Guidelines

[Amandus]

Guidelines

General-

• Welcome to "A Wall of Ribbons"! Enjoy your stay, and if you're considering joining, please consider the rules below. As I write this, this site has just opened. Many of these guidelines are subject to change as I realize what works, and what doesn't.
• Harassment and drama will not be tolerated. If there is a dispute, it will be taken care of in private messages. However, I will not hesitate to ban someone who is insistently rude and incompetent. 
• This RPG contains no word count, play-bys, or activity checks. Mostly because this is not that kind of RPG in the first place, but I was never fond of any of those things.
• The time table will be based on season, then year. Each season will last about 4 days, and one year passes after two weeks. All shows and breeding will be in accordance to this schedule. If you must leave the site for a while, you may "lock" your horses so that they are frozen in time until you return.
  
• You may not create multiple accounts to run more stables. Multiple accounts run by the same person may cause confusion and inaccuracies in member count.

Stables-

• As this simulation is meant to be a sandbox, your stable may be created by any and all of your preferences. There are no limits to the goals you make with your horses, whether that's aiming to compete in the FEI or providing high quality stock for other players.
• You must first request to create a stable before beginning. But don't worry, the application doesn't have many requirements. The template for it can be found in the application board.
• Once created, all stables will be submitted into the directory in the appropriate category. In the directory entry, a basic description of your stable should be included, as well as a list of your horses and information about them. It is up to you how you present your equestrian center. You may also change the name of your stable and/or it's specialties if they no longer feel fit.

Rankings-

• As a competitive sim, your position on the leaderboard is the very axis of the game. Rankings are judged by recent competition results as well as stable value. The leaderboard will be updated frequently depending on activity levels at the time.

• The staff table over the banner image in the header will be used to spotlight the top stables in the game based on leaderboard rankings and other performances. These will not necessarily be only the stables of staff members.

Horses-

• You may give your horses a brand before their name to represent that they were bred/imported by you. If you buy a horse, you may not change its brand (or lack thereof) to yours.
• Horses may only specialize in one discipline at a time. This can be changed at any time, however, your horse will lose all progress in the brackets, and must start at local/regional again in the new discipline.
• While competing, it is possible for horses to get injured. These instances won't happen every day. If it does happen, your horse must be submitted to the vet and rest from competition until it heals. 
• Horses will be set to die between 20-30 years of age. You can "euthanize" a horse at this age and archive it in a memorial post on your stable's page when you think the time has come. 

Competitions-

• All horses will begin at the local/regional bracket at 3 years of age. From there, leveling depends on how many shows the horse has entered as well as its age. To move up to state level, it would have to have competed in 20 shows, then 50 to go national, then 80 to go international. Keep track of the amount of shows your horse has entered on its page. You may enter it in 10 shows per year, or every two week period.
• You may notice that some disciplines don't appear in certain brackets. Hunters, for example, do not go to the international level. Cross Country also only goes to the state level, from then you may want to begin them in eventing in order to continue it. Once your horse has reached the maximum level of its discipline, you may either retire it or begin it in a new discipline. 
  
• Appropriate tack is required to show. The tack shop offers items fit for every discipline. You should display your horse's selected tack in its profile as well as its show entries. If you enter it in a show without the required tack, you will be disqualified.
• Like you as the stable owner, the riders you enter in competitions will be nameless. Based on level and class, though, their age must be mentioned (i.e. hunters short stirrup).

• Every discipline will have a stickied thread explaining the rules of it. Additional rules for a particular show show will be posted in its thread. Show entries will be judged by random factors such as time or faults, and estimated skill level of the horse. 
• All entry fees will be paid to the administrator through the donation feature, who will also pay out the prize money directly to the entrants' wallets using the same feature. You may be charged for cheating if you try to get away with not paying entry fees.

Breeding-

• Horses of either gender may begin breeding at 3 years of age, and retire at 20. Breeding is open every game year in the spring and summer.
• Studs and broodmares can be listed for public breeding. The person responding to the listing will get the foal. Stallions may have up to 15 foals in one year, and mares only one, of course.
• For sake of convenience, there won't be a gestation period for mares. As soon as the breeding goes through, the players can generate the foal. It may be helpful to know basic color genetics for breeding.
  
• Of course, you may also breed two of your own horses. To do this, go to your stable's page and generate their foal by your own means. Be sure to state its sire and dam when making the foal's profile.
• Any foal of a cross-breeding not resulting in a legitimate new breed will result in a grade horse. Remember that grade horses are not allowed to compete beyond the local/regional level.  
• Colts and stallions may be gelded by the vet for $500. Gelding a horse could potentially increase its performance. It is also recommended if a stallion does not necessarily meet breed standards.

Clubs-

• Clubs are player-created groups that unite players over commonalities between stables. They may either be based around a certain breed or discipline, including official ones from real life, such as the AQHA.
• Like stables, clubs are very open-ended. The owner of it may create their own rules and standards for joining and submitting horses. They may also hold contests and give prizes to members.
  
• There is a designated sub-board under competitions for club shows. If your club is hosting a show, you must mention the club's name in the thread title. This board may not be used for contests; those should be hosted through your club's directory entry.
• Clubs do not need to be requested to be created. If you have an idea, you can get started on it!
  
  

Economy-

• The administrator manages the central money pool in this RPG. This means that I have given myself the power to "print" money to add to this pool, which will help pay for initial stable wages and show earnings, especially for those competing in the expensive FEI. 

• All stables will initially start out with $50,000. This may be spent on importing/buying your first horses, and initial show entries.
• After this first wage, your stable will earn $25,000 weekly. You will not be paid simply for posting on this site, only through the weekly wage, selling/breeding horses, and show earnings. In addition, with the monetary system is a stock market feature and bank interest which you can use to your advantage.
  
• Whatever is in your bank account does not count towards your stable value. Be sure to have enough money visibly on-hand if you're interested in your leaderboard position or being spotlighted.
• Trades between players will most often be private using the donation feature. Please report any instances of scamming to a staff member, and they will see to the problem. You will be warned if you scam once. The second time, you will be banned. 

Sales-

• Importing a foundation: for this you would request the administrator to create a horse of a certain breed, gender, and color. Foundations cost $2,000 each, and are created at 3 years of age. There is no limit to how many foundations you can import at a time, as long as you can afford them. If you decide to import more horses after your initial ones, still post in the same thread.
• In public sales, you will list a horse up for grabs for a certain price. Whoever replies first gets the horse to add to their stable.
• Private sales are threads where a sale is carried out after an agreement between two players in private. Private sales should be quick and hopefully scam-free. 
• Classifieds are used to find a horse meeting certain requirements. This may include everything from breed to level of competition. If someone has a horse meeting those requirements, a private sale should be arranged.