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If you’ve
gotten this far, you are considering becoming a member of our
on-line family. We look forward to being able to say, in voice,
“Welcome to the [OBC]!” The [OBC] is more than just a gaming
clan. Through our love of gaming, true friendships have been
made (even a wedding or two). We started out playing Spearhead
and have added Counter-Strike Source, BF2, COD2 and now Guild
Wars. We have grown from a handful of founding members to over
600 active members in 17 countries. All the while attempting to
maintain that small clan feel and fun.
For any
organization to be successful it must have both rules and
guidelines so all members know what to expect of others and what
is expected of them. It also must have leadership. Without
strong leadership, any endeavor will fail or simply fade away.
The [OBC] is structured with a military ranking system. Each
game has a Battalion Commander who oversees their Generals, who
look after their Platoon Leaders, who run their squads. All of
this is run by the Joint Chiefs of Staff. 8 longtime members
from Europe and North America that include Battalion Commanders.
In addition, we have members that are MP’s to help admin/police
the servers/forums (see MP rules). Why so structured? For
Respect and Stability. The Command Staff’s main goal is to
protect, nurture and grow a fun, cheat free gaming environment
that you can feel free to log-on to any game, at any time and be
greeted by a friendly voice, a stable server and join in the
fun.
A little
more on the structure. We expect that if you’re putting in an
application (sorry, no tryouts) your 25 or older; have or on
your way out the door to get; a working microphone,
speakers/headset, downloaded Ventrilo and Yahoo IM. Ventrilo and
Yahoo Messenger are mandatory. If you are on our servers you
will be on Ventrilo. We also expect that you respect yourself
and others. This will come in handy as we noted above, we run in
a military structure and we respect both the rank and the
person. We conduct ourselves in a manner online that reflects
well on [OBC] both when on our servers and especially on other
clan sites/forums.
You may
encounter a higher ranking member suggesting you do or not do
something while online (not talking about game play style here).
We fully expect that you take that suggestion to heart. If you
don’t understand, ask. But it’s not really a good idea around
here to “blow off” a senior member. We love suggestions and we
also have been around together over three years and have a
pretty good idea how we want things to go down.
Lastly,
as a new member, you will first be put in Boot Camp and assigned
a DI (Drill Instructor). This is for your benefit. It allows you
an immediate contact in the clan who will “show you the ropes”
instead of just dropping you cold into a new group of people.
Your new BC (Boot Camp) rank is temporary until you are assigned
a Platoon. It also gives the other members a “heads up” that we
have a new member and to make you feel welcome.
That being
said, now for the rules:
1. HAVE FUN
– Let’s face it, that’s why we’re all here. You didn’t
pay $50 for that game to be miserable playing it. And we haven’t
spent all this time working on this clan if we didn’t enjoy the
hell out of it and each other. We all have fun when we respect
each other and the public. Sure it can get intense in the heat
of battle, but when the round ends, it’s nothing but “good game”
and “nice shot”. The same goes for text messages the public.
Only positive statements. “Hello, NS, GG,” do not bait or insult
a public player in text, regardless of what they type. Let it
go. Having fun on our servers does not include flame wars in
text. If you have a public player that’s getting out of hand,
get an Admin, MP or Senior Member. It’s not fun to have the
public complaining in our forums about the conduct of one of our
own behaving badly. Looks bad for all of us. But back to Rule
Numero Ono – HAVE FUN!!!!
2. Donations-
This entire clan is member supported. All donations go toward
Servers, Websites, Domain Registrations etc. All members of
[OBC] are volunteers. No donations pay for any “expenses” of the
Command Staff. They all are collected and spent on clan
services.
While
donations are not mandatory, it’s fairly obvious that nothing we
do on-line is free. You have to pay for your game, computer and
connection. We have to pay to provide you with a place to play,
talk and post. Donations are collected through Pay Pal and a
monthly statement is sent for review to the Command Staff. We
are very cautious with your donations and transparent to the
staff with the financials. Besides the good feeling that comes
with contributing, we do offer, when the game permits, Private
or Reserved Slot Passwords for Donating Members (Patrons). This
allows you to enter a full server without having an Admin make
room for you. We do track the support each game is generating
and server decisions (expansion/contraction) are based on the
members support. The recommended donation is $10 per month, but
all donations are appreciated. Also we do provide for the
tracking of multiple month donations. Your Private/Reserved
Password will remain valid at the $10/month rate.
3. NO CHEATING – Firstly, we expect that you hate cheaters as much as we
do. If you are caught cheating on any of our servers, not only
will you be banned but your name and IP/CD Key will be passed
around to other clans’ servers.
Only approved
mods downloaded from our site are allowed. Different games have
different rules, so always ask your Platoon Leader first before
using a mod.
We will
randomly screenshot on all servers, both public players and
members alike. Best way to not have a lot of “splanning to do
Lucy” is to play fair, play clean.
If you
are flagged or caught in a game that uses Punkbuster or
Punksbusted, expect to be removed from [OBC] immediately until
the matter is cleared up. It will solely be the flagged member’s
responsibility to clear this matter up. Once Punkbuster or
Punksbusted has removed the ban, you will be reinstated into
[OBC].
Do not
ever accuse an [OBC] member of cheating; you may end up being on
the wrong side of that plank! If you think this is happening or
have proof, contact your Platoon Leader.
Command Staff, MP’s and
Generals deal with these issues.
4. Keep swearing and complaining to
a MINIMUM – Remember,
we are an adult clan. Swearing is not uncontrollable. We do have
a Junior’s platoon and even though we don’t allow anyone 17 and
below in our voice channels, we just don’t feel that a constant
barrage of profanity is fun to listen to while playing. If you
are typing derogatory remarks, profanity, or generally trashing
the public, you may be asked to leave our server by one of our
MP’s or Senior Members. Repeated violations may result in your
membership being reconsidered.
We have
made a special channel for those who have trouble holding their
tongues. Use the "Drunks and Misfits" room, here you can do all
the swearing you like. Rule 5 still applies in this channel and
you are still responsible for your behavior. If you don't want
to hear the harsh language, don't go there. Likewise, don’t
enter this channel looking “catch” another member acting
inappropriately. We will not look kindly on this and the action
taken may well be the reverse of what you were expecting.
This goes
for complaining as well. If you want to constantly complain
about every little thing that happens to you in game, DON’T
press your talk key. Whine and complain all you want to your
monitor. When you’ve gotten it out, rejoin the one’s trying to
have fun in chat and get back to laughing with the rest of us.
Repeated “bag ‘o reds” chat will land you in a channel all by
yourself. Free to bark at the moon and relieving the rest of us.
The ones having fun while we game.
The
private channels, Officers Club and General's Only are used for
meetings. Please respect that and if you join don't get your
feeling hurt if you are asked to leave.
Command Staff, MP’s
and Generals deal with these issues.
5. NO Racial/Political Slurs
- First off, racism will NOT be tolerated here. It's that
simple. We don't use the "N" word or any other derogatory phrase
towards anyone person or that person’s country when on our
servers (voice or text) or forums. You want Freedom of Speech?
Write a letter to the editor. On our servers you will respect
the members, their spouses and their countries. This goes in ALL
channels and forums.
We have
many women in the clan. Remember this while online. We don’t
expect a church social, but it’s not a dockside bar either. The
occasional !@#$%^ during game play happens. Not acceptable is
the “every other word” over “every situation” during a round.
This will get you moved out of channel. If you are having
trouble understanding the difference, an MP or Admin will be
glad to help. Find yourself all alone in a separate channel?
That’s the difference. One final note on having women in the
clan. There are words and phrases that you just don’t say around
women. Obviously, we won’t list them here. We expect you to
already know them and to not use them in chat. This is
regardless of the speech the women use or even if they say “they
don’t mind”. We will always assume they don’t want to hear this
language period.
Also,
this is a gaming server, not a political arena. Do not assume
that everyone shares your finely honed political acumen. We are
a worldwide clan with as wide of viewpoints. This becomes
especially true during hotly contested campaigns. Leave your
opinion at the door.
Again, you
want “Freedom of Speech”? Write a letter to the editor.
Command
Staff, MP’s, Generals and Officers deal with these issues.
6. No Degrading of other clans
- We don't care if we are the best clan on face of this
earth (which we are), you are NOT to go around and bash other
clans. This includes posting on other clans forums. You might
think that “post war” you got into on a non-[OBC] forum is your
business. If it ends up spilling over into our laps for one
reason or another, we will error on the side of [OBC]’s
reputation.
Command
Staff, MP’s, Generals and Officers deal with these issues.
7. Team Killing-
NO Intentional Team killing, especially in retaliation
for a public TK. Take it up with an MP or your Platoon leader.
Command Staff, MP’s,
Generals and Officers deal with these issues.
8. Matches- May be set up
by any Platoon Leader or above. If you have something you would
like to set up see your Platoon Leader or Ladder team for
instructions.
9. No Hacking or Trashing -
others on our server!!
Do not insult
the public on our servers. This includes answering in Text or on
VIOP. Just let it go. Failure to follow this will not be
tolerated. You’re on an [OBC] server. We don’t care what the
“norm” for conduct is on other servers; don’t bring your
“public” game in here.
We screenshot,
we have Admins, we have MP’s.
Let the ones
who can actually help the problem resolve it.
10. Clan Tag [OBC]-
Always wear your clan tag. It is a source of pride for us to let
you to wear it. If you are not wearing your tag you must tell
the other members who you are and why your not wearing it.
In some games,
you might take a bracket [ off during an “[OBC] vs. all” to even
the teams. During holidays we allow a “goofy” name tag as long
as you enter your normal name, using the Comments tab in
Ventrilo, so everyone can see who you are. Part of the fun is
the play on words with a name; i.e. [OBC] Graham was [OBC]
Gramma’s Cookies one year, and members kept asking “who are
you?”. So tell them if asked. Inappropriate names are not
appreciated, keep them in the spirit of the holiday. It’s not a
contest to see who can come up with the crudest convolution of
their name.
You will
be issued the [OBC] tag in Boot Camp by your DI. Please do not
put the tag on until your DI tells you to. This will help us
manage “posers”.
If you
change your [OBC] name and fail to tell anyone you may be
considered a poser and be banned from the server.
11. Missing in Action-
Any member who is MIA for a period of ONE month will be removed
from their platoon and deposited in the MIA Roster. After
another month you will be discharged from the clan. This
includes keeping up with the website i.e.…News, Forums and
posting at least once a month. If you are going to be away for
an extending period of time, tell your Platoon Leader, and post
it in the forums. New members will be instructed by their DI’s
in Boot Camp how/where to post and set-up Ventrilo prior to
joining in a voice channel.
Command Staff and
Generals deal with these issues.
12. Retirement-
To join the elite ranks of our honored [OBC] Retirement Platoon you
must fulfill the following requirements:
1.
Be a Member in Good Standing for at least 2 years.
2. Obtain a recommendation for Promotion by the
Command Staff.
3. Have that Promotion be approved by the JCS.
You will not have to follow the requirements of rule #11.
As a retired member you can play along with your old platoon in
matches and tourneys. All retired members will be given the up
most respect their rank and person deserves.
You may keep your rank as retired put you loose the platoon
number example: [OBC]GoodShot LG® or [OBC]MeatShield Pvt Ret or
[OBC]R BF2 Player. As a retired member you will receive all the
same privileges as a normal member. If you were part of the
Officer’s Club, you may be invited to sit in on meetings at the
discretion of the Senior ranking Officer of that meeting.
As an Officer, you may have had additional access or admin
privileges granted to you when you were promoted (i.e. Forum
level access, Drop Down Menu, Ventrilo Admin, etc). These
privileges will be granted by a vote of the JCS.
You may request to come out of retirement. This decision
will need the approval of the JCS. Your new rank will be
assigned by the Command Staff.
13. Promotions and Transfers-
Promotions shall be based on a combination of factors and not
just time on the roster. How much you play on our servers, how
much you post in the forums (not just spam and funny faces but
true participation) and active participation in voice. If you do
this you will be seen as a dedicated member and will be more
likely to be promoted.
Example: you play 2 or 3 times a week you
post 3 or 4 times a week and you are always on voice and not
just a wall flower. If you don’t do this don’t expect a
promotion. If you do this, you will be seen as a dedicated
member and will be promoted up in rank. Don’t expect to get a
new rank in any less time than 30 days (this does not mean it
will happen it could be 60 days) between promotions. The more
you do the more you’ll get noticed. As you move up in rank MORE
will be expected of you. Example: helping your Platoon Leader
with his duties, helping with matches, recruiting new members,
helping new members in the forums and in the game. SHOW YOUR
PLATOON LEADER HOW MUCH YOU WANT TO BE PROMOTED. This is for all
ranks, and the higher you get the more extra work will be added
to you. It is hard for you to be a high ranking member of the
clan if you do not donate.
In special cases you may get promoted from a Sgt to Platoon
Leader. This is up to the Generals and Joint Chiefs of Staff. If
you jump to a new game you may have to go to a lower rank in the
new platoon. We do try to maintain rank structure between games,
but the needs of the Company and Platoon will come first.
To transfer from one game to another, you must be with
us at least 6 months. Exceptions will be made when a new game is
launched and new Battalions/Companies/Platoons are formed.
Requests to Transfer are made to your Platoon Leader,
who forwards it to his Company Commander and Battalion
Commander. Then the two Battalion Commanders from both games
approve the transfer and you are notified of your new platoon to
report to. You will be required to stay with your new platoon
for at least 6 months before requesting a new transfer. This is
to allow the Platoon Leaders time to work with their squad and
know that their roster will remain stable.
Command
Staff, Generals and Officers deal with these issues.
14. Complaints and Questions- Any complaints and
questions should be made to your Platoon Leader first, then
Company Commander. If this is an urgent problem, find an officer
on line. (They will do their best to resolve the issue). Please
do not go directly to Clan Leaders unless it can’t get resolved.
Their work load is heavy enough as it is. Besides, they’re
listening to all the complaints from the Generals. As much as
possible, follow the chain of command.
Command Staff, Generals and Officers deal with these issues.
15. Ventrilo-
When on an [OBC] server, you must be logged into Ventrilo and
use the "Push to Talk" mode. This is mandatory.
If your mic is
temporarily not working (broken or in a situation that you can’t
make noise) you must enter “no mic” in the comment field next to
your name. You will be expected to fix a broken mic ASAP. Also
considered as a broken mic is one that picks up too much “room
noise” when keyed open. Get a headset to reduce the amount of
extraneous noise being transmitted.
You will be assigned a personal login password in Boot Camp. Do
not give this to anyone or allow anyone to log-in as you. Please
go in the correct room in Ventrilo, don’t chit-chat in the same
area that others are trying to play. Move it to another channel.
Members may join the Junior channel of a specific game if they
wish. If you are drunk, cursing or just being out of line, you
must go to the "Drunks and Misfits" room. If a member asks you
to go there, due to you being out of line, then you must do so.
While in the “Drunks and Misfits” room, Rule 5 still applies.
We expect that
the language will be more “colorful” than in our regular
Ventrilo channels, but you remain responsible for your behavior.
A line exists between spouting expletives over game play and
abusive language towards another member violating Rule 5. This
is not an “anything goes” channel, this is solely for potty
mouths and those that have had “one too many” (these often go
together). For anything else we suggest you log off Ventrilo and
our server before we do it for you.
Command
Staff, Generals, Officers and MP’s deal with these issues.
16. Yahoo IM-
You are required as a member of [OBC] to maintain an active YIM
account and to provide [OBC] with that account name. This is an
important tool of communication within the clan. In addition, we
use the Private Messages on our forums. Please make sure to
check those as well.
17. Admins-
On the [OBC] servers, the Admins/MP’s are always right. Please
follow the instructions of the Admins/Mp’s. Failure to do so
will result in the incident moving up the line to the Command
Staff where it will be dealt with.
18. Screenshots- All members will have screenshots taken randomly while on our
servers. Depending on the game, you may be required to send all
of them to an Admin for review or the Admin will pull them from
the server. In Spearhead, you will need to open your PK3 files
folder to full screen for the shots. To submit the shots, find
them in your manta folder in a folder called screenshots. This
process is fully explained in Boot Camp.
19. Juniors-
[OBC] members
with children are welcome to have them join our Juniors Platoon.
Juniors will remain on the roster only for the duration that
their parents remain members in good standing. The only way an
“under 25” public can join [OBC] is to (1) Get the approval of
the JCS and (2) Be sponsored by a member of the Command Staff.
Both of these must be done for every “under 25” public to join.
Juniors will
wear the tag [OBC]name Jr or [OBC]J name. One way
or the other, they must be identifiable both in game and in
Ventrilo.
Juniors 17 and younger are required to join the game specific
Junior Ventrilo Channel. No exceptions are to be made to this
rule unless you are a member of a non-Junior Platoon (i.e. COD
A1)
We welcome members to join the Juniors in their Ventrilo Channel
if they with to be on comms with them in the same game.
Juniors are permitted to text basic conversations (Hello, GG,
NS) on the servers. They are not allowed to interject themselves
in Admin issues, Clan inquires or above all, never will an [OBC]
Jr initiate or respond to a public taunt. Our Juniors will not
“pwn” anyone.
Failure of a Junior member to follow any of the above may affect
their parents standing as a member (remember it’s a shared IP).
We will always attempt to speak to the parent first if we are
having any issue with a Junior.
20. Other Clans-
By joining the [OBC] we expect that this is your only clan and that
you will conduct yourself in a proper, respectful way where ever
you might play.
While we
cannot prevent you from joining another clan, we ask that if you
do, know that your actions in that clan may reflect on your
status in [OBC]. This has happened in the past, and it was not
pretty.
Any game we
host is considered a conflict of clans and you will have to make
a choice or we will make the choice for you.
Any [OBC]
member starting another clan (whether we host the game or not)
will terminate their membership in [OBC], since you will have
demonstrated a lack of loyalty to the [OBC].
If you
rise in rank to the point you are trusted with some form of
server/forum Admin, we will assume you are not a member of
another clan. Likewise, being an Admin of another clan will be
considered a conflict of clans.
We suggest
that if you join another clan, do so such that your allegiance
to [OBC] is not known. At NO time will [OBC] resources be
utilized, in any way, for any other clan...period.
21. Other Games-
If you like a game that we don't currently host and you would like to
try it out, feel free to get a server up and going. We will
create a channel on Ventrilo and list the IP address on our
Website. We have had in the past, a NASCAR server, a Spearhead
Match Server, CSS Private Server and others that have been
single member supported. We will expect to have Admin access and
will help in any way we can. If it goes over big and enough
members want the game, we will add a clan server to our
collection and structure the clan as needed. Remember Spearhead
was our roots but expansion is the key to [OBC]'s longevity.
22. Joint Chiefs of Staff-
This is where the “buck stops”. All issues and decisions that
cannot be handled by the previous 21 rules and remedies will
land in the JCS meeting room. The 8 members will make the final
decisions regarding all unresolved clan matters there. If you
become one of these unresolved matters, you may be invited to
join the meeting, or your Platoon Leader will be asked to
represent you.
No other
guarantees of representation or redress are implied here.
All decisions of the JCS are final…that
is, until they change their mind.
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