Details for disciplinary actions can be found below. Note that the severity and frequency of the offense will decide the warning level.
- In-thread general warning post to everybody
- A post may be made on a thread to remind people to keep things polite and on topic.
- Post locked/hidden
- Posts are locked when they have reached the end of their life and constructive conversation is no longer taking place or the original poster is not reacting constructively to replies.
- Hidden and locked posts are a first stage “Silent Warning”. If you see something you did hidden or locked, review the forum guidelines and avoid posting similar content in the future.
- Posts are not hidden or locked without being in some sort of violation.
- Warning 0 points (Pre-Emptive)
- You messed up, a little. But it’s not that big of a deal. Just be aware of it, and avoid doing that in the future.
- If it happens again or too often, it might get a little more serious.
- Warning with points (Official Warning)
- You messed up. This is likely because it’s a clear violation or you have a habit of doing this sort of behavior.
- Not a big deal. Don’t make a habit of it.
- Beyond
- 3 warning points pretty close together probably means you’re making a habit of not sticking to the guidelines and have become an issue with keeping the forum community constructive and friendly for everybody.
- Continued failure to heed warnings may result in further action being taken.
- At this point, further warnings will likely either result in a temporary ban or a permanent ban depending on the severity of your actions.
- Content Moderation
- Some users may be placed under moderation requiring their posts to be approved before they will be seen on the forum in order to prevent further violations.
- This is a final attempt to prevent content violations, further violations may result in a ban.
- Do not consider this a filter, if you continue to post content in violation of our guidelines you will receive additional warnings and possibly an account ban.
- Severity
- What happens first is dictated by the severity of the offense. You can go straight to being banned if it’s deemed necessary by staff. Just follow the rules and it shouldn’t be an issue.
- If it is apparent that you have no regard for guidelines we will not provide the courtesy of allowing you to continue posting on the forums if you cannot show common courtesy to other posters.
Note: Receiving a warning is not a judgment about you as a person. Simply, something was seen that you should be aware of that may be a problem if continued. It does not matter what anybody else has done leading up to the warning, nobody is allowed to break the rules.
We try not to remove posts on the forums if we don’t have to. Posts will not be removed from the forum if in minor violation of the rules.
Please be aware that warnings are generally considered private information. We do not share your warnings with others the same as we do not share other forum members warnings with you.
Disputing a Warning: If you have received a point warning it is not likely that disputing your warning will result in a change in action taken. The most common complaint is "They were doing something bad too." This is taken into account when a warning is issued, and ultimately if you were warned it was determined that you required a warning as well.
If you see someone breaking community guidelines, don't fan the flames. Report the content and wait for the moderators to handle the report.
If you feel that your warning was entirely unjustified and that you were not breaking the community guidelines in any way whatsoever, you may dispute your warning by contacting us through our support system.