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RP Rules
These are the rules that all players in the RP are expected to follow. Most of them are common sense, boilerplate-type things, especially if you've been in an RP before. Still though, new member or old, it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with them.
If you have any questions or anything requires clarification, please don't hesitate to bring it up.
1) Content and content warnings.
The "rating" of this RP tends to vary and is difficult to pin down but usually tend to gravitate close to the ESRB's's "M - Mature" rating: "Content is generally suitable for ages 17 and up. May contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language." As such, generally, you should expect that violence, blood, strong language and sexual themes can find their way into a thread at an appropriate time without prior warning.
However, in the case of the most extreme content, like extreme violence, explicit sexual conduct and the like, be courteous to other members of the RP, place it behind a cut and include a clear, easy to see content warning either at the top of the post, or somewhere readily visible within the body of the post. If you notice content that is lacking a proper warning, speak either to a mod or the player who posted it. If someone asks you to add a content warning to a post, thread or log of yours, please strongly consider doing so out of courtesy for your fellows players.
2) Be active.
We all have commitments. Work, school, family or just a simple bout of "can't be assed". Nobody is expected to donate all of their free time to this RP. The RP itself has fluctuations in pace, hitting peaks and valleys that are, simply put, unpredictable. In general, all that we ask is that when a good peak gets going, you contribute and when a valley lasts too long and you think you have an opportunity to do so, you help dig in to pull the game out of it. Outside of that, contribute at the pace that's best for you. That also means that in the case of characters who are important to the plot (i.e., a Signer), either canon or original, it's important to bear in mind that the pace of a current thread or the story in general could be hanging on that character's involvement at any given time. If such a character is inactive to the point where the thread or story is being significantly weighed down, then action may be taken to move things along, including temporarily controlling the character or in the unfortunate case of a canon character repeatedly being found in that position, that character being taken away and put up to be played by someone else.
All in all, just play at the pace that's best for you and best for the level of involvement you believe you can handle and be open about it when something is keeping you from posting, even if it's as simple as "I'm not feeling it right now, can I post a little later?" We're all adults and we've all been there.
3) Communicate with others & be flexible
This RP relies heavily on players communicating with each other, in all facets including planning for. Be it by AIM, Plurk, PMs or posts on the OOC comm, whatever the case is, a consistent dialog between players is absolutely necessary. It's required that you keep yourself apprised of new content posted by a mod in the OOC Comm. It's recommended that you keep a regular eye on the wiki's Recent Changes page. It is strongly recommended that you have an AIM account or some equivalent that will allow you to communicate with people like Pidgin or Trillian. Many members of the RP also have a Plurk account, but that is not nearly as necessary and is more just a discussion tool.
As well as communicating, always try and keep a sense of flexibility. This is a collaborative story with a lot of moving parts and no one player is bigger than the story itself. Be open to adjustments, cooperation and compromise with other players when it comes to plotting and everything will be fine.
4) Be respectful
This is, hopefully, self explanatory. We're all here to have fun. Be nice to your fellow players. If you have an issue, settle it like an adult or take it to a mod. Always remember that In-Character actions do not reflect Out-of-Character attitudes. This is a very simple rule that doesn't require a thorough explanation. Just don't do or say anything you wouldn't want done or said to you.
5) Do not godmode/infomod.
Do not attempt to control another player's character without their permission. Do not have your character preform IC actions based on knowledge you only have OOCly. This ties very strongly into rule 3 - sometimes a situation arises where a certain thing needs to happen. That's to be expected. But don't force those circumstances on other players, discuss it with them and figure out the best way to approach it.
Godmoding and infomodding often place players in uncomfortable positions that they would otherwise not want to be in and is very easy to avoid by just following rules 3 and 4 and thus, it's treated very seriously. If you are caught godmoding or infomodding, expect consequences.
6) Stay in character.
This is especially important in the case of canon characters but it is also important for OCs. Your character profile is supposed to serve as a jumping off point for your character, but it's also supposed to be a blueprint for that character, something that gives an insight into the core of that character's personality. Your character should grow and develop and change as the story goes on, but they should never become unrecognizable from the blueprint you put down.
7) In-character actions equal in-character consequences.
Always consider the actions your character is going to take and what potential ramifications they could have. This RP is based heavily in the notion of OOC planning, but we're also required to maintain the story's suspension of disbelief by having logical consequences follow on from actions. Basically, if you're planning to have your character do something bad, that's perfectly okay, but it may put them in a bad situation later on.
8) Familiarity with 5D's and Arc-V
As this RP is based off the first 64 episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's and (so far) off of the entirety of Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V, it is recommended that you at least be familiar with that basis. It is obviously best if you've seen the entirety of them, but in a pinch, episode summaries will work as well. All information relevant to the RP's setting and timeline is provided here anyway, but there are still things that you may miss if you haven't seen the shows themselves. Not having seen either show isn't grounds for being barred entry into the RP or anything, but it is still for the best if you have seen them.
9) Obey the word and the spirit of the rules.
The greatest concern of the mods in running this game is maintaining a comfortable, friendly atmosphere for themselves and the players in which all the players can feel relaxed and have fun RPing with each other. All of these rules are written to that effect and these rules are not slave to technicality. Any situation that explicitly violates the atmosphere the mods are trying to maintain can be treated as a violation of the rules, even if it doesn't fall under one of the rules listed here. Toxic behavior in whatever form it takes that discomforts, offends or hurts other players or damages the atmosphere of the game will not be tolerated and the mods take an especially dim view of attempts to circumvent the rules based on semantics and technicality.
The spirit of these rules is hopefully obvious and easy to follow; be respectful and courteous to other players, communicate with other players, be capable of thinking from an in character perspective to maintain your character's personality and anticipate the consequences of their actions. And above all, if you have a problem, don't hesitate to bring it to the mods.
If you have any questions or anything requires clarification, please don't hesitate to bring it up.
1) Content and content warnings.
The "rating" of this RP tends to vary and is difficult to pin down but usually tend to gravitate close to the ESRB's's "M - Mature" rating: "Content is generally suitable for ages 17 and up. May contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language." As such, generally, you should expect that violence, blood, strong language and sexual themes can find their way into a thread at an appropriate time without prior warning.
However, in the case of the most extreme content, like extreme violence, explicit sexual conduct and the like, be courteous to other members of the RP, place it behind a cut and include a clear, easy to see content warning either at the top of the post, or somewhere readily visible within the body of the post. If you notice content that is lacking a proper warning, speak either to a mod or the player who posted it. If someone asks you to add a content warning to a post, thread or log of yours, please strongly consider doing so out of courtesy for your fellows players.
2) Be active.
We all have commitments. Work, school, family or just a simple bout of "can't be assed". Nobody is expected to donate all of their free time to this RP. The RP itself has fluctuations in pace, hitting peaks and valleys that are, simply put, unpredictable. In general, all that we ask is that when a good peak gets going, you contribute and when a valley lasts too long and you think you have an opportunity to do so, you help dig in to pull the game out of it. Outside of that, contribute at the pace that's best for you. That also means that in the case of characters who are important to the plot (i.e., a Signer), either canon or original, it's important to bear in mind that the pace of a current thread or the story in general could be hanging on that character's involvement at any given time. If such a character is inactive to the point where the thread or story is being significantly weighed down, then action may be taken to move things along, including temporarily controlling the character or in the unfortunate case of a canon character repeatedly being found in that position, that character being taken away and put up to be played by someone else.
All in all, just play at the pace that's best for you and best for the level of involvement you believe you can handle and be open about it when something is keeping you from posting, even if it's as simple as "I'm not feeling it right now, can I post a little later?" We're all adults and we've all been there.
3) Communicate with others & be flexible
This RP relies heavily on players communicating with each other, in all facets including planning for. Be it by AIM, Plurk, PMs or posts on the OOC comm, whatever the case is, a consistent dialog between players is absolutely necessary. It's required that you keep yourself apprised of new content posted by a mod in the OOC Comm. It's recommended that you keep a regular eye on the wiki's Recent Changes page. It is strongly recommended that you have an AIM account or some equivalent that will allow you to communicate with people like Pidgin or Trillian. Many members of the RP also have a Plurk account, but that is not nearly as necessary and is more just a discussion tool.
As well as communicating, always try and keep a sense of flexibility. This is a collaborative story with a lot of moving parts and no one player is bigger than the story itself. Be open to adjustments, cooperation and compromise with other players when it comes to plotting and everything will be fine.
4) Be respectful
This is, hopefully, self explanatory. We're all here to have fun. Be nice to your fellow players. If you have an issue, settle it like an adult or take it to a mod. Always remember that In-Character actions do not reflect Out-of-Character attitudes. This is a very simple rule that doesn't require a thorough explanation. Just don't do or say anything you wouldn't want done or said to you.
5) Do not godmode/infomod.
Do not attempt to control another player's character without their permission. Do not have your character preform IC actions based on knowledge you only have OOCly. This ties very strongly into rule 3 - sometimes a situation arises where a certain thing needs to happen. That's to be expected. But don't force those circumstances on other players, discuss it with them and figure out the best way to approach it.
Godmoding and infomodding often place players in uncomfortable positions that they would otherwise not want to be in and is very easy to avoid by just following rules 3 and 4 and thus, it's treated very seriously. If you are caught godmoding or infomodding, expect consequences.
6) Stay in character.
This is especially important in the case of canon characters but it is also important for OCs. Your character profile is supposed to serve as a jumping off point for your character, but it's also supposed to be a blueprint for that character, something that gives an insight into the core of that character's personality. Your character should grow and develop and change as the story goes on, but they should never become unrecognizable from the blueprint you put down.
7) In-character actions equal in-character consequences.
Always consider the actions your character is going to take and what potential ramifications they could have. This RP is based heavily in the notion of OOC planning, but we're also required to maintain the story's suspension of disbelief by having logical consequences follow on from actions. Basically, if you're planning to have your character do something bad, that's perfectly okay, but it may put them in a bad situation later on.
8) Familiarity with 5D's and Arc-V
As this RP is based off the first 64 episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's and (so far) off of the entirety of Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V, it is recommended that you at least be familiar with that basis. It is obviously best if you've seen the entirety of them, but in a pinch, episode summaries will work as well. All information relevant to the RP's setting and timeline is provided here anyway, but there are still things that you may miss if you haven't seen the shows themselves. Not having seen either show isn't grounds for being barred entry into the RP or anything, but it is still for the best if you have seen them.
9) Obey the word and the spirit of the rules.
The greatest concern of the mods in running this game is maintaining a comfortable, friendly atmosphere for themselves and the players in which all the players can feel relaxed and have fun RPing with each other. All of these rules are written to that effect and these rules are not slave to technicality. Any situation that explicitly violates the atmosphere the mods are trying to maintain can be treated as a violation of the rules, even if it doesn't fall under one of the rules listed here. Toxic behavior in whatever form it takes that discomforts, offends or hurts other players or damages the atmosphere of the game will not be tolerated and the mods take an especially dim view of attempts to circumvent the rules based on semantics and technicality.
The spirit of these rules is hopefully obvious and easy to follow; be respectful and courteous to other players, communicate with other players, be capable of thinking from an in character perspective to maintain your character's personality and anticipate the consequences of their actions. And above all, if you have a problem, don't hesitate to bring it to the mods.