Rules of behaviour

From HollowWiki

Rules of Behavior Agreed to Upon Entering The World Called Hollow

I will only ever make one character at a time

- This means that you will only ever have one character registered in the system at any one time. To make a new character you will first have your old one deleted by one of the admin. Failure to do this will result in punishment time.

With Regards to NPC’s:

This section refers to characters that don’t exist within the game system per say, but rather are characters that you yourself have made up to progress your own personal storyline. They include any character that you have tagging along with your own character. Due to the recent explosion of the use of this type of RP, certain rules have been put in place to govern the use and behaviour of these characters.

1.) They can not death duel – As they are not real with regards to the system, you can not use one to death duel in an attempt to keep your real character safe.

2.) They can not exist without your main character – The game is played from the perspective of your named character, this means you can not log in as Jim the Elf and play as Bob the Dwarf, claiming that Jim isn’t really there and has gone off on some quest. Also in addition to this, most of your time must be spent playing your primary character and not the NPC.

Example: Vuryal || Bob struts into the tavern, his eyes glancing about as he looks for something to eat. Why this doesn't work: This is BOB playing the game, not Vuryal. How it CAN work: Vuryal struts into the tavern, patting his slave Bob on the back to fetch a platter of food. Upon getting the platter, Bob sets it down and the chronomancer begins to chow down on the chili dog.

3.) They can not duel for items – You can not use your NPC to duel someone for their inventory. In addition to this, you can not make an NPC to follow your character and get him to duel for items, in anticipation of deleting your main character and adding the NPC to the system. Collecting items in this way IS item transfer and carries the same penalties.

4.) They ARE governed by the same rules that a real system based character would be. – This means that they can’t have silly names, abuse people, or break any of the character based rules. This also means that if your character gets muted/proomed or banned you can not claim it is not fair because it was something your NPC said or did. You as the player are responsible for the actions of your NPC.

I will not abuse the system

– This means you will not exploit any in-game bugs, glitches or errors on behalf of the admin. You will also not attempt to hack or modify any part of the system. You are expected to report any of these immediately upon finding them, making sure that you do not make anyone other than the admin aware of them. Failure to do this can result in banning.

I will inform the admin of ANYONE I know to be abusing the system

– This means you will let the admin know of anyone who is breaking any of these rules. Failure to do this can result in you receiving the same punishment as the person who broke the original rule.

I will not transfer items, nor will I help other transfer items from an old character to a new character

– This means you will not transfer items from a character who has died to a character that has just been made by the same player. This gives new characters an unfair advantage in the game and defeats the purpose of starting anew.

I will not abuse any of the in-game chat channels

– This means that you will stick to the purpose of each in-game channel, ie, you will not talk about out of game things on the in-character channels, and you will not talk about completely unrelated things on the out of character channels. You also agree not to spam any of the channels and keep the language to a decent level. The general policy is, ‘If it’s censored by the system, you will be muted’.

I will not post needless or inflammatory comments about the game, the staff, or the players on any of the in-game channels

- This includes, but is not limited to: the public boards, the ooc channel, tells. Obviously, if the comment is entirely in-character, it is deemed to be acceptable. Constructive criticism is also acceptable, but only if a solution is suggested at the same time. An example of needless comments could also include typing in all caps, or at least 51% of your post being in all caps. It is unnecessary to type in all caps as this is seen as being extremely rude.

I will not post anything of a excessively graphic nature

– This means that you will not participate in ‘Cyber-sex’, or any such act. The game is deemed to be loosely PG-13, however, not being video based, this category does not completely fit and is modified slightly. However, as a rough guideline it is generally sufficient.

I will not attempt to defraud other players of cash or earnings

– This means that you will not engage, on an out of character level, in any scheme that will result in a character losing credits or items. This will usually result in your character being reset.

I will not take any out of character disagreements I have with people in-game

– This means that if you have a disagreement with someone out of the game, you will not bring that disagreement in-game and start to target their character without a good in-character reason. Such behaviour is deemed to be harassment.

I will not harass other players on an out of character level

– This means if you do not have a good reason in-character to target a player, any behaviour which could be deemed as targeting the player will be deemed to be harassment. This can result in banning.

I will not post anything of a racist, sexist, religious, political, heterophobic or homophobic nature

– This means you will not participate in any form of hatemongering or disparagement of other people, their beliefs and their lifestyles.

I will not unmask any other characters player

– This means you will not give out the names of other players old characters. You may only do this if the permission of the player in question has been given. The punishment for this will be muting. Admin do reserve the right to unmask trouble makers.

I will not impersonate Hollow staff, nor will I use Hollow staff names to threaten and defraud other players

– This means you will not create characters with similar names to the admin and creators and then pretend to be them, nor will you use their names to threaten other players. This will be punishment time.

I will not participate in, nor discuss anything deemed to be illegal anywhere in the US or UK.

– This means you will not talk about anything deemed illegal in the ‘real world’ outside of the internet. This includes, but is not limited to: drugs, child sex, child porn, hacking and the acquisition of unauthorised copyrighted material.

I will not distribute anything of an indecent nature

– This means you will not post images or links of anything that could be deemed to be indecent. This includes, but is not limited to: pornography, images of death, and videos of deaths and executions.

I will not attempt to harm any other player on an out of character level

– This means you will not send links to Trojans, worms, and viruses to other players through Hollow. It also means you will not attempt to locate, and physically harm any other player in the game. This will result in banning and the relevant authorities being informed.

I will not attempt to arrange to meet any other player in-game out of the game

– This means that you will not attempt to gain any ‘real world’ information about other players from other players through the game. You will not arrange to meet these players if such information is made available. This is for your own protection and will result in muting.

I will not discuss, nor plan acts of terrorism

– This means you will not plan any attack against any race, gender or nationality through Hollow. This will result in banning and the relevant authorities being informed.

I will accept the decision of any staff member as final

– This means should something get escalated to the point where it has come to the attention of the Hollow staff, and they are expected to step in and settle the situation, you will abide by whatever decision they come up with without question or argument. Failure to accept an admin decision will result in muting.

I will accept any instruction from an authorised member of staff

– This means if an admin instructs you to do something, you will comply without question or argument. Obviously this does not include unreasonable requests, but does include and is no way limited to: ceasing a line of questioning or conversation, ceasing an act of unwarranted aggression against another player or ceasing use of a certain channel in-game.

I will abide by, and follow all of the following sub-rules in relation to RP

– This means you will follow the following rules regarding RP, you also agree to follow the set history for your particular race:

You will not participate in any storyline that involves the rape of a character in-game. This will result in your character receiving punishment time.
Characters can only claim a maximum of two races in its ancestry, with the following caveats -
- Vampiric cross-breeds, such as vampiric elf, vampiric human, etc., can only take place via siring. Keep in mind that the rules for vampire breeding will apply to the cross-breed because their body is effectively dead. Essentially, if your character is sired, it becomes a vampire, with some remnant qualities of its old race.
- Vampires cannot be mixed with lycan- or dragon- based creatures, including draconians. The reason for this is that their blood is a toxin to the vampires and will kill them.
- In the same vein as vampires can only breed with other vampires, lycans can only breed with other lycans, because once your character is bitten it becomes a lycan, with some remnant qualities of the former race when not in lycan form.
- In the case of pregnant women being sired, the woman’s body effectively dies, and as such, can no longer sustain the child. As the vampire body can't sustain the child, the child develops the desire to leave the body as soon as possible. The vampire body treats it as a foreign body, rejecting it. Hence the child is born prematurely. If the child is developed enough, it lives, if not it dies.
- Dryads can be in a relationship with other races, however, they can not breed with them in any way, shape or form. The reason for this is that dryads are essentially asexual beings.
- Other non-sensical race combinations, such as dragon-pixie, are not permitted.
- Half-breeds are sterile, meaning they cannot produce offspring of their own.
Angels, demons, gods, and goddesses:
- Characters cannot embody these eternal beings in any way, shape, or form without express admin consent. Period, end of discussion.

I will abide by and follow all of the following sub rules regarding PVP

– This means I will follow all of the following rules regarding the use of PVP and the stat system in Hollow:

You will not steal kills. – Kill stealing is defined as killing a monster in the same room as another player who is not inactive for five minutes.
- You can ask the player politely if they want the monster to kill. If they say that they do not, then you may kill the monster.
If you die while fighting a monster, you can not rush back and claim it as your monster if someone else is there, the monster is theirs to kill is they so wish.
You will not steal someone else’s gains from a monster: Some monsters drop items on the floor when you kill them, if these items are in the same room as the person who killed the monster, you must first ask that person if they want them. If they decline, then you may take them. Failure to comply with this is loot stealing and will result in an inventory wipe.
If you enter into a room where an agressive monster attacks you, you should pay close attention to it's stats. If it appears that the monster has been attacked already, you MUST escape immediately and ask permission of whoever is currently attempting to fight it if you can attack it.
You will not train other players. Training other players is defined as allowing that player to slash you while you wait so they can gain experience. This will result in the stat wipe of both players.

I will not camp at monsters

– This means that you won’t spend all your time at one monster holding it for yourself or another player to kill. If you are first in the room, you have the right to first kill of the monster, however, if there is a number of people in the room, a queue system must be set up, and turns in killing the monster must be taken. This will result in you being remotely killed.

I will not fraudulently lead someone to a location where they will get attacked by a monster

– This means you will not lead players into rooms where there are aggressive monsters designed to attack anyone who enters that location under the premise that the player will get something through following you. This will result in you being remotely killed.

I will not create a character which violates any of the following policies regarding naming

-Players in violation of these policies will be transported to the ‘Stupid name room’, and be expected to create a character with a suitable name. Repeated violations will result in a temporary ban:

Vile, profane, rude, or racist names including common swear words, anatomical references, racial slurs, and homonyms of these words. Combinations of words that produce an offensive result (e.g. SluttyMcHoBag, Domenow).
Names of religious, occult, or significant historic origin (e.g. Churchill, Satan, Muhammad).
Copyrighted or trademarked names of products, characters, services, or concepts (e.g. Toshiba, Dell, Reebok).
Names based on political or religious ideas.
Non-fantasy oriented names from popular media. These names can be either fictional (e.g. Homer Simpson, Mr. Burns) or non-fictional (e.g. Oprah, Geraldo, Bill Clinton).
Common words and phrases that would not be found in the place and time setting of the game (e.g. Electric, Internet, Netjunkie, Tvrulez).
Proper names from The World Called Hollow (e.g. Sven, Xalious, Milous). This also includes the first or last name of any significant Hollow NPC (e.g. Mesthak, Edward).
The names of senior The World Called Hollow staff members or employees (e.g. Michaels, Steven)
Names chosen with the intent or possessed with the effect of harming the reputation of a player or The World Called Hollow Staff Member.
Names containing titles within them, such as, but not limited to: The, An, God, Gawd, Lord, Lady.
Names that contain sentences (Ikillorcs), phrases (Ontop), or two or more words that do not form descriptive compound words (Petcarbob, Diediedie and Tablechair). Descriptive compound words are allowed (e.g. Treehugger, Giantslayer). Descriptive compound words (each separate part of the word and the entire word) must otherwise adhere to all other naming rules. Descriptive compound words that are deemed nonsensical or 'silly' by the admin will not be permitted and will be reviewed on a case by case basis. When in doubt, check first.
Fantasy-oriented names that are easily recognized from popular existing media (e.g. Merlin, Gandalf, Frodo, Bilbo, Kingarthur).
Nonsense names (e.g. Aaaa, Bbbblkjasd, Bjsldk)
For all of the above, misspellings and alternative spellings of the word or words are also unacceptable.
Character names may not contain spaces or special characters of any kind.
Note: Non-words like-- D, Da, De, Di, El, Z, Za, Ze, Zi, L, Le, La, Li are unacceptable in cases where the name contains a normal word, as they are references to "The" and implicate a title, in both cases (e.g. D`Kval is acceptable and D`Basher is not).
All names are subject to review by the admin, and if deemed inappropriate, for any reason, should be changed immediately. A 'grandfather' clause is in effect for older names.

I will not advertise other websites or games that are not related to Hollow

– This means you will not give out web addresses to other sites and/or games that are not related to the World called Hollow. This includes games of a commercial and non commercial nature. Failure to follow this rule will result in muting.

I will not discuss how the World called Hollow may be programmed, or suggest malevolent codes or workarounds

– This means you will not talk about the game code, nor will you discuss code which could be potentially used to harm, or give fallacious benefits to people who use it.

I will accept the ruling of any people who I put in charge of the fate of my character

– This means that if you agree to duel with stakes, you will accept the decision of the judges whom you jointly approve without question. Should there be a legitimate reason why the decisions of the judges should be brought into question, you will bring the duel to the attention of the administration, which will then make a final ruling, which you will accept without question. It should be noted, people who try to overturn the ruling of a panel of judges by going to the admin solely because they disagree with the outcome will be frowned upon severely.

I will not claim bias nor will I claim to be targeted by the admin

– This means that if you feel the admin are targeting you, you will not go around screaming that this is the case. If you have a legitimate case, you are advised to bring it to the attention of the admin@hollowgame.com through and Email with subject line of "Admin Abuse" Stating clearly what your grievance is, the admin names, and what evidence you have of said abuse. Admin abuse is taken extremely seriously, however, it should be noted that you should have significant evidence to prove this. ‘So and So p-roomed me because I was being mouthy’ is not classed as significant evidence.

I will not play the admin off against one another

– This means that if you receive a punishment from a member of staff, you will not seek out another member of staff and complain about the punishment in an attempt to get it reduced. The only person who can release you from your punishment is the person who put you there, and should they catch wind of you trying to get out by telling another admin half truths, then you are likely to find your punishment increased.

I will not bother higher level staff about my punishments

– This means that if you are placed in punishment for a crime, you will not go to a higher member of staff than the person who put you there, claiming the punishment is unfair in an attempt to get released. This act is highly frowned upon, and is likely to get your time in punishment increased. If you have a legitimate complaint about how you were treated, then you should email admin@hollowgame.com with a subject line of Admin Abuse, stating clearly in the body why you believe you have been unfairly targeted, and what evidence you have.

I will not mock another player’s legitimate attempts at Role-play

– This means that if another player is not to your high ‘standards’, regarding intelligence, typing ability, imagination and spelling; in short their Role-play ability, then you will not mock, nor belittle their attempts to Role-play. Constructive criticism is fine if it is in an attempt to improve the player’s skills, rather than to destroy their confidence. Failure to comply with this will result in at least two days punishment time.

I will not name my pet inappropriate names

– This means when you get a pet in game, you will choose a name suitable to the environment of the game. The pet name should consist of one word only, and should not include special characters such as /*-+=_)(*&^%$£”!. The name should also follow the policies regarding character names, listed elsewhere on this site.

I understand and accept that not all rules are written here

- This means if you are given a warning by an admin for an action, you will accept it as if it regards a rule specifically covered in this guide, whether or not it is actually covered here. The rules regarding the game are a dynamic thing. They are constantly evolving and being added to as new situations are encountered. The admin will attempt to keep this list of rules completely up-to-date, however, it can not be guaranteed to be 100% complete 100% of the time. If you are unsure of something, ask an admin before you do it.

I understand and accept that from time to time I will be subject to cruel, twisted, and unusual hoaxes, scams, cons and schemes.

- This means that from time to time the admin will do something or say something meant in jest, which the players will take seriously when they shouldn't. As a player you accept that at certain times of the year this will occur. The scams will be made clear by a silly name, or outrageous claim. As a player, it is up to you to spot these things and decide whether or not they should be taken in jest. If you are unsure, your best bet is to wait and see.

I understand and will accept Admin Endorsed RP's must be acknowledged

- This means that since all admin based RP's are there to further the storyline of Hollow, you, as a player of Hollow, agree to acknowledge and follow all such plotlines. This in no way means you have to take part, however, it does mean that you can't ignore their very existence.

I understand and accept that all conflicts outside of Hollow will not be punished or recognized in-game

- HollowGame.com is not responsible for any sites that are affiliated with the gaming concepts or terms of HollowGame.com. HollowGame.com is only responsible for content that is posted on its server and is not an entity that has any rights or privileges past that of its own server. An individual wishing to have a member of the HollowGame.com staff punish a registered user of HollowGame.com for any content that is posted outside of the HollowGame.com server will be cited for bringing out-of-Hollow content into the in-character game and punished appropriately.

Also see the General Policies.