Character versus Character Rules

Character versus Character defines any engagement where two or more player characters are either mechanically set to the hostile combat mode against one another, or participating in roleplay where explicit in character conflict is taking place in The Domains of Dread. As the server prides itself on being a medium to practice story-first conflict, the following rules must be observed:

1. Conflict must have a reason. There is no such thing as “killing or ganking with zero roleplay” on The Domains of Dread. If there is no reason or the reason is so thin as to be near nonexistent, then deescalate.
2. Conflict must have an opt in, otherwise described as an action both characters know will escalate the conflict and an opt out, otherwise described as an action both characters know will deescalate the conflict. Even if an opt out is as simple as “Leave, you cannot be here”, that is sufficient and in fact preferred for being clear and unambiguous.
3. Conflict involving lethal damage must be supervised by the Game Masters unless the target or perpetrator is a Dread Figure. If no Game Masters are available when selecting the intended recipient of lethal damage with the !fd chat command within 5 minutes IRT, then only nonlethal damage may be used for that hostile engagement. This includes ambushes or attempted assassinations.
4. Lethal damage in general should be used only as a means of last resort when resolving conflict on The Domains of Dread outside of Dread Figures. A character dying for their principles after a long history of conflict between them and another character or group only serves to strengthen the roleplay—were they to have been killed starting with the very first hostile engagement, then little was gained and no story experienced.
5. Characters killed by lethal damage from player characters, Dread Figures or human-controlled non-player characters are dead forever, per Death, Dying and Maiming. They may not necessarily be closured immediately should a Game Master intervene with a time-limited plot or opportunity to become a Dread Figure, but they are dead and will be removed from play. This may be only rescinded by Game Masters should their death be determined as caused by malfeasance, unintended behavior and/or bugs.
6. Opt ins and opt outs do not necessarily have to be given with every hostile engagement if the characters involved are aware of the stakes—for example, a heroic Paladin might proceed investigating the murders of non-player characters knowing that a cult of evil player characters are responsible and will seek reprisal if they find out that the Paladin is investigating them, and lethally judging by their victims. While members of the cult are free to engage the Paladin nonlethally in a hostile engagement should they so choose, as they have demonstrated the stakes without needing to say anything they could, Game Master supervision permitting, attack the Paladin lethally and directly in an ambush. Instances like these will be assessed by the Game Masters as they happen.
7. Using stealth or invisibility to “sneak on” targets is considered a hostile action and sufficient cause for conflict if discovered, requiring no opt out be given. Area damage spells such as fireball or acid fog should not be used to check for characters in stealth, but spells meant explicitly to reveal or indicate the presence of characters in stealth such as glitterdust or alarm may be used as normal.
8. Incapacitated or otherwise knocked out player characters are itemized into the inventory while the player is sent to a different area where they cannot see anything until their character awakens. Should someone holding the player character log out, their body will be dropped and the character awakened on the spot. Should someone hold a player character for longer than a combined 15 minutes IRT or 1 hour IGT, their body will be dropped and the character awakened on the spot. Allow an opportunity for the character to escape rather than immediately knocking them back out.
9. When a player character is kidnapped or detained be they by domain authorities or other player characters, including Dread Figures, there is an expectation that they will have roleplay made available to them by their captors for as long as they are detained, real life availability permitting. Clues should also be left to encourage investigative roleplay on the side of any other character trying to determine their whereabouts.
10. At any time during a conflict involving a downed player character, the perpetrator may opt to maim rather than kill them. This will roll on the critical injury table as normal. Characters maimed should be “left for dead” and their body unmoved so to be handled by the Game Masters and any other participants.
11. Should a player character escape their pursuers, they must remain logged in for 15 minutes IRT or 1 hour IGT to allow their pursuers to continue looking for them as part of the hostile engagement. Once this grace period expires they are free to log out, concluding that hostile engagement.
12. Player characters representing domain authorities are bound by their own rules for handling hostile engagements and cannot use lethal damage solely because a player character has broken a law or another statute outside of ongoing emergencies as supervised by Game Masters, such as their settlement being attacked.

Overall, these rules are provided as guidelines to inform the culture surrounding Character versus Character conflict on The Domains of Dread. Supervising Game Masters may interpret the spirit of these rules rather than their explicit text when making decisions regarding the legality of lethal damage for a hostile engagement or when handing down other stipulations where benefiting present and future storytelling, as all roleplay is contextual. Conflict should never be pursued with an intent to “win”, rather to enable more of the collaborative storytelling so central to The Domains of Dread per Roleplay Expectations.