Rulebook

In ALFA, rulemaking is divided between the 5 administrators that the community has elected. Lead Admin has oversight over the other Admin and may veto their decisions. The Player Admin handles in-game rules and applications, while the Infra Admin handles the website and our servers. The Tech Admin handles scripting and technical side of the game. Finally, the DM Admin handles DM Standards.

All censurable in-game and out-of-game rules can be found in the ALFA Rulebook. Any changes made to the rulebook will be made visible to you, so you are aware of them.

Introduction

In-Game Offenses And Out-Of-Game Offenses

An offense does not have to take place in-game to be considered an in-game offense. Metagaming (Section 2.1) is an in-game offense even if it is done through forums or chat. In the same way, not all offenses that occur in the game count as in-game. If you are flamed by a fellow member through in-game tells this is an out-of-game, “Infra” offense, and is to be handled by the Infra Admin. Complaints submitted with the Player Admin or ALFA Representatives that are determined to concern infra offenses will be forwarded to the Infra Admin.

Disposition

• Chapter 2 lists in-game rules, as determined by the Player Admin.
• Chapter 3, Chapter 4, and Chapter 5 describe how an in-game complaint is submitted and investigated.
• Chapter 6 contains out-of-game rules, as determined by the Infra Admin.
• Chapter 7 contains censure rules for both in-game and out-of-game offences.
• Chapter 8 contains the DM code of conduct.
• Chapter 9 contains rules for how the ALFA Rulebook may be changed.

In-Game Offenses

Metagaming

Metagaming is gaming that transcends the game. It is taking advantage of the fact that NwN is a game, and doing things you could not do if you were actually in the game world.

Examples: (1) Telling another player where to find your body when you have died alone; (2) Telling another player out-of-character (OOC) where to find a static quest; (3) Taking defensive actions for no other reason than another player has toggled your player-character (PC) to hostile.

Cheating

Cheating involves a more severe form of metagaming. It is actively exploiting any bug or shortcoming in the game mechanics. Cheating is generally punished by a permanent ban and is not subject to the 90-day rule, as per Section 4.2.2 of the ALFA Charter.

Examples: (1) Logging in the middle of combat; (2) Muling gold or items from one of your PCs to another of your PCs (note that multiple PCs are not allowed in ALFA, whether they are used for muling or not).

Multiple PCs

ALFA has a One Live and One Alt-PC rule. Playing two pcs in alfa requires observance of additional rules, including that pcs may not be played on the same server. Multiple Live PCs are not allowed beyond these two pcs - this includes cross-server. All old PCs are considered to be retired and may not be played again.

Griefing

Griefing is defined as repeatedly targeting another member either IC or OOC in a way that has negative impact on that member, for OOC reasons. Extreme cases of griefing are punished by a permanent ban and are not subject to the 90- day rule, as per Section 4.2.2 of the ALFA Charter.

R-18 Rules of Consent

Rules of Consent exists in Our R-18 community for prevention of potential harassment. ALFA strictly forbids role-playing involving children in adult or sexual situations. As such, all PC's need to be of at least minimum age of maturity, and represented as such in game through RP. Instances of graphic play such as erotica, rape, torture need to have the compliance of all parties involved OOCly. When such instances occur, either by players, or DM, permission needs to be sought for such, and logged through screenshot or in the case of DMs also/or using forum permission. To engage in such activities without the permission of the involved constitutes griefing.

Player Killing

Player killing is the killing of another player’s character without legitimate IC motivation, or without following the character vs. character guidelines in the ALFA Player’s Manual. Extreme cases of player killing are punished by a permanent ban and are not subject to the 90-day rule, as per Section 4.2.2 of the ALFA Charter.

Powergaming

Powergaming is the pursuit of experience points (XP) or wealth (either in gold or in items) at the expense of roleplaying. Sometimes it is IC for your PC to choose the most gainful option available. Other times it is not; if you still choose the most gainful option in those cases, you are powergaming.

Examples: (1) A paladin who wears Zhent full plate solely for added AC; (2) A druid who hunts deer to gain XP and sell the furs. (Note: these examples are not all-inclusive. Even if your behaviour does not fall into one of these subcategories you could still be powergaming)

Powergaming Character Concepts

Creating a character that just happens to be extremely optimized to make XP or wealth does not excuse powergaming. You may be forced to retire your PC and create a new one if your character concept is too powergaming oriented.

Example: (1) Creating a "Min-maxed" character; that is a character with maxed combat abilities and minimized non-combat abilities, such taking two levels of Ranger to get dual wield or two levels of Paladin to get divine grace without any legitimate IC reason for the character to have levels of Ranger or Paladin.

Farming

Farming is repeatedly killing the same static spawns or going through the same static quests with no legitimate IC motivation. Note that a character that "hates orcs" does not have a legitimate excuse for farming orc spawn points.

Example: (1) A character who returns to the same spawn point every day to kill the mobs spawned there.

Twinking

Twinking is giving another player wealth without adequate IC motivation.

Example: (1) Giving your real-life buddy with a lower level PC a magical sword you do not need anymore, even though the PCs do not know each other IC.

Hacking

Hacking is an extreme form of cheating. It involves actively creating a loophole or a bug in the game and then exploiting it. Hacking is always punished by a permanent ban and is not subject to the 90-day rule, as per Section 4.2.2 of the ALFA charter.

Example: (1) Gaining access to the ALFA Vault and changing your PC’s BIC file.

Failure To Comply

Any member who purposefully fails to comply with a decision made by a DM or Admin may be censured. If the member wishes to protest against a decision, any objections must be sent to the DM Admin in the case of a DM decision, or Lead Admin in the case of an Admin decision, who will then review the decision. The player may not simply circumvent the decision by going to a different DM/Admin without informing them of the previous decision.

Examples: (1) traveling to another server to level after the DM on the first server refuses to allow another prestige class level due to a lack of roleplay; (2) Failure to arrange a remake of the player character after Admin has determined that the character concept is not allowed.

In-Game Complaint Process

Before filing a complaint it is worth contacting the HDM of the server most closely related to the incident that gave rise to the complaint. Often an informal solution can be reached if the complaint does not concern any blatant violations of the rules in Chapter 2. The ALFA Representatives can also serve as mediators to help negotiate such an informal solution, but note that if no request for informal mediation is made they will treat every case as a formal complaint, and the rules in Chapter 4 will be followed. To submit a complaint, the complainant must make a request directly to the Player Admin or one of the ALFA Representatives. Note that public posts do not constitute complaints: the request must be made directly and privately.

Submitting A Complaint

Any player or DM who believes that another player has violated the rules of ALFA may submit a complaint against an ALFA player. DMs may only be the target of a complaint if the complaint concerns actions involving the DM's player character. General DM discipline falls under the DM Admin's domain, and thus such complaints should be submitted with the DM Admin. ALFA players cannot be punished for their actions on non-ALFA servers.

Who May Submit A Complaint

Any member or non-member may submit a complaint against an ALFA player. The Player Admin may also initiate investigations without a complaint being submitted.

The 90-day Rule

Complaints must be submitted within 90 days of the behavior or incident upon which the complaint is based. Accordingly, investigations will generally only be allowed to look at behavior that occurred within 90 days of the date the complaint was submitted. The 90 days are counted backwards from the day when the complaint is submitted. The length of the investigation is thus unimportant, since prescription will always be counted from the day they complaint was submitted, not from the day when the investigation was finished. Some offenses are exempt from the 90-day rule, and indeed from any other rules in this document, if the majority of Admin vote for such a decision. These offenses are listed in Section 4.2.2 of the ALFA charter.

In-Game Investigation Procedures

This Chapter contains procedural rules for the investigation of complaints submitted to the Player Admin or the ALFA representatives.

Investigators

The Player Admin may elect to investigate complaints himself, or assign one or more ALFA Representatives to the case.

Confidentiality

Investigations are discussed on a private forum. All investigations are to be considered confidential unless the Player Admin states otherwise. Any person who directly or indirectly divulges information from an investigation is subject to punishment by the Infra Admin.

Confidentiality And The Accused

The accused party has no automatic right to be informed of any ongoing investigation. However, the Player Admin should make every effort to inform the accused of the investigation at most 14 days after the complaint was submitted, if the complaint is still being considered at that point.

Investigation Dismissal Or Dispute

The Player Admin may dismiss a complaint at any point in the investigation. No other party may dismiss complaints. If the Player Admin determines that the investigation has provided sufficient evidence, they may initiate a formal dispute proceeding, or resolve the complaint through an informal dispute resolution.

Duty To Cooperate

All members of ALFA have a duty to cooperate with investigations conducted by the Player Admin. Persistent refusal to do so may lead to censure.

In-Game Dispute Procedures

This Chapter contains rules for the formal dispute proceedings that take place to assess the culpability of the accused.

Initiating a Dispute

When an investigation moves to a formal dispute, the Player Admin will post a new thread in the Dispute Forum, summing up the main evidence found in the investigation.

Access to a Dispute

ALFA DMs enjoy read-only access to the Dispute Forum. The complainant and the accused enjoy posting access, which may be substituted for read-only access if the Player Admin or Infra Admin determines that this access is being abused. Admin and ALFA Representatives may also post.

Dispute Time Limits

From the time when the thread is made in the Dispute Forum and the complainant and the accused have been given posting access, the dispute must remain open for 7 days. After that time the Player Admin may determine when the dispute proceedings are over and a verdict can be reached. The Player Admin will make every effort to ensure that all parties get to plead their case.

Exception From Time Limit

In cases where the evidence is overwhelming or where the accused has confessed, the Player Admin may announce a verdict immediately, without waiting 7 days. This measure is reserved for exceptional circumstances. If the Player Admin does not announce the verdict immediately the thread must always run for 7 days.

Dispute Verdict

At any point after the initial 7 days the Player Admin may lock the thread and declare the verdict. The verdict is effective immediately, unless stated otherwise.

Appeals

Only verdicts that find wrongdoing may be appealed against. Such appeals must be made to the Lead Admin within seven days (one week) of the verdict and imposition of a censure, or the end of a ban, as per Section 4.1.4 of the ALFA Charter.

Informal Dispute Resolution

Informal dispute resolutions rely on the consent of the accused, the complainant, and the Player Admin. If any of these parties disagree with the informal dispute resolution, the case must proceed to formal dispute procedures.

Removal Of Illegal Gains

The Player Admin may decide that in addition to or instead of any other formal censure, a player who is subject to censure through the formal dispute procedure will also lose any gains made from the offense. This can include the loss of XP, wealth and in extreme cases forced retirement of the player character.

Out-Of-Game Rules

This Chapter concerns out-of-game rules as decided by the Infra Admin. See Section 1.2 for definitions of in-game and out-of-game.

Out-Of-Game Behavior

There will be no inflammatory remarks made OOC towards anyone in the ALFA community in a public forum. ALFA forums and chat are public. While you can speak freely, rude or aggressive language is not allowed. Admin or forum moderators decide what ‘inflammatory’ means. Examples include, but are not limited to, posting any type of pornographic pictures, text, or links, or inflammatory or graphically violent references to nationality, race, culture, gender, sexual preference or creed.

Intent to Harm

Any member of the ALFA community who declares intent to cause physical, financial, or any other substantive harm to another ALFA member will be banned.

Sexual Harassment

ALFA is a mature community and allows mature RP, but no member of ALFA shall be subject to sexual harassment. Victims of harassment should provide logs or screenshots to Admin. Such documents will remain confidential. Sexual harassment is punishable by a permanent ban.

Improper Use

Any other conduct that disrupts or negatively impacts the functioning of ALFA's out-of-game ressources will also be subject to censure. Examples include, but are not limited to, violations of privacy, spam, abuse of access privileges, computer-assisted attacks and failure to comply with moderation.

Censure

Informal Censure

If an investigation ends with an informal dispute resolution Admin may impose whatever censure the parties agreed upon. Such censure may include but is not limited to counseling or mandatory attendance of RP 101. No informal censure is mandatory.

Temporary Server Ban

Any HDM can issue a temporary ban from their server for up to 30 days. Such a ban does not necessarily have to be based on the offenses listed in Chapter 2. The Player Admin must be informed immediately of any server bans. If the HDM wants to extend the ban beyond 30 days the Player Admin will initiate an investigation on the player. The Player Admin may decide that the ban should remain during the course of the investigation. Note that a temporary server ban does not count as formal censure in itself. Alternatively, HDMs may instruct their DMs not to include the player in DM sessions on the server for the 30 day time period.

Formal Censure

Formal censure is issued by the Player Admin after a formal dispute, or by the Infra Admin. In cases where the Admin responsible (ie. Player or Infra Admin) is directly involved in the matter, or other clear conflicts of interest exist, the Lead Admin will step in to over see the dispute. In cases where the Lead Admin is also involved, a third Admin will step in as necessary. There are three levels of censure. Admin determines which level of censure will be imposed in the individual case.

First Formal Censure

This serves as an official censure and may be given along with AR counseling or other punishment that the responsible Admin deems fit.

Second Formal Censure

The member is banned from all of ALFA (servers as well as forums and chat) for 7 days. At this point the member is no longer considered to be in good standing, and may thus no longer run for Admin, as per Section 3.1 in the ALFA charter.

Third Formal Censure

The member is permanently banned from all of ALFA (servers as well as forums and chat).

Censure Record

Each formal censure is added to the player's censure record. Censures will be recorded against both the player and their CDKey. With a first-level censure in the player's history a second-level offense may thus lead to a permanent ban, or vice versa. It is also possible for a player to get banned permanently after committing 3 consecutive first-level offenses. Out-of-game censure levels are cleared after 6 months of good behavior except in the case of a permanent ban, while in-game censure levels are always permanent.

Dungeon Masters

Per Charter Sections 2.1.1,2.2 and 2.3 the Dungeon Master Administrator (DMA) has disciplinary authority for and direct oversight of Head Dungeon Masters (HDMs) and Dungeon Masters (DMs), respectively.

ALFA Game Servers

ALFA Operational Game Server Definition

Game servers referenced in ALFA infrastructure, which includes, but is not limited to:

1. the ALFA discord: https://discord.gg/5p9ncYag and its sub-channels
2. the ALFA website: https://www.alandfaraway.info/ and any subdomains

ALFA Operational Game Server Requirements

ALFA Operational Game Servers must conform to Charter standards;

1. must conform to Rulebook standards herein;
2. have HDMs appointed by DMA; and
3. any DMs be approved by the respective HDM, be approved to DM and be granted the DM role by DMA.

DMA censure for nonconforming or unapproved ALFA Operational Game Servers

1. ALFA members hosting nonconforming or unapproved ALFA Operational Game Servers may be subject to DMA censure on a monthly basis until the server no longer meets the definition of an ALFA Operational Game Server.
2. ALFA members who hold positions as DMs or HDMs in nonconforming or unapproved Operational Game Servers who are not DMA appointed HDMs or DMA approved and HDM appointed DMs, respectively, may be subject to DMA censure on a monthly basis until the server no longer meets the definition of an ALFA Operational Game Server or until they no longer are HDM or DM of a nonconforming or unapproved ALFA Operational Game Server.
3. Server host censure and HDM/DM censure for nonconforming or unapproved ALFA Operational Game Servers are independent censures and may be concurrent.

Becoming a DM

Any ALFA member may request to be a DM by filling out a DM Application. DMs and prospective DMs should familiarize themselves with the Dungeon Master Manual.

DM Accountability

As community leaders in positions of trust and authority, DMs are to be held to a higher standard than players; should a member who is also a DM receive a sanction by another Administrator for an offense committed out of game or while acting as a Player Character (PC) not logged in to the DM client, the DMA may impose additional and/or independent sanctions against the offending member to restrict or permanently revoke DM status; such action shall not include censure by the DMA.

DM Rules

DMs shall adhere to the rules in this section; failure to do so may result in counseling, informal discipline, or formal censure.

DM Metagaming

1. DMs shall not provide information about a PC's statistics, builds, saves, skills, items, spells, feats, or wealth to other players outside of legitimate methods of obtaining such information via game mechanics. (i.e. the Arcane Sight spell does reveal if a character is a spellcaster and Legend Lore might reveal information about a notable PC)
2. DMs shall not provide information about the server module that would provide an advantage to players that would not be known through in-game means. (i.e. revealing exact Difficulty Check (DC) values for locks or traps or the nature or type of the trap without a rogue's successful detection of the trap or a priestly Find Traps spell, providing information on where monsters spawn to a PC that is not a tracker, or telling players how or where to complete a quest)

DM Griefing

DMs shall not abuse DM tools to harry, damage, or kill PCs arbitrarily, capriciously, or maliciously without justifiable plot-driven reasons.

DM powergaming

1. DMs shall not contribute to nor encourage player power-gaming with repeated awards of highly optimized or tailored items in quests (this does not include player-purchased or player-enchanted items).
2. DMs shall not engage in quid pro quo arrangements (i.e. "I'll DM you on ServerA if you DM me on ServerB") with other DMs where such arrangements contribute to or encourage powergaming.

Granting XP

Set Experience Function Restricted

DMs shall not use the "Set Experience" function without DMA permission.

Give Experience Function for DM Events

DMs shall use the "Give Experience" function when awarding plot/quest/adventure/campaign XP as follows:

• Select the quest rating as None (0), Easy (25), Normal (50), Serious (75), or Exceptional (100) using the radial menu.
  • None corresponds to situations where the repercussions of PC failure in plot related role-play, actions, and dialogue are virtually zero: retreat, capture, or death are highly improbable. No consumable items or healing are needed for PC survival. Any creatures encountered have a CR significantly below the PC party average level.
  • Easy corresponds to situations where the repercussions of PC failure in plot related role-play, actions, and dialogue are minimal: retreat, capture, or death are unlikely. No to very few consumable items or healing are needed for PC survival. Any creatures encountered have a CR below the PC party average level.
  • Normal corresponds to situations where the repercussions of PC failure in plot related role-play, actions, and dialogue are standard: retreat is a distinct possibility, capture may be probable, and limited death could occur. A small number of consumable items, some protections, and/or some healing sources are needed for PC survival. A moderate number of creatures have a CR slightly below the average party level and a small number of creatures may have a CR at the PC party average level. Moderate numbers of creatures may be present.
  • Serious corresponds to situations where the repercussions of PC failure in plot related role-play, actions, and dialogue are significant: retreat is a likely possibility, capture or death are highly probable if mistakes are made. A fair number of consumable items, protections, and healing sources are required for PC survival. A moderate number of creatures have a CR at the average party level and some creatures have a CR at or slightly above the PC party average level. Moderate numbers of creatures may be present or high numbers of creatures of a lower CR are present. Failure is likely without significant planning and coordination by the party.
  • Extreme corresponds to situations where the repercussions of PC failure in plot related role-play, actions, and dialogue are very significant: retreat may not be possible, capture or death of some or all PCs are guaranteed if mistakes are made. A significant number of consumable items, protections, and healing sources are required for PC survival. A moderate number of creatures have a CR slightly above the average party level and some creatures have a CR above or well above the PC party average level. Moderate numbers of high CR creatures may be present or overwhelming numbers of creatures of a lower CR are present. Failure is extremely likely without significant planning and coordination by the party. A total party wipe could occur if the PCs mishandle the situation.
• Select a Roleplay Rating of Poor (15), Average (30), Good (45), or Exceptional (60).
• Select a session length and round up to the nearest 30 minutes.
  • If a session length exceeds 5 hours, it is recommended to split the planning, dialogue, and combat phases into separate awards, with separate quest ratings.
  • DMs shall not award session lengths for values longer than the actual game session.
• Only use the Reward Party feature when every member of the party has the same level of Roleplay and has been present for the entire session; use Reward PC individually when Roleplay and/or session length varies between PCs. This is of vital importance to ensure that XP gain is properly moderated.

Campaign Completion Bonuses Restricted

Note that many DMs like to run campaigns and this is encouraged. However, DMs shall not enter longer session lengths than actually played for a final campaign reward. DMs may only reward an additional campaign reward bonus beyond the automated entry at the completion of a campaign with explicit DMA permission.

Granting Loot (Gold/Items)

Adherence to Wealth Guidelines

DMs shall not exceed Wealth Guidelines for any given loot.

Outside Items Prohibited

DMs shall not award loot from any source outside of the in-game Item Creator Tab for the server that they DM on.

Use of Standard Tools for Items and Gold Rewards

1. If a custom item or an item from another ALFA server is desired, DMs shall work with the HDM to properly toolset the item, price the item, and have it added to the module.
2. DMs shall primarily use the Generate Loot button found on the Item Creator Tab. The Generate Loot function provides DMs with a highly customizable way of generating loot which inherently complies with Wealth Guidelines.
3. DMs may use the "Give Gold" feature.
4. DMs may also award items created directly from the Item Creator Tab.

Playing where one is a DM

1. A DM must have HDM permission to play a PC on a server where they are a DM.
2. A HDM must have DMA permission to play a PC on a server where they are an HDM.
3. A DMA must have LA (and HDM, if applicable) permission to play a PC on a server where they are a DM.

Facilitating Character Rebuilds

Player Characters may at times request a "rebuild" to correct errors with their characters. These rebuilds must be handled carefully to avoid negative impacts to role-play and to the character file stored in the server vault. DMs granting rebuilds shall adhere to the following:

• A DM may grant a requesting player a rebuild to correct PC level-up mistakes (i.e. skills, feats, spell selections) noted immediately by the player to any ALFA DM (via forum post, forum PM, and/or Discord direct message).
  • The PC shall not use the ability gained for any purpose that benefits the PC, including testing of the ability.
  • The DM shall notify the HDM of the server and the DMA of this rebuild.
• An HDM may grant a requesting player a rebuild in cases where ALFA Core Rules (ACR) changes to a skill or feat such that it makes a PC no longer function as it did in the past.
  • The HDM shall notify the DMA of this rebuild.

Awarding High Value Items

DMs granting any single item worth 10,000 GP or greater shall document the details of that award in the the 10,000 GP+ Item Thread.

Enforcing Spell Focus Use

DMs shall ensure that Player Characters (PCs) have the listed Focus(es) (not consumed) in their inventory and DMs shall deduct experience points (XP) from PCs according to the XP values each time a PC casts any of the following spells:

• Contingency - A statuette of you carved from elephant ivory and decorated with gems (worth at least 1,500 gp). The PC must carry the focus for the contingency to work.
• Legend Lore - Four strips of ivory (worth 50 gp each) formed into a rectangle.
• Limited Wish - When a limited wish duplicates a spell that has an XP cost, the PC must pay that cost or 300 XP, whichever is more. When a limited wish spell duplicates a spell with a material component that costs more than 1,000 gp, the PC must provide that component.
• Scrying (Wizard, Sorcerer, or Bard) - A mirror of finely wrought and highly polished silver costing not less than 1,000 gp. The mirror must be at least 2 feet by 4 feet.
• Scrying (Cleric) - A holy water font costing not less than 100 gp. (Note that a vial of holy water is not sufficient; a font is a specially prepared vessel such as a bowl or fountain that contains holy water.)
• Scrying (Druid) - A natural pool of water. (Note that a rain puddle is not sufficient; the pool should be at least seasonal, if not permanent for this purpose.)
• Shapechange - A jade circlet worth no less than 1,500 gp, which the PC must place on their head when casting the spell. (The focus melds into the PCs new form when they change shape.)
• Wish - When a wish duplicates a spell with a material component that costs more than 10,000 gp, the PC must provide that component. The minimum XP cost for casting wish is 5,000 XP. When a wish duplicates a spell that has an XP cost, the PC must pay 5,000 XP or that cost, whichever is more. When a wish creates or improves a magic item, the PC must pay twice the normal XP cost for crafting or improving the item, plus an additional 5,000 XP.

Enforcing Spell Material Component Use

DMs shall ensure that PCs have the listed Material Component(s) in their inventory and shall remove the Material Component(s) and deduct XP, as applicable, from PCs according to the XP values and components listed each time a PC casts any of the following spells:

• Miracle - Per d20 SRD (Note that uses of this spell may cost 5,000 Experience Points (XP). Additionally, if a miracle is used for any of the following spells, the material component must be provided as well.)
• True Resurrection - A sprinkle of holy water and diamonds worth a total of at least 25,000 gp.
• Resurrection - A sprinkle of holy water and diamonds worth a total of at least 10,000 gp.
• Raise Dead - Diamonds worth a total of least 5,000 gp.
• Reincarnate - Rare oils and unguents worth a total of least 1,000 gp, spread over the remains

Awarding Bonus XP to PCs

Players are encouraged to create PC Biographies to facilitate DM plot inclusion and PC development and DMs may award bonus XP for such, following the guidelines below:

Character Biography Bonus Experience Rules

Players may submit a PC Biography to a DM or HDM of their server via forum Private Message (PM). A DM receiving a PC Biography shall post the PC Biography to the PC Information thread and may award that PC a one-time reward of 250 XP for a PC Bio that contains sufficient depth to allow DM plot development to include that character; at HDM discretion, this award may be increased to a one-time 500 XP reward for an exceptionally well-written PC Bio that greatly eases the inclusion of that PC in DM plots and contributes greatly to character development.

Character Journal Bonus Experience Rules

Players are encouraged to create Player Character (PC) Journals to facilitate continued DM plot inclusion and PC development. Players may submit a PC Journal entry on the forums or may submit the journal entry to a DM by PM. A DM receiving a PC Biography (Bio) shall post the PC Bio to PC Information thread. A DM may award a PC a Journal XP reward not to exceed 50 XP per week per PC for journal entries that aid in DM plot inclusion and/or PC development; at HDM discretion, this Journal XP reward may be increased to 100 XP per week per PC for exceptionally well-written journal entries that greatly aid in DM plot inclusion and/or PC development.

Contributing Member (Builder/Scripter) Bonus Experience Rules

Contributing Members are defined as ALFA members in good standing who contribute to server development/building (including creatures, quests, areas, server scripts, and items), ABR/ACR, and campaign folder global creature/item development. At DMA discretion, a player who actively contributes shall be eligible to receive a maximum of 100 XP/month to a single character played by the contributing member, of the contributing member's choice.

DM Grievances

Per Charter Complaint Process, grievances may be brought against DMs for violations of the DM Rules. The Complaint Process of the Charter will be followed and the DMA may issue formal censure to DMs who violate the DM Rules.

Extraordinary Character Requirements

Extraordinary Characters are defined as any character with any of the following:

• Exceptional Races: Drow, Half-drow, Duergar, Svirfneblin, Tiefling, Aasimar, Genasi, Grey Orc, and Yuan-Ti Pureblood
• Exceptional Classes: Favored Soul
• Exceptional Feats: Fey Heritage or Fiendish Heritage

Any player may request to play an Extraordinary Character by sending a PC Biography via forum PM to the HDM of the server that PC currently plays on. Characters attempting to log in with any of the above will be quarantined by game mechanics and require a token to proceed in the game world. Upon HDM approval the HDM will grant a token to the PC allowing the PC to be played in the game world.

A player may only have one Extraordinary Character active at any time on any combination of ALFA servers; to play a different Extraordinary Character requires retirement or death of the previous Extraordinary Character.

Prestige Class (PrC) Requirements

Prestige Classes are subject to PrC Requirements.

Any player may request to play a PrC at any time by sending a PC Biography via forum PM to the HDM of the server that PC currently plays on; the PC Biography should include all planned progress towards a PrC and/or all past progress toward a PrC. Upon approval, the HDM will grant a prestige class feat allowing PrC levels to be acquired.

DMA Announcements

All DMA Rule Announcements posted to the DMA Announcements sticky or elsewhere on the forums are hereby preempted and repealed. All DMA Rules shall be posted within Section 8 of the Rulebook herein.

Changes To The ALFA Rulebook

Chapters 2 to 5 of the ALFA Rulebook may be changed by the Player Admin, Chapter 6 by the Infra Admin, and Chapter 8 by the DM Admin. Chapter 7 may be changed by a joint decision by the Infra Admin and the Player Admin. Chapters 1 and 9 may only be changed by a joint decision by the DM Admin, Infra Admin and Player Admin. The members should be notified immediately of any changes to the ALFA Rulebook.

Rule Conflicts

In the event that a rule in the ALFA Rulebook violates provisions in the ALFA Charter the rule in the ALFA Rulebook is void.

Retroactive Application Of Rules

No rule in the ALFA Rulebook may be applied to events that transpired before the rule in question was created. If a rule is altered, the wording that was in effect when the event took place is to be used.