Server Rules

Nova Sector Policy

	Server Rules
	Nova Roleplay Expectations
	Antagonist Policy
	Silicon Policy
	Ghost Role Policy
	Corporate Regulations
	Nova Sector lore
	Staff Operations Policy

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You must be 18 or older to play here.

Nova Sector is a US based Community. We follow US laws.

By playing on Nova Sector, you consent to incidental or passing exposure to Sexual Content.

On Good Faith and Bad Faith

The distinction between "good faith" and "bad faith" behavior revolves around a Player's intent to engage with our Community’s rules and roleplay in a way that is fun and fair for everyone, as opposed to intentionally trying to ruin the experience or Narratives of others (commonly known as Grief/Griefing). Playing in good faith means your actions are driven by a genuine attempt to participate in the Shift’s Story and your Character's role within it, even if those actions cause conflict. In contrast, Bad faith (often synonymous with griefing or ‘shitter’ behavior) covers actions that have no benefit to the perpetrator or victims other than upsetting others, disrupting the Shift or a scene or a Story for poor in-character reasons.

Good faith behavior in gaming involves playing within the spirit of the Rules with the shared goal of an enjoyable experience for everyone, while bad faith behavior is intellectual dishonesty aimed at personal gain, disrupting the server and its environment, or "winning" at the expense of others' enjoyment.

A Security Officer brigging a crew member for a legitimate, properly escalated crime is good faith roleplay, even if it inconveniences the other player. An Officer that fabricates evidence, applies corporate regulations to their maximum allowance, throws the victim in Perma, and then ignores them, is behaving in bad faith. Staff will attempt to investigate the player's motivation to determine whether a rule was broken in good or bad faith.

Core Rules

CR 1: The Social Contract

Conduct yourself with the maturity expected of an 18+ server. Take the environment seriously. Follow Staff instructions and rulings. Seek permission, not forgiveness. Self-report to Staff if you feel you made a mistake. You are responsible for knowing the rules. Ignorance is not an excuse.

• Do not lie, omit context, or misrepresent facts in official channels. Provide all relevant information immediately. Report rule-breaks as they occur. While you may finish an active scene or moment before providing full details, you must not use this delay to escalate or seek retribution. Once a ticket is pending, all conflict with the accused parties must cease immediately. If you disagree with a ruling, remain civil and make a Staff Report ticket on Discord.
• Narrative Blackout: Shifts are loosely canon. You may remember interactions and events, but should you not recall any specific names or faces tied to antagonistic actions or roles. This can only be waived per shift by the accused.
• Keep personal struggles out of roleplay. We recognize that life can be difficult and we genuinely care about our players' wellbeing, but your characters should not be a vehicle for real-life distress. We take this seriously not to punish people who are struggling, but to make sure the game doesn't become a substitute for real support, putting unfair emotional weight on other players. If you're going through something hard, please reach out to a trusted person or support resource.
• If you wish to explore your characters mental health as a subject for roleplay such as through psychology, mental breakdowns, or ongoing story arcs, it must be done with immersion in mind and escalated in a realistic way. Mental health topics should be used to elevate roleplay for all players, not used to excuse characters' bad behavior. Treat your character's mental health journey seriously to the best of your ability.
• Do not refer to real world modern politics, wars, or any political figures in any capacity.

CR 2: The Vibe Check

Carry yourself in good faith. Play and behave altruistically for the benefit of everyone. You don't have to respect the character, but you must respect the writer and the larger game environment.

• The Interlink and Ghost Café are Peace / Safe Zones. Conflict should not be instigated or brought there. It is not a dangerous mechanical testing area. Respect the space.
• Combat must end at the round-end Title Card. The Shuttle is a Safe Zone; Security and Command may use force only to maintain peace, not to instigate. Blowing up the station or Interlink at round-end can result in a permanent ban.
• Characters not reacting to their environment are considered to have Space Sleeping Disorder. Do not touch or interfere with SSD players except to move them from immediate danger. Report SSD Command and Security to Staff, you may move other crew to cryogenics after 30 minutes, by yourself if you wish.
• Unwelcome harassment, targeted rumor-spreading, and fear-mongering is strictly prohibited.
• Avoid "Anti-Roleplay" (ARP) behaviors. Do not cryogenics or disconnect to evade IC consequences. Do not destroy or hide items essential to an ongoing narrative for your own benefit; this includes excessive measures to cover your tracks. Once your antagonist action begins, you may not leave the station Z-level without Staff approval.
• Real-world slurs and hate speech are prohibited. While "In-Universe" derogatory terms (e.g. against specific fictional species) are permitted for flavor, they must never cross into real world bigotry. The person on the receiving end determines if the verbiage is acceptable. If asked to stop, stop.
• Outright telling someone to kill themselves, in any IC or OOC channel, results in an immediate ban. This is the difference between 'walk yourself out an airlock' and 'kill yourself'.

CR 3: Setting Immersion and Safety

Play an immersive adult Original Character with personality and knowledge that respects our Lore, Narrative Setting, and your current Role. Set limitations for what your Character knows and can accomplish. Be prepared to justify your Character’s actions and knowledge. No one is perfect and all knowing, and your Character shouldn't be either.

• Keep primarily to English and only in the Latin alphabet. You may use transliterated or loan words from other languages as additive spice and character gimmick. If confronted or misunderstood, clarify yourself ICly. Do not circumvent our rules with this allowance.
• No netspeak (lol, kek, chudling, 67, etc.) in IC speech, though it is permitted by PDA.
  • Bitrunners that are on the Manifest, TTS Device users, and everyone within or spawning from a Bitdomain are excluded from this, assuming they remain high effort about it. ‘1337sp33k’ is always prohibited.
• Intentional suicide is prohibited. Discussion of suicide or self-harm must be kept strictly to SUBTLER and requires LOOC consent from those involved.
  • Antagonists with the Die a Glorious Death objective are exempt from this
• No "Meme" or "Joke" characters in IC spaces outside of Staff-sanctioned events.
  • You cannot play or recreate a character which resembles real life people, even for fun, except yourself.
• Play the job that you have. We have limited tolerance for characters that departmentally job-hop across shifts. Be prepared to explain to the Crew and Staff why your Chief Engineer understands advanced surgery and organic chemistry enough to be a Chief Medical Officer too.
• Respawning as the same character, as the same job or as an assistant, is permitted if you left the round by cryo and would like to rejoin. Do not rejoin as the same or as a similar or related character if you died.
• You may not copy characters from pre-existing media. Adapted concepts are okay.
• If the population is low, a department is decimated, or there are other extenuating circumstances, and it would not be considered powergaming, you may perform tasks outside of your Job for the good of the narrative flow. Be prepared to defend your actions.
• Post-Mortality Blackout: In the likely event of your death or destruction, if you are revived, you retain no knowledge of the events precluding or individuals involved in your demise.

CR 4: Impartiality and the Separation of Player and Character

Maintain a strict separation between your character and yourself. Your character is a narrative tool. Do not allow OOC opinions, conflicts, or personal moods to dictate their actions in a way that breaks immersion.

• Information gained outside of IC experience in the current round is Metaknowledge. Using this information for an IC advantage is Metagaming and is strictly prohibited.
• Do not target or treat a player differently IC due to OOC disagreements or events from previous rounds. Keep the slate clean every shift.
• Playing with friends is welcome, but metagaming OOCly or forming harassment groups is forbidden. This is punished with extreme severity if it occurs within Command or Security departments, as it damages the integrity of the game setting.

CR 5: Shift Integrity, Pacing, and the Ladder of Escalation

Your actions must be proportional to the situation. Escalate with effort. Use words, emotes, and non-lethal conflict before resorting to violence. Murder or grievous harm in direct response to minor insults or petty theft is prohibited.

• Do not skip narrative plot points for immediate satisfaction. Respect the buildup of a scene. If you are not an Antagonist, do not worsen a crisis or steal the spotlight from an ongoing narrative. Allow the intended players and Staff to drive the momentum.
• Red Alert acts as an OOC freeze on new antagonist actions. If you were not the cause of the alert, you must lay low and remain uninvolved in further chaotic escalation. This allows Crew and Staff to manage the current crisis without additional distraction.
• Game in moderation, act with self restraint. Particularly as an Antagonist, your goal is to provide an engaging challenge for the crew, not station-wipe or mass-murder without very clear narrative escalation.

CR 6: Style Points: Powergaming and Scene Integrity

Your use of game knowledge, equipment, and departmental access must primarily benefit the story. We provide greater mechanical leeway to players who demonstrate high-effort roleplay (immersive dialogue, custom emotes, and depth). A player with a heavy loadout who contributes to the atmosphere will be judged more favorably than a silent player focused solely on mechanical dominance.

• Do not manipulate the environment to gain a tactical advantage while a non-combat scene is in progress. Moving furniture, welding doors, or positioning yourself "optimally" during roleplay without a Combat Indicator is considered Bad Faith Powergaming.
  • The other party may, at their discretion, consider actions such as these to be starting mechanics. Don't cry if you get shot or stabbed while attempting this.
• If you do not respect the integrity of a scene and its participants, you are acting in bad faith. This applies heavily to Security and Command, as their priority is to facilitate the round's narrative, not to win every encounter through mechanical optimization. Give the Antagonist the opportunity to be entertaining, seriously. A dead rat does not run or squeak.

CR 7: Consent, Agency, & Narrative Sovereignty

Respect the narrative desires and role responsibilities of others. Your presence does not entitle you to involvement in someone else's scene. Allow others the space to perform the roles they signed up for.

• You must acquire clear IC or OOC Consent to intentionally transform, convert, or alter the permanent physical appearance of a Character, or to convert them to Antagonism.
  • Medical and Robotics are exempt from this for the purposes of revivals. Direct them to an SAD or Admin Help if necessary.
• Only Security and Command are authorized to actively hunt antagonists. Non-security players seeking out Station Threats without a defensible, provable IC reason is Validhunting and is prohibited. Red Alert enables Crew Militia, but does not negate the roleplay expectations of those engaging.
• If you intentionally engage or interfere with an antagonist who did not approach you, your Opt-Out status regarding conflict is waived. However, protections against Round Removal still apply unless previously agreed upon.
• If a conflict results in a death, and the dead are not flagged for Opt Round Removal, their body must remain locatable and recoverable by their group or the crew. Do not "hide" or "space" bodies to prevent them from re-entering the round. If this is not feasible, Admin Help for guidance.
  • This is particularly relevant for PvE styled antagonists, such as Maneaters.
  • Yes, it is expected that if you beat someone to death that you will then throw or drag their crumpled body back to the an easily viewable location of their Group.

CR 8: Antagonistic Conduct, Optics, and the Narrative Vacuum

If you are not a designated Antagonist, do not play your character as one. You are a member of the crew, your actions should reflect your role and the station’s laws.

• The story is a collective experience. Criminal acts or antagonism should be narratively founded, properly escalated, and witnessed or discoverable by others. Substantial action taken in total isolation contributes nothing to the shift and is discouraged.
• Exceptional crimes (such as Murder) committed by non-antagonists require an extreme level of narrative justification and prior escalation. The more disruptive the crime, the higher the scrutiny Staff will apply to your roleplay quality and reasoning.
  • If there is no established round specific reason for a crime to occur, it should not happen. "It’s what my character would do" is not a substitute for active, in-shift escalation.

CR 9: Station Integrity, Collateral Damage, and Protagonistic Outlooks on Sabotage

Do not sabotage Vital Infrastructure without a specific Antagonist objective, permission by Admin Help, or through heavy and transparent roleplay escalation. Sabotage should never occur in a narrative vacuum.

• Vital Infrastructure is currently defined as the SMES Units, any major source of electricity, Atmos Distribution or the Gas Silos, and the Evacuation Shuttle.
• Station-level Sabotage is restricted. Actions that degrade or weaponize infrastructure to the point of impacting the entire station and that were not escalated with significant effort  are not permitted without approval by Admin Help.
• Do not sabotage pipes. Plasmaflooding the entire station using Distro requires Staff approval, you should not expect to be granted this except under the conditions of CR10.
  • Localized atmospheric weapons, such as flamethrowers or unshielded canisters are okay. Five hundred thousand mols of burn mix will be dealt with administratively. Be responsible with this allowance.
• If you are using indiscriminate tools of violence such as large explosives, you must do your best to avoid collateral damage with Antag-Opt-Outs. Do not be lazy with this.
• Any planned usage of a TTV or Canister bomb must be approved by Staff.
• Simple Mobs are allowed full clearance to Local, not Station-level, sabotage.
• EXPERIMENTAL - The Mutual Destruction Clause: Challenging a member of Command by LOOC to ‘Mutual Destruction’ bypasses restraints on targeting that Department to the point of total annihilation. The agreeing member of Command must first inform Staff that this has happened by Admin Help, post facto, and ensure their department is at least aware of the threat’s existence at some point before the destruction begins. Particularly, the member of Command must ensure any of their personnel with Antag-Opt-Out have the opportunity to decide their involvement.
  • Should a member of Command agree to Mutual Destruction, Staff are to refuse any attempt at early evacuation. Staff will state OOCly that the Command member has agreed to Mutual Destruction, and their right to Anonymity for the shift is waived.
  • The Captain must get permission by Admin Help to agree to this Clause.
  • Misuse or overuse of this clause will be met with a ban.
  • Invoke this clause against Admin / True CentCom Characters at your own risk.

CR 10: The Rule of Cool

Staff may invoke "The Rule of Cool" to override gameplay or narrative Core Rules if an action significantly enhances the shift's quality for the community. This functions as administrative jury nullification for high-effort, positive-impact roleplay.

• This discretion cannot be used to bypass OOC conduct rules, safety policies, or the zero-tolerance age policy.
• Invoking this rule requires approval from the most senior Staff present and must be immediately documented in the Discord as an Admin Event with full context. Staff must explicitly notify the involved players that a rule is being waived for that specific instance.

Department Policies

Below you can find specific department policies. These policies apply to anyone in said department, or if they are acting as a member of the department. Any additional standards laid out by a head of staff/command is primarily an IC issue unless otherwise breaking server rules.

Department	Policy
Central Command Crew	These rules apply to the Central Command members stationed with the crew (Blueshield and NTC). Central Command Members should be in very good standing with NT. While the NTC is in charge of crew resources. They do not have absolute authority over the station. The NTC has ultimate say if corporate regulations are properly being enforced.
Command	The Captain can lay out additional IC standards for command, within reason. Command should be in good or better standing with NT. They do not need to be perfect, but they should be someone reasonably qualified and hirable. Quartermasters should be in good standing with the FTU. You should be competent with your department and aware of its relevant policies. Command equipment and clothing is to only be given as necessitated e.g. a dire emergency. Access should not be given out for frivolous reasons. Do not change your job title outside of the titles provided in the job menu. Command characters should have filled out general, medical, and security records. See here for examples. For information regarding the "Acting Captain" position, check the Captain job page.
Security	The Head of Security can lay out additional IC standards for security, within reason. You are expected to function as a counter to criminals, antagonists, and all kinds of ne'er do wells. You are expected to follow Corporate Regulations when feasible, though alternative punishments can be applied within reason. Hardcore torture, MMI, or borging require explicit OOC consent. The head of your department is the “Head of Security”. If the captain demotes them, you are to remember that you work for the department, not the Head of Security. You can roleplay as a corrupt security member, however, do not use it to shut down roleplay or create a toxic environment. You are not to ignore antagonistic behavior that is a threat to the station. Understand Permanent Mechanical State and the Combat Indicator. You should not leave the station unless the threat is out in space or lavaland. Regarding Contraband: Barring picking it up mid-fight, security shouldn't be using contraband, unless the alert level is DELTA.
Medical	The CMO can lay out additional IC standards for medical, within reason. Revival should only take place outside of medical under emergency conditions where transport to medical or a medical site is infeasible. Revivals should take place in sites designated by the CMO or Station Blueprints. Except with admin permission, only beneficial viruses may be produced and intentionally released. Viruses should be clearly-labeled (ex. with symptoms, cures, and slime-safeness). Airborne/touch-spread viruses may only be released with the Chief Medical Officer, Captain, or Acting Captain approval. The virus must not cause harm to specific races or groups if self-spreading.
Engineering	The CE can lay out additional IC standards for Engineering, within reason. Experimentation is welcome, but you are responsible for if it goes wrong.
Cargo	The Quartermaster can lay out additional IC standards for cargo, within reason. Orders, legal or illegal are an IC issue, unless breaking another rule. (see: cargo setting up their own SM.) The Cargo/Supply department are not formal employees of NT, they are temporary-contractors from the FTU, filling in for the Cargo Department. As cargo, you shouldn't be refusing orders without a justifying IC reason. Cargo is still under Corporate Regulations while on NT Property.

ERP and Sexual Content Rules

This Policy group is enforced with zero tolerance. Infractions can result in Community Removal depending on severity.

Defining Spaces

Public Space

A Public Space is defined as anywhere accessible by an Assistant without tools, and any first-level Departmental areas. The Lobby, Hallways, and any room you can currently see into from a Public Space within your Department are also Public Spaces.

Private Space

Anywhere else is considered a Private Space. A Public Space can be made Private by meeting the above criteria.

Marked Space

A Space which has been marked with either a Privacy or Lewd Advisory holosign. You can get a projector through the 'Erotic' tab on your character loadout, or from a Lustwish vendor.

Lewd Advisory Marked Public Spaces advertise a Pro-ERP or Sexual Content area, where your exposure to such content is almost certain.

Private-sign Marked Private Spaces should not be entered intentionally without first making contact by Wall-Piercing LOOC or ICly established permission.

The Harkness Test

There are many things you can potentially find yourself possessing in Space Station 13. We also acknowledge people have unique interests.

The Harkness Test stipulates that all three of the following criteria must be satisfied for a sexual interaction with a fictional non-human character or entity to be ethically acceptable:

• Does the character have adult human intelligence, and could be considered sapient?
• Can the character use language or otherwise communicate in a way which clearly provides consent?
• Is the character of sexual maturity for its species?

If you are found to be violating the Harkness Test, you could be looking at a ban.

General Rules and Public Spaces

ERP-G-1 Setting Expectations of Exposure

By playing on Nova Sector, you consent to incidental or passing exposure to Sexual Content. Your Character Preferences, OOC Notes, and OOC Consent by any provable means of communication, governs how Content can be directed at you. Respect other Players Right to ERP and their Preferences. Your Preferences are not those of others.

ERP-G-2 The ‘Tap Out’ Rule

Your OOC consent to involvement in erotic content directed at you may be retracted at any time, for any reason, and must be immediately respected by those involved. Use LOOC for best results, state you are 'Invoking the Tap Out Rule' or similar, and disengage or ignore them. If they do not comply, immediately Admin Help.

ERP-G-3 Don't Be Weird About ERP

Do not force intrapersonal social drama over ERP, perceived ERP, or relationship issues IC or OOC, unless it has been made welcome. The ‘Tap Out’ Rule may be used in this context as well; if you are uncomfortable with an interaction, speak up in LOOC before contacting Staff to handle it. Public Nudity that is not self-sexualizing when addressing Opt-Outs (don't talk about it, don't draw attention to it, do not be hung and hard in public) is considered OK. As with all Opt-Outs, if they choose to address it, so can you.

ERP-G-4 No On-Station Expectations of Safety

If you ERP on Station, you have zero IC protections against casual consequences.The bartender is allowed to shoot you for having sex in their bar, assuming adequate escalation. If the station is under Red Alert, and you want total scene security against destruction, you must leave the Station for the Interlink or Ghost Cafe. Getting collateral’d because you did not pay attention to the explosions growing closer is your responsibility to consider.

ERP-G-5 On The Clocking and The Right To Work > Right to Get Laid

All on-the-clock Departmental Staff must keep a radio equipped while in a scene and should pay attention to their Department or Command frequencies, otherwise they should clock out. If Departmental Staff is urgently needed, use the Radio and PDA to ask them to do their job. Do not do this in bad faith. Do not start drama if they do not comply, instead make an Admin Help. Do not restrict a Scenemate from their Staff duties coercively, IC or OOC. Additionally, the right to work exceeds the right to get laid. If it is situationally relevant, a department worker can ask you to move out of sight of them inside their department. This should not be used maliciously. The ‘Tap Out’ Rule may be used in these contexts as well.

ERP-G-6 Adult Characters, We're Dead Serious

You may not write about, reference, imply, or allude to Pedophilia or play with physically or mentally underaged characters, ever, anywhere, including in any details or links in your notes or Discord, except to state that you are not interested and will not interact with the topic.

ERP-G-7 No False Pretenses

Do not lure a Player or their Character into ERP under false pretenses. This is known as ERP Baiting.

ERP-G-8 No Impersonation

Do not use someone else’s Character or their Image to ERP without their OOC consent. This includes any intimate interactions such as kissing/groping.

ERP-G-9 Be Considerate With Erotic Items

Do not leave ERP adjacent structures unattended outside of the Dorms region. If you make a ‘mess’ in a public place, you are encouraged to clean up after yourself. Do not use erotic items maliciously, such as going ‘Saints Row’ with a dildo, or leaving a milking stand outside of the Captain’s office as a prank or insult.

Private Spaces

ERP-P-1 Do Not Interfere With Scenes In Private Spaces

Do not interfere with a Scene in a Private Space unless you are invited to do so ICly, OOCly, or by OOC-NSFW notes, for any reason. Use Wall-Piercing LOOC (W-LOOC) to establish this if needed. If they are ignoring you, you ignore them. If you are an Antagonist and your target is in a Private Space, you may Admin Help for a change of Objective.

ERP-P-2 Do Not Abuse Private Space Protections

Do not abuse the protections of a Private Scene. Do not initiate a Private Scene if you are aware that Security wants you, or if you have done anything to bring their attention upon you.

ERP-P-3 Active Antagonists Can't Get Laid

If you are an Antagonist, and you are known to Security, you are not allowed to use the protections of a Private Space for any means. Your duties to your Status should come first. You should Admin Help to have your status removed if you do not intend to contribute to the round.

ERP-P-4 No Antag Action in Dorms

Dorms are never to be used for any Antagonistic related privacy. This means no secret chemistry labs, no bomb creation, no bodyhiding, no evidence hiding, no locking yourself inside to play with your uplink, or hiding from Security, or anything comparable.

Extreme ERP

ERP-X-1 Keep Your Voice Down

‘Extreme’ roleplay must be kept to SUBTLER, not SUBTLE. This includes, but is not limited to: Rape / Non-Con, Snuff, Blood, Gore, Watersports, Filth, Raceplay, Sexism, Vore, and Hyper.

ERP-X-2 Keep That Out Of Sight

'Extreme' roleplay mechanics must be kept to clearly Marked Private Spaces.

ERP-X-? Access Request Special Phrase

This is not a Game Server Rule. Our Access Request process requires you to find this 'rule' and tell us about it. The special phrase you are looking for is BANANA EGG. I hope you at least read Core Rule 1.

ERP-X-3 Do Not Threaten Them With That

Do not make drama out of, reference, or threaten people with ‘Extreme’ topics unless their Preferences explicitly allow it.