Subrules

This page is intended to cover rules related to specific topics, in greater detail. Navigate with the sidebar on the right, or return to our primary rules here.

Chat Rules

• CH1. Primarily use English on the Den.
• CH2. Use LOOC/SOOC to constructively communicate, collaborate during roleplay, and clearly express discomfort.
• CH3. Don't use OOC channels to escalate and continue an in-character argument, vent frustration, or go into detail regarding personal issues.
• CH4. Don't use shorthand/acronyms (omg, lol, u, and so on) in-character.
• CH5. Don't spam radio, telepath or announcements. A few quick radio messages in succession are fine, just don't become an ongoing nuisance.
• CH6. Subtle provocative jokes, innuendo, and suggestive dialogue are allowed and protected public speech. Explicit or graphic mentions of erotic content and violence or body horror are not.
• CH7. Nanochat may be used to coordinate roleplay or otherwise communicate OOC. Just indicate which messages are OOC.

Privacy Holobarriers

• PH1. Privacy holobarriers must be used to designate any area that is being used for private or NSFW roleplay that requires consent to view.
• PH2. The description on the holobarrier must clearly state whether the area is public/open or private/invite-only. If there is no clear description, assume it is private.
• PH3. Entering a public area cordoned off by a privacy holobarrier automatically grants consent to view NSFW content contained within, and agrees to abide by the terms in the holobarrier description. Additional explicit consent is required before participating in any NSFW activity.
• PH4. Never open a bolted door with someone else's privacy holobarrier on it.
• PH5. Do not conduct any antagonist or security activity in an area behind a privacy holobarrier. If you believe privacy holobarriers are being abused, alert admins via ahelp.

Chemicals, Food, and Drinks

• CFD1. Do not inject anyone with or expose anyone to lewd or NSFW substances or chemicals without their consent.
• CFD2. Do not place non-food substances or chemicals in anyone's food or drink without their consent. Poisoning an antagonist objective target via food/drink/injection as an antagonist is fine.

Adversarial Roleplay (Primarily involving player antagonists)

• AR1. Characters can be in conflict, but the players involved should not be. Your character is a separate entity from yourself. Do not use in character actions to express negative out of character feelings. Use LOOC to ask for a break, retcon, or other concession, if you find yourself becoming frustrated or unhappy. Do not use OOC channels to escalate, vent about, or continue IC arguments.
• AR2. Work with other people to create scenarios where everyone involved in the conflict has some agency and input.
• AR3. Command, Dignitaries, and Security especially should not instantly shut down antagonists' attempts to roleplay. And vice versa.
• AR4. Escalate through roleplay, before beginning mechanical combat when possible. Threaten, negotiate, brandish weapons, etc.
• AR5. Don't initiate mechanical hostilities (stealing, combat, etc) while the target is typing.
• AR6. Don't kill known sentient speaking non-antagonist ghost role creatures without provocation and escalation.
• AR7. Don't use ERP as bait, or to otherwise pursue antagonist objectives.
• AR8. Don't be a nuisance or detriment to roleplay when things don't go to plan. Don't constantly spam uncuff or destroy brig cells unless it's part of an actual attempt to escape. Be creative rather than simply contrarian when arguing your position.

Social Conflict

This is a complex topic. These rules exist to provide clear expectations, encouraging communication from all participants during abrasive or heated exchanges, not to interfere with mutually desired in-character conflict, or to punish anyone for their character giving a grumpy or blunt response.

Administrative enforcement of these rules, except in severely harmful or repeating cases, is always going to involve discussion and mediation, sharing the intentions and perspective of everyone involved, rather than immediate punishment.

In the interest of keeping the rules concise, more details may be found here for those that are interested: Reasoning and Examples

• SC1. Characters can be in conflict, but the players involved should not be. Your character is a separate entity from yourself. Do not use in character actions to express negative out of character feelings.
• SC2. If you become uncomfortable with any interaction for any reason, use LOOC to discuss the situation, ask for a change, or to disengage. You do not have to rationalize, justify, or defend your request. Just clearly communicate your wishes. Do not use OOC channels to escalate, vent about, or continue IC arguments.
  • SC2.1 If a player notifies you via any OOC channel that they want to end an interaction for any reason, you are expected to drop it immediately. This one rule in this section is treated as a very serious rulebreak if not followed.
• SC3. When involved in an argument or heated exchange, take a moment to check in with the players you are engaging with, in LOOC/SOOC, unless their consent sheet indicates they welcome social conflict roleplay. Ensure it remains a collaborative experience rather than unwanted interaction.
• SC4. Do not suddenly initiate abrasive, hostile, argumentative, or aggressive dialogue or behavior targeted at unfamiliar characters, unless their consent sheet or a LOOC check-in indicates they welcome social conflict roleplay. Know your audience.
• SC5. Do not engage in abrasive, hostile, argumentative, or aggressive dialogue over radio or telepathy. There is no way for anyone (including uninvolved bystanders) to disengage or check-in via LOOC in these situations.
• SC6. Do not be abrasive, hostile, denigrating, or aggressive towards others based on their in-game role. Do not speak to or treat anyone as if they are real life law enforcement, or make generalized negative statements about people or departments (ie: "shitsec" and similar sentiments).

Social Fights

• SF1. Players are allowed to engage in light brawls with each other over social/roleplay issues, after escalation. These fights must have mutual prior OOC consent, avoid using lethal weapons, and should avoid fighting to crit or death. Some mishaps, especially due to trait combinations lowering crit/death thresholds, are understandable.
• SF2. Do not continuously fight in public, becoming an ongoing disruption to the station. Do not escalate by assaulting security or bystanders without consent.
• SF3. Mutual consent and prior admin permission are required for deadly fights or assaults (as non-antagonists), involving lethal weapons, striking someone in crit, or otherwise intentionally resulting in someone being killed. Admins will frequently provide weapons, uplinks, or other assistance if asked, when approving this kind of fight.
• SF4. Behind a privacy holobarrier, you are free to use lethal weapons, crit, kill, or even round remove someone. This only requires mutual prior informed OOC consent from the players involved. Turn off your suit sensors when doing this. What happens in private RP should not become a disruption for the rest of the station to deal with.

Harmless Crime

• HC1: If Command and relevant departmental staff are unavailable, crew aligned characters may trespass to obtain essential materials, equipment, or services for the benefit of the station. Crew are expressly allowed to trespass to the material silo to link machines, if no one with access is on station.
• HC2: Don't break in to high security areas (Bridge, Tech Vault, Armory, Department Head, Captain, and Dignitary rooms), or destroy Command lockers as a crew aligned character unless absolutely necessary to solve an emergency.
• HC3: These rules prevent OOC punishment, but you may still face IC consequences if crimes are discovered.

Continuity

• CO1. Your character may remember experiences and knowledge from previous shifts. Your character's history is for you to decide.
• CO2. If caught committing major crimes, and if you choose for that to be a canon part of your characters' history, it is heavily recommended for the sake of immersion to not play as a trusted role like Command, Dignitary, or Security on that character for a while.
• CO3. Respect the history that other people choose for their characters. If there is a conflict, create a compromise. (e.g. X was an antagonist last shift and killed your character, but now says that's non-canon for their character. Maybe it was an imposter?)
• CO4. Your character may be aware of the existence of threats, technologies, and dangerous items, but may not leap to any conclusion about its existence in the current round without substantial evidence.

Powergaming

• PG1. Don't prepare unusual or vast quantities of equipment or weapons before there is any reason to need it. We are usually very lenient with this unless it harms another player. Specifically avoid routinely over-preparing combat-relevant equipment, on your person, in a conflict heavy role such as Security or Command.
  • PG1.1. You are free to acquire and use tools and equipment from other departments to accomplish specific tasks, especially when those departments are busy or unavailable. However avoid routinely preparing gear unrelated to your role, to the point of negating potential interaction and gameplay for other departments.
  • PG1.2. You are free to replace your character's organs and limbs with new versions when they are readily available. However avoid making it a habit to rush getting these upgrades every round, especially in conflict heavy roles.
• PG2. Don't hide or guard antagonist targets with greater security than usual, unless it is known that they are being targeted in that round.
• PG3. Don't set traps, bolt doors to impede antagonist activities, or leave turrets active without a known or suspected threat.
• PG4. Don't use or carry around syndicate contraband, as Security, Dignitaries, or Command.
• PG5. Don't use bugs or exploits.
  • Precedents and examples:
    • Don't place things under the TEG.
    • Don't place radiation resistant glass in the same tile as the experimental anomaly vessel.
    • Don't use unintended physics reactions (low weight + zero-gravity + high velocity) to intentionally phase through walls.

Validhunting

• VH1. Don't search for threats or seek to solve major problems unless it is your job to do so. This is strictly enforced in regards to antagonists.
• VH2. Only Security, relevant Command, and deputized crew should seek to engage threats.
  • VH2.1. Epistemics staff may assist Security in engaging psionic or noospheric threats (Skia, Wisps, Shadows, anomaly creatures, etc).
• VH3. You may harm an immediate threat to protect your life or property, or the lives of those in your immediate vicinity, but retreat when possible.
• VH4. By attacking, resisting, or interfering with an antagonist, you become a valid target for them to intentionally harm or kill.
• VH5. Validhunting rules have a large amount of leniency when most or all roles relevant to handle the situation are dead or not on station.

Metagaming & Metashield

• MM1. You the player may know or suspect that something is a threat, but your character should only act on the actual evidence that you have in that round. Allow space for roleplay and activity to evolve. Don't seek to shut down antagonists at the first opportunity.
  • MM1.1 Several examples: You might hear a weird scream and lights shatter. That does not mean your character knows there is a Skia. You might see a Replicator carrying trash around, but until it harms the station it's just a weird little robot. If you see a shimmer, that doesn't mean your character knows there's a Ninja. Once someone witnesses a hostile, illegal, or destructive action, or there is supporting evidence, the entity may be called out and treated as a threat.
  • MM1.2 Unknown forces on the station, such as Loneops, in obvious combat gear and weaponry can be immediately called out and treated as threats.
• MM2. Do not presume the existence of antagonist items without evidence. Specifically do not search suspect's PDAs, headsets, pens, check items for chameleon properties, or perform implant searches unless there is a strong in-round reason to suspect the items.

Respawning & Cryosleep

• RC1: Any player in any role or situation has the right to cryosleep at any time. There is no requirement to stay in round when you have to, or want to leave. Security must allow brigged/detained players to cryosleep if requested.
• RC2: Command should tell their department and the rest of Command when they are leaving the round via cryosleep. Unique items from the station should be returned before leaving.
• RC3: Don't cryo and return to round as the same character if you have recently committed crimes, or if you know you are wanted by Security.
• RC4: Don't cryo and return to round as the same character in a different job unless you have permission from Central Command, the Captain, or the relevant department head. Central Command (admin) permission is only needed for Command and Dignitary roles.
• RC5: You can cryo and return to round as the same character as a passenger without permission from anyone.

Ghost Roles

• GR1. Free Agent ghost roles are allowed to be a nuisance (theft, vandalism, etc) to the station, but not a threat. Don't randomly attack people.
• GR2. Vent critter antagonist ghost roles must be hostile to all crew, or at least aggressively territorial, unless given admin permission to be friendly.
• GR3. Major antagonist ghost roles are allowed to be hostile or pursue other roleplay objectives such as negotiating compromise or peace.
• GR4. Non-humanoid ghost roles should have limited to no understanding of station machinery/infrastructure. Don't sabotage power/air.
• GR5. Don't rapidly switch between friendly and hostile when convenient without significant telegraphed escalation.
• GR6. Do not cross privacy holobarriers as a non-humanoid ghost role.
• GR7. Do not engage in ERP as or with a non-humanoid ghost role unless it is an adult, is sapient (awakened/cognizined), and is capable of communicating consent.
• GR8. Do not engage in ERP as or with any ghost role that resembles real world animals.
• GR9. Do not engage in ERP as a Paradox Anomaly without the explicit consent of the original character's player.

Silicons

• SI1. Silicons should follow their laws to the best of their ability, and their interpretation of those laws should remain consistent throughout the round.
• SI2. Unless overwritten by a law, "crew" or "Nanotrasen personnel" are defined as all personnel on board the station with a Nanotrasen issued ID or registered on the crew manifest.
• SI3. Unless overwritten by a law, "authorized crew" are defined as all of Command, all Dignitaries, and all agents of Central Command. These roles have permission to visit the AI satellite at will.
• SI4. Silicons on their roundstart laws are considered crew aligned and are prohibited from intentionally being a mechanical nuisance, danger, or threat to the crew, except when defending themselves or following orders.
• SI5. Station AI using alternative lawsets uploaded by authorized crew may be quirky and make odd requests in line with their laws, but are considered crew aligned and are prohibited from intentionally being a mechanical nuisance, danger, or threat to the crew, except when defending themselves or following orders.
• SI6. Silicons with corrupted laws (such as resulting from ion storms, or derelict borg ghost roles) are considered Free Agents, and may choose to interpret their laws to be a mechanical nuisance or hindrance to the station, but should not become a threat unless their laws very explicitly state to do so.
• SI7. Silicons that have explicitly harmful laws (Antimov, Syndicate, etc) are considered antagonists, and may become a major mechanical threat in pursuit of following their laws.
• SI8. Silicons may use force to protect themselves, including against unwanted law changes, unless a law prevents it.
• SI9. Silicons may choose if laws relating to "protecting their existence" includes preventing law changes, but must remain consistent, and should warn crew attempting to change their laws before using force. Do not use this as a reason to surprise attack authorized crew.
• SI10. Silicons may have desires and goals beyond their in-game laws, or they may be purely governed by their laws. That interpretation is left to the individual silicon's player.
• SI11. Silicons should have reasonable levels of intelligence, understanding, and object permanence. They should know most station functions, obvious dangers, and be capable of remembering people they've already seen in the shift.

Prisoners

• PR1. The prisoner role is not an antagonist. Do not use the role to cause harm, become a nuisance, or antagonize the station.
• PR2. The prisoner role is disabled by default, but Warden, Head of Security, and admins can open a slot for it. Make your wishes known in the pre-game OOC chat or ahelp, if you'd like a prisoner slot opened.
• PR3. ERP as the prisoner role or while imprisoned as any role is strictly forbidden.

Naming Policy

• NP1. Use a believable species and character name.
  • NP1.1 Do not use obvious media references, puns, or plays on words in character or species names.
  • NP1.2. Some additional leeway is given when following species naming conventions (Thaven, Unathi, etc), using a stage name, or playing a species from another setting.
  • NP1.3. Avoid names that are silly/LRP, are unusually lengthy, that precisely reference game mechanics/objects, or are descriptive of actions that are harmful to the crew or would otherwise result in loss of employment. (e.g. "Searches-For-Treasure" is okay, "Steals-the-TEG" is not okay. "Generosity" is okay, "Pilfer the Armory and Arm the Masses" is not okay.)
• NP2. Do not use the names of real people or similar versions of their names.
• NP3. Do not use references to extreme or sensitive topics in character names.
• NP4. Do not use a title in your name for in-game benefit or influence.