Accepted FC_MercuryEL7 - War

McBrawl Moderator Application:
Are you active and helpful on our servers, forums, and Teamspeak? - I consider myself acceptably active in these three categories before, but even though I have only returned a week ago, my activity is no different from when I left. I generally try to give a good impression when I introduce myself. I try to respond to the questions player have if they are within my knowledge, which also includes "newbie" questions such as "how to reload" which generally are frowned-upon by arrogant players. For forums, I limit my posts and tend to be well written in the appropriate thread, with the community rewarding me with a relatively low negative ratings. Another factor which limits my post is to avoid spamming of threads or posts in such short period of time. Two threads of mine which I'd like to remind you of which I created are https://www.brawl.com/threads/6719/ and https://www.brawl.com/threads/13499/. I don't usually get the chance to show my knowledge on Teamspeak, since the players with questions generally aim at the staff members on. When I do get the chance to answer a question, the player leaves satisfied with my response. I expect more satisfaction from the players with questions if my rank is visible to them.

Approximately, how many rule breaker reports have you submitted? - To my self-awareness, I have reported at an estimate of 10+ players. I have submitted mostly hackers and advertisers, and I used to report OOM but now I am aware I should report them to an in-game moderator. I am constantly on the lookout for rulebreakers, regardless of the server. My reports are limited to screenshots and very short videos.

How old are you? - I am currently 14 years of age.

What time zone are you in? - My timezone is CDT or GMT -5 hours.

What is your experience and knowledge of Minecraft? - In the sixth grade of my scholar year, I stumbled upon a Youtube video which portrayed two comedic gamers playing a rather unfamiliar game. It seemed to be cube based, cartoony for lack of a better description; yet, it had the ability to build up tension as soon as the night falls. That game was Minecraft, the game which I knew a lot about despite me never being behind the screen. I would watch several clips each day, where in each one I would learn a new thing: how to craft; how to mine and survive the starry night; how to enjoy it. I finally gained access to this game around summer 2011, however, it was the ‘cracked’ version of what was then 1.8. beta. I started off already knowing half the things every expert knows, which really led me to improve, rather to discover, what I already knew. Much of my time was spent on survival, as I did not yet discover any servers which allowed ‘cracked’ players. This boundary to me now seems beneficial as it restricted me to learn about the unmasked core of Minecraft as opposed to dramatic game-changing plugins and mods. I pretty much spent like this until 1.2.5, when a close friend, who also was a ‘cracked’ player, gave me the ip of a ‘cracked’ server on a piece of notebook paper. The experience was about to change forever.

As of now, I consider myself quite comfortable playing Minecraft with the vast knowledge I have. I can answer comfortably any questions relating to the game with ease, and I love to learn the new elements implemented through each version.

My current account traces its birth to Summer 2013, which may led to an assumption this part is false. However, I vow that anything said above is the truth and only the truth.

What is your experience with moderating servers? - I have an acceptable history as a moderator, considering I've been chosen to be in five different servers. The only one which I did not apply for and was my initial start was Modembug.

Modembug was my first server which I discovered, and it had unusual habits. Firstly, you are chosen to be staff based on your in-game behavior, maturity, and trust. I was one of the lucky ones, and I enjoyed every moment. The fact that I immersed myself with the community so well was one of the reasons why I stayed there for so long, almost a year before it soon was buried. I’d always enjoy whenever players asked me for help on their projects, questions on how to vote or registering on the forums, and I dearly loved the fact that I was their favorite and the trusted one. My memories are forever in my mind, but the evidence is not as strong as I'd wish them to be. The only screenshots I could find was from the time which I could not simply use any commands due to a very serious incident in the custom plugins. I relied on screenshots to later give them to my fellow staff members so they could ban them as soon as the servers would be on its top form, that day never came. The ranks aren't working, as mentioned in one of the screenshots there was several problems yet to be fixed.

SquirrelCraft was my next road, albeit a very short one. It was an unsuccessful server that never seemed to catch the public's attention, as only staff and a few friends played in it daily. This server was also my first try in joining a team, rather being elected to, and I joined successfully. I can't write much about it, as it died off a month later due to financial reasons.

SwitchPVP was again a very short lived server, one that never saw the light of being released. I originally joined to design a spawn, but was later promoted to helper. The negativity of the community, their discrete immaturity, and overall the experience led me to resign from the server and to find new roads.

MineChaos, in my eyes, seemed to be a successful server for one that was just released. It was designed professionally, but had unprofessional owners. I was prejudiced, falsely accused of so many things that I felt like resigning, which I did only a week later. This server is now dead.

DarkSpawns is my latest server, and it has had a good start and is constantly gathering new players. I feel that in this server, I had the chance to become part of a team, not a babysitter. I constantly help with the builds, scripts (we are an RPG server), sketches and answering the abundance of questions the player has. I am also the assigned staff to help our new "Helper"s, where I test them and help them to become exemplary staff members. I've been trusted enough to be promoted to Admin. I personally enjoy this server the most because I get to regularly help new players and answer their questions.

Spoiler: Evidence

Modembug (Inactive): http://imgur.com/a/05TdZ#0

SquirrelCraft (Inactive):http://i.imgur.com/2gXVkiX.png

SwitchPVP (Resigned):http://i.imgur.com/5RxZRFz.png

MineChaos (Resigned):http://i.imgur.com/gF9Nme9.png

DarkSpawns (Active. Currently on trial for Admin from Mod. I have a nickname that isn’t present which was Neovenator, hence them calling me “Neo”): http://i.imgur.com/UQUW7RM.png

What will you provide to the community if you are provided moderator status? - I could easily start this off with the key words everyone uses: providing a safe server and community; or something like : keeping rule-breakers away. Sure, a moderator is supposed to do that, right?

In my eyes, I will aim to be more than just “a player with a pink tag that can kick. I should be the player that the community should feel safe around, to trust, and to ask questions to without intimidation staff become associated with like in real life. To gain confidence from the players is the key factor in being a good moderator, because they will be the people you will work with, assist their needs, and answer their questions. They shouldn't be intimidated when I log on, as they will know I will be the one helping them for their own good. Furthermore, if I have the opportunity to moderate, I will be sure to enforce our rules efficiently and fairly. By fairly, I mean that I will give everyone equal opportunity and fairly, regardless if you are a close friend, a new player, or a experienced player; because at the center core of everyone's heart, we are equally human.

Have you ever used a hacked client before? - I've used it once in the past as soon as I learned about them. I primarily used them in single player to help me achieve greater in the game, and only once in a multiplayer server. After a kind warning from a staff member, I've since learned to refrain from them. I consider this experience to be helpful in improving my accuracy to differ bugs and lag from hacked clients.

Have you ever been banned on a Minecraft server? If so, why? - I have not been banned in any server other than MineChaos, which I was a Admin on. I've explained several reasons to which why I resigned, and in my final day to which I was going to say goodbye , the Co-Owner disrespected a fellow moderator immaturely purely because of her race and gender. I spoke up about his acts and how he should be less ignorant towards racial and gender boundaries, but the argument was ended when he began to yell at me and ironically banned both of us for "disrespecting staff".

How active do you consider yourself in-game? - I am very active on the servers usually after school and weekends. I hop around the many servers, with War being my most frequent visit. Usually, I am on 3-10, present during flame-wars, spammers, advertisers, and questions. When a mod is not on, I am usually the one answering the questions. For this reason, I try to contribute my time on servers which I rarely see any staff on.

How active do you consider yourself on TS3? - I am active on Teamspeak as I am active in-game. I try to log in for a few hours, either in a channel or a group. I use the chat more than my microphone, and this is due to my shyness and my paranoid parents.

How active do you consider yourself on the forums? - I am always logged on the forums whenever I get the chance to, that is from mobile or computer. I don't usually comment without a reason to avoid "spamming" my post counts. I may not leave a comment on every thread, but I do like to view them to be informed on the servers and active discussions.

What do you consider your greatest strength? - My greatest strength that I have which I know will be helpful for this occupation is my understanding of human psychology. It is something that interests me and which I continue to learn everyday by reading articles and experiments. Some of you may be scratching your heads wondering why I insist this is my greatest strength, and let me tell you something. As a moderator, you will be working with mostly people. With this in mind, you can easily convince players to stay with specific words that make them feel welcomed and accepted. Personal interaction with the players is important, and the first 10 seconds are the most valuable as the player categorizes the server "good" or "bad". If this is successful, the player will stay. If that player stays, he might recommend it to his friends. This cycle will repeat itself many times, rewarding us with more players. There are many other benefits which I haven't mentioned relating to this strength.

I'd also like to embrace my other qualities: my helpfulness, maturity, patience, and friendliness. I am always answering the questions within my knowledge in the servers, and usually I'm the only player that will only respond to their questions unless a mod is on. I can be very mature in the appropriate occasions, to the point in which I can say I have never called "hacks" or "noob" to other players when my kill streak is over. I am also very patient, whether it be during "lag spikes" of the server or the many questions the player ask hoping someone will answer them. I strive to be friendly with anyone, and try to brighten up everyones day with my sense of humour. Whenever players say, "yay I got +31" or anything they feel the need to be proud of, rather than making fun of them like other players, I congratulate them to show my support. Instead of raging in chat after a 14ks/20ks, I motivate the player by saying "gs <player>" (gs is an abbreviation for "good shot"). This will only bring good effects later on, such as making him stay and to try better, leading to a successful growth.

What do you consider your greatest weakness? - My greatest weakness would be my questioning and doubt, derived from my analytical thinking. A good example would be the server which I am currently active as an admin, whom the fellow admins claim we are protected from any DDOS attacks after we received protection. I was the only staff member to doubt this, and this may lead to assume I am negative and cold blooded. I tend to look at the facts, probability, accuracy and the outcomes. I never give a 100% certainty in something which I am not in control of, and we should never be too confident or arrogant in the future. This said, however, I am optimistic in many things.

How would you handle someone making a minor transgression for the first time? - I would, firstly, respond in a inoffensive, kind yet demanding tone to the rule-breaker. I say inoffensive as if I respond angrily I could possibly trigger a “strike-back” effect on the player such as elevating the seriousness of the situation or having to participate in an unnecessary argument. A calm response might contradict it by having a calm effect, saving him from a ban. If he is in doubt why he is called for, I would appropriately respond in detail about what rule he/she is breaking. Like I said, we want to prevent any negative reactions in the first impression.

How would you handle the same person doing it again a second time? - A second time usually means that the player is in fact doing it for

• Pleasure of breaking the rules. The excitement plus the anonymity of the player only adds up to the pleasure.
  
• Testing his limits.
  
• Attention seeker (common in children).
  
• Showing off to fellow players with a mala persona.

However, one should never lose hope. I would have a private discussion with the player. I want to know why he is not following the rules. Why is he acting like this, and if this act will bring him any good to the other people and himself. These discussions like these are so rare in moderating, and if the player is willing to listen to me, they can be a success. Hopefully with this discussion, he will be enlightened and change his behavior.

The other scenario...

The player shows signs of disrespect and gives an impression he really doesn't care. It is then when I change my tone to a more demanding than being nice. I'd have to kick the player to show his acts will have consequences if not followed. Players normally don’t stop here, it is then when they commit it again a third time.

How would you handle that person doing it again for the third time? - A third time is definitely a sign the player is clearly not caring. I would kick the player, or give a temporary ban if it is a serious threat to the server and the community (DDOS, DOX, etc). Regardless of the level of the committed act, I will inform to a staff of higher rank and allow them to decide the player’s fate. Of course, should I use the ban command, I will provide evidence to reason my actions.

What is your reaction if someone publicly proves you wrong on the forums? - I would simply reply by thanking them for correcting my mistakes and edit my information to be accurate and current. No need to argue nor to spark another fire, after all I want to set a good example to our members.

What would you do when someone breaks a rule on the forums? - If someone were to break a forums rule, I'd private message the member asking him to not repeat their actions in the future. I would remind them to take the time to read our forums rule by providing me a link and will provide them with more information if they are still confused (meaning to "grave-dig", a further clarification on their acts etc). If this is a repetitive offense or if the player continuously breaks other rules, my topic will change to ask him if what he is doing is good for themselves, and if their behaviour is appropriate/necessary in our community. I'd provide them with help if this is relating due to any personal problems.

When would you lock a thread? - I’d lock a thread when...

• It is starting a flame-war.
  
  Spoiler: Example

  Member:I really don't care what you have to say, so please go die instead.
• Gets off-topic.
  
  Spoiler: Example

  What was your best score? Hey remember Putty and his chicken farm?Yeah, but MrCowlick's was better! Nah Uh! It's true!
• Question has already been answered in another thread.
  Spoiler: Example

  When will the update come?
• Offensive, encourages violence of any kind (DDOS, Hacking, Hating on other players.)
  
  Spoiler: Example

  Check my montage of me hacking!
• Gravedigging.
  
  Spoiler: Example

  Best of January 2014! Last message: February 31, 2014. Member: Wow this is so cool! 1 minute ago.
• Spam/Duplicate.
  
  Spoiler: Example

  Recruiting for Team WareZ! 1 day ago TeamWareZ recruits now! Moments ago.
• It has been requested by the OP.
  
  Spoiler: Example

  Member: Ok guys thanks for the critics! Requesting lock please.
• Exposes personal information.
  
  Spoiler: Example

  Want to know Member's IP? Click this thread!

On applicable situations, a warning will be posted to give the members a chance to switch gears in the right direction. When locking a thread, I will give a reason to why I am locking it, and what to do next time to avoid it. As of course, I would carefully write my message in a passive/user-friendly tone to avoid provoking anger. For any questions they may have related to the locking of the thread, I will end it by advising them to PM me.

For the threads which are a question of which has already been answered, I will be sure to answer this question with the best of my knowledge, and give a link of where the member may see fully answer his question.

Describe yourself in 3 words: Sincere, Humble, Analytical

Anything else we should know about you? - My exemplary conduct in school has not been unnoticed by the teachers around me. I've received various certificates each year because of my grades. I've received a President’s Award for Academic Excellence in the fifth grade. In my elementary school, I was assigned to the group called “Respect Corps”, which was the school’s way to demonstrate my academic and conduct excellence. In the sixth grade, I was invited to the National Junior Honor Society for my conduct and my grade average of 90+, but I could not meet the requirements of attending the meeting, leading to a demotion. I’d also like to note that I am in a team which dreams of nothing but for the benefit of humanity called “EduDek”, where I play the role of a graphic designer and critique. We are currently in development of HelpDek, a different modern perspective on a help desk.

I also generally enjoy assisting people in the real world, and it brings a unexplainable emotion when I feel their joy caused by me. This explains why I always went with my older cousin to work in his repair shop; this is why I always tried to work even underage to at least be useful to someone, such as buying candy and christmas gifts to unfortunate kids. I am always available to help members who are not feeling their best, whether it be cyberbullying or depression, I want to let them know I can help or find help during these rough times in their lives.

With McBrawl growing strong despite such claims, it is important that we are available for assistance for the players of different countries. I can respond with fluency in two languages, English and my native language, Spanish . With Spanish being my mother tongue, I am able to understand basic sentences in Roman languages like Portuguese, French, and Italian and to respond at a beginner level. If we are an international server, why should we limit ourselves to one language?

Situation: A player is out of the map on MC-WAR. What are the steps that you would take to ensure that this player and situation is properly dealt with? - If I am ever encountered with this situation, I should do this in a very formal and friendly manner. I would ask the player how they got there, and kindly ask him to immediately get back in the map or do /spawn along with a future notice to never do it again. If this seems to be a new OOM, I would take screenshots and post it on the "Bug reports" section, detailing how it can be achieved and the coordinates. If the player persists staying, then I would warn the player I will kick him if he does not stay and reiterating the steps to get out. If after a few more warnings the player is still disobeying my orders, then I should kick him and ask him in the future not to do it again.

Do you generally know how all the plugins and commands work? - I am aware of the majority of the plugins and commands, and I will use my knowledge for the benefit of the community. Should we include any additional commands, I will take my time to learn them and be familiar enough to teach them to others.

Do you realize that if you are disrespectful or abuse your power, your power will be taken away? - It is generally common sense for a staff to not abuse his powers, but rather to be a role model and example for the community, which I will strive to do. This rank is not foolishly given, it is earned.
Furthermore, I understand and accept my moderator rank will stripped off if I do not comply with the rules.

Thanks for taking your time and reading it. Feel free to criticize and to explain your choice!

 

Thank you!

Thank you for the feedback! Really means a lot that someone has noticed my activity in these three categories.

 

Thank you for your feedback. You brought up a good point which might affect the outcome. I will try to still dedicate my time helping players even if I'm not accepted which is the good part.

 

Thank you Scoat2!

 

Thank you for your feedback! I plan to respond in more categories such as the Q&A if I'm chosen.

 

Oh thank you for the correction!

 

Thank you and yes I have changed dramatically from those days. And don't worry! If I'm accepted I will log on the servers that usually don't a lot of staff on.