Switch to Reading Mode

Community Rules and Standards

Posted: August 14, 2020 4:26:08 • By Meadow Whisper (Natasha L.) • 6826 words

Welcome to Frolicking Deer Cay! Please read the following rules before entering our community; we've tried to keep them as short as possible, while also aiming to clearly and precisely define what is and is not ok here. In short, we are committed to protecting the safety and comfort of the residents and guests of our island, and while we keep a pretty relaxed atmosphere, we do not tolerate hatred, harassment, or other bigotry toward women, LGBTQ+ people, racial minorities, people with disabilities, or other marginalized groups.


Definitions

Public/Private Spaces
For the purposes of this document, and all other policies, "public" is defined as any non-residential indoor space (businesses, government offices, recreational facilities, etc.), OR any outdoor area on a parcel that is not private. A "private" space is defined as the inside of any residential structure (houses, hotel rooms, boats), OR any outdoor area on a parcel with privacy enabled (indicated by a small eyeball icon with a red crossed-circle next to it in the title bar). The exterior deck of a boat is considered "public" if the boat is not parked on a parcel with privacy enabled.

Auto-Return
All parcels within the estate have SL's auto-return feature turned on, which will return any object not rezzed using the Frolicking Deer Cay group after a set number of minutes. This is usually set to 4 hours on public parcels, and 1-2 hours on most private parcels.

Estate Manager
The seniormost members of the Frolicking Deer Cay administration team, including the Estate Owner(s). All current Estate Managers will be listed with online-status boards and pagers at the Main Office.

Main Office
The administrative office and welcome centre for Frolicking Deer Cay, located at Frolicking Deer Cay (88, 254, 23).

General Social Code of Conduct

Summary
This section has no short summary; if you read nothing else in this document, please at least read this.

The following code of conduct applies to all interactions within Frolicking Deer Cay, including but not limited to local/open chat, group chat, and private IMs. It also applies to all user profile content of anyone who is a member of any official Frolicking Deer Cay group, and/or within the borders of Frolicking Deer Cay at any time.

  • No harassment (see Harassment section below).
  • No questioning or challenging someone's stated self-identity or chosen labels, even if they conflict with your own views. For example, discussions about bi vs. pan, trans vs. trans*, or whether grey/demisexual people are asexual, even if well-intentioned.
  • No making general statements about groups you do not belong to.
  • No incitement of violence towards any individual, including encouraging a person to commit suicide or to engage in self-harm.
  • No griefing or any non-RP use of scripted weapons.
  • No deliberate "outing" of any aspect of a person's identity without their consent except as necessary to protect vulnerable people from intentional abuse.
  • No publication of non-harassing private communication.
  • No unwelcome comments regarding a person's lifestyle choices and practices, including those related to food/diet, health, parenting, relationships, drugs, and employment.
  • No gratuitous or off-topic sexual images or behaviour in spaces where they're not appropriate.
  • No offensive comments related to gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, mental illness, neuro(a)typicality, physical appearance, body size, age, race, national origin, ethnic origin, nationality, immigration status, language, religion or lack thereof, or other identity marker. This includes anti-Indigenous/Nativeness and anti-Blackness.
Harassment includes:
  • Deliberate misgendering or use of "dead" or rejected names.
  • Physical contact and simulated/RP physical contact (e.g., textual descriptions like "hug" or "backrub") without consent or after a request to stop.
  • Threats of violence (real or simulated) that are not part of a consensual RP scenario.
  • Deliberate intimidation.
  • Stalking or following.
  • Unwanted photography or recording, including logging online activity for harassment purposes.
  • Sustained disruption of discussion.
  • Unwelcome sexual attention.
  • Pattern of inappropriate social contact, such as requesting/assuming inappropriate levels of intimacy with others.
  • Continued one-on-one communication after requests to cease.

Jokes that resemble the above, such as "hipster racism" or other "edgy" humour, are still not allowed, even if meant satirically or ironically.


Frolicking Deer Cay prioritizes marginalized people's safety over privileged people's comfort.
The administrative team will not act on complaints regarding the following:

  • "Reverse"-isms, including "reverse racism," "reverse sexism," and "cisphobia".
  • Reasonable communication of boundaries, such as "leave me alone," "go away," or "I'm not discussing this with you."
  • Communicating in a "tone" you don't find congenial.
  • Criticizing racist, sexist, cissexist, or otherwise oppressive behaviour or assumptions.

Mature and Adult Content

Summary
No sex in public, no sex with children, and no exposed genitalia. It can be hard to define what is and is not "sex", so if an Estate Manager tells you it's sex, it's sex. And if you see something sexual that makes you uncomfortable, contact an Estate Manager and they'll work to resolve the situation.

In public spaces, Frolicking Deer Cay is primarily a family-friendly environment, which means there may be child avatars/characters present. While everyone is an adult behind the keyboard, child and child-like characters/avatars are considered actual children, both within our RP canon and within SL in general. So, all activity in public spaces in Frolicking Deer Cay should be reasonably family-friendly at all times (even in Moderate sims). Any mature content/activities not suitable for children must be kept within private spaces or spaces that are marked as "Adults Only".

Additionally, in compliance with the SL terms of service, child and child-like characters/avatars are not permitted to engage in sexual activity at any time, even in private spaces, and may not enter spaces explicitly marked as "Adults Only".

The exact definition of mature/adult content is primarily left to the discretion of the estate managers, since the sexual nature of any given activity is both context-specific and largely in the eye of the beholder. But we will act on any reports we receive, and work to resolve the situation quickly, so if you see something sexual in public that makes you uncomfortable, please contact an Estate Manager ASAP.

Nudity
This is a beach sim, with a tropical setting, so showing some skin is expected, and anyone may wear as much or as little clothing as they feel comfortable with. However, this isn't a nude beach, so complete nudity in public spaces (exposed genitalia) is not permitted. The only exceptions are feral/non-anthro avatars, as long as they are not engaging in sexual conduct or behaving in a manner that exposes their genitalia, or non-human avatars that do not have visible genitalia at all.

Diapers
While Frolicking Deer Cay is not explicitly an AB/DL sim, we whole-heartedly welcome the AB/DL community. As such, diapers are considered acceptable beach attire for all ages, and are not considered inherently sexual. However, restrictions on sexual activity or exposed genitalia in public spaces still apply, so scenarios like public diaper changes could be considered adult/sexual content (if in doubt, most restrooms on the island are large enough for a realistic diaper change). Additionally, for the comfort of all residents and guests, please do not rez puddles or describe bodily functions in detail in public spaces/chat, or configure diapers in a way that outputs diaper status messages in public chat.

Accessibility

Summary
  • Voice chat is intentionally turned off.
  • Wheelchairs and other assistive devices for avatars are welcome, and all public/commercial buildings must be fully accessible.
  • Houses will be made accessible or replaced upon request.
  • Rapidly-flashing lights and sudden, loud, and/or excessive sounds should be avoided.
  • Roleplaying a disability, for whatever reason, is accepted and welcome, no questions asked, but doing so in an exploitative, disrespectful, or inappropriately-sexual manner will not be tolerated.

Frolicking Deer Cay recognizes the value of Second Life as an emotional, social, and physical coping/adaptation tool for non-neurotypical people and people with disabilities, and this island is intended to be a space that is welcoming, affirming, and comfortable, while creating a "level playing field" for all guests. In support of this mission, the following policies are in effect:

Voice Chat
Out of fairness and respect to visitors/residents with hearing/speech impairments, language processing difficulties, or other reasons for keeping voice chat off, voice chat is disabled on all public parcels estate-wide. Residents with their own parcels may request to have voice chat enabled on their parcel, but if any RP is occurring, voice chat is strictly OOC (out of character), and we recommend avoiding it entirely, out of respect for those who are unable to hear, speak, or process speech efficiently.

Ramps and Wheelchairs
In order to create a space where users have the option to move and interact with their surroundings realistically, including users who choose to use wheelchairs and other assistive devices for their SL avatars, and/or users who are more comfortable avoiding stairs in SL, all public structures and spaces in Frolicking Deer Cay have been adapted to meet realistic standards for accessibility, via ramps and elevators, to the best of our collective ability. This is a matter of personal priority among members of the Frolicking Deer Cay management, but no one is perfect, so if you see an area where physical accessibility could be improved, please let us know and we'll take care of it as soon as possible.

Private Residences
While private residential houses/structures are not held to the same physical accessibility requirements as public spaces/structures, we will provide assistance with building accommodations as much as possible, if requested. Additionally, if you are a current or prospective resident of one of our houses, and would like to have your house replaced with a more accessible design (single story and/or ramps in place of stairs), please contact an Estate Manager and we will work closely with you to find the perfect replacement.

Roleplay and "Devotees"
Frolicking Deer Cay is a roleplay community, and as such, we take every user's presentation of their avatar at face value. We will not police whether the use of assistive devices for any avatar, or the visible/claimed disabilities of any user (either in-character or in real life), are "real", and attempts to do so by others on this island will be considered Harassment. However, all performances/portrayals of disabilities in a user's avatar or character must be respectful and sensitive toward people with similar disabilities in real life, and any unwanted/exploitative fetishization of disabilities will not be tolerated. This includes overt fetishization of one's own avatar disabilities (see Mature And Adult Content policy), as well as the unwelcome fetishization of the disabilities of others.

Sounds and Gestures
Gestures and avatar sounds can be a very expressive form of communication, when used sparingly, but these can also cause severe discomfort to users with audio sensitivities. To balance these priorities, we recommend using avatar sounds and gestures that play sounds sparingly, and avoid generating any sudden, loud, intrusive sounds (gunshots, explosions, etc.) without warning. Excessive/"spammy" usage of sound effects could be considered Griefing, at the discretion of any Estate Manager.

Flashing Lights
Rapidly-flashing local/prim/point lighting effects (faster than 1Hz) are strictly forbidden, to reduce the risk of triggering seizures for users with epilepsy, as well as reducing the risk of headaches and other complications for users with other forms of photosensitivity. This includes emergency vehicle lighting, as well as certain avatar effects (teleport in/out effects, magic spells, superpowers, etc.). This policy only applies to local lighting sources; glow effects and particles are less likely to cause an adverse reaction, and are therefore not specifically restricted under this policy, but any object deemed to pose a risk (or any object reported to us as a problem by a guest/resident) may be returned.

Rental Terms and Conditions

Summary
Rentals are L$2.5/week or L$0.36/day per prim, minimum of 3 days for weekly and 1 day for daily, flexible prim limits adjustable from 40-5000 depending on rental type and availability, discounts available for long-term stays (contact an Estate Manager). And sometimes there's a waiting list for rentals, contact an Estate Manager to discuss.

While this estate is not primarily built or intended to be a rental community, we do offer vacation homes, boat docking spaces, and hotel rooms for rent, with no maximum time limit for occupancy.

To rent a vacation home or boat docking space, pay its rental meter (available rentals will have a green Available flag above the meter). For houses, the rental meter will be located on or near the mailbox. For hotel rooms, the rental meter will be next to the door. For boats, the rental meter will be located near the assigned tie-off cleat along the dock; your boat should be centred on the rental meter when parked, and should not encroach on other boat parking spaces.

Rental Rates
Our standard rate is L$2.5 per prim per week (for example, a 100-prim rental costs L$250/week), which is intended for short-term stays. Rate discounts are available for longer-term rentals (4-6 weeks or longer), if desired; contact an Estate Manager to discuss details.

Daily Rate Option
Some rental properties on the island are available as daily rentals instead of weekly, at a standard rate of L$0.36 per prim per day (for example, a 100-prim daily rental costs L$36/day). If the rental you want is set for weekly renting, and you would prefer the daily rate, contact an Estate Manager to request that it be switched (negotiated discounts for long-term tenancy are generally not available for daily rentals).

Minimum Tenancy and Prims
Our standard weekly rate requires a minimum initial tenancy of 3 days, while our daily rate requires a minimum initial tenancy of 1 day. Regardless of rate, the minimum prim allocation for rentals is 40 prims/LI for boat docking spaces, 50 for hotel rooms, and 200 for houses.

Prim Limits, Adjustments, and Overages
Upon tenant request, prim allocation for any rental may be adjusted at any time, for any reason, either up or down (as long as the requested allocation does not go below the minimums specified in the previous section). Any prim allocation adjustments, in either direction, will result in a rent recalculation and subsequent change to the amount of time remaining on the meter. In the event of a tenant exceeding their prim allocation, an automatic adjustment will occur within 24 hours, but this can easily be reversed by contacting an Estate Manager if the overage was temporary. The maximum prim allocation for any rental depends on availability and sim capacity, but may not exceed 5000 in Full Region sims, or 500 in Homestead sims.

Eviction
In the event of non-payment of rent, automatic eviction will occur within 96 hours of the expiration of their rental meter. Objects owned by the tenant or subtenants may be returned at any time after that, without warning. This process can be overridden by an Estate Manager, at their discretion, if a tenant is unable to pay on time but wishes to retain their rental; contact an Estate Manager as soon as possible to discuss this.

Parcel Settings
For rentals with their own private parcel (mostly houses), some parcel settings (such as privacy and voice chat) may be changed at any time by an Estate Manager, upon tenant request. When this option is available, details will be provided in a resident information notecard after checking in/starting a new tenancy.

Waiting List
Due to high demand for certain types of rentals (especially houses), Frolicking Deer Cay maintains an official waiting list, and users may be added at an Estate Manager's discretion if their desired property type is not available. Positions on this list do not expire, and the user who has been on it for the longest period of time will be contacted privately when their desired property type becomes available. The property's rental meter will be reserved in their name for 14 days. If the rental is not claimed and started within this 14 day period, the user's spot on the waitlist will be forfeited and the next user on the list will be contacted, unless alternate arrangements are discussed with an Estate Manager. Any user on the waiting list may request to be removed at any time, or inquire about their position on the list, by contacting an Estate Manager.

Amendments and Negotiations
In the event of a negotiated amendment to any of the terms of this section, a written notecard confirming the amendment must be attached to this notecard, and added to the tenant's rental meter. In the absence of such an amendment notecard, these terms stand as-written and apply to all rental tenants.

Parcel Ownership
All rental parcels and public spaces are owned by the Frolicking Deer Cay group. Land purchases, or ownership transfers to other users/groups, are not available, except for Lupinia Studios employees and co-creators.

Permanent Resident Status
Employees and staff of Lupinia Studios, and invited guests, may be granted "Permanent Resident" status in Frolicking Deer Cay, with a reserved parcel/structure outside of the normal rental system, and membership in the "Permanent Resident" role of the Frolicking Deer Cay group. Permanent Residents are exempt from the terms of this section, with no specific amendment notecard required, but all other sections of this document still apply. The Frolicking Deer Cay and Lupinia Studios management reserve the right to revoke Permanent Resident status and perform an eviction at their discretion, if deemed necessary.

Building Code

Summary
Decorate however you want, just don't cause script lag or make a mess, and try to decorate the outside of your home in a way that looks vaguely "right" on a present-day Caribbean island, however you interpret that.

As a matter of general principle, we encourage residents to express themselves through decorating their personal spaces. We have also invested countless hours in designing and maintaining the theme and overall aesthetics of the island, to create an immersive, relaxing, and reasonably realistic environment for all visitors. So, our goal is to find balance between these two priorities, and to that end, in addition to the General Social Code of Conduct, the following restrictions apply to all objects rezzed on the island.

Please keep all of your objects inside your property lines or generally near your home. Any objects floating in the sky, encroaching on public land or other residents' property, or blatantly distracting from the theme of the estate, may be subject to return without notice. Additionally, any highly scripted objects found causing lag on the estate may be returned without notice.

Rezzer Systems
Temp rezzers are not permitted at any time. This does not apply to things that rez a single item 1 time on click (like a vehicle rez system or house rez box). This does apply to any system that continuously rezzes temporary objects to circumvent prim limits, as this creates excessive lag on the region. Additionally, objects that rez other objects and maintain scripted communication with those objects (such as holodeck systems or some room/furniture/vehicle rezzers) are subject to Estate Manager approval.

Theme/Style
Landscaping and objects outside your home should be compatible with the overall styles and themes of the island; this is vaguely defined as "present-day Caribbean beach", because we don't want to micro-manage your creativity. However you choose to interpret that theme is up to you. If there is a problem, our management team will work with you and provide suggestions to help bridge the gap between your creative vision and ours in a mutually-positive way. This only applies to buildings and exterior decor/landscaping; what you do with the interior of your home is your business, not ours.

House Replacement
All residential structures on the island are presented as-is. If desired, replacements may be requested (either to replace one of our houses with your own, or with something else in our inventory), but all replacement approvals are subject to Estate Manager discretion.

Skyboxes
Skyboxes are permitted for houses with their own parcels only, and are subject to Estate Manager approval. No skyboxes of any kind are permitted below 2km at any time, for any reason.

Security Systems
Security orbs, and other scripted systems that automatically eject/teleport visitors, are strictly forbidden anywhere within this estate. Security issues are handled personally by the administrative team, so if you are having issues with intruders in your home, please contact an Estate Manager and we will work with you to resolve the situation. If you have a house with its own parcel, you can request that specific individuals be banned from your parcel, no questions asked, as long as they are not part of our RP staff or administrative team (if they are, we will work closely with you to resolve the dispute, and may still be able to ban the person from your parcel if no other resolution can be reached).

Roleplay (RP) Rules and Conduct

Summary
  • Free-form family/urban/slice-of-life RP.
  • No metagaming, powergaming, or god-modding.
  • Consent is required for all RP.
  • All species/character types are potentially valid, just try to find a way to fit your character/RP into a modern, present-day environment and maintain balance.
  • No character death, violent acts against others require prior approval, accidental injuries are fine if they're not too graphic.
  • Guns are not allowed, details about any exceptions (including firearm licenses) will be in the Main Office, swords must be decorative and stay sheathed, knives are fine.
  • Non-local emergency responders must be supervised by local emergency responders, non-local police must have approval from an Estate Manager in advance, and emergency responders may not carry firearms or wear tactical/combat gear.
  • Military combat RP is prohibited, contact an Estate Manager to request clearance for shore leave or training exercises.
  • Vehicles are generally ok, but must obey all local signs and laws (please read that specific section in its entirety, it's already summarized).

Frolicking Deer Cay is a free-form roleplay (RP) environment, and while RP is not strictly required, it is encouraged, and interactions in public/open chat should be considered in-character unless specified otherwise (use ((double-parentheses)) to indicate out-of-character chat). Due to the creative nature of roleplay, most of our RP guidelines are highly flexible and do not rise to the level of this Rules and Standards document; please refer to our Roleplay Guidelines document for further details. However, to ensure that all RP on our island is fair and safe for all participants, the following rules governing roleplay are in effect at all times.

CARDINAL RULES

These three standard rules of fair roleplay are common throughout SL. If you are unfamiliar with these terms and would like a more thorough explanation or additional examples, please contact an Estate Manager.
  1. Metagaming: The use of out-of-character ("OOC") information as in-character ("IC") information.
    • Example: If someone is a member of the Frolicking Deer Cay Island Police group, you might know that they are a Constable, but your character does not necessarily know that if they are not in uniform.
  2. Powergaming: Not allowing a person you are RPing with to respond and react to an RP action.
    • Unacceptable Example: /me brings a pouch out from her pocket. With a smile she sprinkles a bit into her palm and looking at John she blows it in his face. With a slight head tilt she watches as he stumbles forward, then back until he finally thuds onto the floor.
    • Acceptable Example: /me brings a pouch out from her pocket. With a smile she sprinkles a bit into her palm and looking at John she blows it in his face.
  3. God-Modding: RPing a character that is all-powerful and untouchable, relative to the other characters in the scene. Superheroes typically fall into this category by default, but it can happen to anyone with little things like dodging bullets, or using flight or teleportation to evade others without a reasonable in-character justification.

Consent and Void RP
All parties involved in any RP scenario must fully consent to the RP at all times, and any person has the right to withdraw their consent and leave the RP at any time, for any reason. To maintain fairness for all roleplayers, we generally request that the removal of a character or cancellation of an RP scenario be performed with minimal impact to the rest of the RP "canon" of all other characters/players (for example, writing a quick and graceful exit for a character, or retroactively replacing them with an NPC). However, if necessary, any RP scenario may be declared "void" (meaning that, for the purposes of future RP and storylines, it did not happen), in whole or in part, by agreement of all participants. Managing such situations in a mature and civil manner is a skill all roleplayers are expected and encouraged to develop, but in the event that agreement cannot be reached, any Estate Manager may act as a mediator and determine whether to void the RP. Additionally, Estate Managers retain the right to declare any RP void at any time if they determine that it violates the island's policies or theme, if no other resolution can be reached.


Genre
As a matter of general principle, Frolicking Deer Cay does not strictly define or control what is and is not acceptable for RP characters; it is our job to clearly define the setting (see next subsection, Setting), not decide what RPers choose to do with it or what types of characters are or are not allowed. Therefore, we have no specific restrictions regarding character types or genres - human, furry, feral/non-anthro, cyborg/robot/sci-fi, magical, and fantasy characters are all welcome, as well as anything else not specifically listed. However, in addition to the Cardinal Rules regarding balance and fairness, we expect all characters to have a backstory that fits our setting, and which is reasonably compatible with the genre/character choices of others. This may require more work/explanation for some characters; please refer to our Roleplay Guidelines for examples and recommendations.

Setting

For the purposes of RP, the setting of Frolicking Deer Cay is defined as follows:
  • Time Period: Present-day (approximately)
  • Planet: Earth, as it exists in real life
  • Country/Nation: The Bahamas
  • Location: A privately-owned island, somewhere east and/or south of Nassau
  • Sentient Species: Furries/anthropomorphic animals of any species, mermaids/mermen/merfolk, and humans, are known to exist without explanation or justification required.
  • Other Species: Any feral/non-anthro animal known in real life is known to exist in our RP universe, and will be seen/interacted with as a non-sentient creature that is not expected to speak or understand the languages of sentient creatures (there may also be questions of how the creature got here if the species is not local to the Caribbean). This is not a requirement, merely the baseline assumption.
  • Flying: In-character flying without a vehicle requires an obvious means of lift, propulsion, and control (such as wings). Otherwise, flying is considered out of character and should be avoided.
  • Altitude: Maximum altitude for normal, unassisted breathing (aircraft without pressurized cabins, or flight-capable characters/avatars/species) is 500 meters. Maximum altitude for aircraft with pressurized cabins/cockpits is 1500 meters (equivalent to 35,000 feet in real life). All airspace above 2km is considered space/Low-Earth Orbit.

Violence and Injuries
Any RP scenario involving any violent act intentionally committed by one character against another, or any RP scenario involving the death of a character by any means, will generally not be permitted, even if one of the characters involved is a non-player character (NPC) or alternate account (Alt). Exceptions may be made at the discretion of an Estate Manager, but any such scenarios must receive prior written approval before proceeding, as well as the affirmative consent of all parties involved. Scenarios involving accidental/unintentional non-lethal injuries do not require prior approval, but the provisions of the Consent And Void RP subsection still apply, and all depictions of violence or injuries must be kept reasonably family-friendly.

Weapons

Frolicking Deer Cay generally follows the real-world weapons laws of the Bahamas as a template, with the following local rules regarding weapons:
  • As a general baseline, all firearms are prohibited within the borders of Frolicking Deer Cay.
  • Permanent Residents, and Residents who have been issued a local ID card, may apply for a Firearm License, allowing them to "own" (in-character) and carry certain types of firearms in certain situations (specified in the Firearm License issued). These applications are evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and approval is not guaranteed. The availability and specific details of the application process and approval criteria are managed jointly by the Frolicking Deer Cay Island Police and the Estate Managers, and are subject to change at any time. Application information shall be posted in the Main Office; if no such information is posted, applications are not available. Contact an Estate Manager for further details.
  • All other visitors, and short-term residents who have not been issued a local ID card, are strictly forbidden from carrying firearms on land within Frolicking Deer Cay, unless granted an exception by the Frolicking Deer Cay Island Police and an Estate Manager. The availability and criteria for such exceptions shall be defined separately, subject to change at any time, and information shall be posted in the Main Office; if no such information is posted, this provision stands without exceptions. Contact an Estate Manager for further details.
  • Long-bladed weapons (blades longer than 0.5 meters), such as swords and machetes, are permitted as part of a costume or outfit, but must remain sheathed in all public spaces, and must be treated as non-functional replicas/decorative accessories for the purposes of RP, or kept as static displays in one's home.
  • Short-bladed weapons (blades 0.5 meters or shorter), including all knives, are generally not restricted for characters over the age of 14 (in-character age, not real-world age), but any brandishing or threatening usage of a knife is subject to the provisions of the Violent Roleplay subsection above.
  • Weapons that do not obviously fit these categories, such as sci-fi weapons, will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis using the closest-fitting definition in this subsection.

Police Roleplay
Frolicking Deer Cay Island Police is the sole group authorized to perform any form of law enforcement RP within Frolicking Deer Cay. All other RP law enforcement personnel are considered off-duty and out of their jurisdiction while on our island (especially members of groups set in the USA), and are not permitted to wear their group/department uniforms or perform any law enforcement action within our borders, unless they are participating in an authorized crossover storyline or mutual-aid response, supervised by both an Estate Manager and a Constable of the Frolicking Deer Cay Island Police. Additionally, members of outside law enforcement RP groups are not permitted to carry firearms within our borders at any time, for any reason, without exception. Any member of an outside police RP group wishing to arrange a crossover storyline or extradition RP should contact an Estate Manager to discuss details.

Fire/Rescue Roleplay
Frolicking Deer Cay Fire/Rescue (FDCFR) is the primary provider of emergency services within Frolicking Deer Cay, and the sole group that may operate independently within our borders for firefighting, emergency medical, or rescue/lifeguard RP. Other fire/rescue/medical groups and personnel wishing to work within Frolicking Deer Cay must do so under the direct supervision of FDCFR personnel (for example, during a mutual-aid response), or must receive written authorization from an Estate Manager. Additionally, fire/rescue/medical responders operating within Frolicking Deer Cay, including FDCFR personnel, are not permitted to wear military-style combat/tactical vests/equipment, or carry firearms while on duty or performing official business, without exception, even if such items are a standard part of their role or their group/department's uniform.

Fires and Hydrants
To ensure compatibility and reduce equipment maintenance needs, the FDCFR shall be responsible for deciding which scripted/RP fire systems are allowed with Frolicking Deer Cay. A list of allowed fire system types, as well as any additional guidelines for the use of RP fires, shall be posted in both the Main Office and the lobby of the FDCFR main station. Any fires started using fire systems not authorized by the FDCFR will be returned, and/or considered voided RP. Regardless of fire system or other guidelines, no fires may be started inside any resident's private home/parcel without the affirmative consent of the primary tenant. Violations of this policy may be considered Griefing (see General Social Code of Conduct section). Additionally, to maintain the realism of our setting - a small, sparsely-developed rural island, fire hydrants are provided and managed by the Estate Managers, and no unauthorized fire hydrants may be rezzed at any time, in any location, for any reason. Any operational fire hydrant owned by any user who is not an Estate Manager may be returned without warning (decorative/non-functional hydrants are unrestricted).

Military Roleplay
Military combat is strictly forbidden within Frolicking Deer Cay, without exception. Military groups or individuals wishing to engage in non-combat naval/maritime operations or training exercises (such as rescue training), or shore leave, may do so with written approval from an Estate Manager (contact any Estate Manager directly to make this request). If approved, all naval/maritime operations must be supervised by a Constable of the Frolicking Deer Cay Island Police, and no firearms or explosives may be discharged without the approval of the supervising Constable. Additionally, while on land/shore, whether for training exercises, active non-combat operations, shore leave, or any other purpose, military personnel may not carry firearms, or wear tactical vests or other forms of combat-specific gear/armour (combat fatigues are acceptable without additional tactical vests/equipment, as well as any form of dress/formal uniform).



Vehicles

All vehicles are generally permitted, within the following parameters:
  • Boats/Watercraft
    • Must obey all navigational signs, markers, and buoys.
    • Drivable boats/vessels must display a unique name/registry number, or a unique flag (flag textures from our existing library may be available upon request); this is recommended for stationary boats used as a residence, but not required.
    • Motorized boats must yield right-of-way to sailboats, and smaller vessels must yield right-of-way to larger vessels.
    • Vessels longer than 32 meters require special permission from an Estate Manager to dock at the Frolicking Deer Cay Marina.
    • Boat parking spaces are indicated by a metal tie-off cleat; spaces with a Reserved sign or a rental meter are not available for docking unless you are the designated resident for that space.
    • Boats may not be docked/moored/anchored in a way that obstructs a navigational channel (indicated by red and green buoys).
  • Aircraft
    • Must fly within the altitudes specified in the Setting subsection above.
    • Must display a unique registry/tail number.
    • Must be capable of landing on water or in specifically-designated areas.
    • Landing on roads, parking lots, or public beach recreational areas is strictly prohibited, unless authorized by an Estate Manager for emergency situations only (contact any Estate Manager for emergency landing clearance).
    • Aircraft landing in water are considered Boats/Watercraft once stopped/docked.
  • Ground Vehicles
    • Cars, trucks, motorcycles, and other motorized vehicles that travel on land are considered "Ground Vehicles".
    • Must obey all posted traffic signs, signals, and road markings.
    • While driving on public roads, all Ground Vehicles must drive on the left side of the road.
    • Must display unique license plates; generic or dealer/factory-original license plates are not permitted, including the customizable-text license plate systems included in some vehicles. Ground Vehicles that cannot have a unique license plate applied are not permitted to be driven on public roads.
    • Amphibious Ground Vehicles are considered Boats/Watercraft while in water, with the exception that their license plate is considered their "unique name/registry number", and no separate identification or flag is required.
    • Characters must be over the age of 16 (in-character age, not real life) to drive a Ground Vehicle, or 14 if accompanied by an adult over the age of 21 (in-character age, not real life); however, if a user's character has a valid driver's license issued by another RP community, it will be honoured by Frolicking Deer Cay even if the character is younger than 16.
  • Spacecraft
    • Spacecraft must fly within the "Space/Low-Earth Orbit" altitudes specified in the Setting subsection above. Any spacecraft flying below this altitude zone must be capable of atmospheric flight, and must comply with the Genre subsection above (see Roleplay Guidelines document for more information and suggestions/examples), but keeping all spacecraft in space is strongly preferred.
    • Spacecraft that are larger than 15 meters in any dimension are considered skyboxes, for the purposes of these rules, and should remain stationary (see the Building Code section for more details regarding skyboxes).

Disciplinary Actions

Summary
Estate Managers may take any appropriate available action to resolve a violation of the terms of this document, and will try to do so as fairly and gently as possible, but may use an immediate ban without warning if necessary. In the event of a ban, any attempts at ban evasion will be dealt with swiftly and harshly. Bans do not expire after a set period of time, but any user may appeal their ban via email, if they have not attempted ban evasion. We do not discuss incidents or disciplinary actions with third parties, but our ban log is available to the administrators of other communities. Rental refunds are usually not available, but may be given at the discretion of the Estate Owner.
In the event of any violation of any portion of this document, any Estate Manager may, at their discretion, take any of the following actions:
  • Attempt to mediate any conflicts or misunderstandings
  • Issue an official warning
  • Return offending objects, with or without notice
  • Revoke the offending person's access to group chat or other shared communication systems
  • Remove the offending person from any or all official Frolicking Deer Cay groups
  • Evict the offending person from any rental properties without a refund
  • Restrict the offending person's access to certain parcels within the estate
  • Eject or ban the offending person from the Frolicking Deer Cay estate
  • Ban the offending person from all Lupinia Studios managed properties and estates grid-wide
  • Any other relevant action not listed here

Estate Managers will attempt to take the action of least severity, and will always strive for proportionality and peaceful mediation in any incident. However, all Estate Managers reserve the right to apply a ban immediately and without warning if doing so is deemed necessary.


Ban Evasion and "Alts"
In the event of an estate ban, all accounts controlled by the offending person shall be banned, including any accounts discovered to be controlled by them at any point in the future. Using alternate accounts ("alts") to gain access to Frolicking Deer Cay or Lupinia Studios properties, groups, or communication systems after a ban will not be tolerated, even if no further incidents occur while the offending person is using an alt. Additionally, any banned user caught using alts to evade a ban will forfeit any right to appeal their ban in the future.

Ban Appeals
All estate bans are considered "permanent", and do not expire after a set amount of time. However, we will accept ban appeals at any time, from any user who has been banned from the Frolicking Deer Cay estate. Any user who feels they were banned from our estate in error, or that the underlying issue that prompted their ban has been resolved, may send an email with the subject "FDC Ban Appeal". This email must include the username(s) that have been banned, and an explanation of the circumstances. We cannot guarantee that all bans that are appealed will be rescinded, but we will listen and consider all sincere appeals, unless the user has engaged in Ban Evasion.

Privacy and Ban Log
To protect the privacy of others, we will not discuss the circumstances of any administrative/disciplinary action or incident with any person not directly involved in the situation. However, in the event of an estate ban, the banned user's username and a partial description of the incident will be entered into the Lupinia Studios Global Ban Log, which may be accessed by the owners/administrators of any estate, community, or venue approved by the management of Lupinia Studios. To request access, contact Natasha Petrichor.

Rental Refunds
Generally, refunds for rentals are not available, but in the event that a refund is requested, we will consider the request and work to resolve the situation to the best of our ability. All refund requests must be approved and processed by the Estate Owner, Natasha Petrichor.