You must be at least 18+ years of age to join Havensake.
You may request to join the server as a spectator if you are younger than 18, but you cannot join the group until you are at least 18. Those found lying about their age will be banned.
You must have a Discord account to join Havensake.
Havensake has moved almost entirely away from its DeviantART origins- everything is conducted, primarily, on Discord. Please note the group for an invite!
Your dA account must be at least 2+ months old before you can join.
This is so we can verify identity, activity, literacy, etc. If you are on a new account, please provide us with proof of an old one.
Members who leave the group of their own accord or are kicked for inactivity must wait 2 months before applying to rejoin.
This rule does not apply to those who are kicked for poor behavior/rule breaking, or those who have been banned from the group.
There are several ways to join the group.
While Havensake very rarely has public openings, prospective members may join the Discord to befriend existing members, who may let them in via member vouchers or kitten tryouts.
Activity checks are conducted every 2 months.
Activity in Havensake is submission-based; you must submit or be included in a submission that earns you at least 1 EXP per season. This is the equivalent of 20 words in a literature piece, 30 words in a roleplay/script/headcanon, or 1 sketched headshot. You will not be checked for activity the season you join, but will begin the season after.
Members who are consistently inactive and 'slide by' on activity checks may be contacted.
If a member submits exp at the last minute more often than not, staff may approach them to ask about concerns regarding them missing rollover. Likewise, if a member is virtually inactive for an extended period of time, staff may reach out to ask about activity and offer help and solutions. If all options have been exhausted and the inactivity continues, the member may receive a more in-depth activity check. Failing that activity check will result in being removed.
Members may ask to take hiatuses.
Hiatuses are granted on a case-by-case basis- please not the group or reach out to an admin if you need to take one. They may last up to 2 months, and you will not be checked for activity while on an official hiatus.
Members should be respectful to one another.
In short terms, be nice. We do not condone callouts, witch hunts, bullying, or members taking punishments into their own hands. If an issue arises, please take it to staff to be handled correctly. Public fights and callouts may be punished.
Additionally, any cases of racism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, etc. will be handled with severe punishment.
Mini-modding is not permissible.
Admins and mods exist to bring peace between members and run the group. While we appreciate those who feel like helping, please leave all moderation to actual staff.
HR complaints and concerns should be taken to members of HR.
HR concerns (complaints about members or staff) should only be taken to members of staff who are marked as being in HR. Taking HR complaints to non-HR members of staff is punishable.
Complaints from members are taken seriously.
Even if a member does not directly break a rule, they may be subject to punishment if enough members complain about them with adequate proof. This happens rarely, but needs to be mentioned.
Members may ask for contact bans against other members.
If a member is uncomfortable with another for personal reasons, feels unsafe, or has had their boundaries crossed too often with another member, we do permit contact bans. We ask that all members try their best to work together to find other solutions to problems before resorting to contact bans. Staff may ask for screenshot proof you attempted to resolve issues or set a boundary with the individual before instating a contact ban.
Behaviors that can warrant a contact ban include but are not limited to: Block evasion, breaches of privacy, harassment, aggression, stalking, crossing boundaries that have been expressed already, etc. Please note that if behaviors stated are concerning or break the rules, escalation of punishment may happen, including kicking and banning from the group, though this is just an example.
When placing a contact ban against a member, you will both be informed of the following:
• Neither of you can speak directly to one another in any HS servers or HS-adjacent rp/event/etc. servers, or respond to one another's advertisements, polls, rp searches, rumors, etc. We cannot monitor DMs, but any proof of violating a contact ban via DMs/notes/etc. will be punishable.
• You will not be given mentor/apprentice pairs, or anything similar.
• Neither of you may occupy the same call/stream in the Discord server. This is handled on a first come first served basis.
• Neither of you may comment on one another's dA submissions/pages/etc.
• A misconception is that you cannot both be in the same chat or posting rumors/messages at the same time- this is not true at all! As long as you don't speak to or react to one another, you may choose to be in the same vicinity as each other at any time, with the exception of voice calls.
In the event that the person who requested the contact ban wishes to drop it, please come to staff BEFORE reaching out to the person you've implemented a ban on. Speaking to them first is a violation of the ban you put in place, and they could be within their rights to report it to staff. We will be happy to mediate and make sure you're both on the same page before removing the ban.
Members will be spoken with before punishments are decided.
Staff will not jump to conclusions or listen to one-sided stories without substantial proof. Members are not likely to be punished without us hearing them out or getting an explanation, unless the rules broken are severe and proven to have been done with malintent, or from a pattern of repeat behavior.
Havensake works on a warnings and strikes system.
Typically, rule-breaking and undesirable behavior will progress in a certain pattern: Soft Warning > Hard Warning > Strike 1 > Strike 2 > Strike 3 (kick).
However, staff may feel the need to offer less or more severe punishments depending on circumstances. Members may receive unofficial warnings for less intense rule breakings; likewise, those found breaking severe rules may jump right to a strike, kick, or ban, depending.
Warnings and strikes can be worked off, unless a member is told otherwise.
Soft warnings fall off after 2 months, while hard warnings and strikes are worked off at 6 months. Some strikes may be indefinite or last longer, but staff will let a member know if this is the case.
Punishments may be modified to fit the specific offense.
Alternative punishments may be provided instead of or in addition to warnings/strikes. An example would be someone receiving an enforced character cooldown for breaking a character slot-related rule.
Those kicked for bad behavior cannot reapply until at least 6 months have passed.
This rule does not apply to those who have been banned from the group or told to wait longer. Some members may be asked to "appeal" to the group to prove they understand why they were removed from the group, and plan on fixing their behavior. Havensake's ban list is not public, but a member may ask if they are on it.
Members may be banned after leaving.
If someone was unfriendly or broke rules while in the group, posing a community hazard, but was not forcibly removed from the group and left on their own accord, they may still be banned from returning. Staff does not make these decisions lightly. If someone wishes to rejoin and worries they may not be allowed back in, they should note the group.
The following topics are completely banned from Havensake, and cannot be mentioned in histories or roleplay: Incest, necrophilia, pedophilia, slavery, and sexual assault.
These topics should not be found in any group content. Failure to follow this rule will result in punishment.
Homophobia, transphobia, etc. are only permitted in backstories.
LGBTQIA+ characters have existed in the Tribes for decades, and have been met with nothing but acceptance and understanding, with some of the Spirits themselves being queer, too. Because of this, maltreatment of someone based on their sexuality, gender identity, or otherwise simply makes no sense in a Tribe setting. A character may have experienced this in their history if they come from outside of the Tribes, but wouldn't be able to be openly queerphobic in the Tribes without being punished. This is lightened only for those characters experiencing internalized queerphobia, so long as it is not taken out on others, and is handled carefully.
Havensake permits some sensitive topics, as long as they are tagged appropriately, spoilered where needed, and handled tastefully.
These topics include murder, cannibalism, infanticide, abuse (verbal/physical/domestic), self-harm, and suicidal ideation.
This is touched on more in the Personal Plots Guide. Please refer to the guide before creating or participating in any plot, rp, or rumor that might involve one of these topics.
There will be no adult content permitted in the group.
While we are 18+, we do not allow any sexual discussions, roleplays, or submissions in the group. These things are fine if done safely and consensually behind closed doors, but should not make their way into the dA gallery or anywhere in the group Discord.
Art theft is forbidden in Havensake.
Members may not claim someone else's art as their own or use heavily traced work in their submissions. Application art must be created for the specific character (either made by the member, or commissioned/requested from someone else) and cannot be pulled from bases or character-making games.
Put usernames in titles of any notes sent to the group.
This is how admins keep track of what notes are sent so we can go back and look for certain notes as needed! Just put your username anywhere in the title of the note and you're good to go!
There is no character limit in Havensake.
Character slots are purchased using EXP. If you do not have enough EXP for a character slot, you must earn more before you can bring in another character.
Members are expected to be active with their existing characters before bringing in more.
Members with 2+ characters are expected to be active with all of their characters at least every two seasons. Members who have not publicly used a character in 4+ months may be asked for proof of activity. Admins may be stricter in the event that several of a member's characters have not been used in a long period of time. These rules only apply when a member is trying to bring in a new character or roll for a litter.
Examples of completed activity for a character would be:
- Completed, Ongoing, or Abandoned rp's that have 3 or more posts
- Headcanons (3+ posts) and activity within the group interacting with the community, showing effort
- Collabs with other members
- Solo quests (art and literature, provided it is for a quest, event or prompt)
- Rumors (3+, must show clear interaction)
Furthermore, if a character has stats that are out of date for more than 1 season or app art that is also out of date for more than 1 season when the activity check occurs, that character may be considered inactive.
Failing a character activity check will result in a mandatory cooldown.
If an activity check is failed when trying to bring in a new character or roll for a litter, the member will either need to remove the inactive character(s) to proceed, or accept a cooldown (at least 1 month in length, but may be extended depending on severity of inactivity or other factors) during which they cannot bring in new characters or roll any litters. After that cooldown, the member will need to pass the activity check with the same character(s) before being allowed their new character/litter. If they fail again, another cooldown will be added, etc.
There are cooldowns for bringing in new characters.
New members must wait 2 months before submitting a new character. After that, the cooldown is 1 month between characters. However, there are items in the EXP shop that can be used to negate or decrease this cooldown.
A member cannot have all of their characters in one Tribe.
Members with 15+ characters cannot have more than approximately 30% of their characters (rounded) belonging to one Tribe. This is to prevent one member from self-populating an entire Tribe. This restriction is loosely moderated, but should still be followed closely.
Character references should not be more than 2 months (1 season) out of date.
If a character's ref needs to be updated (be it for age-ups, Tribe switches, rank switches, etc), the member must complete and upload the updated reference within a season of the change. For example, if my character ages up from 9 moons (apprentice) to 12 moons (adolescent), I will need to update their visual reference with their updated age and tattoo color before they turn 15 moons old. If the member is not an artist or otherwise wants/need someone else to do the ref update for them, they must provide staff proof of request/purchase to another individual requesting the update. Failure to keep the references of your current characters up to date will result in denial of future characters or litter rolls until all references are corrected; Failure to keep one or more references up to date for several seasons in a row may result in denial of a new character/litter roll plus a cooldown, per normal activity rules.
Time works differently in Havensake.
Every 2 real-life months is equivalent to 3 in-character months, or one season. We keep track of character ages on the Character Cards, and tell members when to rank-up their characters based on their ages. Because of this, ages are recorded in 3s (3/6/9/12/15/etc).
Every age belongs to a certain "stage" of your character's life.
Characters are sorted by age: Kitten (0-6 months); Apprentice (6-12 months); Adolescent (12-18 months); Adult (18+ months); and Elders (12+ years).
Character ages are considered directly equivalent to real life until they reach adulthood.
Moons 1-18 are equivalent to IRL human years- ie. a 3-month-old kitten is similar to a 3-year-old child. Once a character reaches 18 months, they are considered similar to an 18-year-old human, and are thus the equivalent of a young adult. At this point, they begin aging more "slowly" as compared to real human adults. A guide for ages in Havensake can be found in the gallery.
Elders may choose to retire at 12 years of age.
This is not enforced on anyone, but is generally the earliest retirement-to-elder age. Please let staff know if your character would like to retire to the life of an elder.
Characters are not required to die of old age.
In theory, Havensake characters can live as long as they'd like. However, characters may not be brought in past 16 years of age, to maintain some semblance of realism, and because the group's history only stretches back so far.
Characters should be at least semi-realistic.
Hair, accessories, etc. are completely fine. When it comes to character colors, mutations, etc., please refer to the Design Guide.
All characters, with the exception of loners and young kittens, will have tattoos.
Tattoos are dependent on one's Tribe, age, and rank. Please refer to the Tattoo Guide for this.
Characters may not exceed certain heights.
The minimum height for an adult character is 6", with the maximum being 18". Most cats will average out at 12". This is touched on more in the Character Creation Guide.
Characters may join the group with cosmetics, but more extravagant items must be made in-group.
Small cosmetics, like simple necklaces, flowers, etc. may accompany a character into the group. However, if a character is brought in with more extravagant jewelry and things that would have been crafted with magic (ie. metals, entire outfits), it must be included that they obtained these items upon joining the Tribes/group.
Characters should not be Mary Sues, etc.
Your character should be realistic, with as many flaws as they have perfections. We recommend including 3 positive, negative, and neutral traits when writing a character's personality.
Mental illnesses must be properly researched and handled tastefully.
Members may explore mental illnesses in their characters, however, they should not be offensive or used to explain villainous plots, etc. Ableism and offensive content are not permitted in the group. Admins may check diagnoses against the DSM-5 for accuracy. While the Tribes may have different names for different mental illnesses, it is expected that they be referred to by official real-life name when a diagnosis is mentioned in-character.
Characters may be fandom-inspired, but cannot be created wholly from their inspired character(s).
For example, a character may share a name or similar appearance or personality with an existing character from media, but they cannot share all aspects of their personality, history, and design with that character. They must be at least moderately different. Admins will check fandom-inspired characters to the best of their knowledge.
Character personalities must be written at a certain length.
Personalities for a member's first two characters must be written out entirely, to insure literacy and that you understand the group and have balanced characters. Personalities of your first two characters must meet the 200 word minimum requirement for the same reasons. After your first two characters, you may use bulletpoint personalities for any and all of your characters! These must still meet at least 100 words in length and should detail your character and how they interact with the world around them. Note that listing out traits (ie. Brave, Cowardly, etc) and then describing how that specific trait is part of a character's personality doesn't count as a bulletpoint and does count for fleshing everything out. Bulletpoints is more like, "• Feels immense pressure to do well in life. • Very ambitious, and wants to be the best soldier in the Tribes," etc.
Humans do not exist in the world of Havensake.
Humans have not ever existed in Havensake, and thus any traces of them would not be found. While the cats are slowly modernizing the world around them, things like cars, modern dog breeds, etc. do not exist. If you are confused, please ask staff.
There are no Tribe cat NPCs.
You cannot make up Tribe cats in your histories if they do not exist. This would interfere with existing group history, and would be confusing and inconsistent. Any Tribe character mentioned in roleplays or backstories must be real characters used with permission.
Non-kitten characters will come from outside of the Tribes.
In accordance with the rule above, characters not born directly into the group and obtained via tryout/adoption will come from outside of the Tribes and their territories. This is touched on more in the Character Creation Guide.
Characters may have been raised by non-cat creatures, but it must be done in a way that makes sense, and done in moderation.
One in every five of a member's characters may have been raised by non-cat creatures, as long as it makes sense. This is explained further in the Character Creation Guide.
Character histories must be written at a certain length.
Histories for a member's first two characters must be written out entirely, to insure literacy and that you understand the group and its world. Histories of your first two characters must meet the 200 word minimum requirement for the same reasons. After your first two characters, you may use bulletpoint histories for any and all of your characters! These must still meet at least 100 words in length and should detail your character's pre-group backstory. This rule is waived for kitten characters- however, kittens should still have a sentence or two written for their history, and it should not be left blank.
A new member's first character cannot be a loner, wanderer, Null, or exile.
Members must introduce their first character as a Tribe cat of any age (kitten, adult, etc). This will give them the best understanding of the group.
Characters may not join the group as wanderers, Nulls, or exiles.
A character must obtain a tattoo to become a wanderer (either being in a Tribe for 2 months and leaving, or being in the group for 2 months and obtaining a tattoo). They must also obtain a tattoo in some way before becoming a Null, as Sin cannot grant tattoos. A character will need to be exiled by their Tribe leader or Spirit to become an exile.
Characters who left the group that end up returning may regain any upgrades/inventory they once had.
As long as the user did not give away a character's inventory/got refunded exp for the characters upgrades, they may regain them back. Visual logs of proof are needed for this. Former members rejoining the group will not regain any exp lost when they left.
Refunds may be issued for a character who leaves, either for the slot, purchased/upgraded skills, etc.
If a character dies, they are automatically refunded. However, if a character leaves, please tell an admin if you would like their skills etc. refunded.
Characters who are removed for activity check purposes may not return for 2 months.
If you remove a character because they failed an activity check while you were trying to bring in another character or roll a litter, that specific character cannot rejoin the group until at least 2 real-life months have passed.
Deaths of TGB characters may be retconned on a case-by-case basis.
Death retcons must be from TGB, must have originated from headcanon, leaving journals, or personal announcements. Not viable if RPed or submitted to the group or done through an announcement or event.
Characters from TGB may be reborn.
The cat in question must not have any existing familial ties. The character must slightly differ from the original counterpart, becoming, in essence, a doppelganger rather than a return. If you are unsure if your character is eligible for a rebirth, contact us for individual judgment over group notes.
Interested in joining Havensake? Great! The most important thing is to read all of the information you'll find under the "Basics" tab- everything outside of that is best read in moderation, as there is a lot of information to read to get the hang of our group. The only ways to join at the moment are through kitten tryouts and member vouchers- Havensake does not conduct public openings at this time, nor do we have any planned! However, please feel free to note the group for a Discord invite, and you're sure to find someone who will help you get into the group!
To get started, please check out the How to Join section!