OUR CODE


If you aren't having fun, you've failed and then your ego really can take a hit as you have failed to have fun at something as free-form as role-playing.

That's right – you've failed a game that has no win conditions.

Rather, role-playing has one: to have fun.
-Greg Schneider


  Here in Zhandou we’re all about creating a friendly and open environment to do and share what we love: Roleplaying.

  Roleplaying is a pass-time, something we do to escape the harshness of reality, and simply to have fun. We strongly believe that the best way to do that is by building a healthy and open relationship with all our members.

  We all have issues that sometimes prevent us from role-playing. For some it could be that they are very busy with school or work, while others could have no inspiration or just plum lost the interest there once was.

  Whatever the reason, we understand, we just want our members to be open and honest about it. We would appreciate if you let us, and your fellow roleplaying partners, know in our Member’s Corner. We won’t shun you for it! Actually, we might even be able to help you out, even if you don’t decide to stay on the site.

  Zhandou would much rather build lasting friendships than alienate our fellow roleplayers. So go forth, frolic in our forums and have a rap session in our chat box. So long as we all keep an open line of communication we should be fine.

GENERAL RULES AND GUIDELINES




one  Always follow the code.

two  The whole website is PG-13, which means it contains material deemed unsuitable for children under the age of 13. Behaviour in character, out and even on the chat should adhere to that rating. No excessive violence, no excessive swearing, no nudity.

three  OOC accounts are only for staff.

four  No advertising outside of the appropriate boards.

five  Respect your fellow members and staff.

six  If you're interested in joining, please read the GUIDE. If you have any questions that aren't answered in the guide, please head on over to the QUESTIONS AND ASSISTANCE BOARD and we'll help you out.

seven  If any of these rules are broken, any insolence toward staff and/or members continues, even after being warned by staff members, it will result in being banned from the forum.

ACTIVITY INFO AND GUIDELINES




one  We ask our members to try and post with their characters at least three times a month.

two  If for any reason you're unable, please let us know in the Member's Corner. Keep in mind our code. ❤

three  We do activity checks at the end of every month.

four  We don't immediately delete characters for not having the requirements for each activity check, however, we do place them in the inactive group.

five  If a character remains inactive come next activity check their profiles go into storage.

six  Even though character slots are bought, the same rules apply to every character. That means that all characters need three in character posts between activity checks.

six  Characters can be lifted from inactivity by simply posting in character and then asking a staff member. They will check if the post was made recently and lift the inactivity veil.

seven  It's sad, but characters that have been in the inactive group through three activity checks get deleted; even those bought through the shop's extra character slots.

eight  Any of these rules could be subject to change, so keep an eye out for any updates.

ROLEPLAYING RULES AND GUIDELINES




one  Face claims are open to characters from games, cartoons, anime, manga and movies; as long as the images used on site are anime or manga style. Sorry, you cannot use real life or 3D images.

two  Everyone gets three free character slots. You can purchase more in the shop!

three  One account per character. This is to help better keep up with that particular character.

four  The site works with Liquid Time/Fluid Time. No matter what the name, it all works the same. This means you may post in as many threads as you can handle. You could be playing one thread that happened a few hours ago, and another thread that happened a few days further. This is why we have Thread trackers, to keep our threads organized.

five  Timestamp threads in the topic description field. Not entirely necessary, and you don't always need to be accurate, but for informing other players timestamps are a charm. You can be as broad as saying "Before the Spring Festival", or as precise as saying "Seconds after Rizo's Tournament Fight".

six  There is no set word count, but please do give your partner something to respond to. At least match them or come close. No one liners! At least a paragraph.

seven  Avoid creating the "Perfect" character, or what we call in the rp community, a Mary Sue/Gary Stue. Check HERE for more info on the subject.

eight  We are an alternate universe role play; That means the characters are all original, and unrelated to any of the franchise's characters. If you'd like to use a character from the series as a FC you may, just as long as you make their background entirely different to fit in the Zhandou universe.

nine  You need to have the player's permission for a character's death. Certain threads and events are/can/will be death enabled, but a warning will be made prior to creation. This doesn't mean you can just kill any and everybody you want to! Like it says above, you need the player's permission before ending a character.

ten  Attempts to shift the roleplay in the player’s favor is frowned upon. Any attempt at giving a roleplaying character an advantage that does not normally exist in-game is generally not allowed. More info on the subject can be found here.

eleven  Players are generally encouraged not to associate information and events that occurred between actively playing characters and events that occur between the role-players themselves. Most often, when players associate OOC information with their IC behavior, whether it be how they perceive another character or actually acting on information they wouldn't otherwise have, is called metagaming.

twelve  Alternatively, it's also considered poor form to take IC information and apply it OOC. Example: Character A insults character B. Player B takes character A's insult as a personal attack from player A, rather than exclusively an IC attack on character B. That is mixing IC with OOC. Any instance of holding against a player what their character said or did violates this rule. Do not mix IC with OOC.

thirteen  Avoid performing an action without giving the other players a chance to respond. For example, running up to somebody and saying 'He stabbed him in the heart, then ran off' would not be alright.

This also applies to non-combative actions to which another player might have a reaction.

Saying, 'The child slipped past the guards and into the lobby', while guards are watching the entrance to the lobby would be against the rules; on the premise that, in all likelihood, those guards would stop the character before they got past them. This can easily be fixed with simple rewording. Adding "tried to" or "attempted to" to clarify that the character intended to perform said action, but their success depends on the responses of those around them. Good role-players will go into detail with their actions and emphasize their attempts.

SHOUTBOX // DISCORD RULES AND GUIDELINES




one  Once again, behave and respect one another.

two  Keep the shoutbox and discord server positive. No drama llamas. OOC drama is bad for everybody, even those uninvolved. Any trouble or issues you might be having in real life, or online could be discussed in the Member's Corner or privately, especially if it's your reason for inactivity. If you have issues with staff or members please PM a staff member about it.

three   We appreciate helpful members, but staff always have the last say on anything. Prevent false/unclear information from spreading by asking them directly.

four   Keep any and every link appropriate. You never know who's clicking it.

five   Please try to be inclusive of everyone. No one wants to be left out.

five   Please do not advertise that you've edited or finished a thread in the Shoutbox or Discord General Channel. We have a channel for tagging on discord. Keep the shoutbox and discord general chatty.