What It Is

When the player base loses faith in the Head Storyteller (HST), the following procedure may be used to conduct of vote of no confidence. Should the vote pass, the HST will step down from the role of Storyteller.

A vote of no confidence can lead to hurt feelings and other interpersonal drama, so it should never be treated frivolously, let alone as a means of punishment or revenge. This policy is a last resort and should be respected as such.

Before the Vote

Players who have serious concerns regarding the current HST should bring those concerns forward, involving the Player Representative or other Storytellers as needed. If the staff can resolve the concerns in a timely manner, no further action needs to take place.

Initiating the Vote

If five or more players have all brought concerns forward, but they feel those concerns have not been appropriately resolved in a timely manner, they may jointly ask the Player Representative or one of the other STs to initiate a vote of no confidence. The players must provide, in writing, the specific issues that they feel are unresolved. The Player Representative or ST they approached will check to make sure these concerns have in fact been brought forward before, and are not new issues.

If they find this to be the case, a vote of no confidence will be held.

Announcing the Vote

The Player Representative or ST approached first notifies the entire staff that the vote qualifies to occur. Then they will post to the TCGarou list announcing the upcoming vote of no confidence. They will also post the reasons the vote was requested (as provided earlier by the players in writing).  

If list discussion of the vote becomes heated or uncivil, the Storytellers will lock down the TCGarou list until after the vote. Neither Storytellers nor players are permitted to browbeat, manipulate, or threaten other players to vote a certain way.

Eligibility to Vote

Only active players are eligible to vote. You are an active player if these three points are true:

• You have played at least three games in our chronicle, AND
• You have played a character within the last three months of our chronicle, AND
• You have at present a character in our chronicle, or you are in the process of creating a new character with the intent to play in our chronicle.

The Storytellers also qualify as active players, even though they may not have or play a character.

Conducting the Vote

The vote will occur at the next TCGarou game after a minimum of three days have passed since the TCGarou list posting.

The question put to the players will be, "Do you have confidence in the HST?" The responses will be Yes or No.

Only active players (as described above) are eligible to vote. A player may abstain from the vote by not submitting a vote.

Active players may vote early by e-mailing their vote to the Player Representative by noon on the Friday prior to the game. The Player Rep will track who voted early and tally these votes. The Player Rep will bring to game a list naming the early voters (but not how they voted). They will bring a separate tally of these votes.

At game check-in, active players who have are not on the early voting list may collect a paper ballot. They must deliver their marked ballot to the Player Rep by 8:00 PM. No further votes will be accepted after that time.

Deciding the Vote

At 8:00 PM, the Player Rep and one ST will tally the votes and combine these numbers with the early voting tally.

The vote requires a simple majority.

Those counting the votes will not share the results with anyone, particularly the HST, prior to the end of the game.

The result of the vote will be announced at the end of the game, including the number of votes for each side.

Outcomes of the Vote

If the majority vote is Yes (in favor of the HST) then the HST will continue in their role.

If the majority vote is No (against the HST) then the HST will step down from the role of Storyteller entirely, and they will not be permitted to become a Storyteller again for six months after the vote. The remaining STs will appoint a new HST.

Limitations on Frequency

After a vote of no confidence has been conducted, no matter its outcome, no such vote may be conducted again for six months. A vote in favor of the HST is a vote of confidence for that period, whereas the opposite outcome means a new HST will need some time to adapt.

Any time a new HST steps up, six months must pass before they can be subjected to a vote of no confidence.