The Rules are here to ensure an enjoyable experience for all chatters, and to keep all users safe.  Please, respect the rules.  Failure to do so could result in a kick from a room or, in extreme cases, a ban from the chat.  Thank you!

0) "The ops are mean!", "I did this yesterday and no one cared!", "I was kicked/banned for no reason!"

In any moderation system you will have problems. There are times of the day when more ops are present and more people are chatting; rules may be enforced more strictly at some times and not others. Even moderators have bad days, and may not be as consistent or pleasant as desired. If it feels like an op is playing favorites it is likely just the fact that they are paying attention, when previously you got away with it. This does not excuse out right disrespectful or targeted behavior by moderators: it simply means they are human and will be distracted at times or make mistakes. Report op misbehavior via the feedback form if necessary.

In addition to human shortcomings there are a number of automated systems in place to prevent things like swearing in channels where young members converse, annoyances like CAPS LOCK and scrolling, impersonating users, and so on. Sometimes this software makes mistakes; if you tell us about it we can start to fix the problems. Use the feedback forms to do so.

1) Do not pretend to be in an age range that you are not. Accessing channels that are not open to your age group will cause a temporary ban from the server. If you select the wrong age simply exit and pick the right one.
2) Do not speak in any language other than English.
3) Do not curse, swear, or use foul language.
4) Nicknames must be 15 characters or less in length and treated the same as regular conversation. No CAPS, TyPiNg LiKe ThIs, etc. It’s rude and disruptive. Keep names clean…not indecent.
5) Do not ask for personal information. Asking what country someone lives in is ok, asking for an address or real name is not.
6) Do not be violent, or harass other users.
7) Do not PM people without their consent.
8) The use of CAPS is restricted to acronyms. Do not use CAPS to: a) Emphasize points, or b) Post entire messages.
9) When in doubt, be polite and ask nicely.
10) You may help enforce the rules by asking people to do or don't do something, but let the ops take care of it if they're online.
11) Enjoy your stay, and let others enjoy their stay as well.
12) Pick a font color that is not too bright or too light, so that everyone can read it without any problems. [Yellow, Cyan, Light Green, White are bad choices]
13) No flooding.  Typing three of the same thing in a row is considered flooding.
14) Do not go in and out of the chat repeatedly. If you are having problems with the Java Chat use the feedback form to tell us about your problem.
15) Do not impersonate anyone, ever, under any circumstances. This will result in a server ban.
16) Do not ask to be a moderator or channel op.
17) Do not advertise. Period. This includes other channels, services, games, etc. The classifieds are the proper space for this type of message.
18) Posting links to any websites that are not Howrse or All Howrse is forbidden.
19) Do not abuse the chat, site, or users.
20) Do not switch your nickname around. Pick one and stick to it.
21) Do not ignore mods/channel operators. If they message you it is to resolve an issue before you are kicked or banned for it.
22) Ye Olde Slaughterhouse Debate does NOT, under any circumstance, belong in any of the chat rooms. Period, end of story. For this offense, you and all other members of a discussion on this subject will immediately be kicked from the chatroom. Please don't bring it up, don't argue about it, don't even /think/ it. This also goes for religious discussions, topics touching the Save the Horses campaign, or any other subject which might be deemed inappropriate, controversial, or deviate from the topic of Howrse.
23) Do not use chatspeak, so everybody will be able to understand you. Chatspeak means abbreviations or slang commonly used for text messaging. You have plenty of space to type full words, please do so.
24) No excessives. Ex; !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, ....................., Hiiiiiii
25) Do not antagonize others to get them to break the rules or to harass the ops. Encouraging users to ask how to become a mod, telling them it's okay to use excessives, etc is unacceptable.
25) Absolutely no sexually charged or indecent chat, in any room regardless of age.