Reputation and the Karma System

[SC4D_Staff]

You may have noticed the Reputation section beneath your nickname and the nicknames of other members of the community. The Reputation or Karma system here at SC4D is designed to reward (an "Applaud") or admonish (a "Smite") a member based on their contributions or behavior in the forums. There have been a number of threads pertaining to this issue, so we thought we would address it here.

Originally, the system was designed to be used by the community-at-large. However, due to indiscretionary use, leading to so-called "karma wars," the public use of the system has been restricted.

Under the current system, only members of the SC4D Staff have been given permission to give karma points. Nonetheless, despite the function itself not being available to the public, any member of the community may petition an SC4D Staff Member to award a karma point to another member.

It is important to note that the karma system, particularly the punitive use of negative karma, is taken very seriously by the staff and not given out arbitrarily. If you have received a smite, unfortunately, you have done something to warrant it.

Karma points are never removed, unless under specific circumstances. However, since both positive and negative karma points calculate a persons Reputation, negative karma points can be canceled out, in effect, by positive karma points, giving a member a positive reputation, despite having a certain number of smites.

We hope this addresses what is often a regular question as by new members, as well as older members who have been away since the current system was adopted and were unaware of the change. If you have any questions regarding this, please feel free to approach a staff member privately.

SC4Devotion Staff