Information Meta Rules, Questions, and Concerns.

Talinn Ryalor

Duke of Westisle
Staff member
Nobility: Duke
Minister: Innovation
Influence
32,720.00
Meta Questions and Considerations

What is this?

This is something of a placeholder thread answering some general site-wide questions for people until such time as the head administrator can write individual writeups.

What is the role of the head administrator? Who is he?

The role of the head administrator is to ensure that the community runs well. This includes the social and technical aspects the site. The current head administrator, @Talinn Ryalor , is an experienced RP veteran of both the VI and writing communities in general, with roughly around twenty years of experience in them, a fair amount of that being in an administrative role, so generally he tends to know what he is doing, although he readily admits that he is not flawless by any means.

What is the head administrator’s management philosophy?

The head administrator’s management philosophy is a middle ground between a dictator and someone who does not do anything at all and lets people run wild. He does issue hard rulings from time to time, but these are usually the result of a (thorough) consultation with the staff-only rarely does he step in with his own absolute authority to force something through or approve it, usually when he considers it essential for the site to function. This is because he understands he is not God, and is keenly aware of the potential for backlash and drama. Typically, he does not have the time, energy, or inclination to micromanage every aspect of the site or keep tabs on everything, oftentimes delegating things to the various Ministers or Captains. Please give him some slack when he makes decisions in light of the above, they are not the result of his whimsy.

What do the other Ministers do and what is their role?

Ministers are the day to day staff members of the Imperium, and run it in a council-like manner where they talk about and vote on various things. The head administrator may offer input on these topics, sometimes intensive, and retains an individual vote, but in accordance with his management philosophy rarely steps in with absolute authority to override or veto their decisions or force something through without their consultation or input.

In terms of duties, they run their factions with a broad degree of freedom, create content, moderate the site, be the normative means of resolving disputes between people per the dispute resolution policy, and are often assigned various different tasks by the head administrator to help him in running the community. They have generally wide site powers, although the head administrator retains certain key functions to himself to keep the site from being irreparably damaged if a Minister goes rogue. They are expected to be fairly active, although of course the head administrator understands that life sometimes happens.

How do I become a Minister?

You may apply or be invited to the position, typically through bringing it up to an existing Minister or by messaging the head administrator directly, although from time to time applications for this position may be open. Usually, elevating a member to this level is done through a vote on the ministerial council, although the head administrator does have the right to step in if he thinks a choice is particularly unwise at that time or if circumstances are such where a minister is needed immediately, but, in light of his philosophy, this tends to rare.

What qualities does staff look for in a Minister?

Activity to a reasonable degree, proven ability to manage others and create content, having been around the site long enough for us to get a good judge of their character, how much of a team player one is, et cetera. It is somewhat akin to a management position in real life, albeit more of a cooperative experience.

What about being a Captain?

Captains are one of the critical positions on the Imperium, running the official ships of the site, and while they do not have a vote over site matters, they are invited into the Red Herring discussion forum and Discord channel, where they may give input and observe discussions and debates. This is considered to be an equally demanding, sometimes more demanding, position than a Minister, in that they are expected to be fairly active and actively socialize and engage in content creation with the members of their ship. They are generally given broad authority to run things how they see fit, and may appoint officers to assist them in running things aboard. They have the ability to moderate their own specific ship forum as well.

The process to become a Captain is much the same as it is to become a Minister, as are the qualities staff looks for before appointing a community member as one, although more slack is given to the length of time requirement as the moderation powers are more limited.

I or a friend of mine are afraid of being banned or have been banned! What do we do?

Generally speaking it is very hard to actually get banned, and even more so to be permanently banned from the Imperium, you have to really step over the line or be a habitual line stepper for this happen, and you will typically get multiple warnings before it happens. If you are banned and wish to file an appeal, DM the head administrator on the site with an alternate account or join Discord, or reach out to some still active members or staff members. Of course, the head administrator has a lot of discretion here, but usually will only do so if he thinks an individual is causing massive problems-people have even directly insulted him before and not gotten banned, so that should give you some indication that these are not issued lightly.

Are there any hard limits on plots in the Imperium, that is, things that I am allowed to do?

These would be things that permanently, substantively change the overall setting without a staff vote and the approval of the head administrator, so that we are able to maintain a generally consistent setting for players new and old. This would be things like the permanent removal of the Empress, destroying the entirety Bully Harbor itself, et cetera. Staff and the head administrator are willing to listen and take most ideas quite far, but ultimately this is a cooperative writing website in a shared setting, so some creative freedom is inherently lost in the process. If you wish to explore more radical concepts like that, the Through The Looking Glass forum is a good place to do so.

How do I give feedback or concerns on how the site is run or if I have problems with a particular person?

DM a staff member on the site or Discord. This can also be done, truly anonymously, on the Discord by using the anonymous feedback channel and typing /confess.

Why are bird PCs not allowed in the Imperium? They were allowed in Redwall and could gain us new members!

Lore reasons aside, it is because by their very nature (the ability to fly up and away) they add in significant complications to the dispute resolution process that the staff and head administrator have presently decided that this is not worth the headache of dealing with. Bird NPCs may be allowed with certain restrictions if the character approval administrator decides, but these will be heavily monitored by the head administrator for the potential for abuse and your card may be revoked at any time if this is abused.

Why aren’t my [x] fantasy or far out there species mixes not allowed?

Largely for setting consistency purposes-it would sort of heavily break immersion if a minotaur or actual fantasy dragon showed up. Some real-life species mixes are allowed, such as various fox and mustelid breeds, but beyond that, no. Sorry fans of Beastars, much as I like the show, you aren’t getting your wolf-komodo dragon mixes.

Are timeskips possible?

Yes, they are in theory possible with the new site vs the old site, but they are likely to be limited in scale, and exceedingly rarely done, if done at all. When creating a character, do not necessarily create them with this in mind.

Will I be able to add my country to the official map?

There will be a process for this later, but at the moment, no. That does not mean your country does not exist or is not canon, it just does not mean that it is in the highest level of canon, which is Official Lore.

What are these different levels of canon of which you speak?

Generally speaking, everything written in the proper VI forums and not Through The Looking Glass may be considered canon. We do, however, operate on official levels of canon, much like many fandoms and notably Star Wars. There is the highest level of canon, Official Lore, which is vetted and approved by the head administrator and staff, which is the final say on matters. Followed behind that is the approved Player Lore, which is generally considered canon unless it contradicts with Official Lore. You then unapproved stuff written in threads, which, while generally considered canon, may be overruled by either of the above two levels.

Will NSFW RP ever be approved on the Imperium or the official Discord?

Not while this head administrator is living and controls both. This is not the place for that.

I want [x] feature that is not presently on the site, what should I do?

Ask the head administrator if this technically possible. Many things of the old site can in theory be brought back relatively easily, such as a marketplace to spend influence on or even a basic casino, others would require custom development which is expensive and would take quite a bit of time to do, if it is chosen to be done at all.

Can I donate money to help out with site costs etc?

The head administrator cannot legally ask for donations until if/when I get the copyright from Retto, if ever, or even from the Jacques estate itself as technically until all Redwall references and more direct hints are removed in the entirety it is considered a legally distinct “parody” of both. If, however, you instead wish to donate to Talinn’s personal hobby lifestyle fund, that is allowed and appreciated.

Is this site archived? I am terrified I will lose all my writing like what happened on the old site?

The site is regularly scraped by Wayback and other sites, and there are backups every six hours which the head administrator is able to download. Periodically, I will release these backups for the community to download, and if the site were to ever risk permanently going down, I would be able to get a final one for everyone. Note, if you intend to misuse these backups to try to make a new version of the current VI without my express permission, given the licenses I have the right to and my own copyrighted content I have personally written, I will DCMA strike that down-these are for your personal records mostly.

What if there is a question not addressed here?

Ask on the Discord or through direct messages and it will likely not only be answered but also added to this thread.
 
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