Channel Rules

Channel Rules:

1. OOC to #TMT*OOC - If an op calls on excessive OOC (any instance in which a channel Operator says "enough OOC" in any form), please stop. We have an OOC channel for that stuff.

2. No Sexually Explicit RP - Take it to a private channel. What we call overt sexuality is essentially the act in the public channel. Oral, insertive, etc... Any kind of sex. So long as stripping down is not involved, there should be no problem.

3. Respect the Setting - It's not a huge kingdom, but rather a moderately sized town set on an island. Try not to play out things, such as huge armies marauding the countryside, without at least consulting the ops. Major changes to the setting need to be vetted through the ops before being played out. As a rule of thumb, a household guard of a few armed men for a noble's villa is nothing to worry about, but large units of men are another issue. This rule is vague, but essentially is written to allow the ops leeway in halting any undue modification of the setting that would make it harder for other players to interact.

Incidentally, demons and vampires and other creatures that actively prey on normal folk should exercise a certain amount of discretion lest they attract the attention of those, including the town at large as well as most religious institutions, who would like to rid themselves of such a presence.

We are allowing firearms in this setting. Specifically, flintlock pistols, rifles, blunderbus and the like from early-to-mid 1700's era of functionality. We're shooting for more colonial style in the setting rather than strictly medieval, which is why there are later era age of sail ships as well.

If you have any questions regarding the setting, ASK! Many of the regulars and the ops will undoubtedly be able to assist you. But we can't help you if you don't vocalize.

4. FFRP or not? - TMT being an FFRP is kind of a misnomer. By definition, freeform rp allows you the freedom to do what you want. Here, the same applies, however you must stay within certain boundaries. Because the setting is such that we do not want it changed without consulting the ops, we're much more like a PnP game, without the dice. This means that the ops are also considered the overseeing DMs of the game(as some players do take on the role of DM from time to time), as well as players. Our "job" is not just enforcing the rules, but to DM, act as deities, the guards, and other important roles that have control over the setting. The ops can and will at times dictate not only the actions of a PC if necessary(if something rediculous is happening, such as going to a dragon''s den and acting a fool: Result, you will be eaten.), but the consequences -of- those actions. While some can be discussed and changed by calmly explaining your position, other things are as-is, just like that used car lot. You buy it, you get it as it comes. And nothing forseeable can be done to change it for better or for worse.

5. No Auto-Hitting - The player of the character owns that character, decides what happens to that character and can decline to have something happen to that character accordingly. Therefore, if you want to maim, or do anything else, to someone else’s character, it only happens with permission.

We're aware this violates some people's concept of ''realism'' in the setting, but the fact is that if someone doesn't want their character torn to pieces, they shouldn't have to be. In other channels, there may be a realism clause that specifies that someone has to react ''realistically'' (in a fantasy environment) to an attack or something, but we feel that this merely allows more aggressive players to loophole this into bullying people into being the straw dummies for their combat monster characters. Nothing doin'. The player owns the character. On the other hand...

6. No God-PCs - Like the rule against auto-hitting, to keep the fairness of the role-play evened out, we have also instituted a strict anti-God-PC rule. This excludes all-powerful, all-knowing, unbeatable characters from our channels unless special permission is granted by one of the ops for specific plot purposes - generally because the character is meant to die later on. Special permissions are granted only to the most responsible role-players in the channel, to make sure some guy just doesn't come along and disrupt the entire flow of the RP with a kill-em-all post. And when we say no God-PCs, we mean it, and we will enforce it through rule #4.

And no ''vampire/demon/knight/ninja/and oh he's a rockstar too'' characters. Some may feel it stifles creativity, but we also prefer to -NOT- have canon characters from other mediums.

As an addendum: Absolutely no Metagaming. If you hear something OOC, it stays OOC. You do not take it as IC knowledge unless it's specifically stated that you can. The last thing anyone needs is a know-all hero who ruins the fun for everyone else on a consistent basis. Let things come together in game, and if your character finds out, that's one thing. Automatically knowing is a big no-no.

7. Keep IC and OOC Seperate - People make too much of a grudge match over things that happen IC and take the arguments OOC or vice versa. Let’s be honest; We’re here during our free time to enjoy ourselves. We’re basically playing make-believe and the point is to have fun. So try to talk it out in a civilized manner, bearing in mind that we have rules about God-PC’s and Auto-hitting.

Incidentally, be polite to your fellow players. We don't tolerate insults and other forms of bullshit in any of the channels we run. We take it even more personally when you're nasty to the other players, but kiss opply ass. It will NOT save you as it might in other channels, nor will knowing any one op in particular over another. We tend to feel that everyone should be polite to each other. We all have to suck it up and be at least polite (or silent) to people we don't like.

8. Warn, Kick, Ban - The ops strive to be mature and fair, and much prefer not to actually have to enforce rules at all. When we need to say something, we'll try to discuss it nicely and be reasonable. However, after that, we warn, we kick and we ban. And it’s not a negotiable policy like in other RP channels. If you feel you’ve been unfairly disciplined, speak to the channel founder.

The ops are people too. The ops will attempt to be civilized in talking about matters regarding the rules. In return, we just ask that you listen to the ops. We don’t like confronting people, any more than people like being told they’re doing wrong. So it’s faster and easier if we just keep it on the civilized tone.

9. Zero Tolerance - Intentionally harassing players and ''griefing'' are strictly dealt with. Examples of things we do not allow include but are not limited to: quits aimed at insulting someone, snide comments in the RP channel that are clearly not IC, harassment in its ever evolving and many forms and any sort of behavior that the ops deem to be more or less intended to drive another player out. As mentioned above, if you have a problem with someone, it's best to ignore them completely.

Zero tolerance bans carry the added condition that they are permanent. Once you are warned, you really are on your last chance. We don't like banning players, but we also believe that 5% of the people in a channel are 95% of the problem.

This includes intentionally trying to insult someone through racial, religious, or other remarks that slam somebody very personally. Most of the time we can tell the difference between joking around and being serious. If it gets to the point of being taken seriously and the other person asks you to stop, you stop.

Griefing also has another form. For example, being told something by the ops, only to constantly whine and try and find a loophole, op-shopping, etc. You do not do these things. The ops are generally on the same page. If one tells you no, the others will do the same. Don't make us, and yourself, look like a fool by going to each and every op and trying to get just one of them to see it your way.

10. The Spirit of the Law - The ops have final say regarding the rules. They can bend 'em to their heart's content, though ops who act excessively will be dealt with. An op will generally have a good reason for doing something.

This is primarily a rule because other channels spend a lot of time lawyering over their rules when a rule is violated, and trying to decide whether or not someone did something according to the very definition. We’ll dispense with that. We feel that our players are mature enough that this won’t come up often and that our ops aren’t going to abuse it. The only reason this would be invoked would be in cases where it was deemed the overwhelming good of the channel.

11. Golden Rule - The best way to stay on an each other's good side is to remember that we're all here to have fun. So let's not get bent out of shape over what is, after all, a hobby. So the golden rule, and most important of them all, is RESPECT. Respect your fellow players, the ops, and the rules, and everyone will get along and have a good time. That's what we're here for, fun.