Help:Bans
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Basics
A ban takes a few turns to go into effect, so the player has a short time to make amends or move away to another realm before becoming a rogue. A true kick gives him 3 turns, a nice "ask to leave" gives him 5.
Bans are permanent in the sense that the player kicked will not be able to join your realm again, unless the ban is lifted.
Rules and Limitations
There are a few things that the GameMasters frown upon when it comes to kicking. Remember, we have to keep this game fun for everyone, not just the ruling class and those who can log in 20 times a day.
So here are the guidelines you as a judge should follow:
No OOC banning
Do not ban people for out-of-character reasons, especially not for inactivity or failure to log in at a given time. The reason you give must be an in-character reason. Let me repeat this most clearly: People are free to play this game however they choose. Real life takes precedence over the game.
There is one exception to this rule: Clearly abusive behaviour can (and in fact, should) be punished with an OOC ban. That means the ruler's special OOC ban option. Absolutely no judge-level bans for OOC reasons!
No arbitrary or reasonless banning
Do not ban randomly. If your reason starts with "this is not about this guy, we simply ..." then you should stop and reconsider. All bans must be because something the character in question did. So make sure there is something in the reason field.
Punish Actions
You should kick for what people did, not for what they are or what they failed to do. There are many reasons for not following an order, for example, and a lot of them are benign (inactivity, failure to comprehend for non-native english speakers, inability due to game-mechanics such as not enough hours left, etc, etc). Likewise, don't kick people because they joined "from an enemy realm". Especially new players might simply be searching for a place to settle down and have no ill will whatsoever.
Benefit of the doubt
Err on the side of caution. Give people a warning or a fine on their first offense, unless it was really serious. You are interfering seriously with someone's game experience, so think twice before you hit that button.
If you violate any of these points, the affected player can complain to a GM and get the ban lifted. If the GM has to correct your kicks several times, you will be removed from your office.