Rules


As a general rule of thumb, if a staff member asks you to discontinue an activity or a behaviour, please respect their decision. If you continue to ignore the instructions of a staff member, you may face temporary or permanent suspension.

1. Content

1.1. Prohibited Content


The following content is strictly prohibited in interactions or content in public areas of the site:

  • Hateful or insulting rhetoric targeting any race, sexual orientation, gender, or disability.
  • Encouragement or conduct of illegal activities, or activities in an illegal context.
  • Disclosure of another user's personal, real-life identifying information.
  • Violent threats made directly, indirectly or in relation to other users. This includes wishing death or harm to other users.
  • Hate or insults directed towards other users or their creations, artwork or designs. Making comments about your preferences is fine, just don't target specific users with it. "I don't like starry blue designs" is OK. "I don't like all the starry blue characters on the Popular Characters page today" is bad, because it can be hurtful to the people who see it.

This will result in the content being removed, followed by a warning or suspension depending on intent, maliciousness and severity at the moderator's discretion.

Note that this does not include In Character, Roleplay related, or otherwise fictional content and scenarios, but it is the user's responsibility to clearly separate your IC and OOC content and intentions if you don't want to be misunderstood. Don't use your characters to be a dick, and vice versa - don't use this rule to report-troll another user for having an asshole for a character.

1.2. Content Filters


Toyhou.se provides the following content filters for categorisation of artwork:

  • Nudity
    • Any depiction of bare genitalia on humanoid figures, with the inclusion of visible labia or penis sheaths. This does not include nipples or bare butts.
  • Mild Sexual Content
    • Content that implies sexual activity, including but not limited to clothed but visible sexual arousement, fetish content or presence of toys or props designed for sexual use.
    • This also includes depictions of nipples, genitalia, or buttocks (clothed or bare) where they are the primary focus of the image, disproportionately detailed compared to the rest of the image, or are being fondled or otherwise interacted with in a way to bring attention to them.
  • Explicit Sexual Content
    • Explicit depictions of sex or masturbation, including any visible depiction of sexually aroused genitalia.
  • Gore
    • Any depiction of internal organs, viscera, visibly broken bones, or freshly severed limbs or body parts.
    • Photos, photo-realistic artwork, or highly detailed images have a lower requirement, and should be flagged if they contain a large amount of blood or open wounds.
  • Sensitive Content
    • This is an unmoderated filter which is used according to user preferences in cases where they would prefer for the thumbnail to not show up immediately in their character's gallery, or would otherwise like to provide a warning for their viewers. For some users this may include images with nipples, for others this may be substance abuse or self harm, etc. Images containing Sensitive Content will always be hidden behind a tag regardless of the viewer's filter settings.

Submission of material containing Explicit Sexual Content without being appropriately flagged (in the case of images) or containing a warning in the title (in the case of forum threads or bulletins) may result in your content being moderated or removed by site staff. Repetitive and intentional submission of unflagged material containing Explicit Sexual Content will result in warnings or account bans depending on severity and intent. Please be considerate of the users around you.

Material containing Nudity, Mild Sexual Content or Gore without an appropriate flag may have flags added for you by site staff without prior warning.

1.3. Sensitive Content


We encourage users to label publically listed characters, literatures, or threads with visible content warnings if the content contains potentially offensive or triggering content. This is not a rule that will lead to disciplinary action, but rather a note that administrators may elect to add content warnings to your characters or threads where we feel that it's necessary to protect other users.

Some content which may require content warnings:

  • References to, or discussion of self-harm, eating disorders, suicide
  • References to, or discussion of sexual violence, domestic violence, child abuse
  • Discussion of, or stories containing racism, sexism, transphobia, homophobia, or other bigotry, including slur usage
This is not a comprehensive list; just do your best to be considerate to the people around you when creating content, especially if you're planning on publically listing or advertising the character.

Any changes made to your characters or forum posts will always be accompanied by a PM from an administrator to keep you informed. Repeatedly and consciously removing content warnings added by administrators may lead to your character or forum privileges being revoked, or a temporary or permanent suspension from the site.

2. Adult Content

2.1. Adult Content and Underage Users


If you are under 18, don't use this site to offer, request, or share adult content.

Don't use this site to offer or request adult content to or from users who you are aware are under the age of 18.

Adult content includes pornographic commissions, as well as pornographic artwork or literature, erotic RP, and detailed sexual headcanons (including character genitalia measurements, genitalia references, detailed sexual behaviour or kink lists, etc.).

Underage users who are found to be using a false birthday to upload or interact with adult material will be banned. There is no penalty if you file a ticket yourself to correct your date of birth, so if you find your birthday is incorrect we recommend filing a ticket to correct it right away. You can check your account's date of birth on the Account Settings Page.

2.2. Adult Content and Underage Characters


We do not host pornographic content involving characters described to be under 18 or described as resembling a person under the age of 18 (or equivalent age of maturity in non-human species).

To be clear: Pornographic content covers any content which an average person would reasonably believe was created for the purpose of sexual gratification (this includes "sex profiles" which list a character's genitalia measurements and kinks, as these only exist for the purpose of future sexual content or contact). If you want to include sexual experiences in an underage character's history for the purposes of telling a story or developing a character, you can do so as long as it's respectfully communicated, not pornographic, and is not otherwise fetishised or inappropriately detailed.

Do not offer or advertise pornography of underage characters on site, whether it is existing content or a service. This includes offering loli/shota/cub pornography in your commissions, putting underage characters up for sale or trade with descriptions like "additional porn available upon request", linking off-site to services in which you offer this content, or making underage characters available for sexual RP.

Artists who self-identify or market themselves prominently as a loli/shota/cub artist (even off-site), may have their account closed to prevent the distribution of content of this nature even if they have not uploaded explicit content on-site. If you are on site to share pornographic content of children, or meet other people who want to share pornographic content of children, rather than trying to get around this rule by uploading characters with unlisted ages or cropped images, we would urge you to find a different place to host your work. This is not content that we host or want to see a community for on site.

3. Character Usage & Ownership

3.1 Character Sourcing


All characters should be credited to the character’s designer at the time of upload.

Users who have a gallery in which the majority of submissions are miscredited will have their gallery frozen until the unsourced characters are either removed or sourced.

Characters that are not properly credited are not permitted to be advertised for sale, trade, or gifting on-site, and will be removed from the listings or the trade tag.

3.2 Character Disputes


Do not sell things that you do not own or have permission to sell. We defer to the Terms of Service of the original designer - if they do not permit re-sale or re-trade of their designs (or have other terms related to the trade of their designs) we will do our best to enforce this.

When reporting a character dispute we require the following:

  • At least one piece of on-site evidence (e.g. TH PMs or forum posts) or public evidence (e.g. links to deviantArt comments or public tweets that have not yet been deleted) that the transaction took place between the users in question. Screenshots of private correspondences cannot be accepted as primary evidence as they may be doctored.
  • Screenshots can be used for matching supplementary evidence. A screenshot of the Paypal receipt may be required in the case that cash payment was involved.

If we find there is sufficient evidence that an transaction took place and wasn't honoured by a party, we can do our best to fulfill it to the best of our abilities on the TH side of business (that is, banning accounts, moving or deleting characters/artwork, etc.), but please note that we do not have the ability to force a user to pay or refund you.

3.3 Character Revocation


If you wish to revoke a design from someone after a completed transaction (for example, in the case of a retroactive blacklisting), please first ensure you have proof that you informed this user at the time of purchase that you have the right to confiscate the character, or that you retain ownership of the artwork and design upon sale. Having a rule covering this in your TOS also works, but we will require evidence that the recipient saw and accepted these terms.

4. Artwork Usage

4.1 Artwork Sourcing


Please ensure all artwork you use is used with permission and properly sourced.

When using free bases, stock photography, or other free assets, keep in mind that image sharing boards, Pinterest, Tumblr/Twitter re-posters, and other image aggregate sites do not constitute an original source. You must provide a direct and accurate link back to the original artist or photographer.

Sometimes re-posters may present themselves as the original source or give permission for people to use their edits when they have stolen the photography or artwork that they used as a base. If you upload this content to TH while erroneously stating it’s being used with permission, you will be held responsible for the theft. If in doubt, or if the source looks suspicious, just do not use the image.

4.2 Stock Photography


All photography posted or uploaded on site must be used with permission.

All photography uploaded to character icons, profiles or galleries must provide links back to the source. Please do not take screenshots from movies or TV shows and upload them to the site as character reference.

If you do not know the source of a photograph, or whether the photographer permits usage of their work, do not use the image.

Regarding Stock That Doesn't Require Credits

If photography has been taken from a free stock site which does not require a link back, placing blanket credits somewhere on your profile or on the character's profile is permitted. A short note like, "All photography used in these profiles has been taken from [link to the stock site(s)] and is being used with permission." would be sufficient. This must be a valid link. Please do not post a disclaimer like "None of the photography used in these profiles is mine, credit to the photographers.", as this does not constitute valid crediting.

Pinterest, Google Images, Tumblr/Twitter aesthetic accounts, etc. are image aggregates and do not qualify as free stock sites.

Here are some examples of stock sites where you can find photography that is free for use:

4.3 Moodboards


Moodboards or moodboard-making services should not be bought or sold on-site unless you are able to prove that all images used permit commercial use and are being used in compliance with the photographer or artist’s usage permissions.

All moodboards posted on site must provide links back to the source of every individual photograph used. If you have used images from a free stock site for your moodboards, you may provide a single link to the stock site.

4.4 Usage of Doll Makers / Character Generators


When using doll makers or other character-generating games you’ve found online, please verify the following:

  • Ensure the doll maker permits re-upload and usage of their artwork prior to uploading it to TH.
  • Please ensure all doll maker artwork you upload to the site is properly credited. This must include a complete link back to the doll maker so we can verify that they permit re-upload. A link back to a doll maker aggregate or game aggregate is not sufficient (EG: Do not just put “Picrew” or “Rinmaru”, put a link to the specific dollmaker). In the case of phone app doll makers, please link the Play Store link.

We do not host trade or sale of doll maker characters or images unless you can verify the following:

  • The doll maker must explicitly permit commercial use of their artwork. Should this permission not be displayed, we assume that it is not permitted.
  • The character must be very clearly and explicitly marked as a doll maker generated character. Should the recipient of a doll maker-generated design dispute the transaction due to not having been informed the character was made on a doll maker, you will be held responsible for refunding the transaction in full.

4.5 Usage of Bases


When using bases or free lines, please add the credit for the base artist in the image description. This credit must include a complete link back to where you obtained the base.

Before uploading based artwork, please verify that they are legitimate uploads. There are frequent cases of people tracing artwork from anime screenshots or from other artists, then releasing the traced lines as free-to-use bases. We do not permit use of these bases unless they have been authorized by the original artist.

4.6 Unauthorized Artwork Usage


Do not use stolen fanart or artwork belonging to other users in any location on the site unless you have obtained permission to use it, or the artist has made a statement permitting use of their artwork in this manner. This includes user avatars, user profile layouts, folder icons, public forum threads/posts, public comments, etc., even when it is being used a placeholder.

Mainstream memes are exempt from this rule.

Please ensure that any fanart you use is clearly credited so we can verify that it is being used with permission. This credit should be provided in an accessible location (ideally your profile page).

4.7 Tracing


Do not upload traced artwork unless you have received permission from the artist to trace and re-upload their work.

5. Derivative Content

5.1. Canon Characters


We do not host canon character re-uploads. This includes:

  • Direct re-uploads of characters that exist in published media
  • Direct AU versions, re-designs or kinsonas of these characters, who share the same name, personality, and identity
Regarding Canon-Inspired Characters

We allow canon-inspired characters specifically where it's clear they're an original character who has been inspired by the canon content, rather than AU fanart and fanfic of a canon character. As long as your character has their own name, and a profile/design that reflects they're intended to be individual from the canon character and are not literally the canon character, they should be fine to upload. Adding some background to the character's profile to explain who they are will help a lot to ensure they don't get mixed up.

Don't advertise these as for sale or trade on-site.

We do not moderate visual similarities, but we reserve the right to take down profiles we believe have been made in bad faith. Please do not upload fanart of a canon character with a few letters of their name changed and a copy pasted profile.

5.2 Fandom Characters


We allow fandom characters that build on the existing species, setting, or plot of an existing published material as long as credit has been provided and the OC is not intended to represent an already existing character. This includes:

  • Canon Species Usage, EG: Pokemon, Digimon, Neopets (or other pet site) OCs, including gijinkas of these species
  • Canon Setting Usage, EG: Harry Potter wizard OCs, Boku no Hero Academia hero OCs, Naruto's ninja OCs
  • Your personal version of game characters where the character's physical birth features are customised at the time of character creation, and are unique to your individual save file. EG: Corrin/Robin (Fire Emblem), Shepard (Mass Effect), MMORPG characters, etc.

Fandom characters must contain explicit and clear credit back to the original content on their profile.

Please do not upload stolen fanart to the site while claiming it is of your OC. This is art theft and will get you banned.

Regarding Sale and Trade

Sale and trade of fandom characters on-site is fine but they must be clearly labeled as a fandom character. Should the recipient of a fandom-based design dispute the transaction due to not having been informed the character was a fandom character, you will be held responsible for refunding the transaction in full.

5.3 Real Persons and Real Person Fic


We do not host characters intended to depict real persons other than yourself, or pieces that focus on depiction of real persons other than yourself.

The following are examples of what is not permitted:

  • Uploading profiles for any persons (including LPers/Youtubers), even if permission is acquired and even if it is an AU or re-design of the person in question.
  • Detailed speculative content of real persons in any pieces, or OCs who are closely related to a celebrity. Your OC can be a fan and make references to them, but please don’t upload an OC who is dating a real-life celebrity, or stories about your OC hanging out with that celebrity.
  • Personas/fursonas for yourself are fine.

5.4. Usage of Official Assets


Do not upload official artworks, assets, or screenshots of characters from published content that does not belong to you to your character's profile to use as reference, or to represent your character. Here are some examples of what this means:

  • Do not upload screenshots of Naruto to your character's gallery, icon or profile to depict your character, or to use as a face claim.
  • It's fine to have a ninja OC from Naruto, but do not upload screenshots of Naruto to your character's gallery or profile with the description "my character has a ninja headband like this".
  • In-game screenshots of customised characters are fine. To be clear:
    • If you’ve dressed your Neopet up and want to take a screenshot of the outfit for reference, this is fine, but the screenshot must be sourced back to the original game. Please do not not upload the default official artwork for the Neopet by itself without any customisations made, as this is indistinguishable from another person's Neopet.
    • In-game screenshots of any character created with a character creator are fine, just make sure to provide credit back to the game.

6. Conduct

6.1. Spamming and Flooding


Flooding is defined as taking up large portions of public site space while contributing no substantial content and is prohibited. While you can do as you like within semi-private areas, such as on your profile or on the profiles of your friends (with permission), please show consideration to other users when conducting yourself in a public area.

Spamming or flooding may lead to removal of the reported material and temporary or permanent suspension of your account depending on severity.

6.2. Ban or Block Circumvention


Creating new accounts to circumvent account bans or freezes may result in immediate permanent suspension of all your accounts. Repeated offences may lead to an IP ban.

Creating new accounts and using those accounts to communicate with, deal with, violate the terms of, or otherwise interact with a user who has blocked you, blacklisted you, or otherwise requested you to discontinue interacting with them, may result in immediate and permanent suspension of all your accounts. This includes but is not limited to: using new accounts to PM users or post in the threads of users who have blocked you, or using new accounts to participate in events or sales from users who have blacklisted or excluded you in some form from the event.

6.3. Report Etiquette


After reporting a user for behaviour related reasons do not continue to engage or bait them for responses.

6.4. Public Blacklisting


Public blacklisting is allowed strictly for the sake of protecting artists, customers, and everyone's respective business, but please do not start witch hunts. Informing and warning the community of negative business experiences is fine. Encouraging other users to harass or otherwise approach someone on your behalf is strictly prohibited.

Please keep in mind that hateful and insulting comments are not allowed. Keep any necessary blacklists or PSAs professional and respectful.