Rules

**The rules listed are subject to be changed or tweaked on a season-by-season basis, however the hosts will make it clear if there are any rule changes once the season starts.**

## General Rules

### Etiquette

* We ask that all members of this server, viewer and player alike, display respect for each other. We remind you that this is a game, and while conflict is inevitable, there is a threshold to what is acceptable. The hosts reserve the right to penalize and remove players for threatening comments, slurs, and any other form of harmful speech.
* We highly recommend that if you need assistance at any point, contact the hosts. We’ll always listen and try to help as best as we can. In addition, check out our wellness section in the server for some tips to stay healthy and positive. We expect all players to remain active and invested in this season.
* If for any reason you are no longer able to actively participate, contact the hosts so we can find a fair solution. If for an extended period of time we are unable to get in contact with you, we reserve the right to remove you from the game.
* And a reminder that every event in the game, challenges and all, has been planned before the beginning of the season. We will follow our pre-set schedule, but we do hold the right to alter it as needed, and may make changes upon player request. However, host decisions are final. If we refuse to make a change upon request, we ask that you respect our decision, as we are attempting to be as fair as possible.

## For Contestants

* Requirements
* Internet Access
* Discord account.
* You must be 13 or older to use Discord, so you must be 13 or older to play!

### Challenges & Submissions

* Challenges will be done in one of three ways. Non-live challenges will be done on your own at your convenience, without a need for hosts to be available. You will submit these challenges to your confessional. Semi-live challenges will require you to schedule a time with a host or some of your tribemates to compete. These will generally allow only one attempt to be performed unless stated otherwise. On some occasions, we will hold live challenges where we will work around everybody’s schedules. Any live challenges, or challenges that will be held over a long period, will be preceded with at least 24 hours’ notice.
* Any challenge that is not semi-live or live, and thus based on submissions, will allow re-submissions before the deadline if you receive an improved score or time. For challenge submissions, we will ask for a full screenshot with not only your score, but your Discord visible with the date and time. We ask that during challenges you behave in a fair and honest manner, and avoid cheating.
* If you ever find yourself incapable of competing in a challenge, let the hosts know that you will abstain. **Failure to abstain or compete will result in a strike.**
* If a challenge is judged by an external source, players are not permitted to contact the judges about the results of the challenge until they are out of the game **and** in the viewing lounge.

### Tribal Councils

* Tribal Councils will begin immediately after the immunity challenge’s results, and last over a 24 hour period. During this time, we will field questions for the tribe to answer. You will cast your votes in your confessional, by editing the parchment provided to you (which will be sent upon using the command ?parchment).
* If you cannot edit the parchment, we will create one for you. *We also ask that you provide a voting confessional.*
* **You may resubmit a different vote at any point until the deadline. Once the deadline arrives, the vote is final.** You may not abstain from voting, nor elect to vote for yourself. Failure to vote on time will result in a strike, as well as a self-vote. *If you self vote twice in a season, you will be removed from the game.*
* The voting period will be immediately followed by a live vote reveal, where the eliminated player will be allowed to say their final words to their competitors.
* You may not lock-in your vote on the initial vote. Vote lock-ins are only allowed in the event of a revote to allow the hosts the possibility to do early results.
* In the case of a tied vote, all players not involved in the tie will get an option to lock in their vote or change it. **The deadline will be extended by up to 24 hours, or when every player has locked in their revote.** If the tied vote is deadlocked, all players not in the tie will be sent to a rock draw, where one will be randomly eliminated from the season. If all players outside of the deadlock are immune, or if it is the final four, the players in the deadlock will compete in a duel for safety. **If you lock in your vote, you CANNOT change it under any circumstances.**
* If there is still a tie after the revote, the contestants will draw rocks to see who gets voted out.
* The contestants who are tied will be immune from drawing rocks as well as any player(s) with individual immunity or any players who played a hidden immunity idol.
* If there is a tie at the final 4, the 2 contestants who are tied with face off in a challenge. The winner of the challenge will stay in the game.
* If a 1-1-1 or 1-1-1-1 vote happens with no players immune, the players will be allowed to go to consensus decision. If they cannot come to a consensus on who to eliminate, than they will draw rocks.
* If you would like to give away the individual immunity necklace, your deadline to do so is 12 hours after tribal council is posted. The hosts may extend the deadline as a result, however this is determined on a case-by-case basis.

### Hidden Immunity Idols

* If you find a clue, you can chose to keep it to yourself or share it with others but you may not share it with a member of the opposite tribe, unless a twist allows for cross-tribal communication.
* If you wish to use a hidden immunity idol, you must inform the hosts before the votes are read or at the live reading of the votes.
* If you are playing your idol for someone other than yourself, you must specify who you wish to play it for.
* If you want to give possession of your idol to another player in the game, you must tell the hosts and they will transfer the idol for you.

1. Idols cannot be transferred cross tribal unless the season allows it.
2. In the event of a revote, the idol cannot be played on the second round of voting.
3. With each idol comes the possibility of a fake one. We do not restrict you from creating a fake idol and using it to your advantage, however, hosts are not able to comment on any idol and its validity until after it has been played at tribal council.
4. If a tribe is down to two members, hidden immunity idols will not be able to be played in the event that they go to tribal council.

### Situational Idol Plays

* Conditional idol plays are also in play. Since not everyone may be online at the same time for tribal results, it is difficult to know if anyone else played an idol if a player is not actively here to see results, but that is possible on the show. To remedy this, you are allowed to play your idol with a condition. You must specify who you are playing your idol on and under what condition the idol is played on. This may vary with other advantages, and players should ask hosts if something can be conditionally played.

1. CORRECT EXAMPLES
	* “I play an idol on myself if an idol is played at all”
	* “I play an idol on Grace if an idol is played on Liam”
2. INCORRECT EXAMPLES
	* “I play my idol on whoever gets the majority of the votes”
	* “I play my idol on myself if I received the majority of the votes”

### Leaving The Game

* If you have been eliminated from the season during the jury phase, please remain in the server! Leaving could result in your removal from the jury.

1. * Once you are voted out of the game, you will be removed from the tribe chat and are no longer allowed to communicate with those still in the game.
	* After you are voted out you will be asked for final words.
	* Players are advised to be very wise with how they handle their elimination. You are most certainly allowed to call anyone out on your way out.
	* However, you CANNOT leak any screenshots/voice messages or anything else of that sort to stain someone else’s image. This can now result in a one year ban from playing any future seasons. It does not matter how minor it is or how irrelevant the information is, you can not do it.
		+ Additionally, if you divulge any information kept secret from the hosts regarding anyone tampering with the season only when you get the boot you could face an even larger punishment. If it does get to that point, the admins will have the final say in the matter.
2. Jury
	* The rules for pre-jurors apply to jurors as well.
	* Once the jury phase of the game starts, when players are voted out, they will be removed from the tribe chat and placed in the ponderosa chat.
	* Jury members are not permitted to talk to players who are still in the game.
	* Jury members are not allowed to make posts about the game or what happened with their vote outside of the Ponderosa chat.
	* Jury members are allowed to discuss the game in the ponderosa chat but not with anyone left in the game.
	* If a jury member is caught interfering with the game they will be removed from the jury.
	* In the event that someone is removed from the jury the person voted off before the jury may join the jury or the jury will remain as is depending on the numbers. The hosts will determine what will happen depending on the specific case.
	* A juror is not permitted to have a back-and-forth conversation with the finalists in their speech thread.
	* Hosts are encouraged to keep the last pre-juror in sequester as a backup option.
3. Quitting, Medically Evacuated, Removals
	* If you are removed from the game by the hosts, the decision is final. The admin team will discuss any removals prior to them taking place to ensure the correct decision is being made.
	* If you are removed from the game, it is up to the hosts whether or not you may sit on the jury, if applicable.
	* You may quit the game at any time, but we kindly ask that you only apply if you are confident you will be able to stay through the entirety of the game.
	* If somebody leaves abruptly through a removal or quit, it is the hosting team’s decision if the current round of play will continue or be terminated. Their decision is final.

### Strikes

1. Strikes are given to avoid inactive contestants.
2. Strikes are given for not voting at tribal council and for not submitting challenges. They can also be given for not submitting for other deadlines, depending on the contents of the season.
3. If a contestant fails to submit a score for a challenge, they will receive a strike.
	* Two consecutive strikes will result in removal from the game.
4. If a contestant has three strikes, they will be removed from the game.

### Cheating

1. If the hosting team has reason to believe that cheating has occurred, they have the authority to ask for screenshots of messages or any other resources that might help sort the problem out. You are expected to cooperate in such times.
2. Cheating includes but is not limited to:
	* Altering a challenge score.
	* Using a score from Google.
	* Getting someone else to do a challenge for you.
	* Talking to jury members.
	* Talking to contestants still in the game as a juror.
	* Sockpuppeting
	* Copy and pasting chat logs to another player.
	* Cross tribal communication, unless a twist allows for it.
	* Coordinating answers with other players for social-based challenges (such as Touchy Subjects) ahead of time.
3. Punishments
	* In the event that a contestant is caught cheating, the hosts will choose a punishment appropriate for the action. The punishment will be decided by the hosts without input from the contestants.
		+ Punishments include but are not limited to:
		+ Removal from the game.
		+ Not receiving a reward.
		+ Ineligible to win individual immunity.
		+ Decreased immunity score.
		+ A extra vote against you at tribal council.
		+ Removal from jury.
		+ Ban from the ORG.
4. Screenshotting
	* You may never send screenshots of your game conversations to another player, regardless of what is contained within them.
		+ This includes screenshotting your hosting thread or any group chats.
		+ Voice messages, screen recordings, and any other documentation will be treated the same as screenshots if leaked/used unfairly. The former are similar to screenshots in the sense that they are generally used to better someone’s game unfairly. This does not go hand in hand with the game of survivor and the punishments will be severe.
	* You may screenshot your tribe chat and send it to players, IF they are currently on your tribe. #\*Screenshots (and anything else of that sort, audio recordings, videos, etc) will be punished a lot more harshly.
	* The punishments will range from a strike and/or a self vote (in cases where it was sent by accident or there were special circumstances and the intent wasn’t to better someone’s game) to a 6-12 month ban in addition to all the in game punishments (a self-vote, strike, immediate removal, etc) depending on the severity of the situation.
		+ Players who witness any of the rules being broken and choose to stay quiet will also be punished.

### Confessionals

1. Viewing Lounge Confessionals
	* These go to the public during the game for the purpose of entertaining viewers and keeping them updated on your game.
		+ To send one, message your confession to your thread, and start it with "VL:".
		+ Leaking is (sadly) always a risk, so please do not overshare in your VL confessionals.
	* It is encouraged to send these as it can improve your chances of getting Fan Favorite.
2. Game Confessionals
	* These will not be shared until after the season, so you can write whatever you want.
3. **During all-returnee seasons**, players are required to submit at least one private confessional for every round of the game. Not doing so will cause the player to receive a strike.
4. Confessions are used to document your thoughts during the game
5. Confessions can be sent to the hosts via a provided google form.
6. Don’t say anything that you’ll regret later.
7. It is encouraged to send detailed confessionals as it can improve your chances of getting Player Of The Season, give you a stronger edgic rating, and help get future hosts an idea of who you were.

### Player Threads

1. You are allowed to have one confessional guest of your choosing, however that guest cannot provide you with any game information, they are merely an observer.
2. Seasons with returning players will not allow confessional guests due to the higher stakes of those seasons.

### Alliance Chats

1. If you ever want to make an alliance chat,, request one in your confessional chat and state who you want in it. The hosts will handle the rest.
2. You are not allowed to make an alliance chat outside of the season server.

### Prizes

* It is at the hosting team or the admins' discretion whether they would give a prize to the winner, for the game is mainly just for the spirit of fun.

## For Moderators

1. Moderators are not allowed to leak any game information to any contestants in the game.
2. Moderators are not allowed to leak any game information to anyone observing the game from the outside.
3. A moderator is not allowed to do anything to alter the outcome of the game to favor a certain contestant.
4. If a moderator is unable to separate their personal feelings from the game than they will be asked to step down.
5. A moderator's job is to provide the best possible experience for the contestants.
6. If there are issues amongst a hosting team, the team should approach the admin team for help with their problems.
7. Moderators are not permitted to host for anybody they are able to have in-person contact with.

## For Observers

1. Observers are only allowed to watch the game unfold.
2. Observers are not allowed to leak any information to any contestants in the game.
3. Observers are not allowed to attempt to influence the opinions of the contestants in the game. This includes having a nickname in support of a player in the game.
4. Any information posted in the viewing lounge is not allowed to be leaked to the contestants. That includes predictions and opinions on contestants.
5. Do not ask people whether or not they were accepted to a season or spread rumors about who is.
6. Campaigning for a certain player to win Fan Favorite is NOT allowed and will result in your votes not counting.

## Past Players

1. If you have played you are not allowed to apply for a season unless they are accepting applications for returning players.
2. You are not allowed to sockpuppet, create a fake account, in order to get the opportunity to play again. This will result in a ban from the ORG.