1. Registration: Please register with your character's name (first and last, or the handle or nickname by which they are most commonly known). Players with multiple characters will be requested to make multiple accounts.

2. Historicity: Beat to Quarters is a nautical roleplay set in the West Indies in 1741. We focus on the seafaring aspects, and most of our storylines involve life and work aboard the ships. We strive for high degree of historical accuracy, and some players looking to join may find us too restrictive. We don't expect players to enter being full scholars of the 18th century, but players are expected to look things up as necessary and to do their own research. We've assembled considerable resources to help you start, and if you have any questions about the period, we've got a well-read admin/mod team who'd be more than happy to help.

3. Rating: This site is rated PG-13, which means we allow violence, cursing (within reason), and some sexuality. We do allow some rated-R content; The condition being that you kindly label the thread [Rated R] so that people who don't want to see it may avoid it. If you do nothing but post graphic content, we reserve the right to issue a warning--the point of this site isn't to write pornography, after all.

4. Manners: Be polite and kind to other members. This shouldn't require explanation. If you have a disagreement with another player, either discuss it civilly off the boards, or contact a moderator or administrator to mediate.

5. Graphics: We do not have any sort of required play-by system. If you'd like to represent your character visually, you can do so however you choose, provided the graphic is of a modest size, and appropriate in content and context. We do not have face claims, but if another player has chosen an image, it would be polite of you to defer use of the image to whoever used it first. We do ask that all avatars and graphics are in keeping with the period; players using images that feature people in contemporary dress or other highly anachronistic clothing will be asked to alter their image. For your convenience, we've compiled a catalogue of period faces that players can use, or take inspiration from.

6. Length: Please try for a five sentence minimum on all posts. We'd appreciate more if you can manage, but we recognize that quality and quantity are not interchangeable. The general understanding is that posts are whatever length they need to be.

7. Style: Write in full sentences and clear, grammatical English. Repeated typos, lack of punctuation, and grammatical errors make posts difficult to follow. Watch out for they're/there/their distinctions, etc. In addition, all posts should be in the third person past-tense. Exceptions can be made for players who have linguistic disabilities, or who are not native English speakers; just contact the administration so we know your situation.

8. Responsible Roleplaying: No power-playing/god-moding. This means, among other things, that you can't kill another character without their player's express permission; if they give it, please PM me first so I know about it. Also, be reasonable about your character's skill level and knowledge. If you are unsure about what may or may not be appropriate, don't hesitate to ask. (For more info on god-moding, check here.)

9. Commitment: A character whose player hasn't posted for a week can be used as temporary NPC. The purpose of this is to move threads along. We will try not to develop the character or to create situations the player may not like.

A character whose player has been missing for a month will be considered an abandoned character and will be used as a regular NPC. The no god-moding rule no longer applies.

To avoid this from happening to your character,

1) Stay in touch with us. Tell us that you'll be gone and if possible for how long.

2) Don't leave with your character mid-thread.

3) Designate specific players as substitutes to play your character while you're gone. (As long as one of them is around, no one else will be allowed to write for your character.)

10. Character Count: Be reasonable in terms of how many characters you make. There are no limits, but we encourage you not to make more than you can keep up with. Your first character needs to be ship-based since that is the focus of our game, additional characters can be land-dwelling. So feel free to try out characters of different backgrounds, genders, ethnicities, and affiliations. Dip your toes in a variety of waters, so to speak.

11. It's a Game: Be creative, and have fun!



---

New rules will be added as needed, but these are the basics.

As far as how we treat the breaking of the rules – it will vary from offense to offense. If you register without a character name, it's something easily remedied. If your posting quality needs work, we'll contact you and work out a plan for improvement. If, however, you're harassing other members and being disrespectful, we might ask you to leave. We have yet to resort to any banning action, and hope that we never have to. But before any punitive action is pursued, rest assured that you will always be contacted first.


That all said and out of the way, enjoy! If you have a question, please drop one of us a line.

- The Administration