New Players should read these RULES in their entirety, and if possible the ACTs of the current AEON and previous ones.

Rule 0: The GM's Word Is Final

I am AO & OM, my wrath shall be swift but fair, and in order to run this game I cannot have anyone arguing with my decisions. If I WRATH your ACT, you must accept that. If someone beets you to the punch on an ACT, and I don't WRATH them, you must accept that. If I add a new god to the game that is in opposition to you, you must accept that: etc. This game is intended to be fun for all participants, if you are going to make a scene and ruin other people's good time: you are not welcome here.

Rule 1: The Golden Rule

This is not your typical God Game. If players start mucking up each other's stated plans and causing trouble they will be subject to WRATH and eventually booted from the game. The challenge in this game comes not from contending with one another but from fulfilling objectives as laid out by OM and AO, which are designed so you have to cooperate. Work together, talk amongst yourselves, and don't fight, or put another way:

“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Rule 2: ACTS

This rule is actually a set of interrelated rules, each will be posted in one of the sub-notes bellow.

Rule 2.1: ACT Construction

Each 'ACT' must be addressed in one concise sentence, expounded upon by up to 3 paragraphs of no more than 7 further concise simply structured sentences: in English.

When we say 'concise' and 'simply structured', we mean that the following word types are not good ideas: Adverbs, Compound Verbs, Emoticons or Emoji, inappropriate Punctuation, and above all; Conjunctions.

This is doubly true in the ACT itself, which must be clearly differentiated from the descriptive text, preferably by being both Bold and Italicized.

Rule 2.2: ACT Distribution

New ACTS drop at midnight and 1 second every Monday. Any Acts made before that moment will take place on the previous and lower numbers and may be subject to WRATH. (QV.) (Only one ACT drops Per Week.)

Rule 2.3: ACT Posting

ACTS may be posted any time from Midnight and one second Monday to 11:59:59 PM Friday The other 2 days of the week are to be reserved for me to write the update thread.

Furthermore All ACTS for the week are to be posted in a single thread, not in dribs and drabs, over time.

There is a specific exemption to this rule for characters controlled by the GM, which can post any day of the week, due to the restrictions on time of those individuals, which is the reason for the schedule being the way it is.

When you post your ACTS you do so by creating a new page off the latest summary page: the name of which is (Name of god/dess ACTING) ACT/S (Date and Time on which you ACTED in (DD/MM/YYYY; Hour:Minute in 24 hour reckoning GMT -5 time zone.) format.) If you update your ACTS also update the date and time of the ACT page and ad the word 'Updated' before the date and time.

The Question at the end of each ACT thread is to be “Go Forward to the Next Summary Page or Return to the Previous One?”

Rule 2.3.1: ACT Example

TED ACT (11-27-2015, 13:25)

The Ebon Dragon creates Time.

Time, a fundamental , which moves linearly from Past, Through Present, Into the Future, is introduced into the Universe.

Time works fundamentally the same as our own universe, with the exception that even were one to find a way to exceed the 'speed of light' or similar arbitrary hard cap one could not travel backwards. What has come before is and always will be. No going into the 'past' is ever possible. (Unless a god or goddess intervenes on a mortals behalf with an ACT, and even then other god's ACTS cannot be undone.)

Time pervades all things. Everything experiences Time and is bound by it, save the Gods, because they cannot be so bound. All else exists in the present, which moves from past to future in an orderly succession of moments, and cannot go back without divine help even a single moment: nor erase any action, reaction, or event that has occurred.

Go Forward to the Next Summary Page or Return to the Previous One?

Rule 2.4: ACT Editing

ACTS may be only be edited during the posting period of the week in which they were first posted, and once posted for the first time the ACT itself cannot be substantively edited, only the descriptions. (By 'substantively' we mean you may fix spelling and punctuation errors but not add, subtract, or fundamentally alter the words used in the ACT, with the sole exception of fixing words that are changed to other words by the addition, subtraction, or substitution of a single letter that you have misspelled.)

After the week where the acts were first posted no changes of ANY kind may be made to the ACT, the ACT itself or it's description, any alteration of any kind which makes any ACT page turn blue except by the a GM will cause the ACTS within to be WRATHED.

Go Forward to the Next Summary Page or Return to the Previous One?

Rule 2.5: ACT Storage

Each deity may store up to 4 ACTS at a time. They may use as many or as few of them up to the number they have stored per week in their weekly ACT thread. Any not used (Up to the hard cap of 4.) will be stored for future use. As only one new ACT drops per week this means a god or goddess must be inactive for slightly less than 1 month to store their maximum number of ACTS. Any ACTS in excess of your cap are lost without benefit, so use them or lose them.

Rule 2.6: Ceding ACTS

Simply put, you may not transfer, cede, lend, borrow, exchange, or in any other way give or receive ACTS from other gods or goddesses, except in the sense that gods or goddesses may talk in or out of character about how they will spend their ACTS and work together to accomplish more than either could alone, but only by each following parts of a greater plan with their own store of ACTS. Any other means of exchanging ACTS will be subject to WRATH.

Rule 3: WRATH

WRATH, like ACTS, is core to the game and composed of a number of interrelated rules, each of which is outlined bellow.

Rule 3.1: WRATH, What It Is.

In Essence WRATH is the anger of the over deities for some transgression by their children, the PC and NPC gods and goddesses. It is some kind of punishment levied against the God or Goddess or their creations and projects, from loss of their next act, to an order to turn over a current project to another god or goddess, to a major setback or complication of an existing project.

Rule 3.2: Why WRATH happens.

Most typically WRATH results from the use of too many ACTS when a god or goddess does not have that many to use: often arising from misuse of punctuation or conjunctions in an ACT sentence. It also can arise from violations of the ACT use rules, such as ACTING in such a way as to deliberately restrict the power of other gods. In Essence, when you break the rules of the game, AO and OM punish you for it.

Rule 3.3: AO and OM.

AO and OM are the only ones who can invoke WRATH, and their judgment is final: once WRATH is invoked, the consequences are just something you and the other gods have to deal with.

Rule 3.4: How WRATH Happens

When the GM writes the Weekly Summary if something is subjected to WRATH it will be so noted in the Summary, and the consequences listed and described. Everyone playing the game is expected to read each summary in full before posting their new round of ACTS

Rule 3.4.1: Examples of ACTS that would be WRATHED.

(Note: each god in this section is assumed to have only one ACT available and that no other ACTS have yet been done.)

TOT ACT (27-11-2015 16:10)
======================

The Over-Toddler eats some Banana Mush and poops out the Element of Earth.

Manifesting a bunch of pealed and ripe bananas from nothing The Over-Toddler smashes them into pulp and eats it, then with a churning of his guts pulls aside his diaper and poops out elemental Earth.

Go Forward to the Next Summary Page or Return to the Previous One?

The Great Gas Pump ACT (27-11-2015 16:10)
=================================

The Great Gas Pump pumps out star fire; creating the first stars.

With all four Gas Nozzles pouring out starfire into invisible bubbles of The Great Gas Pump creates a batch of 50 stars, some larger some smaller, and one super massive, such that when it inevitably novas it's mass will create the first black hole, around which all the others orbited.

Go Forward to the Next Summary Page or Return to the Previous One?

Rule 4: Limits on ACTS

You should be getting used to this by now, but this is several closely related rules under one heading, you understand I hope...

There are several limits on ACTS, things which can not and/or should not be done.

Rule 4.1: Limiting Other Gods Powers.

Blanket ACTS which serve primarily to limit the powers of one or many other gods to ACT in ways you don't like rather than to add something to the universe are forbidden and are likely to be WRATHED out of existence, not only that but probably further ACTS penalized in some way as well.

Rule 4.2: Precedent

All ACTS which have already been ruled on or even posted must be considered a done deal, as set in stone as if carved on the tablets inside the ark of the covenant. They can be expanded on, worked with, adapted, or built upon, but not undone, even the god which created them cannot take them back: there are no 'do overs' or 'resets', what is done is done.

Rule 4.3: Creator VS Destroyer

For mere mortals such as we players it has always been easier to destroy than to create: but fortuitously it is not so for gods!

The only persons who can wholly obliterate something that has been created are the god or goddess who first brought it into being and AO or OM.

All others can warp or damage such creations but doing so will leave remnants and will be subject to WRATH under the terms of Rule 4.4. (See Bellow.)

Rule 4.4: Cooperation VS Interference

Unlike most versions of “God Game”, this one is intended to be cooperative and social, you will note if you read these rules careful that there are no rules for 'Pantheons': this is because the gods and goddesses are intended to cooperate as a pantheon by default, rather than vie with each other as rivals, and thus forming cooperative subgroups is not mechanically encouraged.

That said, each god or goddess is considered to have authority over their own special projects that they are working on: especially items within their portfolios, which start small and will expand over time. Thus, for example, if The Over-Toddler created Elemental Earth, the other gods and goddesses would need to seek his players permission either IC or OCC before they started to define it or altar it. Similarly, because Charon is the goddess of Life the other gods should seek her approval of ACTS relating to defining or creating Life.

However, once an ACT has created something new; defined or named something that exists, that something is now also under the authority of the god or goddess who has used their act to work on it, and they may further work on it as one of their own projects.

Rule 4.4.1: The Dog in the Manger

To prevent everything being tied up with a few gods that will not share their creations god or goddess may have no more than 3 'special' projects at a time: that is to say substances, creatures, forces, places, concepts, ETC which they are personally in charge of and will not let the other gods work on. Once at least 1 other god is involved with the project it is not a 'special' project any more, because any gods already involved will be able to give permission to join, as well as AO and OM will give permission for new gods to join the project if the gods already involved do not respond or seem to be hoarding access without good reason.

Rule 4.5: Technology

Though some players and gods may wish otherwise the TL of any nation, culture, civilization, world, etc, cannot advance beyond that of the Late Renaissance IRL without a GMs express permission.

Furthermore: “Technological advance is an inherently iterative process, one does not simply take sand from a beach, and produce a data probe... We use crude tools to fashion better tools, then our better tools to make more precise tools, and so on. Each minor refinement is a step in the process, and all of the steps must be taken.”

Put another way, a chronological order in the way technology forms will be used: one cannot develop "robots" or "computers" if reading, writing, math, etc. have not even yet developed, let alone create technology of any kind when you do not have beings to use it. (Unless the technology IS the beings, such as creating self replicating nano machines as a type of new life-form: which according to present scientific analysis would be functionally equivalent to bacteria, and bacteria may in fact be the basis of such devices in the future. [Sounds like a good side project for The Great Gas Pump and Charon, eh?])

Rule 4.6: Lifeforms

The Same will be true of lifeforms: if you don't have a system of physics and so on for the universe then life cannot exist, and life must progress from basic forms to more advanced ones.

Do note that these need not be ones that work in the same way as on Earth! They need not even follow the same chemical structures: DNA could rotate left on your world, or 'DNA' might not exist at all, such as the nanomachine based 'life' mentioned above: or a silicon based life such as STAR TREK's Horta, or Master of Orion's Silicoids! There are an infinite number of possible types of lifeforms, and Charon means to experiment with many if not most of them.

Still, no mater the chemical or structural basis you chose the base precepts remain the same: start with the simple, progress through several iterations to the more complex, building an ecosystem as you go, otherwise the whole system will crash out before it ever gets off the ground!

Your lifeforms must be able to live, so there must be enough nutrients of whatever kind to sustain them, which usually means other creatures or plants to eat, or in the case of plant life enough sunlight to photosynthesize and some kind of lower organism to recycle their fallen leaves and the stems of those that die or to break down rock into new soil.

Rule 4.7: The Domino Effect

Some players may be tempted to write a single sentence which accomplishes more in one ACT than is reasonable, such as this classic example:

“X creates the heavens with all that is within them.”

This type of chicanery is forbidden and WILL be subject to WRATH.

Rule 4.8: Demigods and Gods

In the same way that you cannot share ACTS with the other gods you most definitely CANNOT share them with Mortals! (Except indirectly with Artifacts, Relics, and Places of Power, QV.) Any ACT which would give a mortal the ability to ACT themselves will be WRATHED most harshly.

Having said that: it is perfectly acceptable to sire/bear/create 'demigods' like Hercules, Achilles, Gilgamesh, or Samson who while supernaturally powerful do not have the ability to ACT.

Creating other 'gods' however is expressly forbidden and will be WRATHED, such things are only for AO and OM.

Rule 5: Absences, Stasis, Paradox, and Dropping Out.

It may occur that some players cannot keep up with the game for a while, though with a weekly requirement that seems improbable, these rules deal with that.

Rule 5.1: When you are absent for more than 3 weeks: that is to say you have not posted an ACT nor checked in on the forum thread, you are absent. Your character will be played by the GM for 1 act per week till you show up or 'drop out'.

Rule 5.2: Dropping Out and Paradox.

If you are absent for more than 2 months you will have 'Dropped Out'. Your character will be put up for adoption or destroyed by 'Paradox' (You cannot exist and not exist at the same time.) at the GM's discretion, which can be reevaluated at any time: and in either case unless you had a very good reason for vanishing you will not be welcomed back.

You have been warned.

Rule 5.3: Stasis

Now, what if you are going on a safari in Africa for the summer and will have no internet or something? For that you can enter STASIS.

To do this you Spend one ACT creating an Artifact (QV) and placing your essence in it: you then can be gone for as long as you want without risking Paradox. You don't gain acts, don’t lose ACTs, and the artifact is indestructible. Whenever you come back after that you can emerge from STASIS and start playing again.

Rule 6: There is no rule 6.

Rule 7: Items and Places of Power

Besides Stasis Artifacts, discussed above: there are 4 types of 'Power Object': Artifacts, Relics, and Places of Power, and Sacred Sites.

Rule 7.1: Artifacts

An Artifact is an object which a god has imbued with the ability to perform a specialized ACT like ability: such as exploding a star, killing anything besides a god which it is pointed at and a command word spoken, or pouring out an endless stream of gasoline.

Creating an Artifact is a multistage process: first the object to be made an Artifact Must be created (Or already exist...) This takes an ACT (Usually).

It then must be Made an Artifact, which has the benefit of making it indestructible except by the will of it's creator or an over-deity: This takes an ACT.

It then must have at least 1 POWER imbued into it: which takes a third ACT.

All powers must conform to one of the following IN ESSENCE (that is they can be described cosmetically, but they are still essentially the same):

ALTER (Nothing directly damaging, but can warp things dramatically.)
DESTROY (Full on entropy, this power does exactly what it says.)
PRESERVE (This one is usually for a STASIS ARTIFACT but can be used for preservation of something else besides a deity.)
CREATE (It creates a certain amount of some specific preexisting thing per use.)
LIMIT (Imposes a condition on the Artifact's use. Cannot be the first power invested into an Artifact.)

ARTIFACTS can be used by mortals and ultimately their use is out of your control. However, you can certainly send portents and dreams to mortals (such a message is an ACT) telling them what you want them to do with it. They don't have to do it (unless you spend a whole ACT making them) but will probably. Destruction of ARTIFACTS is impossible except by the deity who made it (or by BACKLASH and hence the Wrath of Ao).

An Artifact can be imbued with no more than 5 powers in total.

Rule 7.2: Relics

Relics: are much like artifacts except they are limited to the use of people who believe in/worship the god that created them. This power is automatically added to Artifact’s which become Stasis Objects for a god.

Rule 7.3: Places of Power and Sacred Sites

Places of Power and Sacred Sites are like Artifacts and Relics respectively, except that instead of the power being imbued into an object, it is imbued into a PLACE, and they may have a total of 10 powers imbued into them.

Rule 7.4: Backlash

There is a price to be paid for granting the power of the gods to mortals. Every time a POWER is used there is a 50/50 chance that the god who imbued that power will suffer WRATH, typically by being 'fined' an ACT. The GM literally rolls a d6 each time, evens WRATH, odds, you get a pass: this time.

Rule 8: AEONS

AEONS are like chapters. At some point, the GM will call for a vote to initiate a new AEON, for which a majority wins. If the AEON does NOT pass, then AO and OM will begin to intervene directly in the affairs of creation more often (and his WRATH will become more CHAOTIC and UNPREDICTABLE). Eventually, the GM will call for another vote by the same rules, and with the same outcome if it is not passed.

When a new AEON is opened, the last one is closed. A lengthy undisclosed amount of time passes for which the cosmos to develop unmolested by the gods. A short description by the GM, much like a State of the Union address, will head each AEON and set-the-stage so to speak.

At the beginning of the new AEON (that is after the first) each deity is assigned a portfolio based on their ACTs in the prior AEON. Portfolios are one word (or sentence) describing what element, race, thing, etc. that your god is associated with. Gods may share portfolios, and they need not be concrete things, they may be abstract ideas. Though in general this takes the form of three 'domains' that will be your primary focus. i.e. Nature God: Plants, Animals, Weather or Dark God: Undeath, Decay, War.

Also, when Aeons pass the GM will advance a race one age further than they were. Gods may manually do this with various ACTs but at the end of an Aeon a race will always advance on stage in their evolution on their own.

Other Rules may be added to this thread if they become necessary.