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ARTICLE I: ORGANIZATIONAL DETAILS AND SCOPE
1. NAME
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- The entire player base shall be “Seven Kingdoms Player Community” (hereafter be referred to as “the community” within this document).
- The name of the decision-making council shall be “The Conclave” (hereafter referred to as “the conclave” within this document).
2. DEFINITIONS
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- The Conclave – The group of members elected by the community.
- Archmaesters – members of the Conclave. Each member will have a specific role, outlined below.
- The community – the Game of thrones player base.
- Supermajority – for all business conducted by the Conclave or Community where a supermajority is deemed necessary, a 2/3rds majority will be needed (in the case of the Conclave, this is currently 8 of the 11 votes cast).
- Majority – for business conducted by the Conclave or community where a majority is deemed necessary, a majority of 50% +1 of the total votes cast will be needed (in the case of the Conclave, this is currently 6 of the 11 votes cast).
- Quorum – in order to conduct any official business, a meeting of the Conclave must have at least 7 Archmaesters present and able to vote.
3. SCOPE
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- This organization shall have focus on the following game(s), where appropriate (hereafter referred to collectively as “the game”):
- A Game of Thrones: The Card Game (Second Edition) in all of its formats (To include Joust, Melee and any other alternate formats deemed sufficiently popular to officially support).
- This organization shall have focus on the following game(s), where appropriate (hereafter referred to collectively as “the game”):
4. GOALS
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- The goals of the organization shall be to:
- Produce a regularly updated rules FAQ and Restricted List, outlining card legality, text errata, and other rules determinations and clarifications.
- Create and publish new content for the game, in the form of cards, new rules and mechanics, or new game formats.
- Uphold high standards of integrity within the game with regards to sportsmanship, fair play, diversity, and inclusion.
- Promote the general welfare of the game on a non-profit basis through the organization of various community events such as competitions/tournaments, meetings, and other gatherings.
- The goals of the organization shall be to:
5. MANAGEMENT
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- The Conclave, composed of members elected bi-annually by the community shall manage all the affairs of the organization, through the powers enumerated below.
- A member of the Conclave shall cease to hold office if they:
- Become disabled in such a way that they no longer are able to participate in their duties.
- Notify the committee of an intention to resign.
- The Conclave committee resolves via a supermajority vote to remove them.
- Behavior that would justify a removal vote includes but is not limited to:
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- A member being absent without consent or notice from all meetings and communications with the other voting members for at least 2 months.
- Misuse or misreporting of Conclave funds.
- A loss of confidence by the community, proven through a supermajority vote of the player base.
- Conduct unbecoming of a member’s elected position
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- The Conclave shall be in regular communication through any medium agreed upon by consensus, and shall have formal meetings, either in-person or via conference call, at least 4 times per year.
- All meetings must achieve criteria outlined below in order to conduct any official business, although informal decisions may be made at members’ discretion without a meeting provided that at least ½ of members voice agreement and no member calls for the matter to be discussed at a formal meeting.
- Elections will be held every two years for each Conclave position, or whenever there is a vacancy in the Conclave.
- Nominees will be self-nominated to the Maester of Communications, who will compile the list of nominees and their credentials for each position.
- Elections will consist of a plurality amongst registered members of the community.
- In the event that a member is elected to multiple positions the new members of the Conclave will decide which role that member should hold with a simple majority vote.
6. POWERS
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- The Conclave shall have the power to:
- Obtain, collect, and receive money or funds by way of contributions, donations, grants, or sales, where appropriate and lawful.
- Make binding decisions to further the goals outlined above.
- Resolve any dispute among the membership, on an ad-hoc basis where appropriate and not already accounted for by earlier published policies (including this document).
- Issue sanctions to any player deemed to be in violation of conduct that is detrimental to the community, up to and including expulsion from organized play.
- Form subcommittees as necessary to facilitate detailed, granular necessities such as playtesting, proofing, graphic design, etc.
- Each Archmaester may manage any number of subcommittees whose role falls within their purview that they deem necessary.
- All subcommittees’ rosters should be communicated to the Conclave
- Reports from subcommittees can be included with the report from the Archmaester overseeing the subcommittee during formal meetings.
- Roles:
- Grand Maester– The Grand Maester will oversee the Conclave at large, advising all areas of the organization where necessary, while not specifically directing a given effort.
- For all voting purposes, the Grand Maester gets two votes. These votes can be cast or abstained individually.
- The Grand Maester will also serve as chair for all formal meetings of the Conclave.
- The Grand Maester will oversee all election activities and community votes, which will be coordinated by the Maester of Communication.
- Archmaester of Rules– The Archmaester of Rules is keeper of the rules of the game, and is in charge of making decisions regarding card interactions, as well as leading a team of proofers that ensures that cards are properly templated and worded.
- Manage and update Rules, FAQ, and Floor Rules documents.
- Build and manage a multilingual rules team.
- Create and develop Judge Program.
- Oversee the rules forum or other suitable method of answering rules questions from the player base.
- Assist Archmaesters of Design and Development in ensuring that new cards and abilities work properly within the framework of the rules and address any issues during the design and playtest cycles.
- In the event that the Grand Maester is unable to attend a formal meeting, and a replacement has not been communicated, the Archmaester of Rules acts as chair.
- Archmaester of Operations– The Archmaester of Operations is the liaison of the organization to essential resources such as theironthrone.net, thronesdb.com, Jousting Pavilion, as well as the organization’s website. They also serve as the treasurer for the organization.
- Build and maintain relationships with the owners and operators of the online resources and websites used by the community.
- Manage information sharing- keep online resources up to date on changes (rulings, Restricted List updates, etc.) so the community has immediate access to such changes.
- Leads initiatives to integrate online resources.
- Create and manage online accounts- this includes social media pages, e-mail, and website.
- The Archmaester of Operations also serves as the Conclave’s treasurer, handling financial information and transactions, as well as proposing an annual budget and providing financial updates.
- Archmaester of Communication– The Archmaester of Communication is in charge of communicating with the player base on most official matters not covered specifically by another Archmaester. This position also leads marketing efforts to spread the word that the game is alive and well, and build the player base while retaining the existing one.
- Liaison between the Community and the Conclave- Through announcements, forums, and player surveys.
- Managing the Online Presence of the Conclave- Drafting and posting regular content on the Conclave website and various social media websites.
- Marketing- Develop and promote the materials, products, activities, and events of the Conclave.
- Build and Maintain Relationships with Community Content Creators- Share spoilers with community creators and encourage collaboration.
- The Archmaester of Communication is the acting secretary for all formal meetings of the Conclave. The secretary will take notes at all Conclave meetings.
- The Archmaester of Communication coordinates all elections and votes involving the community.
- Archmaester of Tournaments– The Archmaester of Tournaments is in charge of organized play efforts. This includes organizing a circuit of Majors (generally, the existing fan-run events plus a World Championship), as well as League kits, Regional Championship kits, etc.
- Collaborate with Archmaesters of Americas, APAC, and Europe to support existing tournaments and tournament circuits.
- Develop tournament structure.
- Organize and manage the World Championship.
- Create prize support structure and kits.
- In the event that the Archmaester of Communications is unable to attend a formal meeting, and a replacement has not been communicated, the Archmaesterof Tournaments will act as secretary.
- Archmaester of Design– The Archmaester of Design is primarily responsible for leading a team to design new cards for the game, as well as coordinating additional teams that aid in this process as detailed below.
Responsibilities:- Designing cards. As head designer, this position has fiat to design cards that they believe will be generally beneficial to the game.
- Oversees the health of the metagame. The head designer’s duty is to ensure a healthy metagame, as balanced as is reasonably possible within the constraints of eight factions, via the introduction of new cards to the card pool.
- Liaises with Rules team to create new mechanics- Often, a new mechanic or keyword will require careful wording; design should discuss with the Rules team in advance how these will work, how they should be worded, and any quirks of timing that should be considered.
- Leads design team- The most important aspect of the job. As mentioned elsewhere, the head designer should not have the burden of designing ALL the cards themselves; rather they should curate a team that will all contribute ideas and designs to the card pool.
- Leads melee balance team; this team will design cards and curate the restricted list for the melee format.
- Coordinates Playtesting team(s).
- Coordinates “House Maesters”- This team will consist of eight volunteers, one representing each faction. Their purpose will be to ensure that faction strengths and weaknesses are clear, and that factions are not ‘bleeding’ too much into one another’s space. They will discuss upcoming sets and designs to make sure that these strengths and weaknesses are being adhered to, to prevent overlap where possible and to maintain balance.
- Archmaester of Development– The Archmaester of Development is in charge of many of the non-Design responsibilities of the creation of new cards. This includes art direction, suggestions for theme and balance, and coordinating the designs of champion-earned cards.
- Art direction- The Archmaester of Development will connect with artists and work with them to get art pieces commissioned (providing descriptions, etc)for cards where new art is deemed necessary.
- Monitors health of the metagame- provides general metagame suggestions to Design based on player feedback and tournament results.
- Thematic suggestion- The Archmaester of Development provides ideas to the Design team regarding themes from the books that have not been fully explored, finds flavor text, etc.
- Champion card organization- The Archmaester of Development will ensure that the list of those who are owed champion card designs is kept up-to-date, and will lead communication with those players to ensure that their card designs meet both the player’s wishes, and are balanced for the general health of the game.
- Coordinates graphic design team- The Archmaester of Development will coordinate a team of graphic designers to template the newcards and ensure that, when sitting across from them, players are able to remain immersed in the game via a consistent visual look.
- Coordinates localization team- Making sure that our v-cards are translated to the languages necessary.
- Prize support- Liaises with the Tournament team to determine prize support ideas, provides graphic design direction for alt arts, etc.
- Archmaester of Europe– The Archmaester of Europe serves as a representative to the Conclave to communicate the desires of those living in all European countries.
- Engage European community- build contacts within various metas.
- Communicate European needs to the Conclave.
- Support regional tournament organizers.
- Archmaester of APAC– The Archmaester of APAC serves as a representative to the Conclave to communicate the desires of those living in the Asia Pacific region, including all Asian countries as well as Oceania.
- Engage Asia-Pacific Community- build contact within various metas.
- Communicate Asia-Pacific needs to the Conclave.
- Support regional tournament organizers.
- Archmaester of the Americas– The Archmaester of Americas serves as a representative to the Conclave to communicate the desires of those living in both North and South America.
- Engage North and South American Community- build contacts within various metas.
- Communicate North and South American needs to the Conclave.
- Support regional tournament organizers.
- Grand Maester– The Grand Maester will oversee the Conclave at large, advising all areas of the organization where necessary, while not specifically directing a given effort.
- The Conclave shall have the power to:
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- Finances:
- Annual Budget
- The Archmaester of Operations will propose an annual budget for the Conclave to approve at the last formal meeting of the calendar year for the following year.
- Once approved, Archmaesters are able to spend money allocated for their use without the need for a formal vote by the Conclave, unless one of the following criteria is met:
- The spending of the funds will cause the Conclave bank account to carry a negative balance.
- The funds are requested before the needed purchase has been made.
- The Conclave budget must be kept up to date every 30 days.
- If requested by an Archmaester, the Archmaester of Operations shall produce an up to date budget for the Conclave within 7 days.
- Once approved, Archmaesters are able to spend money allocated for their use without the need for a formal vote by the Conclave, unless one of the following criteria is met:
- The Archmaester of Operations will propose an annual budget for the Conclave to approve at the last formal meeting of the calendar year for the following year.
- Reimbursement
- Archmaesters will be reimbursed from the Conclave bank account upon producing a proof of purchase to the Archmaester of Operations.
- Reimbursement can be paid using any recordable method agreed upon by both the Archmaester of Operations and reimbursee.
- Non-Archmaesters can request direct reimbursement for funds to the Archmaester of Operations with approval of the Archmaester that oversees the budget item that the funds will be dispensed from.
- Archmaesters will be reimbursed from the Conclave bank account upon producing a proof of purchase to the Archmaester of Operations.
- Accounts
- Conclave funds will be held in a bank account with at least two Archmaesters on it.
- The Grand Maester and Archmaester of Operations shall both be on the account, if possible.
- If one of the two Archmaesters above cannot be on the account, a substitute will be voted on by the Conclave as soon as possible.
- Additional accounts used for the transfer of money (such as PayPal, Venmo, etc) will be managed by the Maester of Operations
- At any time, the balance of any accounts held by the Conclave can be requested by any Archmaester, and must be produced within 24 hours.
- Conclave funds will be held in a bank account with at least two Archmaesters on it.
- Annual Budget
- Player sanctions
- Player sanctions will be communicated to the community through a public list that outlines the charges made against the player, along with details and duration of the sanctions against them.
- Players may appeal sanctions no sooner than three months after the sanctions were issued.
- If the appeal is rejected, the player may not appeal again for at least one year.
- Documentation
- Constitution
- This document shall be in possession of the Grand Maester, with a copy made available for the community at all times.
- Rules FAQ
- The Rules FAQ will be updated and published by the Conclave quarterly. This document, and the rulings within will be considered binding until the publication of an updated rules FAQ.
- The Conclave has the ability to publish an “emergency FAQ” at an unscheduled time, or modify the target release date of a scheduled rules FAQ publication by up to two weeks.
- The Rules FAQ will contain the following information:
- Gameplay rulings, errata, and clarifications
- Card Legality
- Banned/Restricted List (if needed)
- Card Errata
- Rotation/Legality Windows
- Sanctioned Players.
- The Conclave will maintain a public list of any players that have received sanctions, along with the details and duration of those sanctions.
- Tournament Floor Rules/Guidelines
- This document will cover general tournament guidelines related to the running of events of all sizes, along with floor rules to be enforced at all Conclave-sanctioned events.
- This document will be maintained by the Archmaester of Tournaments.
- Constitution
- Finances:
7. Formal Conclave Meetings
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- Roles
- The Grand Maester will serve as chair for all formal meetings of the Conclave.
- The Archmaester of Communications will serve as the secretary for all formal meetings of the Conclave.
- In the event either of the above cannot attend a formal meeting, they must communicate a replacement to the Conclave before the meeting begins.
- The chair of the formal meeting cannot be one of the three regional Archmaesters.
- Rules
- Meetings will be conducted following Robert’s rules of order.
- Meetings must achieve a quorum as defined in section 2 of this article in order to conduct any official business.
- Votes
- Voting on official business will require a majority in order to pass, unless outlined below:
- The removal of an Archmaester.
- The call for a vote to amend this document by the community.
- For the exceptions above, a supermajority will be required.
- While the Archmaesters have the authority to conduct most business without the approval of the Conclave, certain items have been deemed necessary for a vote by the Conclave. The list below contains both the item of business along with the Archmaester responsible for presenting a plan on the item. In the meeting minutes, both the original proposal and the final outcome will be recorded.
- Restricted/Banned list updates – Archmaester of Design.
- New mechanics – Archmaester of Design and/or Archmaester of Rules.
- Location of the annual World Championship – Archmaester of Tournaments.
- Prize structure – Archmaester of Tournaments.
- Rules errata – Archmaester of Rules.
- Annual budget – Archmaester of Operations.
- Major operational decisions – Archmaester of Operations.
- Changes in the structure of the Conclave – Grand Maester.
- The previous meeting’s minutes – Archmaester of Communication.
- Sanctions against a player – Any Archmaester.
- The formation or dissolution of subcommittees – Any Archmaester.
- Moving the announced date of a rules FAQ publication – Any Archmaester.
- Any business an Archmaester nominates for a vote.
- Voting on official business will require a majority in order to pass, unless outlined below:
- Roles
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- Minutes
- A proper record of all items discussed at each meeting will be kept, and published by the Archmaester of Communications in a timely manner.
- Minutes will be distributed to the Conclave for review for at least 24 hours before being communicated to the community.
- Any proposed amendments to the minutes must be passed by an informal vote of at least 2/3rds of the Archmaesters.
- Agenda
- A proper record of all transactions and accounts, including receipts, expenditures, and budget items will be kept, and published by the Treasurer in a timely manner during each formal meeting.
- A summary of these records will be included in the minutes communicated to the community.
- Formal meetings (and the minutes of those meetings) will follow the following agenda:
- CALL TO ORDER
- ROLL CALL
- READING AND APPROVAL OF MINUTES
- REPORTS OF OFFICERS
- REPORTS OF COMMITTEES
- STANDARD ORDER OF BUSINESS
- Unfinished Business
- New Business
- For each item of business, indicate:
- Title or topic
- Short description
- Person responsible
- ANNOUNCEMENTS
- ADJOURNMENT
- In addition to the above structure and information, the meeting minutes should also include:
- Meeting date, start time, end time
- Participants
- A proper record of all transactions and accounts, including receipts, expenditures, and budget items will be kept, and published by the Treasurer in a timely manner during each formal meeting.
- Minutes
8. GENERAL VOTING
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- At times it may be deemed appropriate for a resolution to be approved by the Community. Such votes shall be conducted via any secured organizational medium, as the Conclave sees fit.
- There shall be a process of registration, and only registered voters shall be considered a part of ‘the community’ for voting purposes. This registration will be detailed at the outset of the formation of the Conclave.
- No ratification, amendment, or revision to this constitution shall be approved except via a supermajority vote by the community.
9. DISSOLUTION
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- The Conclave shall be dissolved by a resolution of a supermajority of the community.
- In the event of dissolution, any remaining organization funds shall be donated to a charity of the Conclave’s choosing.
Ratified on XX/XX/XXXX