Rules

Note: This page is moderated and can be referenced in OOC issues, such as ban appeals, complaints, reports, etc. This may not apply to the pages this page links to.

Main Rules - read these if nothing else

(See also: Guide to avoiding bans)

Rule Enforcement is discretionary.

Admins (Trial Admins, Admins, Senior Admins) retain the authority to ignore the following rules at their discretion when they feel it's in the best interest of the current round/server/playerbase at large. However, they will be fully accountable for their actions should they choose to exercise this privilege.

Use common sense.

The rules cannot cover all possible cases. If you are not sure whether something would be considered against the rules, use adminhelp. Keep in mind that different admins can have different opinions on some actions, and sometimes an action can be considered against the rules in some circumstances but not in others. If you were told something was okay once, it does not mean you can do it again.

Do not use information gained outside of in character means.

I.e.. metagaming. This especially refers to communication between players outside of the game via things like Skype, known as metacomms. Characters are otherwise allowed to know everything about ingame mechanics or antagonists, as well as keep persistent friendships or relationships with other characters when not for the purpose of unfair advantage by teaming up together for little IC reason.

No Griefing.

Griefing is defined as actions with malevolent(harmful) intent towards the server, playerbase, or round.

Do not say in character (IC) things in the out of character (OOC) chat channel.

Do not say OOC things in IC either. There is an exception for OOC in IC where terms like 'clickdrag X to Y, or look for the tab' is used to help a player.

No Power Gaming

Power Gaming is when you intentionally collect dangerous weapons, items and tools ‘just in case.’ As a non-security member or command member, you’re not expected to have a weapon unless told to do so by a higher ranking officer. Do not run around with an entire armoury in your backpack, and do not run around with genetic powers and three buffing viruses.

Do not try and spoil the fun for other people.

"Dickish" and "harassment" type of behavior is not allowed. This includes usage of in-real-life racist slurs in either OOC or IC.

In-game administration rulings are final.

Incidences of admin abuse, negligence or disputed rulings can be taken to the forums. If an admin says something was 'looked into, handled, resolved' etc, regarding an issue, it is unlikely an admin will provide any further information. Admins are under no obligation to reveal IC information. Deliberately lying or misrepresenting facts in adminhelps will be dealt with harshly.

If you regularly come close to breaking the rules without actually breaking them, it will be treated as the rules being broken.

Repeated instances of the same rules being broken may be met with harsher consequences. Baiting people into situations where you can report them to admins will be dealt with harshly.

Erotic/creepy stuff is not allowed.

No form of erotic roleplay is allowed on the servers, including things that could be construed as sexual by unwilling participants.

Players need to be the age of 18 or above.

This rule is for the benefit of and is meant to protect people who shouldn't be playing here due to the nature of the SS13 community. Your age won't be hunted down, but if you admit it to us in admin PMs, or other places within the NSV13 community (the official Discord server, forums, OOC chat, etc.), you're getting banned.

Losing is part of the game.

Your character will frequently die, sometimes without even a possibility of avoiding it. Events will often be out of your control. No matter how good or prepared you are, sometimes you just lose.

Roleplay Rules

Disregarding Roleplay Rules does not make you exempt from Server Rules.

Roleplay rules are intended to be a guideline for how one should roleplay on the server. While they can be readily discarded should the situation demand, they are the status quo and should be given thought before abandoning them.

Protocol & Orders.

You are an officer of your faction, act like one. Take orders from people of higher rank than you. Follow protocol when available and prudent. If you think the person giving you the order is being unreasonable, find an IC to deal with it, and if necessary open an admin ticket.

Lethal Force.

Do not physically attack any other crewmember without a legitimate, explainable, roleplay reason that could be applied in a similar, real-life scenario. Always call security and never use lethal intent as an opening against own crewmembers. Nanotrasen do use lethal force when absolutely necessary. Executions are extremely rare but are the final resort. You must ahelp before an official execution takes place. Any crew members injured or killed in crew-on-crew combat must be revived if able.

Use a reasonable, lore-friendly character name.

Your character must have a unique first and last name. One-word nicknames are allowed inside the name (e.g. Derek 'Double-D' Donahue, Jane 'Crusher' Sanchez) . Ranks, titles, honorifics, offensive, famous and/or pop-culture names are not allowed (e.g. Dr John Smith, Barack Obama, Lt John Doe, Adolf Hitler). Clowns, mimes, and wizards do not have to follow this rule.

Mutiny.

Mutiny is not allowed unless an Admin clears it via Adminhelp. You must also follow Mutiny Policy.

Mutiny Policy

1. The situation MUST be role-played.
2. The captain MUST be given a chance to stand-down peacefully.
3. Uninvolved crewmembers should be given the chance to remain uninvolved. They might shoot if they see you firing on the captain without a reason. Try to subdue them WITHOUT lethal force or explain the situation.
4. Minimize losses. Use either non-lethal force ONLY, or give all crew members who oppose you a chance to stand-down .
5. Do not start using lethals until you have been fired upon with lethals yourself.

Role Specific Rules

Chief of Staff

1. Never abandon the ship. You should never intentionally be on a different z-level from the ship without admin permission. This does not apply when docking with a station to retrieve an objective, though that should be delegated.
2. Be active when playing a Head of Staff. If you’re playing a command role and need to go AFK, offline, or otherwise leave then adminhelp to notify admins. WHEN YOU LEAVE, DO NOT SUICIDE OR GO AFK on the spot unless it’s an emergency.
3. Do not play the department’s Head of Staff unless you have experience and a basic understanding of performing all of the department’s jobs.
4. Heads of Staff are, unless otherwise stated, expected to follow the role-specific rules of their underlings in addition to their own.

Executive Officer

1. Do not hand out all access like it’s candy on Halloween. Notify a department’s Chief of Staff if you give someone access to their department if possible. This does not apply during emergencies, or when giving Engineers and Scientists #additional access for the purposes of repairing and improving ship hull or equipment. Just ask yourself, “Does this person need access to this location?”
2. People should not be given additional access to do someone else’s job. For example, giving a Shaft Miner access to Science when Scientists are already working on research. This can lead up to said player powergaming.
3. You are not a member of security, and should not involve yourself in security matters unless it is an emergency or you are Acting Captain.

Security

1. You are not some random mall cop, you are a trained security officer and should act like one. This means acting in a disciplined manner as if you have received training, and listening to your Head of Security
2. Do not bucklecuff prisoners, except during searches or during evacuation aboard a shuttle or escape pod.
3. The armory is for emergencies only. Do not take any gear from the armory without a serious reason, and return it when finished. Confiscated weapons should be stored in the armory, not carried around for personal use. Ship-to-ship combat #is not a valid excuse for opening up the armory.
4. If you have nothing better to do, try NOT to be a stone wall. Roleplay. Tolerate the lawyer, apply ship law in context, and so forth. This is more of a suggestion than a rule, but being a no-fun shitler can get you banned if it happens #consistently.
5. You are not Judge Dredd, you are an enforcer of ship security.
6. Security Officers are held to a higher standard than John Q. Crewmember. Expect the other players/crewmembers to hold you responsible for the actions of Security as a whole. This does not mean you can fire the Captain because he wouldn’t give you extra access, all rules regarding mutiny still apply. Breaking security rules will lead to a jobban, very quickly.

Bridge Officer

Do NOT fire on Nanotrasen unless either:

• An admin gives you permission.
• Your mission objectives state you have to.

1. Follow the Chain of Command. Know who you do and don’t outrank.
2. Don’t run the show; that’s the captains job. Don’t jump just because you’re given an objective, that’s for the captain to order.
3. Do not leave anyone behind, except in an emergency such as the warp core exploding or the ship being fired while shields are down.
4. Unless the other bridge officer is absent on the bridge and you have a good reason to do so, do not touch the other bridge officer’s console.

Antag Conduct

Antags are expected to follow all rules that do not interfere with their objective.

Antags are free to complete their objective by any means available, within reason. For example, destroying large amounts of the station is reasonable if your objective is to hijack the shuttle; it is not acceptable if your objective is to steal the CE's blueprints.

Try to avoid unnecessary carnage that ultimately just ruins the round for other players, unless said players are your target. Subtlety goes a long way.

You must work with fellow antags towards completing a group objective if there is one.

Precedents,exceptions, and clarification: Examples and exceptions to the main rules.

Rule 3 expanded

Griefing can take the form of;

• Murdering players for minor slights or no reason.
• Destroying/Disabling key ship systems.
• Harassing other players.
• Purposely failing missions for the rest of the crew.
• Purposely converting one self to an antagonistic faction to use the leniency granted to them.

Antagonists have special rules regarding what they can and cannot do, please see their specific rules in the Antagonist Rules Section.

Things that are not griefing are as follows;

• A clown slipping a member of the crew in a low intensity situation
• Two crewmembers getting into a light brawl over something IC. Emphasis on light.
• A member of the crew breaking into a location to save person.
• A member of the crew breaking into a foreign location.
• A crewmember recently converted through circumstance attacking previously allied crew or vice versa
• A captain through roleplay being removed from command for giving impractical/insane/unreasonable orders.

Rule 5 expanded

During Red Alert however, security crew are expected to arm themselves in preparation of danger, if there is a requirement for it. This does not mean you can arm yourself to the teeth each time Action Stations is triggered. If there is a real danger of antagonists/boarders/an active threat to the safety of the crew you are allowed to obtain weapons and gear.

Silicon Policy

Silicon Policy has been given it's own page.

Is it Human?

Human or not? This part covers what counts as human with regards to AI laws. As such, it only applies to AI and cyborg players. If you are unsure about something, please use adminhelp.

AI / cyborgs	Not human
Monkeys	Not human
NPCs / critters / animals	Not human
Hulks	Not human as long as their hulk is active.
Lizards / Plasmamen / Flypeople / Catpeople	Not human
Wraiths & revenants	Not human
Blobs	Not human
Syndicate traitors	Human
Syndicate agents (nuke mode)	Human
Wizards	Human
Gang leaders and members	Human
Changelings	Human UNTIL the AI or cyborg WITNESSES the creature commit a non-human act (shape-shifting, transforming, proboscis etc).
Hivemind Host	Human UNTIL the AI or cyborg WITNESSES the creature commit a non-human act (Telekinetic Field)
Hivemind Vessel	Human