Ikariam - Game Rules

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I. Multi-Accounting

• Every player is only allowed one account per world (server).
  
  If two or more accounts are usually, occasionally, or permanently being played from the same network, a GameOperator must be notified, without exception. In these cases the accounts must not have fleet contact while on the same connection.
  
  Fleet Contact includes but is not limited to:
  • Trading.
  • Purchasing goods through the trading post.
  • Defending or attacking a town
  • Joint raids

II. Account Sharing

• Each account is entitled to be played by a single player at a time, account sitting being the only exception.
  
  Account Sitting is allowed:
  
  Account sitting entitles a given player to have his account watched over under the following regulations:
• A GameOperator must be informed before the sitting takes place, for example by IRC or opening a ticket.
• No troop movements are allowed while the account is being sat unless an attack that may raid or crash the account is incoming, in which case you may save your troop(s) by deploying or transporting to a city owned by the account being sat. You may not intercept an incoming attack in cases where you would need to move troops for it.
• An account may only be sat for a maximum period of 12 continuous hours (GameOperators permission needs to be obtained in cases where a time extension is needed).
• The sitting period will be considered over when the actual owner logs in.
• No account may be sat during the first 3 weeks of a new World (Server).
  
  The sitter may, when he is sitting the account and while the sitting period lasts:
• Spend Resources on buildings or researches.
• Save any troops that imminently endangered by an incoming attack, only with a deployment or transport mission to one of the accounts own cities.
• Place an account into vacation mode.
  
  The sitter may not:
• Transport resources, neither between cities of the account being sat, nor to any other city.
• Spend Resources on defensive structures or troops.
• Accounts-sitting if you have already looked after another one within the last previous 7 days.
• Sitting an account that has already been sat in the previous 7 days.
• Remove an account from vacation mode.
• Change / delete any account characteristics

III. Account exchange

• Account Exchanges within a single world must be done with the assistance of a GameOperator.
  
  No complaints will be processed in cases where the players do not change their e-mail addresses after inter world exchanges or free accounts giveaways. Note that the only complaints considered will be the ones that come from the owner of a given account`s permanent email address.
  
  Once a given account changes its owner, 28 days must pass before it changes ownership again. After a new owner takes over a given account he should change the dynamic e-mail address within the first 12 hours after the account has switched owners.

IV. Bashing

• You cannot attack a player`s city more than 6 times within a 24 hour period.
  
  Bashing is only allowed when your alliance is at war with another alliance (or several alliances). However, the war must be announced in the Ikariam forum 24 hours beforehand and must comply with the forum`s specific rules.
  
  Note: Attacking troops that are completely destroyed do not count towards the bashing rule.

V. Pushing

• No account is allowed to obtain unfair profit (from resources) from a lower ranked account.
  
  This includes but is not limited to:
• Resources sent from a lower ranked account to a higher ranked one without an appropriate trade-off.
• "Loans" that are not returned within 48 hours.
• Trades in which the higher ranked player does not return the resources within 48 hours.
• Trades made with an exchange rate that differs greatly from the game world`s normal rate from which a higher ranked player can get an unfair advantage.
  
  Notes:
• Extorting a lower ranked player for resources is permitted, as long as it has been approved by a Game Operator beforehand.
• If you unexpectedly receive resources from a lower ranked player, you cannot keep them. Contact your GO immediately and send the resources back to a town owned by the player who pushed you.
• After a pushing ban is over you MUST send the resources back to the player who pushed you.
  
  Bounties:
  Bounty missions need to be acknowledged by the corresponding Game Operator before they can take place. Premiums can only be paid after the conditions of the bounty have been fulfilled.

VI. Bugusing

• Using a bug for anyone`s profit intentionally or not reporting a bug intentionally is strictly forbidden.

VII. Scripting

• Using a program as interface between the player and his game is prohibited. Any other form of automatically generated information generated for a group of players to gain an advantage over other players/groups with malicious intentions is forbidden as well.
  
  This includes but is not limited to:
• Bots
• Macros
• automatic island and town databases
  
  Note: Only exceptions to this are programs that are expressly approved by GameForge.

VIII. Proxies

• Players logging on using their mobile phone must tell the Game Operator beforehand.

IX. Abuse of the rules and their applications

• Any attempt at gaining an unfair profit from a team-member`s decision is strictly prohibited.
  
  This includes but its not limited to:
• Non English messages sent to obtain vacation mode.
• Reporting messages that do not break any rules.
• Impersonating or claiming to be staff with or without the intention of personal profit.

X. Real Life Threats

• Voicing the intention to find and do harm to another person (for example user, team member or Gameforge representative) within the game, forum as well as the official IRC-Channel is strictly forbidden.

XI. Spam

• Any actions interfering with a player`s overview are forbidden.
  
  Amongst other things, this also applies to:
• Spam through ingame messages
• Commercials for games and/or other content

XII. Content

• Anything that causes offence by being of an unacceptable quality that may hurt an individual`s integrity is strictly forbidden. The standards in the game environment will be set by the game team to meet the users moral views. Content can be censored, punished in a temporary or permanent basis; no complaints will be processed about this and as always the final word will be with the game team.

XIII. Language

• The game publisher reserves the right to exclude players from outside the publishing country or these ones who are not able to speak the respective native language. This includes but is not limited to: Game, Board and IRC official chat-rooms.
  
  Special reminder regarding:
• Ingame personal messages, ingame alliance pages, ingame alliance applications and ingame circular messages.
• Take into account that a member of the game support team might block you on a temporary or permanent basis. This includes both, accounts which might or might not have broken any of the points above.
• At the same time take into consideration that your behaviour on any of our services might end up in a permanent or temporary ban from the whole community and its services.
• The Terms and Conditions stand above the rules, please read them as well.