# Rules

# Pokémon Showdown rules

PS rules! Rah rah rah!

Oh, wait, that wasn't the kind of rules we're talking about? Well, PS still rules. <\_< >\_>

## Main rules

1. **Be nice to people**. Respect people. Don't be rude or mean to people.

2. **Follow US laws** (PS is based in the US). This includes: No porn (minors use PS), don't distribute pirated material, and don't slander others.

3. **No sex**. Don't discuss anything sexually explicit, not even in private messages, not even if you're both adults.

4. **No cheating**. Don't exploit bugs to gain an unfair advantage. Don't game the system (by intentionally losing against yourself or a friend in a ladder match, by tricking your opponent into forfeiting, etc). Don't impersonate staff if you're not.

5. **Moderators have discretion**. Moderators can punish anything they think is wrong, even if it's not on this list. If you disagree with a moderator ruling, appeal using [the appeal form](https://play.pokemonshowdown.com/view-help-request--appeal).

(Note: The First Amendment does not apply to PS, since PS is not a government organization.)

## Chat rules

1. **Follow the chatroom's rules**, if it has them. Room rules will be in a link when you join the room, or you can use `/rules`. Chatrooms can change or remove Chat rules #2–#5 if they want (including battles, if all players agree).

2. **Don't spam, flame, or troll**. This includes advertising, raiding, and flooding the chat. ALL CAPS and _formatting_ are acceptable for emphasis, but should not be used all the time. This rule also applies to private messages.

3. **No minimodding**. Don't mod if it's not your job. Don't tell people they'll be muted, don't ask for people to be muted, and don't talk about whether or not people should be muted ("inb4 mute", etc). This applies to bans and other punishments, too.

4. **Stop arguing about rules when asked**. You can talk about rules most of the time, but if moderators tell you to stop, please stop.

5. **English only**, unless specified otherwise.

## Username rules

Your username can be chosen and changed at any time (change it by logging out and logging in with a new username). Keep in mind:

1. **Names may not impersonate** staff (users with `%`, `@`, `#`, or `~` next to their name) or famous people/organizations that use PS or are associated with Pokémon.

2. **Names may not insult** an individual or group (insulting yourself is okay as long as it's not too serious).

3. **Names may not directly reference sex**, or be excessively disgusting.

4. **Names may not advertise**.

This policy is less restrictive than that of many places, so you might see some "borderline" nicknames that might not be accepted elsewhere. You might consider it unfair that they are allowed to keep their nickname. The fact remains that their nickname follows the above rules, and if you were asked to choose a new name, yours does not.

## YouTube

When using the `/show` or `/youtube` commands for YouTube videos, you must follow the [YouTube Terms of Service](https://www.youtube.com/t/terms).
