violation occurs, and past violations may also be taken into account.

Chat Violation

1st Violation: Warning
2nd Violation: 3-Day Mute
3rd Violation: Permanent Chat Mute

Owl Violation

1st Violation: Warning
2nd Violation: 3-Day Owl Mute
3rd Violation: Permanent Owl Mute

Alternate Account

1st Violation: Warning, alt deleted
2nd Violation: 3-Day Ban, alt deleted
3rd Violation: Permanent Ban, alt deleted

Cybering

1st Violation: Permanent Ban, possible report to authorities

Cheating/Exploiting

1st Violation: 3-Day Ban
2nd Violation: Permanent Ban

Hacking

1st Violation: Permanent Ban, likely report to authorities

Scripts/Bots

1st Violation: Warning
2nd Violation: 3-Day Ban
3rd Violation: Permanent Ban

Impersonating Staff

1st Violation: Permanent Ban

Spamming Petitions