Current rules of Imperial Game 9.

1. The decision of The Imperious Emperor is final.

2. The Imperious Emperor will judge each proposal submitted and either accept or reject it. If a later rule states the possibility, then the Imperious Emperor may also ignore certain proposals.

3. The Imperious Emperor may, at any time, modify or remove any existing rule or enact new rules.

4. The Emperor may, at any time, issue a Directive calling for legislation in a particular area, or may issue a Proclamation describing new laws. If a Directive is issued, the first player with an appropriate accepted proposal receives a bonus of 2 A points (appropriate being TIE's judgement).

5. The Humble Scribe must publish via the World Wide Web the current set of rules, the current state of all proposals and decisions, and the current scores of all players.

6. The Humble Scribe may rewrite a proposal to clarify its meaning, as long as the rewriting does not change its meaning.

7. The Imperious Emperor is Duncan Richer.

8. The Humble Scribe is Duncan Richer

9. Any player may propose a new rule or change to an existing rule by notifying The Humble Scribe via email or the World Wide Web.

10. If a player has submitted two proposals which have not been accepted, rejected or ignored and that player submits a new proposal, the new proposal will replace the older proposal. No points shall be awarded for the replaced proposal. Proposals submitted in response to directives shall be excluded for the purposes of this rule.

11. Any player may, at any time, with no effect on his score, submit a Point of Order to raise any issue relevant to the game.

12. Each player must chose one name under which to play. Submissions which, in the opinion of The Humble Scribe, originate from the same player, will be treated as such.

13. Each submission will be numbered and a new rule will apply to all submissions numbered greater than or equal to its own proposal unless it specifies otherwise.

14. When several rules apply at the same time and have different consequences then the rule with the lowest number is applied first. Other rules may then be applied so long as they do not conflict directly with a rule that has already been applied.

15. If a player's proposal is rejected, that player receives 1 B point.

16. If a player's proposal is accepted, that player receives 2 A points.

17. If a player's proposal is ignored, that player loses 1 A point and receives 1 B point.

18. The game ends when a player has 5 C points and not more than 5 B points, and is also a Hero or Villain, but not Dead, and that player will be named the Winner.

19. With the agreement of the Imperious Emperor, a game may be continued after the Winner has been found. This continuation is in fact a new game, with an initial ruleset being the final ruleset of the previous game. All players scores are set to zero. The Imperious Emperor becomes an ordinary player, provided that the Winner wishes to be TIE for the next game. A game succeeding Game 9 shall be designated 9A, that succeeding 9A 9B etc.

20. All undecided proposals at the end of a completed game are null and void, and are not applied in the next game.

21. Points are taken to have been awarded at the time of the Emperor's decision.

22. A player may use 2 A points to get rid of 1 B point at any time.

23. TIE has 3 hidden Mysterious Magic Words (MMWs) in the game. Any player whose score is an MMW loses all their B points and gains 2 C points. That MMW is no longer used and is not replaced.

24. Any player who makes a fantastically grand proposal or a ridiculously lousy proposal will have his P point score altered accordingly. Players may send email to TIE telling him what they think of certain proposals and a player's P point score can change by 1 point (with a net total of 3 people approving or disapproving the proposal. Each player can vote at most once on each proposal's popularity. TIE may also change P scores at his or her own discretion. Any player may attempt to Snub another player by attracting TIE's attentions. If the proposal before the attempted Snub has not been decided upon, then the proposer of that proposal becomes the Snubbee. If the Snubber's P score is more than the Snubbee's by at least 5, then the Snubbee's proposal is automatically ignored. If the Snubbee's Popularity is greater than the Snubber's, then the Snubber's proposal is ignored and the Snubbee is awarded an A point for the insult. If neither of the above is the case, then the Snub succeeds if the Proposal snubbed has an odd number, failing if the Proposal snubbed has an even number. Proposals that Snubbed others may themselves be Snubbed. Snubbing might be done blindly, without the player knowing whom they might be snubbing. A Snubbing costs the Snubber 1 P point.

25. If a proposal is ignored the proposer may submit it to review by the Court of Appeal in exchange for gaining 1 B point. If at least 3 of the Court of Appeal agree that the proposal has merit and should be accepted the ignoree gains 1 C point and the proposal is submitted to TIE for reevaluation. TIE may accept or reject the proposal as he will, granting the original proposer the proper score, but he may not ignore it again. If less than 3 of the Court 5 speak in favor of the proposal the ignoree loses 1 A.

26. Should a proposal be rejected by the Emperor, the player may put it before the Court of Appeal by submitting an Appeal. Each member of the Court votes for or against the proposal, sending their decision to THS. When the vote has been taken, if everyone who can vote votes yes, the proposal is accepted, and the player gains 2 A points and a D point. Otherwise, the player gains 2 B points and an E point.

27. The Court of Appeal consists of the last 5 players to have a proposal accepted. If the player making an appeal is a member of the Court, they cannot vote.

28. 10 A points can be traded for 1 C point.

29. A proposal will be ignored if it does not meet the rules that were in place at the time it was submitted, if it is insulting to the Emperor, or is impossible to implement or would create a paradox.

30. All proposals lacking flattery of the Emperor will gain 1 extra B point and lose 1 extra A point.

31. If one or more directives are currently unfulfilled, any proposals received which do not pertain to a directive will be deferred until all directives are fulfilled. After that time, TIE will consider the deferred proposals as if they had just been proposed by their respective authors.

32. If switching every A point for a B point in one player's score would make his score identical to one other player's score, and both players have unique scores, then both players will be awarded an A point.

33. If a proposal contains undefined terms and the proposal is accepted the undefined term wil be placed in a list that is published with the Scores and Other Stats. If a proposal is submited that defines a term in the list and is accepted the proposer gains 1A extra per defined term, the term then is removed from the list. If in a proposal a term is being defined that already has been defined the TIE will decide if the new definition is 1) ignored 2) accepted as the only right one(term redefined). If the definition is malicious, however, the proposer will also gain 2B, regardless of whether the proposal is accepted or not.

34. A player whose score contains ACCEP will lose ACCEP and gain T.

35. Only the letters A-T can be used to represent scores.

36. If a player at any time has both 5 B points and a C point, then they are removed from the player's score.

37. Those voting with the majority in the Court of Appeal shall gain 1 A point, those voting in the minority shall lose 2 A points.

38. All players are of one of three races: The Sapsuckers who live in the East, the Sandgropers who live in the West, and the Croweaters who live in the Centre.

39. A new player may nominate a sponsor by submitting the name of a current player and having that player send a recommendation to the current Emperor. The new player's score for their first proposal will be as if they submitted it themselves normally, while the sponsor will gain 1 A point if the proposal is accepted, and 2 B points if it is rejected. To indicate sponsorship, the new player must inform TIE in the proposal who the sponsor is.

40. A proposal containing no capital letters or periods will be ignored.

41. If a player's first submission is accepted they gain a bonus of 2 A points.

42. The Empire is bounded on the North, West and East by the Mountainous Mountains, and on the South by the Sea of Troubles. Any player sailing away to either Imperial Game 7 or 8 who brings back suitable tribute shall gain 1 or 2 H points. Unsuitable tribute (the meaning of which is left up to TIE) shall result in deduction of H points instead.

43. A player may expend a C point to remove all B,D and E points from another player's score.

44. (Point Reservoirs) Abolished by Proposal 250.

45. The acceptance rate of proposals must be at least one in four.

46. Anybody whose points multiply to total 100 is called the Obscure Pearl. For example, someone who reaches 10A and 10B qualifies. If more than one player qualifies at once, then the player with the fewest C points is the Pearl. In the case of a tie neither player becomes TOP until only one player qualifies. Once a player no longer qualifies, they lose the position. Any player who has TOP in their score also qualifies.

47. Abolished by Proclamation 250

48. If the last two players to have proposals accepted were of the same race, then all other proposals from players of that race shall be deferred until a player of another race has a proposal accepted. This rule takes effect from the time when at least two races have at least 3 declared members each.

49. Each proposal must be accompanied by at least two votes on the popularity of previous proposals, or be rejected.

50. A rule that makes some otherwise acceptable proposals ignored will not take effect until all proposals received by THS before the rule change have been decided.

51. Any player may move from one location in the Empire to another by expending a single A point. To move beyond the boundaries of the Empire, you must always expend a D point in addition to any other requirement set down in the rules.

52. The eastern ranges of the Mountainous Mountains are densely forested. The wood of the Glumba tree, which grows in profusion in the highest parts of the forest, is highly prized by the shipwrights of the southern seaports. Unfortunately, these forests are infested with three species of man-eating beast: Leapers, Creepers, and the extremely poisonous Weepers, which lurk in the branches of trees and drip their venom on the unwary. Only Heroes may defeat them.

53. A player may declare himself to be a Supporter of another player's next proposal(without actually knowing what that proposal is). Should the proposal be Accepted, the Supported player gains a bonus +1A in addition to his normal award. Should the proposal be Rejected, the Supported player doesn't receive the normal 1B, this goes instead to the Supporter. In any case, the Supporter gains +1P for this generous act. This only lasts for 1 Proposal, and a player can only Support one other player at a time.

54. Once one player has Supported another, they may not Support each other again until one player has Supported or been Supported by a third player.

55. A player shall become a Hero on collection of three H points.

56. A player with positive P points may challenge another player with positive P points to a duel. If the challenged player rejects the duel, they lose 1 P point to the challenger. Otherwise, both players have 2d6 rolled for them, and added to their number of S points. The winner can either take away one point from the loser and add it to their own, or give the loser one of their points. Points that cannot be exchanged in this way are attribute points. Attribute Points are P points and S points. The winner of a duel also gains 1 S point.

57. Voting on Popularity of Proposals will be by secret ballot.

58. Creepers, Weepers and Leapers will Attack anyone who is in their Location(i.e. the Eastern Mountainous Mountains) when they make a Proposal. If the last digit of the proposal number is 1,2,3,4, a Creeper attacks; on 5,6,7 a Weeper attacks; and on 8,9,0 a Leaper attacks. If the player is a Hero, they will defeat the beast and get one G point(for wood of the Glumba tree). Otherwise, they get the G point anyway, but lose 1A for a Creeper, 2A for a Weeper, and 3A for a Leaper attack. There is a 1 in 30 chance that the creature is none of these, but is in fact a Sleeper which removes all A points from a player's score.

59. The empire consists of six realms: In the west, comprising almost half of the empire's territory,is the land of the Sandgropers, a vast and sparsely populated land of plains, in the extreme west of which is the ancient fortified city of Friment. In the centre of the Empire are the two ancient kingdoms of the Croweaters, Adelia in the south, in which the Imperial Capital is situated, and Darnia in the north; and in the east are the lands of the three tribes of the Sapsuckers,from south to north; the Vitarii , the Nusowal, and the barbarous Bannan Aben, many of whom are so misguided as to refuse to do Your Imperial Majesty the homage you are due. The Free City of Cambar lies on the border of Vitaria, Nusowalland and Adelia. The capital cities are as follows: Adelia: Adelia City, Darnia: Darn, Sandgroper Country: Frement, Vitaria: Wellworn, Nusowalland: Cinni, and Bannan Abendland: Breezwane. Another, seventh territory exists, an island to the south-east of the empire proper, but is a land of demons, who call themselves the Veyne. The Veyne demons' land has never fully been brought under Imperial control.

60. Once in every period of 25 proposals, The Obscure Pearl may remove all points of one type from a player of their choice, such points reverting to TIE's coffers.

61. A Location is defined as any named place in the Empire. All Locations will be listed in the List of Locations published on the Web after the list of Undefined Terms. Should an accepted proposal contain the name of a place that a player might wish to visit, the name shall be added to the location list so that players may reach it.

62. A player can Sail Away if they have Glumba wood, a D point to expend, and 4 A points to pay the shipwrights of the Southern Seaports. Sailing Away to other lands takes 10 proposals. H points are earned by completing missions for the Empire, which shall be listed after the list of Locations. There must always be at least one mission available, with the number of H points earned based on the difficulty of the mission.

63. No player may vote on the popularity of their own proposal.

64. If the addition of points would take the total number of points of all classes held by a player above 31, then these points shall be subtracted instead.

65. If a rule is responsible for the forced rejection or ignoring of a player's proposal, they may later resubmit it once. No other player may submit that same proposal, or one with exactly the same meaning, unless the original player agrees. In this case, if the proposal is accepted the 2 A points awarded shall be split between the two players.

66. Points may be freely traded between players. A player wishing to initiate such a trade offers a set of points from their total up for auction by sending a For Sale Notice to THS, who will publish it. Interested players then send their bids to THS, who will publish all bids 15 proposals after the offer. The seller then informs THS which bid (if any) they accept,the trade being made immediately on acceptance. If no bid is accepted, then the offer lapses.

67. A player may buy a shield by spending a C, E, L or S point. Only one shield may be carried at once, but a C shield protects against Creeper attacks, an L shield against Leapers, an S shield against Sleepers, and an E shield against Weepers, so that the player is not hurt by the creatures' attacks.

68. Compact Discs can be bought for a C point and a D point. Each Compact Disc can be played once for a special effect. CD's available are as follows:
    • "Sail Away" allows a player to Sail Away.
    • "Take a Letter, Maria" allows a player to remove one point from their score.
    • "Three Minute Hero" gives player Hero status for 3 proposals.
    • "Don't Fear the Reaper" protects against 'eeper attacks if listened to before the proposal which caused the attack.

69. Cities are places that can be dangerous to the unwary. If a player is in a city that is not Well Known to them, then there is a 5% chance per proposal they make there that they will be robbed. The robber will take a Randomly selected point from them (excluding S, P and H points). Of course, the justice of this Empire being as it is, the thief is apprehended at once, and the point returned to the Emperor's pool.

70. By spending a D point, a player can transfer 1 point of his to any other player.

71. It is well known that despite the best efforts of TIE, and His enlightened subjects (e.g. rule 48), interracial tension still exists. Therefore, a traveller entering the homeland of another race may purchase Imperial protection at the cost of an additional A point. Protection lasts for the duration of the traveller's stay in that land. A traveler may be challenged by an inhabitant of the land. When the challenge is issued, THS rolls 1d6. If the traveler has protection, the challenge is successful if 1 or 2 is rolled (1,2 or 3 in Bannan Abendland), otherwise if 1,2,3 or 4 is rolled. A successful challenger gives the traveller 2 B points, while an unsuccessful challenger receives 2 B points from the traveller. The challenger acts on behalf of the whole tribe, and the same player may not be challenged again during his stay.

72. The votes of the Court of Appeal will not be published until all votes have been received. Only the names of those who have voted will be known during the voting period.

73. Every 20 proposals, night becomes day or vice versa. Travellers at night have a 10% chance of losing one of their points to a thief (point chosen at random). Multiple moves in one night each have a 10% chance.

74. All references to trading of points require the player to have positive points. A player may not trade away to a negative points situation or buy an item when they have no points of the type needed.

75. A location is Well Known to a player if it is their home location or they have stayed there for a day and a night. A land is Well Known to a player if it is their homeland (the Realm in which they originate), they are Well Known in three locations within that land, or angarook is in force.

76. A player who has two consecutive proposals ignored shall have 2 B added to their score.

77. A player may contribute a tome to the Imperial Library, earning 1 A point and 1 P point, provided that TIE and THS are informed of the title and approve of its publication.

78. All locations are Well Known to the Emperor. A Jetsetter has all locations within the Empire as Well Known, while a Worlds Traveller has all locations outside the Empire as Well Known.

79. A Worlds Traveller is a player who has managed to leave the Imperial Game 9 Area three times. A Jetsetter is a player who has visited ten locations inside the Empire, including all the cities.

80. A player may exchange 7 A points for 1 D point.

81. A player in the same location as a Dimensional Portal may exchange 1 object for an Alien Artifact from another Imperial Game, provided someone on the other side (i.e. in the other game) is there to make the trade.

82. If TOP tries to remove points from a player when the Proposal number ends in 7 or 0, the player attacked can do likewise to TOP.

83. The official Currency is the Cactarian Imperial. A player's Imperial total will be kept secret from the other players.

84. (Frequency of Points Info) Repealed by Proposal 284.

85. (Pirate Longbeard) Repealed by Resubmission 206.

86. Within the Black Lake there lives a mysterious beast of the deeps, and any player moving to the Black Lake shall encounter it. It has lived through countless ages and has great knowledge about the world. Should a player encounter it when the number of the last published proposal ends in 1,4 or 9, it will grant that player a brief insight into the Lands, and angarook shall be in force for that player until the sun has both risen and set on the Empire. If the last digit is 2,3,5 or 7, it will reach out with one of its tentacles and steal a point from the player, going first for As, then Bs, then Cs... etc. If it is 6,8 or 0, it will stare that player in the eye for a while and then depart. That player will gain 1 H point for bravery, but this benefit may only be claimed once by any player. "angarook" is simply defined as a heightened state of awareness about the lands of the empire.

87. Anyone in the Library can read any of the books there by paying an A point. Photocopies may be made for 1 Imperial each, but such players may fall foul of the Copyright Laws, having in their posession a photocopy of the book.

88. A member of any race may convert 1 G point to a weapon (K point). Sandgropers produce Krossbows, Sapsuckers Blowpipes and Croweaters Boomerangs. When attacked by a Wild Animal (to include 'eepers), a player possessing a K point, even if not a Hero, has a chance to defeat the Animal. THS shall roll a six-sided die; this shall be modified by +1 for each H point the player has (for Heroes and those on the path to becoming Heroes are more talented with weaponry). If the modified result exceeds the number of A points that would normally be lost as a result of the Animal's attack, then the player instead successfully Shoots the Animal, Defeating it, and in addition to the normal benefits of Defeating such an Animal, gains the Pelt of the Animal and furthermore for Hunting skill gains one H point, up to a maximum of 2.

89. If 5 proposals are backed up due to Rule 48, then they are decided upon and all players not of the race of those who have had their proposals deferred lose 1 P point.

90. A player can smoke weed. Weed is illegal and smoking it earns the player 3B points except in Adelia and Cambar where there is no penalty. The effects of smoking weed are determined by a d6 roll: 1-3 the player is affected by "the munchies", 4-5 the player is "stoned", 6 the player achieves angarook for 10 proposals. A player affected by the munchies can make no other proposals until they have had a proposal accepted where they have bought and consumed food. A player who is stoned may not make any proposals until 5 proposals have been accepted, they then gain one H point.

91. An accepted proposal which receives three or more negative popularity votes may be submitted by any player to the Court of Appeal, who will vote on whether they consider that the resulting Rule (or rule modification) should be repealed, in which case the appellant gains 1D. In the event that the court takes this position, the proposal shall be resubmitted to TIE, who will take such action as, in his great wisdom, he sees fit. Should TIE decide that the proposal be rejected, the proposer shall lose 1A, if the decision is to ignore the proposershall gain 1B, and if the acceptance is reaffirmed they shall lose 2B. If the original acceptance is not reaffirmed, then any effect the proposal may have had on the rules is repealed.

92. A player is Well Known in a location when the location is Well Known to them and they have had a proposal accepted in that location.

93. Cactarian Imperials may be earned by Selling various Valuable Commodities to An Imperial Merchant. The Imperial Merchant has a Caravan that moves from city to city. It beings in Adelia City Square and moves to a different city at dawn each day. Any player in possession of Items may sell them to the Merchant. Present values of items are: Compact Disc(any) - 10 Imperials; Photocopied Book - 2 Imperials(although the player might get into trouble with Copyright Laws); Shield - 5 Imperials; Pelt of an Animal - 8 Imperials; Weed - 5 Imperials, but the merchant will only buy this in Adelia and Cambar; The Hat Of Longbeard - 25 Imperials. Items sold to the Merchant disappear from the game permanently. The Humble Scribe will keep players informed of how many Imperials they have each time they attempt to make a Transaction.

94. Players can decide to hold Parties in order to increase the general level of happiness and merriment in Your Wonderful Empire! In order to hold a Party, the player holding the party(hereafter referred to as "The Host") must be in a City Location. It costs 5 A to Host a party, and invitations will be sent out to everyone in the Empire(this will be published in the proposal list). The Party will last for one Night and begin at the next Sunset after the Invitation is published. The Host may not move from the Party Location until the Party is over. A player who wishes to attend the Party, hereafter referred to as a Guest, may do so simply by moving to the location and paying 1A. Guests may join the Party at any time, if they join before the official starting time they will simply wait for the Party to start, performing no other movements until it does. For every Guest who joins the party in excess of 2, the Host gains 1P. Guests at a party receive Food and Drink. They will also receive 1 J Point(for Jollity). They may leave at any time, but anyone left at the end of a Party will gain 1P and be Drunk, including the Host.

95. No rule shall give one race any benefit over any other race explicitly.

96. Any objects from another world which have an immediate and obvious use in this may be used freely. Any objects which have a use but do not seem to apply in this Empire may be declared useless by the Emperor during the stay, or may be assigned appropriate powers. Any objects deemed unbalancing to the game by the Emperor shall be confiscated from the visitor on entering the Empire and returned to them as they leave.

97. The Central Market in Adelia City is a bizarre bazaar where anything can be bought or traded. It is one of the Wonders of the World. A Player in the Market can purchase anything they so desire if they can pay the price. They do this by sending a Proposal to TIE describing the item they wish to purchase and the price they are willing to pay. TIE then determines whether the Price is Right and if the Player manages to buy the item. A Player can also sell anything by sending a Proposal to TIE who decides whether the Player is able to sell the item and what price e receives. The Market is, however, not a place for the faint hearted and fools are often parted from their gold. The risk of mugging is twice as high in the Market as elsewhere in the land and any Player in the Market with 10 or more Imperials has a one in ten chance of having them all stolen. These dangers are, of course, only for those for whom the Market is not a Well Known location.

98. Anyone not paying the author 1 Imperial (this in addition to the fee charged by the Photocopying Machines) for the opportunity to photocopy their works shall be in breach of the Copyright Laws. A player in breach of the Copyright Laws shall be fined 1 P point.

99. A player can learn a profession by spending a C point. A list of professions and their benefits shall be held in the scores and statistics page.

100. Anybody reaching -5 P points shall be termed a 'Despicable Fellow'. This player must then, via THS, seek the support of another player, and have it granted before he may make any further proposals.

101. If a Hero ever has nonpositive P points, the Hero is awarded enough P points to leave them at 1 P point.

102. Longbeard is not the only one to have come through the mysterious magical portals. Strange Black Bags are beginning to show up in the Southern Seaports; it is rumoured that these Bags contain visitors from Imperial Game Seven, who may have some Alien Artifacts with them. They will enter the game as a new player and may make proposals. A player may run both a player and any number of visitors simultaneously. Visitors shall be bound by all rules that affect normal players, including choosing a race. In order to establish the visitor, it is necessary for it to be published in Imperial Game Seven that the player in question has left the Empire, and all visitors must have an unique name, so that you cannot have two Big Mad Drongos for example. They will appear in the Southern Seaports together with all the Alien Artifacts that they brought along with them.

103. Although travel to the Veyne Demon's Land requires the use of a ship, it shall not constitute Sailing Away, and so shall require the expenditure of 3A instead of 1D. The voyage to Hoorbat, the capital of that foul land shall take five proposals.

104. Any player who reaches -5P may choose to become Infamous rather than a Despicable Fellow. An Infamous player gains one I point every time they lose a P point, and loses half an I point for every P point they gain. On choosing to become Infamous a player gains 4 I points free of charge. Infamous players can use I points in the same way as Popular players use P points. Infamous players must insult the Emperor rather than praise him at the start of each proposal. Any Infamous player who reaches 0 I points shall be declared Risible. This means that they may not gain I or P points until they have Made Amends.

105. A Risible player is one who is in a state of flux between being Popular and being Infamous. A Risible player can neither gain nor lose P or I points until having Made Amends; after having Made Amends, a Risible player loses the Risible status and may then choose to immediately either gain 1 P (becoming Popular) or 1 I (becoming Infamous). A player may only Make Amends by either being Forgiven by the Messiah, or Making a Pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The Holy Land is a faraway location, and is also one of the Wonders of the World.

106. Alien Artifacts will be represented by use of other symbols representing Greek, Russian or accented letters. These points may not be used as replacements for the original points.

107. (Plagued by Demons) Superseded by Rule 123.

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108. A player who has previously had a proposal accepted may start a Political Party. The founding player must give the Party a Party Name and a Party Platform (a statement of the Party's goals) which are both public knowledge. Any player may join a Political Party by declaring to THS that they are joining. A member of a Political Party cannot make a Proposal which violates or opposes the Party Platform. Political Parties may accumulate positive and/or negative P (popularity) points just like players; a Political Party gains a P point any time a party member has a Proposal accepted and loses a P point any time a party member has a Proposal rejected. When a Political Party's P total reaches or exceeds +5P, all of the Party's P points are divided equally (rounding up) among members of the Party, and the Party's P total is reset to 0. No player may be a member of multiple parties at once.

109. The letters A, C, G and T in a player's score constitute that player's DNA. By spending PCR, the player will receive the complement of the DNA he possesses; that is, he gains 1T for every 1A he had, 1G for every 1C, 1C for every 1G and 1A for every 1T.

110. Players can form Cliques of three players each as long as each player has a positive P-Count and their total P-Count is at least 5. If at any point a Clique fails to have meet these requirements, the Clique will be disbanded.

     When one member of a Clique votes on a proposal or appeal or any other sort of vote, his vote also stands for the rest of the Clique. Therefore, a Clique member voting to accept a proposal will set forth three votes for that proposal and bar the other members from voting on it later. A Clique member voting on a Board of Appeal also votes three times, even if the other Clique members aren't on the Board!

     Clique members _can_ vote on the Popularity of proposals made by other members. The extra vote they carry for the proposer is disregarded. Members of Cliques can attempt to Snub with their combined Popularity.

     When attempting to Snub, no Clique member loses any P Points, since Snubbing is a Cliquish thing to do. However if a Clique Snubs one of its own members, the Clique is disbanded.

     Clique members cannot be members of Political Parties

     . When an entire Clique is present at a party, only they receive any Jollity. If a second Clique tries to assemble at a Party, presence of the first Clique will keep the third member of any other Clique from attending. No player may be a member of multiple cliques at once.

111. At the conclusion of the game, the first in line to possibly become the new Imperious Emperor is anyone whose score actually contains the holiest of holy spellings "TIE". The player with the fewest extraneous points will get first pickings in case of a tie (no pun). Next in line will be the Winner of the game, followed by any player he may recommend in his Political Party, travelling group, Banquet, or any other associative group. Any other player in charge of maintaining web pages for the game will then get the next shot, with THS having the first choice. Then the most Popular (highest P Count) player follows, then the Strongest (highest S Count). If none of the above worthy players accepts the job as the new Emperor, then the old Emperor shall retain his job. If, for any reason, TIE must abandon his post during the middle of the game, this list of succession will also be implemented.

112. Heroes, being proficient at combat, may add the number of Hero points they possess to their die roll in a Duel or similar combat situations. Furthermore, as the sport of Dueling is has a fanatical following in the larger cities, if a Duel is fought within any Capital City, the winner of the Duel immediately becomes Well Known in that area.

113. (Debearding Longbeard) Made irrelevant by Resubmission 206.

114. Any time an event occurs that requires responses from players such as a Court of Appeal Vote, the players required to respond must do so within 2 Days(40 Proposals). Failure to do this will result in 1 P point being deducted from their score, for being slow. If the player has been challenged to a Duel and no response has been received in this period, it is treated as if they had declined. If they would have had a vote in the Court of Appeal, their vote is decided at random by THS' dice.

115. any player who has made no action for 100 Proposals be declared 'missing, presumed fed'. They shall immediately be removed from whichever location they are in, and placed on the missing list. Any missing player who subsequently rejoins the game gains a bonus of 1 P for the fame of being found, and is placed in a random location in the Empire. Missing players cannot be attacked or affected in any way by any rule, simply because they are missing.

116. The Wonders of the World are great awe-inspiring places whose locations are not all known. The First Wonder of the World, of course, is the Imperial Palace, the only place fit for The Imperious Emperor to reside in. Besides The Marketplace and The Holy Land, there exist four more wonders hidden somewhere in the lands. These wonders are; The Great Monolith, The Mysterious Island of Avalon, The Waterfalls of Liquid Silver, and one more whose name is at present only known by TIE. These Wonders are located far from civilization. In order to search for a Wonder of the World, a player must go to a location and announce that he intends to search there. Every sunset or sunrise that he remains in the location THS will roll one six-sided die. If the score is 1 and there is a Wonder there, he will Discover the wonder. If not, he will be told that he has found nothing. The Wonders have special properties. Anyone discovering a Wonder must with his next submission submit a proposal suggesting its special powers, or else have all their proposals ignored until they do.

117. The special property of the Holy Land is that one can Make a Pilgrimage to it. However, the way to the Holy Land is not easy. When a Player makes a Pilgrimage, they must first purify themselves by selling all their material(i.e. non-point) possessions and donating all of the money to the Poor. This gains them 2P for obvious reasons, but only if they had anything to give away. Secondly, along the way they will be attacked by an 'eeper sent to test their resolve. Thirdly, in order to make themselves Holy, they must meditate for 20 Proposals during which time they can take no other Action. A player having completed his Pilgrimage shall gain one of the following benefits; if they were Risible, they shall be considered to have Made Amends; if they were Infamous, they shall have the option to have all their I and P points removed and start afresh; if not, they will be Blessed and may remove the weight of any 3 Points they desire from their soul, said points transforming miraculously into A Points.

118. If the mean P Count of all players should ever drop below zero, every player will have their scores boosted by one P point until the mean P Count is non-negative again.

119. Any proposal that TIE considers to be particularly wise, and *not* to advantage the player making it in any way may be granted an O point. Any player who reaches 10 O points can choose to cast aside all worldly possessions and become the Messiah. The Messiah can not possess K, A, D or G points - any of these owned or gained by the Messiah return to the Emperor. Also the Messiah cannot carry out violent actions. However, the Messiah has a number of advantages:
     • The Messiah can Forgive a player.
     • The Messiah can, once every 40 turns, hold a party. After all, you can always get a couple of fish and some water from somewhere... At these parties, each attendant gains one O point.
     • The Messiah can not be attacked except by Followers of a rival Messiah.
     • On becoming a Messiah, a player gains 7P.
     Any player can choose to follow a Messiah. They gain 1P, 3A and 3O as a result. However, any follower must, if in the same location, attack any of the following:
     • Followers of an opposing Messiah.
     • Ex-followers of the current Messiah.
120. Any player who reports a mistake of THS gains 1A, but they lose 1 A if the mistake report was fake. Spelling errors do not count as errors, but nor do they count as false reports. Reports will not be listed in full in the proposals page, but instead a record of who made the reports will be kept as a summary.

121. Each Capital City may have one Lord. A player who is in a Capital City which currently has no Lord and who is well known in that City may proclaim himself Lord of that City provided there are no other players who are also Well Known in that City who are more Popular than he is. If the Lord of a City is challenged to a duel by a player who is not a Lord and either loses or declines the duel, the challenger then becomes the Lord of that City, becomes Well Known in that City, and the old Lord is deposed.

122. When travelling between Cities, you meet an animal 10% of the time. To defeat the animal, add one die to the animals strength, and you must roll more on your die (with your H & S points added, + 2 for a weapon). If you win you gain 1 Animal Pelt, otherwise you lose 1 point according to the following preferences: H, S, C, A. The animals are friendly 37% of the time, otherwise you meet a Lion (strength 7) 5% of the time, a Jackal (strength 4) 25% of the time, and a Dingo (strength 2) 33% of the time.

123. The foul King of the Veyne Demons has begun plotting against the Empire. The land of Veyne is populated by Demons. Demons are like wild animals, except that they all have 5 Strength Points, and because they use evil and dishonourable methods of combat such as back stabbing that no Hero would even dream of using, H points do not help when fighting Demons. A player with positive popularity who moves to the Veyne Demons' Land will automatically be attacked by a Demon when he moves there and any turn he remains there. Players with negative popularity will not be attacked. The Demon King has a strength of 10 because of the +5 bonus from his Sceptre. Any player who is in Veyne may challenge the Demon King who will always accept, but H points confer no advantage here either. A player who slays the Demon King will get the Sceptre. However, the Sceptre's holder is always Plagued by Demons; a Veyne Demon will appear every nightfall and attempt to steal the Sceptre (1 in 6 chance of succeeding). If this succeeds, then a new Demon King arises. Otherwise, combat will ensue as normal(not that the Demon would have any chance whatsoever when the player has a +5 bonus...). A player killing a Veyne Demon gets 1H. A player killing the Demon King gets 3H and 3P.

124. (Limits on Heroic Actions) Heroes may not perform any trade or action that would leave them, however briefly, with non-positive P points, such as Snubbing while on 1P.

125. (Municipal Ordinances) A Proposal or Rule which mentions exactly one Capital City shall be considered a Municipal Ordinance. When a Municipal Ordinance is proposed, if the City in question has a Lord, the Lord of the City must issue to TIE a recommendation for a decision on the Ordinance. TIE must defer decision on proposed Ordinances until either a recommendation is received from the city's Lord, or two Game Days pass by, whichever is sooner. Upon receiving a recommendation, TIE may either follow it or overrule it. After a Lord has been overruled by TIE three times, the Lord is automatically Cashiered; i.e., immediately deposed as Lord and being awarded CASH in points as compensation.

126. (Restrictions on Clique Members) A member of a clique cannot support, or be supported by, anyone apart from the other members of the clique. If they all agree, the members of a clique may arrange with THS a system such that they automatically support each others' proposals. If members of a clique duel with each other, the clique is disbanded immediately. Finally, each clique has a nickname, usually obscure and rarely complimentary. As soon as a clique forms, the first non-member to suggest a nickname receives an A point, unless TIE thinks the name is unacceptable, in which case a B point is awarded and the next player's suggestion is considered.

127. (Poet Laureate) Big Mad Drongo is proclaimed as the first Poet Laureate which then becomes a profession. The Poet Laureate must submit at least one Proposal in every ten they make in a suitably poetic form to please TIE, and shall recieve 2 Imperials for doing so. Further, voting for Popularity on any Proposal submitted by the Poet Laureate earns the Poet a P point for every two supporters while it still takes three opponents to lose a P point. If a Poet Laureate should ever reach zero P points, they lose their position. There can be only one Poet Laureate at any time.

128. (Redefinition) Where 'proposals' is used to refer to proposals by any player, it shall be instead taken to mean 'submissions from any player'. No such figure shall be less than 5 submissions. This rule determines the meaning of all previous rules which it applies to.

129. (Duel Location Limit) Duels may only take place when the challenged player is in the same Location as the challenger. If the challenged player is not in the same Location, he can simply ignore the challenge. If the challenged player should then move from the Location, he will be taken as having declined the challenge.

130. (Evil Players and Villains) Players may declare themselves to be Evil. Evil players function just as normal players do, but they will get -H instead of H points. Anyone with negative H points is automatically considered to be Evil anyway. An evil player who reaches -3H is declared a Villain. Villains can win the game, just like Heroes. When fighting, Villains ignore any effects of H points because they use dishonourable tactics like the Demons do. No Evil player may have positive P points. Villains can Ambush anyone in the same location as them; this counts as a Duel, but there is no opportunity to reject it. They lose 1P for this. Should a Villain be forgiven by the Messiah, all their negative H will miraculously become positive H points. It is the duty of Heroes to defeat Villains. Anyone who defeats a Villain in combat shall gain +1H +2P in addition to whatever benefits they might normally gain, to discourage too many people from becoming Evil and to give the populace an incentive to deal with the problem. The instigator of a duel decides whether it is an Ambush or not.

131. (The Radio Station) The Imperial Sub-etheric Radio Station will appoint ordinary players as DJs, normally once every three days. The only qualification for becoming DJ is having positive popularity. The job is well rewarded and fun, so DJs receive a D and a J point immediately.
     To maintain a high standard, DJs who fail to fulfil their duties will be given The Boot: they lose the points they got when they were appointed and get a B point. They also lose the job, of course!
     As yet, the only duty of the DJ is to organise ISR's trivia competition, in which you can win a CD! The rules are simple: on accepting the job, the DJ will broadcast a question about the empire whose answer cannot be worked out just by looking at the rules etc, and announce the name of a CD to be the prize. Any player apart from the DJ and Despicable Fellows may submit one answer.
     At the end of the second day in the job, THS will forward all answers received to the DJ. We believe in running a fair competition, so the DJ will not be told who submitted them. The DJ will pick the best answer and the player who thought of it will receive the prize CD and have the chance to be the next DJ. If, in the DJ's opinion, no answers of any quality have been received, or if the competition winner does not want to become DJ, the existing DJ will retain the post for another three days, but not gain any more points.
     We have arranged that whenever ISR is without a DJ, TIE himself will appoint a successor! Imperial appointees are chosen at random from popular players unless TIE decides on a different method. A DJ appointed by the emperor may not refuse the post.

132. (Duel Limits) No player may have more than one unanswered duel challenge at any time.

133. (Points of Certain Types to be Positive) G and K points cannot be negative, and a player who reaches negative S points becomes dead.

134. (Multiple Duel Delay) Should a duel be rejected by the challenged party, then another challenge between the same parties may not be issued for a period of one day and one night (40 proposals).

135. (Resubmission Problems) Anyone who resubmits an unpopular proposal but has the resubmission rejected by the Court of Appeal shall forfeit 1P point to the original proposer, gain 2 B points, and may not make any further resubmissions until a different player has made a resubmission.

136. (Your Death and How to Cope With It) A dead player loses all material items e.g. G and K points, all money, and anything carried (pelts etc.) these quickly disapear into the black market and thieves' pockets. He also leaves his corpse behind and his spirit appears in the underworld. A dead player may not hold any official office and proceedings to select a replacement occur as set out in the rule(s) which define that office. A dead player may continue to make proposals but may have no interactions with other players - even if they are also dead. (e.g. No duels in the underworld).