We trust our members to make wise decisions, treat each other fairly, and go about business with integrity and respect. Hopefully, none of this will seem out of the ordinary or surprising. These are the ground rules of the group, some specific and others more general that we hope will be minded naturally. These apply to everyone, admin or not. If you have any confusion or questions, feel free to ask!

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First and Foremost

The rules of the playground apply! Treat others the way you wish to be treated, respect each other, etc. We've all heard it a million times, but on the internet, it's much easier to mistake a person's tone or intentions without a face to put them to. That being said, this is a game. Sometimes it's easy to forget. Carry the constant reminder to yourself - for the sake of your health and sanity - that pixel creatures are not worth a great deal of stress, the ability to forgive and forget is a great quality, and pride is something we allow ourselves to act on far too frequently.

As humans we all feel the urge to occasionally white knight for our friends, attempt to get the last word in and make it clear who is the toughest kid in the sandbox, but keep in mind that drama is easily avoidable and your ability to let things go makes you appear far more mature and wise than that final nasty comment in an argument.

Are you encountering a lot of drama in the group? Re-evaluate. I won't deny that there are a few rotten eggs that sometimes slip through the cracks and have a habit of stirring up trouble (in which case we encourage you to report misconduct and bad behavior to the group), but if you're encountering that much drama and bitterness, you may just be the cause! Drama comes most frequently to those that invite it.

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Etiquette

Breeding Etiquette

It's wise to refer to these as a kind of checklist before carrying out a breeding, making sure you've done everything on the list to ensure that the process is comfortable and trouble-free for everyone.

• Are both (or all) parties knowledgeable and up-to-date on the deal? Keep in mind that when it comes to breeding and litter disputes, the first and most important thing you can possibly have in your favor will be the deal listed in the breeding comment itself. By giving your written approval for someone to breed one or two of your tokotas (which may be revoked by the owner at any time before the litter is posted,) you are agreeing that the deal has been clarified on all ends.
• Do not post a breeding request before both parents have their Arms of Akna badge. No exceptions. Even if the rites are posted but not judged. This also includes un-uploaded tokotas.
• You may not put a "deadline" or "must be used by" date on any breeding permission.
• You are not allowed to sell any kind of breeding slots for points or any other currency before the tokota has it's Arms of Akna award, or if the tokota is:
  
  • Submissive
  • Sterilised/infertile
  • Out of usable slots
  Any attempt to sell slots to these tokotas will result in a warning and possible ban from breeding.
  • However, it is acceptable to trade slots to submissive tokotas for AoAs/HP, under the following conditions:
    
    • If the tokota already has AoAs but requires HP to get to average - note: the HP must all be completed by one person to prevent issues.
    • If the user is completing both the AoAs AND enough HP to get to average.
    • If the AoAs will provide enough HP to get the tokota to average.
    
    If any user is found to be exchanging submissive slots to HP and knowingly refusing to update the tokota and/or submit its AoAs for judgement, they will be given a warning and possible ban.
• Any sold (i.e. exchanged for currency, art, or trades) breeding slots must be available for use immediately. This also applies to un-uploaded but approved tokotas, as well as tokotas in the queue to get their rites judged.
  
• However, as long as there is no money, no points and no art payment exchanged, you may gift or reserve breedings for someone.
  
• The validity of breeding approval comments applies until they are used. If any deals are not honored within a reasonable time, however, unsatisfied parties may contact the group (new owners must also renew permission and honor past deals.)
  
• You cannot claim permission to breed someone else's tokota from a personal journal or alternate comment thread beside the one posted by TotemSpirit.
  
• Your account may post up to five breedings a month depending on traits. No more. If you use other accounts or a friend to get around this, you will be subject for a strike or suspension.
  
• You may not sell or resell a breeding slot to someone else's tokota unless the owner has given you permission.
  
• "Unlimited" breeding spots, as in, spots for which a Tokota may be used endlessly by the buyer, are not condoned or supported by the group. Meaning, they are not prohibited, but a new permission comment must be posted each time the buyer wishes to use the tokota. "___ has permission to breed ___ forever" is not acceptable and will be turned away. Additionally, such a vague and open ended deal will not be maintained by the group if the owner drops off the map or otherwise refuses to honor the bargain, so buyer beware with engaging in this kind of agreement.
  

Sales Etiquette

• When you sell a tokota, you must make sure that the buyer is aware of all past and present deals pertaining to the tokota and it's breeding slots. Dishonesty, carelessness and inability to honor agreements is a grounds for a strike and suspension.
  
• Make sure, when selling a genotype, that the purchaser is aware of all knowledge required to submit the design for upload. Parentage, genotype, phenotype, etc.
  
• While technically not a rule, keep in mind that selling a tokota for points, art or currency that was given to you for free has the probability of creating enemies, as this is a pretty scummy and rude approach to receiving a gift.
  
• Please do not send unsolicited notes/messages to members to beg for slots/genos, unless that member has indicated that they are happy to receive notes. We also do not allow members to post comments on imports to ask for slots to a tokota, and any comments doing so will be hidden.
  

• Please remove your sale/trade/etc advertisements from the group advertisements folder once they are finished and/or cancelled. This is to reduce clutter and outdated offers.
  

Harassment

As mentioned in the introduction of this journal, we take harassment and bullying very, very seriously. Tokotas is meant to be a relaxing and socially-positive game, not a high school cafeteria or a business venture. Depending on the severity of the situation, this kind of behavior can land you at an automatic three strikes, which will earn a swift banishment from the group.

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Misc Rules

• You may not upload the official Tokotas import (even if it is your own tokota or design) to your gallery. If you do, you will be required to take it down. Should you refuse to do so, appropriate actions will be taken to have it removed.
  
• Swear words and offensive language should not be used on imports or in Tokota names.
  
• Art which requires a mature filter should not be submitted to the group.
  
• All art and journals submitted must be relevant to Tokotas. Non-relevant journals will be declined.
  
• Anyone who has blatantly copied/traced/plagiarized any art or journal content from the Tokotas group for their own group, ARPG or otherwise will be banned.
  
• Anyone with similar names to any tokotas franchise or group may be asked to change their name or not be allowed to participate with that account. They also may not post any misleading content such as "guides".
  
• Deceasing Your Tokota: You are fully allowed at any time to kill off your Tokota and utilize the design (colors, marking composition, etc) for some other species or breed; again, you paid for it/designed it, the design is yours. While the group will not hold it against you if you wish to decease your tokotas, please make this decision very carefully. A permanently deceased tokota will not be able to breed, compete, or have its information changed. Don't abuse this function. If you need to take a break or go on hiatus, no one is going to bother you to draw your tokotas (and if they do, it would be a violation of group rules), so leaving them inactive is not a problem. However if you really feel the need to do so, you can use the requests page to ask that the group mark your tokota as deceased.

• Your Tokota can be marked deceased as a consequence of breeding. You take this risk when breeding a female past her safe limit of breeding slots. What this means is that the "deceased" Tokota will no longer be allowed to participate in any group activities, such as hunting, fishing, exploration, caving, etc, or breeding or showing. However, you may still draw/rp your Tokota as if it were alive and utilize it as a living character,etc - it just means that it is removed from participation within official group events.

• Reviving Your Tokota: Because this is the internet, and an ARPG group for a fictional animal, we have no interest in making everything set in stone. So, if you decide to mark your tokota as deceased and - for whatever reasons - decide you want it back, that's fine. You'll get one chance, at any point in time after deceasing your tokota, to revive it with no consequences. But keep in mind that it's only one chance. We don't want people jerking us left and right with indecision.
• Sterilizing Your Tokota: Regardless of whatever reasons you have for doing so, you can do this at any time. Use the requests page. Sterilization is irreversible.
• Advertisements: You may only remove and re-submit your advertisement journals and deviations once per every 24 hour period. This is to reduce spamming. An individual advertisement may be removed and re-submitted a grand total of 10 times before it will no longer be accepted..
  
• If a member is banned they will be required to sell, gift or donate all of their Tokotas within 24 hours of their ban. If the ban is lifted, upon release a member shall be unable to buy, be gifted back, or in anyway receive a transfer of no more than 5 tokotas total of which they previously owned until the admin team determines otherwise.
• Exploiting loopholes and actively finding ways around existing rules is considered a serious offence; regardless if the rule is found in this journal or any other journals within the group. When a rule is stated in a general sense it is meant to cover all of those generalities. If caught in one of these situations you may potentially face a suspension from that area of the group and, if continued, may result in a ban from the Tokotas group.

Who really owns the designs?

If the import was officially transferred to your ownership using the proper method via the requests page, and / or you paid for it in either art or points, you do. Without question. But there is a fantastic difference between owning the species and owning the design.
You are fully allowed at any time to kill off your tokota and utilize the design (colors, marking composition... etc) for some other species or breed; again, you paid for it, the design is yours.

But, please respect us. If you are found to have done so and transferred the design to an exact replica of the species (rideable wolf, dog/bear cross or whatever) listed under a different name you will be in violation of group rules; and subject to banishment.

Safe Buying/Selling Tips

• Take screenshots of deals you make! This will ensure a swift cleanup if there are any problems or issues with the seller later down the road! Keep in mind that if there is no proof of a deal, sale, etc anywhere that we can access, we can't really enforce it. So save those screenshots!
  
• Beware of open ended deals. Such as 'unlimited slots'. If the deal is not clearly stated, we may not be able to enforce it.
  
• Save your breeding permissions and ownership transfers for when payment is complete. The group will try it's best to assist any issues with people skipping out on payment, etc, but it's very annoying for us to have to clean up a mess made purely by a seller's carelessness or impatience.
  
• It is strongly recommended that you do not reuse, delete, or otherwise alter any journals on which deals have been made- even if they are very old.
  
• The group is not responsible for compensating people who are scammed and/or swindled by members due to misunderstandings, lack of communication, or other reasons. Nor can we pursue scams without some definitive proof. Every player should be responsible for their mistakes, or for participation in any gambling, or taking risks on such deals.

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Art Rules

Different tasks may have differing requirements in terms of art, but there are some very basic rules that all members must abide by when submitting to or participating in Tokotas.
• Please always credit any resources you use.
  
• You may trace stock photos but please follow any listed rules of the photographer. Not sure what qualifies as stock? You can find some awesome resources here. Tracing from another artist's work, copy/pasting lineart or clip art off google, and manipulating the import template is not okay.
  
• Furthermore, we understand if you perhaps used the same reference as another artist and the pose came out similar, but do not reference directly from another artist's image.
  
• Literature is allowed in all facets of the game, but must follow certain requirements:
  
• No plagiarizing. (Copy/pasting or directly lifting elements from a published work or another story.)
  
• One story for one task. For instance, you cannot cut a large story in half and utilize both halves for two or more hunting entries. Your story must have at least some kind of a beginning and end (obviously there are artistic liberties, but even a vague ending is required.)
  
• You may color and edit free-to-use canine linearts, templates, and bases for miscellaneous purposes (within the artist's rules) but keep in mind that these will not earn you HP or be used for activities. Proper credits must be given for each reused item.
  
• Photo manipulations are allowed, but must have a certain amount of changes made to the stock in order to qualify (i.e. for a tundra Tokota you can't just copy and paste a white wolf into a picture of mountains). They should be edited to properly represent the species, mane type, etc. You may not submit art which is just a photo with a filter applied.
  
• "Scenes" of plushies and sculptures made specifically for Tokotas (not repainted wolf sculptures, for instance) are allowed, but must be significantly different in each shot.
  
• NSFW, or mature art, is accepted but must have the proper maturity filters applied. Anything depicting illegal or blatantly sexual acts is not acceptable.
  

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Disclaimer

Tokotas group art, such as item art, import uploads, commissioned conceptual art and illustrations, and group provided linearts are to remain on DeviantArt and may not be re-uploaded or utilized without permission from the founder. Tokotas does not condone or accept stolen/traced/copied works of art, whether it is your own or taken from someone else. The group retains the right to edit or discontinue any prior, current, or future information at all times. All uploaded characters bought, sold, or purchased through the group belong in some way to the group itself unless/until the listed owner chooses to permanently "decease" the character. The group does not take responsibility for any transactions made between members of the group with non-fictional currency, and will only resolve conflicts that offer sufficient proof of deals and transactions. Characters owned by accounts banished or deactivated from DeviantArt are at risk for being re-claimed by the group without compensation and may not be retrieved without sufficient proof of ownership over the defunct account. The group, including it's concepts, game art, and written format is copyrighted to Tokotas, however, credit for the species will not have to be given each time art of it's characters is submitted (for instance when you upload personal art to your gallery). By participating in the game and clicking the join button, you agree that you have read and will adhere by the policy and rules outlined in this journal.

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Constructive Complaints

There is a very significant difference between providing a helpful and thoughtful suggestion or complaint to the group, and whining/shooting off about something. That being said, we take your suggestions and complaints very seriously. This group runs on the opinion and priority of the members. We don't necessarily need you to think of a solution for us, but please keep your thoughts precise and informative when making a complaint. "I'm not happy because ___ sucks!" for example, is non-constructive and gets us nowhere. "____ should be different because ___." is a good example of constructive criticism. If you pick your words in a way that is helpful to us, your opinion does actually have the ability to change the group. We are incredibly open to suggestion and change.