Page 1 of 1

On Nomic

Posted: 2007-07-17 12:12am
by Beowulf
I wish to start a game of Nomic. I am looking for players. A short description of what the game is can be found here.

Posted: 2007-07-17 12:17am
by Duckie
I shall join thee!

As it's my damn idea in the first place.

Posted: 2007-07-17 12:31am
by Nieztchean Uber-Amoeba
I'd sign up right now if I wasn't so sleepy I can barely read the site, let alone understand paragraphs of presumably intentional legalese. Will get back to you when I can think good.

Posted: 2007-07-17 12:32am
by Duckie
Nieztchean Uber-Amoeba wrote:I'd sign up right now if I wasn't so sleepy I can barely read the site, let alone understand paragraphs of presumably intentional legalese. Will get back to you when I can think good.
You can safely ignore Suber's introduction and just read the rules, he's rambling on for no reason.

Posted: 2007-07-17 12:35am
by Nieztchean Uber-Amoeba
MRDOD wrote:
Nieztchean Uber-Amoeba wrote:I'd sign up right now if I wasn't so sleepy I can barely read the site, let alone understand paragraphs of presumably intentional legalese. Will get back to you when I can think good.
You can safely ignore Suber's introduction and just read the rules, he's rambling on for no reason.
Oh don't worry, after about two minutes I skipped straight to the immutable rules.

I plan to propose to abolish rules 210 and 213 as binding the legislative process in a manner most pinko.

Posted: 2007-07-17 12:44am
by Beowulf
MRDOD wrote:I shall join thee!

As it's my damn idea in the first place.
Yeah, well, I heard of it first.

I might change the initial rule set to better fit the unique nature of the forum. If you don't like the initial rule set, tough. You're welcome to try and change them.

Posted: 2007-07-17 01:02am
by Dominus Atheos
I'll play.

Posted: 2007-07-26 10:21pm
by Dominus Atheos
So... Are we going to play or not?

Posted: 2007-07-26 11:06pm
by Duckie
Dominus Atheos wrote:So... Are we going to play or not?
Judging from the long silence, no.

Posted: 2007-07-27 11:22am
by Beowulf
I was kinda expecting more players than 3.

Posted: 2007-07-27 05:01pm
by Elaro
I'm in. When do we start?

Posted: 2007-07-29 04:43am
by Covenant
I like making Nomic games for the Dvorak site. While it may go against the purpose of Nomic to make your OWN decks first... well, I like the system, and like to use cards to set ground-rules.

Would you be running a pure Nomic game?

Posted: 2007-07-29 07:18am
by Duckie
Covenant wrote:I like making Nomic games for the Dvorak site. While it may go against the purpose of Nomic to make your OWN decks first... well, I like the system, and like to use cards to set ground-rules.

Would you be running a pure Nomic game?
You could easily vote rule changes making it into a Dvorak card game, if you tried hard enough and people liked the idea.

Posted: 2007-07-29 02:54pm
by Covenant
MRDOD wrote:
Covenant wrote:I like making Nomic games for the Dvorak site. While it may go against the purpose of Nomic to make your OWN decks first... well, I like the system, and like to use cards to set ground-rules.

Would you be running a pure Nomic game?
You could easily vote rule changes making it into a Dvorak card game, if you tried hard enough and people liked the idea.
Yeah, and the games I write almost always include the Nomic blank deck, just to keep it within the spirit of the game. I think that using the Nomic system to add spice to the center of a set of rules is a really awesome thing to do for replay value.

I wonder if we could make an Evolution deck. You start off with a very small creature, a single card, and work your way up to complex multicardial creatures.

Posted: 2007-07-29 05:40pm
by Beowulf
Covenant wrote:I like making Nomic games for the Dvorak site. While it may go against the purpose of Nomic to make your OWN decks first... well, I like the system, and like to use cards to set ground-rules.

Would you be running a pure Nomic game?
We're going to be using a modified version of the Agora Nomic initial rule set.

It looks thus:
'Immutable Rules'

'100.' The name of this nomic is SDNomic.

'101.' All players must always abide by all the rules then in effect, in the form in which they are then in effect. The rules in the Initial Set are in effect at the beginning of the first game. The Initial Set consists of rules 100-116 (immutable) and 201-219 (mutable).

'102.' Initially rules in the 100's are immutable and rules in the 200's are mutable. Rules subsequently enacted or transmuted (that is, changed from immutable to mutable or vice versa) may be immutable or mutable regardless of their numbers, and rules in the Initial Set may be transmuted regardless of their numbers.

'103.' At any time, each player shall be either a Voter or the Speaker; no player may simultaneously be a Voter and a Speaker. At any time there shall be exactly one Speaker. The term "player" in the rules shall specifically include both the Voters and the Speaker.

'104.' The Speaker for the first game shall be Beowulf.

'105.' A rule change is any of the following: (1) the enactment, repeal, or amendment of a mutable rule; or (2) the transmutation of an immutable rule into a mutable rule or vice versa.

(Note: This definition implies that, at least initially, all new rules are mutable; immutable rules, as long as they are immutable, may not be amended or repealed; mutable rules, as long as they are mutable, may be amended or repealed; any rule of any status may be transmuted; no rule is absolutely immune to change.)

'106.' All rule changes proposed in the proper way shall be voted on. They will be adopted if and only if they receive the required number of votes and quorum is achieved.

'107.' Any proposed rule change must be written down (or otherwise communicated in print media) before it is voted on. If adopted, it must guide play in the form in which it was voted on.

'108.' No rule change may take effect earlier than the moment of the completion of the vote that adopted it, even if its wording explicitly states otherwise. No rule change may have retroactive application.

'109.' The Speaker shall give each proposed rule change a number for reference. The numbers shall begin with 301, and each rule change proposed in the proper way shall receive the next successive integer, whether or not the proposal is adopted.

If a rule is repealed and reenacted, it receives the number of the proposal to reenact it. If a rule is amended or transmuted, it receives the number of the proposal to amend or transmute it.

'110.' Rule changes that transmute immutable rules into mutable rules may be adopted if and only if the vote is unanimous among votes legally cast. Transmutation shall not be implied, but must be stated explicitly in a proposal to take effect.

'111.' In a conflict between a mutable and an immutable rule, the immutable rule takes precedence and the mutable rule shall be entirely void. For the purposes of this rule a proposal to transmute an immutable rule does not "conflict" with that immutable rule.

'112.' The state of affairs that constitutes winning may not be altered from achieving n points to any other state of affairs. The magnitude of n and the means of earning points may be changed, and rules that establish a winner when play cannot continue may be enacted and (while they are mutable) be amended or repealed.

'113.' A player always has the option to forfeit the game rather than continue to play or incur a game penalty. No penalty worse than losing, in the judgment of the player to incur it, may be imposed.

'114.' There must always be at least one mutable rule. The adoption of rule changes must never become completely inpermissible.

'115.' Rule changes that affect rules needed to allow or apply rule changes are as permissible as other rule changes. Even rule changes that amend or repeal their own authority are permissible. No rule change or type of move is impermissible solely on account of the self-reference or self-application of a rule.

'116.' Whatever is not prohibited or regulated by a rule is permitted and unregulated, with the sole exception of changing the rules, which is permitted only when a rule or set of rules explicitly or implicitly permits it.

Mutable rules

'201.' Quorum for a proposed rule change is defined to be 50% of Voters at the beginning of the prescribed voting period for that proposal

'202.' All players begin with 0 points. Points may not be gained, lost, or traded except as explicitly stated in the rules.

'203.' The winner is the first Voter to achieve 100 (positive) points. If more than one Voter achieves this condition simultaneously, all such Voters win.

When a game ends in this manner
  • * If there is only one winner, that Voter becomes the Speaker, and the old Speaker is no longer Speaker, unless e won the game
    * If there is more than one winner, the Speaker randomly selects one of the winners, who becomes the new Speaker, and the old Speaker is no longer Speaker, unless e is chosen to become the new Speaker.
    * All players' scores are reset to 0.
    * A new game is begun. All rules and proposed rule changes retain the status they had at the end of the old game.
'204.' A proposal shall be made by submitting it to the Speaker. Only Voters may make proposals. As soon as possible after receiving a proposal, the Speaker shall assign the proposal a number and post the proposal in a thread.

'205.' The prescribed voting period for a proposal shall be one week, beginning at the time the Speaker distributes the proposal to all players.

'206.' Each Voter has exactly one vote. The Speaker is a Voter.

'207.' Voters may vote either for or against any proposal within its prescribed voting period. In order to be legally cast, the vote must be received by the Speaker by the end of the prescribed voting period. The Speaker may not reveal any votes until the end of the prescribed voting period. Any Voter who does not legally vote within the prescribed voting period shall be deemed to have abstained.

'208.' At the end of the prescribed voting period on a proposal, the Speaker shall reveal all votes legally cast on that proposal. If the Speaker's consent may be required for a proposal to be adopted, then the Speaker should indicate at that time whether or not e gives eir consent. If the Speaker does not explicitly indicate that e refuses to consent to the proposal, it shall be assumed that e consents.

'209.' The required votes for a proposal to be adopted is as follows:

For a proposal which would directly alter the actions which are required of and/or forbidden to the Speaker:

a) a simple majority of all votes legally cast, if the Speaker consents;
b) a 2/3 majority of all votes legally cast, if the Speaker does not consent;

For all other proposals, a simple majority of votes legally cast. This rule defers to rules which set the required number of votes for proposals which propose to transmute a rule.

'210.' An adopted rule change takes full effect at the moment of the completion of the vote that adopted it.

'211.' Voters who voted against proposals which are adopted receive 10 points apiece. Players whose proposals are adopted shall receive a random number of points in the range 1-10 inclusive. Players whose proposals are not adopted shall lose 10 points.

'212.' If two or more mutable rules conflict with one another, or if two or more immutable rules conflict with one another, then the rule with the lowest ordinal number takes precedence.

If at least one of the rules in conflict explicitly says of itself that it defers to another rule (or type of rule) or takes precedence over another rule (or type of rule), then such provisions shall supersede the numerical method for determining precedence.

If two or more rules claim to take precedence over one another or defer to one another, then the numerical method again governs.

'213.' If players disagree about the legality of a move or the interpretation or application of a rule, then a player may invoke judgement by submitting a statement for judgement to the Speaker. Disagreement, for the purposes of this rule, may be created by the insistence of any player. When judgement is invoked, the Speaker must, as soon as possible, select a Judge as described in the Rules. The Speaker must then distribute the statement to be judged, along with the identity of the Judge, to all players.

'214.' If judgement was invoked by a Voter, then the first Judge to be selected to judge that statement shall be the Speaker. If judgement was invoked by the Speaker, the first Judge to be selected shall be a randomly selected Voter.

In all cases, if a Judge beyond the first must be selected to judge a statement, it shall be a randomly selected Voter. The Voter thus selected may not be the player most recently selected as Judge for that statement, nor may e be the player who invoked judgement.

'215.' After the Speaker has distributed the statement to be judged and the identity of the Judge, the Judge has one week in which to deliver a legal judgement. If the Judge fails to deliver a judgement within this time, e is penalized 10 points and a new Judge is selected. A judgement is delivered by submitting that judgement to the Speaker, who must then distribute that judgement to all players as soon as possible.

'216.' A legal judgement is either TRUE, FALSE, or UNDECIDED. The judgement may be accompanied by reasons and arguments, but such reasons and arguments form no part of the judgement itself. If a judgement is accompanied by reasons and arguments, the Speaker must distribute the reasons and arguments along with the judgement.

'217.' All judgements must be in accordance with the rules; however, if the rules are silent, inconsistent, or unclear on the statement to be judged, then the Judge shall consider game custom and the spirit of the game before applying other standards.

'218.' In addition to duties which may be listed elsewhere in the rules,

the Speaker shall have the following duties
  • * maintain a list of all players and their current scores, and make such a list available to all players
    * maintain a complete list of the current rules, and make such a list available to all players
    * make a random determination whenever such determination is required by the rules.
'219.' If a player believes that the rules are such that further play is impossible, or that the legality of a move cannot be determined with finality, or that a move appears equally legal and illegal, then the player may invoke judgement on a statement to that effect. If the statement is judged TRUE, then the player who invoked judgement shall be declared the winner of that game, and the game ends, with no provision for starting another game.

This rule takes precedence over every other rule determining the winner of the game.