Escalation

Conflict, Escalation, and the Use of Force

"…long as there's two people left on the planet, someone is gonna want someone dead." ~ An unknown sniper.

Escalation is defined in the Oxford Dictionary as “an increase in the intensity or seriousness of something; an intensification.” On the NEV Northern Light, we specifically refer to escalation when we refer to a conflict boiling over into violence. It isn’t something that can be easily drawn into a formula, as each situation is as unique as the people involved. Many conflicts will never escalate beyond a few heated words, but this page will help to guide you towards this server’s expectations of you when those words ultimately fail.

This guide is only meant to govern In-Character (IC) actions. If you find yourself in a conflict with another player Out-Of-Character (OOC), then we recommend that you remove yourself from that situation if possible. Do not be afraid to notify an admin if you feel a conversation or situation is getting out of hand and may require us to step in.

Conflict can be categorized into four stages, Peaceful, Passive, Aggressive, and Assaultive. These stages are defined in more detail below, but represent the normal curve of the escalation of a conflict from its outset to the use of violence. Some conflicts may never progress beyond passive, while others might start at aggressive or even assaultive.

• Peaceful: There is very little conflict. Everyone is still quite happy to work together and aside from the occasional verbal jab, no one is actively seeking to escalate the conflict.
• Passive: The conflict in this stage is more obvious, harsher words are being used and the participants are both actively hostile towards one another, but no actual threats have been uttered.
• Agressive: In this stage, weapons are likely drawn, or at least kept ready, one or more participants are likely no longer trying to de-escalate the situation. Direct threats are almost certainly being thrown around, and participants are almost definitely expecting or prepared for further escalation. At this stage, participants may also be actively fighting one another, but the conflict is still mostly passive, likely involving a lot of shoving or grabbing as compliance is attempted to be forced.
• Assaultive: The final stage of conflict, where threats become direct action. Fistfights, gunfights, duels. Whatever the cause of the conflict, it has finally boiled over into direct, violent action with intent to harm and/or kill.
  
  

From the perspective of the server, it is very unlikely that any conflict will warrant admin attention unless it becomes assaultive, or is very clearly heading that way. When the admins are trying to determine whether a situation is considered an appropriate escalation or not, they utilize a metric based upon four “pillars:” Motive, Engagement, Negotiation, and Force. These metrics are not hard and fast rules, and we cannot expect every player to fully fulfill every metric in every engagement. However making an effort to adhere to these standards is a good way to ensure that you are following the spirit of the server. At the very least you should be prepared to answer the four questions asked by each of these metrics:

• Motive: What actions led to this engagement? Your character should have a robust, and well thought out motive to escalate to violence. This could be from one egregious act (You killed my father), or from a thousand tiny aggravations that have happened over multiple shifts. Per our server rules, if you are escalating a conflict to lethal force, then the reason why you are doing so must come from a specific incident that occured on the shift in question.
• Engagement: How clear was it that the scene was escalating to violence? Before initiating combat it is preferred that there be a scene with interaction between those involved. You may be aggressive to start off, but you should avoid putting your target on a finite timer. If you feel a timer is required, then you should be generous with it, and do not adhere to strict seconds. Allow your target a chance to respond before moving to violence. Do not shoot a player for not complying immediately. You must attempt to do a /say with intention or a robust emote that illustrates that you are moving from RP to mechanics. Drawing and firing wordlessly is almost always considered poor escalation and poor RP.
• Negotiation: Was there any attempt to solve the situation another way? It is preferred that both parties make an attempt to get what they want through use of words. Coercion, intimidation, blackmail and barter are excellent means to achieve this goal. At times this will be impossible, as one party demands a price too great. However, if negotiation was attempted, that can often fulfill the requirements of “engagement” above.
• Force: Was the force applied proportional to the situation? There is no need to outright kill a man for passively resisting, nor is there a need to leave someone alive who has proven that they are willing to use lethal force upon you or your allies.