Above all other rules, this contributes to maintaining the pleasant atmosphere of the forum. Flaming (verbally attacking members) and trolling (urging others into fights) is completely unacceptable.

If you post a thread in the wrong forum, it will be moved to the appropriate section. Posts that stray from the original topic may be split into separate threads. You will not be penalized, but we ask that you try to stay on-topic.

Except for the Miscellaneous Randomness section, we ask that you always post with content. This means that making posts with just one or two words (or two words and an emoticon), or posts that are severely off-topic, or making multiple posts in multiple boards consisting of the same basic message are unacceptable. For example, posting variations of 'Yeah, I like that movie!' in all the threads in the Movies & TV section, or merely saying 'Hey, you’re online right now! Will you be on tomorrow?' 'Yeah, but not the day after' in a thread about Eowyn (for example), fall under this rule. All posts that fall under this category will be deleted by moderators as they see fit.

A few exclamation points or a few words capitalized for emphasis are fine, but please do not use long strings of punctuation that stretch the page, or 'yell' in your post by typing in all caps.

Any swearing--ANY--will be censored, and the poster will be warned. Any words that show up as *beep* are considered profanity on A-U, and we ask that you refrain from using these words.

No obscene language, nudity, or sexual content is allowed. We would like to keep the forum appropriate for all ages.

If you agree with a previous post, that's fine, but we ask that you not post messages consisting of 'I agree' or 'Yeah.'

The moderators are here to keep the peace. They understand the rules, and try their best to handle each situation fairly. If they ask you to edit a post, stop certain behavior, etc., do not ignore them: doing so will result in suspension.

To keep the forum organized, focus on the posts rather than the signatures, and expedite the page loading time, we ask that you limit your signature to two regular-sized banners (750x200 pixels or smaller) and one small 'banner': that is, a banner smaller than 500x100 pixels, a couple avatars, etc. Animated banners are allowed.

No matter what your signature consists of, there is a character limit. You can see how many characters you have left as you type your signature by looking at the small box on the left side of the screen.

...meaning no profanity, obscenities, insulting other posters, etc. You may include statements supporting your own religious/political beliefs, but you may NOT include statements bashing other beliefs.

You may use any avatar, LotR or non-LotR, but please make sure it is 125x125 pixels or smaller. A moderator will warn you if your avatar is too large.

Remote-linked avatars can be as big as you like in terms of kilobytes, but the 100x100 dimensions rule remains the same.

Absolutely none. We realize it would be enjoyable to have debates, but whenever a political thread starts, it always gets ugly VERY quickly. Any thread related to politics will be locked or deleted.

No discussions relating to religion and no bashing or arguing over merits of theological ideologies are tolerated. To mention one's religion in passing, e.g. in one's signature, is acceptable as long as it does not put down other religions or spark ANY debate. If you wish to express pleasure at discovering someone who has the same religious beliefs as you, or if you have something you wish people to pray about (and so on), please do so through private messages.

For example, if you want to say you dislike Harry Potter (just as an example!), you're welcome to do so and say why, but please no posts consisting of 'OMG i HATe Harry Potter, i mean, i cant understand how any1 could liek it!

Creating a contest means accepting entries, posting the poll for people to vote on the entries, and announcing the winners. Please remember to follow through with all the steps!

We're voting for favorites here, not least favorites. Please, no contests asking voters to choose their least favorite entries.

Please do not start contests that ask voters to vote on such things as pictures of members in real life or anything similar: such contests turn into beauty contests, which we do not want.

As previously stated, there are no penalties for such things as posting in the wrong place.

We don't want to enforce any penalties, but sometimes we need to in order to keep the peace. Particularly in the case flaming, trolling, disrespect shown toward staff members, and frequent breaking of the politics/religion rules, we institute a three-strike system. One strike is given for each rule-breaking action. Although we take things on a case-by-case system, in general, the first strike will be accompanied by a warning. The second (if necessary) will be given with a short suspension. The third strike would come with permanent banning.