Pridal Rules

v4.1 - 02/09/2020

Overview

This policy was created to form a framework for managing prides, which form the core of the MUCK's concept. These rules are updated occasionally to meet the changing needs of the MUCK's playerbase.

Of note, while the wizards realize the title of King is traditionally gender specific and applied to adult male lions, the words King and Queen are interchangeable with the world Ruler as described below. Many other arrangements (co-Kings, co-Queens, Queen leadership with a lion consort, and other variants) are welcome as well. If in doubt, ask the wizards!

Requirements to be a Ruler

1. Any adult lion or lioness who gathers the support of three additional adult leonines of either gender may apply to be a Ruler. For co-Ruler situations, one additional "supporting" leonine is required. There are no restrictions to the number of Rulers the MUCK can have at any given time. Only adults can be Rulers. Cubs, juveniles, and adolescents are not qualified.
2. The applicant(s) and the supporting characters must all be different players. Alternates of one another will not be accepted to fulfill these requirements. In other words, a pride must be formed of four (or more) separate players.
3. The applicant(s) must not have any serious previous infractions of MUCK rules.
4. The applicant(s) must not have previously been a Ruler whose pride was disbanded three times.
5. The applicant(s) must connect an average of ten hours a week over a rolling six week period. Additionally, the supporting members of the applying group must connect an average of ten hours a week over a rolling six-week period. The wizards will examine connection times to verify the applicant(s) has/have been connecting often before applying. Connecting and idling will not be an acceptable method of accruing time online. We will monitor idling. Failing to actively seek out roleplay while online will be grounds for disqualification of the application, although concurrent connections of other players will be taken into account as we realize you cannot role play by yourself.

Exceptions to the above requirements may be made at the Administrators' discretion. If you have questions, please page any on-duty Wizard.

How to become a Ruler

Any adult lion or lioness who has the support of three other players as described above can apply to become a Ruler. As mentioned above, there are no restrictions on how many Rulers the MUCK can have at any given time.

There are no predefined induction periods, but please allow up to two weeks for the administrators to review the application and respond.

To apply to be a Ruler, gather the support of three separate players as described above. Each character cannot currently support or be another Ruler and must be played by different players. Send a muckmail to Ketekh or an email to Ketekh_AT_tlkmuck.org listing your interest in applying and the names of the supporting characters.

All members must be active on the MUCK. Their connection times will be averaged with the applicant's to determine whether the applicant qualifies to be a Ruler.

Your application will be processed and you will be notified whether or not your application has been approved within two weeks.

After Induction

Rulers will be able to begin building their lands immediately after being inducted. Do not begin building your lands prior to this point. Circumstances may call for leniency due to succession planning and land takeovers. Consult with the wizards to discuss an exception before violating this rule.

Violating the building rule can be grounds for rejecting your application or prohibiting you from qualifying in the future.

Connection and idle times will be monitored on a regular basis. If you fall below the required connection times, you will receive a warning the first time and be given a two-week grace period to correct the situation. If it has not been corrected after the grace period is over, or if this is not the first offense, your pride will be disbanded and you will have to reapply.

If your pride is disbanded three times, you will be disqualified from re-applying with that character.

Co-Rulers, Queens, and Heirs

Each pride may have up two leaders, one leader and one "consort" (a queen if the ruler is a king and vice versa, for example) and a line of succession, though none of these positions are mandatory (known hereafter as the leadership of the pride). The leadership players must not have any serious infractions of MUCK rules and must be approved by the wizards prior to a character being granted leadership status.

Pridal leadership members are subject to the same rules as the Ruler, thus each character must connect an average of ten hours per week over a six week rolling period or they will lose their status. The loss of a leadership member will not result in the disbanding of a pride, merely the character's return to regular status.

While members of the line of succession are not considered leadership positions from a role-play perspective (as they're merely "next in line" for Leadership), they must still meet the requirements above in order to be granted Ruler status when the current Ruler of a pride steps down. Note that being added to the line of succession does not guarantee a Ruler title, and a Ruler may change his/her line of succession prior to stepping down.

Multiple Rulers

Prides can have multiple Rulers, but all must meet the requirements listed above except for the number of supporters required to qualify as a pride.

For each additional Ruler, a pride is required to gain the support of one additional leonine of either gender, beyond the initial supporting character requirements of a lone Ruler. A pride with two Rulers, for example, is required to have four additional leonine supporters to qualify for pride status. Since multiple Rulers are considered to be a single ruling entity, characters belonging to the players of either Ruler will not count towards this total.

Leading Multiple Prides

Players cannot Rule more than one pride at a time. Given the relatively low average connection count, Feature Characters are an exception to this rule. In other words, an existing Ruler could be accepted to play Simba during the casting process if they are determined to be the best candidate for the role and they continue to comply with all requirements for their Ruler character.

Reasons for disbanding prides (removing the Ruler's title)

1. OOC Harassing another player for any purpose, be that trying to force them to join, to roleplay a certain way, to react to the Ruler a certain way, etc. NO OOC harassment will be tolerated!
2. Any serious infraction of the rules.
3. Failure of the minimum members of the pride, including the Ruler, to maintain an average of ten hours a week over a rolling six-week period and roleplaying most of that time.
4. Failure to maintain the minimum number of supporting leonine pride members any one time with each leonine from a different player.

Items 1 and 2 can include disqualification of future applications for Rulership.

Items 3 and 4 include disqualification of future applications for Rulership if the infraction is the third infraction by that Ruler or his/her pride.

Disbanding can occur at any time. If your pride is disbanded and you are not disqualified from reapplying, you can reapply for Kingship immediately.

If you have any questions, muckmail Ketekh or email ketekh_AT_tlkmuck.org.