Terms of use

These terms govern your use of the Academy of Games. They are written to be readable in one sitting. They are a non-binding summary of the spirit in which the Academy is offered until a version reviewed by counsel replaces them; in the meantime, this page reflects how the institution actually operates.

When you sign in, you become a Student. As a Student you agree to:

• Honour the honour system. The Academy is honour-system by default. When you attest a quest, you are stating, as a Student of an institution that takes your word, that you have done the practice the quest names. Attest only what you have done. The same applies to endorsements: endorse what you have witnessed or what a Student has described to you compellingly enough.
• Treat other Students with civility. Discussion threads, the Library, and the Magister conversation are not places for harassment, abuse, or impersonation. The Academy may remove material and accounts that fall short of ordinary academic courtesy.
• Do not break the institution. Do not attempt to circumvent the Magister Ludi spend caps, the federation signature verification, or the privacy gate on monads. Do not script automated mass-attestation. Do not scrape the registry; the Students listed there have opted in and that opt-in is to be a public page, not a public database.
• Own what you contribute. Materials and syllabuses you publish in Castalia, attestation evidence text, and conversation messages remain yours; by publishing them on the Academy you grant the Academy a non-exclusive right to display, distribute and cache them as part of the service. Withdrawing them from the Academy is your right; see the privacy page for the export-and-delete mechanism.

The Academy offers a place to do the work, in the company of others doing the same. It offers no credential, no employment relationship, no contractual training programme, and no guarantee that any third party will recognise the attestations you gather here. The institution is, by design, a quiet one. Treat it as such.

The Magister Ludi is mediated by a large language model. The Magister’s words are generated by software in the voice of a historical figure. The Magister is not a tutor, an evaluator, a therapist, or a legal or medical advisor; rely on the Magister for none of those things.

The Academy is provided “as is.” To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Academy and its operators disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. The Academy and its operators are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from your use of the institution.

Some embodied disciplines — labyrinth-walking, ballcourt practice, archery, contact improvisation, and so on — carry physical risk. The Academy describes them, not supervises them. Practise responsibly, with the guidance of qualified teachers where appropriate, and stop when your body or judgement says to.

You may close your account at any time from the profile page. Closing is final and removes your data as described in the privacy policy.

The Academy may close an account that materially breaches these terms — for example, by harassment, repeated false attestation, or attempts to compromise the institution’s integrity. The Academy will tell you the reason when it does so.

We may update these terms over time. We will date the change at the top of this page and, when the change is material, post a notice to Students when they next sign in.