Character interaction will remain civil. The following interactions are strictly banned:
Player-killing - No one shall take any action that results in the death of another's character unless the action has been agreed on beforehand. If this is the case, please notify the management so incorrect action is not taken against you.
Rape - Any and all depictions of unconsentual sex between characters are forbidden, no exceptions. If it absolutely must happen for your character's growth, it must happen outside this setting, and must not be dwelled upon while inside our setting.
Punishment - These are serious offenses which will result in a minimum ban of one month, up to a maximum ban of permanancy.
Rule #2
OOC interaction will remain civil. OOC threats of any kind are strictly banned:
Threats against others - Death threats made against other users are federal offenses and will be dealt with harshly, regardless of intent. Other threats of harm toward others, physical or otherwise will be dealt with no less severely.
Threats against yourself - Threats against one's own person will not be tolerated either. If your situation is that desperate, you need to seek outside help, our setting is not the place to vent about personal problems by way of threats of self-harm.
Punishment - These are serious offenses which will result in a minimum ban of one month, up to a maximum ban of permanancy.
Rule #3
Additional OOC guidelines:
Antagonism - Story arcs and/or comments designed to disparage other users in any way are forbidden.
Incompatabilities - Users finding themselves constantly at odds with others are encouraged to seek outside methods to reconcile these differences. Using the roleplaying setting to do so, unless authorized by an operator, is not allowed.
Punishment - Users who use the roleplaying setting to antagonize others in an out of character fashion or attempt to make the setting uncomfortable for any users will be punished by a minimum of a documented warning, up to a two week ban for repeat offenses.
Rule #4
Channel use. Each channel operates under separate guidelines:
The main channel, #reddwarfmain (And the beta test counterpart #reddwarfbeta), is strictly rated PG-13. - Excessive violence and sexual depictions are not allowed. Links to external websites should be tagged if they contain content that does not meet these guidelines (ie [NSFW]). In addition, #reddwarfmain is not a place for heavy negative interaction. Angst driven characters and plotlines are asked to remain limited in #reddwarfmain. They are not forbidden, but should be kept brief and somewhat light. Continued IC antagonism falls under this category; please keep it to a minimum.
The events channel, #reddwarfevents (And the beta test counterpart #reddwarfeventsbeta), has a variable rating. - The rating is up to the discretion of the person running an active event, or is nominally PG-13 to R. Violence and sexual topics are allowed, but it is requested that the channel topic be set to warn others that such actions are taking place. When no events are taking place, #reddwarfevents is open for general use (for instance if temporary IC privacy is desired) and interaction standards for #reddwarfmain will apply. Please note, however, that events take priority over general chat and when an official change of scene occurs, all orphaned characters (those who did not use /part or /quit) are assumed to have left.
Punishment - Failure to adhere to the rating of any channel will result in at minimum a documented warning, up to a ban from either the specific channel or all channels for one week for repeat offenders.
Rule #5
Collective fiction challenges. This setting and the virtual history made here is a work of collective fiction. To facilitate the creation of this fiction, and to keep things fair, some guidelines must be established:
Godmoding - Most characters here are powerful, but none of them are all powerful. Taking any action that implies causing specific, unagreed upon changes to another's character is forbidden.
Deus Ex Machina - Overuse of unexplained phenomena detracts from the experience and makes it less believable. Any powers or technologies introduced should have explanations, as well as weaknesses, even if they are not disclosed.
Punishment - Failure to follow these guidelines will result in at minimum a documented warning up to a ban of one week for repeat offenders.
Rule #6
Separation of powers. Boundaries must be drawn between IC abilities and OOC abilities:
Operators - The operator or priviledged status of a character does not confer power to that character in the context of the collective fiction. Operators and priviledged users are expected to follow the same rules as other users. Operators making decisions regarding the rules are acting OOC and with neutrality.
Users - Users are expected to follow the decisions of the Operators and not allow them to affect IC interaction with those persons' characters.
Punishment - Operators and priviledged users who commit any offense punished by a ban of any length will be relieved of their status. Any user who refuses to comply with a reasonable request made by an operator will be punished a minimum of a documented warning, up to a two week ban.
Rule #7
Play with others, not just yourself:
This is a community, not a one man show - Monopolizing the main chat with several of your own characters at once and limiting them to interactions with only or even primarily each other is disruptive and strongly discouraged. The chat is not a stage intended for solo performances, people should be interacting with each other, not only themselves. You may play multiple simultaneous characters within reasonable limits, but they should interact with others and not overwhelm the chat. This behavior is allowable in the events channel and is excusable on a case-by-case basis when the chat is otherwise unoccupied.
Punishment - Failure to follow these guidelines will result in at minimum a documented warning up to a devoicing of one week for repeat offenders.
Rule #8
Warnings and Devoicing:
Offenses that are not severe enough for a ban, but still require a period of punishment will result in either a warning or devoicing. Users who are devoiced will be unable to post, but will still be able to login and make edits to their character profiles.
Rule #9
Sheer annoyance:
Characters and/or users who show up for sheer annoyance sake will be treated accordingly; Welcome To Hell.
Rule #10
Unilateral Action:
As the proprieter of this corner of the Internet, I reserve the right to take action as I see fit to ensure the safety and well being of this site and the inhabitants therein.