(2nd PaxLair Anniversary, January 19, 2000)

PURPOSE: This charter outlines the mission, authorities, principles, tenets, and general functions that help enable the existence of the virtual "Player-City" called PaxLair on the Chesapeake Shard of Ultima Online (UO). This charter gives guidance and direction for "out-of-game" and some "in-game" activities. A separate charter for PaxLair in a purely role-played sense is created by the Mayor of PaxLair, the role-played leader and authority of PaxLair City in the Realm (Ultima Online game).

MISSION: The primary purpose of PaxLair as a community service is to create, operate, and maintain a realistic "virtual" city within the UO gaming environment. That in-game city is called "PaxLair". Through this mission, PaxLair seeks to add to fellow players' enjoyment of UO and foster a sense of community.

DESCRIPTION:

PaxLair is part of the Ultima Online multi-verse, created by subscribing players, and at times assisted by Electronic Arts (EA) officials as deemed appropriate by EA. The PaxLair City exists in various locations on the UO Chesapeake Shard to include the facets and areas of Felucca, Trammel, Malas, and Tokuno.

Ultima Online provides players a diverse and open virtual environment for thousands of people to meet, establish goals, work together, work against each another, and help build a world for themselves and others to enjoy.

PaxLair itself has also become an environment and community within UO that is limitlessly open to the imagination. With a firm foundation laid in 1998, PaxLair is first and foremost a role-playing city, not a guild. Anyone may participate in PaxLair. People gain the best experience of PaxLair by role-playing their characters in the genre of UO, nominally a Middle Ages setting.

AUTHORITY:

PaxLair is cared for by the PaxLair Caretaker. This person is the spokesman to Ultima Online, Electronic Arts officials with respect to PaxLair and has the voluntary obligation to the players involved in PaxLair to offer as much realism and support as possible. This person also has the authority over long-term actions and stability of the PaxLair City as a continuing role-played environment.

The Mayor of PaxLair is accountable and responsible for the in-game activity and organization of PaxLair as a community with Ultima Online. The Mayor has authority over the role-played government and the interactions with various virtual towns, guilds, and characters within Ultima Online. This person applies leadership techniques to lead the community down paths according the the overall tenets of PaxLair, as described in this document.

GUIDING PRINCIPLE: For success, PaxLair's guiding principle is Respect. Within this community of real people playing fictitious characters, respect by players is the foundation for all activity.

TENETS: The tenets relate to the in-game nature of PaxLair as a role-played community. They combine to give PaxLair a sense of direction and purpose.

Peace - PaxLair "physically" exists in various places on the Chesapeake Shard from a wilderness location to places where combat is limited. Peace is sought with guilds and characters so all may use their imaginations rather than their muscle to be creative. Attacks will occur in PaxLair areas and PaxLair attempts to foster "realism" in such attacks and defense. PaxLair will attempt to defend its peaceful environment through physical defense and diplomacy with an exit strategy for peaceful outcomes. Ultimately, PaxLair strives to have people treat PaxLair as a rich opportunity to cooperate rather than to simply fight with gaming mechanics.

Neutrality - PaxLair areas are neutral ground for all people to meet, whether evil or good, murderer or bounty hunter. Neutral ground means basically "checking your weapons at the door." PaxLair attempts to remain neutral to all walks of life. This neutrality offers a place where warring groups and people may rest, have competitions, barter solutions to problems, engage in commerce, and hold events. Respect is the key to this neutrality.

Roleplaying - PaxLair is first and foremost a role-played city environment where people can intricately take on a fictitious role of an imaginary character. Role-playing simply means the characters in the game act as if they were real within the UO genre, nominally the middle ages. UO offers people the ability to talk in game (through public text conversation) and act as they wish (enabled and limited by game programming mechanics). Role-playing means that conversation should remain relevant to the genre (e.g., not talking about football) and limiting actions that the game mechanics can not control (e.g., not standing in the middle of the outdoor stage during a concert). Role-playing simply means talking and acting from the character's point of view, not the player's point of view.

FUNCTIONS:

1. WEB SITE: The official PaxLair Web Site is at http://www.paxlair.com/site10/ and is administered by people under the guidance of the PaxLair Caretaker.

2. MESSAGE BOARD: The official PaxLair Message Board is linked to the Official PaxLair Web Site (above) and is administered by people under the guidance of the PaxLair Caretaker.

3. ROLE-PLAYED GOVERNMENT: PaxLair has an operating role-played government with a Mayor, Council, Chancellors, Ministers, Citizens, Citizen-Guilds, and Alliance-Guilds. This operating government can be modified by the current role-played Mayor in a sense of in-game realism based upon the Mayor's attitudes and ambitions. The Mayor has the authority to conduct in-game role-played business, in the genre of UO, but not authority over long-term actions and stability of PaxLair as a continuing role-played environment. The PaxLair Caretaker has authority over the latter. The role-played Mayor will establish in-game oriented charters, laws, policies, and guidance for the working government as long as they remain consistent with the tenets of this Charter. Publication support (web site, message board) is provided through the PaxLair Caretaker.

4. IN-GAME BUILDINGS: UO offers the ability for players to own houses on their player accounts. All in-game buildings associated with PaxLair are the property of their player-owners, not PaxLair. The buildings designated as part of PaxLair (in its several locations now), are based solely upon the owner's agreement and PaxLair has no authority over these buildings. Use of these buildings are based upon cooperation. Player-owners of specially "enhanced" buildings by UO Game Masters must follow the rules established to have such "enhanced" items (e.g., can not sell the building on E-Bay and reap financial gain from the Game Masters' enhancements; the building must be used in the venue for which it received its enhancements [e.g., PaxLair buildings enhanced for the purpose of the PaxLair RPing environment]).

CHARTER RENEWAL:  This charter is reviewed annually by the Caretaker, current Mayor, and other people involved in PaxLair in December of each year.  Updates may occur more often.