Discord Etiquette

[Tbone]

----====Discord Etiquette====----
Created by an ex-member

Staying calm...

Anyone who has used a voice coms program has encountered the following.....

Someone: “I need some help here guys!!!”

You: “Where?  Who is this?”

Someone: “It’s me.  Come on, I need some ****ing help!!!”

You: “WHERE ARE YOU???  Just give me a waypoint!”

Someone: “Never mind, I’m ****ing dead.”

You: “Who is this?”

Someone: “Mutha $%@&$#”

You: /sigh

Annoying?  YES.
Exaggerated? Not really.
PVP flairs up excitement and emotions, people forget how to communicate and get enveloped into the moment.  If everyone could stick to some easy to use guidelines saved time and victory would come hand in hand.

Being Specific

The more effective you can communicate your information to your fellow players, the quicker they can respond.

Again this is but a guide.  This is by no means a complete list.  These are just the things that I try to adhere to and hope it catches on.


Refer to yourself in the Third Person
Not everyone will be able to recognize your voice.  "Tbone needs backup."
It’s weird at first, but there are less questions as to who is talking or who is being referred to.

Pronouns are your enemy: He, she, it, them, me, thing, etc. In a heated PvP battle, there could be as many as 30+ people all in the same voice room.  The chances of all of these people being in the same area are slim.

The following statements no longer have any relevance.

I got him.
I'm gonna heal him.  Cover me.
Can someone cover me?
Back me up.
I'm going down. 

A better way to communicate these same statements are as follows:

Tbone just downed Darth Vader
Anamodiel is healing Tbone, north side of objective B. 
Tbone needs cover.
Back up Tbone please.
Tbone is down.

Directions
 
Use good directional descriptions.
Left, Right tell us nothing.

For whatever reason, we tend to think that everyone sees what we see... Directional comments or directions tend to not work so smoothly in these instances. 

"Enemy is on the right!!!!"
Now pause a moment... how many people do you guess are now looking in the completly wrong direction..... Not a good tactic.

Directional commands should include North, South, West, East, and/or a landmark that people will recognize.

Compare the two statements:

"I'm counting 3 of them....right at the objective.
This first statement means virtually nothing.  You will however recieve questions such as.. Who is this? 3 of what?  What objective? Are they north? South?

"Tbone is in combat with 3 reds west of objective C.  Get me the hell out of here."
Someone who just joined the voice server could hear the second statement and know exactly what to do.

Divide and Conquer

Don't be afraid to split up rooms
Topics of Combat and how cool you look do not belong in the same channel.. we have more than one channel for a reason.

Making rooms in the voice server for things like PVP, Leveling, etc. will help everyone be involved in the conversation that matters to them most.  Depending on how intense the battles are, you may need to create rooms for specific events.

Following The Leader

Sometimes a leader needs to call radio silence and give out commands without any discussion or feedback.  Whether or not the situation calls for moves this drastic, there should be one designated leader of the group and the group should listen to everything he says.

Blowing Off Steam

Bullsh*t and F*cker don’t mean anything.

No matter how pissed you are or how much lag there was, it is completely rude and unacceptable to key into the voice server and just spout out profanities.  9 times out of 10, it’s just a player blowing off steam about a situation that can’t be saved. 

Keying into the voice server and just yelling "#####"only hinders the rest of the group.

Push To Talk

Push to Talk is mandatory.  The feature refered to as "Voice Activated" is annoying, and rude.  Music, TV, spouces they all are transmitted... Just because your not talking directly to us, does not mean we cannot hear you.

Headsets

Headsets go hand in hand with Push to Talk.  Open Microphone setups collect all noise in the room, and then transmit along with your message.  Please take any measure possible to aquire a headset.  $8.99 at Wal-Mart. Try to keep all of your game volume in your headset so that game noise isn't transmitted when you talk.

Narrating

"Hey guys, this is Broin. Today sucked ass work blows omg does it blow... Time to go to Tatooine and look at the suns.  Man I like Taco Bell.  Sweet dual sabers rock!  Hmm I'm gonna go down this cave and see what's here.. Oh nothing... neat rock though..... OH you know what would be cool........"

DON'T narrate everything you do. You could be kicked from the server.  Now you may think  "WOW thats pretty severe!"  Well it has to be severe as it is a severely poor habit. The need to broadcast every bit of detail is rude, and has absolutly no place in a voice chat program.

Updated 5/25/11 by Tbone

[Anonymous]

Damn can't agree with you more about the cursing thing. its kinda sad that even with the "strict" age standards that we recruit by that there are people who "once every in a  blue moon" curse and spit random words into teamspeak. one thing that would be a great standard is strict rules for everyone to set there TS server to activate there microphones at the push of a button rather than voice activation I cant remember how many times I have heard in the background someones Mom yelling at there sister to clean up her room,  thats right you know who you are 8D I also think that this announcement should be put in a more eye catching thread...

[Anonymous]

Taken from the F.A. vs Collective Thread
http://thefuriousangels.com/index.php?topic=1468

Tbone's example guide of PVP Communications:

You are expected to be on Teamspeak in order to have up-to-date information and commands handed to you. For organization purposes, we will try to keep the chatter to nothing before and during the fight. If you need a res, say "yourname res at southwest" and type your coordinates in the faction chat. Directions are based on the center of the area (where we will start the fight), so southwest would be southwest of that area.) We will hopefully assign leaders of squadrants to confirm or request before and during the fight.

Here are some examples of positive communciation:

Tbone: "Spies approach your target. Confirm when in place."
SpyLeader: "All spies are in place."
Tbone: "Prepare for battle."
Tbone: "Attack!"

Tbone: "Tbone needs Res at southwest."
(in faction chat)Tbone: "Res -112 56"

Tbone: "Libertas needs help at center".
Eroz: "Veritas on the way"
Nartak: "Evigilos on the way"

Here are some examples of negative communication:

Tbone: "Oh crap. I'm dead. Who can Res? Anyone? I need a Res. I'm by the pipe thingy."

Tbone: "Spies approach your targets."
FA: "Are we about to begin? I thought I saw some RIP earlier. Do you think they'll show up? Hey Tbone, that hat looks stupid."

Tbone: "I see one! I'm getting him now. Oh crap, I need help. He's right over here by me! Someone get over here! He's right in front of me! AHHH!"

[Anonymous]

I use key to talk merely because I don't want people coming in and asking me questions that noone else wants to here . Be this as it may, I am yet to get a headset, but so far noone has complained about my mic. Meh, maybe you are all fuming inside at the crazy Brit with his crappy sound quality. If so, please say something. Apart from that, good lesson Tbone/Sevker, keep it up

[Ketamininja]

Push to talk for all please. I see no reason in having it any other way

[Anonymous]

Yeah.  Push to talk should be the rule.  We should also watch for people with feedback i.e. people who have their speakers so loud or so close to their microphone that we can hear their speakers.  Using headphone is an easy way to fix that problem.

I've been disenchanted with TeamSpeak for a while now.  I think it is a crucial tool but the way we use it just kills it.

I usually connect and listen, just in case I can catch something useful in that sea of pointless blabber, self-narrating and stupidity (do we really need burping ?).  It just kills me when I hear someone monologuing about every little thing they do and see, as if everyone else was on the edge of their seat dying to know.  When I can't take it anymore I usually just move to another channel or turn down the volume.

I've agreed with Sevker's TeamSpeak etiquette since I've first seen it.  I think he hit the nail on the head.  I think that's how it should be.  I also think this will never happen unfortunately.

Most of our members are under 20 and come in TeamSpeak to have fun and be entertained.  To have good TS communications, you have to self-discipline and think before talking.  Many people don't do that, ever.  When I think efficient communications, I think military.  I know this is not the military, we play for fun but if their style of communication works for them and has been proved for decades, why wouldn't it work for us ?

It's too bad our communications are that bad because as you know knowledge is power.  Good communications is the way to share this knowledge.  As it stands now, sharing valuable knowledge is as hard as dragging an open umbrella through a mud pit.

I'll be honest.  If I was a TS administrator, there would be a lot more people getting kicked (for a few minutes).

[Eroz]

One, Yes the TSE is back..... Grim thanks Sevker for me.

Two, you forgot the most important rule of all....

"No crewing on paperclip while talking on a mircophone." (Cookies to all who know the story about this joke.)

[Tbone]

I think I'm the only one who still gets that joke. Well, and Enoc cuz he's back.

I agree that TS can get mudded down A LOT, especially with 20 people in one channel, but fortunately it doesn't affect us too much on a normal basis. The Loading Dock is there for people to chat, so I'm not going to strike people down for doing so, but it does get very annoying sometimes when there are two or three people on who feel it is Mic Night here at the FA Lounge or something. I think I'll divide the channel up a bit for out-of-game general chatter and in-game general chatter. The key will be for people to join the in-game room when they are in-game.

I think we communicated pretty well during the faction fight night event - when we divided up into channels. I was impressed with how you guys took orders quickly and effeciently, and we worked well as a unit, so I know we have the potential for great communication. From my end that went smoothly, so I think we were doing something right.

[Anonymous]

LO F'n L.  I almost pissed myself.  "No chewing on paperclips."  Yeah, I remember that.  Hey, where's my cookie.

[Anonymous]

Ya'll probably think I'm kinda weird...Seems I have endless input on the forums while being deadly silent in TS(which is the exact opposite of my personality; ie: I'm a real smart ass; Which has its place in the RW alot,  but rarely needed in TS).  

I sometimes find myself holding back due to 3 or 4 peeps talking constantly about something that only affects them.  In that case, I try to stick to faction chat.  I don't think its a prob, really, cuz thats what TS is for and sometimes its weird when theres no one talking.  Anyhow, I kinda feel it would be rude to retire to  the Veritas channel(dunno why really), so I just stay in the loading area with everyone just in case anyone has something they need to say to me(which is never, lol) or if T needs to discuss something with the faction.  T, Does your voice go through all channels when you make announcements? I've never seen the in-game room so I may check that out in the future.   Just wanted to explain why I'm so shy in TS, just new to it I guess.

[Ketamininja]

Sometimes in the LD there are a lot of people chatting about a certain thing. I may want to ask something quickly (about something else perhaps), and find a pause in the convo. I ask my question only for the other conversation to continue at an alarming pace; it means that someone who wants to answer cannot because there is not another pause in the convo.

Its all hard to police, since the LD is really just a table we all sit about and chat. Like anywhere, its hard to turn away from a conversation and let others chat, especially if passion is behind it.

Finally, I lag quite a bit in TS. I apologise in advance if I start talking over you. I always wait for a pause in the convo before speaking, but by the time you guys here my voice, someone else has started chatting. So I apologise for talking over you, but also please respect the fact that I (and others) may be put in this situation, where we "force" talk over others because we thought we started first. I do hate the "force" talk thing tho - like two people talking: who is gonna back down first? :S

The rules should be respected when on a critical assignment, and a mission team channel formed. LD is mos def more light.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the heads up, this is my first time with voice com and was unsure about  the best way to utilize  it.

[Anonymous]

Breaking in for time sensitive information.

You say: "Break break break" and then your message. Don't hurry the breaks. It should take you 1-1.5 seconds to say it. That gives everyone time to stop talking with normal TS latency. Make sure to say it with a bit of strength so that it overpowers whoever is talking.

When everyone hears break break break, they stop talking so they can hear what you have to say. Obviously, you should not abuse breaking.

What you need to know when calling for aid:
A) Who you are.
B) Where you are.
C) Disposition of enemy forces.
D) Priority

A) is kind of obvious. Third person always. No pronouns. That's been addressed.
B) Coordinates, Nearest Hardline, Nearest Clear Hardline, Landmarks, etc. The more detail, the more better.
C) Number and types. "About 10" is good. "About 10, half of which are hackers, looks like 2 healers, 3 hardline campers" is better.
D) Know whether you're going to die or not. A lot of times we won't be able to get there in time if you can't hold out for a bit. Know whether you're going to need a rez in advance. And don't freak out if you're definitely going to die. Prioritization is an odd thing and it's a bit counter-intuitive. The faster  you are going to die, the lower priority you are. If two people are both under attack and one is going to get killed in fifteen seconds and one is going to get killed in a minute, the one who is going to get killed in a minute has higher priority. Because that person can actually be saved. The person who is going to get killed in fifteen seconds is going to die. It's hard to be objective about yourself, but try to be.

Asking for rezzes. If you have something that you are going to lose (frags, etc.) then you have high prioirty. If you've got nothing to lose... well... don't expect a rez. Don't even ask for one if there's a nearby hardline. Healers will generally be to busy keeping remaining forces alive to spare some time to rez one person who, instead of laying on the ground for five minutes waiting for said rez, could have reconstructed and been back in the fight for four of those minutes. It's bad tactics to sit around waiting on a healer to get free when there's really no reason for it.

When speaking, calm down. Be clear. Excitement is part of the game - no doubt, but whoever is the most cool and collected when they speak gets a sticker.

Practice, practice, practice. It should become habit. It won't at first. People will make a lot of mistakes. But if you practice, it will settle down. While you're running around, take a look at your map, pretned you're getting attacked and go over what you would say in your head. Hell, say it out loud without pushing you talk button. When people call for help. pay attention to what works and what doesn't and apply that to your own method.

Now here's the important bit: Everyone should have a notepad or post-its or some sort of scribble gear near them. When someone starts the whole break break break routine, grab your pen, scribble down the info and then sitck it to your monitor. (post-its pwn all) Doing that means less "Hey... where are you again?" and more focusing on resolving the situation. In fact... anytime you ask a question, it's a good idea to scribble the answer down. Where can I find red frag X? Oh, in Soandso. Two minutes later: Were can I find red frag X again? In Soandso. Two minutes later: I forgot, but where can I find that frag again?... etc. This happens at least once a day. That pen and paper will save us all.

And, of course, www.teamspeakoverlay.com

[Anonymous]

I wonder how many people have actually read this. and regarding tsoverlay, does anyone else have the problem of it crashing ur comp?

[Anonymous]

thanks for bumping this!!

as for teamspeak overlay, the only time it has crashed anything for me is if i try to turn it on or off while the game is up, and then the game crashes, but not the computer. TSO is in the alpha stage, so it's still a bit grr from time to time. you may have to look in the options and fiddle with it a bit, but i'm not sure =/ if you absolutely positively cannot use TSO without it crashing your computer, you'd better start memorizing voices :p