Code of Conduct & Penalties

Welcome to Backgammon Masters! We want every player to have a fair, fun, and respectful experience. This Code of Conduct explains what we expect from you and what happens if the rules are broken.

This Code of Conduct is part of our Terms of Service. By playing Backgammon Masters, you agree to follow these rules. They apply everywhere in the game: matches, chat, tournaments, profiles, and any other features we offer.

1. Account Rules

1.1 You may only have one account. You are responsible for everything that happens on your account.

1.2 Using more than one account (multi-accounting) is not allowed. It messes up rankings, ruins tournaments, and gives some players an unfair edge. If we find multiple accounts belonging to the same person, all of them can be penalized.

1.3 You cannot buy, sell, give away, or trade your account. Transferring your account to someone else for any reason is not allowed.

1.4 If you share your login information with someone, that's your choice and your risk. You're still on the hook for anything they do with your account.

1.5 We reserve the right to look into accounts and gameplay data to check for rule violations.

1.6 If your account gets banned, creating a new account to get around the ban is not allowed. The new account will also be banned.

1.7 Claiming ownership of someone else's account through a false recovery request is considered fraud and will be penalized.

2. Chat and Communication

Our chat connects players from all over the world. Keep it friendly.

What we expect: Be respectful. Be polite. Use the chat to talk about the game, share strategy, and have a good time with other players.

What is not allowed:

2.1 Hate speech. This means any language that attacks or puts down other people based on their ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or any other personal characteristic.

2.2 Threats, harassment, bullying, or intimidation of any kind.

2.3 Sexual, violent, or otherwise graphic content.

2.4 Insults, name-calling, or abusive language aimed at other players, moderators, or staff.

2.5 Spamming. This includes repeating the same message over and over, flooding the chat, or posting random nonsense.

2.6 Sharing another player's personal information (real name, location, contact info, etc.) without their permission.

2.7 Advertising, promoting outside products or websites, or running scams of any kind.

2.8 Using a language that isn't supported in a language-specific chat room.

2.9 Arguing about moderator decisions in public chat. If you think a moderator got it wrong, contact us through the contact form. Don't take it to the chat.

3. Fair Play and Game Integrity

Fair competition is what makes this game worth playing. All of the following are strictly prohibited:

3.1 Third-party software. Using bots, mods, hacks, automation scripts, or any software that changes how the game works or gives you an unfair advantage. This includes programs that make moves for you or help you decide what to play. For a full breakdown, see our article: Don't be a cheat!

3.2 Match-fixing and collusion. Setting up game outcomes ahead of time with another player. This applies to ranked games, tournaments, and weekly challenges. It also covers coordinating through outside messaging to decide who wins or loses.

3.3 Elo manipulation. Losing on purpose to lower your rating, boosting someone else's rating through arranged wins, or any kind of win-trading.

3.3 Ranking and progression manipulation. Any attempt to artificially boost or lower your position in our competitive systems. This covers your Elo rating, Crowns, Tournament Points, season leaderboards (global or local), and any trophies earned through competition. Examples include losing on purpose to lower your rating, arranging wins with another player to boost their Crowns or Tournament Points, farming crowns against a cooperating high-crown opponent, and any form of win-trading.

3.4 Tournament rigging and smurfing. Using multiple accounts in the same tournament, working with other players to rig tournament results, or intentionally tanking your rating to enter easier brackets.

3.5 Bug exploitation. If you find a bug, report it through our contact form. Players who report bugs honestly will not be penalized. Knowingly abusing a bug or glitch to benefit yourself is a different story.

3.6 Intentional disconnection or stalling. Dropping out of a game on purpose or running out the clock just to annoy your opponent or dodge a loss.

3.7 Suspicious coin transfers and gold laundering. This includes any of the following patterns: using middleman accounts to move coins around and hide buying, selling, or other shady transactions; accounts that receive large amounts of coins and then send them to someone else while barely playing any actual games; transferring a large portion of your balance to another player and then leaving the game (this looks like selling your account's contents); and using rigged matches or friendly games as a workaround to move coins when direct transfers are limited. Small, reasonable transfers to help a friend with a tournament ticket or a small stake are fine. Bulk transfers that don't make sense for normal gameplay are not. The game may enforce per-transfer limits based on your average balance. Do not try to work around them.

3.8 Gold phishing. Tricking, manipulating, or deceiving other players into giving you their coins or in-game items.

3.9 Encouraging others to break the rules. Telling other players to cheat, use bots, create extra accounts, or do anything else that violates this Code of Conduct. You're responsible even if you didn't do it yourself.

How we catch it: We monitor gameplay patterns, coin transfers, tournament results, and account activity. Things like large coin transfers right after a tournament ends, accounts that move a lot of money but barely play, and suspiciously coordinated win/loss streaks between accounts all get flagged for investigation.

What you lose if you're banned:

• If you are banned for at least 30 days at the time a match, tournament, weekly challenge, or season ends, you forfeit any awards from that event. This includes prize coins, trophies, medals, and leaderboard placement.
• If your ban lasts more than 1 month, your season ratings (Crowns and Tournament Points for the current season) are removed.
• If your ban lasts more than 1 year, all of your ratings are removed, including Elo.

This rule exists so that bans actually mean something. You cannot wait out a short ban and then collect the rewards from games or seasons you weren't even allowed to play in.

4. Usernames and Avatars

Your username and profile picture are visible to everyone. Keep them appropriate.

4.1 No offensive, vulgar, threatening, or discriminatory usernames.

4.2 No pretending to be a staff member, moderator, or another player.

4.3 No inappropriate profile pictures, including anything violent, sexual, or offensive.

4.4 No copyrighted or trademarked material used without permission.

If your username or avatar breaks these rules, we'll change it for you. Repeated violations lead to further penalties.

5. Purchases and In-Game Economy

5.1 Refund abuse. Refund abuse can lead to penalties.

5.2 Real-money trading. Buying or selling in-game currency (coins, gold) for real money anywhere outside the official Backgammon Masters shop.

5.3 Account trafficking. Selling, buying, or transferring accounts or in-game items for profit through any channel.

6. Moderators

Moderators help keep the community running smoothly. They are trusted community members, and they play by the same rules as everyone else.

6.1 Please respect moderator decisions. If you disagree, contact us through the contact form with details and evidence. Don't argue about it in the chat.

6.2 Moderators follow this Code of Conduct just like any other player. Being a moderator does not put you above the rules.

6.3 If a moderator abuses their power (unfair muting, biased enforcement, using mod tools for personal grudges), we take that seriously. It will result in removal of their moderator role and may lead to account penalties.

6.4 To report a moderator, use the contact form. Include the moderator's name, the date and time, and any screenshots or evidence you have.

7. Penalties

If you break the rules, there are consequences. What happens to you depends on what you did and whether you've been in trouble before.

Types of penalties

• Warning. An official notice that you broke a rule. You can still play and chat, but it goes on your record and counts toward escalation if it happens again.
• Mute. You lose access to chat for a set period of time (or permanently). You can still play games.
• Temporary ban. Your account is suspended for a set period. You can't play or access the game at all.
• Permanent ban. Your account is closed for good. No appeals will reverse a permanent ban for serious offenses.
• Other actions. These can include taking back in-game currency, wiping rankings and stats, resetting achievements, or forcing a username/avatar change.

Penalty guidelines by offense

Below are the typical penalties for each type of violation. We reserve the right to adjust penalties up or down depending on the circumstances.

Minor chat violations (rules 2.3, 2.5, 2.8) such as excessive caps, mild language, off-topic spam:

1st offense: Warning
2nd offense: 1-hour mute
3rd offense: 24-hour mute
4th+ offense: 7-day mute, escalating with each repeat

Severe chat violations (rules 2.1, 2.2, 2.4, 2.6) such as hate speech, threats, harassment, doxxing:

1st offense: 24-hour mute
2nd offense: 7-day mute
3rd offense: 30-day mute
4th+ offense: Permanent mute or account ban

Advertising, solicitation, or scamming (rule 2.7):

1st offense: 24-hour mute
2nd offense: 7-day mute
3rd offense: Permanent mute

Arguing about mod decisions in public chat (rule 2.9):

1st offense: Warning
2nd offense: 1-hour mute
3rd+ offense: 24-hour mute, escalating

Inappropriate username or avatar (rules 4.1 through 4.4):

1st offense: Warning + forced change
2nd offense: 7-day ban
3rd offense: 30-day ban
4th+ offense: Permanent ban

Multi-accounting (rule 1.2):

1st offense: 7-day ban on all accounts
2nd offense: 30-day ban on all accounts
3rd offense: Permanent ban on all accounts

Ban evasion (rule 1.6):

Any offense: Permanent ban on the new account. Original ban may be extended.

False account recovery / fraud (rule 1.7):

1st offense: Permanent ban

Account selling, buying, or trading (rules 1.3, 5.3):

1st offense: Permanent ban on all involved accounts

Match-fixing, collusion, or tournament rigging (rules 3.2, 3.4):

1st offense: 30-day ban + removal of winnings and rankings
2nd offense: Permanent ban

Third-party software, hacking, or automation (rule 3.1):

Any offense: Permanent ban on all involved accounts

Ranking and progression manipulation (rule 3.3), covering Elo, Crowns, Tournament Points, and leaderboard position:

1st offense: Reset of affected ranking (Elo, Crowns, or Tournament Points) + 7-day ban
2nd offense: 30-day ban + ranking reset
3rd offense: Permanent ban

Seasonal trophies or rewards earned through manipulated rankings will be revoked. If the manipulation affected season leaderboard standings, the player may also be removed from the Hall of Fame.

Bug exploitation (rule 3.5):

1. If reported in good faith: No penalty
2. If knowingly exploited, 1st offense: 30-day ban
3. 2nd offense: Permanent ban

Intentional disconnection or stalling (rule 3.6):

1st offense: Warning
2nd offense: 24-hour ban
3rd offense: 7-day ban
4th+ offense: 30-day ban, escalating

Gold laundering or suspicious transfers (rule 3.7):

1st offense: 7-day ban + currency reversal
2nd offense: Permanent ban

Gold phishing (rule 3.8):

1st offense: 30-day ban + currency reversal
2nd offense: Permanent ban

Encouraging others to break the rules (rule 3.9):

1st offense: 7-day ban
2nd offense: 30-day ban
3rd offense: Permanent ban

Refund abuse (rule 5.1):

1st offense: Warning + reversal of in-game items
2nd offense: 30-day ban + reversal
3rd offense: Permanent ban

Unauthorized real-money trading (rule 5.2):

1st offense: 30-day ban + currency reversal
2nd offense: Permanent ban

Staff or player impersonation (rule 4.2):

1st offense: 7-day ban + forced name change
2nd offense: Permanent ban

Submitting false reports (see Section 8):

1st offense: Warning
2nd offense: 7-day mute
3rd offense: 30-day ban

How escalation works

Every penalty goes on your record. If you keep getting in trouble, even for different types of violations, that history counts against you. A player with 50 prior mutes will get hit harder for a new offense than someone with a clean record.

We look at each situation individually. We consider what you did, whether it was intentional, how it affected other players, and your full history.

There is no statute of limitations on violations. We can act on a rule breach whether it happened yesterday or a year ago.

8. Reporting and Appeals

How to report a player

If someone is breaking the rules, let us know. Use our contact form and include the player's username or Player ID, what happened, and any screenshots you have. More detail helps us act faster.

How to appeal a penalty

If you think we got it wrong, you can appeal:

1. Go to our contact form.
2. Include your Player ID, the date you were penalized, and any evidence that supports your case.
3. We'll review it and get back to you.

Do not discuss bans, mutes, or appeals in public chat. That's a separate violation (rule 2.9).

9. Changes to This Code of Conduct

We may update these rules from time to time. When we make significant changes, we'll let players know. It's your responsibility to check back occasionally. Continuing to play after an update means you accept the new rules.

Violations that happened before this version took effect will be handled under the previous version. You can find the previous Code of Conduct here.

Questions? Reach out through our contact form.

Effective date: 07 July 2026