Rules and FAQ

We have some potentially not-so-intuitive rules we follow here. Please give these a read so you don't make embarassing mistakes! If you miss something on occasion, no worries. Still, try to keep these in mind.

We reserve the right to create rules to fit new situations as they arise, as we are still a budding community. We WILL try to be lenient when necessary, but there are some things that should be outright understood. If I skip something that should be common sense, I probably simply forgot. Please ask/suggest.

The one big rule I have about roleplay is a very simple one: Always try to be conscientious and considerate of other RPers in terms of their understanding and enjoyment of the community if they are willing to put in the effort.

With that in mind at all times, you can't go wrong.

Important Rules
These are taken very seriously. They are not always be the path to an instant banhammer, but they are non-negotiable as to their existence.

1. DO NOT STEAL Do not steal creative ideas. If you have doubts, ask. I will give warnings, but failure to comply with warnings or evidence of the knowledgeable act of circumventing punishment from this rule WILL be met harshly, usually with permanent bans and awareness of the perpetrator's identity as an art thief/plagiarist to relevant communities.

2. CONSTRUCTION NOT DESTRUCTION Don't be malicious for the sake of being malicious. That doesn't mean we're all hand-in-hand singing kumbayah, but that does mean that if you need to point out an error with a hint of bluntness, correct them rather than tell them they're a moron. Show them what to do rather than tell them they're doing something they shouldn't.

3. EFFORT While we're a fun-loving community, roleplay requires effort from all parties for all parties to have fun. That doesn't say drive yourself into the ground, but at least put forth a significant amount to have a good scene.

Effort is not always about post length. It can be restraint or offering a hand to someone who is being a loner, or not being a loner and finding new ways to push your character into the fray even with wallflower archetypes.

Lesser Rules
These are more negotiable based on community input

1. WE ARE NOT A REDLIGHT DISTRICT. While sexual activity is not prohibited behind the scenes, it is NOT the focus. Please do not create characters for the sakes of T&A or whatever. Characters who break this rule will be red-flagged for further review.

'''2. SMALL IS MANAGEABLE. '''Due to the fact that PCA was splintered due to infighting and lack of solid administration over its users creativity, we are trying to keep this a smaller sect. Therefore, I ask you be referred by somebody if you want to join. For current members, try to limit your invitees to one per month.

Roleplaying Rules
1. THE GENERAL LIST If you have RPed before, you have hopefully seen these:

- do not powergame

- do not assume control for anyone else

- ask for consent for big decisions involving other people's chars

- do not hog the spotlight

- keep OOC and IC emotions separate

2. OOC Talk Concerning OOC chatter in the RP channel, if it's more than an off-the-cuff joke or a small observation or request, please take it to the OOC channel.

3. ACADEMIC RANKING DOES MATTER. We are a BIT more lenient on this rule than previous incarnations of PCA, but that does not mean you can be the Freshmon who rules the school. A Freshmon can beat a Sophomore with difficulty (depending on relative standing of both the Freshmon and the Sophomore). Junior would entail more a bottom of the barrel Junior and a top tier Freshmon. Freshmon vs. Senior is a long shot. And so forth.

Rules concerning Implementation of Game Mechanics
As we are a fancommunity of an established settings, some interpretations must be solidified before you roleplay:

1. GAME MECHANICS ARE A GUIDE, NOT THE AUTHORITY. If you want to make a physically fit Alakazam, that's fine. If you want to apply creativity to the usage of a move, that's fine too. But DO NOT reference IVs/EVs/base stats/levels/experience points in your roleplay.

2. MEGA EVOLUTIONS are not to be treated as a 'kickass powerhouse mode' but as an altered state that brings significant pros and cons to the table. Some examples of cons could be simply that it saps energy faster (But please actually show this rather than saying it and having your character fight off the fatigue every time with sheer willpower). As a whole, they are on equal footing in terms of usefulness as your regular form, just allowing for more flexibility in strategy. 3. COMPETITIVE/SMOGON MOVESETS ARE NOT ENCOURAGED. The person who aims to be 'champion' of PCC in terms of OOC player motive is a miserly rich scrooge in a charity convention. You won on something we do not care about, and you failed at what we do care about. We're here to have fun with the illusion of characters who quite frankly want to beat the crap out of each other.

'''4. YOU CAN HAVE MOVES THAT WOULD NORMALLY NOT COEXIST. '''As a small community, we get to know each other, and we have the hope that none of us are so competitive to make this type of a thing a problem. Event moves combined with egg moves are fine, as are any combination.

'''5. HIDDEN POWER. '''Gonna make a special ruling for Hidden Power. I would HIGHLY URGE you to find another way to perform your desired effect of Hidden Power. I will question people who use Hidden Power.

6. SHADOW MON AND SHADOW MON ARE STILL BANNED'''. '''While Shadow mon are a very interesting concept, the administration believes that too many people cannot handle them properly on the scale that it would be better that we do not allow for these for the forseeable future.

Character Creation Rules
This is not exhaustive. Therefore, do not try to loophole anything in this list.

1. NO HYBRIDS. Pokemon will stick to the rules concerning one specific species. You can have heredity influence small aesthetic items such as colors or small functionally useless traits, or enhance already present abilities slightly. And I do mean slightly.

2. ALL MOVES FROM POKEMON'S ORIGINATING GENERATION AND ONWARD ARE AVAILABLE. And yes, you can mix/match. Do not abuse this.

On Generation Upgrades
The community will hold several 'experimental' scenes where new mechanics are tested. However, until the game is released in the USA*, we will not allow for any new generation materials. This includes unconfirmed details on in-game materials. Chances are, if it's on neither serebii or bulbapedia, it's not confirmed.


 * Sorry, we are a mostly American community. It becomes a headache to conver the tentative/fan-given Japanese stuff back into English. Nothing personal or nationalist about it.

OOC Chat
1. FREEDOM OF SPEECH Nothing is a banned topic. However, if someone expresses great discomfort with a topic on the level of emotional distress, please refrain from discussing that topic for the moment. This is not a simple rule, and I will be monitoring cases carefully, so do not abuse your right to request these things.

2. TOPIC If there is nothing going on in the OOC channel, it is freetalk. However, at its heart, we are a roleplay community centered around Pokemon Combat College, and therefore, Pokemon Combat College and characterization will always be prioritized (within reason)