Community channels are a feature of your metachannel faster-than-light communicator. They allow pilots to create their own communicator channel with their own conditions for membership. The number that you can join is limited. You can see which channels you have joined with the INFO command.
Using a Channel
The channel acts the same as the General and Tactical channels. You can talk on it by typing TR COMM, TR [your channel name], TR [the channel's tag], or, if you're old-fashioned, TR ORG, followed by your message.
You can toggle community channels on and off using an option available via the SET command on your communicator. This will toggle ALL of your community channels.
Managing Channels
Community channels can be created, joined, left, and otherwise managed at the Community Channel Center in your capital spaceport by using the MENU command there.
Creating a Channel
As long as you have a free slot for a community channel and have at least 1,000 aggregate points and 25 million EAOS credits, you can create your own new community channel.
Your channel name can be anything you wish, within reason. You can also set a two-to-five character channel tag to be used as shorthand with the TRANSMIT command.
Each channel must maintain at least three active members or it will be automatically removed.
Channel Permissions
A channel has one administrator (usually the person who created it) and any moderators that the administrator has promoted. Moderators have permission to do everything with the channel except delete it or promote/demote other moderators, so be cautious when promoting!
Channel Conditions
Channels may have inclusion conditions, exclusion conditions, both, or neither.
If you meet ANY of a channel's exclusion conditions, you may not join it or apply to join it, but a moderator can still invite you personally.
If you meet ALL of a channel's inclusion conditions, you may join it immediately without needing to apply.
If the channel has no inclusion conditions set or you don't meet all of them, you may apply to join it, and a channel moderator will review your request.
Policy Note
Community channels exist only for their social aspects. Ideally, a channel is based around a specific interest or concept. Channels should not turn into a replacement of the General channel, with every applicant being accepted almost by default unless they are one of the handful of people you wish to exclude. If you find that almost every currently connected player is on your channel, then it is probably a channel that should not exist.
In terms of game mechanics, the only divisions that should exist between players are their different alliances. Therefore, community channels should not be habitually used to organize short term mechanics-based activities (missions, decoy beacon drops, RATS nest exterminations, ground force raids, and so on), as this practice effectively creates new mechanical divisions, encourages metagaming, and harms player retention. Instead, organize these on the Tactical channel or your alliance channels, or use the CrewFinder tool. Thank you!
