Feral Heart

Another long-time lurker crawling out of the woodwork.

Although I can agree self-moderation isn't necessarily a bad thing, it's a tool that needs to be used in conjunction with moderators because, as many other people have mentioned, it can be oh-so-easily abused. As an example, World of Warcraft 'silences' (they can no longer speak in public chats) players who receive a large volume of reports in a short amount of time. I've seen guilds co-ordinate and use it to mute players they dislike or disagree with; I guarantee it'll happen. However, in this game's case, GMs usually rectify the silences or bans when messaged, especially if they were unjustified. Feralheart won't have this.

Another thing is the general age of the game's playerbase. There's some incredibly young kids here who admittedly do need the protection of moderators. I'd honestly worry about the content they'd be exposed to, especially if there was a genuine case of harassment that was kept within groups and whispers-- somewhere that won't invoke the blocks required for a ban. Even then, there should be complete transparency about the system being put into place to soothe everyone's worries. How many reports with trigger the ban? Are the bans permanent? Is there any way to rectify bans made in error without moderators? What if a problematic member doesn't receive the required number of blocks? Such a controversial change should definitely include more information- for everyone's sake.

Either way, I feel this is a case of 'if it's not broke, don't fix it'.

I don't think it's reportable unless they directly start harassing you-- or being disruptive. Even more-so since it's a map available to the general public. A friendly, polite whisper explaining that there's a roleplay in progress is the most you can do, sadly. I've accidentally bumbled into a few after downloading maps from deviantART. As you said, if they don't, you might need to encourage your group to block or ignore them.

Can definitely understand the irritation though; I once had someone burst into a private map-- which was a bit of a pain. Even so, I hope it all gets resolved!

Do I have to spend money on this site?

There's the option to purchase a subscription, but it's otherwise completely free; I personally haven't spent a penny there. You can exchange the site's currency (100 points = $1) for art, merchandise and such, but it's completely optional and avoidable.

Do I have to share tons of info?

You sign up with your usual information (name/age/etc), but there's the option to customize your page to reveal as little, or as much, as you want. Mine's fairly anonymous.

Can I practice a little? And, do I have to have a super oober good drawing skill?

Even without an account, PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE. It's great for improvement! There's no need to be an artistic mastermind, either; there's plenty of people who are there simply to admire everyone's work. Beginners and professionals are all welcome!

As you said, it honestly depends upon the context and situation!

If I'm roleplaying with a realistic gaggle of friends in Flourite and we're approached by a 10-foot tall overlord of the underworld, it would honestly be a disruption if they tried to attack us; they'd completely derail our roleplay. Our current scene couldn't continue in the face of their power-trip and it would, admittedly, ruin what we were doing.

Whereas, if an oddly-coloured hyena approached our own, we could still acknowledge and interact with them-- even if it doesn't exactly align with our interests. As long as they make certain their actions aren't too disruptive, and understand when others reasonably express their concerns, I see no problem.

However, of all places, I definitely wouldn't expect 100% realism in Bonfire! When I roleplay there, I do take into account that dinosaurs, dragons, fauns, mermen and anime characters can, and will, approach you. Even so, the horse roleplayers can be an odd bunch; I'd take everything they say with a grain of salt.