Role Playing
Westbrook Academy is first and foremost an RP supergroup. We’re medium to heavy RP and what that means is that when you’re logged in you’re in character by default. Out-of-character chatter on channels such as /supergroup and /local is to be kept to a minimum and should mostly be for explanation purposes such as correcting a typo or putting a disclaimer on a character. We have a global channel specifically for OOC conversations. If you are going to be in the group you must role play.
Behavior
Out of character, you should be friendly and courteous at all times, both to other members as well as to others outside of our group. You’re carrying the SG name under your name and everything you do reflects on Westbrook Academy as a whole.
Westbrook is an adult group, but we are not exclusively adults. This means that while we will deal with mature language and situations, this is not a group for facilitating cyber-sex. There are hundreds of groups out there of that nature and if that’s what you’re primarily interested in then you should join one of those instead. Cyber-sex is certainly allowed in the group as long as it’s done privately between consenting adult players.
All in-game public interaction should be kept somewhere between PG-13 and R. Any fiction written on the forums should be at a maximum of R rating and in such cases should be disclaimed for sex, violence, language, etc.
Community
Westbrook Academy is here primarily as a roleplaying community. You should be aware that everything your character does can affect the group as a whole. You are expected to treat the community canon with respect. If you are planning to roleplay something that may impact another player’s character in a potentially unwelcome or unexpected way, discuss that with the other player in advance and be willing to work with them. If you are planning to roleplay something or tell a story that would have an impact on the community or canon, please discuss that with the officers in advance.
Westbrook also has group-wide storylines on a regular basis that everyone is expected to participate in. These storylines move the overall story of the school forward.
You will come under review periodically, both you as a player as well as your character. This is done monthly for Probationary Members and quarterly for all other members, as well as on an as-needed basis when specific concerns are brought to the leadership’s attention. Reviews are handled in the background by our officers and you won’t be contacted unless there is something the leadership wants to address with you. You must be able to receive advice and criticism in the spirit of improving your role playing and making the group a better place. You should also be willing to advice and critique other members of the group in a similar spirit.
Activity
All members are expected to maintain an active presence in the group. Activity and presence are fairly subjective and we do not have firm objective criteria that you must meet. As a guideline, try to actively roleplay in-game at least once a week. If you have alts, then you should try to actively roleplay each character in-game at least once a week. We do have some flexibility on this, particularly if you give notice in our “Leave” forums.
Members are also expected to take interest in the group’s weekly activities and special events. We do not require attendance at any given event, but you should strive to attend as many as you can as these are the times when the group really comes together.
You are also required to keep up with our forums and maintain an awareness of what is happening on them so that you are well-informed when you roleplay in game. You are also very strongly encouraged to actively post on our forums. The forums is where most of the big picture changes and stories are handled for the group, both IC and OOC. Events are planned and shared, stories are told, the setting is established and expanded upon, the rules are changed, and first contact with new members are all established on our forums.
If you’re not much into forums, you should at least try it. You may find that you like it here. However, if you hate the very idea of forums and just want to RP in the game, then you would probably be better off finding a less forum-intensive group.
Uniform
There is a School Uniform that you must be willing to dedicate at least one costume slot to. The school uniform should be worn at supergroup meetings. You are also strongly encouraged to wear it at events such as New Student Orientation. You must have your uniform before you can be promoted to a full Member.
Ranks
Probationary Member: This is the introductory rank that every new character starts at. Probationary Members are not yet full members in the group. They have been admitted on a trial basis to see how well they mesh with our group. Probationary Members have the same access to our group’s forums and events as full members. During supergroup discussions on things such as policy, Probationary Members are welcome to express opinions but should understand that their voices hold less weight than full Members.
Member: This is the basic member rank that most of our members hold. As the name implies, Members are full members of the group. The Officers value the opinions and insights of our Members and shape policy changes and decisions with their feedback in mind. Members may apply to bring additional characters into the group as alts, provided they have the activity levels to sustain multiple characters; see Enrolling Alts for details. (Note that alt characters still go through a probationary period.) Probationary Members are promoted to Member rank by vote of the Officers; for more details on that process, please refer to our How to Join page.
Officer: This is the basic officer rank. Officers facilitate supergroup discussions and participate in the decision-making process of the group. They are responsible for interviewing prospective members and for evaluating probationary members. New Officers are selected by unanimous consent of all existing Officers.
Architect: This rank is effectively equivalent to Officer. However, in addition to normal Officer responsibilities, Architects are responsible for the design and maintenance of the supergroup base.
Senior Officer: Senior Officers are Officers who have stepped up to a heightened level of responsibility. They are entrusted with running the group. In addition to standard Officer duties, Senior Officers are responsible for handling disciplinary issues and ensure that the group continues to have events and group-wide storylines to participate in. Senior Officers are selected by the Supergroup Leader from among the Officers.
Supergroup Leader: The Supergroup Leader is the leader of the group. In most respects, the Supergroup Leader acts as a Senior Officer. However, the Supergroup Leader has final say on all matters.