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Since I posted about the new Family Module that is in the beta test phase, I've gotten many questions about it (1). I don't always have to time to personally respond to my inbox and e-mail messages. I decided to try to put together my own 411/FAQ page to address some of the more common questions. I hope this will help. I mention Customer Support for when the feature is launched to all players. As of right now, you will not get assistance from Customer Support and will need to track down a beta tester or Zynga community representative.

Family Module FAQ

Updated 06/08/2011 at 13:00

The Family Module was designed to integrate Families (aka Clans) into the game Mafia Wars. At this time there is no strategic benefit for participating in this feature. It's currently in the beta test phase and is only available to a small number of players. Once the bugs are worked out and major Family leaders are verified it will be available to all players. If you get a request to join a Family, you will have the Family Tab in your My Mafia Page. If it is verified that you are a Family leader, you will be brought into the test group. This is currently being done through word of mouth to as a means to protect the integrity of Family tags. Only authorized Family leaders will be able to create their own group. If you are a Family Godmother/Godfather or represent one, please go here and submit the request form. FAQ Q:  I came up with the Family Module idea. Why aren't I getting credit for this? A:  The Family Module was created based on player feedback from the Zynga Forums, Get Satisfaction and the PAC. It was based off of feedback presented by [MIG] Chainsaw Chester at the PAC meeting in San Francisco. He merely presented the idea to the developers and his presentation was based on all player feedback including his own. Q:  Why do I need a Family Module? Is there a benefit? A:  There are no strategic benefits to utilizing the Family Module feature. It's merely a way for Families to have some organization and representation in the game. It is recommended that you continue with business as usual and this is a tool to help make things easier. Q:  Why can't I create my own Family? A:  This feature has been released to a small testing group. There are a few bugs to work out and a verification process. Once phase one of testing is complete, the feature will open to more players and eventually to everybody. As with all of our new feature releases, this feature will be rolled out slowly to ensure stability within the game.  Thus, all players may not have initial access to this feature release. Q:  How does it work? A:  When you have the option to create your own Family, go to your My Mafia page and select the Families Tab. Fill in the information requested and send invitations to your Family members. Players may also request to join your Family but won't be able to unless you accept the request. It will cost an undetermined amount of Reward Points to create a Family but will cost nothing to join. To see screen shots and review how the Family Module works, please go here. Q:  What are these red tags I keep seeing on the fightlist? A:   When a Family is created, a red tag will automatically appear to the right of all members Mafia Wars profile name. Members will have the option to create a new Mafia Wars name for free once they join. Q:  Are Reward Points required to join a Family? How much will it cost? A:   Only the person creating the Family will be required to spend Reward Points. At this time the cost is not determined. Joining is free and Family members will have an option to create a new name for free as well.

Q:  I can't stand the Godfather of a rival Family and I would like to piss him off by stealing his tag before he creates a Family. How can I do this?
A:  At this time, all Godmothers/Godfathers are brought into the testing group once it is verified that they are the true owner of the tag. If you are successful in stealing a tag, the Family that you stole it from will have the option to submit a report to get it back. This is not an intended feature of the Family Module and this type of behavior will not be tolerated.


Q:  Hey! Some douche-bag stole my Family tag and now I can't register it. What should I do?
A:  If you find that your tag was falsely registered, please contact Customer Support or other Zynga representative. Once we can determine you are the true owner of the tag, you will be able to register it.


Q:  My Godfather is a boy but he is listed as my Godmother, how is this possible?
A:  There is currently a gender bug and it is being corrected. If you have this problem, please contact Customer Support or other Zynga representative to correct it. 


Q:  My tag is longer than 6 characers and looks funny shortened. Why is there a limit?
A:  Currently the maximum number of characters a tag can be is 6. Special characters count as 2. The PAC and Family Tools beta test group is pushing to get that extended as 6 is not enough.


Q:  How many members can join my Family?

A:  The current threshold is set to 100. They will be working on increasing the limit as they are aware that many Families have more members than this. There are talks of a sliding threshold.

Q:  What if I quit Mafia Wars? How will my Family name live on?

A:  There is an option to promote a Family member to the Godmother/Godfather position. If you do this, you will boot yourself from the position.

Q:  I have more members with administrative positions than the Family Module allows. What can I do about this? 

A:  This is another issue the team is aware of and more positions may be added in the future.

Q:  I sent requests to members of my Family but they ended up in a different Family. How can I correct this?

A:  This was a bug and all members can be removed if they end up in the wrong Family. Contact Customer Support or a Zynga representative to correct the issue. You will need to send another request to get those members affected into your Family.


Q:  I would like to join two Families, how can I do this?

A:  Currently you can only join one family in the Family Module. If you want to dual tag, you will need to add the second tag to your Mafia Wars profile name. The first tag will appear automatically in red. 

Q:  What are the Badges and Live Chat features coming soon all about?

A:  Once the Family Module is stable, these are features that will be added in the future.

*These questions were created by me, are not official and could contain errors as things are changing fast. Please comment if I missed a question you have or you find the answer is no longer accurate. 

Article written by Jennifer Patterson, Creator of the MW Loot Lady Blog, The Mafia Wars Loot Lady Facebook Fan Page and Co-Host of The Informant Podcast. All material is protected by copyright law