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Small Guild Alliance Charter
The Founding Charter
Ab Ordine Libertas
The
Small Guild Alliance was founded on the basis of cooperation and shared
experience; pooling our collective skills to become greater then the
sum of our parts. When we began, our small size and modest goals
required little management, and the quality of our members ensured our
positive growth. Now as one of the larger alliances, we decided to lay
down our intents and purposes in this document. Through this we may
have a blueprint by which we might plan our growth, and ensure the
continuation of our incredible success.
The foundation of the
SGA was based on cooperation, and so should it be continued. All
actions and decisions taken by SGA members should be considered on
positive aspects they bring to the SGA. Key amoungst these ideas is
respect and good faith towards all SGA members. Honorable conduct best
represents members and their guilds and should always be the rule.
Courtesy and graciousness are expected. Discourtesy will not be
tolerated; seek to represent your guild in the best possible light at
all times. Seek to better yourself and those around you through
assistance and diplomacy, never fear to help or assist. Be kind and
expect the same, all of these things are fundamental.
The SGA is
an oligarchy; authority over SGA matters ultimately rests with a
handful of founding members, but consensus will tradionally be sought.
It is however merely an organizational body, and not a ruling one. All
members guilds maintain total sovereignty as SGA members; the SGA will
not engage in any aspect of guild management, notwithstanding
situations where such management is requested. As a result, all guilds
accept total responsibility for the actions and behavior of their
members, though the SGA leadership reserves the right to exercise
authority over SGA events and proceedings. Membership within the SGA is
granted to all members of SGA guilds; though it may be individually
revoked if SGA rules are repeatedly violated. Extensive violations may
imperil the membership of the guild itself. Individual membership is
lost upon leaving an SGA member guild.
The SGA is administered
by selected representitives of each founding guild (Cognitive
Dissonance, Riders of the Moon, and Silent Cartographers);
traditionally each guild leader and a selection of officers, though
this is at the discretion of the guilds themselves. These
representitives hold authority to govern SGA rules and conduct, though
concensus should be traditionally sought from leadership of every
member guild. Admittance of new guilds to the SGA can be sought by
anyone at any time, requiring a consensus of the founding members. All
new guilds are admitted on a conditional basis, and may be rejected at
any time by a single founding vote. Conditional status will end once
the founding members vote to accept that guild as a permanent member;
after which removal can only be accomodated by all three founders
voting as such.
The endeavor of the SGA is to ensure the fun,
fairness and equality of all its members, to that end all decisions
should be made in good faith, and with the intent of promoting
well-being and good morale amoungst every member. Beyond the scope of
administrative affairs, all members are considered equal. With no
benefits given to seniority, rank, skill or progression. It should be
the intent of all SGA members to act in the best interests of the
group, while always considering the fairness to the individual.
All
SGA members enjoy the freedom to any views, beliefs or opinions they
may have without fear of discrimination, though discussion of
inflammatory subjects within SGA channels may be prohibited. Racism,
sexism and all other forms of hate speech are subject to the most
severe penalities, including immediate expulsion. All public SGA
channels, including the Public SGA Channel, the officers channel, raid
and ventrilo, are all considered to be family-friendly environments.
Crude language or inappropriate subjects are not permitted, this
applies dramatically more so on Ventrilo. Inappropriate language on
voice communication during SGA events may result in removal from the
event, and further disciplinary actions.
All members have the
freedom to plan SGA events of any kind, as long as they do not directly
conflict with official raids. Every member should feel welcome to
participate in any non-private events, and all should be encouraged to
take part in discussions in any of the non-restricted SGA channels.
Members may voice opinions or issues to SGA leaders and at any time,
and all members will be given equal weight in the consideration of any
subject.
Through the SGA channel members are free to take part
in events, whether social or gameplay oriented, engage in positive
discussions, or seek the assitance of their fellow members on any
topic. All members are required to be respectful and helpful to one
another, and should never disregard another members question or
opinion. All members are encouraged to utiltize the resources of the
alliance guilds, whether for crafting or otherwise. Everyone should be
encouraged to supply their expertise to other members at little cost as
long as it the service is not itself costly or inconveinent; this is at
the discretion of each member, but generosity is looked upon favourably.
Alliance Raid Charter
Ex Tyrannis Victus
Notwithstanding
all the rights confered to members by the General Charter, while
attending SGA raids, members are required to adhere to the code of
conduct as described in the Raid Charter. The Raid Charter requires all
responsbilities of the General Charter but grants none of its freedoms.
The raid charter applies during SGA official progression raids, and not
to introductory or casual raids, and may or may not apply to unofficial
member organized raids, if decided so by that raid leader.
The
raid leader is the ultimate authority on all subjects during the raid
period; they should be the arbiter of any disputes or issues that arise
therein. However the raid leaders authority can be revoked if they
flagrantly act against the intentions of the founding SGA principles.
In
terms of formation of raids and raiding events, invitations will be
supplied to all eligible members who meet certain basic requirements
for the given raid, which will subjectively change at the discretion of
the raid leader. Invitations will be sent out seven days before the
raid event. As official raids are currently held Saturday night,
sign-ups for the follow weeks raid will be available shortly after the
completion of the current raid. Sign-ups will remain open for five days
- until Thursday at Midnight Central Time on our current schedule - at
which point the raid will be locked and no more sign-ups allowed.
Choosing
'Accepted' as your raid status commits you to being present for the
raid, and failing to attend after commiting to do so will be strictly
penalized with No-Show status reducing your priority for future raids.
It is strongly recommended that members take the maximum amount of time
to ascertain their availability before choosing a status. 'Tenative'
status will be disregarded.
Once the events have been officially
locked, unlocking the event by a moderator is prohibited, except as
detailed below. Members may change their status at any time during the
week, either by calendar controls, or by contacting any of the raid
moderators - indicated by the symbol beside their listing for the event
- however once the raid is locked, members may only change their status
from Accepted to Declined, and must do so ahead of time. If not they
must contact the raid leader, or have someone else do so, in order to
inform them they will not be attending. Failure to do so will result in
a no-show and the penalities thereof. Emergencies do not follow this
guildline, and members will never be penalized for emergencies if the
raid leaders are notified within at least a week following the event.
There
is no priority given to early sign-ups. All signups between Sunday and
Thursday night are considered of equal priority for invites. Be certain
of your availability before choosing a status.
Raid times
indicated the official start time of the raid event - that is combat
itself - therefore all members are expected to be online and ready
twenty minutes before the scheduled start time; at which point invites
will be sent out. All attending members should be online with the
character with whom they've signed up; in general you may bring any
character you wish, but you must be online with your sign up character
to receive an invite. If you expect to regularly not be bringing your
character with whom the invite is sent to, ask a moderator to replace
it with another. Do not under any circumstances contact the raid leader
and ask them to invite a specific character; you must log on with the
character you've signed up with to receive an invite. There will be an
opportunity given to you before the raid to switch to your desired
character, though the raid leader will have full control over the raid
composition and may overrule you.
Do not under any circumstances
contact the raid leader, or anyone else to hold a spot for you, if you
are not online when invites are sent out, you imperil your placement.
Invites
will be sent out to all Accepted status members; if the raid reaches
capacity before all receive invites, restructuring will be undertaken,
taking First Priority members, explained below, after which those with
'no-show' status will be dropped - which then returns them to normal
status - then the lowest gear level, determined by the raid leader,
will be dropped until all invites are sent. Any members who do not meet
the basic eligbility for the raid will be dropped regardless, unless
the raid leader decides otherwise. In an overflow situation, any
members who are dropped or those whom voluntarily leave to accomodate
others, will be given First Priority status. These members will always
be the first selected for the next attended raid, as long as they meet
its basic requirements. This status remains until that member attends
an equivilent raid, and will only be granted from being dropped from a
progression raid.
Invitations will continue for ten minutes,
after which, if spaces still remain, raid invitations will go out to
all online SGA members via the SGA Channel and through their guilds
representitives. Invitations will be sent based on elibility for the
raid, past attendance and raid composition, all of which is at the
discretion of the raid leader. Inadequately geared or prepared members
may be disallowed. After five minutes no priority will be given to
Accepted members, and five minutes following that - the designed raid
start time - all Accepted members will be marked No-Show unless prior
notice was given by them or a proxy, even if they attend later in the
raid. These rules may be suspended or modified at any time, at the
discretion of the raid leader.
Once the raid has begun all
members are expected to be in the instance, or if not, heading to it
with all managable haste. SGA members now lose their status as SGA
members and are now considered SGA raiders, and are under the direct
and complete command of the raid leader, or leaders. Within the
confines of the raid itself, the raid leader is the absolute authority,
and may supercede any or all SGA Charter rules, if it might be
considered to be for the benefit of the raid. The raid leader may
decide raid composition, assignments, strategy and any other elements
of the raid itself. The raid leader may remove raiders from the raid at
any time, if they feel they are disruptive to the raid. The raid
leader's authority, within the raid, supercedes that of SGA leadership,
guild leadership and Loot Council authority in all raid matters.
However the raid leader may not excercise any authority outside of the
scope of the raid, and the raid leader must ensure their duty is to the
enjoyment of all involved first; it is recommended that their unlimited
authority be tempered by concensus where possible.
During the
events of the raid itself, all members should demonstrate their highest
qualities, both in terms of performance and personality. Be deferent
and honorable to fellow raiders, and show respect towards the raid
leader and Loot Council. Air all grievances to the raid leader
privately. Raiders should be reserved and attentive in communication;
both in Raid Chat and in Ventrilo, whose use to listen to the raid
leader is a strict requirement. Ventrilo communcation should be kept to
a minimum, in specific during any encounters that require raiders to
coordinate actions via voice communcation. Raid Chat in general can be
considered for more casual conversation - however this does not apply
during loot assignement during which all raid chat communcation is
prohibited, unless related to the requests of the loot council.
When
engaging in encounters where explaination is required by the raid
leader to some or all of the attending raiders, we ask that everyone
allow that person to speak over ventrilo freely - raid chat is the
ideal place to discuss whatever you like during this period. If you
have suggestions you wish to make, whisper the raid leader directly and
allow them to decide if they wish to promote the suggestion, at which
point we ask that the raid leader attribute it to whom suggested it.
During explaination of fight mechanics it is not appropriate to
introduce conflicting information, either via raid chat or ventrilo,
and any disagreements of strategy or corrections of mechanics should be
addressed to the raid leader privately. Introducing new techniques
mid-raid for any reason is prohibited for everyone but the raid leader.
However all raiders should feel free to suggest any idea they like to
the raid leader, who is required to consider the suggestions.
Clarifying information for fellow raiders in raid chat, if it does not
conflict with the raid leader, is encouraged however, and should be
done freely. Attempt to avoid simply rephrasing and then restating the
complete strategy however.
After an encounter is successfully
completed, all dead raiders will be resurrected; at which point loot
assignments will begin. Leaving your computer during loot assignment
waives your right to any loot from that encounter. If a raider must
leave their computer, you must notify the loot council ahead of time. A
reason for the absence is not required, however this should only be for
emergencies, repeated delays of loot assignment will result in removal
from the raid at the raid leaders discretion. Once all raiders are
confirmed alived, loot assignment will commence in the following
fashion. Raider chat from this point forward is prohibited.
- Announcement of loot assignment beginning via raid warning.
- All items will be linked at once.
- After 10 seconds any generic upgrade items such as trophies, will be linked.
-
All raiders who wish to roll may do so now, rolls will be checked for
10 seconds, after which a last call will be made. If no more rolls
follow immediately the item will be given to the highest roller.
-
Once generic upgrade items are assigned, the remaining look will be
linked one at a time, in the follow order: Weapons, All other gear,
Patterns, Crafting Items.
- Each item will be linked one by one
based on priority. For each that is linked, raiders must state they
intend on roll on something.
- The loot council will confer, and
confirm the eligibility of the rollers, and if there is no concerns,
will ask that all that stated they will roll now do so.
- As
before rolls will continue for 10 seconds, then last call, and finally
assignment. Rolling without having stated your intention to do so ahead
of time, will result in your roll being void and possible disciplinary
action.
- Rolling will continue for each piece in turn, until complete.
The
loot council will be comprised of three SGA members, appointed by
leadership, whose purpose is to determine the suitability of a given
piece of gear for the raiders whom wish to roll on it. In general they
will not make specific decisions about stat weighting, such as the
suitability of Armor Penetration for a given spec, but may restrict
people whom are demonstrably ill-suited to a piece of gear from rolling
on it. If the loot council decides someone is not eligible for an item,
they will say so, and why in raid chat, giving that person an option to
contest. This should not be a drawn out process, and as much as
possible the loot council should err on the side of the roller if they
are uncertain. If a raider does wish to contest the loot councils
decision they may state their case very briefly in raid chat or
ventrilo. In general even weak arguments should be given the benefit of
the doubt - the loot council should not act as arbiters of who should
use what stat, however this is their right.
There are an
enormous amount of rules that could be said to determine loot
assignments, however none can be said to cover all possible scenarios.
Ultimately the loot council decides to whom goes what items. Ideally
there should infrequently be restricted rollers, and if so, it should
ideally be for an obvious reason. For the foreseeable future all
classes will roll on their 'native' armor class type only; this is a
controversial decision and ultimately has no right answer, but for the
purposes of fairness and based on our analysis of the current loot
tables, this has been our determination. The loot council members
themselves may roll as well, though if they are contested by another
member of the council they may not protest the decision, and will lose
the roll automatically. The internal debates of the Loot Council will
be done in secret and not made public beyond their rulings.
During
the Loot Council process, 'Fake' rolls, weighted rolls, or any kind of
chat disruption during rolling may result in removal from raid. If the
person who receives a given item decides they do not want it, they must
either return it to one of the Loot Council, or to the person who
rolled 2nd highest to them. Trading any item to a player who did not
take the next highest roll, or did not roll at all is strictly
prohibited.
Raiders may not contest other raiders elibility for
rolling during the process, if they believe someone is unfairly rolling
they may contact a Loot Council member privately.
Once a raider
has a received an item from an encounter, they may not roll on any
further items from that specific encounter, except for basic crafting
items such as Orbs, which do not count. There is not an official
restriction on the number of items a person may win in total from
multiple encounters, however we ask that people be modest in their
aquisition of gear and be generous towards their comrades.
Contrary
to our loot policy so far, raiders will not be able to roll on any spec
they choose throughout the night. Raiders will only be allowed access
to items that compliment their raiding spec. If a raider wishes to
receive healer or tanking items, and is specced for DPS, that raider
must switch specs and ask to be given that roll. The raider is expected
to be able to perform at the required level of their chosen spec; tanks
in particular should have extensive experience on the fights as a DPS
if they are tanking for the first time. In virutually all cases we
should be able to compose the raid in order to suit the needs of each
persons chosen spec, though the raid leader may override your choice if
it damages the ability of the raid to complete encounters. This rule
does not apply if players switch spec partway through the raid in order
to assist the raid in completing the encounter. Players who go above
and beyond will not be penalized with loot they do not typically need.
The
loot council will be moderate in its application of this rule in
situations where we require players to be a spec not of their choosing;
they will not be inflexible on a case-by-case basis.
Crafting
plans may only be rolled on by classes capable of crafting those items,
and those people should make themselves availible to other SGA members
whom wish to have the pieces crafted, as long as they supply the
materials. It is considered dishonorable to charge a fee, if materials
are supplied, for crafting items for SGA members if the plans for the
item was won in an SGA raid.
After every item is assigned,
applicable bosses will be called on to be rolled for, if they provide
additional items via skinning or engineering, et cetera. This is more
unofficial and should be conducted very quickly. After all loot is
assigned the Loot Council will end and regular raiding will resume; if
any raiders have left their computers during the loot assignment, the
raid leader will check for this before continuing. Loot is a reasonable
time to take a short break if you don't need to roll on anything,
however it is very impolite to remain away after loot is finished, and
prolonged absence of a few minutes may result in removal. There will be
designated breaks during the raid at the raid leaders determination,
and if you do require some time away, simply notify the raid leader as
such, via whisper. Unannounced absences will typically result in
removal if prolonged, or repeated.
Raids will continue for a
period of time as announced by the raid leader before the raid itself
starts. While there will be breaks during the raid, raiders are
expected to attend for the duration, as leaving during a raid without
valid reason may be marked as a No-Show at the discretion of the raid
leader. If you will be only able to attend for example, 2 of the 3
raiding hours, tell the raid leader so before the raid begins, this may
result in you being passed over, however you will be given First
Priority status in this situation, versus No-Show status if you simply
left. Raids will nearly always range between 2 and 3 hours, ending
early if a natural ending to the raid has been reached, such as
completion of a dungeon or inability to progress. The raid leader alone
determines when a raid ends, however any raider may freely leave after
the designated raid period, stated by the raid leader beforehand, has
lapsed. Raids typically end around 10:30 Central (Server) time and
attendance past 11:00 Central (server) is never required.
We
recognize that even a short block of time can be difficult to allot
completely to one task for certain people, for this reason there are
several valid reasons that will always be accepted in every scenario
for short absences or a need to leave.
- Anything regarding the care of children
- Sudden illness or other medical issue
- Emergencies of any kind
In
general these are accepted for any absences that might arise, we do ask
however that if your situation requires you to be away for more then
ten minutes, that you ask to be replaced, unless the raid leader feels
that a break in general is appropriate. Leave a raid for any of these
reasons, as long as the raid leader is aware of it, will not result in
a No-Show status. It is of paramount importance that each raider take
care of their family and themselves first and foremost. After all it is
our founding purpose to promote the prosperity and enjoyment of all our
members.
We ask that all raiders give their best effort in any
encounter we tackle, as well as reading about new encounters ahead of
time, something that would be very helpful, of course the standard
elements of knowing your class and abilities are vital. In addition
each raiders performance may be greatly aided by the use of a few
addons available online. These are not strictly required, but will
significantly improve ones performance, and so we ask each raider to
consider their use.
Recount
will allow you to track both your own DPS, as well as critical elements
of a fight such as what killed you and how, who broke your CC and where
the healers mana ran out. Omen will allow you to very accurately track
your own threat, which is critical a raiders gear begins to improve.
Finally, Deadly Boss Mods, in addition to having the basic
announcements everyone will see in the raid, will give you meters and
accurate timers for special abilities that can interupt or kill you; a
huge benefit to have this installed.
This is a living document
and may have changes made to it over the coming weeks, any changes made
will be recorded below so that mutliple repeat readings are not
required. This initial document was written based around the input and
suggestions of a large number of SGA members, and was first drafted
January 26th, 2010.