EMC Gaming Regulations

These guidelines are outdated. Please see the Official Guides forum section for the updated ones.

Due to abuse of certain types of games that has occurred, the following requirement have been placed on gaming activities.

We apologize for the increased bureaucracy, but this is what happens when people abuse things and those who are victimized by them are unable to remedy or accept the situation without the intervention of government force.

This will hopefully minimize the possibility of abusing these types of games while still allowing those who wish to run them legitimately to do so.

If you run a game and fail to follow these regulations precisely you will be asked to shut down and dismantle your game. If you fail to comply with this request you will be banned.

And, of course, if you are caught attempting to scam people in any way you will be banned and your lot will be reclaimed, game and all.

In addition to the game-specific regulations below, all players running any type of game are required to do the following:

• Your game must be conducted in-game if there is any kind of profit-making involved. Profit-making games such as gambling and lotteries are not permitted on the forum.
• Run your game using the local chat channel (see here for how use the chat channel commands). You may announce that you are running a game in the Town channel and invite people to join, but any other game-related communication, such as announcement of the rules, countdowns, announcement of winners, or any other chat activity directly involving the game itself, must be done in the local channel (this does not apply to server-wide games and events run by the EMC staff).
• Due to the requirement of using the local channel, games must be run locally, at a specific location of the game-runner’s choice, such as on a player’s lot (the local chat channel range is 100 blocks). Anyone playing that game must be there in person.

Game Specific Regulations:

Gambling:

Definition: Any game that takes money or items from a player and gives odds to the player getting any in return (this includes any form of "slots" or "dispenser" games).

If you wish to run gambling games, you must do the following:

• Put up a sign stating the odds of winning*.
• Put up a sign stating the highest prize.
• Put up a sign stating that there is no guarantee of winning.
• Place these signs in plain view of the people participating in the gambling game.

Lotteries:

Definition: Any form of a collective 'pool' of monetary funds or items collected and given out at random.

If you wish to run lotteries, you must do the following:

• Put up a sign stating the manner in which the winner is randomly chosen.
• Put up a sign stating the odds of winning*.
• Put up a sign stating that there is no guarantee of winning.
• Put up a sign stating how much of the 'pool' you will be giving to the winner, and how much of the 'pool' you will be keeping for yourself, if any.
• Place these signs in plain view of the people participating in the lottery
• Anyone playing your lottery must attend in person.

*If you can't calculate accurate odds, you can't run gambling games and lotteries.If you lack the skill to calculate the odds of your gambling game or lottery properly, you lack the skill to run gambling games and lotteries. If you display incorrect odds you will have your gambling game or lottery shut down and be asked to dismantle it, if applicable. Non-compliance will result in you being banned.

Guidelines for game runners:

• Keep everything legit.
• Be clear with the terminology you use. If you have a maze where people pay to enter and get a prize if/when they succeed, for instance, do not call it a maze lottery, because it’s not a lottery. Using incorrect terminology can lead to trouble for you. If you don't know the correct terminology, and can't find out, don't run the game.
• Explain the rules, possible outcomes, the fact that players are not guaranteed any prize, and other details of what can be expected from the game in the chat (local channel) to the person who wishes to play, and then ask them if they agree to those terms. Make sure they verbally agree to your terms in the chat. This way there will be a record of what has been said in the chat log.
• Tell people who wish to play your game to use the local chat channel.

Guidelines for game participants:

• With gambling games and lotteries, if you think you’re going to profit, you’re almost certainly wrong.
• Understand the risks of gambling. You will almost always lose at games like this.
• If you still want to lose money for the fun of the game, know what you’re getting into. Read all the signs put up by those running games and ask questions if something isn’t clear. If you don’t agree with one or more of the rules or terms of the game or how the game is set up, simply don’t play.
• Don’t participate in gambling or lotteries with anyone you don’t trust. Participating in games like this with people you don’t know is a recipe for getting scammed.
• Ask the person running the game to explain the rules, possible outcomes, and other details of what can be expected from the game, and then verbally agree to these terms in the chat. This way there will be a record of what has been said in the chat log.
• If you get scammed, report the abuse to the EMC staff in a private conversation on the fourm so the scammer can be dealt with, but do not expect to receive any compensation for your loss. It is your choice to participate in these games; any loss is a direct or indirect result of a desicion you made. You must live with the consequences of your choices… and so must the scammer, who will likely be banned for their choices.
• It is not recommended that anyone participate in gambling games… it’s just a bad scene and a really really bad idea if you think you’re going to profit from it (you’re not going to profit; these types of games are only designed to take your money).

How to report a scammer:

Start a private conversation with one of the EMC staff on the forum, preferably with someone who has some familiarity with the situation or the people involved, if applicable. Do not send moderators reports via private messages in the game; it's not not an efficient or reliable way to make a report.

Include the following details in your report/conversation:

• The name of the scammer
• The server and lot number where the game took place
• The approximate time of the incident
• A detailed explanation of the situation

can you please reword this bit here? the way you say it sounds like you are throwing due process out the window.

This is great news! To the tables everyone!

-Mike

I made up a game that makes profit its fun it is not a scam " checked by gamekribjim " ask him if ya don't believe me and it is called a wild goose chase someone trys to catch me it costs 5r if they win they get 20r! If I see ANYONE copy me I will get VERY MAD there is no rules besides NO MINIMAP and NO TELEPORTING You can give up but that means you don't get your money back You are aloud to use speed potion but that mean i use speed potion too and don't worry ill be honest if you touch or go near like 1 block away from me only ONE person won and he was....Gamekribjim! you should congrat him cause he snuck up on me behind a building! (you can only drink speed potion at the start and I only use speed potion if you do) I hope that doesn't count as gambling. Please notify me if you don't want me to have it.

-Uriel155

And as i said not a scam ask gamekribjim

that sounds more like a game of skill than a game of chance

Yeah I guess well just incase i want to asure that I won't get banned if i make a money making game

yeah fair enough

Well, I figure scammers throw all due process out the window... why not return the courtesy here?

lol

Yeah, I guess it could be read as if thier lot would be claimed right after they got banned. But of course the derelict residence policy would be used to determine when their lot is reclaimed, as normal. And really, scammers will be banned, and their lots will be reclaimed, game and all (by all due process).

So seriously, to anyone who's thinking they might like to make a quick rupee by tricking someone and isn't prevented from doing so by a personal sense of honour or simple consideration towards others, don't do it if you like playing here.

WTB

-Sticky
-News Bulletin Broadcast

If its a change/addition to the ToS and rules of EMC everyone should /accept it or something

Just so there's no "I didnt read teh post", "OMG really? no idea" excuses

Uriel155, the only part of these regulations that apply to a game like that is that you must use the local chat channel to run it, as is the case with all other games. You can, however, use the town chat to invite people to play your game.

Also, who's the math savvy moderator that will review all casinos's "odds" to be accurate?

Is there a rule that states that plyers cant abuse the same odds to win?

As in a real casino, cause i think we going really serious in here.. the law STRICTLY prohibits card counters, and math savvys to play due their ability to "beat" the games

We will handle situations as they come up.

I'd be more than happy to validate the odds for games involving dispensers and red stone circuits, but I'm sure there are mods now who are capable of that already. By definition, a casino or lottery posts the accurate odds (unless they are obvious) and sets payouts that differ from that of a "fair" game. No law prohibits card counters or math savy players to use their skills to beat a game, it is the casinos that kick them out because they have an edge. In any case, only poker and blackjack can be beaten with math and memory skills, not games of pure luck.

-Mike

What do people expect from gambling and lotteries ? But I see your point for younger players.
This should be included in the Empire Guide too I think.

Just wondering about the dispensers, is there a way you can regulate what items are in the dispensers?

For example, a players game has say 8 green wool and 1 red wool, red being the winner, and they put a sign saying 1/9 chance of winning, fair enough.
But what's to stop the player putting in more green wool or simply removing the winning red wool, then replacing said wool after the game is over. If someone complains and a Mod goes to check they will find nothing wrong with game no?

Have a look at the guidelines for participants again.

This is why it is strongly recommended that no one plays any kind of gambling game at all, ever. It's too easy to scam people with these games and so you have to assume that you will be scammed each and every time you participate in one of these games. And even if the person is not directly scamming you, they're still playing on your hopes of gaining wealth in order to take money from you and only giving you a small chance gaining something, so it's still a trick to lure in the gullible and desperate and take their money. It's seedy even when done legitimately.

The only reason this trick is accepted by society and considered legitimate is that so many gullible and desperate people are eager to participate in it willingly (lol). Enough people in the community want to be able to give away thier wealth in the (false) hopes of gaining greater wealth, even if it means they make themselves directly vulnerable to being scammed in the process (not the smartest cross-section of society, but still members of society nonetheless... whose wishes must be accepted and whose freedom of choice must be granted).

Here's the bottom line: if you don't want to get scammed, you won't play people's gambling games. And if you do play gambling games, you will almost certainly be scammed at some point. Pretty simple stuff. Make your choice. Do you want to allow yourself to get scammed or not?

We won't be able to catch every scammer on every instance that they pull a scam, but we will investigate any reports of foul play that we receive and people who do this regularly will get caught eventually.

This isn't directed specifically at you FooHundred, it's just a general response to your question with the entire community in mind. Your question definitely brings up something worthwhile discussing.

Thanks for clarifying Dark_Liz, i myself only play these games to pass time and get a little bit of enjoyment, i use to be a heavy gambler at online poker so i am very familiar with losing money on gambling, bloomin pocket aces beaten by 2, 3
I would suggest that anyone who wants to have a little enjoyment with gambling visit gtabmx, his mind for creating fun and interesting games has me in awe and i believe he is one of the "fair" players in our community.

Actually, there are only two games of chance IN Minecraft that CANNOT be tampered with.

The first is the chicken and egg game, where you buy a chicken from the casino and throw it at a wall, and if a chicken appears, you get a payout. The odds of a chicken coming out are 1 in 8 and nobody can tamper with that.

The second is a random red stone game, using a pseudo-random red stone pulsar, Fibonacci X-bit random generator, etc. The game will either not work, and something will be lit permanently, and obviously flawed, or will pulse randomly. No one can tamper with that.

Anyone hosting those games can obviously give you lower payout than your odds, as they rightfully should for a casino.

I saw someone on server 3 have the chicken and egg game. And on my res I have a random redstone game. If you want to play a game of chance without having to worry about cheated dispensers, then play those.

-Mike

Thanks for the insight and education on these matters Mike.