SamuraiPanda
Smash Hero
- Joined
- May 22, 2006
- Messages
- 6,924
This FAQ is really two FAQs in one. Smashboards was created years ago, and due to the popularity of Melee, became the biggest Smash forum on the internet. 7 years has passed since Melee was released, and the new Smash Bros Brawl is enormously popular, so Smashboards is finally evolving into a forum worthy of this new game. The first FAQ you will find here is a New Addition FAQ to better inform veteran (and new) SWF users about what changes to the site are being made. Be sure to check whenever there is an update to this FAQ, because SWF will be making many changes in the future, both big and small.
The second FAQ included in this thread is the General Brawl Boards FAQ For New Users. Every user that is new to Smashboards should check that section out, because we’re unlike any other Smash forum on the net.
I. New Additions FAQ
- The New Boards!
Well, I'm sure many of you have noticed that the Brawl boards are much more than just General, Character, and Stage discussions now thanks to our awesome administrator Kirby King. Some of you may be a bit overwhelmed with all these new boards, so in order to reduce confusion about what goes where with these new sections, here is a little guide as to what goes where.
•General Brawl Discussion: Where you can go for a more laid-back discussion about Brawl. Want to talk about what some reviewer gave Brawl? Or what about those awful new English voice actors? Well, you can do it all in here. Also includes the Dojo Updates subforum for discussion of each update (regular members cannot post threads in that subforum).
• Brawl Character Discussion: To have a more in-depth discussion about specific characters, visit their boards here.
• Brawl Stage Discussion: Rather self explanatory, right? Discuss the stages in the game, or post the stages you make yourself!
• Brawl 1-Player Modes: Where can you talk about your new high score in the co-op homerun bat contest, or how you can collect those difficult trophies in the Subspace Emissary? Right here in this new board for the single player (and co-op) features in Brawl.
• Brawl Tactical Discussion: Discuss the finer points of gameplay in this more intense board focused on making us all better at the game, and even to discovering new techniques or gameplay mechanics. My personal favorite new board ^_^
• Brawl Online Discussion: Talk about anything online in this board! Although you thankfully don't need to worry about making entire threads just to get a decent match thanks to the Friend Finder that Smashboards is creating.
• Brawl Videos and other Media: Videos, screenshots, podcasts and more can be found and discussed in this new board.
• Spoiler-Free Zone: Well, I figure this place doesn't need much introduction, eh? Spoilers are NOT tolerated in this board, and you will be punished severely for spoiling anything!
- The Friend Finder Beta!
• The friend finder will one day become the best and quickest way to find a Brawl match online with a competent opponent. For more information on the current FF beta, see Kirby King’s announcement here: http://smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=142251
- New Servers!
• Now SWF is faster than ever thanks to the new servers. Brawl is bringing quite the influx of new members, so we’re doing our best to handle the load and still let you browse quickly without any problems.
- Much More to Come!
• Think that’s the end of the updates to Smashboards? Well, think again. Smashboards will continue evolving, changing, and adding new features for a while, so keep checking back whenever there is an update!
II. General Brawl Boards FAQ For New Users
- What Smashboards is/isn’t
• It’s very important to realize what Smashboards (often shortened to SWF which stands for Smash World Forums) is and what it is not. If you are new here, it is likely that you are accustomed the forum operations of websites like Gamefaqs, IGN, NSider2, and others. However, it is VITAL that you realize that Smashboards is run very differently than those forums, even though we welcome all new users. SWF is the central website for pretty much every professional Smash Bros. Melee player. Naturally, we get a lot of casual players and new smashers, which is awesome because the SWF community is growing. But the fact still remains that this is the top Smash Bros. forum on the internet. Many of Melee’s ‘advanced techniques’ (such as wavedashing) were originally discovered here, and the same is likely to be true in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
• Since this is the primary Smash forum on the internet, things are run differently than your average forum. There are moderators assigned to SWF’s many rooms who keep a rather consistent eye on the happenings there. They are the users with their names in red, and can be seen posting often around the boards. There are many moderators who read the Brawl boards, such as Gimpyfish62, Youko, SamuraiPanda, Mic_128, and Kokichi, among others. Where other websites’ moderators generally don’t pay attention, we do.
• The three biggest mistakes made by new posters are: Posting their idea in the wrong room, posting spam, and posting something that already exists or is common knowledge. The moderators try their best to keep the boards clean of duplicate/unnecessary threads and keep an eye for spam posts. Moderators will move threads to the correct board if you post in the wrong place, but SPAM is typically not tolerated, and you will often receive a warning or infraction for doing so, which might be the biggest change for new members of SWF. Also, if you make a thread on something that already exists, it will be locked, so please use the forum search! But do note that we aren’t trying to be mean or anything, we’re just doing our job as moderators, so don’t feel like we’re angry or something when we lock your threads.
- Have you checked these threads?
• Do you have a simple or quick question? Ask it here: http://smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=149248
• Looking for a specific thread or some specific information? If you couldn’t find it after using the search button, try this thread: http://smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=121870
- Purpose of threads
• The purpose of threads is to discuss the TOPIC OF THE THREAD. For example, in the Character Discussion room of the Brawl boards, the different character support threads are meant for discussion of the character and NOT as a social room for fans of that character. If the topic discussion gets too far off topic after subsequent moderator warnings, actions will be taken, which could even lead to the closing of the thread.
- Recommendations for good threads
• As mentioned earlier, there are certain steps that should be considered before posting a thread.
→ Have I searched to see if this topic exists on the boards?
→ Have I searched AGAIN?
→ Am I posting this in the right room?
→ Am I posting a topic that allows for real discussion?
• Here are some moderator suggestions as to what would make a good thread:
→ Obviously, if you’re going to create a thread, create something that doesn’t exist already. This cannot be stressed enough; as moderators, we lock way too many duplicate threads way too often, which could have been solved if the user typed a few words into the search button.
→ Instead of topic titles such as, “Have you ever noticed…” or “Look what I found!” or “I have a Brawl question…” only to have your title “answered” in the first post of the thread, it would be better to make it so that your primary topic is evident in the thread’s title and can be easily searched for/located in the future.
→ Develop a good first post. If your thread title is “Who thinks Mario and Sonic will make the best team in Subspace Emissary?”, your first post should not be “Discuss.” or “I think they will be, cuz they are awesome. Discuss.” In fact, ending the first post with “Discuss” is ridiculous, since that is the point of a forum. And also, try to organize your thoughts in some fashion. Nobody wants to read a wall of text.
→ Finally, post a topic that people can actually discuss. That means, believe it or not, threads based solely on opinions don’t yield that much discussion. If you made a topic called “Dedede” (do not use, it’s a bad idea), and your first post was “I just love Dedede! He is going to be top tier for sure!” there is a primary flaw with how it is constructed. Without stating your reasons why you have your opinion, and only stating the opinion itself, the only thing that people would really be able to say would be “…OK. That’s your opinion,” which doesn’t yield good discussion.
• Please take these into account when you are creating a thread on the Brawl boards: General, Character, or Stage Discussion.
- SEARCH
• The BIGGEST problem by far that new SWF members come across is that they do not use the Search function NEARLY as much as they should, so there is an extra section dedicated to this underappreciated button. You can search all of SWF using “Search” under the mushroom Calendar button at the top of the page, but it is much more effective to use the “Search this Forum” option in the upper right of the room you currently in. Plus, believe it or not, searching the first couple pages of the room by just looking at all the topics really helps things as well. Both of these really cut down on the number of duplicate threads created and it creates less of a hassle for the community as a whole, as well as better discussions. We moderators can not iterate enough how many threads are closed because new members failed to search, so please don’t be one of those people. Search, search, search!
- Reporting posts
• We moderators are very busy and appreciate it when the community points out things that need attention paid to. This can be done by reporting offensive posts (clicking the red/white triangle in the bottom-left of the post). Usually reasons such as spam topics/posts, excessive posting, flaming, dodging the censor function, offensive material, etc. are good reasons to report posts. However, there are certain guidelines that need to be taken.
→Don’t report frivolous things, please. This spams up the moderators’ email inboxes. And that’s just not nice.
→Don’t report people simply as a “revenge” tactic, or because you don’t like them. There should be a real reason whenever you click that button.
→Don’t report posts in a closed thread! This is very important. If the thread is closed, that means a moderator has already looked at the situation and dealt with it as he deems appropriate. Reporting a post in a closed room is like opening up an old wound, and that isn’t pretty.
The second FAQ included in this thread is the General Brawl Boards FAQ For New Users. Every user that is new to Smashboards should check that section out, because we’re unlike any other Smash forum on the net.
I. New Additions FAQ
- The New Boards!
Well, I'm sure many of you have noticed that the Brawl boards are much more than just General, Character, and Stage discussions now thanks to our awesome administrator Kirby King. Some of you may be a bit overwhelmed with all these new boards, so in order to reduce confusion about what goes where with these new sections, here is a little guide as to what goes where.
•General Brawl Discussion: Where you can go for a more laid-back discussion about Brawl. Want to talk about what some reviewer gave Brawl? Or what about those awful new English voice actors? Well, you can do it all in here. Also includes the Dojo Updates subforum for discussion of each update (regular members cannot post threads in that subforum).
• Brawl Character Discussion: To have a more in-depth discussion about specific characters, visit their boards here.
• Brawl Stage Discussion: Rather self explanatory, right? Discuss the stages in the game, or post the stages you make yourself!
• Brawl 1-Player Modes: Where can you talk about your new high score in the co-op homerun bat contest, or how you can collect those difficult trophies in the Subspace Emissary? Right here in this new board for the single player (and co-op) features in Brawl.
• Brawl Tactical Discussion: Discuss the finer points of gameplay in this more intense board focused on making us all better at the game, and even to discovering new techniques or gameplay mechanics. My personal favorite new board ^_^
• Brawl Online Discussion: Talk about anything online in this board! Although you thankfully don't need to worry about making entire threads just to get a decent match thanks to the Friend Finder that Smashboards is creating.
• Brawl Videos and other Media: Videos, screenshots, podcasts and more can be found and discussed in this new board.
• Spoiler-Free Zone: Well, I figure this place doesn't need much introduction, eh? Spoilers are NOT tolerated in this board, and you will be punished severely for spoiling anything!
- The Friend Finder Beta!
• The friend finder will one day become the best and quickest way to find a Brawl match online with a competent opponent. For more information on the current FF beta, see Kirby King’s announcement here: http://smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=142251
- New Servers!
• Now SWF is faster than ever thanks to the new servers. Brawl is bringing quite the influx of new members, so we’re doing our best to handle the load and still let you browse quickly without any problems.
- Much More to Come!
• Think that’s the end of the updates to Smashboards? Well, think again. Smashboards will continue evolving, changing, and adding new features for a while, so keep checking back whenever there is an update!
II. General Brawl Boards FAQ For New Users
- What Smashboards is/isn’t
• It’s very important to realize what Smashboards (often shortened to SWF which stands for Smash World Forums) is and what it is not. If you are new here, it is likely that you are accustomed the forum operations of websites like Gamefaqs, IGN, NSider2, and others. However, it is VITAL that you realize that Smashboards is run very differently than those forums, even though we welcome all new users. SWF is the central website for pretty much every professional Smash Bros. Melee player. Naturally, we get a lot of casual players and new smashers, which is awesome because the SWF community is growing. But the fact still remains that this is the top Smash Bros. forum on the internet. Many of Melee’s ‘advanced techniques’ (such as wavedashing) were originally discovered here, and the same is likely to be true in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
• Since this is the primary Smash forum on the internet, things are run differently than your average forum. There are moderators assigned to SWF’s many rooms who keep a rather consistent eye on the happenings there. They are the users with their names in red, and can be seen posting often around the boards. There are many moderators who read the Brawl boards, such as Gimpyfish62, Youko, SamuraiPanda, Mic_128, and Kokichi, among others. Where other websites’ moderators generally don’t pay attention, we do.
• The three biggest mistakes made by new posters are: Posting their idea in the wrong room, posting spam, and posting something that already exists or is common knowledge. The moderators try their best to keep the boards clean of duplicate/unnecessary threads and keep an eye for spam posts. Moderators will move threads to the correct board if you post in the wrong place, but SPAM is typically not tolerated, and you will often receive a warning or infraction for doing so, which might be the biggest change for new members of SWF. Also, if you make a thread on something that already exists, it will be locked, so please use the forum search! But do note that we aren’t trying to be mean or anything, we’re just doing our job as moderators, so don’t feel like we’re angry or something when we lock your threads.
- Have you checked these threads?
• Do you have a simple or quick question? Ask it here: http://smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=149248
• Looking for a specific thread or some specific information? If you couldn’t find it after using the search button, try this thread: http://smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=121870
- Purpose of threads
• The purpose of threads is to discuss the TOPIC OF THE THREAD. For example, in the Character Discussion room of the Brawl boards, the different character support threads are meant for discussion of the character and NOT as a social room for fans of that character. If the topic discussion gets too far off topic after subsequent moderator warnings, actions will be taken, which could even lead to the closing of the thread.
- Recommendations for good threads
• As mentioned earlier, there are certain steps that should be considered before posting a thread.
→ Have I searched to see if this topic exists on the boards?
→ Have I searched AGAIN?
→ Am I posting this in the right room?
→ Am I posting a topic that allows for real discussion?
• Here are some moderator suggestions as to what would make a good thread:
→ Obviously, if you’re going to create a thread, create something that doesn’t exist already. This cannot be stressed enough; as moderators, we lock way too many duplicate threads way too often, which could have been solved if the user typed a few words into the search button.
→ Instead of topic titles such as, “Have you ever noticed…” or “Look what I found!” or “I have a Brawl question…” only to have your title “answered” in the first post of the thread, it would be better to make it so that your primary topic is evident in the thread’s title and can be easily searched for/located in the future.
→ Develop a good first post. If your thread title is “Who thinks Mario and Sonic will make the best team in Subspace Emissary?”, your first post should not be “Discuss.” or “I think they will be, cuz they are awesome. Discuss.” In fact, ending the first post with “Discuss” is ridiculous, since that is the point of a forum. And also, try to organize your thoughts in some fashion. Nobody wants to read a wall of text.
→ Finally, post a topic that people can actually discuss. That means, believe it or not, threads based solely on opinions don’t yield that much discussion. If you made a topic called “Dedede” (do not use, it’s a bad idea), and your first post was “I just love Dedede! He is going to be top tier for sure!” there is a primary flaw with how it is constructed. Without stating your reasons why you have your opinion, and only stating the opinion itself, the only thing that people would really be able to say would be “…OK. That’s your opinion,” which doesn’t yield good discussion.
• Please take these into account when you are creating a thread on the Brawl boards: General, Character, or Stage Discussion.
- SEARCH
• The BIGGEST problem by far that new SWF members come across is that they do not use the Search function NEARLY as much as they should, so there is an extra section dedicated to this underappreciated button. You can search all of SWF using “Search” under the mushroom Calendar button at the top of the page, but it is much more effective to use the “Search this Forum” option in the upper right of the room you currently in. Plus, believe it or not, searching the first couple pages of the room by just looking at all the topics really helps things as well. Both of these really cut down on the number of duplicate threads created and it creates less of a hassle for the community as a whole, as well as better discussions. We moderators can not iterate enough how many threads are closed because new members failed to search, so please don’t be one of those people. Search, search, search!
- Reporting posts
• We moderators are very busy and appreciate it when the community points out things that need attention paid to. This can be done by reporting offensive posts (clicking the red/white triangle in the bottom-left of the post). Usually reasons such as spam topics/posts, excessive posting, flaming, dodging the censor function, offensive material, etc. are good reasons to report posts. However, there are certain guidelines that need to be taken.
→Don’t report frivolous things, please. This spams up the moderators’ email inboxes. And that’s just not nice.
→Don’t report people simply as a “revenge” tactic, or because you don’t like them. There should be a real reason whenever you click that button.
→Don’t report posts in a closed thread! This is very important. If the thread is closed, that means a moderator has already looked at the situation and dealt with it as he deems appropriate. Reporting a post in a closed room is like opening up an old wound, and that isn’t pretty.
