Complete Yu-Gi-Oh Trading Rules (UPDATED 10/6/08 - NEW RULE TRADER PROBATION PERIOD)

[Rurikarakusa]

Preface
If you want to trade on this site, you will follow these rules. It’s as simple as that. The Moderator and Administration staff reserves the right to prohibit any user from trading for any violation of these rules, or for any other reason we feel necessary. Trading on this site is not a right, it is a privilege.

These rules are in place to protect the users of this site. Yu-Gi-Oh! cards are somewhat valuable and growing in value every day, and some people invest quite a bit of money into this hobby. The last thing we want is for someone to be a victim of theft because they didn’t follow our rules.

Ripping is an ever-increasing problem. We will take steps to minimize the risk of online trading, but in the end, most of the responsibility lies on you. If a trade sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. If the person you're trading with refuses to use a middleman, or they refuse to trade unless you send at the same time, that should be an immediate red light. We want to protect you, but you have to let us. We can't hand-deliver this cards to your door, and we can't go to a ripper's door and get your cards back.

If you don’t like the rules, by all means, trade somewhere else.

I. Trade Rules

1. The “House Rule” Rule
First and most importantly - our rules trump your rules in every situation. By all means, feel free to add your own rules to your trade threads, such as “I will not send overseas” or “Leave a link or don’t ask me to check your list”. Simple things like that are never problems. You cannot, however, post a rule in your trade thread that contradicts a rule posted here. If you do, you will be asked to change it. If you don’t comply, your thread will be closed or deleted.

1st Offense - You will be asked to edit your thread and given 24 hours to do so. You will also receive 1 warning infraction.
2nd Offense - Your thread will be edited and you will be given a 1-point infraction.
3rd Offense - Your thread will be closed, you will receive a 3-point infraction, and you will be suspended from trading for no less than 30 days.

2. Trader Probation (NEW!)
All new traders on this site will have to take part of a Probationary Period of trading. During this time, you will be required to send via a middleman. This probation is not a bad thing, it's just a place to start with trading. If you're a new member, I'm sure that you'll want your first few trades to be as safe as possible. With this probationary period, you'll have a moderator or other approved middleman walk you through every detail of the trade so you know exactly what to do and what to expect.

EDIT: LIGHTNINGBLITZ: For all of my MOD trades, I do cover shipping, unless it is an order where I would need to go to the post office or ship anything but a few cards. Shipping becomes far too expensive.

Also, here are MY Middleman policies:

http://forum.tcgplayer.com/showthread.php?t=111885

And my Reference policies:

http://forum.tcgplayer.com/showthread.php?t=111885



Remember, successful middleman trades net you up to 2 good references per trade (one from the trader and one from the middleman). You will be reffed by the MOD after the trade is finished.

You are on probation if:
1. You have been a member of the site for less than 30 days
2. You have less than 5 iTrader points
3. You are on the Caution List

Violation of this trader probation can result in losing your trading privileges.
1st Offense - You will be put on the Caution List for no less than 30 days, and you will be given a 1-point infraction
2nd Offense - You will be suspended from trading for no less than 30 days, and you will be given a 3-point infraction
3rd Offense - You will be permanently banned and placed on the Bad Trader list.

3. Trade Thread Requirements (NEW!)
There are certain things we require all trade threads to have. These are in place for various reasons, but most of all, it shows us that you've read the rules and are taking measures to keep completely updated on the current trade rules.

1. You must have at least 10 haves to start a list. Wants are optional, but recommended. Any thread with less than 10 haves will be closed or deleted.
2. You must have this line in your rules: "I have read the rules and I am on the Trader Map". Don't say it if it's not true though. If you have this line in your thread and you're not on the Trader Map, you will get an infraction.
3. Current trades. You must edit into your original post who you are trading with, what you are trading, and when the ends were sent. This is the same information you will need to post on the Tracking Thread.

If your thread doesn't have these required contents, we'll try to make sure that you know they need to be there.
1st Offense - You will receive a warning infraction and be asked to comply
2nd Offense - You will receive a 1-point infraction and be asked again to comply
3rd Offense - Your trade thread will be closed until you comply, and you will be given another 1-point infraction

4. Trade Tracking Thread - AMENDMENT: MAP NO LONGER USED UNTIL RURI RETURNS.
All trades conducted on this site must be reported on the Trade Tracking Thread. You must state in your post:

-Trader 1
-Date Sent
-Date Received
-Trade Material SENT
-Delivery Confirmation Number OR Middleman

-Trader 2
-Date Sent
-Date Received
-Trade Material SENT
-Delivery Confirmation Number OR Middleman

You must also be added to the Trader Map. The Map is linked on the Tracker Thread for everyone's reference.
http://www.communitywalk.com/trader_map/map/295035

If you receive a reference for a trade that is not reported on the Tracker thread, that reference will be deleted.
1st Offense - Any reference for a trade not reported will be deleted, and you will receive a 1-point infraction
2nd Offense - You will be suspended from trading for no less than 30 days, and you will be given a 3-point infraction
3rd Offense - You will be permanently banned and placed on the Bad Trader list.

5. Buying and Selling
Buying and selling cards on this site is strictly prohibited. As much as we wish it was, the upkeep of this site, servers, and software is not free. You see all the advertisement banners framing the site? Those are there because those specific vendors/sites paid for that advertising area. Those advertisements are the primary income of the site, and that income keeps the lights on. Now, when the users decide to start selling their cards on their trade threads, they are essentially advertising their merchandise for free. Not only that, but you are profiting off the resources somebody else pays for. This is much like taking your TV into Wal-Mart to try to sell it to the customers. Do you think the employees there would allow that? If you said yes, you've obviously never worked retail.

If you have money on your trade thread, either as a have or want, you will be asked to remove it.

AMENDED 3/28/2008
If you want to sell cards on this site, you must follow these guidelines:

a) You must be a subscriber to the site (Information of subscriptions are here - http://www.tcgplayer.com/subscribe).
[This rule is on place so that you are not profiting off TCGplayer's resources without giving something back to the site. You'll also like many of the features of the subscription.]

b) You must inform a moderator (preferably me or LIGHTNINGBLITZ) of any sale you make so that we can keep track of the transaction.
[The "No Sale" rule was partially implemented those years ago because people were getting robbed. Informing a moderator of your sales will increase your reputation with us and the rest of the site, as well as allow us to cover you just in case something goes wrong.]

If you can follow these two simple guidelines, then you may sell cards on this site.

1st Offense - You will be asked to edit your thread and given 24 hours to do so. You will also receive 1 warning infraction.
2nd Offense - Your thread will be edited and you will be given a 1-point infraction.
3rd Offense - Your thread will be closed, you will receive a 3-point infraction, and you will be suspended from trading for no less than 30 days.

6. Bumping your Thread
The same double-posting rule applies in the Trading sub-forum that applies to the rest of the forum – you may not double post on any thread within 24 hours of your last post. If you want more information on what it means to double post, please read the Complete Forum Guidelines if you haven’t already done so.

1st Offense - You will receive a warning infraction, and any back-to-back posts within 24 hours will be deleted or merged.
2nd Offense - You will receive a 1-point infraction, and any back-to-back posts within 24 hours will be deleted or merged.
3rd Offense - The 2nd Offense will be repeated to gain you infraction points

7. One at a Time
Each user is only allowed one active trading thread at a time, and may only start once new topic per week. The trade forums usually have higher traffic than any other section of the forums, and to keep the forums clean and orderly, this rule must be followed. If you are found to have more than one thread started within a seven-day period, all your trade threads will be either locked or deleted and you will be prohibited from starting a new thread for one week. It is not wise to break this prohibition.

Instead of having a “Close my thread” thread, you can instead post the link to your previous list at the start of your new list with a request to close it.

1st Offense - You will receive a warning infraction, and the extra list will be closed or deleted.
2nd Offense - You will receive a 1-point infraction, and the extra list will be closed or deleted.
3rd Offense - You will receive a 3-point infraction, and the extra list will be closed or deleted.

8. Protect Yourself
Never post your address, IP address, or other personal information on this forum. Conduct all your negotiations via private messaging so that you have a record of the trade, and keep all information regarding to the trade until the deal is finished. It is recommended that you obtain a valid e-mail address from the person you are trading with and confirm it before sealing the trade. If a person is suspected of fraud, a moderator (and only a moderator) will post his/her name and address on the Bad Trader List so that people are aware of who to look out for.

9. Mint or Not
If you have a card or cards on your list that are not in mint condition, you MUST state what condition the card is in on the list. I'm instating this to put an end to the "If you don't ask, I assume you don't care" rules on several members’ threads.

Here is a guide to help you with figuring out what the condition of your card is:
http://www.trollandtoad.com/cardconditionguide.php


II. iTrader

Our reference system is the “iTrader” system. This system works much like eBay’s reference system. When you complete a trade, you will be responsible for leaving a comment about the other person’s actions during the trade, and add (or subtract, depending on the situation) to that person’s trader rating. If everything goes smoothly in the trade, you would leave positive feedback which increases the user’s iTrader rating; and if something when wrong, you would leave neutral or negative feedback which does not change or decreases the user’s iTrader rating (respectively).

1. iTrader Rating
The user with the lower iTrader rating will always, with very few exceptions, send their end of the trade first. You may not request a user with a higher iTrader rating to send his/her end of the trade first. If you are not comfortable sending your end of the trade, contact a Moderator so that we can set up a middleman trade.

BE SURE TO CHECK THE OTHER PERSON’S ITRADER RATINGS BEFORE YOU AGREE TO A TRADE. When we ban someone from trading, we give them a negative reference stating such.

a) Same iTrader Score – If both parties have the same amount of unique references, the person who has been a registered member of the forums for the least amount of time will be the one to send first.

b) Same iTrader w/ different amount of trades – If one person has 5 iTrader and has traded with one person three times, that still only counts as 5 unique references. When in doubt, go by the number, not the amount of trades you’ve made.

2. Backing Out
You are not allowed to give anyone a negative rating based off if he/she decided to back out of the trade at the last second because they did not feel secure with the trade. Now, if the trade has been finalized for a full day (24 hours) and one of the users back out, then you may leave neutral feedback.

3. Negative Rating
You are not allowed to give a user a negative rating just because they give you a negative rating. Rate the trade on exactly how it was conducted every time, regardless of how the other person thought of the trade.

4. Negative Rating and Sending First
You may not force users that have a negative reference to send first. There is an exception to this rule, of course. If a moderator has listed a user on the Caution List or Bad Trader List, then that user will send first until that user is removed from the list. You may refuse to trade with users with negative references, but you cannot force them to send first.

5. Reference Scamming
Reference scamming is:
-When you make multiple accounts in order to give references to one account in order to increase your trader rating
-Have your friends give you references you made outside of the site or not at all

If you are caught reference scamming, it is likely that you will be banned. In order to give and receive a valid trader reference on this site, all negotiations must be done on this site (whether in the thread itself or via private messaging). Negotiations done on other messaging services such as AIM or MSN will not be valid proof of a trade done on this site.

6. Simul-Send
A simul-send is when both parties send their respective trade ends simultaneously. This is highly discouraged.

I'm not going to say "don't simul-send", because I do it often. But I am going to say only do it at your own risk. The moderators are less likely to help you out of a situation when you put yourself at this type of risk.


III. The Bad Trader and Caution Lists

1. Check the List
Check the "Bad Traders" thread before you initiate a trade to make sure you're not trading with a suspected or known “ripper” or “scammer”. Once a user is placed on this list, they cannot be taken off (except in extraordinary circumstances). If you do feel inclined to trade with someone on this list, the user that is on the “Bad Traders” list is required to send first, no exceptions, if that user is allowed to trade at all.

2. Adding to the List
Only a moderator may add a user to the “Bad Trader” list, and we will require proof of the transgression. The following offenses can get you listed on this “Bad Trader” list, but remember that these aren’t the only offenses that can get a person listed.
-Stealing Cards (cards being sent to you, but not sending cards back; also referred to as “ripping”)
-Sending fake cards
-Providing a fake address
-Reference scamming (leaving refs when no trading has occurred)
-“Impostering” (posing as another user that has a good reputation)
-Refusing to send first though you have fewer references
-Repeatedly violating the Complete Trading Rules (what you’re reading now)

NEW RULE:

3. Caution Listing Neg reffing.

From this point on, all users suspected of bad trading, are under suspicioun of being a bad trader, being on the caution list or any other such situation could warrent a negative reference from me, or another MOD to show members to be on warning.

This neg could also be from users who refuse to comply with rules and users who have excessive haves such as Gold Sarco, or worlds promos. They are so rare I can assume no one has them. If you do, post pics.



IV. Q&A

1. What are “Rippers”?

I don't think anyone goes in depth enough into rippers on this site.
Rippers, as we all know, are people that make deals for cards, and don't send their end. To tell you the truth, this is easy enough to avoid. Yes, online trading can be risky, but there are ways to keep yourself at as minimal a risk as possible.

Some tips:

Watch out for users with no/low refs that request simul-sends, or for you to send first. You'd think this would be common sense, but 0 ref users are still having people simul-send with them.

You're a low ref user, and are scared about sending first. Well, this is where the great thing called Delivery Confirmation comes in. With this useful tool, you can be assured you know that your package has arrived.

You're a user with 0 refs, but how can be assured that the user with 5 refs you have to send first to can be trusted? Well the truth is you can't. If you are scared, the best idea is to trade with users with 20 refs and over. Most of the time, a ripper will only bother to get to 5 or 10 refs before they start ripping people, at getting to say 30 or 40 takes WAY too much effort.

"How can you know that the 20+ ref user or even YOU Brad can be trusted?" Well, the truth is you can't, but I assure you that trading with high reference users carries a much smaller risk of being ripped off.

If you see that a user only has one copy of a card on their list, and they seem to have agreed to a deal involving that card with 2 people, watch out. This is an almost SURE sign that they are ripping, or at the least, very unorganized.

Watch out someone who tries to pressure you into sending first or not sending delivery confirmation with phrases like, "Cmon, why would I rip you when I do other things on the site?" Sure, sometimes this can just be an honest user stating their case, but you may want to take caution.

"Wow, what a great deal" Be careful for this one, as a deal that seems too good to be true, usually IS. I'm not going to trade you my cyber dragon for your summoned skull. Watch out for these deals.

An extra safety precaution can be to get a person’s e-mail address. Sure, this isn't the most effective method, but if a ripper is banned from the site, then you have no means of contacting them without an e-mail. In some cases, you may even want to get a phone number.

I have noticed that some people can't notice rippers unless they explicitly admit to ripping them out of cards, so WATCH FOR CLUES. I don't care if someone with 500 refs is repeatedly asking, and very pushy to make sure you've sent out as quickly as possible. BE SUSPICOUS! Some people just want their cards, some people are trying to make you hurry up and send before suspicion arises about their trading status.

CHECK THE BAD TRADER THREAD. Many times, a site user will become suspicious over a trader, and that is the place to get a heads up, before you might be the next rip victim. I've noticed that several times, people will keep trading with someone, even though most people know they are a ripper, because they FAILED to check the bad trader thread.

TRADE AT YOUR OWN RISK. If a user has received a negative reference in the past, trade knowing that you are at an even HIGHER risk to be ripped. You have no one to blame but yourself if someone is an obvious ripper, and you fall prey to them due to not following a few simple, but highly important tips.

2. What is Reference Scamming, and how do I spot it?

Look out for new users with references from other new users. This may be an example of a ref scam.

What is ref-scamming? That's where you either a) make up multiple accounts in order to give references to one account to increase your trader rating, or b) have your friends give you references for trades you made without TCGplayer being involved, or that don't exist at all. In either case, if you are caught ref-scamming, you can be pretty sure the site moderators will ban you.

Some basic trading tips

How often do the users of this message board see this?

Haves:
30 Janky Rares

Wants:
Crazy Money Rares

I want money cards, and so do you, and so does the next guy in these forums. So what? Don't kill yourself on the slim chance of getting these cards. Broaden your horizons. How about a trade list that includes some good cards that may not necessarily be what EVERYONE wants.

Yes, these are still good cards, but you are 100% more likely to get some responses with people actually having what you want this way.

---The Rule of Thumb

This is quick and simple. "An item is only worth as much as someone will pay for it."

Just remember that. Sure, Cyber End Dragon skyrockets in many price guides, but who is really going to pay the type of prices they have listed?

A good representation of how much someone will pay for an item is eBay, plain and simple. There is no price guide that will tell you better, because simply, they do not have anyone actually BUYING from them.

---A universal rule about money rares
Money rares in this game change all the time, so for now they are going to be known as:

X Card
Y Card
Z Card

I think a good rule about the "high ends" is to have at least one of the "high end" cards in your HAVES list if you have two or more of the others in your WANTS list.

3. I’ve been ripped off, what do I do?

This seems to be a big question on the boards as of late.

So you got ripped off, what do you do now?

Well, first thing is make sure you truly got ripped off. Attempt to contact your trading partner any way possible. For this very reason I recommend that you get and VERIFY an email address on every trade you make with someone new.

Chances are, if you truly got ripped off, your trading partner won't bother to read a PM from you, or will have a full inbox. Get an e-mail address and/or phone number!

Also, make sure you've allowed a REASONABLE amount of time since the trade was finalized. There are many people who say "I traded with this guy a week ago, and haven't gotten his stuff yet!" Have some patience, as at times, the USPS can be slow. Wait 2 or more weeks before you even consider that you were ripped off. For international trades, even longer.

This is a reverse phone directory so that you can call the person if you need to:

http://www.reversephonedirectory.com/
http://www.whitepages.com

If you're sure you got ripped, leave a negative reference. That will get your partner's attention, unless of course they've fled the site.

Then, file mail fraud with the United States Post Office.

Here's the link:

http://www.usps.com/postalinspectors/fraud

Please note that this is only for the United States, for people in Canada you must contact the RCMP/mail-fraud division. In other countries, you’ll have to contact your local post office for more information.

I'm sorry that you got ripped off, really. It sucks. People like me can do as much as they can to stop rippers, but there is no way to stop every bad trader and ripper in the world.

Don't think that mail fraud is pointless, because even if you did not send with confirmation, if there are enough complaints against someone living at one address, it WILL be investigated, and a hefty fine may be instated on said party.

4. When is a trade official?

A trade is official when the following actions occur:
-The trade is confirmed by both participants
Both trade participants have agreed upon certain trade material.
Example:
Person A says "I'll trade you my non-mint Don Zaloog for your Goblin Attack Force".
Person B says "Okay".

-Addresses are exchanged by both participants

-It is confirmed which participant is sending first
Example:
Person A says "I have 12 refs, you have 8. You would be sending first."
Person B says "I'll send out tomorrow."

-The shipping options are discussed by both participants
Example:
Person A says "I have 12 refs, you have 8. You would be sending first."
Person B says "I'll send out tomorrow, and I’ll send with Delivery Confirmation."

Backing out of a trade after this point is highly discouraged. If you do so, be prepared to receive a neutral or negative trader rating, depending on the situation. If you get a negative reference for backing out of a trade and don’t agree with it, PM the trade details and your explanation to a moderator for review.

5. How do I do a middleman trade?

Moderator “Middle-Man” trades - Now, the site has always had these "Middle Man" trades, but I don't believe some of the new users know about them, so I'm starting a thread on it.

Let me just clarify how it works:

-User A and User B both decide to do a mod trade since they're new to the site or it's a high-value trade.

-User A + User B each send their end of the deals to the moderator.

-Once both ends have been received by the moderator, he/she sends the cards where they need to go. (User B's cards go to User A and vice versa.)

-If one end is received but not the other, that end is sent back to its original owner.

This thread is going to be a list of each moderator that will be available for these trades, and what they require as compensation. Remember:

-- An escrow trade must ALWAYS include postage. (No moderator is going to be paying your postage)

-- An escrow trade must ALWAYS include a note with what the deal was, and the address to send to.

-- If both parties want the deal sent either priority mail, delivery confirmation, or both, they must send cash so that the moderator can do so.

-- Refs are exchanged by all parties involved once a deal is completely finished.

6. How can I protect myself from Rippers?

We have been banning scammers and rippers alike left and right for the last few months. Because of the existence of highly sought after, extremely expensive cards, people are going to be tempted now more than ever to try to rip you off.

My suggestions?

1 - Get all the info about your trade partner; name, address, e-mail address, and phone number if possible.
2 - Don't be afraid to ask a moderator to be a middleman, especially if you're trading with a relatively new member with outrageous cards.
3 - If the trade seems too good to be true, it probably is.
4 - If you want advice about a certain member before you trade, ask a moderator. We know most of the good and bad traders on this site.

We want to make sure that you don't end up losing hundreds of dollars worth of cards in a bad trade. Work with us as much as you can, and protect your cards.


REMEMBER!!
We are not responsible for the trades you make. Common sense should dictate your actions. CHECK YOUR TRADING PARTNER'S references YOURSELF! GET AN E-MAIL ADDRESS when you trade so that you can contact that person outside of the board if need be. We do our best to make sure that our members don't get ripped off, but sometimes it's not enough, so make sure you protect yourself.

NEVER, under any circumstances, post your e-mail address or your home address on a public message board.

Don't trade something you can't afford to lose until you have built up a trust with your trading partner.

Finally, have fun and Happy Trading!

By the Moderators

[Rurikarakusa]

The rules have been updated. Read them, they're important.

[Rurikarakusa]

Updated - Added a new Trader Map. If you want to trade, PM me your ZIP/Postal Code so I can add you to the map. This will help us keep a visual of how close people are to proven rippers and where all the trades are going. This is one of several changes that will be implimented ofer the next few weeks, so be sure to check back here often.

All proven rippers from the Bad Trader List have been added to the map for your convenience.

EDIT - Privacy Issues
I understand that many of you have mixed feelings giving up personal information for this map. Let me assure you that you will never have your street address or name posted on this map unless you are a proven ripper. All you have to provide me is your Postal Code, which is less than you provide your trading partners.

Other Countries
If you live outside the US, it's likely you still have a Postal Code to provide. If you don't, then just give me a City and Country.

EDIT again - I'm going to open this thread for suggestions on anything that would improve the trade process or questions about any given rule/policy.

[dust2dust]

personally i think city and state works better than a zip code...city and state is more general and zip codes cover less area.

[Ansem1013]

how do I add myself to the map?

[JiminyCricket]

how do I add myself to the map?

If you want to trade, you will have to be added to this map. All you have to do to be added to this map is PM me your ZIP/Postal Code. I'll put you on the map, and that will help us know where these trades are going and how close they are to a known ripper's address.

I think this is a great idea. I am so sick of rippers, and this wont exactly stop them completely, but it will definitely slow them down alot and assure alot of people end up keeping there cards. I always like to think of it like this, the more difficult scamming becomes the less attractive the site looks to rippers, thus moving further to the original goal of the forum. Keep up the good work guys!

[Sak_Samurai_151]

personally i think its a great idea.

ill just pm you my zip in a few.

Also ruri did you get my pm about slick007 being a ripper?!?!?

[Touyokouzan]

personally i think its a great idea.

ill just pm you my zip in a few.

Also ruri did you get my pm about slick007 being a ripper?!?!?

Woah, Since when is Slick007 a ripper? I know him, he lives in my area. Id like to know how you figure this exactly...

[redpyro]

alright so how do you get added to the map?

[LIGHTNINGBLITZ]

Sak: He did, as did I. Give him time. MOD's dont have the email address normally. Then need to contact an admin, if they even can disclose that info. I think slick has just been innactive, but he can be a ripper.

Red: PM Ruri your Zip code.