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Sovereign Guild Rules

The following rules will take precedence over any and all decisions made by any crew members, including guild vice captains, regular captains, vice captains, and so forth. The Guild Captain has the final say in all situations, but is bound by these said same rules to behave within certain parameters.

*THESE RULES MAY ONLY BE RATIFIED BY A TWO-THIRDS MAJORIY DECISION FROM WITHIN THE CREW PANEL*



* Under no circumstances can a member be banned solely on the basis of dislike. Should a dispute arise, a committee of no less that three Captains or GVCs will discuss the problem, and determine the best solution.

* Crew must maintain a fair and non-biased view of these rules for the entirety of their stay as a moderator. They will be held to the said same standards of the rest of the guild, and will suffer the same consequences.

* Crew are expected to have an active posting record, excellent writing skills, a well behaved attitude, and a clear understanding of these rules. Attitudes that express negativity, brashness, arrogance, etc. Will result in probation

* Crew are expected to be fair. God-modding, even when against a player of lesser abilities, must be pre-approved by either the Guild Captain, or one of the Guild Vice-Captains.
Cases where God-modding will always be acceptable are as follows.
- A Captain-class character in combat against an unseated member: Point blank shots, shunpo, sword strikes, etc. Kido auto-hits are not allowed unless from within a three yard range, or the number is above sixty.
- A Captain-class or Vice-captain class character in combat with someone who does not have shunpo, when they do. In this case, only rapid sword-strikes may auto-hit.

* The Guild Captain, Guild Vice Captains, and all Moderators will be bound by the following rules, and may never ratify them without unanimous consent by all crew.

- He or She may never ban, warn, or otherwise discriminate against any guild member, regardless of rank, for any reason other than misconduct, or disregard for the rules.
-- Misconduct is defined as intentional disregard for implied rules or respect, politeness, foul language, power-begging, etc. It does not include constant questions, opposite beliefs, or any other topic that would create a bias.

- He or She must respect all moderators equally, and give all an equal say in matters concerning changes within the guild. Vice Captains must work through their respective captains, but their opinions are still valid.

- He or She must respect all guild members equally, and not show favoritism to anyone, for any reason.

- He or She must respect, abide by, and enforce all guild rules, Gaia rules, and regulations set down by both GaiaOnline and this guild. In the event that any crew ignores an intentional breaking of any rule, he or she will be warned once, and given a chance to rectify the situation. A second recurrence will result in them being stripped of their power.

- Guild Moderators may elect "Seconds" to act as their eyes and ears from within the Sereitei. These members will not be crew, but will report directly to the captain regarding rules. Favoritism may not be shown to these individuals, and they must be ranked at least fourth seat.




* No member of this guild is to engage in disrespectful or otherwise demeaning activity towards any other member of this guild, or towards the guild itself. This includes captains, vice captains, seated, and unseated, Arrancar, Bount, Vizard, Quincy, anyone. Repeat offenses will result in the offending member, all characters, and all mules, being banned from this guild forever.

* No member of this guild is to argue with a decision that has been passed down from the crew. All decisions are subject to appeal, but in most cases, are final. DO NOT EVER be rude or disrespectful to any of the captains, vice captains, or other crew that have made the decisions. Doing so will result in a permanent ban.

* No member in this guild is to post content above pg-13 rating. That means: DO NOT post more than one foul word per post, I don't care how upset you are, be respectful. DO NOT use sexual references. I don't care about silly stuff, but if it borders on harassment, you're gone.

* No member of this guild is to engage in god-modding. This includes Auto-hitting, auto-dodging, making up powers in the middle of a fight, ignoring powers, power-playing, puppetting and any other term you can think of on the subject. Only captains and in extremely rare cases vice captains will be given permission to god-mod. NO EXCEPTIONS.

* No member of this guild is to try and circumvent the restrictions placed on character growth by any means. Doing so is not only unfair, but disrespectful and downright stupid. This includes using others powers to gain powers of your own, trying to circumvent the wait on shikai or bankai, shunpo, shunko, or any other ability and or power, including kido. NO EXCEPTIONS.

* Any member found to be guilty of constant violent behavior, bashing of other members, hazing, mocking, trolling, fighting OoC, consistent foul language, or other such offenses is to be warned once, then banned. NO EXCEPTIONS.


Shunpo

* No character who has been in the guild for less than one month and / or ranked below fourth seat will be allowed shunpo. Trying to get around this by any means will result in an instant ban.
To apply for shunpo, please contact your captain. All shunpo lessons must be approved by at least one other captain.

Shikai

* Only those characters who have shown above average literacy, good conduct, and great role-playing skills will be allowed shikai. The minimum wait time for this is two weeks, so that the crew can amass a sufficient amount of data to determine the members activity levels, role-playing ability, and other factors.
Shikai lessons are at the discretion of the squad's captain.

Bankai

* Only those characters which have been with the guild for a period of at least six months, have obtained at least vice-captain status, and have otherwise shown exemplary behavior, writing ability, grammar, and conduct will be allowed bankai.
ALL bankai lessons require the approval of at least three captains, and one letter of recommendation from the characters own captain.
NOTE: Under extremely rare circumstances, anyone may technically be considered for bankai. But in order for the character under consideration to be given this honor, extensive proof must be shown that he or she is beyond reproach, and that he or she is an accomplished and skilled writer and role-player.
In addition, recommendation must be given by at least three captains, including the members own captain, and a letter of recommendation must be given, detailing precisely why the training should be granted.

Specialized Kido - (Shunko, etc.)

* No character who does not have both shunpo and shikai will be cleared for any specialized kido. To become approved for these techniques, the character in question must submit a query to their captain, who will bring it before the crew. Upon review, if the member is deemed to be worthy and responsible enough to handle the technique(s) they will be allowed training.



* No zanpakuto is to be even remotely similar to another, this includes zanpakuto found in the anime and manga.

* No zanpakuto may be used more than once. Meaning that if you have a zanpakuto from another guild, do not transfer it here. This also means that if your character dies, and you create a new one, he/she must have a *new* zanpakuto.

* DO NOT copy any aspects of anyones zanpakuto, or weapon from another series. If you are found to have a weapon, name, or other such technique or attributes from any character that has previously been used in any book, anime, manga, movie, video game, or other such material, you will be denied and asked to submit a new profile. You may use PICTURES as REFERENCES but may not copy someones appearance. (This rule is to ensure that people are creative, and not lazy.)

* No zanpakuto may have abilities that control aspects of another character without express consent from at least three captains, and one GVC or the GC. NO EXCEPTIONS.

* Elemental zanpakuto will be placed under intense scrutiny for similarities. No one likes it when everybody has a fire zanpakuto, etc. Please be creative.



* The following names are restricted, and are only to be used with express permission. The majority of characters will have to EARN these names.

* The Four Noble Houses *
- Kuchiki
- Shihouin
- Kobayashi
- Shiba

* Lesser Noble Families *
- Kasumioji
- Kannogi

To join a family, you must be adopted by the Head of that house. This is left to the discretion of the heads, but will in most cases involve an apprenticeship.
BEING A MEMBER OF A NOBLE FAMILY DOES NOT MAKE YOU SUPERIOR POWER-WISE TO ANYONE.




* No character starts with a zanpakuto, or shikai. NO EXCEPTIONS
- When you join a squad, you will be trained for your zanpakuto, either by your captain, vice captain, or ranked member who has achieved at least shikai.

* You begin with kido 1-10, and nothing else. Any special accessories granting abilities must be role-played for, and acquired in that sense.

* No one maintains powers from when they were alive. Such things must be awakened and trained for.

* No member may have more than one (1) character of each race per account, and is allowed only ONE mule. If a member is found to have more than one mule, they will be reprimanded, and have one of their mules, and all characters attached to that mule, banned. Repeat offenses will result in all accounts being banned.

* When you create your profile, you MUST include your zanpakuto, and a detailed description of what it does. There will be no "Hiding of powers" here. (This does not have to be done immediately, but you must have at least the name, and you must have completed your zanpakuto before being allowed to obtain shikai.)



* Arrancar profiles will only be allowed for those members who have shown advanced role-playing abilities, and a certain level of maturity.

* As Arrancar are elite characters, any member found abusing the powers given to them will be immediately and permanently banned from using arrancar again.



* No quincy starts with Hirenkyaku, Rasontengai, or anything other than a basic bow which can fire at a rate of one arrow per three seconds.
As you progress, the Quincy Bejahrt will train you for more abilities at the same rate and restrictions as shinigami. (Rasotengai is to be treated the same as Shikai, Hirenkyaku as shunpo. Special accessories, such as Seele Scheinder, must be approved and trained in.)



* Bount do not start with a doll.

* Starter Bount are weak, remember that. You MUST make a role-play at least once a week where you feed, otherwise your character will further weaken.

* Bount do not have a form of shunpo. But they may stand on air, and move extremely fast.

* Bount cannot use kido. Ever.

* You will role-play for your doll, in the same fashion as you role-play for shikai. Once your doll has been obtained, you must understand that if you are severely injured, you will lose control of your doll.

* Merging with your doll is considered a Bankai, and will be treated as such.




* This guild does not contain the characters from the anime or manga. DO NOT even use their names, or make references to them in any way, shape or form. As stated earlier, their zanpakuto are off limits as well.

* This is a strictly literate guild. This means that if you want to be a member here, you are expected to uphold proper grammar, proper spelling, and maturity. Failure to do so may result in a ban.

* Members are assigned rank based on skill, not order of arrival. If you are given a rank that you are not fond of, you may challenge for a higher position, but MUST prove yourself in that challenge, to have the skill needed for the position.

* DO NOT EVER give out real life details of ANYONE without their express consent. You will be banned, no exceptions.

* Respect those who have been here longer than you. All crew have equal standing in the CREW SUBFORUM, but in the guild, Captains have higher say that Vice Captains, always.

* Squads operate independently of each other, meaning that only a squad's captain may make decisions regarding that squad.

* You must apply to a squad to be considered for a squad. Do not make a thread begging for acceptance somewhere, simply apply, and wait.



* Anyone may challenge for a captain's seat, but not everyone will be considered.
To be considered for a captain's chair, you MUST have at least six months experience in this guild, have established yourself at Vice Captain power, at least, and have Bankai (Optional, but recommended).

* A captains challenge will take place in the squad in question, and will be judged by three outside captains. No restrictions are placed on kido, shunpo, zanpakuto or other powers, and auto-hitting is allowed if the power-difference is severe.

* In the event that a member may defeat a captain in a captain's challenge, and is approved by three other captains, that member is to take the place of the previous captain, and the previous captain will take a place of honor amongst Sereitei's best.

* Ultimately, role-playing skill and literacy will decide who is chosen as captain. NOT raw power and force. Even if the captain kills the challenger, if the challenger is deemed to have more skill than the current captain, that captain will lose their seat.

* A previous captain may repeal the challenge, but must wait a period of at least one month.



* Vizard operate OUTSIDE of Soul Society, and Hueco mundo. They are a unique, separate group.

* Only a member who has been a shinigami may become a vizard, and that member MUST have achieved bankai.

* Vizard powers may only be used when the Vizard in question has doned his or her mask.

* Vizard are NOT friends of Soul Society, and may not enter without permission.