Laying Down the Law on Lazies

[BeefSupreme]

Just scrolling through the "Nerf This Card!" section of the forum is breaking my heart.

Spoiler for Noob Talk:

Nerf Dim Shield plz is 2 op

dud plaied dis sheeld nd i cldnt attk 4 liek 3 turns nerrrfff

dued plaid dat werm ting nd ate up al my mono aether quantaz nerf pl0x

It's not the fact that they want the card nerfed that bothers me. What bothers me is that they completely disregarded the (clearly labeled) thread titled "READ THIS FIRST!" and then they go on to request a nerf on a card they know nothing about.

Some example threads:

Spoiler for examples:

http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,39881.0.html (Black Hole nerf)
http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,42134.0.html (Dimensional Shield nerf)
http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,44334.0.html (Immaterial nerf (which isn't even a card..))
http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,23603.0.html (Devourer/Pest nerf)
http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,44754.0.html (Nightmare nerf)
http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,21824.0.html (Dimensional Shield)
http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,22684.0.html (Devourer/Pest nerf)
Honestly, the list could go on and on.

Look at this guy. His FIRST post on the forums was in the "Nerf this Card!" section, however he doesn't look like a complete buffoon because he read the instructions and followed them (major props to this guy, btw):
http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,41438.0.html

Honestly, it's just more annoying and redundant than anything. So, I propose that we make the rules slightly more strict around the "Nerf this Card!" and "Buff this Card!" sections. Nothing major, of course, but I suggest that for every post you make that shows a complete disregard for the rules and just utter laziness be given a minor infraction (20 points).

A minor infraction doesn't really do much harm to the player (they're put on the "user watch list" for 20 days), but it snaps them to attention enough so that they realize they need to read the rules before posting all willy nilly around the forums.

That is my proposal. I attached a poll above to see what the community thinks of this, but that's what I have to say.

[Naesala]

Would it be possible to have a warning for the "Read this First!" threads similar to necro warning? I think the main problem is some people may not even notice the Read this First! threads. It isn't that they aren't noticeable, but perhaps the eyes just glance over the page.

I feel it's just slightly too severe as is. It might scare off newbies knowing they were put on a watch list just for some small error. Voted for "Maybe with some adjustments."

[Calindu]

I find this funny, because this is posted in the wrong section.
This is the right section.

[Marsu]

^This.
Also, no.
Also, nerf Dim Shield.

[Elbirn]

Better idea, I have no idea how to implement it or if it'd be possible, but maaybe one could make it so that you cannot post in a board until you read the "Read this first" stickies.

Spoiler for The Story of Noob A:

Noob A Joins the forum and heads straight for the Nerf/Buff board, because he thinks he's sooo right in believing that dim shield needs a nerf. After all, it made him lose, and losing is impossible because he's the besterest! Therefore, it must be unfair and broken.

So Noob A goes to post a topic, only to get a pop-up: "You cannot start a new thread in this board until you read all threads titled "Read this first!"

"Huh? Oh...There's a sticky up there, didn't notice. Let's read it."

Noob A proceeds to read the rules of the Nerf/Buff section. He learns that he should only start topics for cards that don't already have a thread, and realizes there are many threads already for dim shield. Opening the longest and oldest one, he reads through many people's arguments and decides that maybe he's wrong. He see's many people discussing balancing and game theory and learns a great deal of what makes a card broken. Good for Noob A!

Several days later, Noob A decides that Shard of Focus is broken, because it is. For some reason we live in a parallel universe wherein no one else thinks so, and thus no one else has ever made a thread for SoFo. So he starts his own. Thanks to his reading of the sticky and his previous explorations of the board, he knows how to make a professional, clean, easy to read thread that clearly illustrates his ideas and get's his points across. He also now knows what makes a card balanced/unbalanced. He writes a brilliant, beautifully written thread that covers all arguments. Everyone realizes that SoFo is broken, breaks into Zanz house, and hold him at gunpoint until he nerfs the Bejebuz out of SoFo, bringing forth a golden age of Elements. Attaboy, Noob A!

[furballdn]

Better idea, I have no idea how to implement it or if it'd be possible, but maaybe one could make it so that you cannot post in a board until you read the "Read this first" stickies.

Define read. Doing that will probably have as much effect as the "I have read and accepted the terms and conditions" checkbox.

[BeefSupreme]

Better idea, I have no idea how to implement it or if it'd be possible, but maaybe one could make it so that you cannot post in a board until you read the "Read this first" stickies.

Define read. Doing that will probably have as much effect as the "I have read and accepted the terms and conditions" checkbox.

This. As far as I can remember, I know that I do that myself when I'm feeling lazy.

[andretimpa]

How about using Elbirn's idea, but with the following warning.

"Please read the 'Read this First' post before posting a new topic. BREAKING THE RULES WILL LEAD TO YOU BEING PUNISHED."

If the noob insists in "reading the post" and make a horrible thread, then I say this should be a minor infraction.

[BeefSupreme]

How about using Elbirn's idea, but with the following warning.

"Please read the 'Read this First' post before posting a new topic. BREAKING THE RULES WILL LEAD TO YOU BEING PUNISHED."

If the noob insists in "reading the post" and make a horrible thread, then I say this should be a minor infraction.

I really like this idea. My idea was too harsh and his too lenient, but together they make a very solid system.

[eaglgenes101]

How about a minimum post count to submit a thread in these sections? A newbie who wanted to submit a thread there would have to do it via mod.

[BeefSupreme]

How about a minimum post count to submit a thread in these sections? A newbie who wanted to submit a thread there would have to do it via mod.

There are some intelligent noobs that can read the Read First threads; it's just the few (meaning a lot) bad eggs that post stupid stuff.

[eaglgenes101]

How about a minimum post count to submit a thread in these sections? A newbie who wanted to submit a thread there would have to do it via mod.

There are some intelligent noobs that can read the Read First threads; it's just the few (meaning a lot) bad eggs that post stupid stuff.

Which is why the through-a-mod pathway is available.