RP Rules

NOTE: THE MEANING OF THE RULES IS OBJECTIVE AND NOT UP TO DEBATE. CHANGES WILL BE MADE BUT AN ARGUMENT BASED ON A SUBJECTIVE VIEW OF WHAT THE RULES MEAN IS NOT VALID.

This article is designed to lay the groundwork for Roleplaying and activity within the AoD. In this article we shall define rules of Roleplay, lore, canon vs non-canon, overpowered weapons and tech, and more. As well as giving helpful tips and suggestions to role players both new and old, do know that anything defined as a 'rule' is a non-optional aspect of the article that must be adhered to by all members of the region. No exceptions.

Section I: Roleplaying

Roleplaying is the primary gameplay form within Nationstates, it's how we have fun outside of conversations with one another. When you Roleplay you write posts 'In-Character' or take on the persona of characters within your nation and interact with other people doing the same. The format takes on the form of sort of a turn-based continued story, with participants taking turns and directing actions and conversations through medium to long length writing pieces.

Other Terms

In-Character: When you are currently speaking or acting as your nation or speaking as a character or representative within your nation. On the RMB (Regional Message Board) this us marked by placing an 'IC:' before your post or making a bold title ahead of the post. When you speak In-Character you're speaking as a fictional character interacting with another fictional character, because of this it is imperative to note that insults, intentions, and statements are not directed at the player behind the keyboard but rather at the character itself.

Out-Of-Character: When speaking Out-Of-Character you are speaking as yourself, with your actual opinions. When you say something Out-Of-Character you are directing your words directly at another player and not at a character. On the RMB this is marked by an 'OOC:' placed before your post, note that it is expected to always place an 'OOC:' before speaking as such. It also expected of players to maintain a respectful manor and avoid insults and inflammatory statements and when all else fails simply walk away and let things go.

Rules of Roleplay

These rules are largely non-optional, while unique situations do exist these rules exist to avoid animosity and promote a more enjoyable experience within the region.

1. Consent must be given before proper Roleplay can begin. When you or other players want to begin a Roleplay or 'RP' then all participants must agree with each other to begin a Roleplay before preceding. One exception to this rule is 'Spontaneous Roleplay' this is when a player takes advantage of a particular situation or previous event and begins an RP another player without warning said player. Many players are able to improvise and play along and this can add an element of spontaneity to an RP however doing this is not recommended and at anytime a player may state that he/she didn't give consent and doesn't wish to Roleplay, but note that in certain RP's such as wars a player cannot retcon after an extended period of posting (Four posts from each player) and this is to avoid anyone abusing the retcon ability however the four posts rule can be overruled if one of the participating members breaks another RP rule. It should also be noted that using this ability is meant to be used as a simple way to halt RP's that are intrusive but not as a way for a player to avoid nations challenging them. NOTE: THIS RULE CAN AND WILL BE OVERRULED AND NULLIFIED BY ANY OF THE OTHER RULES. YOU ARE NOT PERMITTED TO USE RULE 1 TO AVOID NEGATIVE EFFECTS TO YOUR NATION OR PROTECT YOURSELF FROM HARM. IT IS MEANT TO BE A WAY TO NOT BE BOGGED DOWN MY RP'S AT AN INCONVENIENT TIME. PLAYERS WHO WANT TO USE RULE 1 MUST PRESENT A VALID REASON TO BE JUDGED MY THE MINISTER OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS OR THE DESPOT.

Furthermore, this one highly recommends asking to RP before initiating it. Spontaneous Roleplay rarely works and is often damaging to regional attitudes. Take the safe bet and ask first.

2. A player must be willing to accept the affects of Roleplay. When Roleplaying things can change, you may go to war and lose a territory in it or be forced to give up political power. This is a part of the game and allows for interesting development within the game, thus, a player must be willing to accept the affects of an RP. Do not hold onto imaginary power, allow your nation to rise and fall appropriately. However there is still consent, if a person you're Roleplaying with suggests he take half your nations land and you feel as if that doesn't make sense then you have a right to speak up, try to work out a solution but don't deny the affects of Roleplay. Realistically, should you have a war RP, you must accept that after a war of finished your nation would have lost soldiers, money, and will experience negative affects. To do otherwise is to destroy any illusion of realism or IC tension, if there's no IC risk then there's no enjoyment of the Roleplay. Note that there is a point of no return, if you consent to a roleplay you must accept that your nation may face repercussions because of it. TO CLARIFY IF YOU FIGHT A WAR YOU MUST BE WILLING TO LOOSE. YOU HAVE NO RIGHT OOC TO DENY VICTORY BECAUSE YOU DO NOT WANT TO LOOSE, YOU DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT TO DENY SOMONE TAKING LAND, YOU DO HAVE THE RIGHT TO DENY SOMEONE WIPING OUT YOUR NATION OR COMMITTING IRREPARABLE ACTIONS THAT YOU DID'NT CONSENT TO, AND THIS RULE CANNOT BE OVERRULED BY RULE 1. YOU CANNOT DICTATE WHAT CAN AND CANNOT HAPPEN IN AN RP WITHOUT ALSO DISCUSSING IT WITH THE OTHER PLAYER. IF BOTH PARTIES AGREE TO AN OUTCOME THAT IS PERMITTED BUT OTHERWISE PLAYERS WILL ACCEPT WHATEVER RESULT ORGANICALLY COMES ABOUT.

Footnote: This rule cannot be used to force someone to RP. Unless an IC action has direct (not indirect) effects on your nation you cannot trap a player into RPing by rationalizing that their actions someonehoe effect your nation.

Example: A player may RP about a communist revolution in their country which outlaws private enterprise. You may have companies that operate in that country, while the revolution does indirectly effect you it cannot be used to force a player into RPing. Rule 1 cannot be overruled.

3. When Roleplaying, realism must be taken into account. You do not have billions of soldiers, nor do you have billions of tanks or airplanes. You have a finite population and a finite amount of money, when creating statistics or posting about troop numbers you must understand that a element of realism must be present. Now you are not required to perform complicated math equations or calculate detailed costs versus troop numbers (Although if you want to go ahead.) but you cannot expect players to accept that you are funding billions of soldiers with high-powered rifles and personal battle tanks without any extreme economic impact or dept. Like in reality you must choose between quantity and quality, you may have large amounts of troops but you have to offset the cost by giving sub-par training and equipment. There is no excuse to this, there is no 'my economy is that good' or similar argument, no, you must adhere to an at least somewhat realistic number. It should be noted that this is looked at in more aspects than just military, it's looked at economically, domestically, and in other aspects of your nation. Your economy will take a hit after wars and your people have the ability to rebel if things get bad, accept it and don't claim you have a 'cure-all' for your nations problems.

4. Players must accept that their nation is not real. This is a game, not even a particular complicated nor clever game. You must accept that what happens in this game is not important nor has any sway over real life, you must not become too attached to your nation nor obsessed with the status quo. Things change, the simulated political atmosphere will shift, you must shift with it.

5. Players must not be overpowered Your tank is not indestructible, you don't have lasers that can cut through any material, you don't have body armour that cannot be pierced. Within Rolelaying both in and outside of war RP you have the responsibility to avoid using unrealistic and unfair weapons or tech during it, all tanks have weaknesses and you have a limited amount of nuclear warheads. Other players will be quick to point these things out and you mustn't take offence, we're all trying to have fun and overpowered weapons are not the way to do it.

6. Players must respect the technology level. In the Alliance of Dictators there are two major tech groups, Post Modern Tech (PMT) and Future Tech (FT). PMT is marked by a technology level that is only a step above what is considered Modern Tech or the tech level in real life, PMT may have improved telecoms, jet fighters, cloaking, but not advanced space travel or portable laser weapons. FT is where players push the boundaries between science and science fiction, marked by dark matter reactors and other tech that while advanced still must remain at least theoretically possible with modern science. FT players will be subject to the realism and overpowered rules. Usually this is maintained by FT players not interacting in an RP sense with PMT players unless of course the participants are consenting to do so.

7. Magic is science. In the AoD there is a history of many players using magic as a central part of their nation, and there is also a history of other players disliking this fact. Here we define how players must use magic if at all: Should magic be something that the general person may wield, particularly soldiers, then a player must accept that magic is finite source and extended use in a battle scenario will render the user drained of all energy and unable to continue. Magic is not a renewable infinite source of energy for your nation, that would be unfair, thus magic to be used as a weapon or a means to power technology there must be IC people or character whom are conduits to this energy and will more often then not die from it. The price of magic is manpower, the only exception will be a reasonable argument. Note that magic will not be accepted as better than science nor can it perform things outside of what the regional take on science is. Meaning that magic WDD's, Restoring the dead on a mass scale, or long-range teleportation will not be allowed. This works in conjunction with the realism and OP rules.

8. Turn-Based etiquette must be respected. When RPing, particularly war RP's it is expected that all participants take turns posting to avoid what's commonly referred to as 'machine-gun posting' in which a player posts rapidly without waiting for a reply from the other participant. Usually resulting in unhindered invasions without resistance. This is simply not allowed. Similarly one cannot make a post in which huge major events happen with little to no reaction, again invasion with no resistance. You cannot occupy a nation within a single post.

8.5. All memes submitted publicly much be fresh and funny. Not overused. Not sh*t tier.