Hogwarts Live Blog

As of today, Staff are allowed to dock points with no warningfor breaking the rules. If you break the rules, prepare to lose points for your House. This is not generally done. But this is how it was done in the books. Now bear in mind that it is the punishing staffers judgment on how many points you will lose. Some staffers may not take away as many as others.
Here is a reminder of the rules for you all.

1. No circumventing/evading the foul language filter. If a word shows up as symbols (!@#$) then leave it alone; don't change the spelling of it or try to add you own symbols to it (***). This includes using foreign languages in chat; they are not allowed either.
3. No cheating. Trying to hack into the server, trying to crack other user's passwords, or otherwise doing something detrimental to the integrity or security of HL is strictly forbidden. Do not use scripts or bots to automate game tasks as they may burden the server. You must report any bugs or exploits you discover using the Petition for Help link. Failure to do so will result in a temp ban. Those who report bug abuse or means of doing so will receive a reward. A bug is a problem in the game code that permits you to gain an unfair advantage over other players, it is a form of cheating.
4. No Sexual Conduct. Again this is a reminder that this is a PG13 site. The use of offensive or sexually explicit language in chat and owls is not allowed. Do not use innuendos and do not name private body parts.
5. No excessive harassment of other players. Do not harass other players (ridicule is allowed to an extent). Please mind your attitude and language at all times. Be polite and have fun. Taunting opponents is fine as long as it is roleplayed, but personal attacks are not allowed. Personal attacks(bringing someones real life into it) and insulting remarks should be kept off the public channels such as the forums and the chats. It is preferable that you keep arguments off the site or ignore players that irritate you.
6. Drugs, Alcohol and other Bannable Subjects. Any reference to illegal drugs, alcohol use(other than site-related,) cutting, suicide or other forms of self-mutilation will not be tolerated. There is no need for any of that on this site. Walking off a cliff is NOT self mutilation, even though some have warned for it. Saying you want to die to get a New Day is not suicide talk either, mentioning that because I've seen it warned for before. Some of these acts though can get you perm muted. Any reference to rape is an instant ban. Also included in this rule is any controversial subject such as politics, religion, abortion, etc. If ANY subject is causing a disruption in chat, staff will stop it and mute those players that continue.
6. Spam. Spam is using more then 3 of the same character in a row, which generally we do not mute for, unless you do it over and over, and things such as "shsdfgesrhshsryery" are spam, which if you do we will mute you. Smilies are included in the no more then 3 rule. Do not advertise other websites or post useless or repetitive text. If you want to advertise your website, use the Link Exchange. If you are reported by several players with evidence that you are randomly owling them websites, you'll most likely be banned. Also included under spam is posting messenger addys in chats(email addresses also). If a friend wants them, owl it to them. All caps in one or two posts is FINE. Using it every post isn't.
7. Alternate characters (alts) are no longer allowed UNLESS it existed prior to August 2007. For those with an alt, they should not interact. Don't attack each other, talk to each other, place bounties on each other, or refer your own alts. That sort of cheating is just in bad taste. If you share a computer, Internet connection, or Network with another player we will assume there is only one person at the keyboard and you will be held responsible for all activity that originates from your account or IP address.
10. Personal Information. Your contact information is private. Posting your email, phone number, address etc. in a public chat is not only against the rules of the site but puts you at risk. If you wish to share this information with others on the site, please use Owls to do so.
In the end, listen to the admins and other staff, do not argue with them. If you have an issue with a staffer please Petition for Help so another Staffer can handle/look into it. If instead you decide to lash out at them, argue with them in chat or disregard their authority, you will be punished.

Edmund has explained how he would like the House Prefects to work. At the moment, being a Prefect is just a title, but the whole system is still a work in progress. Edmund does have some ideas about some special privileges for these players but has not yet completed the coding for them, so please be patient for those. This is kind of a test run to see how this system works so we can make any necessary adjustments before any substantial benefit is gained.

The following are the SITE-WIDE Requirements:

1. The player MUST be at least a Fifthyear.

2. Every month, two new Members (one BOY and one GIRL) will be chosen as a Prefect from each House and they will remain a Prefect for the next three months, after which they will be demoted back down to Member. Each month represents one year at Hogwarts. As two new ones come in, two will go out. This will allow us to have 6 Prefects per House at any one given time, on a rotating basis.

3. New Prefects will be appointed every month.

4. It is up to each House as to how they want to appoint their own Prefects under these requirements. If you have a question about how your OWN House chooses your Prefects, please ask your own Head of House. Generic questions about how the basic system works can be answered by any Staffer.

Thanks!

sampaz, billybobjoe and Adrienne each won 750 points for Gryffindor, and Acerbity and Hypnos each won 750 points for Hufflepuff.

Congratulations to each of you.

Being this is becoming a common trend for players, if you accuse another house/staff of cheating at the House Cup in chat obnoxiously you'll be penalized points. If you think thats happening petition it and other staff will look into it. There should be no doubts about them being looked into either, us HoH's and other Staff wouldn't want our houses to lose because another one cheated.

Having some house rivalry is alright, so is having house pride until it starts causing fights to break out in chat. While having rivalry/pride in chat, please do not try to instigate players from the house you may be saying things about to respond in a rude way that'll start a fight. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion about which house is the best and which they don't like. They can say it in chat. If you don't like what they have to say, ignore it, don't attack them for their opinion about that.

Well the results of the poll last week were clear, most people would prefer the house identification and for clubs to be separate.

So all clans have been disbanded, and you are now in a "clan" that matches your hogwarts house. The Guildhalls have been replaced with your Common Room, and the dorms have moved there.

Dorms will get a rewrite in the near future to be house specific, but I can only do so much at once.

A quick note about the upcoming Club system...

Yes, we know that some of you miss the old clans. However, Edmund's idea for the new Clubs will essentially become the old clans. As far as I know (and I may be wrong about this), anyone will be able to make a Club. The only requirement is that you need 3 members to actually be able to access your Club. PLUS...you will able to join MULTIPLE Clubs. So as you can see, the old clan system is not completely phased out. No, it will not be exactly the same as before, but it WILL be VERY similar.

He is still working on the code for the clubs so please be patient until they are added.

Sorry, if some of you find this MoTD inappropriate but I was told it shouldn't be. So, let me ask if anyone is interested in earning donator points to write a critique paper on a short fiction piece? I need a minimum of 500 words critique on a 2,300 word short story (aprox. 15 minutes to read out loud). Also, I'll give out 100 house points per critique in addition to lots of donator points. This offer expires June 1st.

I have some pretty hardcore critique guidelines laid out so if you've never done one before don't worry. It's a speculative fiction story I hope to enter into a contest, the target genre is science fiction/fantasy, it's a post-apocalyptic mythology/romance. If you have read chapters of my science fiction novella, this is at a higher reading level and is geared towards more mature readers so don't expect the same style writing.

Email me at if you're interested and want the complete directions/details, if you just want to read it that's fine too. Just remember you may not modify, redistribute, or reproduce it anywhere as it's copyright 2006.

I have taken the time to update the complete list of Site Rules on our Wiki page. THIS IS WHAT STAFFERS USE. It will eventually become a clickable on the nav bar, but in the mean time, please use this link to READ them. Even if you are a older player and think you already know the rules, I still suggest you read them over because I have seen A LOT of older players warning people for things that are NOT against the rules, rules have changed, been updated, and added. Thank you.

http://encyclopedia.wizards.pro/index.php/Hogwarts_Live:Rules

Yay for Edmund and his hard work on our newest module! And not just a simple little forest event or new shop...but basically a whole new system here on HL. The House Cup system!!! As huge as this module is, it is still not quite done and we have even more to look forward to so be sure to check here whenever you see the MoTD link highlighted. (Or Witchy WILL kill you AND we will take away House points from anyone who asks anything that was answered here)

Here is a basic rundown of how the House Cup works:

Race. Right now, there is only one race: Human. The Loyalty is Ottery St. Catchpole. This will soon be changing so please check back for updates.

House. You choose your House but choose wisely; this is a permanent choice. You will not be able to change Houses once you have been sorted.

Heads of Houses. Not quite in effect yet, but later tonight, there will be 4 Heads of Houses (HoHs). Edmund is the HoH of Ravenclaw, LilyAnnKnight is the HoH of Gryffindor, SpinalRemains is the HoH of Slytherin and WitchyWoman is the HoH of Hufflepuff. The other staffers are school faculty. We ALL have the power to give you points and we all have the power to take them away. Remember that. Also in development is a way for students (you all) to become Prefects and maybe even Head Boy/Girl. Check here for updates.

Earning/Losing Points. Think of HL just like you would the real Hogwarts. How do students earn points there? By doing good things, mostly. Answering questions correctly that a staffer may ask (like pop quizzes), helping other students (answering questions correctly for new students), defeating your Professors and defeating Voldy. Even random forest fights can earn you House points. Hopefully you get the idea.

In the same way, how do they lose points? By misbehaving and dying. In addition to the regular warnings and punishments, we now have the option to take away House points from players. So if you want your House to win the House Cup, you will behave yourselves (hint, hint). Be warned that those who are caught trying to sabotage another House's Points will be dealt with. Strictly.

Changed again. After seeing it in action, we figured out that it was not fair to have Firstyears GAIN points when they never LOST their House any points. However, we do realize that they die more often and can greatly affect their House standing in either direction. We have a NEW point-loss system for newer players. It is as follows: Firstyears will lose 5 points when they die. Secondyears will lose 6 points, Thirdyears- 7, Fourthyears- 8 and so on until they reach 10 points and then it becomes the same formula as below (in yellow). They will also earn their House a few extra points when they defeat Voldemort for the first time. For a player's first VE, they will earn 19 House points. For their second VE-18 points, third VE- 17 points, etc until they reach 10 VEs and get 10 House points.

However...because older players should know how NOT to get killed, they will lose their House even more points when they die from now on. Okay, Spinal explained how many points a player will lose their House when they die. It is the number of VE's they have, divided by 20 and then + 10. So, if you have 60 VE's (60/20=3+10=13), you will lose your House 13 points when you die in Battle. This includes PvP when you attack and die.

As it has been, no one loses points when they die due to Stonehenge or the old bridge or any other Something Special. Points are only lost due to death in BATTLE.

Prizes. Although not in effect quite yet, I am going to explain what the prize is for having the most Points so you guys know what you are trying to win. At the beginning of each game day the members of the House in the lead will get a positive buff. Also, we will reset the House Points each week and Edmund will put in a place for the winning House. For the entire following week members of the winning House will have a benefit for the ENTIRE week! So as you can see, it is in your best interest to want to earn as many points and be as helpful as possible.

Those are the main points right now. As mentioned above, there are still many things to come so check back here whenever you see the MoTD link highlighted. And please remember that this still is a game of discovery and finding things for yourselves so go out there and play the game and have fun!

In respect for my son and Autism awareness month here are some facts.
Facts about Autism

Did you know…
1 in 150 children is diagnosed with autism (If this many kids were kidnapped then it would be a national emergency.)
1 in 94 boys is on the autism spectrum
67 children are diagnosed per day
A new case is diagnosed almost every 20 minutes
More children will be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes & cancer combined
Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S.
Autism costs the nation over $90 billion per year, a figure expected to double in the next decade
Autism receives less than 5% of the research funding of many less prevalent childhood diseases
Boys are four times more likely than girls to have autism
There is no medical detection or cure for autism

Incidence vs. Private Funding
Leukemia: Affects 1 in 25,000 / Funding: $310 million
Muscular Dystrophy: Affects 1 in 20,000 / Funding: $175 million
Pediatric AIDS: Affects 1 in 8,000 / Funding: $394 million
Juvenile Diabetes: Affects 1 in 500 / Funding: $130 million
Autism: Affects 1 in 150 / Funding: $15 million

Many players have petitioned or commented in chat about Live Chat not updating for them and it refreshing when they post. All of those users had been using Internet Explorer at the time, which is what causes it to not update quickly and post properly. So we suggest that you use Firefox while on here, the chat works fine on it.
Click here to download Firefox!
Also:
Click here to download Thunderbird!