Terms of Service

Here are the terms of service / rules for Edeia. 

These terms are subject to change at any time; any significant changes will be announced in the Discord server. 

Service

Terms

General

Permissions

You are allowed to use Edeia-related work for personal use only. In all cases, you are not allowed to use my work for NFTs (non-fungible tokens). 

The permissions outlined below may not cover all situations, but the intention is to give a broad outline of what is allowed. 

I may individually give specific permissions for certain works beyond what would typically be allowed for personal use. You may also request certain permissions.

Personal Use

Generally, "personal use" is the use of the work for personal enjoyment and not for profit, and sharing the work with credit. Under personal use, you may:

You may not use the work for monetary gain, including any of the commercial uses outlined below.

Commercial Use

Generally, "commercial use" is the use of the work for profit, including sales, marketing, branding, merchandise, etc. This includes: 

Ideas

Currently, one Edeia is allowed to exist for a single Idea. This may change in the future  if it becomes too limiting. Note, however, that slightly different phrasing and interpretations of a concept would count as different Ideas. For instance, "Faith" and "Leap of Faith" are considered different Ideas. (Lore-wise, all Ideas are unique due to how each one is uniquely interpreted by the Edeia; Ideas are named by the Edeia themselves, and names are only a label to the concept. I simply wish create unique Edeia.) 

Synonyms are also allowed, with some caveats. If you want to use a synonym of an Edeia owned by someone active in the Edeia community, I may notify/ask the owner if they are comfortable with it. I am more willing to allow it if you specify how your Idea differs in interpretation, if you will likely be active in the community, and if the existing owner of the synonym Idea is not active in the community. I will note that I feel like this is some amount of freedom for Edeia with the "same" Idea, since lore-wise it is possible, and me not wanting duplicates is more in a logistical sense. 

Non-Actualized Characters

You may create non-Actualized characters with Idea magic - for instance, if you want to use such characters for backstories and such for your Edeia. They can be any species, though note that only humans and Earth-like animals are native to the world of Ideation, and other entities with Ideas must come from another dimension. They must also either come to the Ideation dimension or be exposed to a fragment of Ideation. 

The Ideas of these characters may be any Idea that does not currently exist on the masterlist, or Ideas of Edeia that you own. For Ideas of other Edeia on the masterlist, please check the "Non-Actualized Characters" column to determine permissions for creating characters of the owners' Ideas.

You have no claim to the Idea unless you have the Idea on hold, and that is only temporary. If another Edeia has that Idea, that character would not be allowed to be made into an Edeia - though you can "shift" the Idea to another if you wish to do so. Additionally, an Edeia may be created by me or commissioned as a custom without regard to any non-Actualized characters with that Idea.

Generally - that is, if you are using Ideas not on the masterlist or Ideas of Edeia you own - you do not need to check in with me or anyone prior to creating the character. 

Non-Actualized Character Permissions

To change the permissions for your Edeia's Idea, you may contact me on Discord or any other convenient platform. There are three options, which will be indicated in the "Non-Actualized Characters" column of the masterlist: 

Soultwined Edeia

Since Ideas may be considered differently in the context of another Idea, I am allowing some flexibility of repeated ideas in Soultwined Edeia. If someone owns an Edeia with a particular Idea, that individual can set permissions for use of that Idea in a Soultwined set or a single Edeia (if the Idea exists only in their Soultwined). 

At the moment, I have a soft limit of one repeat; that is, an Idea can exist once as a single Edeia and once in a Soultwined set. To keep things simple, the first owner of the Idea retains power over the permissions of the Idea if there are further inquiries. If the Edeia is transferred to a new owner, the continuing oldest owner of the Idea gains power over the permissions.

Soultwined Idea Permissions

To change the permissions for your Edeia's Idea, you may contact me on Discord or any other convenient platform. There are three options, which will be indicated in the "Soultwined Permissions" column of the masterlist: 

Edeia Usage

You can use an Edeia for RPs, art, stories, etc. However, you must credit me as the creator of the species. They can interact with non-Edeia characters, as they are capable of crossing dimensions. 

Edeia adopts come with a name, Idea, and sometimes a gender and pronouns. The name and pronouns can be changed if you like, but please let me know if you do so I can keep records up to date. The Idea can be slightly modified (like how Song's "silence" became "the songs in silence"), and it is up to you to interpret what powers the Idea manifests as (though you can ask me for suggestions). You may ask me if you wish to change an Edeia's Idea entirely. 

You can slightly change their designs or create alternate forms. You may come up with your own design for their human / previous form, or commission me. 

Unofficial Edeia

Unofficial Edeia refers to Edeia that are not on the masterlist and do not exist through official means. There is a possibility for first time owners (FTOs) to use unofficial Edeia for FTO Prompts; see the page for more details. 

Otherwise, you are not permitted to design and use an unofficial Edeia. 

You are permitted to mention them in a backstory, though they should not be so complex of an entity that they are a character in all but an official capacity. It should be a fairly brief mention without too many details. I recommend not explicitly stating the Idea to avoid stepping on toes, though you might vaguely reference the concept of their Idea if necessary. 

Understand that Edeia are not actually very common in the world compared to the population of organic/mortal entities, and I encourage you to use official Edeia (yours or others') for character interactions as opposed to mentioning a slew of unofficial Edeia. 

Alternate Universes

There is some flexibility permitted for alternate universes (AUs) of Edeia. 

Alternate Timelines

You are allowed to make "alternate timelines" of the Ideation universe, where the metaphysics and magical "rules" of the world are the same, but other things may differ in major or minor ways. You are free to worldbuild your own society, history, etc. different from the path the main "canon" timeline took through the ages of Magic, Secrecy, and Reunion. These alternate timelines would be accepted as part of a canon history in a Conceptualization, where true alternate universes with different metaphysical worldbuilding and fundamental lore would not be accepted. 

Please note that I would prefer traversal between timelines to be somewhat difficult and/or more limited compared to universe travel (with more flexibility for relevant Idea abilities). For instance, it could be a one-time one-way traversal, the individual can only traverse timelines on their own, only their consciousness is transferred, etc. 

When considering the construction of an alternate timeline, you can either have societal NPCs (Order, Data, Morph, Sanctuary) exist or not. If they do exist, they should play pretty much the same role that they do in the main timeline; I do not wish to develop complicated alternate timelines for them, and I do not wish for others to do so in my place. If society is fundamentally different, then these NPCs generally should not be present. You are welcome to have your own Edeia play major societal roles. Fundamental NPCs such as Consciousness, Concept, Ideation, and Possibility, (and possibly Ritual) who play little to no role in actual society, are generally still present and using them in an alternate timelines while keeping to their typical behavior and roles should not be a problem. You are welcome to consult me for any questions/concerns.

If you want your Edeia to come to or from the main canon timeline (or any other), you should consider how they were able to traverse timelines. Possibility is able to bring an individual to a different timeline, but this very rarely occurs and is a one-way ticket; at least, there is no guarantee of a return. Possibility will also usually give the individual the choice to stay or go. 

Characters can exist in multiple timelines, and you can consider one origin to be "primary"/"canon," or you can consider multiple to be primary. You can also treat them as separate, independent storylines, with a more AU (alternate universe) flavor. 

Please note that I am not particularly comfortable with the creation of numerous unofficial Edeia for the sake of an alternate timeline; consider that in comparison to the general population of mundane and/or mortal individuals, Edeia are not very common. You can use as many official Edeia as you'd like, though; if you do not have enough characters on your own, you can ask others if they want to partake of your timeline. However, do not use anyone else's Edeia or characters in your alternate timeline without permission.

Character Theft

Only the current owner of the Edeia is allowed to use their Edeia character for anything without permission from the owner. 

This includes alters who happen to form as someone else's character outside of your control - you cannot use someone else's character unless you have their explicit permission to do so; the alter must represent themself some other way, or you must get the owner's permission. 

Personal use of an Edeia that does not belong to you will be seen as character theft. There may be opportunities to remedy the situation, but if it is not resolved, you may be blacklisted. 

Instances of Edeia character theft should be reported to me, Auspice. Depending on the situation, I may also contact the owners to notify them. 

While this is just Edeia policy, this sort of thing is also good to keep in mind for all characters belonging to others. If it comes to my attention that an individual regularly commits character theft, even outside of the Edeia species, I may still take measures.

Derivative Designs

Unless you have the express permission by both the designer and owner of an Edeia, do not make any character designs that are "heavily inspired" or based on existing Edeia; such designs shall be referred to as "derivative designs." As a matter of principle, this should apply to all characters, in and out of Ideation, to respect their owners. Taking direct elements from others' characters and designs without their permission is a form of character and property infringement. 

While some accidental similarities are understandable, try to avoid making characters that draw too strongly on existing designs.  Any designs in the Ideation community suspected of being based on an existing character can be reported to the moderators, where they will investigate and make a judgment on a case-by-case basis; please do not police others' designs if you are not a moderator. The designer, owner, and the one with the suspected derivative design will discuss a course of action, which may include requesting to redesign or scrap the suspected design. If you are found to make derivative designs without permission, whether in or out of the Ideation community, you may receive a warning. Stronger measures, such as graylisting or blacklisting, will be taken if your behavior persists. 

A note from Auspice: I personally am generally uncomfortable with others taking heavy inspiration from my characters and designs, especially if it's to a large degree. However, if the resemblance is minor or can reasonably be considered accidental, I could be flexible and would appreciate being asked about it. 

Creating Art

You can make art in any form - digital, traditional, 2D, 3D, writing... cosplay, if you had the willpower. 

You may not sell physical Edeia merchandise without express permission from me. Any one-off physical goods for yourself are fine - if you are getting a print or merch that uses art not made by you, make sure to get the permission of the creator first.  

You can do commissions of others' Edeia or commission others for art of your Edeia. 

If there is a fusion between your Edeia and others' Edeia, then the exact terms should be discussed between the owners - for things such as RP, character stories, commissioning art, etc. In general, I expect that it would be alright for an owner of any component to make art of the fusion. 

Fusions

In general, if I see a fusion, I will enter it into the Fusion Masterlist and ask for any further necessary information. Fusions do not need to be approved for personal use (drawing, using in backstories, etc.), but they must be approved (in the ML) in order to be used in official events such as prompts and to be transferred. If they are not submitted upon transfer, they will be invalid and in a "voided" sort of state (see Voiding Fusions section).

For a proper submission to the Fusion ML, please send the following information to me or in the #fusion-submissions channel of the Discord:

Fusion Name:
Components: (You can make a note of owners here as well. For example: Resolve (Auspice) and Choice (Stel))
Pronouns:
TH Tab/Profile: (Optional. I generally make a split tab for the fusion on one of the component Edeia, but it is up to you how you want to organize.)

Reference: (I request that it be fully colored and clean. It can be shaded or not, and you can have some plain background or leave it transparent.) 

Reselling, Trading, and Gifting

You may send ML updates with this form or by contacting me, Auspice. 

In general, you may transfer an Edeia so long as the giver and/or the receiver contacts me so I can update relevant information. Trades between Edeia and other designs/species are allowed; you may also get an Edeia for someone else. 

You may resell your Edeia for no more than the original price it was bought for + commission work. If an Edeia was created from a free event, you may only sell it for the value of commission work. 

If an Edeia has been transferred, the new owner should contact me (via Discord or another platform) with proof of purchase/transfer. The previous owner can optionally notify me as well. If the Edeia has been transferred to someone without a Toyhouse, please transfer them back to me; if you do not have a Toyhouse and am transferring the Edeia to someone who does, let me know and I will make the transfer. 

All fusions in the ML must be declared to the new owner as part of the transfer process. Unapproved fusions must be submitted/entered into the ML to be valid for transfer; undeclared fusions will be rendered invalid. 

An Edeia has a cooldown of two weeks for general transfers. This means that regardless of how you acquire an Edeia, you must own it for at least two weeks prior to reselling, trading, gifting, returning, etc. This does not apply to Edeia that were purchased as a gift for another from the start - you do not need to wait prior to gifting. 

Returns

An Edeia can be returned to me, Auspice, for the full price it was purchased from me after one month has passed after the initial sale of the Edeia. Any additional increase in price with commission work would be up to negotiation; I am generally fine with some amount of commission work, but not hundreds' worth of commissions. 

An Edeia that is returned to me may be:

Some of these terms may be negotiable. I reserve the right to refuse a return for any reason. 

Returns for Free Edeia

You may request a return for a "free" Edeia, including those acquired from DTA (draw-to-adopt), raffles, conceptualization events, etc. In exchange, I can offer artwork similar to reward paintings in any of my rough painting styles.

Edeia Acquisition

As Edeia are a closed species, you cannot design your own. You may acquire one through a purchase, trade, gift, DTA, or free event. For full details, see the Acquisition page. 

In order to own an Edeia, at least one of the following must be true of you:

Alterations

You are free to change your Edeia's name, gender, and pronouns as you please; if you would like me to update the masterlist info, just let me know.

You may request to make alterations to an Edeia's original design or Idea, with some caveats. 

Updating the Masterlist Image

Alterations to the Edeia's masterlist image are possible, but please note that Edeia have very flexible designs and it may not be necessary to update the ML. Please consider these other options first: 

Updating ML artwork is permitted once per character per owner per 6 months, refreshing on January 1 and June 30 each year. This resets if the Edeia is transferred. 

If you wish to update the ML image with minor edits such as minor additions/removals, changes in effects/textures, and color changes, you have two options: 

Note for Mods: if there is an update request, you may update the image in the masterlist spreadsheet. Please use the thumbnail image link and Insert > Image in cell. If the thumbnail image is not available, please use a smaller image. This is so that the spreadsheet does not get bloated in file size. In the ML Artist section, please add "Edits by [editor]".  If you update, please reply in #ml-updates saying that the spreadsheet is updated. Auspice will later update the dA listing, and credit the editor with the edits. If you are unsure about whether the edit qualifies, you may wait for Auspice to reply. 

Complete Redesign or Redraw

It is permitted for an Edeia to be completely redesigned or redrawn. If you are not changing the Idea as well, it is preferred for the new design to have at least some elements of the old design. The cost will be comparable to the normal Edeia acquisition method, such as a custom or notion. Please note that if you redesign an Edeia to a significant extent, fusions should be redesigned as well. Auspice will notify you of this if it is necessary and relevant. 

You may go through the MYO method to redesign or redraw an Edeia without Auspice if the Edeia was created as a MYO. You do not need a ticket, but you must submit your artwork to MYO approval; Auspice may approve it directly or request a MYO artist to make an updated reference for you. The MYO artists may be volunteers or ask for compensation. MYO artists can directly send their own artwork for approval in #ml-updates. Please keep the old ML artwork in the TH, though it can be hidden. 

Please note that the time limit (once per character per owner per 6 months) still applies. 

Altering an Idea

You may change an Edeia's Idea by making a request in the #ml-updates channel of the Edeia server or directly contacting Auspice. 

It is preferred for the Idea to not be changed too often or too drastically; please try not to change the same Edeia's Idea more than once. Lore-wise, note that Edeia name their Ideas themselves, and how it manifests is a matter of interpretation.

You can make the new Idea the Edeia's canonical original Idea, or you can work the shift of their Idea into their character development. You also have freedom in saying what your Edeia's original Idea might've been, but the only Idea you have "claim" to is their present one, the one on the masterlist.

Adding Special Traits

You may request to add special traits to your Edeia.

Past Forms

A "past form" of an Edeia is an unofficial Edeia design of what an Edeia looked like in the past, particularly if they had a different Idea and at some point had a shift an identity strong enough to change their essence of self. It is rare that this occurs, as the journey to Actualization typically strongly solidifies the identity they want to have, but it is not impossible - an Edeia is never "stuck" as who they were when they Actualized.

If the past Idea is only mentioned in text without a design, just in the character's backstory without involved interactions with others, there is no need for further action. It would be nice to at least let me know, however. 

In the case that you want to design a past form of your Edeia, where they have a different appearance, Idea, and likely personality: 

If Auspice accepts it, they will make a note in the ML of their past Idea - note that you have no claim to the Idea, and another individual can still use that Idea to make an official Edeia. You can then design the past form, which must be approved by Auspice. After it is approved: 

You may also wish to keep a previous design as a past form when redesigning your Edeia, if an Idea change is involved as well. In this case, the same terms apply; you simply must acquire the new design through official means.

Voiding

"Voiding" in this context refers to removing an Edeia from the Ideation world and Edeia lore so that they can be used freely in any other context as non-Edeia characters. (Note that Edeia are able to travel to different dimensions/worlds already, and there is some flexibility allowed for AUs.) 

Please use this form to request voiding an Edeia. 

To void an Edeia:

If an Edeia is voided:

For the fusions made with that Edeia:

Dissociation

If you no longer wish to use an Edeia and do not wish for anyone else to use the Edeia (i.e. do not meet voiding requirements and/or do not want to pay the fee to void, and do not want to return to Auspice for reselling), a possibility is dissociation - a sort of "deletion" or "overwriting" of an Edeia. It is irreversible. You may DM or email Auspice if you wish to dissociate an Edeia. 

To dissociate an Edeia, you must have owned them for at least three months. Exceptions may be made if you provide an explanation for why you wish to dissociate them. 

If an Edeia is dissociated:

You will not pay any fee nor receive any compensation from me. 

Voiding Fusions

You may void any Edeia fusion you own or co-own with no fee. Note that due to the nature of fusions, voiding the design is usually more of a "deletion" and the design cannot be used elsewhere, though there are exceptions with regards to Edeia voiding, as noted above. 

If you are the sole owner of the fusion, you may simply contact me to void the fusion. 

If you co-own the fusion:

If a fusion is voided:

Blacklisting/Graylisting

Being blacklisted is a consequence for gross disregard and/or significant violation and disrespect for Edeia rules. I may also use my own judgement if a member of the community is causing significant harm or disrespect of others.  Someone who is blacklisted is unlikely to return to a clean slate.

This blacklist will generally apply to all of my content, including other species and adopts.

If an individual is blacklisted:

Graylisting is for minor offences that have room for improvement in my eyes. It could also be considered "probation" or "punishment" for a violation. 

If an individual is graylisted:

Blacklist

None.

Graylist

None.