In General
Well, we all know forum and ghost rules still apply here, so that is that. Mainly, this rule is a quick rundown of things and some will be expanded upon more in other rules. Just a warning, it is a long list so be prepared to read all of this if you want to join this role-play. We did not type this all out for people to ignore what we say and just do what they want. It is our role-play, we created it, you must abide by our rules or join something else. Stealing is a big no-no. Do not steal or take too much inspiration from this. Ask us if you want to use an idea we came up with, coding, graphic ideas, or anything from this page.
Activity
There are plenty of rules people dread. Activity and literacy are the ones that come to mind of those people hate most. Oh well, to us, they are indeed necessary. We will get to literacy later, right now, we will focus on activity! Being active and committed are two important key factors to a role-play’s success. There is a difference between the two and they obviously work best together. Before you join our role-play, ask yourself if you may be active enough and if you can commit. Now, we will not be angry if later down the road you leave the role-play or something big happens. However, if you are contemplating whether or not you will leave the forums, sorry, but we kindly ask you not join. Sure, you can be active on here, but if you are not aiming to stay and possibly climb up the ranks of the moderator hierarchy, then once again, this is not for you. We do understand that to create a long-lasting role-play happens, but setting up the roadblocks to potentially make it does a lot. Now to get onto the stuff we all know and love: activity requirements. For those who are trusted members and above, you will need to be on five days of the week. If you are not on for three days, we will have a warning mark and like your post to bring you back. The fourth day you are gone, we will simply delete you. Regular members and new members, you have four days that you need to be on each week. You will follow the same as the trusted members and higher with four days, and then five. To be considered “active,” you must actually role-play and not just chat. Upon deletion, you will receive a private message stating why and what we could potentially do for if you come back if you can.
Role-play & Literacy
The whole advanced role-play thing is quite debatable, but with our past role-plays, we have introduced a new way to be “advanced” but to where you can relax a little bit. We only ask that you try to have proper grammar, correct spelling, and decent detail. Effort counts and we can see when it is put in. Unlike WCF, paragraphs appear much shorter and we are well aware of that, so do not worry too much about length, however, no shorter than three sentences. There is also a debate with detail. If you can paint a scene to where we can see it in my head, you have done a good job. However, this is not Lord of the Rings and we do not need to know the exact details of a tree’s bark or the backstory of every thought your character has. When it gets to that, it would be considered “fluff.” With that side of the debate, we agree it is pretty useless. So, please be descriptive, but not to where we have to read ten paragraphs to get the point of your response or starter. The role-play will follow GMT, we will have a timezone chart on the discussion page. This is to help keep things organized. Leaders and head moderators will be responsible for keeping track of time and moving the role-play along. Due to time being tracked with each post, we kindly ask you head your posts. At the top, have the name of your character and the landmark they are closest to. Obviously, please also include the time of day. If you do have special coding, please make sure the colors, text size, and everything else is easy to read. If not, we will kindly ask you not to use it or to edit it so we can read it.
Role-playing & Realism
Seeing impossible things happen when there can be no real reason for them to happen other than favoritism in the books or just because you want to look cool will not fly here. So please refrain from having your cat fight and kill a badger on their own. Instead of having your cats "smile" or "cry," just expressing that emotion in other ways. Cats can not have powers, they can not fight a pack of dogs without getting injured or by themselves. In the Warriors universe, there are certain things that can and can not happen, so please abide by those rules and our rules. Now, general role-play rules play along with realism. It is too coincidental when your character gets all of the spotlight, so please do not do that. There will be moments when your character’s plot or spot in the limelight will take front and center. God-modding and meta-gaming are a no go for us, so do not even think about it. Please keep in mind that cats do die. We're not asking for you to slaughter them all, but if we have a greencough outbreak, not everyone is bound to survive it. At the same time, please do not go on a killing spree with your cats.
Role-playing & Plots
With each side plot comes a designated date they can happen depending on who is involved. We will have a calendar for when certain plot points and events will happen and they will be posted in the news section. All side plots need to be approved by an admin or a head moderator. This includes fox attacks on the camp or a badger attack. Kitting needs to be set on a certain date so no one can interfere with that. Keep in mind that there is a system of what takes priority for plots. Main plot events will be priority over everything. Side plots that were decided on a week in advance will follow, then small plots that do not need to be approved. Please ask us before doing it if you are not sure about a certain plot needing approval. We will not be angry. We apologize to kit-stealers, but due to this being the original five Clans, we will not allow outside kit-stealing. It probably will happen at some point in this role-play, but between the five Clans. As for warrior ceremonies, we will accept name requests, but the current leaders will give them their name. This is to stimulate the books a little, however we may name them the name you ask for.
Role-playing Rank & Continuity Changes
If you were to break the rules and lose your position, we will come up with a reason for your character to step down or something like so. This is not to humiliate you, but to keep the role-play from "jumping" and to keep it smooth. If you were deleted and rejoined, we will simply say that your cats were sick. If you are deleted for the third time, we will announce your cats dead under different names. If you do not like this, well, we are not mentioning your cats, so you can not really get mad. If this does happen, admins or mods will offer throwaway cats for this. Just because you did not follow our rules does not mean our role-play needs to be messed up with continuity issues.
Characters & Joining
Before you rattle off a bunch of cats that you are joining with, keep reading to learn of the restrictions. Some names will not be accepted. Mostly due to it not making the most sense in our role-play or in the Warriors universe altogether. Make sure you have back-up names in case we ask for that name to be changed. Also make sure th check the prefix list. We will not accept any cats with the prefixes on any list, as they are already used or will be used fairly soon in each Clan. To be a little clearer about this, we will accept a Bluewhisker in one Clan and a Bluepaw in another, but not a Bluekit in either of those Clans. Keep pelt designs realistic. You do not have to be exact with genetics, but two gray cats can not produce a ginger cat. Mutations are alright to have, but we will only allow a handful. For every three kits in every three litters, one cat with a mutation can be born. Know that if you join with an apprentice, you must create a warrior. We would prefer more warriors over apprentices, as there is no set limit unlike apprentices. We will not allow orphan kits. We are alright with a permanent queen, but their kits must be apprentice aged or older unless you have found a mate for your cat. We may allow pregnant queens, but here is the deal. That cat will not be considered pregnant unless you found someone who is willing to be the father and the two are compatible or at least have a interesting relationship. If you both agree on it, we will put that the two are mates and you may have your cat find out she is pregnant. You have a week to do this and if someone says no, it means no. You can not pressure someone or constantly mention it to the point it is annoying. For those who feel uncomfortable towards LBGTQ+ topics, characters, and forum members, we ask you kindly not to join. We will be open to those characters, members, and we are sure the topic will come up in the role-play. The character limit for joining at the moment is eight characters per person per Clan. You can split these characters up however you want. Each person gets four prefix saves. Also keep genders somewhat even.
Ranks
So, want to be deputy? Well, you have to be chosen by the admin to get it. Please, please do not apply to be deputy or annoy one of the admins and others with hints in your posts. It is fine if it is a kit, apprentice, or a warrior who is too young to be one. Deputy is a rank in the Clan that is to be earned. We may and probably will take a while on deciding the first deputy. Medicine cats are different. If there is a position for medicine cat open, then you may take it, but you do need to follow the rules for trusted members and higher. Same with deputy, really. Medicine cat apprentices will not be allowed at first, as we want them to be role-played into getting the rank. Trusted members will be chosen by the admin of that Clan, as well as mods. They will be people who have been on the most and we feel like we can trust. They also have the first dibs on possibly recreating this role-play if something were to happen. Mentors are a privilege. While everyone should get an apprentice sooner or later, we will not hesitate to take that away.
Courtesy
In general, be courteous and respectful to everyone. Keep opinions that can cause wars to yourselves. If you have an issue with someone, take it somewhere else and please for the love of all that is good keep this role-play out of your posts! We do not want negativity linked with this role-play or role-plays somehow linked to this. We expect everyone to be polite and have manners on my role-play. If you go somewhere else and name this role-play because you have an issue with another member stealing your lollipop, we will not be happy. So refrain from that. Be cautious of your words, as they can potentially hurt someone. The saying, "grow a thicker skin," will not always be allowed here. Some things, yes, but more sensitive topics, we ask you be picky with your words. If you have a serious topic that you want to discuss, or even a plot that could "trigger" someone, give a warning first or private message the person you wish to talk to. Luckily, this forum provides a link to some hotlines to help with some things.
Consequences
This role-play has two systems that determine whether or not you are deleted. One is a universal system and the other is an extra precaution for mods and higher so they do their job. The universal system is called the Star System. It's quite easy. When you receive a star, it means you have done something that has broken our rules. The first star comes with a verbal warning. The second star allows me to delay side plots and take away apprentices. The third star cancels any side plots you have until you have gone back to the second star. Unfortunately, that could have an impact on another person, and cause some more issues, so please do not get this far. The fourth star takes you out of any plots and if you are in a high position, you are demoted. Meaning if you are deputy, you are now a warrior. If you are a mod, you are down to a trusted member. The fifth and final star means you will be deleted in two days if you do not shape up. Depending on the severity of your actions, like you fighting with someone and getting the page deleted, it may have you skip a star or two. You do have a chance to go back down the system after a week's time if you improve. The second system is a strike system. If any negative actions occur and a mod does not reprimand the person at fault, then they receive a strike for not doing their duty. Three strikes equal a star, so be cautious.
