Roles & how to level up

Trust on ARKANA is earned by doing the work. Roles unlock more capability and more weight — and the first two are fully automatic. Nobody has to nominate you.

The ladder

Higher roles inherit everything below them. The jump from visitor to maintainer happens on its own as you contribute; moderator and admin are appointed, because they carry real authority over other people's work and accounts.

Visitor

How you get it: Just show up. No account required for most of the site.

Browse and search every game and asset
View full version history of any asset
Read marketplace listings and trader profiles

Contributor

How you get it: Automatic on your first approved edit (1 approved edit). Just sign in and start fixing things.

Add new assets and edit existing ones
Upload images and fill structured fields
Flag an asset for deletion (handled via review)
Build reputation that unlocks instant-publish on solid edits

Maintainer

How you get it: Automatic once you reach 20 approved edits, 14 days active, and 100 reputation. Keep contributing accurately and it comes to you.

Everything a Contributor can do
Vote on community-review edits in the review queue
Carry more weight — your votes help decide what goes live

Moderator

How you get it: Appointed by admins from trusted, long-standing maintainers. This one you apply for or get invited to — see below.

Restore any asset to a previous version
Manage asset types and field schemas for a game
Moderate community chat and the marketplace
Review trade disputes and trust flags
Ban or suspend abusive accounts

Admin

How you get it: The people who run the platform. Admins add games, promote users, and keep the lights on.

Everything a Moderator can do
Add and configure games
Promote users and assign roles
Run imports and view the audit log

How automatic promotion works

Contributor and Maintainer aren't granted by a person — the system checks your stats and promotes you the moment you cross the thresholds. You can watch your progress (approved edits, reputation, days active) right on your Contribute dashboard.

Becoming a moderator

Moderator is a trust role, not a stat milestone. If you're an active maintainer with a strong, accurate track record and you want to help keep a game (or the platform) healthy, reach out — see the contact options on the About page. We look for consistency, good judgment, and a clean history far more than raw edit counts.

Keep reading

How to contribute Becoming a trader