Chess-first, human always
Community guidelines
Play the position hard. Treat the person gently. These guidelines apply to profiles, clubs, chat, messages, annotations, event spaces, and every competitive game.
Public beta, built with care
Safety tooling is still maturing during beta. Blocking and muting give immediate control; reports create a review record and should be reserved for genuine concerns.
The standard we play toward
Let your own moves decide competitive games.
Discuss positions and ideas without attacking the person.
Use block, mute, and report instead of escalating.
Respect privacy and ask before sharing private messages.
Welcome learners and leave room for different skill levels.
Not welcome here
Engine or outside assistance in games where it is not allowed.
Harassment, hate, threats, sexual content, or targeted humiliation.
Spam, scams, phishing, impersonation, or exposure of private information.
Rating manipulation, collusion, sandbagging, multi-account abuse, or intentional timeouts.
Exploiting defects, evading enforcement, or disrupting games and services.
Fair play by context
Tools that make study powerful can make competition meaningless. Rated games therefore disable hints and takebacks, while coached games make built-in assistance an explicit part of the rules.
Rated game
Built-in hints and takebacks are disabled. Outside engines, databases, coaches, other players, and automation are prohibited.
Coached or private game
Eligible rooms may let either player spend a recorded Busted Minds hint on their own turn. Outside assistance remains prohibited.
Analysis & training
Explore lines, request free hints, retry mistakes, and annotate as deeply as you like.
Report with care
Protect your space
Mute or block if you need the interaction to stop immediately.
Capture the context
Report from the relevant game, message, profile, or event when possible.
Describe observable facts
Explain what happened without guessing motives or organizing public accusations.
Let review happen
Repeated reports do not accelerate review and can obscure the clearest evidence.
Nova League boundaries
Nova League personas are fictional, automated system opponents—not people. They use preset chess-only replies, do not accept friend relationships, and never create reports.
Proportionate enforcement
Responses can include education, content removal, chat limits, result or rating correction, event removal, temporary suspension, or account termination. Serious safety threats may require immediate action.
A report is not an emergency service
If you or someone else is in immediate danger, contact an appropriate local emergency service. Do not publish private details while seeking help.