IMPORTANT
NOTE: This is better viewed on PC. Mobile still works!
Please Read!
We’d like to preface this by saying that this was in no way written with the intention of canceling or bringing down Sonar Studios. This document, when it was originally written, was meant to clear the names of several users who were unjustly server and game banned. This situation was eventually resolved when a higher up was notified about it, and since then, the users have been completely cleared of their bans. However, in the process of gathering evidence alongside other volunteers and members, we had some in-depth conversations about the moderation system. We found that the way moderation is handled, and the environment that volunteers work in, needs to be changed.We highly encourage that you read the entire document before forming an opinion or taking a stance. Whatever you see here, put some thought into what it shows and what else it could imply. These accounts and stories are only one of many. It’s upsetting that it’s taken such a horribly handled situation for any of this to be brought to light, but it’s better now than never.To the active volunteers who are reading this, we sincerely hope that Sonar takes action to improve its working environment. You’ve done so much for this game and its community, and for that you have everyone’s support and thanks.To whoever from HR that may be reading this, we could have never brought these issues up to you in private. Time and time again, it’s been proven that you do not care about your volunteers, or at least the ones who you don’t play favorites with. A few members of HR themselves were the ones responsible for the unjustified bans, and have been for countless more.And finally, a quick DISCLAIMER! References to the Recognized Creator document are occasionally made throughout this document; please know that nobody who worked on that document is associated with the creation of this one. The last thing we want is for Sonar to punish or begin targeting the Contributors, especially after how hard they fought for better treatment and compensation for all of their hard work.Our end goal with this document is similar, if not the same; to point out the flaws within the moderation and tester systems, and to inspire change. Most of these problems lie in the hands of HR, and this goes especially for the way they treat their testers and moderators. We want Sonar to listen to the people who’ve poured so much time into their game and community.EDIT: Users in the Creatures of Sonaria Server are being muted for having this link in their bio, as shown below here:
TABLE OF CONTENTS
GUIDELINES & TOS
COS Discord Server Guidelines: https://imgur.com/a/jn3xj1Y
TEXT:
START———————————————————
1. No NSFW, implied NSFW, or borderline NSFW.
This includes “deez nuts” jokes, inappropriate “-ussy” jokes, and anything similar.
> Ensure that your profile does not feature NSFW media or information when interacting in this server.
Breaking this rule will result in a warning or ban, based on severity. Inappropriate profile features will result in a mute until said features are removed.2. Be respectful and use clean language.
> No swearing/cursing (including abbreviations and slang).
> Do not attempt to bypass our chat filters.
> Do not directly or indirectly harass, discriminate, or judge others.
> Do not use or reference discriminatory language or slurs.
> Do not discuss drama from external communities.
> Do not mention or reference narcotics, illegal substances, or their abuse.
> Do not discuss or attempt to discuss topics which may (or are intended to) cause discomfort or debate.
> Respect the pronouns and general wishes of others.
Breaking this rule will result in varied repercussions depending on severity, from verbal warnings to bans. Slur usage will always result in a ban.3. Do not put the weight of your personal struggles on others without their consent.
> Do not vent in public channels.
> Do not seriously or repeatedly self deprecate.
> Do not use or attempt to use your personal struggles to guilt trip or manipulate others.
Breaking this rule will typically result in a warning. A ban may be applied in extreme circumstances.4. Speak only English.
> Speaking in a language that is not English excessively is not allowed, as our staff team cannot moderate messages and media we cannot understand.
Breaking this rule will result in a verbal or official warning.5. Staff members, developers & owners.
> Respect the wishes of staff when asked to follow rules and behave in chat.
> Do not ping staff without a valid reason or permission. This includes developers and owners!
Please contact us via @ModMail if you would like to discuss our moderation system, members on the staff team, or anything related.
Refusing to follow this rule may result in a verbal or official warning.6. Do not send or participate in spam.
> Spam includes, but is not limited to: repeatedly sending the same or similar messages in any chat, word-walls unrelated to an on-going conversation, copy-pastas, type art, and suspicious/harmful files or links.
Breaking this rule will result in a warning or a ban in more severe circumstances.7. Use the server's channels appropriately.
> Read the pinned messages within each channel when you use them. We use the pins to store additional rules, guidelines, and information.
> Do not use alternate accounts in the server/channels. Alternate accounts will be banned.
> Keep your posts relevant to the topic of the channel you’re in.
> Breaking this rule may result in a warning and/or blockage from the respective channel(s).8. Do not speak publicly about moderation action.
> This is to protect the privacy of all users involved.
> This includes moderation action applied to you or another individual/group.
Please contact staff via @ModMail if you would like to discuss our guidelines, moderation system, or otherwise.
Breaking this rule will result in a verbal or official warning.9. No advertisement.
> Do not advertise any form of media without explicit permission or the appropriate role(s).
> This includes, but is not limited to: Discord servers, social media posts, YouTube videos/channels, etc.10. No impersonation.
> Do not impersonate Sonar Studios staff members or other figures in the community.
> Do not lie about any rank/role you do or do not hold in the Sonar Studios Roblox group or this Discord server.
> Impersonation includes, but is not limited to: Changing your Discord username, profile picture, or other identifiable information to match another user’s, or legitimately claiming you are said user.
Breaking this rule will result in a ban.11. Do not mini-mod.
Do not attempt to do the job of a moderator in their place.
When done respectfully, you may advise other users follow the rules.
Do not (and do not attempt to) threaten or scare others into following the rules.
Breaking this rule will result in a verbal or official warning.12. No art theft.
> Do not steal, trace, or otherwise unrightfully claim art as your own.
> Do not edit or use art/concepts found in this server without permission, regardless of who made it.
> Always credit the original artist when using bases, references, or any other artistic tool/resource that doesn’t belong to you. This includes official concepts and works.
Breaking this rule will result in a ban.13. No excessively loud noises or digital sounds in voice chats.
> No voice changers, soundboards, or other disruptive sound production/alteration in voice chats.
Breaking this rule will result in a warning and/or a mute in the server’s voice channels if the behavior does not change.14. Do not attempt to bypass rules by technicality or find loopholes.
> Staff may warn you or otherwise if a user is found attempting to find loopholes or excuses for inappropriate behavior through what the server guidelines have not specified.
If you’d like to inquire about or discuss the rules, please contact staff via @ModMail.15. No raids/riots.
> Do not engage in, organize, or otherwise participate in raids/riots against this server or anyone in it.
Breaking this rule will result in a ban.16. No cross-trading.
> Cross-trading is defined as trading an in-game item for anything outside of said game, including: art, Discord Nitro, items from other games, real life/online products, etc.
Breaking this rule will result in a ban and in-game tradelock.17. Do not start or perpetuate leaks.
> Do not start or participate in the distribution of leaked information related to Creatures of Sonaria.
Leaking information or perpetuating a leak may result in a ban from this Discord server and a tradelock in-game.18. Abide by Roblox’s and Discord’s rules and guidelines
> Due to this server’s place on Discord and inherent involvement with Roblox, both organizations’ rules and guidelines must be followed.
Discord:
Terms of Service: https://discord.com/terms
Community Guidelines: https://discord.com/guidelines
Roblox:
Terms of Use: https://en.help.roblox.com/hc/en-us/articles/115004647846
Community Standards: https://en.help.roblox.com/hc/en-us/articles/203313410
Breaking the terms set by any of these articles will result in a ban.ALL RULES LISTED IN THIS CHANNEL APPLY WHEN IN CONTACT WITH STAFF VIA @ModMail, IN VOICE CHATS, AND IN DMS WITH MUTUAL SERVER MEMBERS.
Warning system:
1 Warning = No mute
2 Warnings = 1hr mute
3 Warnings = 6hr mute
4 Warnings = 12 hr mute
5 Warnings = Staff will determine whether you should be banned or not.Warnings over 3 months old will not contribute to your 5 warning ban.
Discord server invite: https://discord.gg/sonaria
Thank you for reading our rules! Updated on September 7th, 2022END————————————————————
The rules and guidelines listed here have been broken by members of HR and staff. There have also been times where these rules have been inconsistently applied. The ones that are relevant to this document have been highlighted, and will later be mentioned in the other sections down below.
This is what sparked the creation of this document in the first place. Please read the section in its entirety before coming to any conclusions about the people involved or spreading misinformation.
Details of Events (in order of occurrence):
On May 9th, several users were banned from both the CoS server and the game itself for some of the reasons stated in the screenshot above. Among them were volunteers who were immediately demoted and banned.
This occurred after a user within their server reported them for making jokes about doxxing a currently active moderator on the official discord.
None of the volunteers actively participated in the jokes, they were punished for association alone. Some of the users were not even online for the discussion at the time.
One of the volunteers who was banned shall be referred to as Anonymous1 - they never participated in the doxxing jokes. After the server was reported, Anonymous1 was asked to join a call by Cinnakxll, who then moved them into a voice call with Toasty as well.
Anonymous1 was asked to share their screen so that Cinna and Toasty could look through the server where the conversations took place. Feeling cornered with two higher ups in a call with them, they complied.
Only a few messages were shown, none of which were particularly bad - nor were they related to doxxing, threats, or leaking.
The bans were issued afterwards, despite the fact that there was no solid reason or evidence to justify banning the users who never participated in the jokes. The moderation team themselves weren’t told about the situation in the first place, as stated by a former moderator:
Issuing both a server and game ban is an extreme punishment, and should of course, be reserved for extreme cases. There was no reason to punish volunteers and users who had absolutely nothing to do with the doxxing jokes. Banning someone for association is incredibly immature, especially when done by those who are supposed to be higher ups.
The next section shows the conversation between Cinna and Anonymous1 after the call.
<<————[II]————>>
Anonymous1:
DATE: May 9th
SCREENSHOTS: https://imgur.com/a/SbrGe6M
A transcription of the screenshots is down below:TEXT:
START———————————————————
Cinna — Today at 7:06 PM
Hey Anonymous1 are you able to hop in tester ramble VC for a sec?
Anonymous1 — Today at 7:06 PM
Yep
Im in
Cinna — Today at 7:09 PM
[two user IDs censored in blue, they are the other two volunteers who were banned]
Anonymous1 — Today at 7:25 PM
Know I was demoted, just wanted to say I had fun while it lasted. Every time has to come to an end eventually :tipping hat:
Cinna — Today at 7:32 PM
Unfortunately after multiple reports pertaining to the “Family Server” Discord that you have involvement within, After being shown evidence regarding your actions and discussions held within these channels, it has deemed imperative that you received an immediate demotion due to the security/safety risks posed by the discussions viewed in the aforementioned discord server.This decision is unable to be appealed.Thank you for your contribution to the tester team.
Anonymous1 — Today at 7:32 PM
Understandable. Goodluck in whatever path you take.
Anonymous1 — Today at 7:54 PM
Just a question, but a ban reason was leaking? I never leaked anything, nor was I in the doxxing issue.[[SCREENSHOT of a moderation message sent via the Dyno bot at 7:51 PM. It reads: You were banned in Creatures of Sonaria. | Harmful Behavior Directed Towards Community Members | Leaking | Threats of Doxxing/Violence]]
Cinna — Today at 7:56 PM
According to the team there was a mis-documentation and the full reasoning stems as "Harmful behavior, directed towards community members, threats of doxxing/violence".
Anonymous1 — Today at 7:57 PM
I didn’t doxx though, which confuses me. Nor did I threaten.
Cinna — Today at 7:57 PM
You participated in a conversation regarding the doxxing and threatening of an active COS community member/moderator.
You also chose not to report this behaviour, at any stage.
Anonymous1 — Today at 8:01 PM
The doxxing I didn’t. And yeah I am aware I am at fault for not reporting. I accept that I am banned without appeal, I just wanted to get the reasons clarified since I never leaked in my career of being a tester, nor did I plan to.Thank you for answering though. Perhaps we’ll cross paths soon some day
Anonymous1 — Today at 8:49 PM
one last question.. were all 3 of us game banned?END————————————————————For confirmation, two were banned from the official server and the game. One has yet to be banned as of writing this (May 9th, 10pm EST).As of writing this (May 10th, 8:20pm EST), some of the volunteers and users were unbanned from both the game and the server after contacting Tokaliz about the situation.
<<————[III]————>>
For comparison, here are a few users on the official server making jokes about doxxing, yet receiving no ban:
<<————[IV]————>>
AFTERMATH
An apology from Cinna was issued to Anonymous2 and Anonymous3 after Tokaliz was notified about the situation. Anonymous1 requested that Cinna not contact them, so they received an apology from Toasty. Anonymous3 also received an apology from Toasty.
Toasty’s apology to Anonymous1:
Toasty’s apology to Anonymous3:
<<——————>>
Cinna’s apology to Anonymous2:
Transcription:
TEXT:
START———————————————————
After sending the same to Anonymous3, it's only fair that I send this to you too Anonymous2, as you are the only two I am able to contact:I understand that there may be some confusion caused by a attempt to contact one of the impacted testers, so I'll simply explain my situation so that there can be a better understanding from all involved.I had contacted Tokaliz and Wingtuzi, who are also involved in remedying this situation, if they felt it beneficial to explain the reasoning for the demotion and the confusion relating to the bans.After it was clear that an attempt to communicate with the affected parties would be made, it was discovered that I was unable to contact one of you three in DMs. With this concern acknowledged, I instead chose to formulate a response in this manner.It is entirely truthful that three testers were demoted yesterday for the association with active doxxing attempts/death threats, yourself included. I understand this was then followed by a Discord server bars and an in-game ban for two of you, which I wish to be transparent about. I decide when necessary to demote individuals. I am not affiliated nor able to make decisions regarding the bans on the Discord & game servers. I have no jurisdiction over bans for moderation related situations.Now that aspect has been explained, I do apologize for the way the situation was further handled by those responsible for handling the behavioural side of moderation. It is not acceptable and further discussion on that specific matter will be held by upper management.I will say that I've been informed that the comments made in this server you are associated with were made as "Jokes". Regardless of the "joking nature" intended with jokes relating to what IRL would be criminal activity, the problem is that this behaviour was deemed "acceptable" by the individuals in the server, and there were multiple points in the Discord where you were expectant of moderative action taken against you for your association with this server/the content within it.PR-Wise, we cannot allow any users involved in a situation such as this to be roled within Creatures of Sonaria. You can associate with people who make such jokes (such jokes I may add that IRL would get the police at your door), however the lack of intent to report this behaviour and then further claims that these comments were "okay" as they were just "jokes" is unfortunately further reinforcing the decision.Hopefully you can understand the reasoning provided ^^/genHope your road leads you forward, whatever you do choose to do next
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Cinna’s apology to Anonymous3:
There is no difference between the two, other than the extra sentence at the beginning towards Anonymous2.
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