A Basic Guide to HelpDesk Life

HelpDesk life should be an easy, enjoyable one. You're one of the best and brightest players, able to help educate and lead the new generation (and some of the old!) of the MafiaReturns community.

There are only a few things you have to remember to do:
* Answer the HelpDesk mobmails.
* Answer any questions asked in the Help Forum.

You also have the ability to move threads (if something in OOC belongs in the Outside forum, move it!), or delete them if they contain something unsavory... but more about that later.

During your time a HelpDesker you will report to the Owners, Administrators and Assistants, with any comments, questions or concerns. As Kendra was in charge of your hiring, consider her a main point of contact for anything you may need. Her contact information will be at the bottom of this poster. However, Belle, Rianne and tiggy are just as knowledgeable and capable (if not more so!) to help you out if you need it.

As a member of the HelpDesk team you will come across a multitude of questions about the game, varying from the normal:

Hey guy, how do I upload a picture to my profile?

To the abnormal:

Be a pal and tell me, if I have over 100 kills what is my wack skill at?

To the just plain strange:

Say, hypothetically, that tomorrow my friend logged into my account and killed the entire site. Would I get in trouble for that? Or would it be okay since it wasn't actually me?

I'm sure, as you are some of the best and brightest of the community (to have made it into such a position of responsibility), you all know the varying responses to the above sample questions. For the sake of everyone's sanity, including mine, we're going to create a structure that allows us to know exactly what type of questions you may encounter, as well as appropriate responses to each.

Below I will detail (to the best of my ability) the different types of mails you may receive while on the help team. Use this handy chart as a guide should you ever get stuck!
* Basic game related questions, including the use of any and all features
(Such as:
- Forums - Mobmails - Profiles - Prowess and achievements
- Petty Crimes - Felony Crimes - Drug trafficking - NPCs, MIAs, RIAs, Durden
And more!)
Questions such as these can be answered as normal, providing the answer, or an example, with more supporting information from the Tutorial.

* Basic game related questions, having to do with family business or in-game politics
With questions like these, it's easiest to leave your own feelings about such questions out of the equation, and simply refer the player to speak to their own CL. Questions in this category can include, "Where is my damn promotion?", and, "Why hasn't SpuffWaffle killed KarmaCouture yet?".

* Any questions asked that wish to obtain information we do not provide to users of the site
I'm not sure if any of you even know the answers to most of these questions, but if you do now is the time to start keeping site 'secrets' to yourself. Questions in this category will include things such as information about stats, the number of money, bgs or kills any player has (including the person asking the questions), as well as any decisions made by the staff (such as a game change, or an admin wack). The easiest way to answer these questions is with a simple, "I'm sorry, I'm not at liberty to answer that question", or "We try to retain as much mystery about the game as possible for its users. By answering that question, I'd ruin the fun!". Simple enough!

* Any questions, comments or complaints about anything that could be bug related (the site not loading properly, a weird page popping up, the drug runs aren't adding money properly)
Simply forward all mails like that to the coders- Squishy and Anubis. Let the person know that the feature is being looked at, and that we will get back to them asap!

Now, people won't always be cherubic angels, and there will from time to time be those that like to cross the line, bend the rules and skip merrily through chaos. During those times, I've laid out a little guide for you to use in order to help the site run as normally as possible:

If I receive a report from a player via mobmail about any sort of suspected cheating (scripting, duping, etc.): Respond to the person lodging the complaint by thanking them for their mail. Tell them we will look into the matter asap. Then forward the mail to one of the Administrators or Assistants, and they can handle things from there!

If I receive a report from a player via mobmail about any sort of abuse (verbal, OOC, sexual, etc.): Respond to the person lodging the complaint letting them know we are going to look into the matter. Forward the mobmail to one of the Administration or Assistant team, and they will be able to figure things out.

If there is any sort of abuse, cheating, or general untoward behavior in the streets: Simply delete the thread or the post, and then mail the user with a warning. An easy, ''You have broken site rules (link to the rules), please review your behavior for future interactions" will work well enough. If the problem persists, contact one of the Administrators or Assistants, and we will be able to take care of the wayward player.

As always, if there is any more information that you need, or want clarification on, feel free to post here, or mobmail me directly. I can always add and amend what's posted here, to make sure everyone is on the same page!

Thanks, and enjoy your time as a HelpDesker!