Guild Guidelines

Preface
Knights Vindication is a World of Warcraft guild on the Greymane server. We are a casual guild working toward casual raiding for those who are interested. These guidelines should be read and understood by all guild members. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact one of our Guild Officers.

Our Mission Statement
First and foremost, World of Warcraft is a game and is meant for recreation, and having fun.  Cutting up is ok, as is the occasional bout of immaturity, but we should all strive to build a strong guild with good relationships where everyone can have a good time.

Our current areas of focus are:

• To develop players in the guild who have not yet reached max level.
• To prepare players who are at max level for the more difficult instances, namely the 5-man heroics and the 10-man instance of Karazhan.
• To progress those that are prepared through the instances mentioned above.

Our long-range focus is to explore the 25-man content; however, we realize that this goal will take a longer amount of time and effort to accomplish.

Communication

Knights Vindication Website

It is strongly encouraged for all members to use the Guild website and forum for offline (outside-of-WoW) communications. It should be used to tell fellow guild members about your game experiences, to post screenshots, to share information about classes, and to check for news about the guild from the Guild Master, Officers, or others.  We expect our members to adhere to the forum rules.

Ventrilo Voice Chat

We use Ventrilo so we can talk with other guild members while in game. This speeds up playing and increases the success of instance runs. To use Ventrilo, you need a headset with a decent microphone and the Ventrilo client (v3.0 or better) which can be downloaded at http://www.ventrilo.com/download.php. The guild's Ventrilo server information can be found by clicking on the Guild tab of the in-game social window; here you will find the Guild Info info button. Instructions for setting up Ventrilo are listed on the Guild Add-ons page of the guild website. If you find you are having trouble getting Ventrilo set up, please feel free to ask for help from any of our guild members and they will do what they can to assist you.  At the very least they should be able to point you to someone in the guild who can help.

If you are unable to use a microphone, we still request that you install the Ventrilo client and listen in using standard headphones or speakers.  Some situations require immediate reaction by party members and the delay of typing and hoping the right person(s) see it and act can be the difference between success and a wipe.

Guild Events, Instance Runs, and Raids

1. Group Calendar is currently being used for the purpose of scheduling instance runs and other events. All members of the guild should download this add-on so that they can schedule events and see when events are scheduled. If a member agrees to come to an event and is later unable to attend we ask that you do your best to inform someone as soon a possible so that a replacement can be found.
2. Raids and guild meetings will be scheduled by the guild master.
3. Any member of the guild may schedule dungeon runs or other events.  If you are not sure how to create an event, speak to one of the officers and they will be happy to assist you.
4. If you are attending a guild event or raid, please try to be on time and be prepared for the run (full repairs, reagents, potions, consumables, etc.). If you are late, your spot in the event may be given to another person who is available. Recurring tardiness will result in losing first priority on runs until it is resolved in the eyes of the Officers and Guild Master.

Guidelines
It is expected that all members of the Guild treat each other with respect and represent the guild with honor and pride. Members should also strive to treat non-guild members with respect as well. Causing grief for any player and talking badly about other guilds in public venues (such as the Trade channel) are offenses that will not be tolerated.

Spamming public channels (General, Trade, Guild Recruitment, etc.) is strongly discouraged. If a member is found doing this, they will be subject to disciplinary action.  That does not mean you cannot advertise goods and services or request assistance.  There is a difference and if you are uncertain about the distinction, please speak with an officer of the guild for clarification.

Only the Guild Master and the Assistant Guild Master have the ability to remove a member from the guild. This power is not to be used unilaterally, and no member of the guild will be removed without prior warning and without the consent of the Guild Officers.

Continuous use of so-called ‘leet-speak’ is discouraged. Please try to use standard words in the guild channel.  Keep in mind that our members come from many different backgrounds, ages, races, and sexes so the use of offensive language is strongly discouraged.  Excessive use of bad language can ultimately lead to disciplinary action.

It is not required that members give items away to other members rather than selling the item. We understand that players need gold for mounts, equipment, etc, but we do ask that if you acquire an item that someone in the guild may be able to use, that you offer to sell that item a guild member first.

Cooperation is something we pride ourselves on, and we wish this tradition to continue. It is not expected that higher level characters give up too much time to help out the lower level characters; however, help is always appreciated and will be reciprocated as members increase their levels.  The guild does have scheduled evenings specifically set aside for assisting lower level characters, but that does not mean help will be provided only on those nights.

The "peak hours" of Knights Vindication are currently described as weeknights between 6:30pm and 11:30pm server time. During this time, it is strongly encouraged for all members that log on to work with other members on their main characters so that the guild will continue to progress. "Peak hours" are not currently set for weekends, given the varying schedules of our members during that time. Holiday hours will vary as well.

Alternate Characters

Players are permitted to have alternate characters in the guild, but all members are expected to have one main character.  Alternate characters will have the same rank as the main character up to the level of Knight.  No alternate character shall have a rank higher than Knight.  Alternate characters will only be promoted at the request of the guild member.  They will not automatically be promoted when the main character is promoted.  All alternate characters must have the name of their main character in the public notes section of the guild roster.  It is requested that members with alternate characters in the guild use the Clandestine addon to help identify themselves in guild chat.

Raids and Instances
Agree to a Leader - The Leader is the one who organizes the run as it progresses and will be responsible for resolving disputes within the run.

It is expected that all members of a party involving guild members behave in the spirit of the game.

When a guild run enlists the aid of a player from outside the guild, that player shall have equal rights to all loot drops.  All members of the party have equal part in progressing through the instance, so all members shall have equal looting opportunity.  It is best to declare the looting rules at the start of the run so any non-guild member understands what to expect when loot drops.

Members are expected not to pick fights with people from outside the guild. However, should the behavior of an external person in a party/raid be utterly intolerable (e.g. ninja-looting, verbal abuse), all members are encouraged to stick together, and, if appropriate, to warn the guild as a whole against these persons.  Do not speak out against these people in the global chat channels (Trade, Looking for Group, etc.).  Actions like this tend to do more harm than good and do not reflect the image we want to present as a guild.

Guild members who group with non-guildies for runs should remember that their actions will reflect on the guild as a whole and act accordingly.  Be friendly and helpful and do your best to represent the guild in a positive fashion.  Sometimes a group just isn’t working out and you will want or need to leave.  Don’t feel obligated to stay, but be polite and honest about leaving the group.

Loot Rules
Knights Vindication does not use a DKP system for loot currently, however the following guidelines should be adhered to when running instances in-guild:

Green or Uncommon Items that are not BoP should be Greed rolled. If a person can use the item, they should communicate their need with the rest of the group before rolling Need.

Blue or Rare Items should always be passed first. After all members pass, it should be discussed within the group who the item would most benefit.  If there is more than one member who can use the item, those members should roll for it.

Purple or Epic Items MUST always be passed on first. The same rules then apply as for Blue items.

If problems arise in this area, the Group/Raid Leader has the right to change the loot system to Master Loot.  All 10-man or higher raid level instances that are led by Knights Vindication will be set to Master Loot with the loot threshold set to Rare.

• In the case of an instance run where two people of the same class can use the item and one is a main character and one is an alternate character, the main character should get first priority on the item. If the main character does not want it, then the alternate character has the option of taking the item.
• If no one in the party can use the item, the item should then be disenchanted and everyone should roll for the materials. If no enchanter is in the party, then everyone should roll for the right to sell it.
• Combat looting is STRONGLY discouraged, as it can interfere with player’s interfaces and is generally disruptive during combat.  Do not loot while any member of the party is still in combat.
• Ninja-looting is STRICTLY PROHIBITED. Any notification of this action in any run, whether it is a guild run or not, will lead to immediate disciplinary action up to and including removal from the guild.

Resources
If possible, let all people in a party skill up on resources (multiple players can level from the same vein/herb by simply not collecting the item when the loot window opens) and share the actual resources gathered (taking turns).

Tradeskill items which can be made without a cooldown should be traded at cost; if the materials are supplied the item will be free. Members are encouraged, but are certainly not obligated, to share looted items of relatively modest value (trade-goods, green items) for free.

Disputes and Arguments between Members
We are all human and we will, at some point, disagree with each other. All arguments should be handled discretely. This means no spamming guild chat with insults, accusations etc. All arguments should be taking to private channels (email, PM\'s, /w, /p) as soon as possible.

If a problem cannot be resolved please bring it to the attention of the GM or Officers as soon as possible.

Under no circumstances are arguments to be carried on using the Forums. This causes more problems between Members and makes the guild look bad. The same rule applies on Ventrilo or any other place where the disagreement can be viewed publicly.

Where possible, the GM and officers have the final word in any dispute between Members.

Recruiting
If you enjoy questing with another player and they currently are not in a guild, feel free to ask that player if they would be interested in joining our family.  All members are encouraged to be aware of any potential new recruits.  You may refer someone to any of the officers or senior members if they have questions you are unable to answer.

Under no circumstances is any member of Knights Vindication to solicit another player to join our guild if that player already belongs to another guild.  If a guilded player asks questions of you, feel free to discuss the guild and answer any questions they may have.  If they request an invitation, you may oblige them, but Knights Vindication members will NOT initiate a recruitment conversation with a guilded player.

Leaving the Guild
Unfortunately, there will be situations in which members of our family will want different things and they will want or need to leave the guild to get them.  Should this happen, guild members are expected to be courteous and respectful to these members should they cross paths in the future and treat them as they would treat any other player they interact with in the game.

Guild members may choose to remove their alternate characters at any time with no repercussions.  They are, after all, alternate characters.  However, if a member chooses to remove their main character, all alternate characters will also be removed from the guild.

Unforseen Amendments
The Guild reserves the right to change the content of these guidelines at anytime it is deemed necessary to do so. Agreement between the Guild Officers and Guild Master is sufficient for such changes. The Guild Master reserves the right to remove a player from the guild for any reason that they may be considered not to be a good fit for the guild.

Respectfully,
The Guild Master and Officers of Knights Vindication