Peer Reviewer Guide

Becoming a Peer Reviewer

Firstly, it is important that you have gained enough experience to apply to become a Peer Reviewer. The staff at Standing Trials requires that you have completed these goals:

• Remain an active member of the site for two months
• Have eight completed threads, either collaborative or solo threads
• Have four of your own stories reviewed by an existing Peer Reviewer or Prophet
• Have no outstanding warnings with the staff and a good track record
• Have at least one current staff member willing to vouch for you with a Recommendation in the Prophet Support Forum (PSF)
• If you have not met all of these criteria but you feel that you have a compelling case for being able to contribute as a Peer Reviewer, you are welcome to apply. In any application, you may be required to submit your early reviews (up to five of them) to an assigned mentor. Please apply to become a Peer Reviewer by posting the filled out form (provided below) in the PSF and confirming either that you have met the criteria above, or putting forward your case for being considered without meeting them.

For those who have been awarded the Peer Review medal, the steps listed below will help guide you through the reviewing process.

How To Peer Review

Step One: Choose a thread

The "Reviewers' Section" subforum has a centralised ‘Review Request Thread’ where all review requests are posted. Open the first thread in line that hasn’t been reviewed. It is important that you review threads in the order they were submitted as the first come, first served rule applies here. You are not allowed to review any threads that one of your characters is involved in, so if your thread is the next in line, skip it and leave it to another reviewer to read over.

Step Two: Check the Character Sheet

This is important for a number of reasons. While new players are allowed to begin writing before their Character Sheet has been reviewed, they are not allowed to accept a review until they are in the "Approved Character" user group. This will mean that their CS has been approved. You should only ever skip the thread if it is written by a single player (solo), otherwise complete the review for all other players involved and withhold only the review for the player(s) who have not met the right requirements.

Checklist

Please briefly check that the CS has all of the following:

• An updated Thread List at least for the previous cycle
• An updated Skill Point Ledger and a table outlining which thread gave which points
• Updated Purse, including Seasonal Expenses, Wages and recent thread deductions, if applicable (ensure all NPCs are paid for)

Updated Renown Ledger and a table outlining which thread gave which points Note: Each graded thread must be linked in at least one of the following locations: Renown Ledger, Skill Point Ledger or Thread List. This is to assist staff in the event of claims of cheating.

Once you are satisfied that all the requirements have been met, go ahead and grade the thread.

Step Three: Add a Placeholder

Scroll to the end of the thread on the last page, check that no other reviewers or prophets have put down a ‘review in progress’ or ‘intervention’ post. If it is clear, post your own ‘review in progress’ placeholder. Posting a placeholder like this announces to the rest of the members on the site that a review is underway and will stop other reviewers from doubling up and wasting time reviewing the same thread as you.

Step Four: Sit back and enjoy!

Reading the thread is the easiest part! What you need to do here is to thoroughly read and review the thread in the light of the rewards the player is claiming. The questions to ask yourself here are: Has the player written the correct number of posts for the number of skill knowledges they are claiming? These are clearly described in the Guide to Self Moderation.

• Are the knowledges the player has requested appropriate? Please note: When requesting Knowledges (relating to Skills, in particular) from in-character threads, the individual writers who request them should at some point in the thread demonstrate and document the acquisition of the Knowledge in order to solidify its relevance to the character and properly take credit for the character's experience under the proper PC account. Unless it has been written and posted under the PC's name, the Knowledge cannot be awarded
• Is the loot approriate?
• Is the Renown appropriate / in line with the Renown guide?
• Are injuries etc dealt with appropriately?

If the answer to these is yes, then you can post up the review, confirming the rewards. If the answer is no, then you need to adjust the rewards and give a clear explanation of what you have done and why.

In terms of points, the rule is simple. A collaborative thread gets 15 points and a solo gets 10. While threads no longer must meet the 1500 word count requirements, it is the number to strive for. As such, if you find a thread or player that appears to be abusing the system in order to powerplay, report the thread/player to the PSF.

Abandoned Threads

What if one of the players has left / has not posted up a request? In the event that a thread has been abandoned, or only some of the participants in the thread have requested rewards, please review the thread for all pc's in it. As long as the pcs have met the criteria to do so, award points as appropriate. Under knowledge, make it clear that none was requested. Let the player know in the review that if they return they can pm the original peer reviewer or put up a "knowledge only" reward request if the original peer reviewer is not able to take the review.

Ghost PCs

Refer to Ghost Skills for how to handle Ghost Skills and Skill Knowledges for ghosts.

Magic

Refer to Magic Skill Reviews