Brothers in Arms Community

Policies and Rules

Objective: To codify all SOPs and Policies that exist within BIA to one easily understandable document.

Introduction    3

Community Rules & Policies    3

Community Policies    3

Chain of Command    3

For Standard Players:    3

For Departmental Staff:    4

Slotting Up for a Mission/Event    4

English Speaking Policy    4

Teamspeak Policy    4

Recruitment Policy    5

Media Policy    5

Leave of Absence Policy    5

Interview Policy    5

Unit Creation Policy    6

Report a Player Policy    6

Promotion Policy    6

Joint Operation Policy    6

Disciplinary Policy    6

Arma 3 Rules & Policies    7

Arma 3 Policies    7

Sign Up Policy    7

Joining the Arma 3 Server(s)    7

10 Minutes Before Policy    7

Arma 3 Rules    8

Standard Operational Procedures - Arma 3    8

Definition    8

Slotting and Planing Stage:    8

Briefing in Base:    8

Self Initiative in the Event of Leaders Death    9

OPFOR Equipment & Rules    9

Removal from Mission and Operations    10

Introduction

BIA (Brothers in Arms) was solely formed to deliver an authentic and fun experience for Milsim enthusiasts. We cover the Milsim spectrum with games like Arma 3 and DCS where we try to maintain an immersive and atmospheric representation of WW2, Vietnam and modern era battles and war stories from the various sides and factions. The following document explains the policies and rules for Brother in Arms for all aspects of the community and the game we play within it. If you are looking for details on the community and its game please head to the Brother in Arms - Introduction & Information Package. 

Community Rules & Policies

Community Policies

Chain of Command

Chain of Command is important with any form of business or structure military or not. Within Brother in Arms, the chain of command is the same across all departments and games to ensure it is easy to understand and follow. The Chain of Command within the community is as follows. Breaking the Chain of Command will lead to disciplinary action.

For Standard Players:

For Departmental Staff:

Slotting Up for a Mission/Event

Anyone above a department head reserves the right to move you or remove you from an operation without a specific reason. Mission design may rely on certain roles being filled by Specialist persons for certain roles. E.g. Machine Gunners or Platoon Commanders. Obviously if you are playing Arma 3 the 10 minute rule applies, further information can be found here.

English Speaking Policy

Members of the community are expected to speak good verbal English during official events and community chats. The only exception to this is within sub units such as PAB or discord lounge channels where all members speak that language.  If this is not feasible, BIA reserves the right to remove anyone who does not meet this requirement.    

Teamspeak Policy

When a user connects to the teamspeak, the member or player is expected to use the same name they use on all parts of BIA (website, discord etc), and remain aware of the rules and follow them the best as possible. Users are also expected to be silent 20 minutes before the operation or event begins to allow command and management to organize quickly and effectively. The server can also be joined at this point unless stated otherwise. 

Recruitment Policy

Recruitment within BIA is split into two different stages, you got recruitment through Management and peer to peer recruitment. Community Manager(s) are in charge of ensuring the standard of recruitment on the high levels through discord, Arma Clans, Steam, Reddit and other forms and are to conduct interviews on request from players wishing to become Trial members within the community. Peer to Peer recruitment is allowed, we ask you to hand this person the introduction and information package found here. If you have any questions please, direct them to the Community Manager(s). 

Media Policy

Media Policy is split into official BIA media and user generated content. User generated content is very relaxed on rules, screenshots can be uploaded/published however can not contain the official BIA logo and BIA reserves the right to use these images, if required. User generated videos must remain on unlisted until reviewed by the General Management and Media Team.

 

 For official Media Partners, screenshots must be in at least 1920x1080 pixels and contain the BIA logo in the bottom right. Videos must be in a 1920x1080 pixel format and use a similar naming structure unless authorized otherwise: BIA | ARMA 3 | Title (TAGS to be added).

 

To become an official media partner/representative, a user must generate a varying amount of content for the community to be reviewed by the General Manager and Media Team.  

Leave of Absence Policy

Each member can take a leave of absence up to 3 months a year. To certify he is on a leave he must post it on the relevant section of the team Discord, where he will specify the exact period he will be on a leave. The Commander or the second in command of his game will answer underneath the post if they approve the leave. If he returns earlier he posts again in the same section of the forum. While he is on a leave he does not lose his administrative position. If a member goes on a leave without applying at the team forum then he is unjustifiably absent. To Be Reviewed

Interview Policy

Interviews are to be conducted by a Community Management if within 24 hours you have not been contacted, please contact the Community Manager and in the extreme circumstance, contact the General Manager.During the interview, you will be asked a series of questions that are found in the public domain therefore outside of GDPR and Data Protection, and is stored in a centralized database with limited access from unauthorized accounts. This data does not get forwarded to anyone else and is only used to track attendance and accounts connected to the website. The interview process can be found here.

Unit Creation Policy

Requesting a custom unit to fall under the BIA banner for example Polish Assault Brigade (PAB), it requires at least 1 month within the community as a member and has at least 10 people interested in taking part in events. You must also have a name, picture, information sheet, roster/attendance tracker and modpack, created and ready. Your unit will be placed on a 1 month probation, you must show that the unit is successful for it to remain a part of the BIA structure. Brother in Arms will provide a server, tags and a discord section to talk on.  

Report a Player Policy

Reporting a player is a simple process. The community works under the principle of evidence such as videos, images or audio is required for punishment or several eye-witnesses with collaborating stories. Reporting a player or Trial Members will be directly handled by the Game Commanders of where the offense took place. For any official BIA member, a report must be filled to the relevant Department Head, if none are available or unable to issue any disciplinary action, it must be passed to a Game Commander, if deemed relevant by the Game Commanders will be passed to HQ to review also. Breaking the Chain of Command will lead to disciplinary action.

Promotion Policy

Every 6 months, every member is eligible for a promotion to one rank greater. Rank represents time in service within the community and in the promotion month; you will be promoted automatically one rank higher, the rank structure found here.

Joint Operation Policy

WIP

Disciplinary Policy

WIP

Arma 3 Rules & Policies

Arma 3 Policies

Sign Up Policy

Signing up to an event for Arma 3, is very simple and the how to join/sign up process can be found here as we will not be covering that area in this section. When signing up to an event the following slots are off limits to any member without authorization from the Head of that Department to join that slot or who is not part of that department for example Pilots or Medics unless stated otherwise by HQ or the mission maker. The list of departments can be found here. The off limit roles are:

Medical Slots e.g. Medic, Doctor or the military equivalent. 

Pilot/Co Pilot Slots. Crew can be taken unless stated.

Company Commander (Coy CO), Platoon Commander (Plt Co), Platoon 2iC, Squad Leader (SL) or Team Leader (TL).

Specialist Roles such as Machine Gunner, Sniper, AA/AT Operator (Ask Head of Specialist or Commanders at a last resort).

To be continued.

Some missions are planes only or boats only etc and therefore any slot can be taken, you are advised to talk to the relevant department or Arma Commanders for information on the slotting for that mission specifically. 

Joining the Arma 3 Server(s)

1. Roughly 20-30 minutes before the operation starts you are expected to join the TeamSpeak server and start up Arma 3, you can talk with others but if a staff member wants to get your attention please remain quiet.

2. Join into the server and select the same slot that you picked on the website unless instructed otherwise.

3. Wait for the mission to start, don’t try to load into the mission before it is ready.

4. Once the mission starts you will move to the briefing screen showing a map of the mission, DO NOT click continue as the briefing will be done while on this screen, remain quiet at this time so the commander can brief you on the op details.

5. Once the mission is loaded, find your assigned squad, either line up or group up behind your squad leader, and listen to your squad leader for your instructions.

10 Minutes Before Policy

The 10 minutes before the operation is the time window for any slot which is not filled to be taken by a community member present in the operation. This means if member A signs up to be a Grenadier of Alpha and does not turn up 10 minutes before the mission is due to start, he is liable for his slot to be taken by another member. If member A does then arrive late, he must slot into a different slot. 

Arma 3 Rules

All members are to stay on teamspeak until the mission has ended to ensure attendance is secured. Members are to also stay in the Arma 3 Operation until the mission has ended or with an appropriate excuse be allowed to exit and wait on the Teamspeak 3 Briefing Channel for debrief. 

 

All members of the BIA are expected during and at the ending of missions to prevent friendly fire as best as possible. This includes but not limited to shooting friendlies at the end of a mission. By doing this, a group or one will be punished.

The Arma 3 Rules section has been written by Frenki and Myself. This section like the rest of the document is subject to change, any changes to the SOP will be highlighted. 

Standard Operational Procedures - Arma 3

Definition

The Standard Operational Procedures (SOPs) below are a set of rules and instructions, established by parties within BiA, 

Slotting and Planing Stage:

During the planning stage all members are to stay silent and disciplined. Everyone should stay with their sound turned on and listen while in the briefing room and on map. Discipline and seriousness must be maintained in this crucial period, so that each individual soldier and his superior can better understand what is required of them and what they can expect.

Rushing, scribbling on the map, noise and similar frivolity are undesirable and counter-productive and will not be tolerated.

(More Information Can be found here: LINK)

Briefing in Base:

When spawned it is forbidden to use mouse and keyboard for 60 seconds. After that all players need to turn on free look (Double press ALT key) and to stay in the same position where they spawned.

Check your equipment and set your freq.

SL introduces to Squad give out call-signs, pairs (battle buddies), standard marching/fighting formation and do the radio check, after which he will join the PL for Briefing, while TL will take over, and introduce himself.

When briefed SL will return and brief his squad, after which squad will move out.

The strictest warning and possible REMOVAL FROM THE MISSION is foreseen for such violations!

Self Initiative in the Event of Leaders Death

In the event of the death of a superior leader, the first leader under him is obliged to take command over the unit. In the hierarchy, the leaders who take on roles are: Company Commander > Platoon Leader > Squad Leader > Team Leader > Non leaders. Only in case of death of all superior leaders, non leading roles are allowed to take over command over their unit. In case of separation from their unit or main forces, individuals are strictly forbidden to perform actions on their own. It is primary to establish a connection with the leading element and seek further instructions.

OPFOR Equipment & Rules

It is strictly forbidden to take off or change the uniform, as the basic identification of the players on the battlefield.

It is strictly forbidden to take enemy weapons without the approval of the Squad Leader who is obliged to inform the others.

It is strictly forbidden to take and eavesdrop on enemy radios.

It is strictly forbidden to take medium and heavy ATs, as well as snipers, machine guns from killed enemies or friendlies, if these weapons are not in the description of your role on the mission or otherwise without the approval of a superior.

(Equipment rules may be changed for mission purposes.)

Removal from Mission and Operations

For the purposes of implementing these rules and controlling discipline on the mission, the following members have the authority and obligation to remove problematic players from the mission:

 

SL - who is the superior of the problematic member.

PL or Commander - Who commands the entire operation.

Mission maker - Who is often the Zeus of the mission.

 

In practice, the greatest responsibility will fall on SLs and TLs, who will be primarily responsible for the discipline and seriousness of the people under their command , and especially new, inexperienced members.

 

All members are obliged to respect the authority of their superiors, regardless of personal feelings or rank in the community, and by that is meant the primacy of speech within said constructs.

 

Older, more experienced members are obliged to help their superiors maintain order and to set an example (and, if necessary, personal intervention! ) do not allow the noisemakers, whatever their rank, to undermine collective discipline and seriousness during the mission, as well as the authority of the superior!

 

When a player is removed from the mission by any said figure mentioned above, you must inform HQ through the General or Community Managers. Through a message to them, the reason for their removal from the mission and preferably with some sort of evidence or eye witnesses. 

 

Direct undermining and questioning the authority of the superior, during the mission, is STRICTLY FORBIDDEN!

 

All possible remarks, comments and personal opinions should be presented strictly after the mission , at the Debriefing where the impressions and comments of all members about the played mission will be summarized.