It has come to the channel staff's attention that things have started to get out of hand within the #KQW channel. So I'm just going to post here some reminders of the channel rules which are essential to IRC. This post is not necessarily aimed at anyone, and most events have not reached an extreme level; it is just a warning before they do. We understand that people are just having fun, and we don't want to remove that, just some things will have to change from now on in our behaviour.
1) Impersonation
Although it may seem like a harmless joke, impersonation can cause serious problems on the Your Game IRC network and can result in you being banned from the network by Opers. I understand that it can seem like a funny joke and that it is never done with the malicious intent to fool someone, but we must now stop it. This includes changing your nick to match another user's when they're absent, and staff using the /npc command to imitate a user (it is fine to use it to create fake characters, as long as you do not trick anyone on purpose).
On another note, we may ask you to change your name if we catch you impersonating someone, so if we do, please use the /nick command to change your name. If you leave the channel to change the name, we may assume that you left to avoid punishment, and you will be banned.
I would also like to note that we are considering Your Game's name an game Name staff name, as he is an alt staff account owned by an Your Game staff, not to mention he has his own Twitter. We will politely ask anyone using the name to change it, or suffer the consequences otherwise
2) Profanity
Please do not swear in any way shape or form. Recently, I've seen people abbreviate swear words though this is not acceptable. If the filters block it on Your Game Rules, then you shouldn't say it in the channel either. This includes replacing letters with asterisks.
3) Power Abuse
This applies to the channel staff. Only kick or ban users who actually break the rules. Can we no longer kick/ban users for no reason at all. Also, if users do break a rule, first warn them and then kick them if they repeat the offence. Bans are rarely needed on IRC, except for spammers/etc.
4) Spammers and Trolls, etc.
If the channel is attacked by spammers, trolls and other bots, please do not retaliate. Do not comment on what they are saying, just highlight a channel staff member and wait for them to deal with the situation. Sometimes, retaliating can only make things worse so it's not worth dragging yourself into the situation.
5) Always listen to channel staff
This is a big rule. If someone from the channel staff requests you to stop doing something, DO IT. Refusing a request from the channel staff is a big offence, and it won't be taken kindly.
We want the channel to have a nice and clean environment, and act as an official channel which follows Your Game's rules. We must now change the way we act within the channel.
Lastly, I'd like to remind you all that we do have an IRC Oper (network staff) who frequently visits the channel, and who will step in if he believes things are getting out of hand.
Thanks!