Table of Content
1.3 Post in Appropriate
Section
1.6 Inappropriate Use of the
Forum
2
Discussing Armor Builders on the Forum..
3.2
Signing Up and Changing Circumstances.
3.5 Non-Member Family and
Children
3.9 Mountain Garrison/501st
Apparel
3.10 Respect the POC, Event
Organizers, Handlers
3.16 No Alcohol or
Recreational Drugs
4.4 No
Holding of Babies or Children for Photos
4.5 No
Posing with Brands/Mascots
4.6
Uniforms, Team Jerseys, Brand Logos
5 Point of Contact and Event Handling
6
Complaints and Disciplinary procedure.
6.4 Offenses Constituting
Conduct Unbecoming
Appendix
A: Offices and Staff Roles
Introduction
1 General and Forum Rules
1.1 Written Communication
1.2
Flaming and Baiting
1.3
Post in Appropriate Section
1.4
Stickies
1.5
Personal Messages
1.6
Inappropriate Use of the Forum
Examples of inappropriate use of
the forum include, but are not limited to:
- The accessing, saving or distribution of any
content that might constitute bullying or harassment on the grounds of
gender, sexuality or sexual orientation, race, religion or belief,
disability or age.
- The accessing, saving or
distribution of any form of pornography, obscene or other offensive
material.
- The unauthorized accessing, alteration, saving
or distribution of confidential information about other members, the 501st,
Mountain Garrison, any other subsidiary, or contacts.
- Disclosure of your forum or related passwords to any other
individual.
- Accessing the account of
another member, with or without their permission.
2 Discussing Armor Builders on the Forum
More detailed information on
armor and vendors can be found on the various detachments: http://www.501st.com/members/displayUnits.php#detachments
3 Events
3.1 Before Attending an Event
Make a note of the event description, its
requirements and any special instructions for the day. It's important that you understand
the nature and the length of the event. If you attend an event with the
Mountain Garrison, you will be expected to be in costume or act as crew for the
full length of the event. If you know that you cannot be there for the whole
event, let the Squad Leader, Point of Contact, and/or a member of staff know
your plans in advance, and where possible they will try and fit you into the
day's schedule. Agreement for a member to attend for part of an event is at the
discretion of the Mountain Garrison Squad Leader, and you may be asked to step
aside for someone who can fulfill the event in its entirety.
Please note that although we are volunteers the act
of volunteering commits us to fulfill an agreement.
3.2 Signing Up and Changing Circumstances
As far as possible, please make sure that you can
attend an event before you sign up for it. We always need to confirm attendance
numbers in advance of an event with the organizer.
We understand that circumstances can change; if
there are any reasons you are not able to attend the event, please inform the
Mountain Garrison Squad Leader and/or Point of Contact as soon as possible.
This, in some cases, can permit the Mountain Garrison the opportunity to allow
another member to attend in your place. If there ends up being lack of interest
or we run into an event that needs a minimum amount of troopers and we're
unable to fulfill the needs of the events then as Command Staff we would have
the cancel the event.
3.3
Stay Up to Date
Once you have signed up
for an event, it is your responsibility to stay up to date on this event. If an
event is a few weeks out at the time you sign up, make sure to check the forums
for the most recent information for the event the day before or the day of the
event. This way we can ensure that we look professional and organized.
3.4
Signing Up for an Event
Members are required to sign up for an event via
the forum, ideally no later than the
day prior to the event (at the very latest several hours prior to an event).
Showing up at a troop without having signed up on the forum is highly
discouraged, as this may interfere with what was communicated with the event
requester(s). Sign-up is on a 'first come, first served' basis. Members will need to sign themselves up for
an event; exceptions being spouses, parents, children, and significant others
within the same household.
3.5
Non-Member Family and Children
Non-member family members
and members' children may attend an event if it is explicitly listed in the
event description. If it is not explicitly stated, please make sure to ask
about family attendance prior to the event.
This goes for handler
requirements as well; if non-member handlers are allowed at an event, this will
be explicitly stated, otherwise handlers will need to be 501st
members.
3.6
Keep Threads Tidy
Please keep the sign up threads tidy. The only
posts on these threads should be to sign up, or to ask a pertinent question
relating to the event.
3.7
Stay in Character
When in costume at an event, you should endeavor to
stay in the character appropriate to the costume that you are wearing. This is
one of the Mountain Garrison's major selling points and is what the Mountain
Garrison is known for. Please try to uphold this at all times while in public
in order to maintain the illusion. Please do not go shopping, eat lunch or the
like while in costume and don't carry bags with your shopping in. Remember to
BE the character, not just someone dressed up as the character. Try to include
the public in the act, but remember
that you are in character, so interact with the public AS that character
- this means no behavior that your
character would not do. Excessive out of character behavior will be addressed
by the Squad Leader/Point of Contact.
3.8
Stay in Costume
Please be sure your costume is in
compliance with the CRL, unless otherwise permitted by the particular event,
which will be listed in the event description. When
in costume, you should stay in full costume while in the public eye as much as
possible. This means not removing your helmet, other armor parts or any other
parts of your costume that would not be in character, or true to the movies. As
long as it is not excessive, exceptions to the
buckets on rule can be made, for instance to accommodate a sensitive child, or
at conventions, where these buckets on and costume requirements do not apply as
strictly.
3.9
Mountain Garrison/501st Apparel
Where possible/practical, crew should wear Mountain
Garrison/501st Legion approved clothing/apparel. This helps the public
and the event organizers know who you are. Please note that when dressed in
Mountain Garrison/501st Legion apparel you are representing the
Mountain Garrison/501st Legion. Our name is on your clothes, so your
actions will reflect on us. Please maintain a professional attitude and
demeanor at all times.
3.10
Respect the Point of Contact, Event Organizers, Handlers
At an event it is vital that you pay attention to
the designated Point of Contact,
event organizer and any crew (handlers)
tasked with looking after you. Follow their instructions; help them to help
you. If you have any questions or
concerns about anything at the event, please address these with the Point of
Contact; it is their responsibility, not yours, to take care of any questions
or issues that arise.
3.11
No Real World Weapons
Do not bring any real world weapons to an event.
This includes deactivated firearms, crossbows, knives, swords etc. Toy guns
that have been re-worked to look more realistic are currently not against the
law, but we must be careful and sensitive about this. Airsoft guns can be used
at some events, at the organizer's discretion - please check with a member of
staff before taking an airsoft weapon to an event. Even then, you must ensure
that the airsoft weapon has no ammunition, no batteries/gas and that the weapon
is not taken out of the confines of the event. Please remember to be
responsible and sensible with weapons while in public. Safety is paramount and
if you are ever told to holster your weapon by a member of the Mountain
Garrison crew, event staff or by the authorities it is essential you comply.
3.12
Follow Event Rules
Adhere to any specific rules and guidelines for an
event and pay attention to any briefing given. Please be aware that information
or requirements may change during an event.
3.13
Event Definition
A Mountain Garrison event is defined as an event
pre-arranged by the Mountain Garrison Command Staff. These events will be
subject to all Mountain Garrison rules and protocols.
3.14
Freebies
Pre-arranged and agreed "freebies" are
okay in moderation, and these will be agreed by the Command Staff up front. Do not ask for “freebies” from the event
organizers or staff.
3.15
Donations
Do not ask for goods or donations from the event
organizers or staff. If you feel there is an opportunity for a donation or to
obtain items to be raffled/auctioned off to raise money, bring this to the
attention of a member of Command Staff or POC.
3.16
No Alcohol or Recreational Drugs
Please refrain from the usage of alcohol and/or
recreational drug paraphernalia immediately prior to or during an event. An
event is defined as:
- Being
in view of the public (and prior to being in view of the public) and
representing the Mountain Garrison/501st Legion while in
costume.
- Working
as a handler at a Garrison or Legion event (whether you are wearing
Mountain Garrison/501st Legion apparel or not)
- Working
at a convention in the booth, interacting with the public (whether you are
wearing Mountain Garrison/501st Legion apparel or not)
- This
does not include get-togethers after/outside of troops, at conventions
where alcohol is available on the convention floor, or while out and
about just wearing your Mountain Garrison/501st Legion shirts,
jackets, hats, etc. An example would be DragonCon
or Starfest afterparties,
or out to dinner with friends, wearing your Garrison shirt.
- Alcohol
and drug usage during troops will be monitored by the event Point of
Contact, and can be grounds for conduct unbecoming.
4 Public Relations
When we are in the public eye we
have additional rules for interviews and photo opportunities:
4.1
Interviews
Do not conduct an interview with a helmet on. Ideally we need to have a handler do these interviews so we can keep to rule 3.7 (Stay in character).
4.2
National Anthems
During National Anthems,
stand at attention and be respectful. (Some armor makes it hard to move to put
your hand on your heart.) Keep your buckets on. Officers and other characters
wearing caps, can remove the caps. (Sports team mascots do not remove their
heads)
4.3 Time and Place
What may sound like a great
picture will probably make for a great picture, but please keep your time and
place in mind. No staging of bank hold ups, lewd poses, posing with alcohol,
drug paraphernalia, etc. At non-convention troops, please keep your photo ops
tasteful.
4.4 No Holding of Babies or Children for Photos
We get asked to hold
people's' kids for photos, but for liability purposes this is a no-no. Some of
our costumes have restricted movement, and we do not want to risk dropping
someone's child.
4.5 No Posing with Brands/Mascots
Do not pose for pictures with
brands or mascots not affiliated with the Star Wars brand and Licenses.
4.6 Uniforms, Team Jerseys, Brand Logos
No wearing of ANY uniforms,
team jerseys or brand logos.
5 Point of Contact
and Event Handling
As we continue
to grow, and with the new films getting ready to roll out, the potential for
events that we are invited to and asked to attend will only continue to increase.
We love to see and encourage our troopers to find those "other cool"
events for us to do, and that is hopefully going to continue.
One element we
do need to address is having better acknowledgement and accountability at
troops. In order to maintain our trooper tracker, we need buckets on and
buckets off pictures of troopers from each event. If we expect to do several
events on a single day/weekend across two states, we need other boots on the
ground to help out, as the Squad Leaders cannot be in multiple places at once.
And while we like to think they are all things to all people, not every
Squad Leader (or any for that matter) can troop EVERY event. This is where the
Point of Contact (POC) process comes into play.
- POC Responsibilities
- Keep contact
with the event host
- POC's are approved/selected at the discretion of
the Squad Leader, or Garrison Commanding Officer/Garrison Executive
Officer. Once you are chosen as a POC make contact with the event host
and introduce yourself.
- Update the event host at the requested date or
two weeks out on the status of the roster.
- If we lack the requested
manpower, notify your SL and they will respectively cancel the troop
and notify the event host.
- Keep the
roster up to date
- Pre troop roster
- Any tentative sign ups
need to be confirmed two weeks out or predefined date by the host - see
1.2.
- Post troop roster
- Report the list of
imperials to the SL for tracker updates, and ask them to archive the
thread.
- Post a buckets on and off
pic for tracker verification.
- Maintain
501st rules
- Is it canon? Imperials
only? Inform troopers of these rules before and during the troop.
- Mountain Garrison Command Staff will
determine in the event description whether a troop is canon or
non-canon. In case this description is missing, all events are to be
treated as canon.
- The POC is responsible for
the troop and what the 501st represents during the troop,
and to maintain 501st decorum during the troop - this
includes costume related issues (excessive or inappropriate buckets
on/off, non-canon costume decorations/alterations, etc.). If a member
does not follow these rules notify them of this, and if the trooper
still refuses, then report them to their Squad Leader, Garrison
Commanding Officer, and Garrison Executive Officer.
- If a POC allows a troop or
members at a troop to get out of hand, the Mountain Garrison Command
Staff reserves the right to not allow that member to be a POC at future
troops.
- Charity
- If Charity is involved with
the event, contact the Garrison Charity Representative.
- Bring and fill out the
Charity Receipt form for any Fund Raising efforts.
- Any and all counting of
funds must be witnessed - if possible by a member and a non-member.
Witnesses to counting must sign the Charity Receipt and provide
contact information in the provided space on the receipt. This is
important to ensure that all funds collected are documented. No
member should ever leave an event with uncounted, undocumented funds.
- Whenever possible, have a
member of the receiving charity witness the funds count and sign off on
the Charity Receipt Form.
- When it is not possible to
hand donated funds directly off to a representative of the receiving
charity at the event itself, the collected donations must be turned
over to the chosen charity in a timely manner.
- The Charity Receipt Form
must be turned over to the Garrison Charity Representative as soon as
possible after the event. The receiving charity may make a copy or take
a photo of the Charity Receipt Form, but the original form needs to go
to the Garrison Charity Representative.
- POC request
- If you think you can hold
the above standards post in the Briefing Room thread and the Command
Staff will assign you as the POC.
- Once you are the POC you will
be given contact details, these are to remain private. If the Command
Staff has forgotten to give you the details kindly ask for them.
- The first post in the event
thread will be changed so you own it and can update it.
- Roster
Threads
- Troops are "unconfirmed"
until we have a POC. This can be any trooper, a Squad Leader, the
Garrison Commanding Officer, the Garrison Executive Officer - anyone can
do this, but POC approval/selection is at the discretion of the Squad
Leader, or Garrison Commanding Officer/Garrison Executive Officer.
- Troopers may sign up prior
to a POC assignment, but the Command Staff will be asking for a POC to
step up until there is one.
- If you bring the event to the Garrison, the
expectation is YOU own it. You should be (and will be expected to
be) the POC. No dumping troops in the Garrison lap and then
expecting the Garrison to do the work.
- On the day of the event, troop and have fun!!
6 Complaints and Disciplinary procedure
6.1
Concerns and Complaints
If you have a concern or complaint about another
member (including a member of the Command Staff), you should bring it to the
attention of the Garrison Captain of the Guard in the first instance. If the
Garrison Captain of the Guard is unavailable, unable to satisfy your
complaint/concern, or is the subject of your complaint/concern, direct the
issue to the Garrison Executive Officer.
If, after it
has been escalated to the Garrison Executive Officer, the Commanding
Officer should be approached, the
Garrison Executive Officer will escalate to the Garrison Commanding Officer
when necessary.
After this stage, the Garrison Commanding Officer will advise you of the escalation
procedure, which ultimately
means it will go to the Legion Captain of the Guard for 501st
related issues. All complaints will be dealt with confidentially and according
to Mountain Garrison and 501st rules as applicable.
6.2
Disciplinary Actions
The level of disciplinary action taken will be
determined on a case by case basis. This may range from a suspension from the
Mountain Garrison forum and/or a suspension from trooping, to a formal hearing
at Legion level if charges are being filed with the Legion Captain of the
Guard, and these charges are found to have merit.
6.3
Disciplinary Procedure
The disciplinary procedure will be applied as
follows:
Incident 1: Verbal warning from an appropriate
member of staff.
Incident 2: Written warning from the Garrison Commanding Officer.
Incident 3: If a third incident occurs, action
against the offending member will be taken. This may result in a suspension
from the forums and/or suspension from trooping, but may also result in
escalation to the Legion Captain of the Guard. This in turn may result in a
formal hearing once the Legion Captain of the Guard determines the charges have
merit.
This disciplinary procedure does not necessarily
apply to cases of "Conduct Unbecoming" (see section 6.4), which may be grounds
for immediate escalation to the Legion Captain of the Guard.
6.4
Offenses Constituting Conduct Unbecoming
The following list is an indication of some
offenses which may fall within this category, these include but are not limited
to:
- Theft,
fraud or falsification of financial records.
- Fighting
with or assault upon another person.
- Willful
disregard of safety rules or precautions.
- Deliberate
damage to another person's property, including the Mountain Garrison's
property (such as displays used
during an event, even though these may be another person's property)
or event host's property.
- Serious
negligence, which causes unacceptable loss, damage or injury.
- Being
impaired due to the influence of alcohol or other substances.
- Discrimination
or harassment for any reason, including acts of incitement or
discrimination on the grounds of gender, sexuality or sexual orientation,
race, religion or belief, disability or age.
- Involvement in activities which create a
direct conflict with Mountain Garrison interests
In the event of a member being involved in an
offense of this nature, a full investigation of the circumstances will be
undertaken. If appropriate, the member may be suspended during the period of
the investigation. If charges are
deemed necessary, or if another member requests charges being brought against
the offending member, the Mountain Garrison Commanding Officer or Executive
Officer will take the request for charges to the Legion Captain of the Guard
per the current 501st processes and regulations. This may result in
a formal hearing if the Legion Captain of the Guard determines the request for
charges has merit.
7 Conclusion
The Mountain Garrison reserves the right to amend
and update these rules at any time. In such instances, where possible, due
notice will be given. In all cases an announcement will be posted to alert
members to the update.
It is the member's responsibility to stay informed
about the rules and to familiarize themselves with the new or amended rules.
These rules are a condition of your Membership.
Failure to familiarize yourself with the Mountain Garrison Code of Conduct will
not serve as an excuse if you are confronted with breaching the Code of
Conduct.
