NOTE: I will likely update this in the future - it’s currently good as is but there’s plenty of things I could add later on. Feel free to bookmark this post to refer back to it at any time.
Hello there, welcome to our community. The SDG Forum is a wonderful place for discussion, but can be a bit confusing at first. There’s many unspoken rules, customs, and metas that we go by around here, as with all inner circles of gaming communities. This guide aims to be the one-stop shop for all of your most potentially neglected needs regarding acquaintance and familiarity with the SDG Forums.
First things first: Be sure to take the basic user tutorial that is integrated within the forum. You probably received a message from the forum bot @discobot, and you can follow the instructions provided. At any time you can also initiate the basic tutorial by typing this command, preferably within a private message to the bot itself:
@discobot start new user
Simply follow through with the instructions. Later on you can also take a more advanced user tutorial by typing:
@discobot start advanced user
Rules
The spoken, and the unspoken
I would recommend taking a look at the official FAQ/Guidelines section of the forum that covers some basics.
Of course, there are standards here, and you probably already know basic rules of social interaction. For the most part use common sense, and before you’re about to post or comment, ask yourself: “Is this something I would say in person?” As you are new here, you should try to be open to input from more experienced members of the forum - they will often be eager to give you feedback and help you out. Generally take everything on this or any forum with a pinch of salt: this is the Internet after all, so you’re bound to find someone who is less than what you’d consider polite. It’s often best just to ignore them (and flag their remarks for review by forum staff); however if you’d rather speak up about it and confront them, do so in a way that isn’t toxic, as it will invalidate your own point and cause additional issues. Keep an open mind too - not everyone agrees with you, and you can always learn something new.
Getting familiar
Common meta, beginner mistakes, and forum slang
Mistake: Failing to categorize your post
Everyone forgets to do this at some point, but categorizing your post is very important. It not only gives the readers the right idea of what general topic you’re referring to, but also ensures that your post gets sorted properly in the forum. Failing to categorize your post will also make it hard to take your post seriously or as intended. However, there are exceptions to this rule, such as if the post’s topic does not fit into that of any existing category.
The categorization may take some time getting sued to, as in addition to mainc ategories there are also subcategories that split post topics up even further. It is common for new users to incorrectly categorize posts (e.g. categorizing an Unturned 3.0 post as an Unturned II post), so do be careful about what category you pick. In addition to this, don’t forget you should use the tag system for your post too! The tag selector is right beside the category selector and helps users more specifically understand what kind of post your post is (discussion, question, troubleshooting, artwork, etc.)
Term/Mistake: Necropost
Before we hop into this, there’s been a bit of an issue lately regarding how necroposts are dealt with by the community. PSA from Reaver, forum staff:
The act of “necroposting” is when you reply to a post or comment that has been inactive for an extensive amount of time, typically longer than one month. While necroposting isn’t inherently bad, new users tend to do so in a way that is not useful or relevant to the discussion at hand, or they are misinformed at the time of the necropost. It is a common mistake for new users to do this, and can also be very irritating as most people do not like receiving notifications from discussions that are no longer relevant. To prevent accidentally necroposting, be sure to look at the date of when the post/comment was last active/posted. If you see a necropost, the correct policy is to flag it for staff to examine. Do not harass the user.
Mistake: Reposts
New users often make brand new posts for topics that have already been covered, either at a prior date or in greater depth/breadth. If you have a burning question, a technical issue, or just want to suggest that new idea of yours for the game, please make sure to use the forum’s search function in the upper right corner to ensure nobody else has made a post about it before. In addition do not repost your post to gain visibility. This is not only very annoying, but you will probably lose all respectability for what you’re actually trying to say. As you’re typing your post up, you may see a window pop up showing you similar posts that have been made before. If the only relevant posts are old enough that they conflict with the above necroposting policy, then you may make a new topic. It is recommended that you also link the original topic(s) as well.
Mistake: Low Quality Posts
When making a post, always do so with as high a level of quality as possible. Make your points clear, concise, and if required provide context, e.g. link to other relevant discussions (no advertising though, please!). If your post is longer, consider its formatting and using aids such as images. Low quality posts are often deemed so because they lack depth, seem low effort, have poor grammar/formatting, or are just generally seen as bad by common sense. This happens often and seriously enough that many users dub this as shitposting.
Low quality comments are an equally severe issue. If you’re just commenting to say something along the lines of “I agree” or “I like this”, just consider leaving a like instead of making an entire comment. In addition, you can quote or respond to multiple people in a single comment instead of making multiple consecutive comments next to each other. This is a forum, not a Discord chat.
Mistake: Farming for Regular rank
A short time after joining, it is typical for a new user to learn about the perks of higher user ranks such as Regular, and as a result often times will overinflate their user stats to try and get to it more quickly (for instance, by making posts, comments, and likes in ridiculous quantities over a short period of time). As enticing as it may be, this is also a fast way to get negative attention, disrupt proper discussions, and even get flagged (which will greatly hamper your future chances of getting to Regular to begin with). It’s painfully obvious when someone is farming for Regular, and it’s a detriment to normal forum activity.
Becoming a Regular legitimately is really not as hard as it seems (personally taking me under 3 months of modest contribution), all you need to do is participate civilly and thoughtfully in the forum. The requirements are set very reasonably so that anyone has a fair chance to easily attain it. As a tangent to this, the Regular rank isn’t much more than a tag. Respect from your fellow peers comes almost entirely through how you behave, and not from a title.
Other common mistakes that you should avoid:
- Pinging Nelson, for any reason
- Begging for an Unturned II beta key
- Begging for action over a VAC, Battleye, or server ban
- Bringing any external drama into the forums unnecessarily
Term: “/s”
Often times you will see users post a comment or make a remark, then put “/s” at the end. If you’re wondering what this means, it is a means of indicating sarcasm. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen people in any forum, oblivious of this, take a remark seriously that wasn’t intended to be interpreted in that manner. The origins of this annotation are from other discussion mediums such as Reddit.
For example:
That’s an excellent idea! /s
The above user implies that they are being sarcastic, and therefore that they think the idea is not good.
Term: “OP”
This can have two main meanings:
- Original Poster/Post - referring to the person who made the original post that is being discussed, OP can also be used to describe the post itself.
I think OP meant that this should not be craftable
- Overpowered - exactly what it sounds like. Often used to describe weapons, items, or other things that are too powerful. Conversely (but not as often), something that is underpowered is denoted as UP.
The Devil’s Bane is OP in arena mode, given it’s a full auto shotgun with minimal recoil
Term: “IIRC”
This simply stands for “if I recall correctly”.
Nelson is already planning to do this IIRC
Term: “tl;dr”
Another abbreviation borrowed from the likes of Reddit and other forums, tl;dr stands for “too long; didn’t read”. A tl;dr is usually put at the end of a long post with a brief summary describing its content for anyone who was too lazy to read the whole thing. Very useful for walls of text, rants, large suggestions, or long stories.
tl;dr: my Otter exploded mid-air after I made some questionable decisions to fly it in poor visibility weather
FAQs
There’s no such thing as a stupid question
What are the SDG Forums, and/or their purpose?
The SDG Forums are one of several official discussion platforms for talking about virtually anything related to Unturned. SDG stands for Smartly Dressed Games, the formal name of the development upon which Nelson Sexton goes by. Nelson can frequently be seen browsing the forums, and occasionally may comment and post as he sees fit. The SDG Forums is also one of the first places to receive news on game development, and is one of the innermost circles of the community. Similar to the Unturned subreddit, Unturned Discord, and Unturned discussion hub on Steam, it is a place that encourages interaction, community support, and feedback.
An Afterword
Congrats - you made it to the end! Please be sure to give feedback if you can, and if this guide helped you, leave a like I’m happy to be of assistance. See you around!
