Finalized List of Changes

[Halaster]

Below is the finalized complete list of all changes staff will be making for the foreseeable future.  This includes items already done and items we plan to work on.  Many of these are not done yet and some may take a little bit of time to fully implement.  I have listed what is done vs what isn't, and assigned a priority to those that aren't.  Lower priority doesn't mean it won't be done it just means we'll be working on higher priority things first.

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Updated Staff Contract  (done)
https://gdb.armageddon.org/index.php/topic,59223.0.html

Updated Staff Avatar Rules (done)
https://gdb.armageddon.org/index.php/topic,59226.0.html

Show staff names when sending (done)
https://gdb.armageddon.org/index.php/topic,49825.msg1089772.html#msg1089772

Player Moderation Team  (done)
https://gdb.armageddon.org/index.php/topic,59147.0.html

Ban the player account of Shalooonsh (done)
   Our rule is we don't talk about the ban/moderation of others, and until (if) the Player Moderation team decides to change that rule for the GDB, it's still a rule.  Considering the circumstances, I have talked to the Player Moderator Team and cleared posting this with them that he is banned.

Player Committee - Staff Complaints and Ban List (done)
   A player committee of five trusted players will act in an advisory capacity in two areas.  One, when a staff complaint is received and the Producer Team makes a decision, they will relay that decision to the Player Committee for advice before finalizing it to the player making the complaint.  Two, when a player is banned from the game, staff will notify the Player Committee of the details of the ban for the sake of transparency.

Ban Reviews (in-progress)
   There will not be a full ban amnesty for several reasons.  Our account system does not record the date when someone was banned, so it is not feasible to say "give me a list of all game bans in the past 3 years".  Instead, it's basically a "all bans ever".  Moving forward we will fix this so that a game ban is timestamped.  We should not unban multiplayers, or certain people who have done some rather heinous things, or players who asked us specifically to ban them.  So that means someone would have to compile a list of all accounts banned since the beginning and sort through them to see which should be removed and which should remain.
   Instead, there is an open invitation to anyone who is banned from the game to send in a request and ask for a review.  We understand that there are some people who will not be happy with having to ask for it versus it being automatically lifted, and while we regret that to be the case, it just isn't a viable option.

Vision statement, Core values (high priority)
   Staff agree this is something we should put together and publicize.  This is actively being worked on.

Publish Staff rules  (in-progress)
https://gdb.armageddon.org/index.php/board,195.0.html

Allowance for Players saying no to a staffer (done)
   We will allow this under specific circumstances and with certain conditions.  There must be a formal Staff Complaint explaining the reasons why this is being asked.  Asking not to work with a Storyteller of a clan means the Administrator of that team will be the one to handle your requests.  The player will then understand that their requests will possibly take longer than normal to answer due to the workload of the Administrator and the coordination among the team.  The Administrator of the team is the only backup; a player cannot ask for someone else beyond that to answer their requests.
   If a player asks not to work with a specific Staff member, then subsequent characters cannot knowingly join that Staff member's clans.  For example, if during the course of playing Amos, you and your Storyteller clash, you may ask that they no longer answer your requests.  The Team Administrator will do so from there on out.  Once your character Amos has died/stored or otherwise left that clan, you may not create further characters to join that specific clan while that Staff Member oversees it.
   If the Staff Member that a player asks not to work with is an Administrator, then a Producer or another Administrator will step in for them, but again the player will understand this can possibly lengthen the time of requests being answered.  In this scenario, if a player asks not to work with an Administrator, then subsequent characters cannot knowingly join any clan on that Administrator's Team while they oversee it.
   A player may not have more than one staffer with whom they will refuse to work with at a time.

MOTD web tool (medium priority)
   Create web tool to allow staff much easier usage of updating the MOTD for players who do not participate in the GDB or Discord

Whistleblower Rule (done)
   A rule will be crafted that allows a player to be immune from repercussions if they expose some serious issue that staff are missing/ignore/neglecting.  This will be similar to a workplace rule, and it will only cover actions the player took for that specific issue.  Good faith efforts on the part of the player to notify and work with staff must be attempted first before they are covered by this rule.

Player Coaching (low priority)
   From time to time a player will need to be coached on various issues.  In the past, sometimes staff have handled this poorly.  A guideline for how to handle this will be written for staff.

Staff Rules Review (low priority)
   Periodic reviews of staff rules and the staff contract will take place among staff, so that all staff can be familiar with what the expectations are of them.

Auto email when account note added  (low priority)
   When a staff adds a note to an account it would automatically send an email notifying the player.

Limit who sees complaints  (done)
   Player Complaints will only be seen by Administrators and Producer.  Staff Complaints will only by seen by Producers (and Player Committee, see above).  The idea here is to limit these to only the people who can actively deal with the complaint.  It helps limit the possibilty that staff form unconscious bias towards people putting in complaints, and helps the player putting in a complaint feel a little more comfortable doing so knowing that it's not being viewed by the entire staff audience.

Website rebrand  (in-progress)
   This has been ongoing for a while now.

Web-based character application tool  (in-progress)
   This has been ongoing for a while now.