The Moderation System

The IC and OOC guidelines specified in the Rules & Guidelines ensures that Model Hogwarts as a community is open to and welcomes all people. As such, a moderation system is in place to effectively handle any broken rules, and will be overlooked by the server's moderation team. Moderators’ responsibilities may be found on the Authority Positions page. To obtain a list of the server's current moderators, use the `**.mod**` command.

## Punishments

If it has been determined that there has a breach of the rules or server ratings outlined in the Rules & Guidelines, or that a player has acted inappropriately in a manner not covered by these rules, then the moderation team will discuss and decide on a punishment, and communicate this to the offender through DM. The punishment will be determined based on the severity of the offence, and on the offender's past history, as is detailed below.

There are four ways in which mods deal with rule-breaking in Model Hogwarts, which are listed below in order of increasing severity.

### Poke

For minor or unintentional breaches, the mods will send an informal message to the offender explaining that their actions were inappropriate/against the rules, and why. This message is referred to as a **poke**. Pokes remain on an offender's record and, depending on context, may or may not be taken into consideration when considering later offences.

### Formal Warning

If a more severe or intentional breach occurs, or if there is a repeat of a prior minor offence, the mod team will issue the offender with a **formal warning**. If a formal warning is issued, this will be explicitly stated in the DM. After a user has been poked for a minor offence, a second minor offence of the same nature may result in either another poke or a formal warning depending on its severity and the time since the first offence. A third or subsequent occasion will always result in a formal warning. Additionally, on any user's third or subsequent offence of **any** nature, the mod team will determine whether the current offence continues a concerning pattern of behaviour. If it does, a formal warning will be issued regardless of the severity of the offence. Depending on the moderators' discretion, a formal warning may be accompanied by a **temporary ban**, as outlined below.

### Final Warning

If a player has received two prior formal warnings, their third formal warning will be deemed the player's **final warning**. Players may also receive a final warning if they have a prior warning for a similar offence, or without a prior warning if the breach is very severe. If a player receives a final warning, they will be notified that their next formal warning offence will result in being permanently banned from the server. Similarly to other formal warnings, the mods may choose to issue a player receiving their final warning with a **temporary ban** as well, if deemed appropriate.

### Permanent Ban

If a player continues to offend following their final warning, or commits an extreme offence, they will receive a **permanent ban** from the server. Certain offences including deliberate spamming or trolling, refusal to declare an alt account, advertising without permission from the server owner, or attempting to evade a previous ban, will result in an immediate permanent ban. Permanent bans from Model Hogwarts may not be appealed, unless it can be proven beyond doubt that the ban was unmerited. All alt accounts of banned users will also be banned, and banned users are not allowed to rejoin the server on another account.

## Other Information

### Reporting Rule-Breaking

Users are encouraged to report any breaches of the rules, or any other case of misconduct, that they become aware of. Any server member may be reported, including admins and mods, who are held to higher standards of behaviour due to their position of authority and influence. Reports can be made by pinging @Moderator in the #private-discussion-queue, or by directly messaging a mod (again, a list may be obtained using `**.mod**`), or by making a submission on the Suggestions and Criticism Form, which is linked here.

When you make a report, provide all information possible in as clear and objective a manner as practicable. Links to channels and search terms (e.g. the first sentence of an offending post or scene), or screenshots, are preferred. You are allowed to request anonymity at any time, and this will be honoured.

### Communication of Moderator Information and Punishments

Moderators may inform anyone who asks if an incident has been reported and discussed, and whether a decision has been made on whether to take action or not. However, all information regarding the content of moderator discussions and and the decisions made are kept strictly private. Some bans (temporary or permanent) are an exception to this: if the banned user has a sufficiently high profile on the server, or if their particular offence warrants it, the mod team will post an announcement explaining the reasons for the ban. Other than this, revealing moderator information is not allowed and users are requested not to ask for it.

### Locked Private Discussions

If urgent moderator action is required to defuse a heated or escalating situation, or prevent a user's continual rule-breaking, a moderator or admin may mute user(s) as required. Any muted user will then be able to view the #private-discussion-locked channel, and will not be able to post anywhere else. The mods will inform the user of the reason why they have been muted, and will discuss with the user the behaviour that led to them being muted. The muting will last until 1) a period specified by the mods has passed, 2) the mods are satisfied the user understands their offence and will not re-offend, **or** 3) the mods have conferred and decided on an official punishment, whether a formal or final warning, a temporary ban, or a permanent ban.

Locked private discussions may also be requested by users; for example, as a means of avoiding being distracted by posting on the server so as to concentrate on real-life matters. However, the mods may remove a user from a requested locked private discussion without notice, if the channel is required to deal with another user's rule-breaking.

### Temporary Bans

When a member receives a formal warning, including their final warning, the moderators will confer as to whether a temporary ban is warranted. Typically, temporary bans will be awarded when the mods decide that it is necessary to convey the seriousness of the offence in a more practical way than a warning message, or that the offender needs a cool-down period away from the server to prevent them from immediately re-offending. The length of a temporary ban will be determined by the moderators for each particular situation, but will be no less than three days and no more than thirty days. After the ban has expired, the user will be notified that they are free to return to Model Hogwarts.