"What's all this then, Guvnah!?"

Some abilities in the LASR Community have to be unlocked by acheiving a certain rank, and that rank is achieved by gaining shooter points. On the "My Ranking" page, you can find more information about what your current rank is, what all the ranks are, your progress towards the next rank, and how you gain or lose shooter points.

"Why is this set up like this?"

There are several reasons. One is learning curve; if you are going to create an exercises, you should probably have run a few exercises previously. Another one is to prevent the derp; if you are going to vote on an exercise, you should probably have some idea of what it is you're voting on. And, of course, it is to encourage participation and make shooter points (active and good behavior) rewarding and worthwhile.

"If I lose too many shooter points, will I lose abilities that I unlocked previously?"

Not normally. Once a rank/ability is unlocked, it will stay that way even if your shooter points take a dive for some reason, but of course, it will take you longer to unlock the next rank.

That being said, if you are being a buttmunch and getting a lot of complaints, a moderator may downrank you and remove abilities, and even suspend or ban your account.

"What happens when new rank-locked abilities come out?"

If you have sufficient shooter points to unlock it, then it will be already unlocked. If not, then you'll have to work your way up.

"What happens when I unlock all the ranks?"

Nothing too special right now, other than you have full access to all features. Stay tuned for more.

"Do I lose points over time?"

No. Your points remain the same, unless of course other users do stuff that affect your points, like voting on your content or completing your exercise.