Who are you guys? What are you all about?

Refugee Gamers is a community of gamers dedicated to hacker, punk, abuse free gaming.

Are you a clan?

No, we are not a clan. We are a community of gamers who share common views and values about online gaming. We do, however, have several clans and Guilds within our community.

What games do you support?

We currently support CS 1.6, CS:Source, City of Heroes, EverQuest 2, World of Warcraft, Guild Wars, and several other games to different extents. For some games (like MMO's), we have a subsection of our forums and provide voice chat support (Ventrilo). For some other games, we also provide hosted servers, such as Counter Strike.

Can I join your community?

Of course you can. How this can be done depends on what part of the community you'd like to join. Each MMO usually has different requirements for membership to rG and their Guild. See the "Hosted Game Server Questions" and "MMO Questions" sections below for more details about membership requirements. You can also look around in the appropriate games forum sections to see any relavant information there.

How is the community setup?

Upon joining for any game, you are given a community rank of "Member". This gets your name up on the main rG Community Roster. There is room for promotion in any game, but it requires a good amount of activity and enthusiasm towards improving rG and setting a standard for other members to follow. Each game has equivalent levels to a "Senior Member" in the community. This level is not reflected on the main page, however you will gain access to a new section of the forums. Your input in regard to community development will be taken very seriously at this level. Beyond "Senior Member", there is a chance to become an "Officer" for each game, which would allow you to have a great deal of input on the direction your guild or section of rG is taking. In all cases, promotion is placed in the hands of the games Leader(s), as seen on the main rG Community Roster.

If I'm a member for one game, what do I have to do to become a member for other games?

This depends on what game you are already a member for, and what the requirements for other games are. In all cases, you have to show a genuine in-game interest in joining the new game. Your best bet to find out exactly what you'd have to do is either post in that games’ section, or contact that games’ Leader to ask what needs to be done for membership.

Can I lose my membership status with rG?

Yes, it is possible to lose your status with rG. Every few months, we will do an "Active Member Signup" in the Members Section of the forums. This list will usually remain active up to a month. If you have not signed up within that month time, you will be removed from the community. You will have another month after removal to request to be back in, which will be granted. After that time, you would be required to rejoin the community again at the lowest level for the games you're playing.

Also, if you fail to live up to the expectations or requirements of your games Leader or the rG Council, you can be removed from the community forcefully. In the event that this happens, re-admittance will seldom be considered or accepted. Disputes for this sort of removal can be emailed to us.

If I get kicked out of rG from one game, what happens with the others that I'm playing?

It depends on the method of your removal. If you are removed from inactivity in one particular game because you have moved on to another, then you will stay in rG. This is the case even if the game you move on to is not one supported by rG. Once you become an rG Member, your presence in the forums is what keeps you a member to the community.

However, if you are removed because of missing an Active Member Signup, or because a Leader or Council member requested your dismissal, you will be removed from all of rG. This means if your activity is unbecoming of a member of rG in one game or on the forums, we expect that this will hold true in all games. Disagreements with this policy can be emailed to us.

I was on one of your hosted servers, and someone told me they were a "Guardian", "Sentinel", or "Enforcer" and that I needed to follow certain rules. Who are these people?

These are members of our rG Admin Team. Guardians are the most basic level, followed by Sentinels, and Enforcers. Their job is to try and make sure the rules on our servers are being followed. If you are unsure of our rules, see the following question, or read the Message Of The Day when you join one of our servers. Our admins should be enforcing these rules and ONLY these rules. If one of these people attempts to enforce a rule which is not part of our official rules, please email us to report the incident. Provide as much information as you can, including server name and IP, time of the incident, and people involved.

What are the rules for your hosted servers?

• No use of the word FU**, this includes wtf, omfg, ect.
• No over use of other curse words or "low" language and not to be directed at another player.
• Limit the use of any 1337 speak. No full 1337 spelled names will be allowed (e.g. "|-|@rDC0r3_| • Noob, noobie, newb, and variations of such are not to be used, nor appear in player names (E.g. - "NoobKiLlzers").
• The use of the terms gay, faggot, etc. are not allowed and will result in a swift ban.
• Racism and sexism will not be tolerated in [u]ANY[/u] form, it is terms for an immediate, and permanent ban.
• A pornographic spray, name, or reference is terms for an immediate ban.
• No Team Killing when Friendly Fire is active. Penalty for TK is one round out, kick, then ban.
• Do not argue with admins in-game or on the forums. View the Contact page for the appropriate unban email address.
• Be respectful to your fellow players and try to remember it's a game.

Can I become a Guardian?

Sure. You need to be active on the message forums, and in-game. You must be a registered member on the forums for at least two weeks time, and have at least 15 posts (not spam). Once you have met those requirement you can petition via the forums to the voting commission (Enforcers & Council), and they will approve or deny your request. It requires 5 members of the commission to agree you would make a good canidate to move you forward in the process. These requests are checked by a member of the Council.

If the voting commission has no objection to your becoming a Guardian then a vote of all other members will be called. All members of the commission that do not vote in the first phase may participate in the second phase. Once you have 10 votes you are a Guardian. Note that the final say of whether someone becomes a Guardian is up to the entire community to decide, not just the voting commission. Our community is about coming together, therefore everyone has an equal vote, and an equal share in the responsibilty in who we choose to add to our ranks.

That was really confusing. Can you clear it up a little?

Sure. First, sign up and complete your forum registration. We [b]STRONGLY[/b] recommend you spend a little bit of time with us (maybe a couple weeks) before trying to join, just to make sure we're something you want to be a part of. This will also help to make your petition move a little bit faster if you've gotten to know a bunch of members.

Once you're sure you would like to join, submit your petition in the "Petition Alley" section of the forums. Be sure to read the instruction thread there about what sort of information to include in your petition. Once you've submitted it, you most likely won't hear anything about it for a week or two, depending on how long you've been around. The longer you've been around us, the quicker this will go. This is known as phase one.

Ducer will contact you once phase one is over, and inform you to put on the {Refugee} tag. This is the start of phase two, and the part that you can see yourself on the forums. The purpose of the {Refugee} tag is so that rG members can tell that you're a petitioning member while playing on our servers. Please DO NOT solicit votes from members either in game, or by IM or PM. It will often result in a negative vote. If you still have more questions, consult the contacts page.

What if my petition is denied or I leave rG? Can I petition again?

Certainly, however you must wait a minimum of 2 months before you may submit another petition to the Voting Council. After the two months from the day your petition was denied or the day you left rG, just start up a fresh petition. Use those two months to try and clear up any concerns that our community members may have had, and try and get to know some people better.

Can I be an Admin (or Sentinel or Enforcer)?

Everyone as the potential to become an admin on our team. It does however take time, dedication, and the ability to work well within a large group. We select candidates for admin positions based on their contributions to the community, their time spent in-game and on the message forums, and their perceived aptitude for future growth. Please do not ask to become an admin, from time to time when positions are open we will notify folks, then and only then would we want to hear your requests to become admins. Note that admins are selected by the Leadership Council and Server Officers, and it requires a 2/3rd's vote of the Council and SO's to promote someone.

Can I be a member here as well as another gaming community/server?

We prefer that if you are an admin on another server, that you do not apply for Guardian status with us. We prefer that our admins and Guardians dedicate themselves to policing the [rG] servers. Of course, you are always welcome to play here as our guest, and chat on our forums.

If you do join our community, and it comes to our attention that you are a member at another community or on another server, you may be removed from the community without warning. So please, just be honest. We're sure the person in charge of the other community or server would want you spending most of your time there just like we'd like you spending most of your time with us. Be honest with yourself about where you spend the most time gaming.

I was kicked/banned. What did I do? I swear I did nothing wrong, and I don't hack!

The number one reason people get banned is when they fail to follow the rules or the instructions/requests of an admin while on one of our game servers. The rules are fairly simple, and can be read in one of the above questions.

The other primary reason people are banned is due to suspected hacking. Please keep in mind we do everything we can to weed out players that choose to hack, but ultimately it comes down to the judgment call of our admins. Are we always right? Nope. Do people that are just really good get tossed out for no reason? Yes, but don't blame us. Blame the people that make and use the cheats. We have to rely on human intervention to keep the servers safe, and clean.

How do I get unbanned?

Unban requests are handled through our Leadership Council, we however always attempt to consult with the actual admin that banned you from the server. We listen to both sides of the story, and ask the admin that banned you if it would be possible to give you another opportunity. If he/she agrees then your ban will be lifted. Please note that the Server Officer will not arbitrarily lift a ban nor will any member of the the Leadership Council. Contact us with all unban requests.

Your admin staff was being very rude to me, and I was kicked/slapped/slayed/banned for no reason. What is my recourse?

First off do not argue with anyone in-game or even attempt to do so. Please try to provide as much information as possible, like who did this to you, when, and what server. You need to give us this information via email. We will consult with the admin, and if need be our logs to see what actually occurred. Note it may take us a few days to find out what happened, but know that we take admins abusing their powers very seriously.

I joined your server, and was instructed to only use specific weapons. What is going on?

From time to time, there may be spontanious special games we play on our servers. These games must be initiated by either that servers SO, the CLO, or a Council member. The most common style of these games is what we call "Weapon Wars," where the person in charge will select a specific weapon or type of weapon, and everyone on the server must use only that. Failure to comply with these rules can result in a slaying, or if continued, possibly a kick or ban if you insist on not following these rules.

Often times, these special games are enhanced with low gravity, friendly fire, or all talk. If you happen to stumble into one of these games, feel free to ask what is going on, or what the rules are, and try to have someone explain. They often only last for an hour or so, and then normal play will continue.

I was forced to play special rules, and was told if I didn't, I would be banned. The server SO or a Council member was not present. Is that right?

No, it isn't. We only conduct spur-of-the-moment special games only when those particular members are present, and no other times. Please report the person that was telling you to follow those specific rules for admin abuse to.

Can I hold a tournament or special event on one of the rG Servers?

Requirements: A Sentinel or above must start, organize and host the tournament. The person to start the tourney must Submit a request to the Leadership Council, and get its approval. Any use of any [rG] servers for the purpose of tourneys must be scheduled on the [rG] calendar of events. You must have asked at least 72 hours in advance of the time you wish to host your tournament or event.

May I put up a banner for rG on my own site?

Certainly! We'd love to have you show your support for our community. You can find banners for rG over in the downloads section of the site. Feel free to contact the webmaster with a banner of your own if you're interested in a link exchange.

I have a clan/community. Can I advertise here for our server?

No you may not, however you are welcome to play here as a clan, or ask any of or subclans for a scrim or match. If you are interested in getting your clan to become an official rG subclan, and would like use of our match server, please contact us.

I became a Guardian, but my powers still don't work. What's going on, and when will I get my powers?

The first thing to keep in mind is that the server operators and owners do lead busy lives, and this isn't our highest priority. Make sure you've given a sufficient amount of time before you get too concerned. If it's been a full week since you emailed your Steam ID to the "servers" email address, then you may send another email to make sure that our administrators have recieved your Steam ID. Also, be sure that the Steam ID that you are submitting is correct, otherwise your powers will not work.

It's been a couple weeks, and I still don't have my powers. What can I do?

If a couple weeks have gone by and you still don't have powers, email us with your request for server powers, and state that it's been 2 weeks and you've sent 2 emails to the "servers" email address with no response and no powers. We'll do our best to get to it as soon as we can.

Remember, we can get loaded down with our personal lives on occasion, and things like this get pushed to the back sometimes. Keep a cool head about it, and give us some time to get things straightened out.

There was a cheater/punk on one of your servers. What can I do about it?

If you are a member of the community, but do not have the ability to kick or ban this player, you have a couple courses of action. First, you can attempt to locate an admin that can kick or ban on the forums or on IM. If you can, get them to handle the situation right away. You can also post your ban request in the "Reporting In" section in the Members Area of the forums. Please include the Steam ID and time of the occurance, as well as the behavior which deserves a ban. Take a demo if necessary.

If you are not a member, please make your post in the Counter-Strike section of the forums. Include the players Steam ID, time of the occurance, as well as the behavior which deserves a ban. Once one of our admins sees the post, we'll bring it to the attention of the admins, and look into it.

I have a game server that I run. Can I add my server to the list of rG servers?

The Refugee Gamers community spends a substantial amount of money monthly on top quality hardware and bandwidth. We are running off of an unrestricted 10 MB pipe that feeds to AT&T, UUNet, and Level 3. We maintain every aspect of our community as closely as we can, and prefer to keep that degree of quality and control. So no, you may not advertise your server as being an official rG server, nor will we add it to our site.

Can I rent a server from rG, and have it be a part of rG?

Yes, this is a possability. Details for server rental information can be found on the Support rG page. Our rate is $5 per player slot, or $3 per player slot if you are an rG member. The requirements for having a server rented from us being a part of rG is that you must be at least a Enforcer, and be in good standing with the community. You will recieve SO status for your server, and be in full control. However, your server must maintain rG hosted server standards for rules, and allow all rG CS Members their appropriate admin access. In addition, you cannot grant your own personal friends admin access on the server. They must petition to join rG if they would like admin powers. In exchange for these services, we will provide additional administrative support for your server, in order to maintain it up to the rG standards.

Can I join an MMO Guild at rG?

Of course. Requirements vary for joining each Guild. Your first step to joining one of the rG MMO Guilds would be to visit that particular section of our forums and look around to see if there are any posts with instructions for how to join. If you don't spot anything, you may post with your intent to join, and someone should answer any questions you have.

How are your Guilds setup?

Our MMO Guilds are run by highly respected members of rG who have an active presense in that particular game. These individuals, along with an admin team of their choosing, create and administer their own Guild for their particular game. They will have their own rules for joining, and their own rankings for the members of their Guild.

Once you join an rG MMO Guild, you will become a member of rG. This includes Member access on the forums, access to special Members Only sections for the MMO Guilds, and having your forum name on the main page of rG. Promotions within the Guilds are possible, and are moderated by the Guildmaster and their admin team.

Are there rules we must follow to be in one of your Guilds?

Rules for your particular MMO are setup by your Guildleader, and should be prominently displayed in your MMO's section of our forums somewhere. However, in general, our goal is to provide a clean, fun environment for gaming, no matter what type of game we are participating in. We ask that you keep this in mind while playing, and try to make the gaming experience pleasant for both yourself, and those you game with.

If I become a member of an MMO Guild, what is my status with rG?

If you are a member of an rG MMO Guild, you are an rG Member. This means you have access to Member sections of the website, and can offer input for any community decisions which we include the general rG population in. Possability for promotion is up to your MMO's Guildleader.

If I get promoted in the Guild, do I also get promoted in rG?

Depending on how the Guildleader has the Guild levels setup, this can be a yes or no. The two levels of rG membership are Member and Senior Member. The Guildleader typically sets up some sort of association with what Guild level is equal to a Senior Member. If you reach this Guild level, then you will also be promoted within rG.

I joined one of your Guilds, but don't have access to the appropriate parts of the forums. What do I need to do?

Please contact your Guildleader, and as them to have your forum permissions checked. Keep in mind that sometimes the forum admins get busy with other aspects of their lives, and have to put their rG duties asside from time to time. We do have several forum admins to help minimize this problem, but delays can still happen.

If you've contacted your Guildleader and after a week or two you still do not have the proper forum access, email us stating your forum name, MMO that you play, and what access you believe you should have. One of our admins will get to it as soon as we can.

I've forgotten my password or username. What can I do?

If you've forgotten your username, first check the Members section of the forums. Try and search through and see if you can find your name there. There are several search tools in the Members section to help make your search easier. If you still cannot find your name, contact us with the email address you used to create your account, and we can find your username for you.

If you have forgotten your password, you may use the forums password recovery system here.

I'd like to have a new section added to the Game Play Forums for a game that I play. Can I?

The first step you should take is to post about this game in the Other Games section. See if anyone else is playing this game, or interested in this game. If your posts begin generating enough interest within the community, the section may be added to the forums. If you feel that your posts are generating enough interest, but your game is not being added, you may contact us with your request.

My permissions do not appear to be correct anymore. What do I need to do to get them adjusted?

If your permissions for the forums were correct before, but have changed and to not appear to be correct anymore, contact us with your username and what you think your permissions should be. An admin should get back to you and let you know what happened, or fix your permissions for you.