Staff Code of Conduct

Purpose

The purpose of this Code of Conduct (the “Code”) is to provide rules for appropriate Staff Member (“Staff”) behavior. Every individual on Staff agrees to be bound by this Code upon their admission. Violations of the Code will result in appropriate disciplinary action, as discussed in Section 5. The terms Staff and Staff Member include Developers, Game Masters (“GMs”), Community Managers (“CMs”), Testers, Balance Team Members, Discord Moderators, and Consults.

Staff Member Expectations

All Staff Members are expected to adhere to HorizonXI’s standard community rules, which can be found in the #rules channel of the HorizonXI discord.

In addition, Staff members have responsibilities above and beyond non-staff players. These include:

• Outside Conduct - Staff must represent HorizonXI and fellow Staff appropriately when acting in an official capacity on any third-party platforms and websites such as Reddit, other Discord servers, Twitch, or any other social media platform. If something would be a violation of this Code on HorizonXI platforms, then it is not appropriate for Staff to take such actions on any third-party platform
• Confidential Information - Staff must never use Confidential Information (defined in Section 3 below) in a manner that is reckless, exploitative, self-interested, or manipulative. If you are in doubt about whether a particular action involving Confidential Information is appropriate, just don’t do it. Any Confidential Information must only be discussed or shared in appropriate Staff locations or with other Staff Members unless authorization has been given.
• Conflicts of Interest - Staff Members must always make an effort to avoid Conflicts of Interest (defined in Section 4 below).
• Duty to Report - Staff must report any of the following, if seen:
• Known illicit in-game activities they witness or become aware of.
• Violations of any posted Server Rules and this Code.
• Potentially game breaking bugs or exploits.
• Obvious balance issues (this includes things such as finding out content is much weaker than intended, mob AI acting inappropriately, skills and abilities having unintended interactions or being too strong).
• Leaks or transmissions of Confidential Information in violation of the policies of this Code without authorization.
• Inappropriate Speech - Staff must never use violent, threatening, intimidating, coercive, abusive, or hateful language towards Adventurers or fellow Staff. Examples include:
• Any language that condemns any race, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, gender expression, disability, age, medical condition, or mental health status.
• Any language that is purposely meant to harm or harass a third party.
• Any group formed for the purpose of harassing an Adventurer/Adventurers, other Staff, or for causing harm generally to others.
• False or Misleading Information - Staff must not make or publish false statements concerning the HorizonXI server, any Staff Member, or player. Further, Staff must not falsify any evidence, materials, or conversations had with players or other Staff about any disciplinary matters.
• Kickbacks - Staff must not receive any kind of bribe or personal benefit in exchange for any act as a Staff Member or for the transmission of any Confidential Information.
• Fostering a Positive Environment - Staff should do their best to accomplish all of the following:
• Ensure Adventurers are comfortable speaking up and asking questions.
• Attempt to address Adventurer concerns, within reason.
• Prevent retaliation against Adventurers who report concerns or engage in good faith.
• Enforce the Server Rules and Discord rules promptly and consistently.
• Keep accurate records relating to disciplinary actions taken.

Confidential Information

Staff must be committed to protecting server-related Confidential Information. “Confidential Information” includes any non-public information about upcoming game changes or patches, balancing tweaks, Staff discussions, non-public projects, unpublished game code that is not a developer’s own, personal information relating to players/Staff, and all non-publicly posted HorizonXI information of any kind. Confidential Information also includes any screenshots, video, media, or other materials obtained during the course of any server testing.

Any unauthorized transmission of Confidential Information is a violation of this Code. Confidential Information must never be publicly broadcasted or displayed in any public setting unless authorization has been given. Any transmission of Confidential Information in violation of the policies contained in this Code must be reported by any Staff who witnesses the violation.

Confidential Information should not be disclosed during or after departure from Staff except to active Staff in appropriate circumstances.

Conflicts of Interest

HorizonXI respects Staff’s right to play and enjoy the game. However, Staff should always place a fair play experience for all above their own personal interests. If personal interests create the appearance of any Conflicts of Interest, it may affect a Staff Member’s ability to act objectively in the best interest of the server.

For purposes of this Code, a “Conflict of Interest” is defined as any situation in which an individual is in a position to derive personal benefit from actions or decisions made in their official capacity as a member of HorizonXI Staff.

If in doubt, a Staff member should recuse themselves and request another Staff Member be appointed to cover whatever situation could give rise to a potential Conflict of Interest. Fellow Staff should speak up when they think another Staff Member is embroiled in a Conflict of Interest and needs to recuse themselves.

Conflicts of Interests often go hand-in-hand with the misuse of Confidential Information. The following are a few examples, but not an exhaustive list, of how the misuse of Confidential Information can create a Conflict of Interest:

• Economy Changes - Using Confidential Information to do any of the following is forbidden: (i) sell an item when its price is about to drop; (ii) buy up an item that is about to become more rare; or (iii) purchase materials for new recipes before they are added.
• Drop Rate/Method Changes - If you know the methods of obtaining an item are about to change, you may not engage in actions to use that information to benefit yourself or others.
• Balance Changes - If you know content is weaker than intended or specific jobs/compositions are having unintended interactions, you may not exploit this knowledge to gain an advantage.
• Hidden Information to be Discovered - A big part of HorizonXI is recreating the sense of discovery that existed in retail FFXI. To further this, certain game components will be changed or added for Adventurers to discover (the “Hidden Information”). Hidden Information includes any and all game changes that were intentionally added by HorizonXI Staff. As Staff, you are not allowed to alert, funnel towards, hint at, or guide other players to the existence of any Hidden Information. You must follow the lead of others in the community with regards to the discovery of any Hidden Information.
• Policy Changes - If you know a policy change is about to take place and previously sanctioned conduct would become forbidden, or vice versa, you may not exploit this knowledge to somehow gain an advantage.

Punishment for Violations of this Code

Any violations of this Code and any of the Sections contained herein may result in disciplinary action. Whether an action constitutes an alleged violation shall be determined by Staff vote, with a supermajority being required to consider an action a violation. For purposes of this Section, a “Supermajority” shall be defined as at least two thirds of all then “currently active” Staff. “Currently active” Staff are Staff Members that have engaged in server administration activities within the last 60 days.

When an individual has been found in violation of any of the Server Rules and/or this Code, Staff will vote to determine how many strikes should be assigned to each violation. The violation chart is as follows:

Strikes	Punishment
1	One week suspension from the game plus discord server.
2	One month suspension from the game plus discord server and temporarily relieved of Staff duties for one month.
3	Two month suspension from the game plus discord server and permanently removed from Staff.

Each Staff Member will be subject to a “three strikes” rule. Once three strikes have been obtained, the individual in question will be removed from staff. Any vote to reinstate a Staff Member who was previously removed must be unanimous by every currently active Staff Member.

Strikes are cumulative and decay at a rate of one strike per six (6) months, unless an explicit and unanimous vote from currently active Staff authorizes a different course of action.