IOPW Rules and Guidelines

Forum Rules

• No member is to have more than one active account at a time. Extraneous accounts will be deleted upon discovery and without notice. Repeat offenses will result in a ban.
  
  
• Do not spam. Not on the forums, not in the chatbox, not via PMs to other members. First offenses will be met with a reprimand and the deletion of said spam. Repeat offenses will result in escalating consequences, up to and including a ban.
  
  
• Do not attack or flame other members, especially via the forums or chatbox. If you have a grievance or issue with someone, either take it up with them privately or, if you don't think you can be civil, bring it to the attention of a staff member - again, privately - so they can mediate. All members are expected to act with maturity and civility in all public communications, and failure to do so will be met with dire consequences. That said, things like mild teasing, joking, poking fun, et cetera are acceptable. But there is a line. You know where it is. And you will not cross it. First offenses will be dealt with at the staff's discretion. Anything beyond that, and your ass is outta here.
  
  
• Do not post lewd, obscene, or explicit content anywhere on this site. This applies to any and all content in the e-fed and OOC forums. It isn't an IOPW rule, but a Forumotion one; as such, we'll all be in trouble if you break it. So don't break it. Posting pornographic, excessively violent, or illicit/illegal material will result in an immediate and permanent ban with absolutely zero notice.
  
  
• Do not publically advertise or recruit for other feds. Obviously, we can't police or stop what goes on in private. However, if staff catches even the slightest wind of it, that's a ban. End of story.
  
  
• Do not attempt to argue, subvert, or weasel your way out of the consequences for breaking these rules. Staff's judgment is final in all cases, and attempting to get your punishment overturned will result in a temporary ban at the least and a permanent one at the most.
  

Fed Rules

• Do not run more than one active character at a time. Exceptions may be made at the discretion of staff.
  
  
• Participation is required. Members who sign up and then don't involve themselves will not be booked. If you no-show your first match, your account and all materials pertaining to it will be deleted. No-showing three or more (3+) consecutive shows without notifying staff will net the same consequence. If you know you're going to no-show or be absent for any length of time, please let staff know and we'll do our best to accommodate you. In any case, really, some sort of notification is appreciated, and will go a long way towards getting us to not hate you.
  
  
• Each member is only allowed to post one promo per card. Not two, not three, one. You only get one shot, so make it count. That said, there are no parameters regarding length, structure, content, et cetera, but this should not be taken as carte blanche to either phone it in or throw up a novel. Appreciable lack of effort will be judged unfavorably, as will excessive length for its own sake.
  
  
• Do not cross the line between IC and OOC. This applies to all IC content, including promos. If you use your promos or other in-character interactions as a platform to take potshots at other members, bring real-life beef into an IC context, or other inappropriate ends, the promo in question will be penalized at the discretion of staff and may even be rendered null and void. If this occurs in a non-promo context, consequences will be at staff's discretion.
  
  
• Do not use other members' characters without their permission. Full-stop. Consequences will be at the discretion of staff.
  
  
• All deadlines are final and non-negotiable. It is preferred that promos be completed in a timely fashion, to make the judges' jobs easier. However, we're also aware that members have lives beyond the fed; all promos will, therefore, be judged by equal standards regardless of time of posting, as long as it's before the deadline. If you're even a second late (yes, we can tell), it will not count. Period.
  
  
• All decisions are final and non-negotiable. Every promo will be read, critiqued, and scored by at least three members of the writing staff. If you lose you lose, and arguing with and badgering staff will do absolutely nothing to change that.
  

Guidelines

• You're given a great deal of freedom here. Use it. The booking and writing staff here are not likely to be as heavy-handed as those in other feds. You are encouraged to pursue the storylines, angles, and feuds that appeal to you, and to work in conjunction with those around you to ensure your character is portrayed and his or her story is played out in the exact manner you want them to be.
  
  
• Use other members' characters in your promos. With their permission. Collaboration is a good thing, especially when it forges new connections between characters and strengthens existing ones. Members are also encouraged to work together on segments for shows, and to map out the direction they would like angles and rivalries to progress in.
  
  
• Be active in the in-character section of the forums. This is a very good way to organically develop storylines and feuds, and participation may be taken into account when judging particularly close matches.
  
  
• Experiment. Try new things with your promos and your character.
  
  
• Have fun. At the end of the day this is a game. Remember to enjoy it.
  

Two final points of note... first, this is a gender-inclusive fed. Male and female characters will not be exclusively booked with partners or against opponents of the same gender, and are eligible for all of the same championships, specialty matches/events, and so on.

Second, all booking and writing staff are allowed and encouraged to participate in the fed. We are aware that this has caused problems in many a fed, and have thus taken steps to ensure that things are as transparent as possible, so as to avoid any bias or wrongdoing. At no point will any member of the IOPW booking or writing staff be involved in the judgment of his or her own matches, or given preferential/special treatment of any kind; by the same token, however, they will not be handicapped, penalized, made to lose, or precluded from winning championships.

Simply put, we want to play too, so we will. If you have a problem with that, too bad.