0. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. PLAYERS AND CHARACTERS -1a. Primary Characters -1b. Secondary Characters -1c. Player Inactivity --1ci. Regency --1cii. Suspension 2. PLAYER ROLES -2a. Ministers --2ai. Prime Minister --2aii. Governor-General --2aiii. Minister of Defence --2aiv. Treasurer -2b. Governors -2c. Advisors 3. STATISTICS -3a. Finances -3b. Resources --3bi. Productivity -3c. Military --3ci. Fortifications 4. ACTIONS 5. ATTACKS -5a. Attack and Defence -5b. Intercession -5c. Withdrawal 6. TURNS AND PHASES 7. AMENDING THE RULES ******** 1. PLAYERS AND CHARACTERS 1a. Primary Characters At any given time, each player controls one, and only one, primary character, who is the IC incarnation of the player's will. A player's primary character is absolutely untouchable to others; he cannot be RPed for or personally attacked without the prior consent of the player. A player may switch to another primary character only if he permanently and irrevocably renounces all control of the original (most likely through the original's death). 1b. Secondary Characters Each player also controls an unlimited number of secondary characters; the messengers, lieutenants and other underlings who get most of the grunt work done. There is no restriction on other players engaging in capture, execution or other mistreatment of these characters, even without a challenge match, although doing so is likely to result in diplomatic incidents. Common-sense restrictions of gentlemanly conduct apply to RPing the actions of other players' secondary characters. 1c. Player Inactivity A player is defined as Active if he has joined the RP through a valid introductory post and is currently neither Suspended nor delegated to a Regent. A valid introductory post is one which is posted on the official arena forums and introduces the player's first primary character. 1ci. Regency If a player's circumstances prevent him from participating in the roleplay for an extended period of time, that player (hereafter "the delegating player") may temporarily cede power over his dominion, including all characters and statistics, and any ministry or governorship held by the player, to another player (hereafter "the Regent") for a specified period of time. A regency may last no more than 4 consecutive game turns, and may be cancelled by the delegating player at any time during that period. The Regent may, for the period of time in which her or his regency lasts, act unconditionally for the delegating player as well as for himself. A player who is either a Minister or a Governor may not be a Regent for another player who is either a Minister or a Governor; that is, any player who is either a Minister or a Governor may only delegate his power to an Advisor. A player may only be a Regent for one other player at any given time. If a Regency lasts a full 4 consecutive turns, the player may specify at the beginning of the Regency that he will be Suspended at the end of the Regency. This will occur even if he is under Attack at the time Suspension is to occur. Intentional abuse of this rule to Suspend oneself in order to avoid Attack is considered rude. 1cii. Suspension If a player must cease playing for a period of more than 4 turns, he or she may enter a period of Suspension. Suspension may last for any period of time, but must end in the same Phase in which it began (e.g. a Suspension beginning in the Negotiation phase of one turn must end in the Negotiation phase of another turn). A Suspended player resigns any Ministry or Governorship he may hold, becoming a regular Advisor. If a Minister is Suspended without nominating a successor, a new Minister may be elected to his post by a plurality vote among Active members. A player accumulates no statistics during the period of Suspension; nor are any statistics deducted from. A player may not be Attacked or otherwise interfered with during Suspension. A player may not Suspend himself while an Attack is pending by or against him. Suspension may also be imposed on a player by a strict majority vote of all Active players, as a sanction for prolonged inactivity, infringement of the rules, or conduct unbecoming of a community member. Such a Suspension lasts either for a period of time specified in the original vote, or until lifted by a strict majority vote of all Active players. ******** 2. PLAYER ROLES The player's primary character may have one of three roles at a given time: he may be a Minister, Governor, or Advisor. All players hold one and only one of these roles at any given time. All new players begin as Advisors. 2a. Ministers There are 4 Ministers in the Empire, and each has a different role. The term of a ministry is one season of the Arena. The winner of the Arena gets first choice of ministries, the second-place finisher gets second choice, etc. If a winner does not want to be a Minister, he can offer a ministry to an Advisor or Governor of his choice instead (who is likewise free to accept or refuse, although he has no choice over which ministry or ministries are offered to him). Likewise, if a player wins both first and second place in a season, he can choose one ministry for himself and pass another on to someone else. A winning player must accept a ministry if he cannot find someone else to do so; there cannot be an empty ministry. Note that if a Governor accepts a ministry, he must renounce his governorship (and similarly, Advisors cease to be Advisors once they become Ministers). A player may only hold one Ministry at any given time. The following ministries exist within the Empire: 2ai. Prime Minister The PM is the Minister responsible for appointing Governors. Whenever a free gubernatorial post exists, the PM can and should (but is not required to) appoint an Advisor of his choice to the role of Governor. An unwilling Advisor may choose to refuse the appointment. 2aii. Governor-General While only the PM can appoint Governors, only the GG can dismiss them. The Governor-General can instantly demote a Governor to the position of Advisor, although a Governor with sufficient public support may be able to resist this. 2aiii. Minister of Defence The MoD's responsibility is to regulate the Empire's military and resolve disputes which require military intervention. He is the only Minister capable of raising an army on his own, and while Governors also have their own armies, the support of other Ministers can make this Minister very powerful. 2aiv. Treasurer The Treasurer's responsibility is to manage the Empire's money supply and deal with any economic problems that arise. To aid in this goal, he has the unique ability to create money at will, and likewise to destroy Treasury-owned money. 2b. Governors Each Governor administrates one of the four continents of the Empire: Aizo, Pralgad, Vantanas and Valorim. Governors have the power to raise an army, but rely on Trade and on the support of Advisors for the Resources to do so. A player may govern only one continent at any given time, and a player who is a Governor cannot also be an Advisor or Minister at the same time. 2c. Advisors Advisors are the representatives of aristocratic families, industry unions, religious organisations, criminal syndicates, or other profitable interests within the Empire. They play a central role in the economy, as they are responsible for the production of the Resources which other players need. There is no limit on the number of Advisors in play at any given time, but a player who is an Advisor cannot be a Governor or Minister at the same time. ******** 3. STATISTICS Five statistics define the wealth and power of each player. In no event can any statistic be reduced below 0. 3a. Finances Finances represent the pool of wealth which a player can draw upon. While they have no use on their own, Finances may be accepted in Trade with other players, and in some cases may be a safer form in which to store wealth than Resources. Only the Treasurer may produce Finances. 3b. Resources Resources represent the raw materials and supplies needed to support a populace or an army. These are produced exclusively by Advisors, but needed by all. 3bi. Productivity Advisors, and only Advisors, gain Resources equal to their Productivity during the Results Phase of every turn. The base level of Productivity is 100; all Advisors start with 100 Productivity, meaning they gain 100 Resources per turn. Productivity may be increased or decreased by certain Actions. Productivity has no effect for Ministers or Governors unless they later become Advisors. 3c. Military Military represents the overall size and strength of the armed forces under a player's command. A large Military is necessary for waging war, but raising and maintaining an army is expensive. For Governors, every 10 units of Military (rounded up; 11 units counts the same as 20) cost a player 1 unit of Resources per turn. For the Minister of Defence, every 20 units of Military (rounded up) cost 1 unit of Resources per turn. 3ci. Fortifications Specialised Military units which can only be used for defence. Unlike normal Military units, they do not consume resources, but are only functional if staffed by other Military units. They also have certain other special properties. ******** 4. ACTIONS Players may take any of a variety of Actions involving themselves or others. The Actions a player may take depend on their political position. The total number of Actions which a player may take in a round is unlimited. Actions are described below. * Trade: Any two players may exchange Resources, Finances and Military under any terms and conditions to which both players agree (which may include the terms of the Trade being conditional on the results of a challenge match). Players may not Trade Fortifications or Productivity, and may not Trade any statistics which are not actually in their possession at the beginning of the Negotiation Phase in which the Trade is negotiated. A gift is simply a Trade in which nothing is given in exchange, and, like any Trade, may be refused by its intended recipient. The Minister of Defence may receive Resources in Trade only from other Ministers, and not from Governors or Advisors. * Issue: Available ONLY to the Treasurer. Adds an amount of the Treasurer's choosing to the Treasurer's Finances. The Treasurer can print as much money as he likes, although since there are no fixed exchange rates, Issuing an excessive amount of Finances is likely to lead to inflation. * Withdraw: Available ONLY to the Treasurer. Removes an amount of the Treasurer's choosing from the Treasurer's Finances. * Recruit: Available ONLY to Governors. Converts a number of units of Resources to an equal number of units of Military (e.g. a Governor can turn 50 Resources into 50 Military). * Conscript: Available ONLY to the Minister of Defence. Converts a number of units of Resources to twice that number in units of Military (e.g. the Minister of Defence can turn 50 Resources into 100 Military). * Disband: Available to all players. Disbands a portion of the player's Military, removing some Military units permanently from play. If a player lacks the Resources to support his Military and cannot obtain sufficient Resources from other players by the end of the turn, it is mandatory that he Disband part of his Military so that he can support all his remaining Military units. * Appoint: Available ONLY to the Prime Minister. If an empty Governor's post exists, the PM can appoint one Advisor of his choice to fill the post. The Advisor loses his position as Advisor (and his Productivity) but keeps all his other statistics, and also inherits any Finances, Resources and/or Military which the previous Governor left behind. If more than one empty Governor's post exists in a turn, the Prime Minister may choose to fill any, all or none of the posts in a single turn. * Dismiss: Available ONLY to the Governor-General. Attempts to dismiss a Governor from his post. If the Governor accepts the dismissal, he becomes an Advisor. He loses all Resources, Military and Fortifications, but keeps his Finances. If he attempts to resist dismissal, a vote of Advisors is called in order to determine the strength of his support base among the public. To resist dismissal, a Governor must receive the vote of at least 50% of all Advisors who are not Suspended at the time the dismissal attempt occurs; these votes must be gathered before the start of the Results phase following the dismissal attempt. A Regent may vote on behalf of an Advisor delegated to him. If a Governor successfully resists dismissal, he keeps his position unless ousted by military force (or by a successful dismissal attempt on a later turn). If he fails to secure a sufficient proportion of the vote, his support base turns against him; he becomes an Advisor, and loses all his Finances, Resources, Military and Fortifications. The dismissal of a Governor creates an empty post which can be filled by an Advisor of the Prime Minister's choosing. When a Governor is dismissed, whether he cooperates or not, any Resources, Military, Fortifications and/or Finances he loses are inherited by the next Governor appointed to his post. Military stationed in an "empty" continent do not consume Resources until a new Governor is appointed. * Resign: A Minister or Governor may resign at any time. If a Governor resigns, the result is equivalent to a dismissal with cooperation; he loses all Resources and Military, keeps his Finances, and becomes an Advisor. If a Minister resigns, he becomes an Advisor, and loses all Finances, but keeps all Resources and Military. (EXCEPTION: The Minister for Defence loses both his Military and his Finances, but still keeps his Resources). All lost Finances and/or Military are inherited by the Minister's successor. If a Minister resigns willingly, he must immediately appoint a successor who is willing to accept his ministerial position. Ministers must resign at the end of an Arena season (as soon as the championship match result is posted) if they fail to keep their ministerial portfolio by a sufficiently good Arena performance; in this case, a leaving Minister has no choice about his successor. * Fortify: Available ONLY to Ministers and Governors. For every unit of Resources used, the player gains a unit of Fortification, which is equivalent for defensive purposes to a unit of Military (as long as it is active; see below). These units cannot be Traded to other players and are ONLY counted toward a player's military strength when the player is the defender (they cannot be used for Attacking), but unlike normal Military forces they do not consume Resources. If a Minister/Governor with Fortifications resigns, is dismissed, or is deposed, all Fortifications pass to the successor. In any Attack where the defender has Fortifications, normal Military units will be destroyed before any Fortifications are, and Fortifications will only be destroyed if the losses exceed the defender's total available regular Military. Unlike normal Military units, any Fortifications which are not destroyed in an Attack are NOT disbanded when a Governor is forcibly ousted. Fortifications may, however, be disbanded by their owner if he wishes. Fortifications must be occupied to be effective. This means that for every unit of Fortification, one unit of Military is required to activate it. Fortification levels without accompanying Military will be treated as inert for all practical purposes. Inert fortifications do not take part in defence and cannot be destroyed in attacks. In the case of such numbers as the 1:2 advantage necessary to coup a member of government or a 1:10 advantage necessary to secure instant victory in an attack, inert Fortifications are uncounted (although active Fortifications are counted as equal to regular Military units). Active Fortifications are treated as Military units additional to the Military units activating them; e.g. if there are 600 Fortifications and 500 Military units, there is an effective defensive strength of 1000. * Invest: Available ONLY to Advisors. An Advisor can use up Resources in improving the Productivity of his interests. Productivity can be increased by 1 if an amount of Resources equal to 10% of current Productivity (rounded up), or 10, whichever is greater, is invested. Investment is iterative; cost is treated as if Productivity were being increased by one unit at a time. For example, to raise Productivity from 80 to 103, 232 Resources would be required: 210 to raise it from 80 to 101, plus 22 to raise it from 101 to 103. * Plunder: Available ONLY to Advisors. An Advisor can dismantle his interests' infrastructure for immediate gain; for every 1 Productivity lost, 5 Resources are gained. If an Advisor becomes a Minister or Governor and then returns to being an Advisor, Investments and Plundering from the previous term as Advisor carry over; Productivity reinitiates at its previous level. ******** 5. ATTACKS 5a. Attack and Defence An Attack is treated separately from an Action, and is not considered an Action under the terms of the rules. Attacks, unlike Actions, are considered to take effect within the same phase that they are announced, allowing military intervention between an Action and its result (possibly preventing the Action from being successfully completed). There are two possible purposes for an Attack: to gain Resources, and to overthrow a Minister or Governor. There is also the special case of an "Intercessory Attack", which may be initiated against an Attacker by a non-defending player to protect a weak defender. Intercessory Attacks cannot be used to gain Resources or overthrow Ministers and Governors. In either case, the Attacker must post an intention to Attack using a specified amount of his Military force (hereafter referred to as the Force). The Force used MUST be greater than the Military of the defender which is available for defence, or an Attack cannot be made. No Force may be used for more than one Attack, or for both Attack and defence, in one phase. For example, if a player has 100 Military, and uses 20 on one attack and 25 on another in a particular military phase, the effective Military available for defence (or for other Attacks) is 55. A player may choose not to use some of his Military for defence, in order to save them for an Attack later in the phase. Military surviving after defending against one Attack may, however, be used to defend against later Attacks in the same phase (but not to Attack). If the Attacker cannot or is not willing to muster sufficient Force for a valid Attack on his own, other players can provide Military support to the primary Attacker (the primary Attacker being the player who originally declared the Attack). Other players may also intercede on behalf of a defender under some circumstances, but in a different way; see below. The result of an Attack is decided by a fair challenge match, UNLESS the Force is at least 10 times the defender's Military, in which case the Attacker receives an automatic victory. If the defender wins, the Attacker loses an amount of Military equal to 25% of his Force (rounded up). The defender loses an amount of Military equal to 10% of the Attacker's Force (rounded up). If the Attacker wins, the defender loses an amount of Military equal to 25% of the Attacker's Force (rounded up) and the Attacker loses an amount of Military equal to 10% of the Attacking Force (rounded up). In a system of combined Force, Attack damages are distributed to each player's Force based on the percentage of total Force represented. In the case of non-integer losses, the integer portion of losses are given to each ally save the primary Attacker; the primary Attacker is given the sum of all non-integer losses, and his or her combined total of losses is then rounded up. The spoils of an attack for Resources, and the ministry or governorship gained from a coup, may be immediately directed to any players the primary Attacker pleases, irrespective of participation in the attack, in any fashion the primary Attacker pleases. In addition, the winning primary Attacker may take from the defender an amount of Resources up to the difference between the Attacker's Force and the defender's Military prior to the Attack (so if the total Attacking Force is 100 and the defender's Military was 80, and the Attacker wins, the primary Attacker can take up to 20 Resources -- assuming the defender has 20 Resources to take. Incidentally, in this situation the primary Attacker would lose 10 Military and the defender would lose 25 Military. If the Attacker lost, he would lose 25 Military and the defender would lose 10 Military.) If the Attacker wins AND the Force used was at least twice the defender's total Military, and the defender was a Minister or Governor, the Minister or Governor may be forcibly relegated to the status of Advisor. All of the ousted Minister or Governor's Finances, Resources, Military and Fortifications are lost; the Military is simply disbanded, while the Finances, Resources and Fortifications are inherited by the successor. The successor of a forcibly ousted Governor or Minister may be either the primary Attacker (if the primary Attacker is an Advisor), or an Advisor of the primary Attacker's choosing. If the Attacking party has an intent to depose a Minister or Governor, it must be announced along with the declaration of the Attack itself; in the absence of such an announcement, or if at any point the Attacking forces fail to have a two-to-one advantage, the Attack is treated as an Attack solely for Resources. 5b. Intercession In the special case of a player or group of players interceding on behalf of a defender, the Intercession is treated as if it were an Attack on the Attacking Force, but the normal Force requirement for an Attack need not be met. The aim of an Intercessory Attack is to reduce the Attacking Force, thereby reducing the severity of an Attack. Military losses are dealt with in the same way as any other Attack (remembering that the "Attacker" in this case is the Intercessor, not the original Attacker). As with any Attack, Military units used for an Intercessory Attack may not be used for other purposes in the same phase. Intercession may only occur in situations where the defender is at a severe disadvantage, as described below. Intercession does not involve the defender's forces; therefore, the Intercessor or Intercessors take all damage from the Intercession. Intercession cannot under any circumstances take place against the defender in an Attack. If the person who would otherwise defend against an Attack possesses a 1/10 disadvantage, Intercession against that Attack is unconditionally legal, so long as it uses sufficient Force to constitute a valid Intercession. Intercession is also legal if a Minister is in danger of being deposed by an Attack. If a Minister is being attacked solely for Resources, Intercession is illegal even if the Minister possesses a 1/2 disadvantage (unless he possesses a 1/10 disadvantage). Intercession in the case of an Attack for Resources can ONLY occur if the Attacker has a 10/1 advantage, and would therefore win instantly in the absence of an Intercession. If the threat to the Minister's position, or the threat of an automatic victory, ceases, so does the legality of Intercession. Intercession against the couping of a Governor is illegal except in the case of a 1/10 disadvantage. If an Intercession would inevitably reduce the Attacking coalition to a Force beneath that of the defender, the Attacker is defeated without challenge and damages will be negotiated between the parties concerned, under the understanding that the Attacker may announce no losses by both parties (in effect withdrawing from the Attack). Any Attacking Force withdrawn after an Intercession has been threatened cannot be reused later in the phase, nor can the Intercessory force itself. An Intercession cannot be interrupted by another Intercession for any purpose. If, after an Intercessory Attack, the Force of the original Attack is no longer sufficient to constitute a valid Attack, the Attack must be withdrawn. 5c. Withdrawal An Attacker or Intercessor can withdraw from an announced Attack at any point, before or after the announcement or execution of any challenge match, except during the process of a challenge match. The process of a challenge match shall be deemed to begin once both entries have been submitted to a mutually agreed third party to run the match and end upon posting of the result. If withdrawal occurs after the result of a challenge match has been posted, Military units lost in the attack are not recovered, and surviving units cannot be reused in that phase. ******** 6. TURNS AND PHASES Game time is divided into turns. Each turn is divided into four phases: Result Phase: This is the phase in which Trades and other Actions, made in the previous turn, come into effect (unless various losses due to combat have made it impossible for an Action to be successfully taken, in which case the Action is cancelled). It is also the phase in which Advisors gain Resources and the payment of Military upkeep occurs. Note that Military upkeep is the final factor which is accounted for in this phase, after all trading, Actions and Resource collection have taken place. Units which cannot be provided with adequate Resources are disbanded immediately. First Military Phase: Players can make Attacks against each other. Attacks occur in the order in which they are posted. In cases in which an Attack is organised through multiple posts, the post counted is the finalised declaration of Attack by the primary Attacker, after all Attackers have indicated their contributions. Negotiation Phase: Players have a chance to negotiate, both publicly and privately. Trade deals and other Actions can be made, as long as all parties involved agree to the deal. Actions may only be officially taken in this phase, and do not come into effect until the following Result Phase. Second Military Phase: Identical to the First Military Phase, except that it occurs before the Result Phase. ******** 7. AMENDING THE RULES An amendment may be added to the rules by a majority vote of all players who vote on the amendment. All Active players are eligible to vote. In the event of conflict between a newly-passed amendment and the rest of the rules, the amendment takes precedence, and the rules shall be altered so as to allow the amendment to be inserted into the rules without conflict.