Ever had this little issue?
You type up rules and stare at them for hours and hate them. Because they're either too long and intimidating, or too short and vague. I always miss rules and I'm always worried someone will be scared away because there aren't rules that answer their questions or there's too many rules and it'll make them think we're strict.

On my site I have quite a few rules. It's a semi realistic wolf RP. I'm really not sure if they even make sense 'cause I've been too scared to read over them 'cause I know I'll want to redo the whole thing.
So will you read over them for me and tell me what you think? :pink:

This is a direct copy/paste of my whole rules page:

I thank anyone who takes the time to actually read this runon ramble of boring <3

I would suggest a spell and grammar check. There is an error right in the beginning (which doesn't look good) and one of your "Canada/Canadian"s is not capt'.

That doesn't really make sense. Something should either be frowned upon, or not, otherwise it just confuses people.

I, also, personally, don't like the double posting rule. Generally, that's just common sense and doesn't really need to be in there, since it is unlikely to happen. And on an rpg, I don't think it needs to be a rule, like it might need to be on just a regular community such as RPG-D.

Also, I think you should add "other people/sites" to your no stealing rule, instead of just limiting it to your site, members and staff. Otherwise, it makes it seem like you're okay with them stealing from elsewhere and bringing it to your game.

I think your rules actually look good, in their actual concept. But I would suggest changing "Etcetera" to "Et cetera." This is just a nit-picky grammar thing that I noticed. Others may not, but I have an eagle's eye for grammar. And I would suggest "semi-realistic" rather than "semi realistic." These are changes that don't necessarily have to be made, but it would make them a little bit easier to read.

Generally, i like rules as long as there aren't any silly abominations like "no powerplaying but staff can do it" or "every post you make has to be approved by a moderator". Actually, I really like your rules, they're fair and work just right.

I feel your pain. I worry about how strict/lax my rules are and how that affects current and potential players, too.

I think yours look pretty good, though. I noticed the same things hornstothepressbox and pathogenicoma did.

Don't be wishy-washy about requesting ranks, because then people don't know whether it's okay or not. Just lay out your rules for it and leave it at that. If you don't want people to do it, you shouldn't suggest it, even in the negative.

You've got a couple typos that should be fixed.

And adding something about no stealing from other 'sites would be good, since you felt the need to say it about stealing from your own.

Oooo I did limit it to my site. That's mostly 'cause I've never had an issue with people stealing from other sites to use on ours, but I've had many many many issues with people stealing from my site 3<

Thanks for all your input. I'm gonna edit them up a bit and run them through a spell checker tonight ^-^

Zr, you goose. I like your rules. -pokes at mine- We fail xD Good thing CD is laid back.

Anyway -points to everyone in this thread- What they said x)

Other than the small things, these rules are really very good. They add some sort of sensibility to the board, and let people know that your site is grounded in FACT, not bullshit.

I'm comming across the same problem. My site is up and has all of 6 rules. The bare basics. I'm hoping once I have more admin/mods I can disscuss it with them. But past no god modding and be nice what is there really to say?

If you think it's bad, don't do it?

I left the end of my rules Subject to Change. But I feel I'm still being too vauge. Is indepth rules the way to go?

I think it often depends on the game, how the rules should be laid out. Each game has different requirements and needs as far as rules (and other things informative) go.

Say you're running a highschool rpg, you really don't need a lot of rules for that, but if you have an original fantasy game, you're going to need more rules and guidelines more often than not (even if they are just in the form of what certain races/whatever can and cannot do, etc.).

Looks good to me, although if you want it to be shorter, there are many places where you could eliminate unnecessary sentences. I see several that are redundant and could be removed. For instance, "Theft of any kind will result in a ban. It will never be tolerated." You don't need the second sentence; the first one says it nicely.

Unless you've had a problem with that and feel you really need to hammer it home. Sometimes roleplayers are like small children. You have to tell them five times before they quite get that you mean it. This is especially true when it's an online game, and you can't actually throw dice at the player to get their attention.

First I'd run a spell check. You spelled etiquette wrong. It's difficult to take an admin or a board seriously when they don't make that effort. I'd also get rid of the Roman numerals unless stylistically it relates to your board. It'll be cleaner visually.

I'm also of the school less is more. Maybe state the rules in a simple sentences. "Drama queens who pick fights will also not be tolerated." Not really a necessary sentence.

I think your rules look good. I agree with what other people have said about making certain rules more concise, but other than that everything seems good. I don't think it's too long or too short. Everything seems specific enough to be understood easily, but like I said, you can make some more concise.

And just to go laong with everyone else, don't forget the rule about not stealing from other sites. I know enough people have said it that you'll probably do it, so I'm just reminding you ;)

In my experience, if they're that dumb, writing two sentences instead of one on a topic isn't going to up their IQs any.

It doesn't actually work with small children, either, but I find that sometimes I can't help but give players yet another chance before sending them to their rooms for the remainder of the game. I have this insane hope that if I say it enough times, in enough different ways, eventually I'll hit on the correct combination of words to penetrate the thick fog/wall of lead that surrounds their brains.

Honestly, I agree with what most other people ahve said.

Your rules aren't as harsh as some that are around; they set the ground rules without destroying freedom, which I have seen happen. At the same time, your rules aren't lax enough that members will take advantage and (in a worst case scenario) bring the site down.

That's my two bits, at least.