Valley of Aram

Players must be 18 or over OOC
We also expect players to display the maturity of an adult, and for it to reflect in their characters.


IC ≠ OOC
Keep IC (in-character) and OOC (out-of-character) separated. This applies spatially – keep the boards free of clutter and post everything in their proper sections.

But, more severely, this applies to character interaction. Keep in-character and out-of-character matters separate. For example: if, for any reason, you’re peeved at an author or character, don’t have your character be a jerk to that character, don't be a jerk to that person. If a person's character is being a jerk to your character, chances are, they do not share these feelings for you OOCly.


Post content advisories when applicable
All posts are to have a content warning at the top - if there is no applicable triggers (further discussed here; also discussed here is why this is important), simply write 'none'.

Please try to keep the use of questionable language, conduct, if not to a tasteful minimum, at least reasonable. Don’t turn Tarantino on us.


Be decent
As long as you have content warnings and are not being over the top, your character is free to be an awful person. You, however, are not. -Isms will not be tolerated. Sexism, racism, phobia of the queer community - the list goes on. Treat your fellow players like human beings. Having compassion and being supportive is the only way to be.

Harassing and abusing players will not be tolerated, be it sexual or not. Indecent behaviour will not only get you removed from the group, but will be brought to RPR's admin team's attention.


Regarding godmoding and powergaming:
Don't.

If you have any questions regarding auto-hitting, discuss with your partner. Auto-hitting within reason won’t be discouraged, but if you feel the situation requires consent, it probably does. "Attempting" language and/or die-based conflict are encouraged. Also, please be considerate: don’t post five actions for every one of your partner’s, for example. Please be courteous.


Be aware of the setting
Aram is set in something that mimics 1600's era Southern-South Western Asia. While this is fantasy, we're not even going to pretend that, for instance, white humans (and by extension elves, due to IC lore) are the law of the land, or even common. So, bringing in a blue eyed, blond haired, lily white character who just 'wandered in' or is just 'traveling' with no reason is a blatant lack of awareness of the setting. Be realistic: as for our example, a white person from a European setting would likely only ever be in this setting as part of religious warfare or as a very wealthy merchant - someone with means.

Also relevant: While there is possibility for 'nexus' style RP due to the weak nature of Aram's planar boundaries, the possibility of someone having a modern gun (as opposed to a flintlock, which were in use during this time period) is ... well, highly unlikely. Please use common sense and don't showboat, if you choose to RP a nexus character, as that character will have gone through hell to get there in the first place, will unlikely have been able to bring much with them, and will be very smart to keep such things to themselves.

Minor anarchisms are acceptable: later styles of, say, bagpipes? We won't fuss over it; we don't expect you to be a history nut. Just be reasonable.


Your characters MUST be balanced,
in terms of the potency of strengths and weaknesses. If the strengths overshadow the weaknesses, or if the weaknesses don’t affect or have any direct consequences on the character, then the character isn’t balanced. “She’s endearingly clumsy!” or “He might become slightly inconvenienced and angered by Element A, and some torturous, attractive personal demons that have no direct bearing on him or his actions” won’t fly, here. Think of it this way: even the Greek gods were petty, horny, squabbling and debilitatingly gullible.


Original characters only
Please mind the setting and the continuity. Only play characters who belong to you.

That being said, gods or similar all-powerful beings are typically off-limits. Clear them with an administrator if you must. Dragons, due to lore, are included as generally off-limits.


Appropriation will not be tolerated
Please, please do your research before you use something from a living culture in the real world. Things that are sacred to a closed religion or culture (i.e. a Hindu bindi or tilaka) are highly offensive to take and use if you are not of that religion or culture, yourself. Other examples include Two-Spirits and warbonnets from Native American cultures.

While we can not possibly hope to verify that you are of a certain culture or religion, as it is not our place to say whether or not a person is 'authentic', we're going to say that as a general rule, these things are simply not allowed to casually exist and be used. Part of this decision is due to the fact that this setting only draws slight parallels to the real world, and is not an alternate reality of our world.

If you are of that culture or religion and wish to use these things, we firstly offer our sincerest apologies for offering any roadblocks, as secondly we ask you to approach us about it so we are aware.


The administrators reserve the right to question - and if necessary, lock or remove - anything occurring on these forums and in this group at any time.