Warrior Cats of the Forest is a roleplay for people of all ages and for this reason, we maintain community guidelines regarding potentially inappropriate conversation or roleplay. This blog entry provides guidance on what language and behavior is considered acceptable, both in- and out-of-character. For more information about community guidelines on Warrior Cats of the Forest, see the Rules Page and the Rule Infractions and Penalties Guide. If you are ever uncertain if a post or scene falls within these boundaries, feel free to run it by Ember or a moderator. Finally, if you ever notice rule-breaking -be it major or minor, something very clear or even just a suspicion of something fishy going on- please tell one of the moderators or myself. If you would like to report anonymously, you can use the “Contact Us” box on the Help Page and simply put “anonymous” in the name field and “warriorcatsoftheforests@gmail.com” in the email field.
The guidelines listed below are just that: general guidelines. It is possible that a particular scene or action, either in-game or out-of-game, may be deemed inappropriate for reasons not explicitly listed here; applying these rules is at the discretion of the owner and moderators team. As well, scenes or actions that deal with one of these categories may cross over into several. In those cases, members should take the more conservative approach.
In-Character and Out of Character Conduct. One central tenet of roleplaying is the boundary between in-character and out-of-character actions. In its simplest forms, this means that characters are not one-to-one representations of their owners. Two roleplayers can be great friends out-of-game while their characters are enemies in-game and in-character actions don’t necessarily reflect out-of-character values or opinions. Roleplayers are even encouraged to have their characters behave in ways that the roleplayers wouldn’t, as it makes the roleplay more interesting. This means that, in general, rules regarding behavior in-character are different from those regarding behavior out of character. A character can bully another character, for instance, but a member cannot bully another member. That said, roleplayers are responsible for their characters and roleplaying should still promote a positive atmosphere, so there is such a thing as going too far in a scene or glorifying morally wrong actions. While cats can say or do certain things, within bounds, their actions must be presented within a critical context.
Member Age Differences. Warrior Cats of the Forest has members that range from the middle-grade readers that the canon Warriors series is marketed to all the way to college students and adults; as such, there are frequently gaps in experience and maturity between members that create an inherent power imbalance. It is the responsibility of older members to recognize this power imbalance and behave accordingly. Younger members may not be able to recognize or defend against ways that older members may pressure or manipulate them or may not have the tools necessary to leave a situation that they’re uncomfortable with and so older members must create boundaries and be mindful about their behavior around younger members, especially when talking in private. Any older members who are found to be pressuring, manipulating, bullying, or otherwise behaving inappropriately toward younger members will be removed from the roleplay. Older members who engage with younger members in ways that are not merely inappropriate or unkind, but criminal, will be reported to law enforcement. Finally, older members should remember that even if they are only interacting with members of the same age in a particular scene or conversation, that scene or conversation will likely be read by younger members. For this reason, WCF’s all-ages requirements are upheld at all times and for all scenes, regardless of which members are involved.
Inclusivity. Warrior Cats of the Forest is a welcoming community that values diversity and inclusion. Out of character, any actions or language that might offend someone’s religion, race, gender, sexuality, ability, etc. are strictly prohibited and violations of these rules are enforced strictly. In-character, discrimination is allowed within certain bounds -such as exploring the ablism of clan hierarchies- but the scene should make sense within a Warrior Cats universe should be handled with respect and condemnation for the character’s discriminatory behavior. In-character discrimination should never be presented within a heroic or otherwise glorifying context.
Mature Themes. Mature themes (crime, religion, violence, etc.) must be treated with respect. When members create plots that directly deal with mature themes, they are expected to respect other members’ boundaries as well as have an understanding of the issue at play -- they must “do their homework,” as it were.
Violence. There may be moderate in-character violence -akin to that in the Warriors book series- but it should not dwell on detail and should be portrayed in a critical light. There should be no undue emphasis on injuries or blood, but occasional gory moments may be permitted if justified by the context. In-character sexual violence may only be implied or briefly and discretely indicated and cannot be straightforwardly depicted. Out of character, there should be no positive mention of violence and violence cannot be discussed in detail.
Dangerous Behavior. In-character dangerous behavior, such as self-harm, should not be depicted in detail which could be copied and should not be glorified or romanticized in any way. Out of character, there should be no positive mention of dangerous behavior and this behavior cannot be discussed in detail.
Sex and Sexual References. Sex can be mentioned, suggested, or joked about, but only discreetly. As a rule of thumb, if it wouldn’t be in a Pixar movie, it shouldn’t be on Warrior Cats of the Forest, either in- or out-of-character.
Drugs and Alcohol. In-character, there should be no mention of human illegal drugs, while Warriors-related “drugs” (e.g. catnip) can be alluded to, but cats cannot be depicted taking it and all drug use must be presented within an anti-drug context. Out of character, there should be no positive mention of illegal drug use or misuse of legal substances such as prescription medication or alcohol.
Language. Profanity is not allowed on Warrior Cats of the Forest. When posting in-character, members can opt to use either underscores in the place or profanity (e.g. “___ you!” Brownfur called) or warrior-cat swears (e.g. “Foxdung!”). Out of character, other considerations come into play. Firstly, swearing at or about another member [“[blank] you!” or “you [blank]”!) is worse than merely swearing in the presence of other members (“Oh [blank] I forgot about my chemistry test!”). As well, some words are considered more profane than others and are considered more serious offenses. For a list of example words in each category, see this document. Please note that this list doesn’t include every possible word that exists in each category, but rather provides a general sense of what degree of profanity falls into each category of enforcement. Members can use minced oaths and mild language in small quantities and when it isn’t directed at or about another member. Moderate language is not allowed, but will usual garner only a reminder about the language rules. Strong language is similarly never allowed and will garner have more severe consequences than strong languages. Members should note that acronyms and initialisms that include profanity are also not allowed; these are also noted on the above-linked profanity list.