Rules and Regulations
about the DPjudge | the DPPD | common questions
DPjudge Regulations I. Registration
· Registration for Use
· The Judgekeeper
· The GameMaster
· The Players

The DPjudge creator
wishes to thank
Mark Kindrachuk
for his contributions
toward the creation
of these house rules.
  1. Every user of the DPjudge must register their full, true, and correct name with the DPjudge Player Database (DPPD).
  2. Under no circumstances whatsoever may any user ever create or maintain more than one registration record in the DPPD. Persons having multiple e-mail addresses may easily tell the DPPD to add each one to his or her one-and-only, single DPPD registration record, and must not create a second registration.
II. The Judgekeeper
  1. Every DPjudge shall have one human judgekeeper, who may request and receive the assistance of one or more other persons to fulfill the duties of this position.
  2. The judgekeeper may not participate as a player in any game without express consent of the GameMaster.
  3. The judgekeeper may set all use policies, may admit, blacklist, or remove any person from the DPjudge Player Database, and may take any action he sees fit in or concerning any game run on the DPjudge. Objections to the actions of the judgekeeper may be made only to the judgekeeper, who has sole right of review, and to the general public.
  4. The judgekeeper is obligated to investigate all reported violations of these rules. After due investigation into potential violations of these rules as reported to the judgekeeper by any player or GameMaster, or by the automated alarms provided by the DPjudge itself, sanctions for violations of these rules shall be decided by the judgekeeper, whose decisions as to intention and severity of the infraction are final. No appeal except for reconsideration is possible. Penalties up to and including permanent and publicized expulsion from the ranks of DPjudge users shall be enforced.
III. The GameMaster
  1. Every game on the DPjudge must have a human GameMaster. The GameMaster is responsible for the creation of the game and the setting of all parameters.
  2. The GameMaster may not participate as a power in the game. Further, the GameMaster may not take any action in the role of any player (such as entering orders, sending press, etc.) without having been instructed to do so by the player.
  3. A GameMaster may not abandon his responsibility to the game without having identified and installed a willing and dedicated replacement. The judgekeeper is empowered to determine if a GameMaster is in violation of this rule, based on attentiveness to the game and resposiveness to the judgekeeper. Violations of this rule will be punished as severely as violations of any other rule.
  4. The GameMaster is the sole decider of game settings and parameters, including the determination as to whether the game is
    • a public game (meaning that it is open to all DPjudge users and must be played anonymously) or
    • a private game (meaning that it may include persons who know each other, and need not be played anonymously).
    In games in which the chosen settings do not automatically penalize tardy players by civil disorder or automatic resignation, the GameMaster should make known to the players his or her policy concerning the length of time he will wait after a deadline before resigning a late player on his own accord or entertaining calls from the other players to effect such a resignation. Once announced, this policy is not to be altered by the GameMaster during the play of a game.
  5. Once any player has joined the game intending to participate, no parameters may be changed without the unanimous consent of all (uneliminated) players. If a GameMaster alters any game setting or parameter without having obtained unanimous consent for the change, any objecting player may petition the judgekeeper, who shall restore the original parameters to the game and cause any necessary phases of play to be readjudicated.
  6. Notwithstanding the above rule, a GameMaster shall not modify any game setting or parameter that would alter the victory condition (including by the introduction of the NO_DIAS rule) of any game that has commenced play. Any such change that is made is subject to revocation by the judgekeeper upon the request of any person.
  7. The GameMaster may not divulge to any player any information or misinformation concerning any other player's identity, game situation, strategy, tactical intentions or tendencies, alliance structure, or any other game-related information.
  8. The GameMaster may not kibitz by offering, even if requested, any strategic or tactical advice to any player or player(s) in the game, nor divulge any information to any person who is engaged in kibitzing. The GameMaster may, however, refer any player to published sources, including records of completed games, or to other human advisors who do not have access to game information.
  9. The GameMaster is responsible for enforcement of these rules in the game. With the assistance of the players and automated alarms provided by the judge, the GameMaster is to be vigilant for any violations. The GameMaster may remove any player from the game by forceful resignation for any infraction of these rules that the GameMaster deems significant. Upon due consideration of an incident, if the GameMaster determines that the violation is serious and intentional, it is to be reported immediately to the judgekeeper with a recommendation for further action.
  10. If all (uneliminated) players agree that the GameMaster should be replaced for any reason, then upon communication of this agreement to the judgekeeper, the judgekeeper shall assume responsibility to Master the game or to install another GameMaster of his choosing.
IV. The Players
  1. A person may play one and only one power during any game. Exceptions: Players who have joined a game but who have not yet had a set of submitted orders be processed by the judge are permitted to resign one power and take up position as another power if they receive permission from the Game Master, who is obliged in any game allowing private press to poll the other players for unanimous consent. This rule is also waived for variant games in which control of multiple powers by a single person is explicitly allowed by rule and for private games when unanimous consent of the other players and the GameMaster is obtained for an eliminated person to take a different, vacated role later in the game.
  2. No player shall at any time access any information on the DPjudge that cannot be retrieved using only his own power's password. A player who becomes aware of any other player's password or the Master's password shall report this immediately to the GameMaster.
  3. No player shall join a public game if he has prior knowledge that any particular player known to him is participating in the game.
  4. No player in a public game shall make any statement or divulge any information to any other player that will or may reveal his or her true identity, nor may a player represent himself or herself to be some other real-life person. If a player becomes aware of the true identity of any player in the game after play has commenced, he is to immediately report this knowledge to the GameMaster and inform the GameMaster of any and all relationships that he may have with the player whose identity has been exposed. Likewise, any player who becomes aware that he has accidentally exposed his own identity to another player is to report this immediately to the GameMaster. The decision of the GameMaster as to any necessary remedy, including announcing the interplayer relationship to the other players and/or removing one or more players from the game, is final. Note that players who believe they recognize the writing style or other peculiarities of a player are not obliged to report their presumption as to the identity of the other player.
  5. All players must be completely honest and candid in all communications with the GameMaster and the judgekeeper. All violations of this rule shall be penalized by blacklisting, and no exceptions shall be made.
  6. All players are obliged to abide by the spirit and intent of all game settings and parameters. Except when forbidden by rule, communication between players may be made at any time, and eliminated players may continue to communicate and participate in a game. Except in private games, all interplayer communication, including draw and concession proposals, is to take place using only the press mechanisms provided by the judge.
  7. Interception by any means of any e-mail or Web traffic properly addressed and delivered to another party is forbidden. This rule covers reading any other player's e-mail without his or her knowledge by gaining access to their e-mail client or logged-in Web browser, and also covers interception by means of network packet redirection and other electronic means.
  8. Cross-gaming transactions (for example, rewards or retaliation in one game for actions in another game) and extra-gaming transactions (such as paying real-world money for an alliance) are prohibited.
  9. Players who require a deadline extension should contact the GameMaster as far in advance as possible, and inform the GameMaster of the reason for the request. Repeated absenteeism or tardiness in submitting orders may result in the removal of a player from the game at the sole discretion of the GameMaster.
  10. Mild literary abuse of the GameMaster and of other players is permitted, but use of profane or obscene language will not be tolerated if any objection is raised from any quarter. If the GameMaster feels that any disagreement has turned personal and that the discussion surrounding it has gone too far, the GameMaster will issue a warning, after which the conduct in question must stop or this rule shall be deemed to have been violated. In the worst case this may lead to blacklisting.
  11. A player who discovers that the judge has made an error in adjudication must inform the GameMaster and judgekeeper immediately. If the GameMaster determines that it is not possible to correct the error without affecting the result of the game, the GameMaster may terminate the game.
  12. Any player who becomes aware that any other player or GameMaster is acting in violation of these rules, intentionally or otherwise, has a positive obligation to immediately inform the GameMaster (or, in the case of perceived violation by the GameMaster, the judgekeeper).
The DPjudge is copyright © 1995-2024 by Manus Hand. All rights reserved.