Codex of The Lost World

The Lost World exists to provide an atmosphere in which every member has the right to have his or her voice heard, and in which loyalty to one's alliance-mates and personal honor are paramount.

Article I. Membership

Section 1. Application
Applicants to The Lost World must be engaged in no current wars, on the ZI lists of any alliance, or be a member of any other alliance. While membership in the blue team is preferred and encouraged, only applicants under 5,000 NS will be required to switch to the blue team.
Applicants seeking membership will have their application open for a period of up to 72 hours, during which members of The Lost World are free to ask questions to assess the applicant. If no serious concerns or complaints, the applicant will be accepted. Any triumvir has the ability to deny a nation membership.

Section 2. The Academy
All newly-accepted members must complete Academy training within thirty (30) days of acceptance. The Academy requirement may be waived at the discretion of a Triumvir or the Minister of Development, and the time requirement may be extended with special permission from the same.

Section 3. All applicants must take the following oath.
I, *name*, acknowledge that I have read, understand, and will uphold and defend the Codex of The Lost World, and understand that failure to abide by the Codex will be met with appropriate disciplinary action.

Section 4. Expulsion
Should a member be found to be acting against the Codex, the Triumvirate may unanimously agree on punishments including but not limited to censure, removal of privileges, expulsion, and ZI. Should any member wish to argue his or her case, appropriate means will be provided.

Section 5. General Alliance Laws
All members are expected to conduct themselves appropriately. This includes but is not limited to behavior towards fellow alliance members, tLW government, allies, and foreigners, as well as respecting tLW internal security. In other words, if it seems like a bad idea, it probably is.

No nation may declare war, or spy, upon any other nation without the permission of a Triumvir, Minister of Defense, or any other official granted such authority by either of the preceding two individuals.

All forms of "out of character" spying, espionage, hacking, etc., are strictly forbidden.

All tLW members are encouraged to build and maintain a nuclear arsenal. However, launching nuclear weapons without Triumvirate approval is expressly forbidden.

All tLW members are required to participate in wars, at the discretion of the government, as well as obey all laws and government decrees.

Any member of tLW may depart on good terms at any time, provided that the alliance is not in a state of high alert or a state of war, and provided that they do not owe the alliance any money.

All personally owned, written, and submitted materials, including but not limited to guides and instructional posts, remain the property of the submitter with the understanding that tLW has indefinite use of them.

Article II. Government

The member nations of The Lost World (hereafter known as tLW) are to be governed by the Triumvirs and the Cabinet of Ministers.

Section 1. Triumvirate
The Triumvirs are the highest ranking government officials of the alliance. They are the Commanders in Chief of the tLW military, lead the council, guide the foreign and internal policies of the alliance, and oversee the daily running of the alliance.

Section 2. Council
The Council is comprised of ministers and advisers, and is led by the Triumvirate. The Cabinet's greatest charge is to guard and promote the welfare of tLW member nations. The Ministers head departments to meet this goal. Five deparments exist to meet this goal, headed by ministers specializing in Defense, Foreign Affairs, Finance, IA, and Development.

Section 3. Advisors
Advisors are respected members of tLW who may be appointed and removed from their capacity at the discretion of the Triumvirate. Council Advisors have no voting power in the Council, but may participate in all Council debate.

Section 4. Removal of a Minister or Triumvir
If any minister is found to be in negligent in his or her duties, or not acting in the best interest of tLW, he or she may be removed with a unanimous vote of the triumvirate. Should a Triumvirate be found to be endangering the safety of the alliance, he or she may be removed by the unanimous vote of the two remaining triumvirs, and a unanimous vote of the cabinet.

Section 5. Special Notes
The founding Triumvirate will have permanent access to the [OOC]root admin features of tLW forums[/OOC], except in instances where a founding Triumvir is expelled from the alliance or else otherwise leaves. Access will also be granted to subsequent triumvirs while they remain in office.

Article III. Electoral Procedure

Section 1. Council Elections
Elections for all five ministers will be held once every two months. Sign-ups will last for 72 hours, and voting will take an additional 72 hours. In the event that a minister resigns before the end of his or her term and no deputy is immediately available, the triumvirate will select a replacement. Any member may run for a council position; however, he or she is prohibited from running for multiple positions at once.

Section 2. Triumvirate Elections
Members of the triumvirate undergo rotating elections, whereby one Triumvir is elected every two months, for a six-month term. Any member who has served as a council member for a minimum of one full term may run for Triumvir.
Any member who wishes to run for Triumvir has the option to run concurrently for exactly one Council position. Should they receive the highest vote-count in the Triumvirate election, they are obligated to accept their seat as a Triumvir.

Section 3. Uncontested Races
In the event that a race goes uncontested, the single candidate must undergo a confirmation vote, in which a simple majority of the voting membership must vote in favor of the candidate. Should this confirmation vote fail, the Triumvirate will seek a replacement.
In the event that no member seeks election for a Council position within the designated sign-up period, the Triumvirate may either choose to appoint a person to fill the position, or to leave the position vacant and divide the responsibilities among themselves.

Section 4. Deputies & Personnel
Ministers may appoint deputies and staff as they see fit to help facilitate the running of their office. The deputy will be first in line to take over the office should a Minister step down for any reason and will act in the Minister's stead should he/she not be available. A deputy is not a Cabinet member and, as such, does not have the voting power of a Minister. While the Ministers are free to appoint their own deputies, the triumvirate reserves the right to deny any appointment by unanimous vote.

Article IV. Alliance Procedure

Section 1. Signing and Ratification of Treaties, Laws, and Activation of Optional Clauses
All votes require a majority from the triumvirate, the council, and then the membership (50% +1) for confirmation (if the council approves the measure). Votes require a 2/3 +1 Membership vote if the Council votes against the measure. Membership voting shall consist of a one day (24 hour) discussion period and a two day (48 hour) discussion and ratification vote. This includes, but is not limited to, the signing of new treaties, entrance into multi-alliance blocs, enactment of cancellation clauses, introduction of alliance laws, and the activation of treaties with optional clauses. Proposals failing to receive the appropriate number of votes will be considered null.

Section 2. Codex Amendments
This codex may be amended based on unanimous vote of the triumvirate, 2/3 majority of the cabinet, and majority of the membership that participate in elections. Article II, Section 5 and Article IV, Section 2 may not be amended.