I. Respect.
The Azure Flames strictly enforce their guild member to respect each other along with the community of Mateus. The Free Company thrives on being a reliable and respectable company with each member’s actions reflecting on the Company as a whole. If word reaches to an officer of dishonorable behavior the officer core will not tolerate it, and punishment will be dealt out accordingly. You must not have an officer on ignore. If you have an issue with one, contact Foxa or a Head Officer. Officers are not above any of the rules you will find below.
II. Public Conduct.
The Azure Flames hold a high standard code of professionalism. As a member of the Company, you represent all of us as a whole. We do not allow any actions that will bring discredit to the company. We are here to have fun, and we encourage our members to do it in good taste. We have a zero tolerance for:
1. Threats
Don't threaten another member. You can do this all you want ICly but once you threaten someone OOCly, you'll be in trouble.
2. Trolling
Do not troll. This is pretty simple.
3. Spamming
Self-explanatory. Don't spam.
III. Discrimination, Harassment, and Slander.
The Azure Flames welcome and support people of different backgrounds and upbringings, whether it be race, gender, religion, sexual preference, etc. We do not accept any hateful or violent speech of any type, and this includes images or content that can be viewed as offensive or uncomfortable to others. This rule applies to all forms of chat that the Company uses. Do not hesitate to contact an officer of the Company if you feel you are being discriminated against or harassed. We will not take these matters lightly. Be sure to have screenshots ready upon request.
IV. Healthy Environment.
Assist with keeping the Free Company a comfortable place for everyone. Be courteous, professional, and mindful of each other, this includes in-game, on the forums, and all chat communications. This can also include, but is not limited to:
IV-I: Drama.
The Azure Flames have an absolute ZERO TOLERANCE for any drama! Any drama that is started or cannot be stopped immediately will result in immediate removal from the Free Company. Members may/will not be warned, so consider this the only warning you will receive. Note that the severity of the drama does play a factor. While any form of drama is not allowed, the severity of the situation plays a role in how it will be handled by the Officers.
IV-II: Personality Conflict and Difference of Opinions.
Many members of the Free Company are going to have different viewpoints and opinions on just about anything, both in-game and out-of-game topics. With that being said, if you disagree with a member on the topic at hand, we EXPECT you to discuss matters in hand, and not argue. Know when the conversation has been taken too far, and know when to stop. We expect all members to be the better person in every situation, even if others involved may be unreasonable. If you do not have anything nice to say in a situation, then do not say anything at all.
IV-III: Officer Core.
As a member of the Free Company, you are expected to respect the officer core and the decisions that they make to better the guild as a whole. If you feel that an Officer does not deserve respect then it should be brought up with a Head Officer or Foxa directly.
IV-IV: IC & OOC Consent
Consent should always be used, and requested, for OOC and IC situations that involve any overly dark or mature themes. If you are unsure if people are okay with something, you should ask. This applies for OOC and IC interaction with potentially sensitive situations.
IV-V: Comments or Concerns.
Should any issues arise at any time, they should not be aired out over FC chat, and it should be kept between the parties involved and/or an officer if need be.
V. Commitment to Service.
Our commitment to the Free Company is the most vital part of keeping it alive and active. The more of a commitment we make to the company, the better the guild and its community become! Upon joining the company we encourage our members to be active in the company, participate in events, and make themselves known to our growing community. We understand real life may get in the way, and we will not punish you for that.
VI. Age
You must be eighteen years of age or older to join the Free Company. There are zero exceptions.
VII. Hate Speech
Hate speech, homophobia, transphobia, racism, sexism, and ableism are not allowed here. This includes the use of racial or homophobic slurs. The Free Company enforces a zero-tolerance policy for such messages. Severe rule breaks for this rule may result in an immediate ban without warning or recourse.
I. Proper Immersion.
Understand the differences between In-Character (IC) and Out-of-Character (OOC) actions, and apply that knowledge to help prevent any misunderstandings. Remember that just as real-life actions have consequences, so do roleplay actions. For those who are new to roleplay, you can ask in the discord if you ever have any questions. Whisper an officer for more information. We do not condone any type of roleplay that would break canon. There are other ways to properly immerse yourself, such as:
I-I: Roleplay Zones.
As a member of the Free Company, you are expected to respect the in-character zones of the world. Where the community roleplays, you are expected to remain in character while in these zones. Any out-of-character actions that include yelling, using obnoxious mounts or spells, and or any other form of behavior that is viewed as disruptive will not be allowed. Whisper an officer if you have any questions. If you are questing and fighting an enemy, that is fine. Just don't go OUT OF YOUR WAY to ruin someone else's roleplay. Please also be mindful of what roleplay you bring to the Free Company. If you interact with a voidsent tentacle dragon person outside of the Free Company, do not bring this type of person to the Estate as they violate our lore rules and would make interactions awkward.
I-II: Community of Mateus.
As a member of the Free Company, you are expected to respect every member of the community within the Mateus server, regardless of the individual's beliefs, behaviors, or otherwise. We expect each member to be, "the better person," in all situations. You are expected to respect all aspects of roleplay, even if you necessarily do not agree with how someone is roleplaying.
I-III: Godmodding, Powerplaying, & Meta-gaming. are NOT allowed.
II. Search Information
Be sure to include something such as "Walk-ups welcomed!" in your search information! Do not contain anything lewd or NSFW in the player search.
III. Quality Roleplay
We are a Free Company that welcomes and supports those who are new to roleplay. However, a line is drawn when the quality drops to a negative threshold. If you are in the Free Company you are expected to make a solid effort toward roleplay. If you lock yourself inside of a room to ERP, constantly harass other members, or put in zero effort with your roleplay then an issue will arise. As long as you are able to socialize and attend an event every now and then you will be fine with this rule.
IV. Lore
The Azure Flames follow the lore of Final Fantasy XIV as closely as we can, which means lore-breaking characters and actions are not welcome within the Free Company. However, we do allow MINOR lore bends. A few examples can be found below.
IV-I: Race Changing
Fantasia does not exist within the lore of Final Fantasy XIV. However, we won't force people to remain a race they no longer wish to play as. Thus, we can allow race changes to occur but they MUST be approved by an Officer beforehand.
IV-II: Voidsent?
Voidsents are generally not allowed within the Free Company. Some exceptions can be made depending on the character's lore and their style of interaction. An aggressive voidsent would only be allowed as an antagonist and not as a member of the Free Company.
IV-III: Magic!
White Mages are not allowed however, their precursors are allowed. This is due to the lore of the class.
(Some exceptions can be made. Reach out to an Officer for discussion!)
IV-IV: Sensitive Subjects
There are many difficult topics within the Final Fantasy world. Xenophobia, colonialism, racism, and sexism, are a few of such sensitive subjects. If you intend to introduce these topics into roleplay, please be mindful of how you go about doing so.
IV-V: Questions?
If you are ever unsure about something within the lore, feel free to ask an Officer and they can help out! Our goal isn't to police how characters are roleplayed but to ensure the quality is kept at a satisfactory level for everyone. We also have the RP Workshop channel in our discord where you can seek out assistance with character-building questions!
V. Character Behavior
While much of these are covered in the OOC section, they also apply to IC situations. We want to have a friendly and open place for roleplay both IC and OOC. These rules are for IC situations. If broken, they will result in IC punishment instead of OOC punishment.
V-I: Racism, Sexism Etc
Characters that are openly against other races, genders, or types of people are not welcome within the Azure Flames. A character may not like a certain race, but they can not be openly against them. (e.g. insulting Xaelas) A character having a story reason to dislike a race is fine, so long as they do not hurl insults at them. Dehumanizing a character because of their race is not tolerated.
V-II: Respect
An Officer's words should be treated as the rules. Characters are free to disobey but they should expect punishment for doing so. If a character feels that an Officer is abusing their power or being unreasonable, then they can report this to a Head Officer or to the leader.
V-III: Conflict Seeking
Do not engage in RP with the goal of creating conflict. Conflict is fun when it occurs naturally, not when it feels forced. Characters that attempt to create conflict for no reason are not welcome. Please avoid using dehumanizing or degrading language. Conflict should never take place during a planned event unless there is consent from the host of the event.
VI. IC / OOC Bleeding
Ensure that all in-character interactions remain in character. Do not attack someone OOC for what their character did ICly. Additionally, do not bring out-of-character drama into roleplay interactions. Ensure that the two worlds are kept apart as they should be.