Supporting players

Overview

One of the primary responsibilities of all Empire crew is that you will provide some basic support for players. Although all Empire crew have different responsibilities, with some in more player-facing roles than others, players attending the event have a legitimate expectation that crew who are asked will support them if they need help. For this reason you should be ready to provide basic help in the three circumstances outlined below.

In general this page compliments the generic guidelines for helping players which are laid out in our crew protocol. Those rules apply in all circumstances where a player asks you for help, but the situations below

Conduct

• Please try to ensure that every report of inappropriate conduct is reported to a member of Emma Woods' conduct team

If a player approaches you with a report of harassment or discrimination, please stop what you are doing and give the player your full attention. Listen carefully to everything they have to say and then follow the simple guidelines laid out below:

• Explain the existence of the welfare tent and ask if they want you to show where it is located
• Ask them if they have a friend who can accompany and support them
• Ask the player if they feel that a member of our welfare team can provide additional support
• Ask the player if you can ask a member of the conduct team to come and talk to them

If the participant does not give their permission for you to contact the welfare or conduct team then you must not do so. We appreciate that the majority of our crew have volunteered to create a fantasy LRP game and are neither experienced, qualified or ready to provide counselling or support, but please consider the points laid out in the supporting guidelines written for all participants to see what help you can give. If a member of the hobby has chosen to approach you for help then it is likely that they will feel most comfortable with any help that you can give them.

Whatever happens, please ensure that you do not do any of the following:

• Do not pressure them for details of what happened, leave any investigation for a member of our conduct team.
• Do not comment on the player's state of inebriation, dress, emotional state or any other factor.
• Do not try to persuade or dissuade them from any reasonable course of action
• Make any promises or judgements

Cheating

• Please try to ensure that every report of cheating involving specific individuals is reported to Graeme Jamieson
• Generic reports of cheating involving entire nations should be ignored

If you believe that have seen a player cheating or you receive a report that a player is cheating, the please report this Graeme Jamieson at the first available opportunity. Graeme can be contacted by radio, or is usually working in the Matt Bunker near monster.

The most effective report is a first-hand account - ideally delivered in person. If you are speaking to a player who is reporting an incidence of cheating, please try to persuade them to make the report to Graeme in person. If they do not wish to do this then ask them if you can take the report to Graeme on their behalf - either openly or anonymously.

If a player approaches you with a report of harassment or discrimination, please stop what you are doing and give the player your full attention. Listen carefully to everything they have to say and then follow the simple guidelines laid out below: