Rune Marks

(Point System)

Rukaan may prove their value to themselves, their handlers and their herd by demonstrating their skills and collecting Rune Marks as they are active in the group. These rune marks will allow them to ascend the Rankings, gaining titles and rewards as they prove their worthiness.

Earning Rune Marks

Rune marks work a bit differently than most point systems as they are left up to the whims of destiny with a bit of random luck involved. Each art or literature piece will be rolled for Rune Marks earned when they are accepted into the group gallery. Up to five Rukaan may be rolled for rune marks per piece submitted.

Though you may not know the exact value of a piece until it is rolled due to the fickle nature of fate, never fear! Pieces with greater effort and more rune mark bonuses will be rolled with a higher potential gain and there are items you can acquire to lure luck to your side in these rolls.

You will need a tracker in order to use your Rune Marks to increase your Rukaan's rank. See the tracker section below for more information on rune mark trackers.

Rune Mark Bonuses Overview

All of the following will increase the potential rune marks earned for your submission.

This is just an overview list; you will find explanations and requirements for bonuses in the Additional Information sections below.

Art Bonuses

Visibility of the Rukaan in the piece

Fullbody (90% or more of Rukaan must be visible)
Partial-body (50% or more of Rukaan must be visible)
Headshot (head must be visible)

Whether the piece is colored and/or shaded

Whether the piece has a background

Simple Background
Complex Background

Whether the Rukaan has a handler pictured

Partial-body Handler
Fullbody Handler

Whether the piece is an animation

Small/Simple Animation
Medium Animation
Large Animation

Literature/Story Bonuses

Wordcount

Additional Bonuses for Art And Literature

Who created the piece

Completely by Owner (100% by the Rukaan's owner)
Collaborated with Owner (Piece created partly by the Rukaan's owner and partly by the owner of another character present in the piece)

Lore Depicted (Named Lore Figure, Norse Gods or Named Norse mythological figures - please specify lore element depicted- see guidelines below)
Group Starter depicted (please link starter depicted- see guidelines below)
Group NPC depicted (please link NPC depicted- see guidelines below)
Named Rukaan Lore Location Depicted (must be a location from the Lore Location Journal, please specify location)
Group Event, Show or Feat (please link event journal or say "Monthly Show/Feat")
Including a member of another ARPG species (import/character reference link must be included)
Including a member of an affiliate ARPG group species (import/character reference link must be included)

Items, Companions and Traits With Rune Mark Bonuses

Luck Rune Talisman (piece must be completely by or collabed by the Rukaan's owner)
Elkhound Companion (must be pictured with a handler in art)
Muskox Companion (cannot be an activity piece)
Sand Lizard Companion (must be an activity piece, companion must be pictured fullbody in art or described in story)
Common Adder (must include a non-ARPG animal species in the art or literature piece)
Harvest Mouse Companion (must include evidence of civilization such as fence or building)
Lemming Companion (must be wilderness, cannot include evidence of civilization such as fence or building)
Sociable Trait (must include another Rukaan 50%+ visible or significantly included in the story)
Loner Trait (must be no other Rukaan present in the piece)
Family Ties Trait (Direct parent, offspring, full- or half-sibling must be present in the piece)
Envious Trait (antlerless Rukaan only; antlered Rukaan with antlers depicted must be present)
Ancestral Connection Trait (must include a Starter Rukaan 50+% visible or significantly included in the story)
Mentor Non-hereditary Trait (rune mark bonus is granted to a direct offspring or herdmate of the Rukaan with the trait when included in a submission together)
Inspiring Non-hereditary Trait

Rune Mark Bonuses from Other Sources

Handler Training Certificate from completing the Handler Training Prompt Set (art and literature bonus when any handler is included in the submission)
Herd bonus if two or more Rukaan from the same herd with the Rune Marks herd bonus are included in art or literature together
Rune Scribe Profession and Lore Guide Aptitude (see journals for specific bonuses at various levels)

Crafted Items Rune Marks

Crafted items have a separate set of categories than traditional or digital drawings and only certain bonuses apply. See Rune Marks (Crafted Items) .

Rune Mark Form

Please include this form on all art/literature submitted to the group if you would like it to be rolled for Rune Marks. Trackers are journals deviations where you collect the roll result comments for your Rukaan.

Import Link: (if literature, nicknames can also be included in this field)

(Literature only) Nicknames/descriptions: (Please list any nicknames or descriptions used for this Rukaan in the story to allow our activity admins to see where and how much they are present in the story)

Link to Rune Mark Tracker: (A comment where you would like to collect your rune mark result comments)

Rune Mark points and bonuses: (for example; fullbody colored art by owner with fullbody handler, elkhound companion, lore bonus [S-001 Eikthyrnir pictured])

Rune Mark Form Examples

Here are some examples of a completed rune mark bonus form.

Import: [link]

Rune Mark Tracker: [link]

Rune Marks:

Fullbody

Colored

Shaded

Complex Background

Fullbody Handler

729 word story

Completely by Owner

Import Link: [link]

Rune Mark Tracker: Please post rune mark roll on the image

Rune Mark points and bonuses: Fullbody, Colored, Complex Background, Completely By Owner

Non-Rolled Rune Marks

In addition to the rolled Rune Marks from submitting pieces to the group gallery, you may receive Rune Marks for things like participating in group events, donating a geno to the adoption center and placing in non-RNG shows. For these, link the proof comments you receive in your Rukaan’s Rune Mark Tracker (see Rankings journal for more information on Rune Mark Trackers). These will be verified when you submit your Rukaan for a rank check.

Starting May 5, 2019: For group hosted events/shows/feats, placement Rune Marks will be included in your posted rewards. Member hosted show result Rune Marks will still need to be listed in your tracker to be claimed.

Show/Feat Placement Points:

1st Place- 4 Rune Marks
2nd Place - 3 Rune Marks
3rd Place - 2 Rune Marks
Grand Champion - 5 Rune Marks
Reserve Champion / Judge’s Choice - 4 Rune Marks

When listing proof of placement rune marks from non-group hosted shows, please provide :

A link to the show (must not be judged completely by RNG)
A link to the entry
A link to proof of your placement

Additional Information on Rune Mark Bonuses

General Rune Mark Submission Guidelines

Each submission to the groups is considered a single "piece" for group purposes.

All rune mark bonuses count once per Rukaan per piece.

Up to five Rukaan may be rolled for rune marks per piece submitted, however each Rukaan can only be rolled once per piece if multiple Rukaan are present. More Rukaan can be included or present, but only five can be rolled for rune marks. This is to prevent too great a burden on activity roller admin for processing any one submission.

Art Bonus Guidelines

In an art piece with only a single Rukaan present, the Rukaan may receive rune marks for up to three images per piece submitted. The Rukaan may be pictured more than three times in the submission, but can only be rolled for rune marks for up to three appearances. This is to prevent large, low effort "experience farming" type submissions.
If multiple Rukaan are present in the piece, each may only be rolled once per piece submitted. Comics are the exception to this; see the comics section for those requirements.

Headshot / Partial Body / Fullbody

A fullbody image must show the Rukaan's legs at least to the knees. A partialbody image must include at least half of the torso. Rukaan can shed their antlers annually like elk, and antlers are always optional.
While a partial body or headshot doesn't have to include the head, they must include identifying markings or features that would allow us to tell at a glance which Rukaan it is and must be more extensive than just a hoof or tail
See examples in the General Activity Requirements

Backgrounds

Backgrounds do not necessarily have to show a landscape and can be abstract, but they must be more complex than just a solid color, simple repeating pattern or simple gradient.
1. A simple background could be something like a detailed border of flowers or a landscape with just ground, sky and mountains. The visible area of the background must be at least half the area of the Rukaan pictured.
2. A background will be considered complex if it contains at least three elements other than ground and sky (mountains, trees, rocks, shrubs, paths, fences, rivers, etc). Some leeway may be granted for significant complexity of shading, detailing and hand-drawn textures. The visible area of the background must at least be equal in area to the Rukaan pictured.
See more detail and examples in the General Activity Requirements

Abstract Complex Background

Tree of Life by PoisonDemonSaskia

Colored

Greyscale and non-representationally pieces count as colored as long as it is possible to identify the Rukaan from their markings or at least two features (coat type, antler type, element).

Traditionally colored art (pen, colored pencil, etc) will count for the colored bonus as long as the colored space in the piece is larger than the uncolored space.
See more detail and examples in the General Activity Requirements

Shaded

The shading bonus will apply if shading is present on the Rukaan and is reasonably complex (more than a single gradient or single unbroken brushstroke)

Handler

Any humanoid pictured may count for the handler art bonus, it does not need to be the Rukaan's assigned handler. Wild Rukaan can claim the handler art bonus if a handler species is pictured in the piece. Each handler pictured gives the handler bonus to up to three Rukaan pictured.
A fullbody handler should show at least 75% of the handler. A partialbody handler should show at least 50% of the handler.

Animation

Animation categories:
1. Small: Minimal movement such as eye blink, ear flick, glow, rain or puff of air. All animations of the background/environment rather than the Rukaan itself will be categorized as small. Must be at least 3 unique/redrawn frames.
2. Medium: Complex movement of a portion of the body such as leg movement, head turning, tail lashing. Must be at least 4 unique/redrawn frames. The Rukaan must be at least partialbody.
3. Large: Complex movement of the majority of the body such as running or jumping. Must be at least 5 unique/redrawn frames. The Rukaan must be fullbody.

The rune mark bonus for Medium and Large animations is based on the number of unique/redrawn frames. When submitting a Medium/Large animation, please include the number of unique frames in the rune mark bonus form and link to a stash file or deviation/scrap showing all unique frames so they can be checked and counted. A frame will be considered unique/redrawn if it can be easily distinguished from the one before and after it in the animation sequence and some portion of it is redrawn.

Photomanipulations

Photomanipulations are allowed but will only count for Rune Marks if more has been done than a simple recolor/filter. Stock images used in photomanipulations must be linked and used with permission and must be credited to the photographer (“Copyright to Google” is not permissible credit). For activities, the background as well as the Rukaan must be manipulated to meet the "complex background" requirement for activities.

Reused Lines, Premade Bases and Reused Backgrounds

Art pieces made with reused lines/backgrounds made by the artist submitting the piece are allowed but will only have the headshot/partialbody/fullbody points included in their roll the first time the lines are used (please include this information when you list your bonuses). Lineart that may be used by the community can be posted to the Member Resources folder. Reused lineart/backgrounds cannot be used for activity entries.
Art pieces made with reused lines/backgrounds not by the artist (premade bases, etc) submitting the piece are allowed but will not be rolled with the headshot/partialbody/fullbody bonus or the "completely by owner" bonus. Premade lineart/backgrounds cannot be used for activity entries.

Chibi or Simplified Characters

Simplified or chibi art will count, to a point! To count for rune marks, characters must:

Be recognizable through their features (coat type, element, markings, antler type). Not all of these need to be visible (antlers are always optional, and marking may be obscured by lighting) but enough features need to be visible for us to figure out which Rukaan is pictured.
Have volume to their heads, necks, bodies and legs (no stick legs or necks).

Comics

Comics are allowed and up to 5 Rukaan present in the piece can be rolled for up to ten panels each per piece, but must comply with the comic guidelines:
1. There must be an overarching story connecting panels; it cannot be a "sheet" of unrelated images.
2. There must be a description of at least 1-2 sentences provided which explains the story happening in the comic (so it is clear to the rolling admins that this is a comic and not a sheet)
3. Rukaan will only be rolled for panels in which enough of them is visible to be able to identify them from their markings.
4. Comics will be rolled for rune marks with each panel (up to 10 per Rukaan) counting for fullbody/partial/headshot, background, colored, shaded, handler pictured. All other bonuses (by owner, companions, lore location, traits, etc) will be counted only once per submission and not per panel. If a Rukaan is visible in more than 10 panels, you may choose which of those panels will be rolled for rune marks.
5. Panels with reused backgrounds cannot be counted for background rune mark bonus. These must be specified in the bonuses section of the form.
6. Dialog/narration in the comic can be counted for rune marks if >200 words total. Wordcount must be listed in bonuses section if it is being claimed.
7. If submitted as an activity, there is only one activity roll per submission regardless of the number of panels.

Literature Bonus Guidelines

In literature, each Rukaan will get the bonus for the wordcount that they are present for. If all Rukaan are present for the whole story, they will all get the full wordcount.
If a Rukaan is present for less than half of the literature piece, they will be rolled for the wordcount they are present for. If they are present for more than half of the piece, they can be rounded up to the full wordcount of the piece.
The minimum wordcount to be rolled for runemarks is 200 words. There must be at least 200 words per each Rukaan being rolled for rune marks for the piece (for example, a piece must be 800 words to be rolled for 4 Rukaan).
The bonus increases as the total wordcount increases. There is no maximum wordcount or cap, write as much as you want!
If the Rukaan is frequently referred to by a nickname or descriptor (like "red stag"), please include this alongside the name in the name field so the rollers can easily check their wordcount.

Other Bonus Guidelines

Lore

The Lore bonus currently includes Yggdrasil, the Norse gods and Norse mythological figures, and Group Lore Figures.
These must be pictured fullbody or significantly involved in the story to count for the lore bonus.
Does not stack if more than one lore figure is present.
More will be added as the Lore Storyline progresses.

Group Starters

Group Starters must be pictured fullbody or significantly involved in the story to count for the Starter bonus.
Does not stack if more than one starter is present.

Group NPCs

Group NPCs must be pictured fullbody or significantly involved in the story to count for the NPC bonus.
Does not stack if more than one NPC is present.

Other ARPGs and Affiliated ARPGs

The Other ARPG bonus counts once per piece regardless of the number of creatures or species present.
- Any creature with a reference or an import sheet that is not a real species/breed can get this bonus. This includes adoptables and created horse breeds.
- Import sheet or reference must be linked somewhere in the submission description.
- Linked import sheets/references must be hosted on deviantart. However, if the species is not hosted on deviantart, you can create your own character reference on deviantart to use as proof for this bonus. A reference is similar to a handler profile with a drawing of the character and a brief description of them.
The Affiliate ARPG bonus counts once per piece regardless of the number of affiliated creatures or species present.
- Any character from our affiliated group species (Jhoven moose, Ethers-of-Pandora gryphus and Isle-of-Sagittari centaurs) will grant this bonus.
- Import sheet or reference must be linked somewhere in the submission description.
- Group owned characters from these groups can count towards this bonus if you do not have your own. (Links: Jhoven group imports, Gryphus starters, IoS starters)
- Affiliate ARPG bonus stacks with the Other ARPG bonus. Having one member of an affiliate species in a submission will grant both bonuses.
- Affiliate ARPG bonus can only be applied once per submission, even if multiple affiliate species or characters are present.

Collaborations

A single submission where one artist completes the art and another adds a story of at least 200 words in the description may be counted as a collaboration.
For a piece to count as a collaboration, all players participating in the creation of the piece should have a Rukaan present in the piece so all will get rune marks for their work. OR the second character can be from another ARPG, as long as it is clear from the description that each contributor to the piece owns a character present in the piece, and the import sheet for the other ARPG character clearly lists the owner of that character.

Rune Mark and Activity Trackers

Trackers are a journal or deviation used to collect or organize your Rukaan's rune mark roll comments and proof of other requirements in order to be validated for rank increases. Your Rukaan's tracker should collect all of their rune mark roll comments in one place where it is easy for rank validating admins to find them.

Trackers can be:

A deviantart journal
A deviantart image or submission

Trackers cannot be a stash/studio file or site other than deviantart, as admins are unable to comment on these with your rune mark or activity results. You can collect and organize your Rukaan's information offsite, but the trackers for admins to leave results on must be a deviantrt journal or submission admins can leave comments on.

Please use one comment for rune marks and a separate one for activity results (explorations, events, etc). You are welcome to use separate comments for different activity types if you would like, or you can have them lumped together in one comment. While each Rukaan should have their own rune mark comment, multiple Rukaan can share an activity comment if you prefer.

Only admins should post official rune mark roll results in a tracker. If a roll is posted in the wrong place, please use the Help And Questions journal to get it moved to the correct tracker and check that all the links in your submission form lead to the correct tracker.

If you win unapplied rune marks in an event or as a reward for an adoption center donation, you may post a comment on your tracker which links the rune mark proof comment. These unapplied rune marks will not count as rune marks by owner, and are non-transferrable.

Tracker Example

The most popular option for a rune mark tracker is to create a tracking journal with a comment for rune mark results. (This is also by far the easiest for admins to navigate at ranking time!) This rune mark comment is linked on all submission forms as the rune mark tracker, and all rune mark roll results are posted as a reply to this comment. This makes it very easy for ranking admins to tally rune marks as all comments are in a single place and they simply have to check all replies to the single comment on the tracking journal.

Some people use a comment on a blank journal, image or literature piece. Others use the body of the journal to track things like rank approval comments, area unlocks, prompt set progress and more. Please note that st.ash files are not allowed, as changes to stash comments prevent us from posting your results there.

When linking your trackers in the submission form, please directly link to the comment where you wish the reply to be placed. If the journal is linked rather than a specific comment, the reply will be placed on the journal.

An example of a minimal tracker: R-0007 Harald Tracker. Additional information may be included if you like to store all your information in one place, but only the comments are required. See examples of more complex trackers that contain more optional information, forms and links: R-1092 Hades Tracker, R-2352 Soot Tracker, R-0145 Enver, Multiple Rukaan Tracker (note: each Rukaan still has their own rune mark comment thread)

An example rune mark comment thread is shown below:

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