You have created a wonderful community here, and I'm glad that you have used the premise of the Battle School so creatively. Up to now, you have worked out your own rules and have been led by volunteers who put in extra time making sure things worked smoothly. I am grateful for their help over the years.

Now I'd like to introduce to you a new Forum Arbiter, Cuchulain, a good and trusted friend of mine. Unlike previous forum leaders, Cuchulain has not been (and does not intend to be) a participant in the actual Battle School community. He will be speaking here with my voice, as host of this online community, and he will serve as liaison between me and you.

Cuchulain, like me, believes that the rules and customs you have developed over time are good ones that should be maintained, and he will help you continue the creative and open community you have made together. This means that if, from time to time, something comes up that requires arbitration or, alas, enforcement, Cuchulain will look at the situation and take whatever steps are necessary to keep this a thriving, happy community. Usually this will mean simply finding out about and clarifying a situation; in rare cases, in which someone is simply not able to get along within the framework of the existing customs and rules, he will have the authority to close folders, remove messages, and/or ban particular persons from participation. This authority has only been used a couple of times in the whole history of all our online communities, so I don't expect it to be necessary here, either - but if it ever is, it's Cuchulain who can do it.

Cuchulain will also be the one who can let you know what does and does not infringe on the copyright concerns that naturally are important to me as host of this area. You understand that it is vital to me (and to the future of any Ender's Game film, game, or tv project) that the copyright of Ender's Game be fully protected. So in case something comes up related to copyright issues, please be assured that Cuchulain will do anything he does under my direction or at my request, and that we will be enforcing only the bare minimum of rules required to keep legal and commercial control of the Ender's Game copyright.

In other words, please meet my friend Cuchulain - and now get back to creating and playing out your roles here in the Virtual Battle School!