According to this, the Council already has the right and power to enact errata. The problem is simply that the original method is defunct. I would like to propose an alternate method:CoE Charter wrote:The Council shall enact new rules of play, or modify existing rules of play, upon the assent to two thirds majority vote of a quorum. A quorum shall be deemed convened when no less than six out of nine council members vote within the announced time frame. Votes shall be cast either as YEA or as NAY, indicating respectively those in favour of the matter or those not in favour of the matter. Rules enacted or modified shall be ratified only by the affirmative vote of two thirds of the members of metw@silent-tower.org and such persons as shall communicate their vote by email to the Council Registrar or by web form on the egroups site. Ratified rules, be they enacted or modified, shall come into force 30 days following the last vote establishing ratification.
1) We put an errata up for vote with a voting period of thirty days.
2) A simple majority of CoE members voting yea will suffice.
3) We contact the National councils about the errata and ask them to ratify it with their vote within thirty days.
4) If a majority of the National councils that respond vote yea, then the rule is ratified and will come in to force thirty days after the end of the voting period.
This has the advantage of involving the National Councils while being flexible enough to accommodate changing technologies. The primary flaw of the old method was simply relying on a method that has since become outdated. A secondary flaw, in my opinion, was the requirement of two-thirds majority. I believe a simply majority is sufficient.
And as far as guidelines for proposing errata:
1) A given errata will not be proposed more than once per year.
This prevents the process from being swamped by people who never give up their pet agendas. I'm probably one of them, come to think of it.
2) No strictly thematic errata shall be proposed.
This is because theme rests largely in a player's mind. If there is a balance issue and a theme issue, then it's fine, but the primary concern of the CoE should be a balanced and fun tournament atmosphere.
3) Proposals shall be made in the following format:
Name Of Rule Subject Or Card
Current Text Of Rule/Card
Proposed Erratum/Errata
Gameplay And Balance Reasons For The Change
(Optional) Public opinion links, etc.
(Optional) Designer Intent links, quotations, etc.