Designing Server Branding

Effective branding starts with decisions, not design tools. Answer these questions before opening any software:

• What does your server specialize in — law enforcement, fire and EMS, civilian operations, or a mix?
• What tone does your server have — highly realistic and formal, or approachable with room for personality?
• What city or regional identity, if any, does your server use?

These answers determine your color direction, typeface, and logo style. A serious, realism-focused department should not use a playful brand. An approachable civilian server should not use intimidating, heavy design.

Most ERLC departments use institutional color references — law enforcement blues, fire reds, EMS oranges and whites. Work within those conventions, then differentiate through execution:

• Choose a primary color (the dominant brand color), one secondary color, and one neutral (usually white, black, or dark gray).
• Test your palette against dark Discord backgrounds — colors that look good on white may disappear or clash on dark mode.
• Store your exact hex codes in a document and share them with anyone creating assets for your server.

Your logo will appear in small sizes — Discord icons, channel emojis, livery details. Design for legibility at small scale:

• Use a simple shape — a badge, shield, or geometric mark. Complex details disappear at small sizes.
• Limit your logo to two colors maximum. Multi-color logos are harder to apply consistently across different backgrounds.
• Include a text version (wordmark) and a symbol-only version for different use cases.
• Export in PNG (with transparent background) and SVG formats. Never use JPG for logos.

A uniform guide defines exactly what members wear in-game, eliminating ambiguity and enforcing visual consistency:

• Specify clothing items by exact in-game name and color for each rank tier.
• Include screenshots or reference images wherever possible.
• Define what variations are permitted — for example, whether a long-sleeve variant is acceptable in cold weather scenarios.
• State what is not permitted as clearly as what is. Members will test boundaries.

When members create their own content using your branding, you need standards in place:

• Define what modifications to the logo are allowed — recoloring for sub-units, adding text, etc.
• State that the logo may not be used in unofficial or external contexts without permission.
• Provide approved asset files in a public or member-accessible channel so members do not create their own approximate versions.

Branding erodes when new assets are created without referencing existing standards:

• Keep all approved assets in a single, well-organized channel or shared drive.
• When you need a new asset — a banner, announcement graphic, or livery — build it from the existing palette and logo system.
• Do a visual audit every few months. If assets have drifted from the standard, correct them before the inconsistency becomes the new default.