Briarmont Event Guidelines

Events are part of what makes Briarmont feel like a living town. A farmers’ market, a club night, a college mixer, a charity drive: these are the moments that pull community members into the same place at the same time and give the town its rhythm. These guidelines exist to keep that rhythm coordinated, so events have room to breathe, don’t collide with one another, and stay grounded in the setting.

Like the Roleplay Guidelines, this is a practical document. It describes how events are planned, scheduled, and run in Briarmont, and where Briarmont staff step in to keep things fair and consistent.

Event Types

The following are the event types referenced throughout these guidelines. The list is not exhaustive, and Briarmont staff may recognize others as the community grows.

Community Events (town-wide celebrations, seasonal events, charity drives, awareness campaigns)
Oakridge College Events (college activities, classes, and student organization events)
Group and Organization Events (recognized community groups, clubs, and civic organizations)
Business and Venue Events (clubs, bars, cafés, shops, live music, and other commercial spaces)
Private and Group-Restricted Events (resident-hosted or access-limited gatherings)
Pop-Up Events (spontaneous, individually arranged gatherings)

Apart from Community Events, which sit above everything, the rest are handled even-handedly, with the Event Priority section below setting out the order Briarmont uses when events conflict. Any of them can be in-character or out-of-character; that’s a flag on the event, not a separate type.

Community Events

Community Events are the large, Sim-organized events that bring Briarmont together: seasonal celebrations, charity drives, awareness campaigns, and similar efforts. What sets them apart from a single group’s event is scale and coordination. They are organized at the community level, often in partnership with outside affiliations, and frequently built around fixed external dates.

For that reason, Community Events hold the highest priority of all event types. When the community rallies behind one of these, everything else is secondary, and community members, groups, and businesses are all expected to support and accommodate it, rescheduling or adjusting their own activities if a conflict arises.

A charity event or seasonal gathering run by a single group on its own initiative is a Group Event rather than a Community Event, unless Briarmont staff are coordinating it at the community level.

Event Planning Procedure

Scheduling runs through the Briarmont Discord, which syncs to the Briarmont Google Calendar and the Briarmont website. Recurring events may need to be toggled on the calendar to repeat.

Event Planners

Event planning in Briarmont is done by Event Planners. Any group on Briarmont’s group list may elect up to two Event Planners to represent it in events. That applies to every kind of group, whether a civic organization, a club, a college group, or a business, including rental businesses. How a rental business becomes recognized in its own right is handled through a separate process; what matters here is that a recognized business plans events on the same footing as any other group.

Event Planners propose their group’s events, coordinate scheduling with one another, and acknowledge each other’s events to keep the calendar clear of conflicts. Briarmont staff can also plan and coordinate events directly.

What Goes Through Planning

Not every gathering needs the full thread-and-acknowledgment process, and not everything belongs on the community calendar. The test rests on two things: the location and the stream.

An event goes through planning and onto Events, the community calendar, if either is true:

It uses a public or shared Briarmont location.
It uses the region media stream or a DJ.

These are the events that compete for shared space and the stream, so they need a thread, peer acknowledgment, and a place on the calendar. Turnout doesn’t decide this. A members-only event in a public Briarmont space still goes through planning, while a packed gathering in a group’s own space does not.

An event stays internal, tracked on the group’s own calendar, when it’s held somewhere the group controls, whether its own parcel in Briarmont or a region outside the community, and it runs without the shared stream. Meetings, classes, rehearsals, and closed gatherings usually fall here, and they need no thread or acknowledgment. Groups are free to hold closed events off-community this way; those gatherings draw on none of Briarmont’s shared resources, so Briarmont’s own events keep priority and the off-community event reserves nothing here.

A group is welcome to list an internal event on the community calendar for visibility, but listed that way it’s informational only. It doesn’t reserve the slot, and anything that goes through planning takes priority over it.

Starting a Thread

A thread in the event-planning channel is how you stake a claim on a time and start the conversation. It is not a finished submission, and you don’t need every detail worked out before you post. In fact, you shouldn’t wait until you do. The whole point of the thread is to put a proposed event in front of other planners early, so timing and conflicts can be sorted out together.

To open a thread, you only need the basics:

A working name for the event
Whether it’s in-character (IC) or out-of-character (OOC)
A proposed date and time
A rough idea of the location
A sentence or two on what it is

That’s enough to put a stake in the ground. Post it, and the discussion takes it from there.

Whether an event is IC or OOC is just another attribute on the thread, flagged up front and weighed by planners alongside time and location, not a separate process.

Filling In the Details

As the event takes shape in the thread, the following should come together before it goes on the calendar. None of it has to be in the first post; this is what a thread gathers on its way to becoming a scheduled event.

Name of the event
Date and time (with time zone)
Location
Details of the event
Whether the region media stream is required (DJs, music streams, and similar)
- If a DJ is playing, the thread needs a screenshot of an open Stream Time Block request covering the full duration of the event. This is the pending request, not an approval. The request is approved and locked only once the event itself clears.
- The DJ named in the request must already be certified by the Stream Governance Group, so the request only ever waits on the event’s schedule, never on vetting. See the DJs and Media Streams section below for how certification works.
Expected attendance scope, whether the event is group-specific, open to community groups, or open to the public
A 16:9 image for the Discord event announcement (required)
A 2:3 image for in-world advertising (optional, but strongly preferred)

Thread Template

Open a thread with just the top section filled in, then add the rest as it firms up:

PROPOSED EVENT (enough to start the thread)
**Event Name:**
**IC or OOC:**
**Date & Time (with time zone):**
**Location:**
**Details:**

TO CONFIRM BEFORE SCHEDULING (fill in through discussion)
**Media Stream Required:** Yes / No
- DJ Name (must be certified):
- Stream Time Block Request Screenshot (submitted, pending approval): (attach image)

**Attendance Scope:** Group-Specific / Community Groups / Open to Public
- If Group-Specific, which group(s):

**16:9 Image for Discord Event:** (attach image)
**2:3 Image for In-World Ad:** (attach image, optional)

Review and Scheduling

A thread becomes a scheduled event through its peers, not through a staff sign-off. Here’s how it moves:

Discussion. Other Event Planners look over the proposed time and location and raise anything that conflicts with what they’re planning. Most of the time this is quick. If there is a clash, the planners work it out together in the thread.
Acknowledgment. An event is ready for the calendar once at least two other Event Planners have acknowledged it, confirming the time and place don’t conflict with anything on their end. A reaction or a short note in the thread is enough. And if no one raises a conflict within 48 hours of the proposal, it can be scheduled regardless, so a quiet thread never holds an event up.
Scheduling. With the details filled in and the acknowledgments (or the no-conflict window) met, the event is published to Events, the on-the-books calendar, which syncs to the Google Calendar and the Briarmont website. The link is posted back in the planning thread. If the event uses a DJ, clearing it is what green-lights the pending Stream Time Block request, which the Stream Governance Group then approves and locks for the slot.

Briarmont staff only step in when a conflict can’t be settled between planners. An acknowledgment is a peer confirming your event works, not an authority granting permission.

Event Priority

Briarmont treats most events as equals. A college mixer, a townie group’s gathering, a club night, and a private dinner all carry the same weight, and no category automatically outranks another. The one exception sits at the top.

Community Events always take precedence. Because they are organized at the community level and often tied to external partners and fixed dates, nothing may be scheduled against them. Everything else yields.

The order Briarmont uses to resolve conflicts:

Community Events. Highest priority. All other events yield, reschedule, or adjust to avoid conflicting with them.
All other scheduled events, including Oakridge College, group and organization, business and venue, and private and group-restricted events, whether IC or OOC. These are peers. When two of them want the same time and place, the event scheduled first holds the slot, and organizers are expected to coordinate in good faith through the planning thread. Briarmont staff will mediate if needed.
Pop-Up events.
Informational listings. Internal events posted only for visibility, as described under What Goes Through Planning. They reserve nothing and yield to any scheduled event.

Scheduling Rules

Scheduling Terms

Prime Time refers to Friday from 4pm SLT onward, all day Saturday, and all day Sunday. Non-Prime Time refers to any other time or day. (SLT is Second Life Time, the platform’s Pacific clock.)

General Rules

Events may be posted to the calendar no more than one month in advance. Community Events may be posted earlier with Briarmont staff approval.
Any group may schedule up to 3 Prime Time events per month, with unlimited Non-Prime Time events. Community Events are exempt from this limit.
Recurring events, such as a weekly market or a regular event in a shared space, may be scheduled as ongoing, with the understanding that staff may ask for them to be moved if a higher-priority event needs the slot.
If nothing follows an event on the calendar, the host may carry it on at their discretion. If a class, meeting, or other event is scheduled immediately after, the event must wrap up at its end time. As a courtesy, the host should let guests know what is coming up next in that space.

Special Event Type Rules

Pop-Up Events

Pop-Up events are usually arranged on short notice by community members who aren’t running events regularly. Anyone wanting to hold a Pop-Up should still ask an Event Planner or Briarmont staff to open a thread in the event-planning channel, so the event is documented and its basics, such as timing, location, and stream use, are on record. Because Pop-Ups are short-notice, the Event Planner or staff member who opens the thread clears it on the spot rather than waiting on the usual acknowledgment window.

To protect turnout for events already on the calendar, Pop-Ups should not be announced right before a scheduled event, which can cause event fatigue and thin out attendance. Where Pop-Ups become a regular thing, Briarmont staff may ask that they be coordinated and scheduled like any other event going forward.

The stream is the one part of a Pop-Up that can’t always be sorted on the spot. It still needs a certified DJ and a Stream Time Block request through the Stream Governance Group, just like any event, with the block locking once the Pop-Up is cleared. If that can’t be lined up in time, the Pop-Up can still go ahead without the stream.

Private and Group-Restricted Events

During a Group-Restricted booking, another event may be scheduled in the same slot, but please be considerate of the restricted booking in terms of attendance, location, and any shared media stream.

Locations

Events should be held wherever best fits the theme, audience, and scale of what’s planned. Rather than maintain a fixed list of approved venues, Briarmont keeps this open: a location works if it suits the event and respects the rules below.

Community Events may use any location across any region as needed, and may reserve more than one at a time in coordination with Briarmont staff.

For all other events, the following location types are generally available:

Public, ground-level community spaces, such as parks, plazas, beaches, and commons, where the event won’t block ordinary access or movement.
Designated event spaces or platforms set aside for hosting.
Community-owned venues, with approval from the appropriate manager beforehand. Where no manager exists, Briarmont staff may approve use of a community-owned space.
Group-controlled spaces, with the permission of the group that holds them.
A community member’s own rented parcel, at the tenant’s discretion.

High-traffic public spaces are effectively first-come, so book early through the planning thread. If you aren’t sure whether a location suits your event, Briarmont staff can point you to a good fit.

Land Impact Limits

Land Impact (LI) is the resource cost a build places on a region. Event organizers should make every effort to stay under the limit and to use low-LI items in their builds and decor.

Across Briarmont’s regions, events may use up to 500 LI, or up to 1000 LI with Briarmont staff approval.

Limits for floats, temporary tents, and similar setups are set by Briarmont staff at the time and communicated to the organizer, typically in the 25 to 75 LI range.

Briarmont staff may waive or raise these limits case-by-case in exceptional circumstances when asked. Community Events may be granted expanded limits at staff discretion to suit the scope of the event.

Setup and Teardown

Events should be set up no more than 48 hours before the event date, and ideally as close to it as possible. Community Events may be granted longer setup windows with Briarmont staff approval.
Builds and decor should be sized for the space, blended into the location, and grounded in the setting, in keeping with Briarmont’s standard of grounded realism.
All event builds and decor should be removed within 12 hours after the event ends.
Where another event is scheduled in the same space, don’t set up until the previous event’s build has been removed, to conserve Land Impact.

Event Rez Access

Most groups already have rez access tied to their parcel or holding. The group’s rez system allows a subtenant list of up to three members in addition to the contract holder, and these people can rez on the group’s behalf for general use. For their usual events, groups should rely on this existing access rather than requesting more.

Where an event needs temporary rez access beyond that, up to two ad-hoc rez-permit roles may be requested per event. These are granted through the Land group, must be documented in the event planning thread, and are revoked once the event has concluded.

Cleaning up after an event is a responsibility, not an optional courtesy. Briarmont staff may return or remove builds and objects that are left up, abandoned, disruptive, or out of step with the setting. Briarmont is not responsible for the loss of rezzed items, including no-copy objects, returned or removed during cleanup.

DJs and Media Streams

A region’s media stream is a shared resource and must be coordinated between events. The Stream Governance Group governs both the stream schedule and the certification of DJs. DJs are a valued part of what makes events feel alive, and the expectations below exist to keep the stream running smoothly and fairly. Briarmont is a roleplay community first, and DJing supports that rather than the other way around.

Certification

Any Briarmont event that features a DJ must use a DJ certified by the Stream Governance Group. This is the one formal approval an event needs, and it covers the DJ, not the event itself.

Certification is handled by the Stream Governance Group through its own process, and new DJs and new radio streams are vetted before they go live. Certification of external DJs is left to the discretion of the Group.

DJ Expectations

Certified DJs are expected to:

Treat DJing as a privilege that supports the community, staying active and keeping in mind that Briarmont is a roleplay setting first.
Change a region’s stream only when authorized to do so. Only Briarmont staff, Event Planners, and the certified DJ scheduled for an event should change a land stream.
Coordinate around other events. Check for anything ongoing or upcoming and clear it with the scheduled event DJ before putting in a stream.
Avoid swapping the stream during another event or scene that relies on its own audio without clearing it first.
Include DJ names in event requests, so the thread and schedule are clear about who is playing.
Never put in a stream on behalf of an uncertified DJ, or for anyone but themselves or another certified DJ, without authorization from the Group.

A group that wants to add its own DJ should have them contact the Stream Governance Group to be vetted and added to the roster.

Tip Jars and Attribution

Briarmont certifies two kinds of DJs, community DJs who are members and external DJs from outside, and tips are handled a little differently for each. Either way, DJs keep their own earnings.

Community DJs use the Sim-provided attribution script in place of a separate jar. It keeps their tips flowing to them while handling Briarmont’s attribution automatically, so there’s nothing extra to set up.

External DJs keep all of their tips through their own jar. The event simply needs a Sim-placed Briarmont tip jar set up alongside it, with every donation to that jar going to Briarmont. As a condition of performing, an external DJ agrees to promote the Briarmont jar equally with their own and to encourage guests to tip both.

This keeps Briarmont supported without an external performer ever feeling the region is taking a cut of their earnings.

Strikes

DJ conduct is enforced by the Stream Governance Group through a simple strike system:

First strike: a warning and a 48-hour suspension from DJing.
Second strike: a second warning and a one-week suspension.
Third strike: certification is revoked.

Strikes clear three months after the date of the violation. The Stream Governance Group may set the ladder aside and act immediately for severe violations, and Briarmont staff back the Group up where needed.

Stream Scheduling and Priority

A certified DJ submits a Stream Time Block request to the Stream Governance Group for the event’s time, and that pending request travels with the event thread as proof. Because the DJ is already certified, the request only ever waits on the event clearing, never on vetting. Once the event is scheduled, the Group approves and locks the block for that slot.

Community Events have priority for stream use during their event times. All other events yield stream access to a Community Event.
Scheduled events have priority for stream use during their event times.
Pop-Up events need to clear stream use with the Stream Governance Group before going ahead.
Organizers should confirm stream availability when scheduling events in shared locations.
The stream should be returned to its default after the event ends.
Where stream use conflicts, event priority decides who has access.

Advertising

Community members should be given fair notice of an event. Publishing it to Events on the Briarmont Discord puts it on the calendar with its announcement image, and from there the word should also go out to the relevant in-world Briarmont group(s).

A few things worth keeping in mind:

Advertise as early as is reasonable so people have time to plan and turn up.
The required 16:9 image from the event thread is used for the Discord event announcement. The optional 2:3 image, if provided, is used for in-world advertising. AI-generated imagery is fine.
Date, time, location, and theme or attire are usually the minimum an ad needs to carry.

A reminder may go out shortly before the event, around an hour ahead, and again when it starts.

Community Events should get prominent, sustained advertising across every available channel, including Discord announcements, in-world group notices, and in-world signage, to give the whole community a chance to take part.

Briarmont Staff Discretion

Not every situation can be planned for in advance. Briarmont staff may waive or adjust any part of these guidelines or limits at their discretion to keep events running smoothly and fairly. Community Events may receive broader waivers or exemptions where that best supports the community’s shared goals.