The
goal of Materia Magica is to provide enjoyable entertainment for
the largest possible number of denizens of the Internet, and in order
to keep it entertaining, a specific set of game rules must be enforced.
As a player in Materia Magica you have the responsibility of following
these rules in the spirit in which they were intended - that is, fair
play for all. Players are expected to have and make use of common
sense and understand the reasons behind the rules, and to behave
appropriately in circumstances where specific rules may not apply.
Treat other players with the same respect and dignity that you wish
to be treated.
The Administrators and Immortals of Materia Magica reserve the right
to interpret any of these rules based on a given situation. Rules may
also be amended from time to time as new situations arise. While the
Administrators will make every attempt to inform players if the rules
have changed, players are responsible for checking the rules frequently.
Ignorance of a rule is no excuse.
These rules were last updated at 2/01/2004.
ADVERTISING
1. Don't advertise for other games on Materia Magica and we ask that
you respect other game systems by doing the same. This includes posting
a URL, discussion of the relative merits of another game while in Materia
Magica, as well as your description, title, etc.
ALTERNATE and STORAGE CHARACTERS
1. While you are welcome to have as many alternate characters (also
known as ALTs) within reason, to save disk space and memory we ask that
you delete the ones you are no longer using. The system will routinely
delete character files that have not been active for 90 days or over.
Characters deleted in this automatic manner are not recoverable, so
please do not ask. If you know you are going to be away from the game
for a period longer than 90 days, please contact the Game Administrators
and ask for an exception so that your character(s) will be saved.
2. Storage characters (characters that are created solely for the purpose
of storing equipment) are prohibited. There is ample locker space available
for storage of items within the game, please make use of it instead.
3. Nexus characters (characters created and saved in specific locations
for the purpose of allowing another character to "nexus" or transport
to that specific character's location, are prohibited. Even if you play
the character frequently, don't get into the habit of leaving them in
key locations in order to get around the world faster.
4. Do not use the MAIL command to store extra equipment between characters.
Mailed items have a life of 30 real life days, after which they are deleted.
Automatically deleted mail cannot be recovered, so please do not ask.
Remember that while you are allowed to have multiple characters, you may
not use them to assist each other in any way. They are to be treated as
completely separate entities.
ARENA USE
1. Do not use arena challenges or the chat areas as a means of
transferring equipment, gold, mounts, or anything else to another
character.
AUCTION USE
1. Do not use the auction channel as a tool for disrupting the game or
to harass a specific player. This includes spamming bids as well as
auctioning something and removing it from the queue to cause spam.
2. Do not exploit the auction channel to cheat players. Any player
suspected of colluding with another player to stop an auction so that the
next object in the auction queue might receive a high misbid will be
dealt with harshly. This also applies to having another character bid
on an item in order to increase the auction price.
ASSISTANCE and ASKING FOR HELP
1. Unapproved assistance from Immortals or Guides is against the rules
for both parties involved. Asking an Immortal to raise your levels,
give you extra hit points, or whatever, is not only annoying, but is against
the rules. Likewise, do not ask Guides to transfer you if you are not in
a situation that is impossible to get out of by walking, magic, recalling to
a house or clan hall or dying.
2. Don't ask for help on things you can get yourself. If an Immortal
or Guide offers to assist you in some way that you suspect is cheating,
it is your duty as a player to report this incident immediately to the
Game Administrators.
BUGS and GAME ERRORS
If you know of a bug - however innocent it seems - it must be reported
immediately, and not used again. It is illegal to exploit bugs and is
considered cheating. Reporting bugs should take the form of emailing
the Game Administrators, as well as notifying the Immortals who are online
at the time of the discovery. A bug is not considered reported unless the
Administrators have been emailed. Reporting a bug does not mean you can
then take advantage of it until it is fixed, either.
Bugs are considered anything that the server allows you to do in the
game that is obviously not intended – common sense applies here. If you
are unsure about whether or not something is a bug, email
the Game Administrators as soon as possible and ask.
DESCRIPTIONS, TITLES and RESTRINGING
1. Do not use your character DESCRIPTION (set using the DESCRIPTION command)
for anything but a role-related description of your character. You may not
use it to post amusing quotes, ASCII art, or anything unrelated to your
character in the game. Please use the available forms in the Materia Magica
website's Player Registry to post anachronistic references, if you must, but
do not put them in your character's description.
2. The Title of a character (set using the TITLE command) must be related
to the character in some way, cannot contain anachronistic references, and
cannot violate the public channel rules.
3. Use of the SHOP RESTRING command is a privilege and should not be used
to alter equipment to contain words, phrases, or symbols that are
anachronistic to the game's mythology or violate the public channel rules.
Items discovered violating this rule may be deleted with little or no warning.
If you are in doubt as to the acceptability of a potential restring, check
with an Immortal or contact the Game Administrators.
GENERAL COMBAT and PK
Don't trust strangers, no matter what they promise you, or who they say they
are - use common sense. Just as you would not get into the car of a stranger
in the real world, do not join formations of players you do not know in
the game. Take the time to get to know your fellow players before putting
your character's life in their hands.
1. Do not block areas for an excessive amount of time to prevent someone
else from entering a zone. This includes, but is not limited to:
Repeatedly destroying keys so others cannot obtain them
Sitting in a private or solitary room, or leaving an NPC behind in such
a room, to block others from passing for an extended period of time (longer
than two hours)
This rule does NOT apply to players sitting in PK areas waiting to attack
other players who pass through - that is not considered "blocking" access
to a zone.
2. Do not interrupt or otherwise interfere with combat between NPCs and
players in any way. This rule is waived if the player is in combat with
another player and THEN an NPC attacks.
This includes, but is not limited to:
casting of beneficial spells upon the NPC (such as healing, sanctuary,
etc.)
"spooking" the NPC (either through use of fear-generating equipment or
spells).
"darkening" the room through use of such techniques as a "momentary
darkness" spell or a smoke bomb.
"calming" a fight that isn't yours
causing the room to become anti-magic (either through the use of an
item or a spell such as "antimagic sphere")
casting any area-affect spells that might hinder the PC in combat.
Healing players who are fighting NPCs is permitted as long as there are
no PCs on the opposing side of combat.
3. In cases where there are two or more fights going on in the same room,
precedence goes to whoever was there first. Therefore, if you start another
fight in a room where combat is already taking place, it is up to you to
respect the other player and not do anything that would interfere with their
fight. If it means you have to die rather than escaping, so be it.
4. Within Chaotic Playerkilling Zones (CPK), a player who has less than
45 total levels may not be attacked by another player.
5. Within Neutral Playerkilling Zones (NPK), a player who has less than
25 total levels may not be attacked by another player.
6. If you enter a PK area in a formation, you may not start PK combat with
any member of that formation until you have both left the zone. This
includes, but is not limited to, forming with someone, entering a PK zone,
and unforming and attacking.
7. Formation members' corpses may not be looted except to return their
equipment to them immediately afterwards.
8. NPCs in player formations may not be ordered or caused to attack other
players unless the player is already in combat with the player in question.
In that case, the NPC should auto assist its master so ordering it to attack
is unnecessary.
9. If someone promises not to PK you who is NOT in your formation, and
you enter a PK zone and they attack, it is NOT against the rules. Do
not go into PK with players you don't trust - tricking people into PK
in this manner is not illegal. Entering a PK zone signifies you understand
the risks involved in PK.
10. If you do not wish to be summoned by other players against your will,
set REFUSE-SUMMON to ON. This does not work for NPC summonings.
MULTIPLAYING
1. You may not have more than one character at a time logged into the game,
with the exception of having one character in social mode, and the other
in the game world. "Multiplaying" is NOT allowed in Materia Magica. It
doesn't matter if you are only actively playing one of the characters, it
is still considered multiplaying. This includes dropping link as one
character and logging in as another. You are considered still in the game until you
log out using the QUIT command or are logged out completely by the system
due to idle timeouts. Please note that multiplaying is defined by the number
of players at the keys, not just by IP address. Using a "bounce" to
multiplay is still illegal.
We recognize that with networks and firewalls it is common for multiple
players to share the same IP address. If this is the case, please email
admin@ingenii.com with the names of the characters that will be coming
from the same IP address and we will note the information about your
network with the characters. If two characters are in two different areas
of the game, obviously performing independent functions, there should be
no question of multiplaying. However, we do make routine checks to
identify possible multiplayers, even on approved networks.
2. You may have one character logged in social mode and one character logged
in the normal game world. You may not have more than one character in either
location. ANY use of these characters to help one another is considered
cheating.
This includes, but is not limited to:
Using one character to "spy" on another area, then swapping a stronger
character out of social when a potential victim becomes available
Using one character to loot another character's corpse
Using one character to fight another NPC or PC that the first character
was in combat with
A good rule of thumb is to wait ten minutes between moving characters in
and out of social before using them actively in the game.
3. If you are wanting to transfer equipment between characters you own,
please make use of the internal MAIL command, the I-MAIL system.
NAMING POLICY
Materia Magica upholds a fantasy role-playing environment. Therefore, we
ask that the name you choose be medieval or high-fantasy based, in accordance
with the genre of the game. Ideally, names will be original to Materia
Magica, and the character.
The following rules must be followed when selecting a name:
1. Names must not include obscene words or racist slurs, or any combination
thereof.
2. Names must not violate copyrights of other games or products. (e.g.,
Pokemon, Gandalf) and cannot be from mainstream sources/popular media (e.g.,
Patbuchanan, Jesus).
3. Names must not attempt to emulate the names of other PCs or NPCs.
Similarly, names cannot be made that are obviously for the purpose of insulting
another player (e.g., Darkstarsucks, Killsylvaer, etc.).
NOVICE PLAYERS
1. Do not intentionally take low level, novice characters (characters below
60 total levels) into dangerous situations for the sole purpose of getting
them killed or lost. Determination of intent is at the discretion of the
Administrators and Immortals.
This includes, but is not limited to:
Leading novice players into PK areas and leaving them there
Telling novice players to try out an area or fight an NPC you know is
too difficult for them
Inviting people aboard a ship, then kicking them off via the plank
once you are at sea
Misleading novice players in any way, even if it's "just a joke".
PUBLIC CHANNELS
1. Public channels (shout, yell, dream) are for game-related subjects only.
Usage of these channels for debates about real-life subjects (including, but
not limited to: other games and websites, sports, the amount of lag on the
Internet, and most current events) is expressly forbidden. This kind of
talk disrupts roleplaying players and hurts the fantasy environment of the
game. This also includes using public channels to spout song lyrics and
nonsense words.
2. Do not use the public channels to bash or otherwise berate a character.
Players who willingly participate in abrasive situations should expect their
complaints to be reviewed less stringently than others who are innocently
attacked.
3. Profane or abusive language is not tolerated on any of the public
channels of the game. This includes "masking" the words by inserting, deleting
or substituting characters, spaces, etc. Many people in Materia Magica attempt
to roleplay, and activities such as the ones outlined above can disturb
the sense of immersion that these type of gamers crave.
4. Do not use color codes to send excessively brilliant multicolored and
inverse colored messages over public channels, use them in your player
descriptions, or titles. Use of color codes within the game is a privilege
and can be revoked. The Administrators and Immortals will make the
determination of intent to annoy.
RACISM, SEXISM, and GENERAL HARASSMENT
1. Real-world racism, sexism, and sexual harassment are not tolerated in
any shape or form. One of the reasons Materia Magica is to allow players to
escape real world pressures; these are not welcome here. Respect should be
shown for your fellow players at all times.
This means don't use real world racial slurs, phonetic spellings of racial
slurs or masked slurs on any channels (this includes clan talk and form
talk), as well as says, tells or emotes. It's offensive to others even if
you are not personally offended by it.
2. With regard to sexism, please refrain from comments or speculating on
a player's sexual habits orientation. This means referring to someone gay,
a slut, or a fag (or any variation on this theme) is strictly prohibited.
SCRIPTS and BOTTING
1. Botting (using robotlike scripts) is illegal. Botting is defined as
any activity which your character is performing without the player being
awake, at the keys, paying attention to the window, and issuing direct
commands through whatever interface you use. This definition of botting
includes following another character and being "leveled" without making
an attempt to join in on the action, as well as having scripts to perform
functions independent of player interaction. We realize there are clients
out there that can practically play the game themselves. Don't use them.
The following types of scripts are illegal, regardless of whether your
player is actually behind the keyboard:
Scripts that move you around ("walker" scripts). This does not include
the "speedwalking" features built into some clients. Speedwalking is
permitted, but please do not dump large amounts of movement commands to
the game at once - you will most likely be disconnected.
Automated combat - for example, scripts that "scan" and move you to fight
a certain NPC. Any script that automatically starts combat without
interaction from the player is illegal.
"Spamming" scripts that dump a lot of commands to the game at once.
Anti-idle scripts. If you aren't playing the game or using the chat rooms,
please log off using the QUIT command.
Any script that controls the character while you are not at the keyboard
or paying attention to the game window.
2. You are responsible for your character and any scripts you run using
that character. If you have an active script that is poorly written and
allows another player to trigger it - thus causing your character to do
stupid things - you are at fault. Similarly, if you find a player that has
easily-abused triggers, they should be reported to an Immortal or the
Game Administrators, as soon as possible, and then left alone.
SPAMMING
1. "Spamming" or flooding of any type will not be permitted. This includes,
but is not limited to:
Connection spamming (e.g., client autoreconnects
that are set to reconnect less than 5 minutes apart, or letting your client
autoreconnect unattended)
Dumping large amounts of commands or text to the game
Creating new characters with the sole intent to annoy (this will also get
your site banned from the game)
Spamming bids or items on the auction channel
Spamming doors closed (as they are opened) to inhibit movement of others
Spamming commands such as KNOCK or BANK TRANSFER, regardless of intent to
annoy
TRADING EQUIPMENT, CHARACTERS, AND CLANS
1. Trading equipment with another character is done at your own risk. Use
common sense and don't trade with anyone you don't know or trust. However,
players that routinely steal items from others using this method will be
dealt with harshly as it is interfering with others' enjoyment of the game.
It is advised that you use the AUCTION channel for equipment selling.
2. The Guides may oversee equipment, reward unit, and clan transactions
at their discretion and availability to do so. This involves holding the
equipment for both parties (if applicable) until both sides agree that
the transaction has been made to their satisfaction.
3. Clan trading is allowed with the assistance of the Game Administrators
only, with the written agreement of all of the listed Owners of a clan.
Unsupervised trades of clans are not permitted. All clan sales/trades
must be approved by the Game Administrators before any gold/RU/items
change hands. The terms of the trade must be sent to the Game Administrators
by all Owners and the future Owners, for review and approval.
4. Character selling/trading/transfer is NOT allowed under ANY
circumstances, even if you are quitting the game and want to give your
character to someone else. If a character is discovered to have changed
hands (this is usually obvious), the Administrators reserve the right
to delete the character.
Character trades are disallowed for several reasons, mainly:
They confuse issues related to identity - who do I trust? Who do I know?
Roleplaying is skewed - the identity of the character changes
dramatically with no change in physical appearance, as if the character were
possessed
Character trades make it easier for characters to be stolen
Also, please note that unless you have the correct challenge phrase for a
character, you don't "own" it. You may not change the challenge phrase on
a character without knowing the original phrase, so please do not ask.
It should go without saying, but advertising illegal character trades within
the game or on the game message boards is not allowed. This includes, but is
not limited to:
Putting a "this character is for sale" type message in the character's
title or description
Using public channels to advertise the character is for sale
Using the in-game chat rooms to advertise the character is for sale
Sending tells to players in-game to inform them the character is for sale
If you are discovered advertising a character for sale, the character in
question will be deleted.
5. Trading in-game items, services, or money for real life items, services,
or money, is NOT permitted under any circumstances. However, it is allowable
and accepted to make a contribution to Materia Magica in someone else's name
in exchange for in-game items, services, or money, and have them receive
the reward units.
