It seems like this is a good time to remind us all what we expect in guild chat. From our code of conduct:
Part One: General Guild Conduct
* We do not tolerate any language that denigrates another’s race, gender, creed, physical or intellectual ability, religion or sexual preference. Comments like, “That’s so gay,†or “The Alliance just raped me,†are unacceptable in Nyx. Please also be mindful of your language in guild chat overall, and set a good example for the young ones.
* Treat each other as you want to be treated. In other words, remember, there is a real person on the other end of the computer, and they are trying to have fun too.
* Be a good representative of Nyx when you are adventuring in Azeroth and Outland.
* Please do not discuss personnel issues in guild chat, it is not the place. If you wish to talk to a Nightwarder or Oracle they will be happy to listen. If you have an issue that you would like to discuss with any of them, you are more than welcome to use the PM system on the forums. We will address your concerns with a prompt response.
Some might consider our policies strict or "politically correct." The reality Nyx is that we have people from all around the world representing many different cultures. We expect a minimum level of maturity in guild chat even though a few of our members are young.
We don't ask our members to keep guild chat completely devoid of all sexual innuendo, netspeak, profanity, etc. at all times. Sometimes a bit of that is appropriate, but I'm not going to attempt to define when it is or is not appropriate. What we do ask is that our members to be considerate of others.
Think about the type of conversation that is standard in a classroom or in a business office. I don't mean between you and your friends. I mean between you and your business associates you are friendly with, but don't know very well at a personal level. While we are a friendly guild, none of us know all the other members of Nyx well enough at a personal level to know what is offensive and what is not.
I believe that very few people in Nyx are ever intentionally offensive, although we have kicked a couple people in the past for behavior where they harassed guildies or were consistently offensive. That kind of behavior is very uncommon in Nyx and it is unwelcome.
Sometimes even harmless comments or even well-intentioned comments can come across far differently than intended. Some people honestly have no idea that what they said or did was offensive no matter how obviously offensive it is to everybody else. If we all start from the position that no harm was intended, hopefully we can read what is said in guild chat without taking the offense personally. That often makes it easier to voice our objections more gently to the other person, and to listen to the offended person's objections without becoming defensive.
Let's say somebody says something in guild chat that the person believes to be harmless, but somebody else is offended. In this situation, there are responsibilities on both sides.
The person that is offended has an obligation to let the other person know about the problem calmly and politely. Ideally this should be done through tells instead of guild chat to keep the situation from escalating. The person that said something offensive can't read minds.
The person that said something offensive has an obligation to respect the other person's request. Ideally the person will accept the feedback gracefully and make any necessary changes.
We would prefer that members work things out themselves privately. Even our youngest members are old enough to handle most issues on their own. But part of the role of officers in Nyx is to help members work out problems in situations where their efforts to work things out on their own have failed or are impractical. If there is a problem that you feel you need an officer to help with, please contact one of us.
We would much rather lose those that can't follow our code, then others who are loyal, helpful but don't want to put up with immature bullies. Please, help us help the guild.
