Generic Core Rules

This is a copy of the core rules of BlogNomic that can be adapted to other settings

Core Rules

Ruleset and Gamestate

This is the Ruleset; all players shall obey it. The Gamestate is defined as any information which the Ruleset regulates the alteration of.

The ruleset consists of two sections: the core rules, which govern the game as a persistent whole, and the dynastic rules, which cover the specific rules of gameplay for the current dynasty.

The Ruleset and Gamestate can only be altered in manners specified by the Ruleset.

If the Ruleset does not properly reflect all legal changes that have been made to it, any player may update it to do so.

Players

Any human may become a player by announcing their intent to do so in a gamestate channel.

Some players are Admins, responsible for updating the Ruleset. Players who wish to become Admins may submit a Proposal to make themselves Admins. Existing Admins may be removed from their posts by Proposal, CfJ, or voluntary resignation.

Idle Players

A player can be active or idle. By default they are active. If a player wishes to switch between active and idle, they must make an announcement in a gamestate channel to that effect.

For the purposes of all Gamestate and the Ruleset, excluding the Rules “Ruleset and Gamestate”, “Players”, and any of those Rules’ subrules, idle players are not counted as players.

When a player becomes active, if they became idle in the same game, their personal gamestate retains the last legally endowed values it had, if they are still valid. Otherwise (including if a value is invalid, does not exist, or the player idled in a different game), the player is given the default value for new players, if such a value exists.

Dynasties

The game is divided into a number of Dynasties. Each Dynasty may be headed by a single player, known as the Emperor. The Emperor is also a player for all core rules, but is not a player for all dynastic rules, unless otherwise stated.

Official Entries and Votable Matters

An official entry is any communication whose content or format is determined by the ruleset.

A Votable Matter is an official entry which player may cast Votes on, such as a Proposal, a Call for Judgement or a Declaration of Victory.

Proposals

A Proposal is a kind of Votable Matter used to make changes to the ruleset or gamestate. Any player may submit a Proposal to change the Ruleset or Gamestate by making an official entry that starts with the text "PROPOSAL:", and which describes those changes, unless the player already has 2 Proposals pending, or has already made 3 Proposals that day.

Votes

Each player may cast one vote on a Votable Matter by making a response to the official entry that comprises that Votable Matter, indicating FOR, AGAINST, or DEFERENTIAL. A player's valid vote on a Votable Matter is that player's most recent response to the official entry for that Votable Matter, and must, except when otherwise specified, be a vote of FOR or AGAINST, or VETO if the player is the Emperor. Additionally, if the author of a Votable Matter has not made a vote in response to that Votable Matter, then the author’s Vote is FOR. A non-player never has a Vote, even if they were a player previously and had cast a valid vote.

If a player other than the Emperor casts a vote of DEFERENTIAL, then the vote of DEFERENTIAL is an indication of confidence in the Emperor. When the Emperor has a valid vote other than VETO on a Votable Matter, then all votes of DEFERENTIAL on that Votable Matter are instead considered to be valid and the same as the Emperor’s vote, unless otherwise specified.

Special Proposal Voting

When a player casts a vote AGAINST their own Proposal (which is not in the form of a DEFERENTIAL vote), this renders the Proposal Self-Killed, even if the author later changes their Vote. The Emperor may use VETO as a voting icon to cast a Vote on a Proposal; when the Emperor casts a vote of VETO on a Proposal, this renders the Proposal Vetoed, even if the Emperor later changes their Vote.

Enacting and Failing

Votable Matters can either be Pending, Enacted, or Failed. When a Votable Matter is first put forward, it is considered Pending.

Whenever an Admin Resolves a Votable Matter, they are highly encouraged to report the final tally of Votes (or the fact that it was self-killed or vetoed). Further votes cannot be made on Enacted or Failed Votable Matters.

This rule cannot be overruled by Dynastic Rules in its application to Calls for Judgement or Declarations of Victory.

On all Votable Matters, quorum is considered to be half of the number of all players, rounded down, plus one.

A Votable Matter is Popular if any of the following are true:

• It has a number of FOR Votes that exceed or equal quorum.
• It has been open for voting for at least 48 hours, it has more than 1 valid vote cast on it, and more valid votes cast on it are FOR than are AGAINST.

A Votable Matter is Unpopular if any of the following are true:

• The number of players who are not voting AGAINST it is less than quorum.
• It has been open for voting for at least 48 hours and it is not popular.

Resolution of Proposals

The oldest pending Proposal may be Enacted by any Admin (by updating the Ruleset and/or Gamestate to include the specified effects of that Proposal) if all of the following are true:

• It is Popular.
• It has been open for voting for at least 12 hours.
• It has not been Vetoed or Self-Killed.

The oldest Pending Proposal may be Failed by any Admin, if any of the following are true:

• It is Unpopular.
• It has been Vetoed or Self-Killed.

If a Proposal somehow ends up being pending for more than 7 days, it is ignored for the purpose of calculating the oldest pending Proposal, and can be failed by any Admin.

Calls for Judgement

A Call for Judgement (or CfJ) is a Votable Matter used if two or more players actively disagree as to the interpretation of the Ruleset, or if a player feels that an aspect of the game needs urgent attention. A player may raise a CfJ at any time by making an official entry that started with the text "CALL FOR JUDGEMENT:".

A Pending CfJ may be Enacted by any Admin if all of the following are true:

• It is Popular.

A Pending CfJ may be Failed by any Admin if any of the following are true:

• It is Unpopular.
• It specifies neither changes to the Gamestate or Ruleset nor corrections to any gamestate-tracking entities.

When a CfJ is Enacted, the Admin Enacting it shall update the Gamestate and Ruleset, and correct any gamestate-tracking entities, as specified in the CfJ.

A player's ability to raise a CfJ may never be restricted. This Rule may not be overruled or superceded by Dynastic Rules.

Victory and Ascension

If a player (other than the Emperor) believes that they have achieved victory in the current Dynasty, they may make a Declaration of Victory (abbreviated “DoV”) detailing this, by making an official entry that starts with the text "DECLARATION OF VICTORY:"

Every player may cast votes on that DoV to indicate agreement or disagreement with the proposition that the poster has achieved victory in the current Dynasty.

A pending DoV may be Enacted by any Admin if any of the following are true:

• It is Popular, it has been open for at least 12 hours, and either the Emperor has Voted FOR it or it has no AGAINST Votes.
• It is Popular, and it has been open for at least 24 hours.

A pending DoV may be Failed by any Admin if any of the following are true:

• It is Unpopular, and it has been open for at least 12 hours.

If a DoV is Failed and it had at least one AGAINST vote, the player who posted it cannot make another DoV until after 120 hours (5 days) have passed since the time their DoV was Failed.

When a DoV is Enacted, all other pending DoVs are Failed, a new Dynasty begins in which the player who made the DoV becomes the Emperor, and all prior game events are considered to be legally and successfully undertaken.

The new Emperor will make an Ascension Address, which is an official entry (but not a votable matter). This should specify the Emperor’s chosen theme for the new Dynasty, and it may optionally specify that the terms “player” and “Emperor” will be replaced with theme-specific terms throughout the entire Ruleset (where the replacement terms are different, and neither includes any words in a form in which they already appear in the non-dynastic Ruleset), and/or list a number of dynastic rules to keep. When such an Ascension Address is posted, the Ruleset is updated to reflect any changed terms, and any dynastic rules which were not listed to be kept are repealed. Between the enactment of the DoV and the posting of the Ascension Address, no new official entries may be made and no dynastic actions may be taken.

This rule cannot be overruled by Dynastic Rules as it relates to Declarations of Victory, but it can be overruled in other matters.