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Playtesters - Code of Conduct

 — Last updated: 25th of June, 2002

Members of the playtesting domain are required to agree to this code of conduct and to uphold it to their best abilities. Any violation of this code should be reported to the administration of the playtesting domain.

Being a playtester, like being a creator, is a responsibility and not a right. Part of being a playtester is being trustworthy enough that creators feel confident that you will not violate the confidentiality of the process. If you feel you cannot as a playtester accept the code of conduct here then you should bring your concerns to the attention of the administration of the playtesting domain.

Like all rules on Discworld, the important aspect here is the spirit and not the letter. Basically if you feel the only way your actions are justifiable is through some loophole or radical interpretation of this code of conduct then you will still be judged to have violated the code of conduct.

Violation of this code can be grounds for dismissal from the playtesting domain and depending on the violation may result in further punishment

• Playtesters are expected to be 'model players' and conduct themselves in a manner befitting someone who has been formally trusted with additional responsibilities on Discworld. This means that you do not do anything that brings yourself or the playtesting domain into disrepute.
• Information that you receive as a result of being a playtester is confidential. This means you do not discuss it with anyone who is not formally a member of the playtesting team or a creator. This includes conversations on the playtesters channel, documents posted on the playtester boards and documents on the twiki web. Basically if the reason you know something is because you are a playtester then it is confidential.
• Playtesters are expected to make their contributions and bug reports politely and constructively.
• Playtesters are expected to devote at least sixty percent of the time spent playtesting to projects they are actively assigned to.
• Playtesters often have access to commands and areas specifically to aid in playtesting. Playtesters are not to abuse the privilege of having these by using them to escape in-game situations or ameliorate the effects of in-game punishments.
• Items that you possess that are in playtesting are not to be used against non-playtesters. They are not to leave your inventory unless being destroyed in the PT armoury or handed to a creator or fellow playtester. If a non-playtester has somehow gained possession of one of your playtesting items, then alert an online creator as soon as possible.
• Spells or rituals that are in playtesting are not to be used against non-playtesters. They are not to be used in heavily player populated areas. They are not to be used when there is a chance that a non-playtester or NPC will be affected by primary or secondary effects.
• NPCs in playtesting do not exist for the purposes of XP farming. Playtesting greatly restricts the number of players who have access to the NPC, and playtesters thus have a greatly improved opportunity to earn XP because of the limited competition. Farming PT NPCs will be considered an abuse of the system.
• Playtesters have access to Igor (the Discworld clone) for purposes of testing and evaluating things which cannot be playtested on Discworld proper. This is a service made available for the purposes of testing and is not to be abused by taking advantage of the fact your Discworld character file is not synched with your Igor character file.
• Playtesting areas are considered to be 'off-limits' as far as non-playtesting PK interactions, such as inhumations and thievery are concerned.

Creator code of conduct

Creators are expected to adhere to this code of conduct when their projects are undergoing playtesting. If a playtester feels that they have not been treated with the respect they deserve, then they should discuss it with the creator in question in the first place. If there is no satisfactory resolution after that, then it should be discussed with the creator's domain lord.

• Creators will deal with playtester queries about their code in a polite and professional manner. Remember, playtesters are providing a valuable service in their own free time, and so should be treated with the respect you'd like to be treated with yourself.
• Creators will provide acknowledgement of reported bugs that have been fixed so that:
  • The fix can be tested to work.
  • The fix can be tested to ensure it didn't introduce a new bug.
  • The playtester knows that the bug has been looked at.
• The people responsible for the amount of game mechanic information on a project in playtesting are the people responsible for the code. For this reason, creators will not give out game mechanics for developments that they are not directly responsible for.
• Creators will keep the information relating to their projects on the project tracker up to date.

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