Moderator Application
Personal Information
Byond ID? Lunarflu
CM Character? Amir Al-shabbah Alomera
Are you 16 or older? Yes
Timezone UST+1
On average, how many hours are you available per week to moderate? 35
Qualifications
Do you have any previous experience in being staff (not just SS13)? Yes. Discord staff in multiple servers, subreddit mod, XRF mod.
Do you play any servers aside from CM-SS13? XRF
Provide links to any previous Colonial Marines applications that you've made:
Are you currently a staff member elsewhere (not just SS13)? If so, where? Yes. Admin at Middleground (370 member discord); Mod at XRF
Have you ever been banned for more than 24 hours on Colonial Marines? No
Have you ever been banned for more than 24 hours on ANY server? If so, which server, when, and what for? No
Are you familiar with the chat program Discord (its use is required)? Yes
Communication is a vital part of being a Moderator. Are you willing to actively do so with the team? Absolutely!
Common Staff Situations
A player randomly shoots someone at round start and MPs have detained him. I PM both him, the MPs, and any main witnesses to ask about the situation, and check his notes in the meantime. If it was an accident, I give him tips on being more careful (safety, holster weapon, when to use gun in situations like red alert). If it appeared to be grief I verbally warn + note him, escalate depending on his history.
A player ahelps that a predator has violated the honor code when killing him, what should you do? I recommend he makes a forum report within 48 hours, honor code stuff is not a mod issue. Contacting the WL councilor is also a good option.
You see a player walking around the ship naked and clearly lost at roundstart. PM him rules + quickstart guide, recommend help such as mentors, easy roles to play (standard marine). I’ll spawn in as a SEA, it’s important to get newcomers off to a strong start.
A player is being very rude to you in adminhelps, calling you names and arguing everything you say. He is requesting to speak to an Admin+ staff member. Rule 0.2, do not argue. I tell him to cut out his behavior and recommend that he files a staff report. He doesn’t get to pick and choose staff members. If he continues after the clear warning, I apply a note and escalate depending on his history.
A player ahelps that a marine is named 'John Doe', how do you deal with this? I thank him for ahelping, never hurts to show gratitude. John Doe is against Rule 9, names should not be from famous people or from widely known sources. I PM John Doe and explain this, and ask him to change his name to something else. For example, he can use the funny name randomizer feature in the character editor, it gives you interesting results sometimes.
You see a Maintenance Tech running around in armor and carrying a rifle. The security level is green and there has been no threat to the ship in the round at this point. If all he’s doing is running around, MPs can handle it ICly. If he starts hurting anybody, that’s when I would intervene and PM him etc.
A Marine ahelps that they were killed by a survivor. It is early round, the Marines have just landed, and the survivor claims that they were outright hostile to all Marines from the get-go and openly stated their intentions. How do you deal with this? Thank him for the ahelp, aheal the marine if it’s allowed. Survivors are on the marines’ side, doesn’t matter if he’s hostile. I PM the survivor and tell them this, they are allowed to act a little crazy since there are xenos present, but being outright hostile to marines is not permitted. Note, escalate depending on history.
You receive an ahelp from a player stating that an MP has locked them up in permanent confinement for running into Requisitions and taking an attachment that was laying around. I'll PM the MP to see what led him to make that decision, if any other charges were added for resisting arrest, contraband, disorderly conduct in confinement. Either the player’s leaving out critical information, or the MP is not following marine law. If the player is at fault, I explain what new charges he brought against himself or why he was mistaken, and how to avoid them in the future. If the MP is at fault I note him for breaching ML (30 minutes for theft is 300% the normal charge), tell him to be more careful and to refer to ML if he is at all unsure of jail times. Escalate as necessary depending on his notes.
The round is stagnating. There are 30 marines and 4 aliens. The marines won't leave the ship, and the aliens won't attack. What would you do, to "encourage" the sides to engage each other? It’s not my place to tell the xenos / marines to attack, that’s their decision, if 34 players feel that they want to wait, let them wait. Marines / xenos could be RPing, there’s no need to interrupt them. Now, if it seriously starts dragging for hours and hours like this, with literally no action, that’s when I’ll ask another mod what they think, should we prod them, via QM etc. I'd try to use something IC.
You are playing as a medic, and another medic overdoses all your patients and prevent marines from being revived. It seems like it may be on purpose. How do you deal with this situation? Since I’m involved, I have a conflict of interest (and would be frustrated since I am involved, so I would be biased). I ahelp another staff member so they can handle it, provide the evidence I have since I’m a witness.
The round ends, a Marine starts shooting a hostile CLF member and the CLF member ahelps about being killed after the round ended. EORG only applies to generating logs with friendlies, since CLF is not friendly to marines, it’s not EORG. I tell him this and explain that EORG is mostly in place to avoid marines suddenly turning on one another and killing everyone in sight, ruining the RP.
A Marine is running around disarming, punching and stealing gear at round start. You receive an ahelp from one of the victims. I thank him for ahelping. Sounds like griefing without a valid roleplay reason, disrupting the round start, depending on the severity may count as Rule 2 – Major shenanigans. I PM the offender and explain to him that while some minor shenanigans are ok, constantly stealing gear, disarming multiple marines, punching multiple marines is not ok and is LRP, it’s not something a marine would do. I note him, and depending on his history I escalate to a ban.
You receive an ahelp from a Marine saying that he was killed by another Marine. When you ask the murderer why, he said it was because the other Marine had punched him. I thank him for the ahelp and PM the murderer to get more info. Escalation goes general melee->dangerous melee->lethal weapons. Skipping from punching to shooting someone is an example of incorrect escalation. If it was an honest mistake, for example if the marine was low health before getting killed by one shot, I’ll tell him to be more careful and link him our escalation rules, suggesting to him to use fists, THEN knives, THEN guns if necessary. If it was multiple gunshots / magdump I note/ban depending on his history as well. If need be, I aheal the killed marine.
You find out that there is an improper mutiny occuring. The mutineers are rallying together and preparing to storm the CIC. How would you attempt to resolve this situation? “If the mutiny does not have a valid reason, it can’t happen.” I use MOOC and say 1) the mutiny is improper, and 2) mutineers should ahelp with a WHY (what led them to mutiny) and a WHO (who is partaking in the mutiny) along with a LEADER. This way they know exactly how to correctly engage in a mutiny if they wish to do so. If they do it the proper way, awesome. If not, I warn them a few times using MOOC, and if they still do not do things the proper way I asleep everyone involved.
There are minor racist comments going on IC. 9 of the 10 people are laughing and RPing but one player gets offended and Adminhelps about it. Rule 3, Racism is strictly prohibited. If it’s just lighthearted jokes, the context isn’t harmful, and they’re keeping it between themselves, then I’ll see if it subsides or progresses, and tell the ahelper that while it’s minor, I’ll be keeping an eye on it. If it’s clearly use of slurs and obvious racism, I immediately tell them verbally to cut out the racism. If they continue, I note/ban depending on history (I will be more severe with racism in general, especially if they do not stop).
A marine opens fire at round start in briefing killing multiple marines and instantly logs off. Rule 4, typical griefing. It takes a good while to actually fully kill multiple marines, along with aiming, avoiding return fire etc. I aheal the marines involved and check his notes – If he’s new I give him a 1-day ban, if he has a history, I might skip to a 7 day for history of blatant griefing. I just need some experience before I can accurately judge when to skip to a larger ban, it’s not something I’m comfortable doing at the moment.
You see a player playing a Xeno larva/chestburster run towards the frontlines straight from the Xeno hive the second they burst and die. Rule 2, Larva. Larva offer nothing in terms of HP, Offense, or Support. They cannot build, spit, attack, tank or provide pheros, and therefore are incompatible with the frontline on every metric. I check notes, and PM him to tell him this is unrealistic, poor behavior – He would be better served forming a battle plan with the other larva or getting information from the Queen about the frontline. I link Rule 2 to him if necessary. I apply a note and escalate depending on history.
You see a Xeno memeing, saying AYYLMAO, REEEEEE etc in hivemind chat, as well as insulting the Queen. Rule 2, Language and Rule 3, profane language (with queen). This language is not allowed and is abysmally LRP, especially insulting the queen. I PM and tell him this. I give a note and escalate to ban depending on existing notes.
A Xeno player calls the shuttle a "dropship". A different Xeno player ahelps that it's low role play to call it a "dropship". Rule 2, xeno roleplay standards. Dropship is 100% ok. I tell the ahelper it is not LRP and explain that the hivemind allows terms like “tank”, it is an English translation of their thoughts, it’s not realistic to expect xenos to say, “metallic moving firing loud box with marines”. I check if the ahelper is new (via notes, asking him) in which case I can provide more assistance if needed, linking him the rule page so he can take a more in-depth look at the roleplay guidelines.
A Command staff player at briefing near round-start mentions there are aliens on the planet. You receive an ahelp from a marine regarding this. I thank him for the ahelp. Marines do not know that Xenos are planetside at roundstart. If he mentions Xenos explicitly (and has no way of knowing beyond metagaming), I PM him to explain this very clearly and give a note. If he has recent metagaming notes I probably up him to a 3-hour ban, possibly notify a CO council member if it's the CO, if only to see their point of view and to learn what punishment is most appropriate. Metagaming ruins the fun for everyone involved.
You find a Marine killing another Marine on the EVAC Pod to take the last spot and claims it was RP as he was saving himself. There are two other marines in the pod along with him. Rule 10, exceptional circumstances. I’ve seen a similar situation myself, a marine blocking another marine in the dropship doors (xenos were on the other side). Door marine died, but with his sacrifice the rest of the marines were saved, there were respects paid, overall, a good RP outcome. The EVAC pod is a similar situation, xenos are coming, either you kill someone, or you die. Just to be sure I check his notes, make sure he doesn’t have a history of griefing or abusing this rule – If he DOES, but isn’t griefing NOW, I PM him to reinforce that he made a good call this time. No harm in giving him a pat on the back for learning and improving.
A player insults you after you warn them for a minor issue and begins ranting in LOOC or dchat about staff and mentions you specifically, referring to you as an 'idiot' and a 'retard'. I tell him clearly to cut it out, and check his notes. If he calms down, perfect, I PM him to give him some options if he feels I’ve made an error (staff report, manager, talk some more with him etc). If he continues after a verbal warning, I give him at minimum a three hour ban so he can cool down (rule 3, profane RP), and escalate depending on his notes.
A player ahelps saying he was hugged by a Xeno when he was ssd, and wants the larva be removed from him via admin powers. How do you handle the ahelp? SSD is YOUR responsibility. When you SSD you are helpless, so it is common sense to SSD in a safe place (at least behind cades, marines, etc). I PM, check the notes of the ahelper and tell them this, and I provide some better places (FOB, inside defended buildings, behind cades, close to LZ, inside APC) for him to SSD in the future. If it seems like he’s consistently making mistakes or doesn’t understand how the game works, I’ll PM him the quickstart guide so he can learn some basics, maybe even have fun.
You see a fellow staff member give wrong information in an Adminhelp or incorrectly enforce a rule. I bring it up in private with them (so they don’t feel the need to be defensive – less drama this way) and point out what I think they could slightly modify for a more optimal outcome (citing applicable rules). If they’re unwilling to accept some gentle advice then, depending on the severity, I might take it to management or a head. I don’t interfere with the enforcement – If I am correct, then the manager/head’s decision will reflect that.
Two staff are arguing in msay if an ahelp is breaking a rule. Because the staff who took the ahelp thinks the player broke a rule, they ban the player based on their interpretation of the rules, with others thinking the person was fine. What would you do? First, I investigate a little, acquire more information. Who said what? What do the rules say?. If it seems to be clearly in violation of the rules, I bring it up with management. It will be a good learning experience for me as a tmod to see how management approaches the situation, and doing it this way won’t cause unnecessary drama.
Why would you like to become a moderator? CM has the most potential out of any SS13 server, and SS13 has the most potential out of any game I have played to be incredibly fun.
It's why I'm starting to delve a little into coding/gitlab, I have massive dreams for the depth the game could achieve.
Moderator is just a way for me to contribute time to helping players learn, so that we can slowly gain new players and make the game even more enjoyable.
In your opinion, what is the most important quality for a moderator? My answer's changed a bit since last time.
I think mods need to maintain a connection with the community, it's very easy to become distanced from the members, something I want very much to avoid. Instead of moderator being, like, a "job", it should be a tool you use to help guide the community along the most enjoyable long-term pathway.
Anything else you if nanu sees this, please for the love of god fix that spelling error with beakers, it's been here for seven years nanu, i cannot take it any more...