Metaruleset

The following is a copy of the Metaruleset of Infinite Nomic.

Preamble

The game of Infinite Nomic has always been, and will always be, a center for experimentation in the medium of Nomic and Nomic-like games. As a community, we wish to foster creativity in the design of such games by creating a space where unrestricted innovation is rewarded as well as protected from itself. It is for this reason that we establish this, the Metaruleset of Infinite Nomic.

Section 1: Cycles

The game of Infinite Nomic is subdivided into cycles. Each cycle has its own ruleset. The Metaruleset is active and must be followed at all times, while the ruleset associated with each cycle must only be followed during that cycle. The ruleset of a cycle governs only the state that exists solely because of that cycle and entities that consent to participate in the cycle. in particular, a cycle ruleset governs players in that cycle, and it does not govern state directly under the Metaruleset (including metaproposals).

A new cycle begins when players generally agree on a valid initial ruleset for the cycle. The process for selecting an initial ruleset is not outlined here, but should be done in an orderly and democratic fashion, giving due consideration to all proposed rulesets.

A cycle ends when and only when the ruleset for that cycle specifies that that cycle ends or when the players generally agree that it should be ended.

Periods in which there are no cycles occuring are called interim periods while periods while there are cycles occuring are called playtime periods.

Section 2: Metaproposals

A metaproposal is a body of text specifying one or more changes to the Metaruleset. Any player can submit a metaproposal by submiting its full contents to the channel #metaproposals.

Whenever a metaproposal is submitted, players who have expressed interest in recieving notifications should be warned about it as soon as possible through Discord ping or a similar mechanism.

No metaproposal may refer to a player or group of players by any non-changing uniquely identifiable or real-life characteristic such as name or nickname, to give them exclusive advantages or disadvantages. If a metaproposal does this, it will have no effect even if passed and may be removed by a moderator as soon as possible.

Unless otherwise specified by a different part of the Metaruleset, the voting period lasts 72 hours after the metaproposal has been submitted. At the end of a metaproposal's voting period, each player who has a reaction of :+1: on the proposal message is considered to have voted for it, and each player who has a reaction of :-1: against. If a player's vote is unclear, their vote is considered to be against.

Once the voting term of a metaproposal had passed, if at least two thirds of votes on that metaproposal are for it and the message in which it was submitted has been neither edited nor deleted, it takes effect. Unless otherwise specified by the Metaruleset, the effects of metaproposals are limited to immediately modifying the Metaruleset.

Metaproposals are the only method by which the Metaruleset can be modified.

Section 3: Emergency Cases

Infinite Nomic is a place to safely experiment with the game design of Nomic and Nomic-like games. In the course of these tests, errors will be found in the ruleset of the cycle and players will take advantage of unintended consequences of gamestate changes. Such behavior is, in fact, encouraged as it aligns with the goals set out in this Metaruleset.

In the case, however, that the players decide that future play is impossible or impractical due to unbalancing, that there is any other threat to the game or its democratic governance under the metaruleset, or that any other exigent circumstance warrants it, state of emergency can be declared (provided no state of emergency is ongoing). In order for this to happen, two players who have the Moderator role must agree that the situation is deserving of being a state of emergency.

When the game is in a state of emergency, any player can submit a special type of metaproposal called an emergency proposal. Emergency proposals function in a similar manner to normal metaproposals, but have the following differences:

• the voting period of emergency proposals lasts 24 hours, and
• emergency proposals can cause any arbitrary change to the gamestate.

Emergency proposals should function only to revert the game to a playable state and fix any problems that players may have faced unmet obligations during the state of emergency, if there are any.

The state of emergency ends when two players who have the Moderator role agree that the issues that caused the game to enter a state of emergency have been resolved.

Section 4: Discord

The Discord Guild with the ID 515560801394753537 is the official forum of Infinite Nomic, and can be referred to as "the Discord Server", "the Server", or anything else that clearly identifies it. Unless explicitly specified by a rule, game actions cannot be taken without the sending of at least one message to the Discord Server. In particular, messages sent to fora other than the Discord Server do not result in the performance of game actions unless explicitly specified by a rule.

Unless otherwise specified, references to "channels" (including references of the form "#name", even when not explicitly described as a channel) in the metaruleset and cycle rulesets, refer to the channel with the appropriate name in the Discord Server. For the purposes of a cycle ruleset, if there are multiple channels with the same name in the Discord Server, and exactly one is clearly associated with only that cycle, references to a channel with that name refer to that channel.

Section 5: Defense

Whenever, during a state of emergency, two players who have the Moderator role agree that Infinite Nomic is being invaded, the game enters into a state of defense (provided that no state of defense is ongoing). A state of defense can only exist while a state of emergency exists.

Whenever the game is in a state of defense, any person who has never been a player for at least one week continuously is an invader. Invaders are not considered players and cannot resume being a player until the state of defense ends.

Section 6: Players

Only persons that are members of the Discord Server can be players of the game of Infinite Nomic. Such a person can become a player or cease to be a player by setting forth consent to do so in the Discord Server.

Only players of the game of Infinite Nomic can be players of individual cycles. Unless prohibited by the cycle's ruleset, such a person can become a player in an individual cycle by setting forth consent to do so in a manner specified by the cycle's ruleset or by setting forth consent in the Discord Server if no method is so specified. When a person who is not a player of the game of Infinite Nomic attempts to become a player in an individual cycle, they first (if permitted) become a player of the game of Infinite Nomic, then (if permitted) become a player in that cycle.

Within the metaruleset, unless otherwise specified, the term "player" refers to players of the game of Infinite Nomic. Within a cycle's ruleset, unless otherwise specified, the term "player" refers to the players of that cycle.

A person shall not use multiple Discord accounts to pretend to be multiple persons.

Each player shall have an official name, used to identify them for game purposes. A player's official name is initially their Discord nickname in the server, at the time of this rule's adoption or them becoming a player of Infinite Nomic, whichever is later. A player may change to a new official name at any time by sending a message to the Discord server to that effect. Actions that refer to a specific player work as long as the player is clearly identified, even if the official name isn't used.

Section 7: Interpretation

In the course of modifications to the Metaruleset, it is acknowledged that some bugs and unintended behavior will be introduced. In order to preserve the game of Infinite Nomic, if there is any issue that is generally agreed by those who are players or should be players to be both unintentional and severely damaging to the game of Infinite Nomic, the platonic state of the Metaruleset, and the state that it defines, may be ignored and adjusted in accordance with what is generally agreed to be the best resolution of the problem.

This mechanism should not be used in cases where an emergency would suffice to resolve the issue.

This section shall have no bearing on the interpretation of any cycle ruleset, nor may the mechanism described in it be used to alter the state of a cycle.