We are a group of gaming enthusiasts centered around Valve's Team Fortress 2 and Left 4 Dead, though we also partake of a number of other titles and online activities (e.g., iSketch, Settlers of Catan, and a number of Wii games). We maintain one public TF2 server and three public L4D servers, along with one Half-Life 2 Death Match server and a Garry's Mod environment; check this thread for more information, including the address of our IRC server. You can also check out our GameTracker page.
This thread exists to answer some of the most common questions we receive concerning our group, and also outlines our fairly simple forum guidelines. If you have a question or concern, please have a look here before requesting the assistance of a member or admin. We'll add new questions and answers to the thread as we receive them. Please feel free to message CyberMonk if you notice any glaring omissions or have an idea for a new question/answer.
The Guidelines
We have but a few basic guidelines in place on our forums, and they're only in place so that we can maintain as "easy flowing" an environment as possible. Many thanks to CubanRefugee for crafting the core elements of these guidelines, which are:
- Please stay away from one word/smiley posts. If you find something funny, then post about how funny you find it. This isn't 4chan, and an "lol" or
as your only response just makes you look retarded. - Let's try and have some quality to our posts. Consider what you're posting, whether it's a reply or your own thread, and think about whether or not others will enjoy what you're about to post.
- There are a good number of people that check the forums from work. If you're going to post a URL or image that's not appropriate for work, tag your thread with [NWS] or link your images and tag them appropriately.
- In short, don't be an immature troll, as your posting experience (and others') will be much more enjoyable.
The F.A.Q.
General
- So what is this group? Why are you called The Lions?
- Where can I find information on your server(s)?
- Who's in charge? Who should I contact if I've a question/comment/concern?
- How should I get in touch with The Lions?
- What is this "MOTD" I keep hearing about?
- How do I sign up to be a part of The Lions?
- What are these reserve slots I've heard about?
- How do I know who the members are?
- Is there a group for non-members/regulars who enjoy playing on The Lions' Den?
- What are the rules on your server(s)?
- What do I do if I need help in-game?
- How do I nominate and vote for maps in-game? What if the map I want isn't in the nomination list?
- Is there a way I can download a pack of all the maps on TLD's TF2 server?
- The server is down/broken/on fire! What should I do?
- Where can I find out information about what's been done to the server recently?
- The teams are stacked; is there anything I can do to change this?
- There's a player who's been AFK/idle for ages and he's hurting our team!
- There's a griefing/annoying/rule-breaking player on the server! What should I do?
- I see someone wearing the Lions' tag (">:3"), but I'm pretty sure they're not a Lion. Who should I tell about this?
Answers
General
So what is this group? Why are you called the Lions?
The opening paragraph of this thread provides a good general summary. As for our name, "The Lions" was coined in relation to the old "Get in the car/Get out of the car" internet meme.
Where can I find information on your servers?
See The Lions' Den: Server Info and Update News thread for information on our Team Fortress 2, Left 4 Dead, and IRC servers, as well as a history of changes made to the servers.
Who's in charge? Who should I contact if I've a question/comment/concern?
Atreus is the founder of The Lions; Josh is the co-founder. A full list of admins and members is available in the Current Lions Roster thread. If you've a question (one not addressed elsewhere on the forums or in this thread!), feel free to contact one of the admins via IRC (see below) or in-game/via Steam.
How do I get in touch with The Lions?
See The Lions' Den: Server Info and Update News thread for information on our IRC server, in which you can generally find an available administrator or knowledgeable member. You can also talk to anyone with the ">:3" tag (without the quotes) in-game.
What is this "MOTD" I keep hearing about?
MOTD stands for "Message of the Day," and is the screen you are greeted with upon first entering our server(s). Ours can be viewed online, or you may access the screen in-game on our server by typing "motd" in chat.
Membership
How do I sign up to be a part of The Lions?
This is by far the most commonly asked question about our group, and rightly so: we're pretty happening. However, we are an invitation only group, which means there is no set path or set of published guidelines for becoming a Lion. As such, asking to be let into the group is discouraged, and will most likely hurt your chances for membership. Please read that sentence again, as we really tire of repeated requests for admittance. That said, expressing interest is alright, but know that there is a fine line between "expressing interest" and "nagging about possible membership," and we reserve the right to decide where that line is drawn.
As far as invitation criteria are concerned, we really don't have any. Being active on the server (including both playtime and voice chat), being friendly, and generally being a cool cat are all helpful in garnering membership. As our MOTD states, "We do not 'recruit', per se. Joining is not determined by your skill level. Stick around, come back, be a regular. If we like you enough, you may receive an invite." We have people from all walks of life in our ranks, and no individual is excluded from consideration unless they give us reason to do so! (Note that asking for membership can be on one such reason!) We've had regulars remain regulars for long periods of time and eventually received membership, and we've had some who received membership very quickly; the point being, just because it hasn't happened doesn't mean it can't or won't!
What are these reserve slots I've heard about?
Reserve slots are special server slots that can only be accessed by reserve authenticated (or whitelisted) players as designated by the administration. In essence, they allow these players to join the server even when full (24/24 slots filled), up to a current limit of 28/24 slots, with the last four slots only available to reserve players. These slots are awarded to all Lions, and will sometimes be given to long-term regulars. However, just as with membership inquiries, asking for a reserve slot is discouraged, and will most likely hurt your chances for receiving a reserve slot and/or membership with the Lions.
How do I know who the members are?
A full list of admins and members is available in the Current Lions Roster thread. When in-game, a list of admins can be found in our MOTD (accessible in-game by typing "motd"). You can also identify members by the ">:3" tag in front of their names.
Is there a group for non-members/regulars who enjoy playing on The Lions' Den?
As a matter of fact, yes! We've created The Lions' Friends group on Steam to accommodate those regulars and non-members who enjoy playing on our server(s) and would like to keep abreast of news and events. Signing up for the group will guarantee that you'll never miss another Lions gathering, as almost all gameplay events (informal and formal) are announced in both the official Lions group and in The Lions' Friends. So what are you waiting for? Sign up!
Server-related
What are the rules on your server(s)?
We have a very succinct set of rules, all of which can be found in our MOTD. Some of the highlights are: no HLSS usage (use will result in an automated voice mute, which can only be removed by an admin); no racial slurs, and no use of the word "fag" or any variation thereof; and no pornographic sprays. While those are the more unique rules on our server, please do take a look at the full set in the MOTD!
What do I do if I need help in-game?
We have a number of admins, so first you should check the MOTD's list of administrators to see if any admins are already in-game, in which case you should ask them directly (either by voice or text chat). Otherwise, feel free to hop in our IRC server to ask any of the admins, of which there are almost always at least one or two available.
How do I nominate and vote for maps in-game? What if the map I want isn't in the nomination list?
We have an automatic map voting and nomination system in place on our server. Votes are initiated automatically after a set number of rounds on each map, one round before the map is changed. This vote can be brought up earlier if 50% of the server chooses to "Rock the Vote," which is accomplished by typing "rtv" in chat. The list of maps that players can vote on will be auto-populated if no nominations are made; however, this list can be populated with maps of your choosing by using the nominate feature. You may either type "nominate" in chat, which will bring up a menu with all the available maps; or, if you know the exact name of the map you'd like to nominate, you may type "!nominate map_name_here" in chat (the map name must be exact, e.g., cp_corporation_b3). You may only nominate one map per voting round; nominating a map after you've already done so will replace your previous nomination.
If you accidentally vote for a map you didn't intend to, or even change your mind after voting, quickly typing "/revote" in chat will allow you to change your vote, assuming the command goes through before the voting period has ended.
If you have an idea for a new map that you'd like to see added to the server rotation, and you've verified it's not in the existing nomination list, please visit our Custom Map Voting forum and feel free to post a thread for the map you'd like included. Make sure to read the forum-specific FAQ before posting a map, as any thread not in accordance with our guidelines will be locked and/or removed.
Is there a way I can download a pack of all the maps on TLD's TF2 server?
Why yes! A list of the maps and a link to the download is available in this post
The server is down/broken/on fire! What should I do?
If the server is out of commission, chances are we know about it. Any downtime will generally be short-lived, so it's often best to wait a few minutes and see if things are fixed automagically. We also have a server-specific Twitter feed which you can follow at @tldstatus, and if the downtime is not mentioned there there's a good chance Atreus might not know about it (in which case you should feel free to inform him).
Where can I find out information about what's been done to the server recently?
There a dedicated thread just for this! The Lions' Den: Server Info and Update News thread's second post, titled "What Have You Done For Me Lately?", is an oft-updated list of changes, updates, and additions made to the server(s) as Atreus makes them.
Player-related
The teams are stacked; is there anything I can do to change this?
We have a brand new and very slick scramble system in place. For a team scramble to be invoked, 20% of the players currently in the server must type "!votescramble" in chat. When this threshold is surpassed, a server-wide vote visible to all players will be initiated, and everyone will have the chance to cast a Yes/No vote to scramble the current teams. If this vote passes with 45% approval, then a team scramble will be performed automatically, with teams re-ordered based on each player's Points Per Minute (PPM) ranking at the time of the scramble.
There's a player who's been AFK/idle for ages and he's hurting our team!
Have no fear; he hasn't been AFK as long as you might think, because we've an automated system in place to deal with idle players. After 90 seconds, an AFK player will be moved to Spectator automatically. After two and a half minutes more, or four minutes cumulatively, and only in cases where the server is full (24/24 or more slots filled), any idle player will be kicked from the server. None of this requires any player intervention or pestering of the admins!
There's a griefing/annoying/rule-breaking player on the server! What should I do?
Firstly, take a deep breath, step back, and try to assess the situation dispassionately. Is the behavior you're noticing truly out of bounds, or was it a one-off affair that needn't be addressed unless it happens again? Most of the time, an administrator will be in the server and (generally) you won't be forced to make this distinction; we tend to root out problem players very efficiently. Otherwise, feel free to hop in our IRC server to ask any of the admins, of which there are almost always at least one or two available, and we'll investigate the problem player.
There is also a vote-kick function built into the server, which can be called by typing "/votekick" (without the quotes). However, if you think a player is truly deserving of attention from an admin even after a vote-kick fails, you may contact one of the staff (especially if said player is breaking one of our explicit rules from the MOTD). Please just use common sense; we don't want to be inundated with petty grievances every time someone makes a joke at your expense!
I see someone wearing the Lions' tag (">:3"), but I'm pretty sure they're not a Lion. Who should I tell about this?
Worry not, faithful server-goer! We've an automated system in place that will auto-kick any individual wearing the official tag who isn't actually a Lion. The offending person(s) will be given multiple warnings along the course of a 60-second countdown, and if after that timer is up the tag is still affixed, they will be kicked automatically.
Jaded Samurai : wait I know how we can win. Atreus... use "that" technique