Communities are defined by rules, either implied or explicit. They indicate both what behavior is expected and what behavior is prohibited by its members. The HMA is no exception. Although our rules as an organization have changed significantly over the years, our rules for the expected behavior in our fleets remain largely the same. Our Rules and Regulations consist of a total of five things you shouldn’t do and five things you should do as a member of one of our fleets as well as our Fleet Standards. Although we updated and expanded the Fleet Rules as well to provide additional clarity, my focus today is on our Fleet Standards.
Our Fleet Standards are as essential as they are misunderstood. As a public Not Purple Shoot It (NPSI) fleet, these standards define what it means to be a part of us. Simply put, if you meet the standards you are an HMA Fleet and if you don’t you aren’t. As such, an understanding of these Fleet Standards is as important to the bosmangs as it is to those who choose to fly under them. Although we encourage everyone to read these rules in their entirety, for those on a time crunch here are they most significant updates to our fleet standards.
First, we have clarified what it means to be a competing organization. The HMA defines a competing organization as “any in-game or out-of-game group whose primary purpose is to coordinate public activities”. Of course, as one of our primary goals is to help find like-minded pilots, we still encourage bosmangs to include links to corp ads, corp websites, discords, or recruitment channels as long as their primary purpose is to build internal membership. As a real-world example, Nebula Mining Operations. channel would be a competing organization while the Trolls Lounge channel would not. Of course, we also encourage members to use the Hek Mining Association channel for recruitment. We also have a recruitment channel in our Discord usable by any corp administrator (requires HMASeAT authentication).
Second, we have clarified what it means for a fleet to be clearly identifiable. It was always our assumption that the folks flying fleets as part of the HMA would be equally interested in its success. However, it has become clear that there are folks who wish to take advantage of the good-will and name recognition we have developed over the years without giving back. In order to qualify as an HMA Fleet, your fleet must clearly have HMA or Hek Mining Association in the Fleet Name and must have a link to the Hek Mining Association channel in either the Fleet Description, the fleet MOTD, or both. Unless you explicitly and openly share your affiliation with the Hek Mining Association channel, your fleet is not authorized.
Finally, we have added an additional fleet requirement. HMA Fleets should have clear rules. If your fleet operates under our standard Fleet Rules a link to that page in the MOTD is more than sufficient. However, if your fleet has additional or different rules they need to be explicitly stated. For example, if your fleet does not allow ganking that needs to be made clear in your MOTD. Although the HMA is a pro-ganking organization, we understand that not all pilots are. As the bosmang, you have the final say in how your fleet operates including how it protects its people.
