Character and Roleplay Rules

## Character Creation Rules

**1. Each member has limit of four character slots when they first join the roleplay**
▸ Replying to a monthly activity check grants you another slot (these do not stack beyond two).
▸ Creating an elder from scratch will not take up a character slot.

**2. Character names must be on the pre-approved list found here, and not have been used already.**
▸ Prefixes cannot be used more than once in the same Clan at the same time.
▸ Your character cannot share a prefix with a high rank (leaders, deputies, healers) or the Clan names.

**3. Character bios and information must follow the requirements set.**
▸ Ages should match with ranks. Kits are added 0-5 moons, apprentices 6-9 moons, and warriors 12+ moons.
▸ Please refrain from including NPC family that is irrelevant or will not be roleplayed.
▸ Your character description should be between 200-900 words; simplified, 100-200 words.

**4. Characters submitted must be realistic in terms of colors and breed.**
▸ Characters must have a real, unedited adult photo of a cat. It must be at least 600x600, not blurry or low resolution, not have a watermark, and not have been used already.
▸ Biological male tortoiseshell/calicos are sterile and unable to have kits.
▸ Accessories outside of the normal ones for kittypets are not allowed.
▸ Cats outside of the normal realm of domestication (F1-F3 bengals/savannahs, for example) are not allowed.
▸ The following breeds or appearances can only be applied to kittypets, and may not become wild cats due to their poor survival rate or disadvantageous genetics: munchkins, sphynx, cornish rexes, lykois, albinos. (This list may be added onto as needed)
▸ Specific bans: White/mostly white/lightly colored cats cannot be added to HollowClan; Norwegian Forest cats, Maine Coons, and any other larger than average cats breeds cannot be added to EmberClan.

**5. Kits can only be made through adopting from litters, and queens must have a roleplayed partner.**
▸ Kits must either be inserted into an upcoming litter or adopted from a litter. They cannot be made from scratch.
▸ Cats cannot have kits without a roleplayed partner, whether it is a mate, a surrogate, or a fling.
▸ More information regarding relationships and kits can be found here.

**6. Characters added from scratch must be pure-blooded to whatever group they are added to.**
▸ For example; a CedarClan cat must have two born and raised CedarClan parents.
▸ Cats being half-Clan, half-loner, etc. can come about through roleplay itself.

**7. Character history may not include major events that did not canonly happen.**
▸ This includes but is not limited to: a Clan battle, being exiled, committing/witnessing/being a part of murder, etc.

**8. Staff permission is needed for any physical disabilities or major mental illnesses.**
▸ Includes anything that impedes a character's ability to complete general tasks or behavior that goes beyond standard actions or reactions to things, regardless of severity. This includes but is not limited to: blindness, deafness, psychopathy, etc.
▸ Research of such disabilities and/or mental illnesses is greatly appreciated before attempting to portray them.

## Roleplay Rules

**1. No Mary-Sues, Powerplaying, or Godmodding.**
▸ You cannot control what another character does/thinks, nor can your character be overpowered.
▸ Your character cannot have strengths they wouldn’t naturally possess or knowledge they can’t have obtained.

**2. Events, plots, or rule-breaking that majorly affect other cats/the Clan require permission from staff.**
▸ Plots or events that have a major affect on the leader of a Clan, the Clan itself, or several cats/a group as a whole.
▸ Includes, but is not limited to: murder, exile, large battles, forbidden romance, a cat leaving and/or joining another Clan, etc.

**3. Characters may not have magical or unusual abilities.**
▸ Characters are not able to regularly communicate with StarClan or any cats representing the dead.
▸ The dead cannot communicate with the living outside of leaders/healers for meetings or prophecies.
▸ Cats cannot have any heightened or magical abilities, or be reincarnated from/into another cat.

**4. You must keep up with and be aware of the roleplay timeline.**
▸ Two weeks in the real world equals one month in the BtSS world.
▸ A roleplay thread should not be made to take place in the past or the future.

**5. Activity must be maintained when creating and replying to roleplays.**
▸ You must reply to your roleplay channel least once weekly in order to keep a roleplay open.
▸ Each participant in a thread is allowed a 24 hour period to "renew" the thread after it has closed.

**6. Roleplay posts must be at least 60 words and be in third person perspective, past tense.**
▸ Example: "Redclaw walked over to Mudstorm, giving him a smile. "Do you want to go hunting?" he asked.
▸ Please use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc. when roleplaying on the server.
▸ There should be no one-liners.

**7. Certain sensitive material should not be covered, and must be handled with care.**
▸ Topics such as suicide, r\*pe, etc. are not allowed.
▸ Other heavy topics must be brought up to the staff beforehand.
▸ Characters may have thoughts related to darker feelings/experiences, but it cannot be stated directly.
▸ Staff reserves the right to stop your roleplay at any point if they believe it has gone beyond what is appropriate.