Behavioral Rules

Respect the Members

Honesty time again. We agree, conceptually, that every single human being deserves respect. That’s a concept we can all get behind. But putting it in practice…well, there’s always that guy, isn’t there? He’s annoying, he’s antagonistic, he’s rude, he’s hateful, he’s just all around insufferable. We get that it’s hard sometimes, and we’d be lying if we didn’t say that there’s probably people on this very board that we aren’t fond of. But we’re asking you to please do your best, because in life, you do have to put up with people that you don’t like and act respectful even though they annoy the living daylights out of you. Unless, of course, you can easily get ride of people you don’t like. Like we can on this forum. So watch yourself.

Respect the Staff

Speaking about watching yourself, we have a very interesting policy here when it comes to staff. See, the staff are all people we trust, so that means that they’re given certain liberties when it comes to moderating stuff. Basically, being staff means that we trust you enough to break the rules if you see fit. So maybe you’ve seen a staff member do something that goes against the rules or maybe just rides the lines between them, and you think “Well, I should be able to do that!”.

Nope. Not if you want to play it safe.

Staff get certain privileges because they have proven themselves to be noteworthy, and this is one of them. What you should do is make sure you respect them, because they wield unimaginable power. UNIMAGINABLE POWER.

Joking all aside, we do expect our staff to be fair and to respect all of the rules we have on this site. That being said, if they do disrespect those rules, we will do our best to deal with them. That being said, you also need to realize that while we don’t require you to always respect the person, you are supposed to respect the position they are in.

We also reserve the right to disregard any of the rules just because we can. We don’t want to, because we think they’re good rules and they keep the peace, and we wouldn’t really expect you guys to be held to a standard that we don’t follow ourselves.

But hey, maybe there’s a point where you see a moderator do what you seem to be trolling someone, and you’re like “Well, if I did that, I’d probably get punished for it.” Yep, you probably would. The reason they’re allowed to get away with it is specifically because they’re moderators. We trust them enough that we give them a few extra privileges when it comes to the board, but those privileges also come with responsibility.

If they really do cross the line, we (the TTV Cast and Crew) will punish them accordingly. But we do reserve the right to do whatever the heck we want to, if we want to, whenever we want to. Hey, it’s our site. Booyah.

Respect the Cast

Don’t get us wrong, we are very, very grateful for you fans. You’re literally the only reason we’re able to do what we love to do today. In fact, we liked you so much that we made this place specifically so we could talk and interact with you guys. And hey, we like to rib each other a lot. We have thick skins, and we like a good joke.

That being said, there’s been some issues with disrespect lately. Stuff like impersonating TTV Cast members or shipping between fans and Cast members. We like to be chill as far as stuff going on the forum, but some of that stuff has been seriously crossing the line.

You have to understand, we riff each other a lot because we’re friends offscreen and we have been friends for years. Some of the jokes we make on the podcast are cool to make because we’re the ones making them. We get that you guys want in on these jokes, and we want you guys to feel involved and part of the community. But you also have to realize that we don’t know a lot of you personally. That means that jokes that are okay coming from some of your closest friends aren’t really okay when they’re coming from a stranger.

We get that a lot of you don’t mean to be offensive with this, and it’s just an example of a joke that got carried away too far. We’ll try to just warn you when things start crossing the line. However, do be aware that just because we say something in the podcast doesn’t mean you can necessarily say the same things here.

Don’t Do the Moderator’s Job

Oh, here’s another one that’s a little context specific, because it gets a little blurry when it comes to exact situations. We don’t like people playing moderator, because we actually have people for that. If you want to do your part, flag the offending content for us because that legitimately helps us out.

But basically, have you ever been in a situation as a kid where you were like on a playground or something, and there was a disagreement, but this one kid came up and tried to settle something except he or she just kind of did a terrible job at it and all you were thinking of “Who died and made you king?”.

But then, on the other hand, have you been in a situation where someone just stepped up and you just went along with it and didn’t even question why you should be following them?

There’s an innate difference between those two, and we can’t really describe what it is. But basically, some people will “play moderator” and it will be a relief, and other times people will do it and it will seem just really annoying. If you do it, you will most likely end up in the latter category, but there’s always exceptions. However, your best bet isn’t to do it at all and play it safe, because you don’t want to be known as that annoying know-it-all on the playground.

Trolling

I’m not going to lie, trolling can be really funny sometimes. I know, it seems really wrong for someone to say that because no one likes to be at the receiving end…but there’s always that guy, you know? I’d be a hypocrite if I tried to look like I was above it. Not that I’m always proud of the way I handle things when I do, mind you, but I know what it feels like to just enjoy being snarky on the internet.

It’s also hard to really say “don’t troll people”, mostly because the lines between what’s trolling and what isn’t can be pretty blurry. Some people are really good at making it seem passive aggressive, some people can make it look like something completely innocent to everyone else, some are much more direct, some people just antagonize…it’s one of those concepts which everyone knows but it’s a lot harder to draw the lines as to what the definition is or isn’t, especially when it comes to handing out punishments for it.

And even then, even if it is severe trolling, it can be offset by how humorous it is, or how honestly stupid “the other guy” was being. Like I said, I’d be a hypocrite if I said I was above it. I’m not always proud of the fact, but I have done it and if I was to be honest, I most likely will in the future.

So here’s what we’re going to say about it: don’t troll people, don’t antagonize people, because if you think you’re funny and witty or that the “other guy” totally deserves it, 9/10 you are probably wrong.

But honestly, it’s going to be a case by case basis anyways. So if you think you have the wit and charm in order to get away with it, do realize you’re actively betting disciplinary action on your perceived “skills”. It’s your own fault if you’re not good enough at it. Simple as that.

Amendment I: Creation of fake leaks are not allowed.

The means the creation of unofficial promotional imagery with the intent to trick, discredit, misdirect, or garner attention from message board users. This includes any fake/unofficial box art, set pictures or catalog photos. This is a ban-able offense! If a user is caught creating fake imagery and spreading it on the Message Boards, they will be banned from the boards permanently.

We take the information that we present to our members and viewers very seriously. We want to make sure that both the channel and our message boards are presenting reliable information so that any and all BIONICLE fans that stumble upon us know that they can trust us to bring them real news. We do not condone individuals abusing our website to use that trust against them.

Discussion of leaks are allowed, and this includes fake leaks as well. However don’t try to be sneaky and make fake leaks pretending they’re real or that you discovered them somewhere else. You will be caught, and you will be banned.

Creation of fake promo imagery for the sake of criticism, parody, or satire is allowed.

Amendment II: Community provocation is not allowed.

This means the intentional instigation with the goal of stirring up controversy, riling up other members, inciting flame wars, or promoting rebellion.

Sometimes decisions are made by staff that don’t always make sense to members, it happens. But we expect all members to behave appropriately, regardless of their personal feelings towards administrative action. If a decision has been made that you do not like, feel free to initiate a PM conversation with an administrator regarding it- and perhaps they will help explain why it was necessary.

However, staff members hold all authority over these boards, regardless of member approval. The staff are not obligated to change rules or decisions, and in most cases a staff ruling is final whether the community agrees or not. We ask that all members understand that we make rules with the intention of keeping the Message Boards a clean and inviting environment for all fans, young or old, to enjoy.

If a member decides to take matters into their own hands and attempt to rally up support against the admins they will be banned. This website is not a democracy. It’s a dictatorship. The community does not run the site, nor do they pay for the site, and have no final say in any decisions that are made.

If at the end of the day a member has determined that they do not enjoy the way the site is run, they are free to leave and request that their account be terminated (banned indefinitely). There are plenty of other forums and communities that may better fit their desires.

6 Likes

Amendment I: Creation of fake leaks are not allowed.

The means the creation of unofficial promotional imagery with the intent to trick, discredit, misdirect, or garner attention from message board users. This includes any fake/unofficial box art, set pictures or catalog photos. This is a ban-able offense! If a user is caught creating fake imagery and spreading it on the Message Boards, they will be banned from the boards permanently.

We take the information that we present to our members and viewers very seriously. We want to make sure that both the channel and our message boards are presenting reliable information so that any and all BIONICLE fans that stumble upon us know that they can trust us to bring them real news. We do not condone individuals abusing our website to use that trust against them.

Discussion of leaks is allowed following the conditions listed here. However don’t try to be sneaky and make fake leaks pretending they’re real or that you discovered them somewhere else. You will be caught, and you will be banned.

Creation of fake promo imagery for the sake of criticism, parody, or satire is allowed.

10 Likes

Amendment II: Community provocation is not allowed.

This means the intentional instigation with the goal of stirring up controversy, riling up other members, inciting flame wars, or promoting rebellion.

Sometimes decisions are made by staff that don’t always make sense to members, it happens. But we expect all members to behave appropriately, regardless of their personal feelings towards administrative action. If a decision has been made that you do not like, feel free to initiate a PM conversation with an administrator regarding it- and perhaps they will help explain why it was necessary.

However, staff members hold all authority over these boards, regardless of member approval. The staff are not obligated to change rules or decisions, and in most cases a staff ruling is final whether the community agrees or not. We ask that all members understand that we make rules with the intention of keeping the Message Boards a clean and inviting environment for all fans, young or old, to enjoy.

If a member decides to take matters into their own hands and attempt to rally up support against the admins they will be banned. This website is not a democracy. It’s a dictatorship. The community does not run the site, nor do they pay for the site, and have no final say in any decisions that are made.

If at the end of the day a member has determined that they do not enjoy the way the site is run, they are free to leave and request that their account be terminated (banned indefinitely). There are plenty of other forums and communities that may better fit their desires.

14 Likes

Amendment III: Duplicate Accounts are not allowed.

This rule is one that we really shouldn’t have to tell you not to do; it’s common sense. We have enforced it for quite a while, and will continue to do so, however upon further notice it has actually been absent from our rules up until this point. Ergo, I’m officially adding it and fixing that particular oversight.

It’s very simple; do not attempt to circumvent your punishment. If you are suspended or banned from our message boards, it’s pointless to attempt creating a duplicate account. We will discover the truth pretty swiftly and you will be promptly banned again.

-Mesonak

8 Likes