Rules from another Site

[gorrad]

The following are the rules (100% uncut) for the most successful RP site I've ever been on. It's down now, alas, but it was a pokemon RPG. Keep in mind that the following are the ONLY rules. With the current reworking of the site, I thought it might be a good reminder that sometimes you don't need a lot of rules to have a good site.

1: No Godmoding
Also known as PoweRplaying, GMing and being unfair. Your opponent decides whether or not your Ice Beam hit, or if Slam was dodged. This goes both ways, however: you can't dodge everything. Without strife, the taste of victory is but ashes in one's mouth.

2: Please refrian from one-liners.
They don't give openings, they don't really do much of anything. I understand if you can't think of anything, but surely something's happening! Even if it's just thought, or a movement... ah, well... Just try not to do them all the time. I'm pretty leniant on this one.

3: Be considerate.
Your character may be hEartless, but you sure aren't! (I mean no offense here! ^_^) There is no excuse for harrassing other players. Remember that you're dealing with real people here- with feelings and emotions. Don't be cruel! ^_^

4: Be creative.
Any RPG is only as interesting as its members. This is what you make it- so make it last!

5: I say what's what.
To some extent you have creative liscence -- FOR YOUR CHARACTER. I control outside eventS; non-player battles, NPCs, etc. I also am in charge of your pokémons' stats -- but there's no limit to what you can influence!
...And you never know... you just might find yourself in control of a situation...

6: Keep it clean -- nothing beyond kissing!
If you must, do it in the messaging or by AIM. Not in the boards. Just don't go there. This isn't a hentai RPG.

7: Put your character’s stats, items and pokémon in your lookup.
It really Helps to have a quick reference page to go to for appearance, etc. Put up what you will, but make sure it includes what you have with you -- pokémon, items, money, etc. For pokémon... have your party up as a minimum. A storage system is available now.

8: The currency is in yen. ¥
It's Saitro... so we pay in Yen. Fair enough? Oh -- here's a random fact: to convert ¥ to $, move the decimal point twice to the left. That's a pretty good rough estimate. So ¥1000 is $10.00. ? That's why I don't agree that everything is horrendously expensive in the gAmes... But I digress.

9: You start out without pokémon.
I apologise for not saying this before- this does not apply to the one who came before I put this up and took advantage of that. Still, it's unfair to the others, so from now on, it stands. There are exceptions, but they must be approved and justified. (For instance, someone from Swusoo or Kallow)

10: You must earn Gym status.
Either by battling the previous leader in such a match, or by having it given to you. You can request it, but I make no guarantees.

11: Applying as a Pokemon
I'll allow it, under the following rules:

* The Pokedex is a marvelous thing with translating ability. Don't worry that no one will understand you if you're not a telepath like Mewtwo or like Team Rocket's Meowth. Trainers wiLl be able to, (mostly) as will other pokemon. If you're going to have an ability like knowing human speech, you need a justifiable reason to do so.
* As a wild creature, you might find you have to contend with others for food, shelter, maybe even water, or territorial boundaries. Unwelcome intrusion on the territories of others could be a very bad idea, and unless you are fairly certain that you could win the fight, perhaps it would be best to move on.
* Made-ups, if well thought out, are allowed, and indeed new species are welcome.
* You can't just show up randomly requestIng to be someone's Pokemon, esp. if you're a Legendary. You need a reason to do so, though you can be stubborn and refuse to obey one who defeated and captured you.
* The maximum starting level is 10. I'm being lenient here: most make it level 1, or 5.
* If you're to be a legendary, you probably should obey the Guardian of that race, if one ever comes to you, (not that they would control you! You would keep an eye out for them though, or should.)

12: Inactivity
PLEASE don't just stay inactive. Even if you just stay on the OOC board, that's better than not being on at all. It really annoys people when they're stuck in an RP or discussion with someone who mysteriously vanishes.

13: Multitasking/RPing
Yes, you can be in multiple places at once. Just make sure you have the timeline in your mind, so that a creature that evolved in one thread doesn't suddenly appear in an evolved form in another thread unless it's of a later date. It's all about continuity.

14: Cause and Effect
For every action, therE is a consequence, either good or bad. It is possible to gain the enmity of an entire forest, to have your name and face known throughout the island, to have a bounty placed on your head, or to earn the respect and admiration of entire cities and areas, perhaps all of Saitro. What you do, good or bad, right or wrong, decides who you are in the eyes of others. More importantly, and I cannot stress this enough, is for you to stay in character. Understanding who you portray may be the most difficult challenge of all, to know your reactions and to know what your character would do, and if done correctly, can yield great rewards for you as a player.

15: You're not immortal
You can die, and you can kill. It's possible. Not wise, perhaps, but it's an option. Ressurection is theoretically possible, though by no means easy. And yes, this means that that cute little Skitty or Chikorita you hold dear is not immortal either. Normal battles have very strict rules of conduct, but be careful that things do not get out of hand. This is even in the series, Manga and Anime, when Ash's charizard goes head to head against another of its own kind, and almost kills it.

16: Pokemon have two languages natually.
Yes, that's right. There is a long drawn-out story, but I'll cut it short. They don't say their names all the time, unless around humans (for some). Many have been able to revert to a more naturalistic speech or form of communication, though the human-given name still holds power. They retain this language as well, using a certain type of telepathy or willpower, and some use it exclusively still. (Pikachu is a good example of this, as of yet.)

17: User Lookup
Please fill in as much as you can. This is really helpful. I require you to at least have the pokemon, inventory and whatever else you have in.
NOTE: The application date only works for users that came AFTER Nov 28, 12:48PM. This was an early Year 2 feature, pretty much.

18: Have fun!!
Go on and have an adventure. Saitro awaits you!

[yuffie]

Any reason why random letters are capitalized? "hEartless"

[serif]

Oh - that was how you got the password for the -- what was it you needed the password for? I don't remember, it was years ago. Anyway, it was also in a whatchamacallit at the bottom, where you highlight it to see. There was something that said that....

This site also had an unbelievably active gamemaster, who showed up in pretty much every thread, at least as setting, but more often as NPCs. It might have lasted even longer if more people had played with each other instead of just with the gamemaster - on the other hand, it might have self destructed way more messily.

It made it, what, four years? Five? Just about till AG1 died completely.

[Aryn007]

Stuff like this works for several reasons. I would love it if WD adopted some of these elements.

[yuffie]

That's what I thought, just wanted to know.

Also, they are really good rules, and they work. Maybe we don't need one person running around to do the setting, the team... oh look, the world moderators idea shows up. It could work here were it to be established. WD could definitely benefit.

Kudos to Gorrad for posting.

[mutoman]

A working Pokemon RP?

Sounds like t'was fun ;D
Plus, the rules do some good for RP'ing everywhere.