My last topic was locked and when I tried to seek answers regarding the matter, the question was dodged for several minutes until I received a strange answer in which I supposedly broke rules regarding "discussing bans in public". I suppose that we're completely forbidden from ever discussing individuals that were banned then.
With all due respect, I appreciate the website that has been created for us and it is a marvel at that. This, however, appears to me as an example of "power abuse" and a scare tactic to silence what is truly happening. I imagine that I will be banned for defying authority, but I would rather have my argument be acknowledged instead of being shadowbanned like the others.
About a month and a half ago, several admittedly "stupid" events occurred here on the forums. Some of you may know exactly what I'm talking about while others of you are scratching your heads wondering just what in the heck I am referring to. If you belong to that second group of people, then for the most part, I am completely with you. Being that most of this happened at the beginning of June in which I was at my Freshman year orientation for my college of choice (University of Massachusetts-Amherst represent), I actually missed a majority of what "went down", but for some odd reason, my name was brought up during a time in which I was
inactive. It was a little silly to become dramatic about drama that I was pulled into, so I mostly ignored this aside from asking to have my name removed from the list of those involved (which was blatantly ignored, by the way):
In the end, I decided that it wasn't worth it, so I let it go.
So what exactly happened?
As I said, details are fairly scarce for me, but it seemed to have involved Mag Lev stepping down from his role as moderator, Nytem4re and J8cob being banned from the official Discord server (the latter was also banned from the website itself),and Grimhildr being banned from the RoleplayerGuild in general. Grimhildr's ban is the only one of the three that is clearly documented which can be seen
here and is entirely valid due to the user in question breaking a myriad of rules involving insulting other users, using heavily inappropriate language, and even posting the topic in the incorrect section of the forums. It goes without saying that Grimhildr absolutely deserved their ban, but because of the heavy publicity the topic received due to the controversy of "obvious trolling" surrounding it, quite a few important and valid points where missed. And that's what I'm here to talk about today.
You might be asking why I have begun to care about this two months later, but this is mostly due to the fact that the situation has begun to only escalate further. Shadow bans have been frequently happening both on the official Discord and website itself without so much of an explanation from the Staff. That being said, I'm not asking for the Staff to answer to me as I'm just another writer sitting behind a computer screen, but at the very least, I believe that people deserve to know exactly what is happening (which may or may not be a result of me listening to "Revolution Radio" too much because that's a great album amirite?, but I can't say for sure).
And with that said, let's dig into this monster.
It is apparently according to website rules that Staff can "choose" to discuss a ban in private which, admittedly, does make some sense. If someone committed wrongdoing and was punished as seen fit, then they shouldn't be further ridiculed and/or given the attention that they likely seek. This, however, can backfire if a user is banned for questionable reasons as was the case with a user known as Buddha/Odin. It is no secret that Buddha/Odin has made quite a few enemies on the site due to his brash and blunt nature, however, it's fairly obvious that he was banned without explanation as shown by the
reaction of several users on the official Discord. When asked about it, Buddha/Odin had no idea as to why he was banned with this
apparently being his final commentary.
This is not exactly friendly commentary to say the least, but it's not exactly offensive either. A mod on the server and the very same that represents the Arena section, Rilla, even responds to Buddha/Odin's commentary in a civil manner. The better question, however, is not to ask why he was banned, but what exactly is it that he's referring to? The fact that a Roleplay called "Negro Academy" remained active on the forums until Mag Lev took action.
This Roleplay was allowed to exist on the forums for several hours, despite the fact that moderators were apparently online:
The real kicker, however, is that you can still see the Roleplay on the website and said user is not banned!
If it's beginning to feel like a personal vendetta to you due to the fact that this can exist while simple commentary cannot, then perhaps it may just be that. This conclusion could be drawn from screenshots taken from a Discord Staff chat in which
I was called a terrorist for no reason (important note: Ruby herself has said multiple times that this comment is not her own and comes from someone higher in command - perhaps Mahz or Hank?) aside from possibly helping to spearhead a
topic in which community improvement was discussed. Note how Grimhildr was (again, rightfully so) banned followed by Buddha/Odin being banned on the official Discord while those two, along with myself, were among the most active in this discussion. Does this mean that I am next?
And this is where we get to the final part of this post, my friends.
I was undeniably dragged into this so-called "drama", but at this point, I am the first to admit that I am willingly involving myself at this point. I find it oddly suspicious how the three people that were most involved in a topic relating to community involvement have been labeled as "terrorists" while multiple moderators from the former unofficial Discord server ran by yours truly have been banned on the Official server. The reason for this may as well be personal vendetta shown by how Mahz has referred to the former unofficial server as "toxic" in the past which was further
implied by NuttsnBolt who even called for
Nytem4re and J8cob's ban because of it. That seems to answer the question as to why J8cob and Nytem4re were banned from the Official Discord (with the latter being banned from the website itself) and with Buddha/Odin now being silenced, that only leaves one of their apparent "terrorists" left.
Me.
Please note that I am also the apparent "terrorist" that
willingly supported Mahz's server over my very own,
spearheaded the unofficial Discord server along with community events such as movie and games nights,
ran a program for matchmaking friends, Roleplay partners, etc, and
even created a fun way to spend time with other users through the Official RPG Crush Thread filled with tarot card and astrological readings.
With this in mind and my own fear of being banned in mind, I have to ask: How dare you?
Where does the Staff get off telling me and my friends that we do not care about that this community? By stating that we are trolls and/or "terrorists"? I have broken my back attempting to help this community and I am repaid with my friends being silenced and banned. I am repaid by being called a "terrorist" and not even having the right to defend myself. I am repaid by people saying that the server I created was toxic.
I am repaid by the threat of a ban.
Kalas,
Marlowe,
Shrivvle,
ButtsnBalls,
VarionusNW,
IcathianReign,
Hos
terrorist list
