Hello, this is Durza back again with an update on the situation. All the above points were made under the assumption that i was infracted and banned for cheating/ghosting, not because i broke the rule about being in call. I misunderstood this and this is my fault.

On that note, what I’d like to argue is the lack of nuance in punishment in regards to this issue.

I admit, while I was in fact unaware that the rule was in place, that is no excuse that I broke the rule of being in call. However, that rule is in place to prevent cheating in the first place, and punish those who cheat and gain an unfair advantage from being in the call.

Yes, I should be punished for breaking the rule - after all, it was a rule, and knowledgable or not, I broke it. What I don’t think is fair is the degree of the punishment that I have been given as a result. At the present moment, there is no distinction or nuance of the punishments given to those who are convicted of being willingly ghosted with significant proof and knowledge of their actions, and people like me, who was not cheating, gained no unfair advantage of any sorts, and there is no evidence to point to any of that - in fact, everything points otherwise, which I have detailed in my above post.

I believe that a 3 point infraction which leads to a complete ban (which my previous appeal on my other remaining infractions has still not reached a conclusion), shame banner, disqualification from the RU tour circuit, and a 6 month circuit tour ban seems incredibly harsh. It's not a harsh punishment if you take into account that it's a punishment meant to encapsulate people who did the same thing as me, except they were willfully ghosted, cheated, and there is proof of such cheating. But I did not participate in any cheating, and this tarnishes my already poor reputation even further, holds up the various projects I am currently involved with on Smogon, and throws my work down the garbage because of a careless, honest mistake and misunderstanding.

I don’t deserve to be put in the same basket as the numerous cheaters that have gone before me on Smogon, and I don’t think I should be treated as such.