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| 1 … | +# Nomic |
| 2 … | + |
| 3 … | +Initial Set of Rules |
| 4 … | + |
| 5 … | +## Immutable Rules |
| 6 … | + |
| 7 … | +### 101. |
| 8 … | + |
| 9 … | +All players must always abide by all the rules then in effect, |
| 10 … | +in the form in which they are then in effect. |
| 11 … | +The rules in the Initial Set are in effect whenever a game begins. |
| 12 … | +The Initial Set consists of Rules 101-116 (immutable) and 201-213 (mutable). |
| 13 … | + |
| 14 … | +### 102. |
| 15 … | + |
| 16 … | +Initially rules in the 100's are immutable and rules in the 200's |
| 17 … | +are mutable. Rules subsequently enacted or transmuted |
| 18 … | +(that is, changed from immutable to mutable or vice versa) |
| 19 … | +may be immutable or mutable regardless of their numbers, |
| 20 … | +and rules in the Initial Set may be transmuted regardless of |
| 21 … | +their numbers. |
| 22 … | + |
| 23 … | + |
| 24 … | +### 103. |
| 25 … | + |
| 26 … | +A rule-change is any of the following: (1) the enactment, |
| 27 … | +repeal, or amendment of a mutable rule; (2) the enactment, |
| 28 … | +repeal, or amendment of an amendment of a mutable rule; |
| 29 … | +or (3) the transmutation of an immutable rule into a mutable |
| 30 … | +rule or vice versa. |
| 31 … | + |
| 32 … | +(Note: This definition implies that, at least initially, |
| 33 … | +all new rules are mutable; immutable rules, as long as they |
| 34 … | +are immutable, may not be amended or repealed; mutable rules, |
| 35 … | +as long as they are mutable, may be amended or repealed; any |
| 36 … | +rule of any status may be transmuted; no rule is absolutely |
| 37 … | +immune to change.) |
| 38 … | + |
| 39 … | + |
| 40 … | +### 104. |
| 41 … | + |
| 42 … | +All rule-changes proposed in the proper way shall be voted on. |
| 43 … | +They will be adopted if and only if they receive the required |
| 44 … | +number of votes. |
| 45 … | + |
| 46 … | + |
| 47 … | +### 105. |
| 48 … | + |
| 49 … | +Every player is an eligible voter. |
| 50 … | +Every eligible voter must participate in every vote on rule-changes. |
| 51 … | + |
| 52 … | +### 106. |
| 53 … | + |
| 54 … | +All proposed rule-changes shall be written down before |
| 55 … | +they are voted on. If they are adopted, |
| 56 … | +they shall guide play in the form in which they were voted on. |
| 57 … | + |
| 58 … | + |
| 59 … | +### 107. |
| 60 … | + |
| 61 … | +No rule-change may take effect earlier than the moment of the |
| 62 … | +completion of the vote that adopted it, even if its wording |
| 63 … | +explicitly states otherwise. No rule-change may have retroactive |
| 64 … | +application. |
| 65 … | + |
| 66 … | + |
| 67 … | +### 108. |
| 68 … | + |
| 69 … | +Each proposed rule-change shall be given a number for reference. |
| 70 … | +The numbers shall begin with 301, and each rule-change proposed |
| 71 … | +in the proper way shall receive the next successive integer, |
| 72 … | +whether or not the proposal is adopted. |
| 73 … | + |
| 74 … | +If a rule is repealed and reenacted, it receives the number of |
| 75 … | +the proposal to reenact it. If a rule is amended or transmuted, |
| 76 … | +it receives the number of the proposal to amend or transmute it. |
| 77 … | +If an amendment is amended or repealed, the entire rule of which |
| 78 … | +it is a part receives the number of the proposal to amend or repeal |
| 79 … | +the amendment. |
| 80 … | + |
| 81 … | + |
| 82 … | +### 109. |
| 83 … | + |
| 84 … | +Rule-changes that transmute immutable rules into mutable rules |
| 85 … | +may be adopted if and only if the vote is unanimous among the |
| 86 … | +eligible voters. Transmutation shall not be implied, but must |
| 87 … | +be stated explicitly in a proposal to take effect. |
| 88 … | + |
| 89 … | + |
| 90 … | +### 110. |
| 91 … | + |
| 92 … | +In a conflict between a mutable and an immutable rule, |
| 93 … | +the immutable rule takes precedence and the mutable rule |
| 94 … | +shall be entirely void. For the purposes of this rule a |
| 95 … | +proposal to transmute an immutable rule does not "conflict" |
| 96 … | +with that immutable rule. |
| 97 … | + |
| 98 … | +### 111. |
| 99 … | + |
| 100 … | +If a rule-change as proposed is unclear, ambiguous, paradoxical, |
| 101 … | +or destructive of play, or if it arguably consists of two or more |
| 102 … | +rule-changes compounded or is an amendment that makes no difference, |
| 103 … | +or if it is otherwise of questionable value, then the other players |
| 104 … | +may suggest amendments or argue against the proposal before the vote. |
| 105 … | +A reasonable time must be allowed for this debate. |
| 106 … | +The proponent decides the final form in which the proposal is to be |
| 107 … | +voted on and, unless the Judge has been asked to do so, |
| 108 … | +also decides the time to end debate and vote. |
| 109 … | + |
| 110 … | +### 112. |
| 111 … | + |
| 112 … | +The state of affairs that constitutes winning may not be altered |
| 113 … | +from achieving n points to any other state of affairs. |
| 114 … | +The magnitude of n and the means of earning points may be changed, |
| 115 … | +and rules that establish a winner when play cannot continue may be |
| 116 … | +enacted and (while they are mutable) be amended or repealed. |
| 117 … | + |
| 118 … | +### 113. |
| 119 … | + |
| 120 … | +A player always has the option to forfeit the game rather than |
| 121 … | +continue to play or incur a game penalty. |
| 122 … | +No penalty worse than losing, in the judgment of the player to |
| 123 … | +incur it, may be imposed. |
| 124 … | + |
| 125 … | +### 114. |
| 126 … | + |
| 127 … | +There must always be at least one mutable rule. |
| 128 … | +The adoption of rule-changes must never become completely |
| 129 … | +impermissible. |
| 130 … | + |
| 131 … | +### 115. |
| 132 … | + |
| 133 … | +Rule-changes that affect rules needed to allow or apply |
| 134 … | +rule-changes are as permissible as other rule-changes. |
| 135 … | +Even rule-changes that amend or repeal their own authority are |
| 136 … | +permissible. No rule-change or type of move is impermissible |
| 137 … | +solely on account of the self-reference or self-application of a |
| 138 … | +rule. |
| 139 … | + |
| 140 … | +### 116. |
| 141 … | + |
| 142 … | +Whatever is not prohibited or regulated by a rule is permitted |
| 143 … | +and unregulated, with the sole exception of changing the rules, |
| 144 … | +which is permitted only when a rule or set of rules explicitly |
| 145 … | +or implicitly permits it. |
| 146 … | + |
| 147 … | +## Mutable Rules |
| 148 … | + |
| 149 … | +### 201. |
| 150 … | + |
| 151 … | +Players shall alternate in clockwise order, taking one whole turn |
| 152 … | +apiece. Turns may not be skipped or passed, and parts of turns may |
| 153 … | +not be omitted. All players begin with zero points. |
| 154 … | + |
| 155 … | +In mail and computer games, players shall alternate in alphabetical |
| 156 … | +order by surname. |
| 157 … | + |
| 158 … | +### 202. |
| 159 … | + |
| 160 … | +One turn consists of two parts in this order: (1) proposing one |
| 161 … | +rule-change and having it voted on, and (2) throwing one die once |
| 162 … | +and adding the number of points on its face to one's score. |
| 163 … | + |
| 164 … | +In mail and computer games, instead of throwing a die, players |
| 165 … | +subtract 291 from the ordinal number of their proposal and multiply |
| 166 … | +the result by the fraction of favorable votes it received, rounded |
| 167 … | +to the nearest integer. (This yields a number between 0 and 10 for |
| 168 … | +the first player, with the upper limit increasing by one each turn; |
| 169 … | +more points are awarded for more popular proposals.) |
| 170 … | + |
| 171 … | +### 203. |
| 172 … | + |
| 173 … | +A rule-change is adopted if and only if the vote is unanimous |
| 174 … | +among the eligible voters. If this rule is not amended by the |
| 175 … | +end of the second complete circuit of turns, it automatically |
| 176 … | +changes to require only a simple majority. |
| 177 … | + |
| 178 … | +### 204. |
| 179 … | + |
| 180 … | +If and when rule-changes can be adopted without unanimity, |
| 181 … | +the players who vote against winning proposals shall receive |
| 182 … | +10 points each. |
| 183 … | + |
| 184 … | +### 205. |
| 185 … | + |
| 186 … | +An adopted rule-change takes full effect at the moment |
| 187 … | +of the completion of the vote that adopted it. |
| 188 … | + |
| 189 … | +### 206. |
| 190 … | + |
| 191 … | +When a proposed rule-change is defeated, the player who |
| 192 … | +proposed it loses 10 points. |
| 193 … | + |
| 194 … | +### 207. |
| 195 … | + |
| 196 … | +Each player always has exactly one vote. |
| 197 … | + |
| 198 … | +### 208. |
| 199 … | + |
| 200 … | +The winner is the first player to achieve 100 (positive) points. |
| 201 … | + |
| 202 … | +In mail and computer games, the winner is the first player to |
| 203 … | +achieve 200 (positive) points. |
| 204 … | + |
| 205 … | +### 209. |
| 206 … | + |
| 207 … | +At no time may there be more than 25 mutable rules. |
| 208 … | + |
| 209 … | +### 210. |
| 210 … | + |
| 211 … | +Players may not conspire or consult on the making of future |
| 212 … | +rule-changes unless they are team-mates. |
| 213 … | + |
| 214 … | +The first paragraph of this rule does not apply to games by |
| 215 … | +mail or computer. |
| 216 … | + |
| 217 … | + |
| 218 … | +### 211. |
| 219 … | + |
| 220 … | +If two or more mutable rules conflict with one another, |
| 221 … | +or if two or more immutable rules conflict with one another, |
| 222 … | +then the rule with the lowest ordinal number takes precedence. |
| 223 … | + |
| 224 … | +If at least one of the rules in conflict explicitly says of |
| 225 … | +itself that it defers to another rule (or type of rule) or |
| 226 … | +takes precedence over another rule (or type of rule), then |
| 227 … | +such provisions shall supersede the numerical method for |
| 228 … | +determining precedence. |
| 229 … | + |
| 230 … | +If two or more rules claim to take precedence over one another |
| 231 … | +or to defer to one another, then the numerical method again governs. |
| 232 … | + |
| 233 … | +### 212. |
| 234 … | + |
| 235 … | +If players disagree about the legality of a move or the |
| 236 … | +interpretation or application of a rule, then the player |
| 237 … | +preceding the one moving is to be the Judge and decide the |
| 238 … | +question. Disagreement for the purposes of this rule may be |
| 239 … | +created by the insistence of any player. This process is |
| 240 … | +called invoking Judgment. |
| 241 … | + |
| 242 … | +When Judgment has been invoked, the next player may not begin |
| 243 … | +his or her turn without the consent of a majority of the other |
| 244 … | +players. |
| 245 … | + |
| 246 … | +The Judge's Judgment may be overruled only by a unanimous vote |
| 247 … | +of the other players taken before the next turn is begun. |
| 248 … | +If a Judge's Judgment is overruled, then the player preceding |
| 249 … | +the Judge in the playing order becomes the new Judge for the |
| 250 … | +question, and so on, except that no player is to be Judge during |
| 251 … | +his or her own turn or during the turn of a team-mate. |
| 252 … | + |
| 253 … | +Unless a Judge is overruled, one Judge settles all questions |
| 254 … | +arising from the game until the next turn is begun, including |
| 255 … | +questions as to his or her own legitimacy and jurisdiction as Judge. |
| 256 … | + |
| 257 … | +New Judges are not bound by the decisions of old Judges. |
| 258 … | +New Judges may, however, settle only those questions on which |
| 259 … | +the players currently disagree and that affect the completion |
| 260 … | +of the turn in which Judgment was invoked. All decisions by |
| 261 … | +Judges shall be in accordance with all the rules then in effect; |
| 262 … | +but when the rules are silent, inconsistent, or unclear on the |
| 263 … | +point at issue, then the Judge shall consider game-custom and |
| 264 … | +the spirit of the game before applying other standards. |
| 265 … | + |
| 266 … | +### 213. |
| 267 … | + |
| 268 … | +If the rules are changed so that further play is impossible, |
| 269 … | +or if the legality of a move cannot be determined with finality, |
| 270 … | +or if by the Judge's best reasoning, not overruled, |
| 271 … | +a move appears equally legal and illegal, then the first player |
| 272 … | +unable to complete a turn is the winner. |
| 273 … | + |
| 274 … | +This rule takes precedence over every other rule determining |
| 275 … | +the winner. |
| 276 … | + |
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