Game rules

The following game rules apply to everyone who plays Secrets of Aelandris.

1. Be respectful.

We strive to make Aelandris a welcoming and inclusive place. Out of character
harassment is not tolerated; this includes but is not limited to disparaging or
unwelcome remarks about someone based on their age, body, visible or invisible
disability, ethnicity, sex characteristics, gender identity and expression,
level of experience, education, socio-economic status, nationality, personal
appearance, race, caste, color, religion, or sexual identity and orientation.

Furthermore, sexual harassment of any kind, in-character or out-of-character, is
strictly prohibited.

Above all, don't be a jerk.

2. Roleplaying

Aelandris is a roleplay-enforced (RPE) game, and as such, we expect you to
always be in-character (IC) when using most commands (including SAY, EMOTE, and
POSE). Being IC means speaking as your character would and avoiding reference to
OOC concepts like game mechanics or the real world. Use OOC-specific commands
like @SAY for OOC content, and be mindful about how often you use them. All
commands are considered IC unless their HELP page specifically says otherwise.

That said, we recognize that many people will be new to the idea of roleplaying,
or to the nuances of playing via text. Aelandris is meant to be a welcoming
place to learn, and so if you are new or not yet comfortable, we simply ask you
to do your best, and if you are experienced we ask you to help and encourage
those who aren't, yet.

Here are some more specific rules for roleplaying with us:
* Encourage constructive roleplaying in others. Be mindful of your give-and-take
  and ensure that everyone else has a chance to contribute to a scene. Be
  supportive of new players and others who are trying to RP but who may be less
  experienced in the art of it.
* Don't provide unsolicited critiques or notes of others' RP, either IC or OOC.
* Don't actively exclude other players from public scenes. Don't gatekeep RP
  opportunities, and don't form exclusive cliques. Remember, the Aelandris
  community is open and friendly.
* Welcome others into your scenes if they want to participate.
* Prefer shorter emotes and sayings to longer ones to ensure everyone has a
  chance to participate. While the game does not enforce a turn order for
  emotes, it is good practice to wait a moment and give others a chance to
  respond to your RP actions.
* When venturing into mature roleplaying topics, ensure you have enthusiastic
  consent from all other involved players before proceeding. Enthusiastic
  consent is a clear affirmative that they want to participate in such a scene.
  Check in using an OOC command like @SAY if you need to confirm.
* Anyone is permitted to revoke consent to be in an RP scene at any time for any
  reason. "Fade to black" if necessary, and do not take it personally.
* Follow the rules of improv. Try to "Yes and..." things that other players
  bring to the scene, and avoid shutting others down outright.
* Stay within the established lore of Aelandris. This is a high fantasy world;
  avoid mentioning or bringing in concepts that would not fit within this world.
  You can invent small bits of lore as embellishment, but check with staff if
  you have an idea for larger pieces of lore.
* Not everyone will have the same familiarity with the lore, particularly newer
  players. Be respectful and encouraging. IC, amnesia or specific bouts of lost
  memories are common among survivors of the Blight, and can be a good way to
  play while learning the backstory of the world.
* Award kudos (with the KUDOS command) to other players after scenes that you
  enjoyed with them.

3. Names

Anything you name, such as a character, an item, a song, or something else must
be original and fit in with the fantasy world of Secrets of Aelandris.

The following kinds of names are not permitted:
  * Anything offensive, obscene, or disrespectful (see rule 1).
  * Well-known names from other fictional worlds (Legolas, Zelda).
  * Well-known names of real-life people, current or historical (Einstein,
    Aristotle).
  * Names related to real-world mythology or religion (Zeus, Jesus).
  * Overly silly names (Meepmeep, Beebledoodle).
  * Unpronounceable or gibberish names (Lghdbb, Aaaaaa).
  * Names that don't sound like names (XxkillerxX, Thegreatone).
  * Names that contain a title or honorific (Queen Jess, Mr Pickles).
  * Names that do not fit in a fantasy environment (Robot, Quasar).

You will be asked to change a name if it does not follow these rules.

These rules also apply to any name you choose to introduce yourself as, even if
it's not your character's real name.

4. Accounts and Multiplaying

A player may only have one account. You may create multiple characters on that
account, but may never play more than one character at a time (unless granted
explicit temporary permission to do so by staff).

Your characters are permitted to know about each other ICly, but they may not
help or interact with each other in any way. For example, you may not transfer
money or items between them (by dropping them on the ground, by passing to
another player for temporary safe keeping, or through any other creative means).

5. AFK

Do not go AFK for extended periods of time while your character is in the game
world. Stepping away from the game for a moment or two is fine, but if you're
planning to be gone for more than a few minutes, use the OOC command or
temporarily log out so your character is not sitting around idling. The goal
here is to ensure that a player can interact with anyone they encounter.

6. Automation and Triggers

If you are logged into a character, you are expected to be a present and active
player. Automation and triggers are permitted as long as you are not AFK, and as
long as such automation does not negatively impact the gameplay experience of
others and does not act as a complete substitute for a real human player.

7. Spoilers

This is a game about secrets, both of the world and of individual characters. As
such, do not give away spoilers. Spoilers include solutions to puzzles or
information about secrets of the world or other characters that your character
is not in an IC position to give. Help us maintain the mystery of the world.

If a character comes to you asking for help with a puzzle, you are allowed to
give hints or provide assistance in the way of helping them get past monsters,
but do not give the answer away.

8. Conflict and Fair Play

Conflict between players is a natural part of storytelling, it is in fact what
drives some of the best stories. IC conflict, in the form of arguments,
contests, or even combat, will naturally occur and is permitted, but all players
are expected to abide by the code of Fair Play, which encompasses the following
rules.

* Do not conflate IC conflict with OOC conflict. At the end of the day, we are
  all friends here, and though your character can hate another character, you as
  a player should not hate their player. Respect their roleplaying, and even
  consider giving your character's enemy KUDOS after a good scene.
* Player-killing is only permitted with a strong IC reason. Prefer sparring
  instead. Do not attempt to kill new players unless they have consented to the
  risk, for example by instigating the conflict and confirming that they want to
  participate.
* Even with a strong reason, only kill another player if they have a fighting
  chance. When in doubt, disengage from the conflict ("You're not even worth my
  time"), or cease combat when the outcome is clear. Though this might go
  against your character's backstory, it's very important to ensure a sense of
  fairness.
* If you defeat a player and take something of theirs without their consent such
  as a sentimental item (but excluding money or fungible items), give them an
  opportunity to win it back. If such an opportunity would not be possible, find
  a reason for it to find its way to its original owner. While taking things is
  sometimes a reality of player-versus-player conflict, stealing other
  characters' lore items in a way that does not contribute to the story is
  frustrating for the defeated player.

9. Spamming and Griefing

Spamming and griefing of any kind are expressly prohibited.

Spamming is the act of flooding a channel or forum, repeatedly sending unwanted
text, or sending messages that might reasonably be understood as advertising.

Griefing is any act or behavior that seeks to impair the experience of another
player without their consent. Examples include repeatedly killing a player
character or an NPC (even with a plausible IC reason), actively and maliciously
preventing someone from making progress on a quest, or interfering with game
mechanics in some way that causes an annoyance to other players. Note that
killing another player's character is not considered griefing as long as it
abides by the Conflict and Fair Play rules.

10. Cheating

Cheating of any kind will not be tolerated. If you discover something that feels
like an exploit, such as the ability to bypass some kind of game restriction,
the ability to generate free money or items, or the ability to gain access to
something you should not have access to, use the REPORT command to notify staff
immediately and refrain from taking advantage of it. Cheating ruins the game
experience for everyone. If it feels like cheating, it probably is.

11. Enforcement

Everyone should be familiar with these rules; not knowing a rule is not an
excuse for breaking it. Staff will take corrective action in instances of rules
violations based on the severity of the infraction. Minor cases will usually
result in a warning for a first offense; severe cases and repeat violations may
result in character deletion or banning.

Ultimately our goal is to create a welcoming community of friends. If you can't
abide by these rules, this is probably not the community for you.

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