House rules

The guardrails that keep Hearthgrove a good place to be — on Discord, in-game, and in the world.

1. 01

   Treat Others with Respect

   Speak to other members with patience, courtesy, and basic human dignity.

   Personal attacks, harassment, bullying, intimidation, targeted insults, and deliberately provoking other members are prohibited. Disagree with ideas without attacking the person expressing them.

2. 02

   Discuss Controversial Subjects in Good Faith

   Theology, philosophy, politics, culture, and similar subjects may be discussed, but these conversations must remain thoughtful and constructive.

   Members should:

   • Represent another person’s position fairly.
   • Avoid insults, mockery, and inflammatory generalizations.
   • Ask questions before assuming another member’s beliefs or intentions.
   • Know when to step away from an unproductive discussion.
   • Respect requests from moderators to change the subject or pause a debate.
3. 03

   No Hatred or Discrimination

   Slurs, dehumanizing language, hateful content, and attacks directed at people because of their race, nationality, ethnicity, religion, sex, disability, or other personal characteristics are prohibited.

   Historical, theological, or academic discussion of sensitive subjects may be permitted when relevant and handled responsibly.

4. 04

   Keep Content Appropriate

   Explicit, suggestive, excessively graphic, or deliberately shocking content is not permitted.

   This includes:

   • Explicit images, videos, links, or written material.
   • Graphic violence or gore.
   • Explicit profile pictures, usernames, or statuses.
   • Content intended primarily to disgust, disturb, or provoke others.
5. 05

   Protect Privacy and Personal Information

   Do not share another person’s private information without permission.

   This includes addresses, phone numbers, private photographs, workplace information, account credentials, private messages, or other identifying information.

   Do not pressure members to reveal personal details, participate in private calls, or communicate outside the server.

6. 06

   No Threats or Dangerous Conduct

   Threats of violence, encouragement of self-harm, stalking, extortion, malicious impersonation, swatting, doxxing, or similar conduct will result in immediate moderation action.

   Credible safety concerns should be reported directly to the staff team.

7. 07

   Do Not Spam

   Spam includes:

   • Repeated messages, images, reactions, or mentions.
   • Excessive capitalization or disruptive formatting.
   • Unnecessary mass mentions.
   • Repeatedly joining and leaving voice channels.
   • Soundboard or microphone abuse.
   • Posting unsolicited advertisements or referral links.
   • Artificially reviving inactive discussions without adding anything meaningful.
8. 08

   Maintain Good In-Game Conduct

   Members are expected to demonstrate good sportsmanship.

   Cheating, harassment, targeted griefing, exploiting serious bugs, sabotaging teammates, stream sniping, and abusive behavior toward other players are prohibited during gaming sessions within the community as well as on community servers.

   Unless a specific event states otherwise:

   • Do not grief, steal, or destroy another player’s work.
   • Do not use unauthorized cheats, hacked clients, duplication exploits, or x-ray tools.
   • Do not enter clearly private areas without permission.
   • Do not kill other players outside approved PvP areas or events.
   • Do not intentionally create excessive server lag.
   • Do not build offensive, explicit, or deliberately disruptive structures.
   • Respect community projects, shared resources, and established building areas.

   Friendly competition and consensual joking are permitted, but members must stop when asked.

   Usernames, avatars, biographies, and statuses must follow the server’s content rules.

   Do not impersonate staff members, public figures, organizations, or other community members in a deceptive manner.

   Staff may request changes to profiles that are misleading, offensive, excessively disruptive, or difficult to moderate.

9. 09

   Maintain Good Real-Life Conduct

   Members are expected to demonstrate good manners as well as goodwill towards one another.

   All interactions during meetups and other community related events or gatherings should remain aligned with all previously listed rules, common courtesy, and common sense.

   Minors may attend only when the event has been specifically approved as appropriate for their age group.

   Unless staff establish a stricter requirement:

   • A minor must have permission from a parent or legal guardian.
   • A parent, legal guardian, or responsible adult approved by the guardian should remain present.
   • An adult member must never arrange a private one-on-one meetup with a minor.
   • Adults must not transport minors without the informed permission of the minor’s parent or legal guardian.
   • Adults and minors must not share private sleeping accommodations.
   • Communication with minors must remain appropriate, transparent, and related to the event.
   • Alcohol, tobacco, gambling, and age-restricted venues must not be included in events attended by minors.

   Members must respect another person’s decision regarding:

   • Physical contact.
   • Photographs or recordings.
   • Participation in activities.
   • Religious or political discussions.
   • Transportation arrangements.
   • Food or drink.
   • Sharing accommodations.
   • Continuing the gathering.
   • Moving to another location.
   • Exchanging contact information.

   Members must not:

   • Follow someone who has chosen to leave.
   • Repeatedly request personal contact after being refused.
   • Pressure someone to consume alcohol or other substances.
   • Use theology, authority, friendship, or community status to manipulate another attendee.
   • Make inappropriate and/or explicit comments or advances after being asked to stop.
   • Isolate another attendee from the group against their wishes.
   • Retaliate against someone for reporting a concern.
10. 10

    Respect Boundaries

    Do not pressure members into friendships, relationships, private conversations, theological debates, gaming sessions, or voice calls.

    A refusal does not require justification. Repeated unwanted contact may be treated as harassment.