Generic Core Rules

The BlogNomic Standard Ruleset

This is a generic ruleset for Nomics based on the core ruleset used in BlogNomic (http://www.blognomic.com). It has been written by Josh Hadley, Kevan Davis, Thomas Chick and {pokes}, based on the contributions of the hundreds of players of BlogNomic from 2004 to 2021. This is version 1.0; the most recent version can be found at https://wiki.blognomic.com/index.php?title=Generic_Core_Rules.

It is shared under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA (Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International) 4.0 licence.

If you use it - please do let us know!

Usage notes

As written, this ruleset is optimal for online play. To make it appropriate for real-time or offline play, remove the rule Players, and change the time thresholds in the rule Enacting and Failing from 48 hours to the duration of your choice (we would recommend at least half an hour but not more than two hours).

A note on "gamestate" - this is quite an expansive concept. It refers to anything at all that could be construed as being a part of the game (based on a rule making it so). For online play, we recommend that supplementary documents are used to track gamestate (tokens, player positions, breeds of dragon etc). In offline play, gamestate may include tangible items like pieces on a board or post-its on a wall.

A note on "gamestate channels" - if you know the format in which your game will largely be played (eg a discord channel, in a pub, via whatsapp etc) you may want to adapt these rules to specify what constitutes the official channels of the game and how submissions and responses are made to them.

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 round's rules, which cover the specific rules of gameplay for the current round.

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

The game has two roles: players and observers. Any person may become a player by announcing their intent to do so in a gamestate channel. If a player wishes to become an observer, or vice-versa, they may do so after making an announcement in a gamestate channel to that effect. If a player has undertaken no game actions for at least 7 days, any player may make them an observer. After someone has been made an observer, they cannot become a player again until five days have passed.

When an observer becomes a player, if they had been a player in the same round, 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 has not been a player during this game), the player is given the default value for new players, if such a value exists.

Emperors and Rounds

At any time, the game has one player who is the Emperor. The Emperor is responsible for resolving votable matters, ensuring that the ruleset and gamestate are accurate and updated, and setting any theme that the game might have. The Emperor is also a player for all core rules, but is not a player for all round rules, unless otherwise stated.

The process by which the role of Emperor changes is detailed in the rule Victory and Ascension. The period of an individual player's occupancy of the Emperorship is called a Round. A Round begins with the submission of a new Emperor's Ascension Address and ends with the enactment of a Declaration of Victory.

If the Emperor becomes an observer, it is only possible to resolve Declarations of Victory.

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 players may cast Votes on, such as a Proposal, a Call for Judgement or a Declaration of Victory.

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.

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 starts with the text "CALL FOR JUDGEMENT:".

A Declaration of Victory (or “DoV”) is a type of Votable Matter used when a player believes that they have won the round. If a player (other than the Emperor) believes that they have achieved victory in the current round, they may make a DOV detailing this, by making an official entry that starts with the text "DECLARATION OF VICTORY:". Every player may cast votes in response to that DoV to indicate agreement or disagreement with the proposition that the submitter has achieved victory in the current round. While any DoV is open for voting, no game actions except submitting and voting on CfJs or DoVs may be taken.

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, or VETO if the player is the Emperor.

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.

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. The Emperor may VETO a Proposal; when the Emperor casts a vote of VETO on a Proposal, this renders the Proposal Vetoed. Self-killing or vetoing a proposal cannot be reversed; once cast, such a vote cannot be changed.

Resolution

Proposals and CfJs may only be resolved by the Emperor. DoVs may be resolved by any player. Votable matters must be resolved based on the following criteria:

A votable matter can be enacted if more than half the players have voted FOR it, or if it's been open for voting for 48 hours and has more votes FOR than AGAINST. (Proposals which have been Vetoed or Self-Killed can never be enacted.)

A votable matter can be failed if half or more of the players have voted AGAINST it, or if it's been open for 48 hours and cannot otherwise be enacted, or if it is a proposal and has been Vetoed or Self-Killed.

Proposals must be resolved in chronological order, from oldest to newest.

CfJs and DoVs do not need to be resolved in chronological order and Vetoing or Self-Killing them has no effect. If a DoV is failed, the player who submitted it cannot make another DoV for 120 hours (5 days).

Whenever a proposal or CfJ is enacted, the Emperor must make the prescribed changes to the ruleset or gamestate. Whenever a DoV is enacted then the procedure described in the rule Victory and Ascension takes place. Any votable matter ceases to be a votable matter once resolved.

Victory and Ascension

During the course of play, a mechanic should be established that specifies under what circumstances a player has achieved Victory in a round. When a player posts a DoV, and that DoV is Enacted, the player who submitted it has won, and if all players wish to continue, a new round can begin in which all preceeding round rules are repealed and the player who made the DoV becomes the Emperor. The new Emperor must make an Ascension Address, which is an official entry submitted in which they set out the theme for the new round.

Round Rules