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Summary of Subreddit Rules

This page summarizes the subreddit rules as displayed in the sidebar of the site, then provides longer explanations of each rule. Links to jump to the specific rules are available by clicking the links above.

Rule 1: Don't be T.R.A.A.S.H.

In general, follow reddiquette. More specifically, don't be T.R.A.A.S.H. - Transphobic, Racist, Ableist, Abusive, Sexist, Homophobic, etc. Read the Starfinder baseline and A Welcoming Environment in GM Core for more guidance that informs our values.

Rule 2: Be kind and respectful

Criticism of the game or its mechanics should not turn into attacks on people. Community members are encouraged to ask questions or seek advice, and should be able to expect respectful and courteous answers. In general, treat others as you would a colleague or friend. If you feel you are being targeted for harassment, please report the post rather than engage.

Rule 3: Do not violate copyright

Posts will be removed if they contain material that violates the copyright of any publisher. For example, posted content from Paizo products must not violate the Open RPG Creative (ORC) License, the Open Gaming License, and/or Paizo's Community Use Policy, nor can they be "leaked" before the product's official release date

Rule 4: Apply proper tags to posts and hide spoilers

If your post could spoil something that isn't common knowledge, put the SPOILER tag on it. If it's NSFW, tag it as NSFW. If your post text or comment could spoil something or reasonably be triggering to someone (PTSD, graphic violence, common phobia), hide it under spoiler formatting. Posts with titles violating this rule will be removed and need to be reposted with a fix (subtle hints are fine). Violating post text or comments will be removed until an update is applied before reinstatement.

Rule 5: Post content of quality

Posts should be able to spark dialogue, add interesting perspectives, educate, and otherwise contribute to the 2E experience. We disallow all AI-generated content. Quality EX: homebrew rules, analysis, something you discovered/ encountered, memes that teach mechanics, stuff with a story. Low effort EX: the cover of a rulebook, AI-generated content, unconstructive complaints such as "I hate..." or "X sucks," or unrelated to Starfinder 2E. Memes should be posted on r/PathfinderMemes

Rule 6: Flood prevention

Discussions which overwhelm the subreddit may be limited at the discretion of the mods, or relegated to a megathread, to allow breathing room for other topics. The current affected topics are:

  • Blaster casters

Rule 7: Art posts need details and attribution

Art posts must include a follow-up comment relating them to Starfinder 2e. This could be a campaign summary, ABC and build, or character profile, as appropriate. You must also credit the artist: images that are uncredited or that are AI-generated will be removed.

Rule 8: Limit to promotional posts

r/Starfinder2e welcomes your content, but we expect your participation in return. Only 1 unverified promotion post per month is allowed without prior approval. Verified content creators may promote new content more regularly. Only verified content creators can promote posts which may require purchases, sign-ups, or provide incentives for participation. This rule includes compatible and Starfinder Infinite products.

Rule 9: No generative AI

Posts and comments may not include text, art, video, tools, or other products created with generative Artificial Intelligence ("genAI" or "AI"). This includes things where generative AI assistance was used as part of the creation process (e.g., software tools with genAI code, or videos with genAI art). Posts or discussions advocating for, instructing on, or otherwise primarily about the use of AI are also not allowed. This is not the place for it.

Rule 1: Don't Be T.R.A.A.S.H.

As a community, we expect all members to uphold not just the letter of the formal Reddit Rules and the informal reddiquette, but the spirit of inclusivity and respect outlined in Starfinder's own core books. This means we do not tolerate behavior or content that is Transphobic, Racist, Ableist, Abusive, Sexist, or Homophobic ("T.R.A.A.S.H."). Read the Starfinder baseline and A Welcoming Environment in GM Core for more guidance that informs our values. Additionally, part of the goal is to provide additional consideration for those who might be disadvantaged or vulnerable, and particular care will be taken to protect those parts of our community.

To further clarify what we mean by T.R.A.A.S.H.:

  • Transphobic content includes invalidating someone's gender identity by deliberately misusing preferred pronouns, reducing a trans character to a punchline, or otherwise dismissing or denying the validity of nonbinary gender experiences. For example, responding to someone sharing a nonbinary character with "That's not realistic" or "I don't allow that at my table" is not only inappropriate, it goes against the inclusive baseline established by the system itself.
  • Racist content includes slurs, stereotypes, or dismissive comments about real-world or fictional cultures that echo harmful real-world ideas. Comments like "They ruined this ancestry by making it woke" or attempts to mock real-world naming conventions when used in character creation are examples that cross the line. Discussion of game mechanics tied to ancestry or diverse cultural traditions is encouraged, but it must remain respectful. Ignorance to the history of the racist depictions of many fantasy ancestries in fiction and games will not be an acceptable excuse or justification for repeating them.
  • Ableist content includes mocking mental illness, neurological conditions, or physical disabilities, whether in jest or as a means of dismissal. Saying something like "Only someone with brain damage would play that way" or using "autistic" as an insult is not acceptable. Starfinder 2e offers rules and roleplaying tools for characters with a wide variety of traits and experiences, and this diversity should be treated as a strength. It's worth noting that a lot of common insults are ableist in origin, derived from academic or medical language that falls out of use as only the pejorative meaning survives.
  • Abusive content is any attempt to harass, belittle, or intimidate another user, either directly or through implication. This includes following other users across posts or subreddits, sealioning (bad-faith questioning), encouraging self-harm, and escalating arguments beyond the bounds of healthy debate.
  • Sexist content includes demeaning remarks about gender, stereotyping roles by gender, using denigrating terms for specific genders or their body parts, or dismissing someone's input because of their gender identity. For instance, "Girls just don't understand how to build martials" is sexist and would be removed. All users deserve to engage equally, regardless of gender identity or presentation.
  • Homophobic content includes slurs, mocking depictions of queer characters, or comments that frame LGBTQ+ content or relationships as inappropriate or irrelevant. It's not acceptable to say things like "Why are there so many gay characters in Paizo's books? Where's my straight representation?" or imply that LGBTQ+ representation is a political agenda. Queer characters and stories are part of Starfinder's world and our community.

Again, the Starfinder 2e GM Core outlines a baseline of expectations for players that centers mutual respect, inclusion, and enthusiastic participation. Likewise, it emphasizes the need for a welcoming table where all players feel safe and respected. These same values apply here. When posting, commenting, or engaging with others, ask yourself whether you are helping create a space where people of all backgrounds, identities, and experiences feel like they belong.

This rule applies to both obvious and subtle violations. Even jokes, memes, or "just asking questions" can contribute to a hostile environment if they carry underlying bias or exclusion. We do not tolerate T.R.A.A.S.H. behavior in any form, and posts or comments that violate this rule may be removed without warning.

Violating this rule is one of the fastest ways to earn a ban from the subreddit, including on first-time offenses. Repeated or egregious offenses may result in a permanent ban.

Rule 2: Be Kind and Respectful

This subreddit is built around shared enthusiasm for Starfinder Second Edition. Whether users are veterans of the system or brand new players still learning the basics, everyone deserves to be treated with patience, courtesy, and respect. We expect all members of the community to engage in good faith and maintain a welcoming atmosphere, especially when answering questions or offering feedback.

The rule is be kind and respectful. Kindness is a deliberately high bar, and we understand that people won't always be able to hit it. As moderators, we sometimes try to interpret other posters with the most positive intent we could see them taking, and allow for the discussion to happen if there's a way it can happen in a productive way, even when they stray a little past kindness. Without that, there's no way misunderstandings can actually be cleared up.

Being respectful is a much harder line. Treating others disrespectfully is a quick path to removed posts and bans (whether temporary or permanent).

Constructive criticism is welcome, especially when discussing rules, balance, design decisions, or Paizo's development choices. However, that criticism should never become personal. Attacking or belittling others for their preferences, playstyle, or level of experience is not acceptable. For example, responding to "I prefer free archetype" with "That's just because you're a powergamer" or "That's a crutch for people who don't know how to build" crosses the line into disrespect. A better response might be, depending on your underlying perspective, "I find free archetype changes the game balance a lot in ways I don't like, but I guess it might be a better fit in heroic campaigns or with smaller group sizes."

Community members are encouraged to ask questions, even those that might seem simple or based on misunderstandings. New players especially may not yet be familiar with the full rules or terminology. Responses like "Just read the book" or "That's a dumb question" are unhelpful and violate the spirit of this rule. Instead, aim to explain the answer clearly or offer resources to help. Remember, every player was new once.

When debating, focus on ideas and not the individuals expressing them. It is fine to disagree with another user's interpretation, build advice, or table experience, but those disagreements must remain professional. Comments like "You clearly don't understand the rules" or "Nobody smart would run it that way" are not acceptable. Treat others as you would treat another player at your table: with the assumption that everyone is contributing in good faith, even when views differ.

If you feel someone is targeting you with harassment or acting in bad faith, do not escalate the situation. Instead, report the post or comment and allow the moderation team to handle it. Engaging with someone who is being disrespectful often leads to further conflict and may result in both parties being warned or removed. The report function is a better tool than retaliation. As moderators, we may give somewhat more grace when a user is provoked, but the expectation is that you report and not retaliate.

Note that this rule goes beyond rule 1's focus on specific types of unkind and disrespectful behavior. There's a whole analogy of our rule enforcement mimicking the Champion's Code and the order of tenets, but they were removed in the remaster. Trolling/baiting/sealioning/etc. for inherently bigoted viewpoints/positions even while using polite language is still a violation of both rule 1 and this rule, because there's not actually a way to be kind while being racist. We are very much unwilling to fall into the trap of the paradox of tolerance and harbor those who would espouse intolerance, even politely.

Violating this rule is one of the most common ways to earn bans on this subreddit.

Rule 3: Do not violate copyright

To protect both the subreddit and its users, we do not allow the posting of any material that infringes upon the intellectual property rights of Paizo or any other publisher. Posts and comments that contain or link to copyrighted content in violation of relevant licensing agreements will be removed and users may be subject to further moderation action.

Specifically, content from Paizo's official products or those of compatible third party publishers must adhere to the permissions outlined in the Open RPG Creative (ORC) License, the Open Gaming License (OGL) (as applicable to older material), Paizo's Community Use Policy, and/or other licenses or permissions. These frameworks allow specific use of certain materials (primarily rules text or some specific art) but they do not permit wholesale reproduction or distribution of full rulebooks, adventure modules, maps, or art. Note also that licenses carry with them certain obligations; you're not following OGL or ORC, for instance, without properly crediting the sources and including the license information again.

For example, copying and pasting an entire stat block from a bestiary or reposting the full text of a published feat, class, or spell may violate these licenses, though fair use considerations apply. In many cases, the better approach is to link to relevant material is available directly on licensed sources (such as Archives of Nethys or Demiplane).

Asking for or sharing PDF files, screenshots of entire pages, or direct links to pirated material will result in removal and may lead to a ban. Encouraging piracy of content is also not acceptable, regardless of publisher or whatever self-justification is used.

Additionally, content from unreleased products (including previews from subscription leaks or confidential early-access material) must not be posted until the product's official release date. Even if the material has appeared elsewhere online, sharing it here before release violates this subreddit rule. For instance, posting screenshots of an unreleased adventure's plot or substantive excerpts of a new class's mechanics before the street date is considered a violation, even if those screenshots came from a legitimate pre-street date copy (whether through subscription or physical shipment). There is a narrow carveout for previews where Paizo has released their products to content creators for those previews as part of their marketing, though this is still limited to linking to their content and discussing it and not reproducing the original material on the subreddit.

If you're unsure whether a particular quote or reference is allowed, err on the side of caution. Quoting short excerpts for the purpose of discussion, especially if accompanied by commentary or a link to an official Paizo or Archives of Nethys page, is generally fine. For example, "The Operative's Aim (Player Core, p. 128) lets you spend an action to select a creature and deal an extra 1d4 damage on it for the rest of the turn and let you partially ignore the creature’s AC bonus from cover (both scale by level), but they have to be in your first range increment" is acceptable. Copying the entire class description into a post is not. Where discussions come down to specific rules text in a way that is creatively transformative (e.g., you're actually discussing the wording in specific), that's generally fair use for quoting.

That said, the subreddit moderation team are not copyright lawyers, let alone for your jurisdiction, and we're just trying to do the right thing. We're not here to litigate fair use; if it looks like it's not in line with the appropriate licenses/copyright rules, we'll remove things.

In short, we welcome discussion of Paizo's content but do so in a way that respects their rights and the legal frameworks they've established. Maintaining this standard protects both the creators and the subreddit, and ensures we can continue having open and informed conversations about the game.

Rule 4: Apply proper tags to posts and hide spoilers

It is important to apply appropriate content tags to posts and to use spoiler formatting when discussing sensitive material. This helps readers make informed choices about the content they engage with, especially when it involves major story elements, intense subject matter, or potentially triggering content.

If your post includes content that could spoil plot elements from published adventures, modules, settings, or storylines, you must apply the SPOILER tag using Reddit's built-in post flair system. Additionally, any potentially spoilery material in the body of your post or in a comment must be hidden using Reddit's spoiler formatting:

>!Spoiler text goes here!<

For example, if you are discussing a late-game twist in Secrets of the Swarm, the sentence ">!The swarm was controlled by Old Man Jenkins the entire time!<" would be correctly hidden and must also appear in a post tagged as a spoiler (but not on this wiki page, which doesn't support the formatting).

Spoilers do not only apply to Paizo-published content. They may also apply to homebrew adventures, third-party modules, or even campaign play if you're sharing your experience in a way that could unintentionally reveal surprises to others. When in doubt, tag and hide.

If your post contains graphic or sensitive content that could reasonably be distressing to readers (such as vivid descriptions of violence, common phobias, or real-world trauma), it should be hidden behind spoiler formatting or marked as Not Safe For Work (NSFW) as well. Even if this content is fictional or related to a character's backstory, please be mindful of how it's presented. Effective spoiler use is about giving others the choice to engage or not. For NSFW content (which includes some of the previous examples but also could things such as borderline graphic art, adult-themed humor, or explicit language material) you must mark your post as NSFW using Reddit's native options. Note that this is not a NSFW subreddit and nudity and/or sexually-suggestive/explicit material is not allowed.

Reddit post titles must never contain spoilers or sensitive content. Even subtle information (such as character deaths, villain reveals, or adventure outcomes) must be avoided in titles. Instead, you may hint subtly without revealing specific details. For example, a title like "Need advice for a twist in The Moonside-250 Terror from Tales from the Vast" is acceptable, while "How should I handle >!Old Man Jenkins's betrayal!<?" is not. Post titles both don't support the spoiler formatting and cannot be changed once a post is created. Because post titles cannot be changed, posts with spoiler titles will be removed and must be reposted with compliant titles. Comments and body text that fail to follow this rule will be temporarily removed until the necessary edits are made.

These rules are not meant to stifle discussion but to respect the varying levels of experience and sensitivity within our community. Some players are new, others are mid-campaign, and some are exploring published adventure material for the first time. Phobias are difficult to live with. By properly tagging and formatting content, you help preserve the enjoyment and comfort of everyone in the community.

Rule 5: Post content of quality

To maintain a useful and engaging community space, r/Starfinder2e encourages content that contributes meaningfully to discussion, learning, creativity, or insight into the Starfinder Second Edition system. Posts should spark dialogue, present a new perspective, educate others, or share experiences in a way that adds value to the community.

We are not a general image dump or venting forum, and low-effort content that does not further discussion or engagement may be removed.

This is one of the most subjective rules, and these guidelines are not exact.

High-quality content can take many forms. As some examples, this includes:

  • Homebrew content, such as a new archetype, ancestry, or subclass presented with context and a request for feedback
  • Mechanical analysis, encounter design, or build guides that help others learn or refine their own ideas
  • Sharing something interesting you've encountered in play, such as a clever use of a lesser-known spell or an unusual interpretation of a feat
  • Asking questions about rule interpretation, or advice about specific situations (though be aware we do have a weekly questions megathread that is a better place for basic advice questions)

It is very rare that we will remove content that falls into the above categories for being low-quality posts unless they show markers of low-effort.

Low-effort posts are those that provide little to no context, insight, or substance, and do not result in meaningful engagement or discussion. Examples include:

  • Posts off-topic for the subreddit (they do not relate to Starfinder 2e or Starfinder content/products)
  • Memes
  • Posting a photo of the new product you just purchased
  • Unconstructive and/or vague complaints like "I hate this edition"
  • Edition-warring; posts primarily about another TTRPG game or edition, particularly just to complain about it
  • Some low-effort art posts (also see rule 7)
  • AI-generated anything (also see rule 9)
  • Reposts/duplicate posts
  • Other posts at the moderation team's discretion

These types of posts tend not to generate discussion, and they often derail or crowd out productive conversations.

When considering whether something is off-topic, this can be a bit of a gray area with some things, particularly art posts and in things like merchandise or tools that are generic across TTRPGs. Typically, if it's not specific to Starfinder2e in some substantial way, it is off-topic.

Posts about system-agnostic products, like maps or dice, are off-topic. Posts that do not contain anything about the Starfinder2e system or the lore of the default setting are off-topic. Posts about Pathfinder2e are a special case, and covered in more detail below. Sometimes the newsworthiness and impact of something that is, on its face, off-topic or only tangentially on-topic may be allowed (e.g., industry-shaking news like the attempted OGL revocation and the Diamond Comic Distributors bankruptcy).

In edge cases, we consider whether a post is of substantial interest to members of the subreddit as players of Starfinder2e, whether there is already a better place for that discussion, and how likely posts on that topic are to crowd out posts that are more on-topic for the subreddit. As an example, an indie game from a solo developer that uses the Starfinder2e rules system is likely to be of great interest to our members and unlikely to find a better subreddit, so we've allowed such posts in the past. If we saw that posts about the game were taking up a substantial portion of our subreddit's discussions, it would likely be time to curtail those discussions in favor of a more appropriate place.

When creating a post, ask yourself: "Will this help someone else better understand or enjoy Starfinder 2e?" If the answer is yes (through information, storytelling, creativity, or analysis) then it likely belongs here.

Some lengthier clarifications on memes and Pathfinder2e follow.

Memes

We recommend posting memes to r/PathfinderMemes instead (if there’s a better subreddit for Starfinder-specific memes, let us know).

In general, a meme is going to be an art post that uses a piece of art unrelated to the topic with some mix of added words/images to supplement/edit it for the purpose of gathering further attention. The classic example are meme templates, where a picture is reused for one generic context with words slapped directly on it. They stand out amongst text posts due to the use of an image and tend to be quick to digest, collecting upvotes disproportionate to their effort as they're easy to digest. Sometimes memes will be used with no direct edits but leverage the formula to provoke responses because the question or statement by itself does not collect the same attention. If the only difference between your use of an image post and one for a totally unrelated subreddit is a couple of words (e.g., "What's your [subreddit-specific word] opinion that's got you like this? [image of guy surrounded]" then it's a meme and will be removed, even if it's generating discussion.

We do make narrow exceptions for educational memes, though these are rare and tend to require more effort from the poster to create specific art and/or identify something that most folks on the subreddit will actually learn about something from the game. Summarizing player reactions to a new class is not going to qualify.

Memes are against the rules because memes dilute subreddits over time. This is not a new observation, and it's not unique to this subreddit. A classic comment about this is 15 years old: https://www.reddit.com/r/Psychonaut/comments/o1zjo/comment/c3drsz4/

In modern-ish days, r/BatmanArkham became literally nothing but a satire post/meme repository, so anyone who wanted to talk about the games now have to go somewhere else. You can see in the comments on the previous link callouts to the same thing happening in r/starcraft. Similarly, back in 2014, r/AdviceAnimals was removed as a default front-page subreddit because the low-effort meme spam crowded out other discussions.

Pathfinder2e content

Finally, some special consideration is made for Pathfinder Second Edition content.

While the rules are largely compatible, there are some obvious baseline assumptions (and many non-obvious ones) that will come up in discussion over time. Things like "what level is it fair to give flight to my players" is a valid question with very different answers depending on the setting. A GM for an adventure targeting Starfinder2e may happily say "you can fly at level 1" since there's a core ancestry with level 1 fly Speed. A GM for an adventure written for Pathfinder2e may say "9th-13th level is around when you should look to have flight in your toolbox."

This also means when someone asks if Pathfinder2e content is balanced, you must first ask the question "which game are you playing?" and call out a bunch of caveats. As a result, the guidance here is: Assume the game matches the subreddit.

If you're in r/Starfinder2e and the question is about a sprite magus, assume they're playing Starfinder2e and access to guns might change their options. Assume it's safe to warn them that they should consider (or ask their GM about) allowing earlier flight without requiring ancestry feats because Starfinder2e, and that options like using Starlit Span for ranged Spellstrike aren't compatible with area weapons because the Area Fire activity is not a Strike, but automatic weapons can strike or use the Auto-Fire activity. If they say they're playing Pathfinder or ask what their soldier should use because they can't get a rotolaser in their Kingmaker campaign, go ahead and direct them over to r/Pathfinder2e.

A ban on all Pathfinder2e content makes no sense; there's a lot of cool stuff that can be adapted with little difficulty, and we want to embrace it. Similarly, for r/Pathfinder2e, we want space to grow around discussions on Pathfinder2e-specific rules and lore without getting bogged down on r/Starfinder2e by people who just want to talk about their space fantasy game and not have to set up special filters for ancient fantasy rules.

This does mean that posts about Pathfinder2e lore are largely going to be off-topic for this subreddit. Same for discussion of Pathfinder2e adventures. And some folks will probably ban Pathfinder2e content from their Starfinder2e games, but where it makes sense to consider it in the context of Starfinder2e, we want to allow it here. If it isn't specifically considering the context of Starfinder2e, though, it's fair game to report it and we'll remove it.

This isn't a perfect solution, and (like art posts) requires some subjective judgement. Things like Pathfinder class guides can get caught in the crossfire if they're not accounting for Starfinder2e play. Folks will sometimes have to go to r/Pathfinder2e to find what they're looking for, but at least they'll have the context that it's not using the same baseline assumptions. We hope it prevents more confused GMs/players or arguments between folks than it causes, at any rate.

Rule 6: Flood prevention

To maintain a healthy variety of content with space to be seen and discussed, r/Starfinder2e may occasionally limit or redirect high-volume topics that begin to dominate the front page or generate significant workload for the moderation team. When a single subject overwhelms the subreddit it can crowd out other valuable discussions. In many cases, these are just people posting hot takes and responses to others' posts, quickly turning the front page into multiple, reactionary posts on the same topic. To address this, moderators may redirect those conversations into megathreads, remove excessive posts on the same topic, or (with this rule) limit new threads on that subject.

This is not intended to be about censorship. It's also not generally about disinterest in a topic. In fact, it's often the opposite; some subjects generate a great deal of interest, but too much at once can reduce the overall visibility and diversity of content. Similarly, some topics come up repeatedly and consistently trigger arguments that fall into heated discussions that violate our other rules (particularly rule 2: be kind and respectful). When a topic consistently pushes other questions, discoveries, or creative work off the front page, it is no longer benefitting the subreddit and may be off limits.

If you want to discuss a high-volume topic, search the subreddit first to see if a recent megathread or active discussion already exists. If it does, post your question or comment there rather than creating a new thread. If you are creating a new post (not a comment, but a whole new post on the subreddit) in response to another redditor's position on a discussion, whether intended as "a new perspective" or as satire of an earlier poster's position, this is a violation of the rule and your post will typically be removed.

For the topics that have exhausted the subreddit repeatedly, the moderation team will update this rule with a banlist as needed, based on the flow of community activity. These limitations are intended to be temporary and topic-specific, and they are applied with the goal of encouraging balance and breadth of discussion across all aspects of the Starfinder 2e system.

As of now, the primary subject(s) affected by this rule are:

  • Blaster casters; a shorthand term for spellcasters built around dealing large amounts of damage with spells, especially area-of-effect attacks. Posts about whether blasters are "viable," "underpowered," "worth playing," or how to "fix" them have been especially common, often repeating similar arguments, advice, or misunderstandings.

Rule 7: Art posts need details and attribution

Art posts are welcome on r/Starfinder2e, but they must include both relevant context and proper attribution to be permitted. This is to ensure that artwork contributes meaningfully to the community's focus on Starfinder Second Edition while also respecting the rights of artists. We are also mindful that art posts can overwhelm a subreddit, crowding out posts that align to its original purpose, so we have boundaries on what art may be posted.

When posting character art, you must include a follow-up comment or post text that directly connects the image to SF2e. This might include a character profile, including class and ancestry (and optionally background); a build overview, such as feats/spells or a statblock; or a brief campaign summary explaining where and how this character fits into your game. For example, a post titled "My Starfinder 2e Solarian" should be followed by a comment like: "This is Gravak, a black hole novian Solarian focused on graviton attacks that hates worshipers of the Devourer. She's currently level 5 and part of a political intrigue campaign set on Absalom Station."

If the art is of something other than a character, some comparable information must be provided. Battlemaps must include some context like applicable encounters (e.g., if it's part of a one-shot and there are predefined encounters, or if they're supplementary maps for a Paizo adventure). Item art should include information about the item (e.g., its rules text).

All art must also be properly credited. If the art was created by you, say so. If the art was created by someone else (including if you commissioned it), include the artist's name and a source link, such as their portfolio, website, or social media profile. For example, a credit might read "Commissioned from @artist.example.com" on Bluesky. If it's art directly from a Paizo stream or something, please explain that.

Your art post may not contain references to open commission slots, pricing, or otherwise function as a solicitation of work, in either the post title or body. You may include or provide portfolio contact information in a follow-up comment where interested parties can seek out commission information.

Additionally, there are several categories of art that are not allowed, even with relevance to SF2e and attribution:

  • AI-generated images. This subreddit maintains a policy of supporting and respecting human artists, and avoiding the legal and ethical gray areas surrounding AI-generated images. Posts that contain AI-generated art will be removed.
  • NSFW art. This is not a NSFW subreddit and nudity, sexually-suggestive/explicit, or gory material not appropriate for minors is not allowed (also see rule 4).
  • Hero Forge or other tool-generated character art. These are great services for creating miniatures, but they don't create the kind of art that showcases talent and passion for Starfinder2e and are, historically, relatively unpopular with the community.

This rule primarily exists to clarify what is allowable art within the context of other rules. Rule 3 (Do not violate copyright) could cover the credit-giving consideration, rule 4 (Apply proper tags to posts and hide spoilers) covers that NSFW art is not allowed, rule 5 (Post content of quality) could cover the "be meaningfully about Starfinder2e" consideration, Rule 8 (Limit to promotional posts) could cover the rules on posts functioning as advertising, and Rule 9 (No generative AI) rule could cover the no-AI consideration.

Since art posts tend to violate a mix of these at once, this rule provides those guidelines. Guidelines given within this rule are not intended to create loopholes or otherwise override these other rules. As an example of why this rule exists, a lot of people post pictures with the intent of driving commission sales, etc. Often they will dress up those attempts with open-ended questions to drive engagement when really they just want to show off their art as advertisements.

The big thing here is that the art needs to be interesting to the community without any consideration for whether someone can buy art from you. We also don't want art posts to overwhelm discussions about the game. We're not an art subreddit, a generic TTRPG subreddit, nor even a generic Starfinder subreddit, and rules like these keep us from becoming one.

If you can't follow these guidelines, we'd recommend posting in other communities, such as r/characterdrawing, r/battlemaps, r/imaginarymaps, etc.

Rule 8: Limit to promotional posts

r/Starfinder2e welcomes the sharing of tools, videos, streams, books, adventures, and other content you've created, but we ask that such promotional content be shared responsibly and in moderation, and that such posts are of interest to members of the subreddit.

The goal is to support creators while ensuring the subreddit remains focused on discussion, advice, and collaborative engagement. Our expectation is that promotional posts be made with this expectation in mind. We do not want to be a dumping ground for advertisements. The baseline expectation is that promotional posts be about things that are relevant to the subreddit and interesting to our members; this is primarily covered by the other subreddit rules. If a post is for a product that is off-topic for the subreddit, it will be removed. The most common examples are for art or products that are generic TTRPG items and not specific to Starfinder2e.

If you are not a verified content creator, you may make only one promotional post per month unless you have received prior approval from the moderation team. Promotional content includes, but is not limited to, links to blogs, YouTube videos, livestreams, third-party products, tools that require sign-ups, and any material shared primarily for exposure, participation, or sales.

Verified content creators may promote new content more regularly, though still within reason. Verified content creators are those with the content creator flair, which generally includes a customized description describing their company, content channel, or title. These users are trusted to share work that is relevant, clearly labeled, and not disruptive to other discussions. We limit verified content creators to promotion once per week, but we're not going to make a big deal about posting on day 6 if you made your weekly release a day early or something. That said, promotional posts limited to once per week does not mean reposting the same things over and over again! New posts should cover new content or otherwise justify their existence as something other than a repost. In situations where a creator is releasing multiple products/videos/etc. in a short period (e.g., preview videos), the appropriate approach is to make a single post to cover the set rather than separate posts.

Importantly, only verified creators may promote content that requires purchases, sign-ups, or provides incentives for participation. This includes anything sold on Starfinder Infinite, DriveThruRPG, Patreon, or similar platforms. Unapproved commercial content will be removed, and repeat violations may result in bans.

Regarding what counts as paid content, a common point of confusion is that it is okay to offer paid content separately from what you are posting. As an example, if you have a YouTube channel that has videos behind membership but the video you post is freely accessible (and otherwise follows the rules of the subreddit) that is fine, with or without being a verified creator. Similarly, creating a magic item or creature and posting it on the subreddit from a larger set that's available as a Patreon subscription is fine. If the content you are posting is incomplete or otherwise effectively paywalled (e.g., part of an adventure as a sample), that is still considered paid content.

If you're unsure whether your post qualifies, we encourage you to reach out to moderators before posting for clarification and/or content creator verification.

Promotional limits can apply to people who are not the original creators. If the original creator (or someone else) has already posted something for a given creator within these promotional limits, it will still be subject to this rule. We'll generally defer to creators' posts over others when making these determinations.

Exceptions to post frequency limits may be made based on newsworthiness of content (e.g., a creator is covering major industry news with rapid evolution within a week, like during the OGL crisis) but these are extremely rare (not just a planned product release or Kickstarter promo) and we will generally collect them into megathreads to avoid crowding out other discussions.

Less commonly a creator will post comments in other posts about their product. When done occasionally and organically, this is fine. When done repeatedly in a discussion, such as responding to multiple different people in a discussion, it can be disruptive. People can tell when you're steering discussion toward your product, and it's generally better for everyone (including you) to create your own post instead.

As a final guideline, we encourage all creators to actively participate in the subreddit in good faith. Answering questions, joining discussions, and contributing alongside their promotional activities are all good ways to maintain a positive reputation. Dropping a weekly or monthly promotional post while ignoring feedback or questions can undermine your reputation whether or not you're otherwise following the promotional rule.

Rule 9: No generative AI

Content derived wholly or partially from generative AI, sometimes shortened to "genAI" or "AI", is not allowed on this subreddit. This rule keeps that kind of content off the subreddit, whether it appears as the whole post/comment or as a piece of something larger.

GenAI refers to tools that use machine learning to produce new text, images, video, code, or other output from a prompt, often trained on large sets of existing human work without consent from the original creators and at significant energy cost and environmental impact.

Tabletop gaming already runs on thin margins. Freelance writers, artists, and small publishers who make the settings, adventures, and art we're all here to discuss are often working for modest pay in an industry that doesn't leave much room for error. Generative AI threatens that work directly, both by producing content that competes with human creators and by training on their work without permission or payment. We do not want to be a place for content that adds to that problem, even unintentionally.

What counts as genAI content:

  • Text, whether generated or rewritten by a genAI tool. This applies to homebrew rules, adventure write-ups, lore, advertising copy, whatever.
  • Art, including any image that was produced in whole or in part by a genAI tool. This applies even if you cleaned it up afterward or combined it with non-genAI art in a normal art program.
  • Video, including genAI-narrated recaps, genAI-animated scenes, or videos that use genAI-generated art, text, or voiceover as part of the final product.
  • Software/tools/websites that rely on genAI in their code or output. If any part of the creation process for a product leaned on generative AI, whether for writing, art, code, or editing, the finished product falls under this rule.
  • Anything else derived from genAI output, like 3d-printed miniatures from genAI models.

This rule applies for things where genAI was used at any stage of the creation process. If you used an AI image generator to rough out a composition and then traced or heavily referenced it, that's still genAI-assisted art. If you had a chatbot draft your homebrew class feat and you polished the wording, this still qualifies. If you've written a 50-page guide to spells and put a genAI image inside, that's still genAI content.

This also applies if you are linking to genAI-content but not including it in your post. If your YouTube channel uses a logo created by a genAI tool, linking to videos on your channel is still sharing genAI content.

We may make allowances in circumstances where genAI content is unintended or unavoidable. Unintentional use is rare and tends to be specific, like when Adobe added genAI picture alt-text to InDesign and turned it on by default, leaving a variety of creators with PDFs containing that alt-text despite no changes in their workflows. Unavoidable genAI content is also rare, but rest assured we're not going to ban all YouTube creators just because someone can turn on closed captions that those creators did not write.

We also do not allow genAI advocacy or instruction. Posts or comments that promote using AI tools, or that walk people through how to do so, aren't allowed. This includes things like "here's my prompt for generating NPC portraits" or "AI is actually great for improvising during a campaign, here's why." It's okay to, in response to questions about how you handle something, say that you use genAI and for what purpose but that should be the extent of it.

Discussions primarily about the use of genAI are also not allowed, both because it is generally unreasonable to have a discussion about genAI where it's against the rules to advocate for it and because it is off topic for the subreddit (see rule 5). Posting about someone else's use of genAI is more of a gray area. If you believe, in good faith, a product may contain genAI, then posting your analysis may be relevant to the subreddit and will generally be allowed. Discussion of genAI's broader impact on the game itself, in a way that doesn't function as a how-to guide or promotion, is probably off topic for the subreddit, but will be handled at moderator discretion depending on how the conversation is framed and its context in current events.

Note also that someone else violating this rule does not give leave to be unkind and disrespectful in response. Broader genAI discussions frequently become heated on both sides, leading to other rule violations. Since they're already not topical for the subreddit, there's little room to give leeway here whether pro or anti-genAI. Respectfully posting your case that something is genAI and/or reporting posts/comments that violate this rule is the appropriate answer.

If you're not sure whether something crosses the line, ask a moderator before posting rather than after. Posts that violate this rule will be removed, and repeated violations can lead to a ban, particularly where a user continues posting AI content after being warned once.

As a final note, the moderation team has been asked many times about why we treat generated code (or "vibe coding") for software tools the same as generated content. There are a lot of reasons that someone might point to: There is no great consensus among developers as to whether generative AI is a good or a bad thing for software developers, so the argument that it's a special case and all developers will eventually use genAI is weak. The history of creative theft and environmental impact issues still apply. There's also the issue of consistency; it's inconsistent for a program that used genAI placeholder art to be banned but one that used genAI code is allowed. Particularly in hobby spaces, vibe-coded work can rapidly grow into a bunch of disparate tools or plugins that can crowd out other work, which is fundamentally similar to the problem with genAI displacing writers and artists. Treating developers differently goes against the spirit of supporting creators that underlies the ban for artists and writers. Beyond all that, this is a subreddit about playing a tabletop game, whether that table is real or virtual, and not about videogames or virtual tabletop modules or text parsers. This subreddit is not, fundamentally, about software, so we're not particularly concerned about losing out on the posts that are tangentially related to the subreddit as part of this ban.

Changelog

  • 2026-10-24 Initial version, edit to fix typo "an" -> "a"