Stendhal:GuideForAdmin
Being an admin on a server with many users is not easy, so firstly, thank you. Thank you very much.
This guide is aimed to be helpful to admins on the main game server, stendhal.game-host.org.
Commonly used commands are summarised, with examples given, at Stendhal:Administration.
Answering /support
Many common questions are covered in StendhalFAQ so feel free to provide a link to this to answer a question. Try to link the main page not a section because the section links for a wiki have a # in them which appears blue in game and messes up the link. It's a good idea to familiarise yourself with the FAQ so that you can answer questions fast with it, and be consistent with game policy.
Bug reports are very helpful, and are roughly divided into three types. Suggested replies are given below. Politeness is emphasised because we really need players to feel willing to make bug reports.
- not a bug, just a feature
- Hi, what you have discovered is a feature of XXX and not a bug. But thank you for your time in reporting it anyway, as if it was a bug we'd need to know!
- a known bug which is already reported
- Hi, we are sorry about that bug, it's been reported to us and we are working on fixing it/it is fixed for the next release. Thank you.
- something which sounds like a bug and probably isn't reported
- Hi, that sounds like a bug, yes! Please could you make a bug report? details are at http://arianne.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php?title=SubmitBug - Thanks!
In case a player just says 'help' or 'hello' or 'anyone here' then you can either:
- Say Hi, please could you tell us specifically what you need help with? Thanks Or
- ignore it
If someone asks for a password reset then it can be done only if they originally signed up with a valid email address to a mailbox that they can access. So,
- 1. For example, reply: Hi, your password can be reset if you signed up with a valid email address originally. Please wait for an email..
- 2. Then, please tell one of the server admin (those who have access to the database) the player account name who needs the reset. They will email something like this:
Hi, someone requested a password reset for the stendhal account XXX. This is the email address registered for that account.Please do the following things:1. Make a new account called YYY, with the new password which you want XXX to have2. Tell support this message :/support Hi I have created this account by instruction from adminname. They emailed me at my account email address. Please ask a server admin to copy the password from YYY to XXX.3. A server admin will be asked by someone from support to copy the password you put on YYY onto your XXX account.Thanksadminname- 3. When the support message is received please tell the server admin who sent the email. They will confirm that the created account name matched what was in the email (YYY). This acts as the check that the email was read, i.e. the person requesting the pw change is the one who owns the account.
Communication is very important between admin. For example, if you deal with a support question in person because you are there already then please send a quick message to /support so that the other admin know that they don't have to deal with it. It's only a little frustrating if you saw a support message on IRC so you login only to discover it's already all fixed. Likewise if there is an issue which needs a decision from other admin, you need to tell the other admin about the issue. Preferably tell them before the issue is raised again so there is time for discussion.
Hacked account
If you suspect that a player has gained access to another player's account, then the player whose account has been compromised should be jailed for -1 minutes. This is not because we think they have done anything wrong, but because in jail items cannot be moved around so in particular noone can steal or throw away their items. Also noone can take their player to dangerous places to kill them etc. They are only safe to be released from jail once they have changed their password. This must be checked on the database which you need to ask a server admin to do.
If it is not obvious who hacked the account then this can be investigated by looking at the login events in database. Again, a server admin will need to be asked to do this. Please try to establish whether the player has shared any passwords as if they have, the people who knew the password are the most likely candidate for being a 'hacker'. (Which is, of course, why password sharing is prohibited, it makes too many problems.)
If you find out that someone has shared their password with others then please follow the same guidelines as for a hacked account. They should be jailed until they change their password.
Abuse
Being an admin you will be subject to abuse. Players are jealous of your powers (even though you yourself would never use them to your advantage) and they are envious of your position. This can turn players nasty. The best thing to do is not to enter into any nasty discussion, and even leave game if necessary. It is horrible if your day is ruined because of a nasty person so it's better to leave before that happens. Please try not to take it personally. These abusers don't see you as a person. If they did, then in most cases they would never be so rude.
Feel free to go to Skye for some relaxing time if someone is nasty to you.
Teleport use
Please teleport to a player if you need to to solve a problem. Please then teleport yourself back to where you were, so that you do not lose anything by having to deal with the admin issue, nor could you gain anything. For going fast to bank, or DM, first teleportto Skye then walk through one of her clever portals.
Suggested Jail times
These are a guideline only, and of course different cases vary in severity.
| Problem | Minutes |
|---|---|
| continual annoyance after warnings | 10 |
| very bad rude words | 10 |
| attack player in bank for no reason | 10 |
| lying about items gone missing (time waster) | 10 |
| blocking portals | 30 |
| more severe offences | 30+ |
| password hacking | -1 |
| repeat offender | x2 or x3 above |
Your conduct
As an admin it is important to set a good example to other players. This certainly means you should not be breaking any rules yourself. It is strongly preferable that you do not attack and certainly do not kill other players. If you have clone accounts which most people know belong to you, you should apply the same rules of conduct to them as you do yourself - players do not differentiate between the play-only and the admin characters. Of course, you would not have been chosen to have adminlevel if you weren't already a nice person who behaved well, but it is worth noting these things 'officially'.
See also
Finally - thank you again. I wish there was some concrete way to thank admin without making it look like they have an unfair advantage over others. Hopefully being a contributor to such a lovely game is at least some reward.