[DaBackpack]

I don't think rule changes will fix anything. The problem isn't "words", it's "spirit." If a person really wants to say something cruel and harmful to another player, they will find a way to skirt the rules. That's the nature of adversarial social relationships.

"More mods" isn't an answer either. It doesn't address the underlying issues of player toxicity. It really is convenient for us to imagine that our problems can be solved in a top-down manner-- that is, if somebody is being bad, that a mod will swoop in and save the day. Some base level of moderation is required when things really get out of hand (e.g. someone needs to be banned) but the fundamental problem we keep seeing is cultural and contextual. For example, there are things I would say to YoshL that I wouldn't ever say to Gradiant. How would you ever expect a single moderator to correctly interpret what "the line" is, when "the line" is completely different for each player dyad? The answer is, you can't. A top-down solution isn't going to suffice.

The players of the game need to be better at actively policing each other. If you take a step back and look at the "problem" posts in context, you'll notice that they didn't just come out of nowhere. There was an argument, some escalation that got you there. It should have been obvious to other players that, say, MML was escalating and bugkid was clearly uncomfortable, even before MML made his worst posts. Again, TWG isn't made up of posts, it's made up of conversations. If you, as a player, see somebody being made uncomfortable, it is YOUR JOB to speak out and de-escalate the conflict before someone crosses "the line".

Furthermore. As a player, it is your job to treat other players how they expect to be treated. Like I said, I treat different players differently depending on my relationship with them, as well as my differing mental models for them. I know that a player like Xelnya has a tough skin, so if things escalate between the two of us, I don't expect other players to de-facto police us (unless things get REALLY hostile, when I tell Xelyna to cut it the fuck OUT).

On the other hand, bugkid is a new player and most of us really don't know where bugkid's "line" is, so your default behavior should be respectful and dignified, until you and bugkid come to understand each other. And if you misjudge where bugkid's "line" is, our culture should allow for bugkid to speak up and defend themselves, or for other players to speak up to defuse the situation.

The answer to the problem is a culture shift, one where we ALL look out for each other ALWAYS, and we chastise and police each other in-game depending on specific contexts.

TL;DR: This answer is the same vein as "defund the police" IRL