Standing Trials Terms of Use

[Pegasus]

Standing Trials: Rules and Expectations

The Website: Standing Trials (/), referred to through the rest of this thread as "the website", "our website", "the site", "our site", "Standing Trials", and "Trials".
You: The person reading these words right now.
The Staff: All users who are identified as administrators/moderators (/memberlist.php?mode=leaders) on the site. "We", "us", "our", "ours", "staff", "Prophet", "Prophets", "Team Leads", "Team Lead", "Advocates", "Storytellers", "Developers", "Advocate", "Storyteller", "Developer", and "the team".
Real World: Anything that takes place in real life. "Real life", "out of character", and "OOC".

By using the website Standing Trials, you agree to follow the rules laid out in this thread as well as rules given by official staff members of the site (known as Prophets). If in doubt, a Team Lead's word will override any other. Ignorance of these rules is no excuse for not following them.

By using the site, you share the writing you post with the community and all contributions to Standing Trials, both IC and OOC are Public Domain. Should you later use your material in a different context, that does not give you rights over what is posted here and we can not be charged with copyright, nor can you demand we remove the work.

The following wall of text has been made tiny because it's in all caps, but basically says that we are not responsible for anything that goes wrong.

THE WEBSITE AND ITS CONTENT ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND. WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE WARRANTY OF TITLE, MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT OF THIRD PARTIES' RIGHTS, AND FITNESS FOR PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

IN NO EVENT SHALL WE BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, INCIDENTAL AND CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, LOST PROFITS, OR DAMAGES RESULTING FROM LOST DATA OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) RESULTING FROM THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE WEBSITE OR ITS CONTENT WHETHER BASED ON WARRANTY, CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY, EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. IN SUCH STATES, OUR LIABILITY SHALL BE LIMITED TO THE GREATEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.

You must be above the age of 13 (thirteen) years old to use this website. If you're twelve and your birthday is in a week, then wait and come back to register. We appreciate your enthusiasm for Standing Trials, but because the website is hosted in the United States, we're subject to laws of the United States of America and can be prosecuted for not following them. Though we try our best to ensure all content posted on Standing Trials remains tasteful, sometimes things may slip by us.

Links to external sites may be placed on our own website from time to time. We are not responsible for any content that can be found on any of these external sites. If you have a problem with content found on an external website that was linked to here, you are free to let an appropriate staff member know, but we can't do much about it.

The staff of Standing Trials reserves the right to edit or change any of these rules at any time without warning.

Part 1: Terms of Use

• Remain respectful of all others on the site. Treat fellow members as you'd want to be treated yourself.
• Do not harass, bully, threaten, or otherwise attack anyone on Standing Trials.
• It is forbidden to use external social media / other communications to harass, attack, bully or threaten our volunteer staff in reference to their role on Standing Trials.
• Your username must be your character's name, a derivative of it, an alias, or something similar. At no time should you use numbers or symbols, though spaces are acceptable. Usernames for Prophets must be words commonly recognized in the English language.
• Keep it tasteful. Refrain from using excessive foul language or graphic depictions of sexual acts or violence. If you wouldn't want a ten-year-old or your grandmother reading it, don't post it.
• Use the English language only on this site. It's okay to carry out a conversation with another person over PMs in German or another language, but when posting on the forums themselves stick to English.
  • Note: It's okay to use the occasional word or phrase in a foreign language. Moderation is key.
  • Using languages other than English and languages unique to Standing Trials while you are in character is acceptable but you must put in an OOC translation in the post.
• You are allowed to swear. ("fuck", "shit", "bitch", etc.) You may not harass others. Excessive use of foul language will earn you a permanent spot in the Staff Post Checker and may result in us forbidding the use of swears on the site.
• Leave the following potentially sensitive material off the site chat or OOC discussions.
  • Real life religion
  • Real life politics
  • Real life current events
  • Real life illegal activities-including, but not limited to, drug use, piracy, underage drinking, theft, and rape.
  • Racism, sexism, discriminatory language, slurs, and other harassment.
• Be aware of the rules of the United States government. If something is dubiously legal, leave it off the site.
• If in doubt about anything, either contact a Prophet about the material in question or just don't post it.
• All in-character written content (including character sheets) must be original.
  • Things such as theme songs or quotes are fine, as long as proper credit is given to the source. Credit can be as simple as "Song Title" - Artist.

Part 2: Chat Rules

By logging into a site / city discord / chat you agree to follow all rules outlined here as well as the rules that govern the rest of the site. Ignorance is not an excuse or a valid defense.

• Listen to all directives given by chat moderators or administrators (usually identified with green and red names, respectively, though this depends on your selected chat style).
• Respect your fellow chatters.
• Do not whine, rant, complain, or otherwise vent about your personal life and/or issues in chat.
• Under absolutely no circumstance will conversations of a sexual nature be allowed in chat.
• If asked to stop discussing a subject by anyone else in chat, stop. Drop it. Don't bring it back up a few minutes later, don't continue the conversation in whispers.
• Make your best effort to answer any questions asked of you. If this means directing the asker to someone who's more capable of helping them, so be it, but attempt to answer questions first.

Part 3: In Character Expectations

• Absolutely no plagiarism will be tolerated.
  • Again, quotes and the like are okay as long as you properly credit the source.
• Sexual threads, while allowed, are governed by a very specific set of guidelines that MUST be followed.
  • No children are allowed in any thread involving sex. Whether that thread is in the AF or tagged as mature - sex and under 18s do not mix.
  • All threads with content of a sexual nature that verges on erotica must be posted inside the 18+ Forum. Failure to post smut/erotica in this section will earn you and your partner a warning if not a possible ban. A minor reading erotica is cause for legal action which is something we will avoid at all costs. Therefore, the penalty for posting such writing outside of the Adult Forum will earn you a possible ban.
  • Both you and your character must be over the age of 18 to participate in sex. There is not exception to this. NO UNDERAGE SEX OF ANY KIND.
  • If at all possible, simply mark your topic as 'Mature' in the regular forums and "fade to black".
  • If a thread looks like it's turning explicit, stop. Cut it off there. Post a new thread in the Adult Section.
  • Any thread that has excessive violence (i.e. detailed torture scenes of someone removing limbs, organs, etc.) must be posted in the Adult Section.
  • Even in the AF, rape can only be implied and / or fade to black.
  • You can NOT write about / engage in any form of bestiality; therefore players may only write about sexual / erotic scenes between characters of playable races
  • If you're confused as to what should go in the Adult Section and what should not, please PM a local prophet and we'll let you know.
  • If you would like access to the Adult Section, please post in the PSF stating that you are over the age of 18. If it is found that you are not over the age of 18 and have access to this forum, you will be permanently banned from this site.
  Children / Underage PCs / NPCs
  • See above rule re: no underage sex of any kind.
  • Minors (NPCs or PCs) may not appear in any AF thread. If the thread requires the AF, children have no place in it.
  • Violence against children (PC or NPC) must be inferred and PG-13 level only.
• Standing Trials and its Staff are ultimately not responsible and will not be held accountable for the actions or content of the players and what they read. Though we attempt to govern mature content, we cannot prevent individuals from viewing writing that follows our guidelines. By registering and/or viewing this site, you are agreeing to these terms.
• Controlling other player characters without explicit consent made plainly obvious in the thread is forbidden. If found god-modding in a thread, then you automatically forfeit any rewards gained in the thread.
• Write within your skill level at all times. Novices will make mistakes and that's to be expected.
• Before you have a fully approved PC, you may have no more than that one PC. Once you have one fully approved PC there is no limit on the number of characters you can make and play here, but we would urge all players to always be considerate of collaborative partners and realistic about commitment to threads, etc.
• No more than 3 PCs from any one player may be in the same City / Area in any given Cycle. Your characters can't directly interact with each other in any way, shape, or form.
• Transferring items/funds/anything in any way between two of your own PCs will immediately receive a warning and possible invalidation of related threads.

Part 4: Images

At Standing Trials, we encourage players to use models or face claims that allow themselves and others to better visualize characters. Keep in mind that pictures are not mandatory.

Character Images...

• ...must be safe for work. This means that pictures may not show exposed genitalia or depict one or more individuals in a sexual way.
  • Yes, this includes breasts. Though the Narrators understand that breasts are not primary sex organs, many individuals throughout the world don't feel the same way.

Images in general...

• ...may not originate from animated media (including cartoons, movies, and anime).
• ...cannot depict real people engaging in activities that are illegal in the United States. This includes (but is not limited to) underage drinking, recreational drug use, and acts of a violent or cruel nature. Activities members choose to engage in outside of the site are none of our concern, but if we have reason to be concerned for a person's safety then we will intervene.

If you have doubts about whether or not you can post a specific picture, the answer is no.

Consequences

ToU Violations:

• Anyone found using Standing Trials to harass, stalk, or otherwise attack anyone will be banned. Anyone using any form of social media / communication site to harass staff members in their staff role will be given one official warning and then banned. If applicable, then a copy of the relevant information will be provided to law enforcement and charges will be pressed. There is absolutely no leniency on this.
• PMs lose the privilege of privacy when their content breaches the TOU. A PM being private is a privilege, not a right and should a PM or email be used to break the ToU, they will be shared.
• Those under the age of 13 with an account on the site will have their account banned until the day of their thirteenth birthday. They will be more than welcome to re-join Standing Trials once their thirteenth birthday has passed.
• Anyone caught under the age of 18 who has posted explicit content on the site will receive a ban until their 18th birthday. You must be at least 18 years of age or older to view and write explicit content.
• Those who are caught making new accounts after previous accounts were caught violating Standing Trials ToU will receive an immediate ban, no questions asked. All account that were on suspension will be permanently banned.
• Anyone caught plagiarizing will have all their posts put on a moderator queue so that a moderator will need to look over and manually approve each post made by the individual. Further plagiarism will result in a permanent ban.
• Other offenses will result in a warning and a moderator note being made on the account. If three minor offenses occur within a ninety-day period, then the player will be informed of this. A fourth infraction within the ninety-day period will result in a month's ban from the site. Another infraction after that earns the player a permanent ban.
• ToU violations are dealt with, whenever possible, by all staff. Issues which arise (either brought to us by a player, or in response to a ToU violation reported by a volunteer) are discussed among staff in order to maximise fairness and to avoid individual bias. In situations where violations are alleged to have occurred, private messages that are directly related may be referenced in these discussions.

Chat Violations:

• First offenses in chat will receive a warning.
• Any infractions following the warning will result in a day's ban from chat. Anyone found attempting to circumvent this ban will lose their chat privileges permanently.
• If the offense is more serious, then a moderator may elect to ban the offender without warning.
• All chat bans are logged by the moderators. If an individual repeatedly makes trouble in chat, then they may lose their chat privileges.

IC Violations:

• Violators of the rules about explicit threads will receive one-and only one-warning. Failure to comply after that will result in a permanent ban.
• Anyone found godmodding in a thread forfeits any grade they would have received. If the godmodding continues, then the individual will be rewarded with a ban.
• Those with multiple active accounts will have all their accounts suspended until the issue is resolved. Continued violation of the rules on active accounts may result in a ban.
• Any item transference between two accounts owned by the same person earns an immediate and permanent ban.

Moderators have the right to discipline in other ways at their discretion.

• {*]These rules will be modified over time to suit the needs of the site as the community grows larger.
• Please remember to bookmark this forum as to avoid being caught off guard by rule changes. Thank you!

[Munchkin]

Standing Trials: Rules & Regulations

It is mandatory that every member of Standing Trials reads through the rules and regulations so that we can avoid unnecessary questions and drama. Though it is important to understand the aspect of the game before playing it, if anyone feels confused about certain rules, you are more than welcome to send me a PM regarding the rules. Furthermore, everyone is bound to the rules, including myself. If for any reason you suspect someone of violating the rules of the game, please be sure to notify me with proof of their violation so that we can proper deal with the player in question. With that aside, let's begin.

Registration

When you first register for the site, your user name must be the name of your character. In the control panel is an option for you to hide information, edit information, and add a signature and avatar picture. Cartoons and/or anime avatars are not allowed. Digital paintings are the preferred type of image on the site. If you have an image posted that doesn't comply with these rules, you will be asked to change it. You, as the player, are responsible for keeping track of your skills, money, knowledge, and trials (timeline). It is not the responsibility of the moderator and will not be their responsibility. Therefore, please remember to keep track of all information regarding your character. This include your roleplays since word count will come into play when acquiring specific artifacts, knowledge, and deity blessings/curses.

What Is Expected of You

The number one goal of this game is to pull a large number of individuals together to have fun. As thrilling as it is to build a character from scratch and watch them grow, it is ruined by the lack of effort some people put into their writing. This roleplay welcomes everyone, however, the people less than dedicated to further not only their characters but their intellect as well are not appreciated here. Meaning, detailed writing is expected of you. Meaning one liners are forbidden.

You should, at minimum, be posting 250 words per post.

Players are allowed to create the following:
Solo Roleplays
One on One Roleplays
Group Roleplays

However, when it comes to major events that involve the cities, certain NPCs, and acquiring blessings/curses from the deities, these will need permission from a moderator before any roleplay can take place. This is where common sense and judgement come into play. We are not telling you to limit yourself in regards to character plots, we are telling you that if you think it will majorly affect and/or change your character in any way please send a higher up a message to make sure you can run the plot by yourself or with a mod.

Stick to your character's skills and knowledge. I can't stress this rule enough. Your character is not going to know how to ninja flip over a monster while swing-spiraling their sword right through the brain of the thing, and land on their feet gracefully without a scratch on them starting from bare bones. That's not possible and it's not tolerated here. Standing Trials involves a lot of combat, working with clans to ensure survivability, and dominance over certain regions. However, this is done from scratch. You cannot and will not be a conqueror when you first begin the game. That being said, pick your battles if you can...

Death is a common aspect of this game. If it wasn't, I don't think it would be as much fun. NPCs are usually the ones to keel over but players face the same risks as well. You are not immortal and, yes, your character ages. When exploring the world of Idalos, be sure to know when to fight and when not to fight. Battles are conducted completely through roleplaying without the use of dice. Please, please, PLEASE... Don't make me have to make your roll for hit or misses. This is relating to the rule above, play by your character's skill set. If the other character has a boat load of points in hand to hand combat whilst you only have two, do you think you're really going to be able to stop their fists from hitting your character's face? No, not really.

Open Door Policy, Maturity, Attitude, and Honesty. All of these tie into a great, thriving community. Without these characteristics, most communities will crumble from drama, player abandonment, and power struggles. I want to avoid this from happening and hopefully, grow this into an official site. Please be mature and respectful not only to yourself but to others as well. New players are encouraged to ask questions whether it's on the Q&A forum, through PM, or through chat. Experienced players are asked to have patience and be welcoming. Everyone was new at some point. Remember when you first started roleplaying? Did it involve these '~~'? Or these '**' '--'? Give the same courtesy to others as you would want people to give to you.

That being said, don't act like a baby if someone calls you out on a mistake. Everyone makes mistakes, it's apart of the human code. We are bound to screw up in some way. Also, if you did not meet specific requirements and did not receive the points/items/markings/etc. you were expecting, then for the love of god, don't rant about it. This is an advance roleplay. As you advance, things will get tougher. So don't whine.

However, if you feel you were given rewards that did not meet your efforts, send a moderator a message with the link to your thread and we'll take a look at it.

Please make sure that your posts are legible. I highly encourage post decoration and the use of BBCode, images, and color coding. Let's try to remember that as pretty as the post might look, that our partners need to be able to read it.

Players are allowed to have up to 5 characters. No more than that. I'll tell you now, you're not being sneaky if you try to create more than that. I have ways and I know my resources. I'll leave it at that.

These rules are bound to change and/or update as players come into the game. Please keep this forum bookmarked so that you're not caught off guard when it comes to rule changes.