Order Thru Chaos

Clan Charter

OTC was formed on the idea of a group of like-minded individuals playing and interacting together both in and out of game. OTC is a clan based more on someone’s personality than their gaming skills, skills can be learned. We hold the simplest of principles high - truth, honor, and loyalty. The foundation of OTC was created on this. It is these principles that have kept OTC alive through the years, and these principles that will ensure that Order Thru Chaos will continue long after we have gone.

The following are the clan guidelines:

The following are the clan guidelines:

Membership:

1 One clan, and ONE CLAN ONLY. This rule means if you play other games, you wear no other tag.

2 If a member of OTC quits the clan or is removed from the clan (i.e., under dishonorable circumstances), they cannot return unless approved by a unanimous vote from every member of the clan.

3 All members must be 18 year of age or older. (unless agreed by clan)

4 By becoming a member of OTC, it means you have read this charter and agree to all of the contents contained herein.

Status:

There are player status levels within OTC. There is: Active, Inactive, MIA, Retired, or Dishonorably Discharged.

5 You can elect for an “inactive” status with OTC should you need to take time off from the clan as long as you are in good standing upon your departure. (Everyone understands that jobs, family responsibilities, and other things in life change unexpectedly. Taking care of personal issues does not count against your honorable status with the clan.) When you are ready to resume gaming, you may resume your tag as well. OTC simply asks out of courtesy that you give notification to the clan if you will be inactive for extended periods of time.

6 If the clan has not received communication from a member for 2 months, the member will involuntarily be moved to the inactive roster, and will forego their right to vote on current clan issues until their membership status is reestablished. If a member is not in touch with the clan but still playing, they will be listed as MIA until contact can be made.

7 Should you decide for personal reasons that gaming is no longer for you, you can elect to “retire” from OTC. The status does not include leaving the clan to join another clan or take on other gaming activities. As long as the member is in good standing upon retirement, the retirement is considered honorable.

8 As stated above, should a member quit OTC under dishonorable circumstances or be removed from the clan, the only way that member can return to OTC is through a unanimous clan vote.

Voting:

9 Every member has an equal vote on subjects pertaining to the clan. Votes are decided by majority rule (i.e., greater than 50%).

10 Majority is determined by the number of people that attend a given meeting. A member can email their vote or cast it with the Captain or XO, if they cannot be present for a meeting.

11 Voting will be done in a secret ballot format. Meaning at the meeting of the vote, members will do private direct message of a Yes, No or Abstain vote to the captain. Once the votes are counted the captain will relay the outcome.

12 If a prospect does not get enough vote to be brought in during their membership vote, the sponsor or other clanmate can request for another 30 to 60 day feel out if they so choose to give it a second chance later in time.

13 The Captain or XO is the only member that can discuss voting issues with potential candidates or players outside of clan meeting discussions.

14 All members on the active roster are required to vote on clan matters unless you can provide a valid reason to the Captain as to why you feel you should abstain from a particular vote.

Meetings:

15 Meetings are typically held once a month. If you are unable to attend a meeting, please drop an email or Discord post to the clan stating that you cannot be present.

16 If you cannot be present for a meeting and agenda items such as new voting on new members, email or private msg in discord the acting Captain your vote. By not attending meetings and not emailing your vote, you are abstaining from your right to vote on an issue.

17 All conversations and topics during a meeting is like the saying goes (what happens in vegas...) Meaning anything spoken or discussed does not leave the meeting or talk with to outside people.

Clan Conduct:

18 If a problem develops between you and another OTC member of the clan, you should make every effort to directly resolve the issue privately between yourselves and outside of the server. Arguments in game will not be tolerated.

19 If there is an issue that cannot be resolved between two clan members, the issue should be brought to the acting Captain. The Captain may choose to resolve the issue privately. However, if the issue is ongoing, to maintain fairness the Captain may seek input from the Executive Officer (XO), or a vote from other clan members.

20 If a problem develops between you and a player the matter should be brought to the acting Captain and/or XO. Arguments in game nor derogatory remarks on another clan’s message board will not be tolerated.

Game Conduct:

21 Be they good kills or bad kills, accept that you will go up against players (be it through luck, skill, or divine intervention) that will score better than you will. Remember…it’s only a game.

22 OTC is about having fun with the game and playing with honor, not whining about unfair kills. If someone kills you well, compliment them on it. Show them what it means to be OTC.

Always remember that it is an honor to wear the OTC tag. Conduct yourself admirably in game and on message boards. When you speak in game or on message boards, remember, you are not just representing yourself – you are representing OTC in its entirety. We all have ‘off’ days. If you find your temper is getting the better of you, simply hit the Escape key and walk away from the keyboard.

Guidelines regarding potential new members:

We all see players from time to time in our server that might make good candidates for future clan members. OTC asks that you weigh whether someone may be worthy of the honor of wearing the OTC tag carefully before bringing the idea up to the Captain and for clan review. Because someone plays with regularity and scores well does not necessarily mean they understand what OTC represents, our tenets, and what belonging to such a clan would mean. Ask yourself this…what good things would they bring to OTC, and how much do you really know about them? Have they only been playing a few days or weeks, or have they been playing a few months with regularity where you can observe their behavior?

Should a player approach you about joining OTC, tell them we are not actively recruiting at this time. Should you believe the player in question is truly worthy of candidacy, tell them you will speak to the acting Captain about the issue and get back to them. Should you decide to sponsor or nominate a player for clan membership, the following guidelines must be met:

23 Any nominations for new clan members are to be brought directly to the acting Captain and XO. The Captain and XO will discuss with you whether the candidate might be a good addition, and will then bring up the subject with the rest of the clan.

24 Discuss your nomination of a player with the Captain and XO prior to telling someone you may nominate him/her for membership.

25 The Captain is responsible for distributing the OTC application to a potential member. Once the candidate has filled out the form, the Captain will distribute it to the rest of the clan, and the candidate will be discussed in a meeting prior to any voting session.

26 Be patient when nominating players as new members. Some OTC’ers are able to log more game hours than others, yet we all play with enough frequency that each of us should have the opportunity to get to know a candidate before having a vote put before us. Besides, if they are really interested in OTC in particular, they will be patient and want to get to know the whole clan.

27 All votes regarding new members are to be emailed or in Discord to the Captain – privately. If you support a new member coming on board, do so via your vote. But verbally blurting your vote out in public can sway other OTC members that may not know the player as well as you do, and pressure them into a vote they may not necessarily feel certain about.

28 Discuss potential members with your honest opinion. If you have reservations regarding a potential candidate, discuss them openly in a clan meeting prior to a vote. If you feel a candidate is too immature, or conduct themselves in game to our standard, or isn’t able to control their mouths or keyboard in game, they likely are not an ideal candidate.

29 The Captain or XO are the only ones that need to have private conversations with a potential new member to see, after they have been nominated, if they would be interested in joining the clan before any further action is taken.

30 Once sponsorship is agreed on, a vetting period of 30 days will happen, This will give all members time to meet and form a opinion on a new prospect. After the 30 days a vote can be called for.

No one in the clan likes having other players ask whether or not you would “vote them in” when you had no idea they were even being considered for membership. Following the above guidelines avoids confusion regarding new members, and gives everyone a chance to get to know a player, and whether or not they ‘fit’ with OTC. For it is those we vote in that help OTC endure.

This charter was passed on January 31, 2004. The charter will be updated once annually. Amendments to existing guidelines, or the additional or removal of guidelines will occur only through clan approval. Items amended on the charter will be put before a clan vote and must pass by a majority vote prior to any changes being implemented. [Amended on July 20th 2024