Racial/Ethnic

This category includes both clear and masked language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Promote racial/ethnic hatred

• Are recognized as a racial/ethnic slur

• Allude to a symbol of racial/ethnic hatred

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be temporarily suspended from the World of Warcraft forums

• Be given a final warning, any further TOU violations will result in permanent suspension from the forums and a temporary ban from World of Warcraft

Extreme Sexuality/Violence

This category includes both clear and masked language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Refer to extreme and/or violent sexual acts

• Refer to extremely violent real life actions

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be temporarily suspended from the World of Warcraft forums

• Be given a final warning, any further TOU violations will result in permanent suspension from the forums and a temporary ban from World of Warcraft

Real-Life Threats

This category includes both clear and masked language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Refer to violence in any capacity that is not directly related to the game world

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be temporarily suspended from the World of Warcraft forums

• Be given a final warning, any further TOU violations will result in permanent suspension from the forums and a temporary ban from World of Warcraft

Distribution of Real-Life Personal Information

This category includes:

• Releasing any real-life information about other players or Blizzard Entertainment employees

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be permanently banned from the World of Warcraft forums

• Receive a temporary ban from World of Warcraft

Sexual Orientation

This category includes both clear and masked language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Insultingly refer to any aspect of sexual orientation pertaining to themselves or other players

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be temporarily suspended from the forums

• Be given a final warning, any further TOU violations will result in permanent suspension from the forums and a temporary ban from World of Warcraft

Posting Cheats, Hacks, Trojan Horses, or Malicious Programs

This category includes:

• Posting links to cheats, hacks, or malicious viruses / programs

• If you would like to report information regarding cheats or hacks to Blizzard, send it to [email protected]. Do NOT post it to the forums.

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be permanently banned from the World of Warcraft forums

• Receive a temporary ban from World of Warcraft

While these repercussions may seem harsh, we feel very strongly that this behavior has no place on the World of Warcraft forums due to its extremely offensive and inappropriate nature.

Impersonating a Blizzard Employee

This category includes:

• Passing yourself off as a Blizzard employee to post false information

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be given a final warning, any further Code of Conduct violations may result in permanent suspension from the forums

Obscene/Vulgar

This category includes both clear and masked language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Are an inappropriate reference to human anatomy or bodily functions

• Are pornographic in nature

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be given a warning and/or receive a temporary ban from the World of Warcraft forums, depending upon severity

Inappropriate language

This category includes both clear and masked language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Are a mildly inappropriate reference to human anatomy or bodily functions

• Are otherwise considered objectionable

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be given a warning and/or receive a temporary ban from the World of Warcraft forums, depending upon severity

Harassing or Defamatory

This category includes both clear and masked language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Insultingly refer to other characters, players, Blizzard employees, or groups of people

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be given a warning and/or receive a temporary ban from the World of Warcraft forums, depending upon severity

Major Religions or Religious Figures

This category includes both clear and masked language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Negatively portray major religions or religious figures

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be given a warning and/or receive a temporary ban from the World of Warcraft forums, depending upon severity

National

This category includes both clear and masked language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Promote national hatred

• Are recognized as national slurs

• Allude to symbols of national hatred

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be given a warning and/or receive a temporary ban from the World of Warcraft forums, depending upon severity

Illegal Drugs or Activities

This category includes both clear and masked language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Reference to abusing illegal drugs

• Reference to performing illegal activities

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be given a warning

Spamming and Trolling

This category includes:

• Excessively communicating the same phrase, similar phrases, or pure gibberish

• Creating threads for the sole purpose of causing unrest on the forums

• Causing disturbances in forum threads, such as picking fights, making off topic posts that ruin the thread, insulting other posters

• Making non-constructive posts

If a player is found to have been spamming or trolling, he/she will:

• Be given a warning

Advertising

This category includes advertisement of:

• Any non-beneficial, non- World of Warcraft related businesses, organizations, or websites

If a player is found to have been advertising, he/she will:

• Be given a warning

Discussing Disciplinary Actions

This category includes:

• Creating posts or threads to discuss disciplinary actions taken against a player, including chat logs and email correspondence between a player and a World of Warcraft Game Master (GM)

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be given a warning

Posting Unreleased Content

This category includes: language and/or links to websites containing such language or images which:

• Show unreleased in-game items, equipment, or areas that have been unlocked by hacking into client data files

If a player is found to have participated in such actions, he/she will:

• Be given a warning and/or receive a temporary ban from the World of Warcraft forums, depending upon severity

Other Categories

There are two other categories of harassment that are not necessarily related to the language used, these are listed below.

• Ongoing harassment

Harassment takes many forms, and is not necessarily limited to the type of language used, but the intent. Repeatedly targeting a specific player with harassment can lead to more severe action. The idea behind this is to prevent any one player from consistently being uncomfortable in the World of Warcraft forums.

IMPORTANT

• Repeatedly violating any area of the World of Warcraft Terms of Use or Forum Code of Conduct, including the areas detailed above, will often result in permanent banishment from the forums and temporary suspension from the game.

• This policy is not language-restrictive. Language that falls under this policy will always be subject to the repercussions listed, whether it is inappropriate in English or any other language.

The bottom line is that we want World of Warcraft to be a fun and safe environment for all players. World of Warcraft is a Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game, and the key words are "Massively Multiplayer." In playing this game and posting on its forums, you will encounter thousands of other players who share different experiences and come from vastly different backgrounds. While certain language and images may not be offensive to you, consider the fact that that same language and images may have a completely different effect on someone else. We've done everything we can to make this a great game but now it's up to you, the players, to breathe life into the world.