Terms of Service
RUNECHAIN is a research prototype. Power is earned, not sold; cosmetics are the only thing real money buys; and the single value-exit is selling a character you actually finished. The wallet, real-money settlement, and character-sale features are specified but, in the current build, run as a devnet mock with no real funds. These Terms govern both today's prototype and those features when they go live.
1. Acceptance of these Terms
These Terms of Service ("Terms") are a binding agreement between you and 49thparallel.io LTD ("49th Parallel", "we", "us", "RUNECHAIN") and govern your access to and use of runechaingame.com, play.runechaingame.com, and the Game (together, the "Service"). By accessing or using the Service you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.
2. The prototype, "as is"
The Game is an evolving research prototype built end-to-end by an autonomous Distributed Agentic Work Grid. Features, balance, the economy, and content may change, break, be reset, or be discontinued at any time. We may wipe or reset progress, RUNE, Gold, relics, Sigils, or seasons, including for testing or economy integrity, and we do not guarantee that any in-game item, balance, or character will persist or retain any value.
3. Eligibility
- You must be at least the age of majority in your jurisdiction (19 in British Columbia) to use the Service.
- You must not be barred from using the Service under the laws of Canada or your jurisdiction, and you must not be located in, or a resident of, a country or region subject to comprehensive sanctions, nor be on any applicable sanctions or denied-party list.
- Crypto and real-money features are not offered where they are prohibited by law. It is your responsibility to ensure your use is lawful where you live.
4. Accounts and security
- You are responsible for activity under your account and for keeping your credentials, device, and passkey secure.
- The Service may enforce a one-account-per-device limit and other anti-Sybil measures. Creating multiple accounts to evade limits, manipulate the economy, or farm rewards is prohibited.
- Non-custodial wallets. If you connect a wallet, you alone control your private keys and seed phrase. We never hold them and cannot recover, freeze, or reverse anything done with your wallet. Loss of your keys means loss of access — we cannot help.
5. The economy and virtual items
The economy is the whole design. Two currencies, and the line between them is the point:
- RUNE is the grind/power currency. It drops from gameplay, is mined into the Chainwell as a proof-of-work gameplay mechanic, and buys levels and soulbound relics. RUNE is never for sale and is not a cryptocurrency, token, security, or investment of any kind.
- Gold buys cosmetics only — soulbound skins, with no power, no loot boxes, and no chance-based ("gacha") spending. Gold is one-way in and does not cash out on its own.
- Relics, Boss Sigils, levels, and characters are in-game items.
Virtual items are licensed, not owned. Except as expressly provided for character sales (Section 7), all in-game currencies and items are a limited, personal, revocable, non-transferable license to use them within the Game. They have no monetary value, are not your property, are not redeemable for cash, and may be modified or removed. The server is authoritative for all value; clients propose, the server disposes, and forged credits are rejected.
6. Purchases and payments
When real-money settlement is live, Gold may be purchased with wrapped SOL. Each purchase
routes an atomic split — 50% burn · 35% marketing · 15% operations fee — and
credits Gold on the Chainwell. By purchasing you acknowledge:
- all purchases are final and non-refundable except where a refund is required by law;
- crypto values are volatile, and you bear all network fees, slippage, and price risk;
- you are responsible for any taxes arising from your transactions; and
- in the current build, settlement is a devnet mock with no real funds; we will update these Terms and obtain any required compliance sign-off before any go-live with real value.
7. Character sales — the single value-exit
The only path by which value may leave the system is selling a season-complete character. A character becomes sell-eligible only after finishing the season's mandatory grind tasks while the shared season window was open. A buyer inherits all grind-earned progress; any seasonal paid quality-of-life resets at the season boundary, so purchased advantage is not acquired by proxy. RUNE, Gold, relics, and Sigils do not individually cash out.
We provide the marketplace mechanism but do not guarantee any price, liquidity, buyer, or that a character will retain value. We may impose eligibility checks, holding periods, fees, and anti-fraud and anti-money-laundering controls on sales, and may suspend or void sales we reasonably believe involve fraud, exploitation, or prohibited conduct.
8. Crypto, tokens, and risk acknowledgement
- Nothing in the Service is financial, investment, legal, or tax advice, and no in-game currency or item is offered as an investment.
- Any third-party token referenced from our Sites (including any token on pump.fun) is not issued, controlled, endorsed, or guaranteed by us, conveys no rights in the Game or in 49th Parallel, and carries a high risk of total loss. We make no representation about its value or any market for it.
- Blockchain transactions are irreversible; networks may fail, fork, congest, or change; and regulatory treatment of digital assets is evolving and may affect availability of features.
9. Acceptable use
You agree not to:
- cheat, bot, automate, or exploit bugs, or use unauthorized clients or tools to gain gameplay or economic advantage;
- attempt to forge, duplicate, or manipulate RUNE, Gold, the Chainwell, balances, or the character-sale market;
- create multiple accounts to evade limits, or use the Service for fraud, money laundering, or sanctioned activity;
- reverse engineer, attack, overload, or attempt to gain unauthorized access to the authoritative server or other users' accounts; or
- harass, abuse, or harm other players, or upload unlawful, infringing, or hateful content.
10. User content
You retain ownership of content you submit (such as character names or messages), and you grant us a worldwide, royalty-free license to host and display it as needed to operate the Service. You are responsible for your content and confirm you have the rights to it. We may remove content that violates these Terms.
11. Intellectual property
The Game, including its code, art, characters, the "RUNECHAIN" and "49th Parallel" names and marks, and all related materials, is owned by us or our licensors and is protected by law. We grant you a limited, personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access and play the Game for non-commercial personal use, subject to these Terms. All rights not expressly granted are reserved.
12. Economy integrity & fair play
To protect a fair economy, we may audit, adjust, roll back, freeze, or reverse in-game balances, transactions, or character states that we reasonably believe result from bugs, exploits, fraud, or prohibited conduct, and may withhold or claw back items or proceeds obtained in violation of these Terms.
13. Suspension and termination
We may suspend or terminate your access at any time, with or without notice, for any breach of these Terms or to protect the Service or other users. You may stop using the Service at any time. On termination, your license to in-game items ends. Sections that by their nature should survive (including Sections 5–8 and 11–18) survive termination.
14. Disclaimers
THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE", WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. The Game is an experimental prototype built by autonomous agents; we do not warrant that it will be uninterrupted, error-free, secure, or that any item, balance, or character will persist or have value. Some jurisdictions do not allow certain warranty exclusions, so parts of this section may not apply to you.
15. Limitation of liability
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, WE WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOST PROFITS, DATA, CRYPTO ASSETS, OR VIRTUAL ITEMS. OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ALL CLAIMS RELATING TO THE SERVICE WILL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) THE AMOUNTS YOU PAID US IN THE 12 MONTHS BEFORE THE CLAIM, OR (B) CAD $100. Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law.
16. Indemnification
You agree to indemnify and hold harmless 49th Parallel and its operators from claims, losses, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of your use of the Service, your content, or your breach of these Terms or of any law or third-party right.
17. Changes to the Service and Terms
We may modify the Game, the economy, seasons, and these Terms at any time. Material changes to these Terms will be posted here with a new "Last updated" date; your continued use after changes take effect constitutes acceptance.
18. Governing law and disputes
These Terms are governed by the laws of the Province of British Columbia and the federal laws of Canada applicable there, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules. The parties agree to first attempt to resolve any dispute informally by contacting runechaingame@49thparallel.io. Any dispute not resolved informally will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located in British Columbia, Canada, and you consent to that venue.
19. General
These Terms and the Privacy Policy are the entire agreement between you and us regarding the Service. If any provision is unenforceable, the rest remains in effect. Our failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver. You may not assign these Terms; we may assign them in connection with a business transfer. We are not liable for delays or failures caused by events beyond our reasonable control.
20. Contact
Questions about these Terms can be sent to runechaingame@49thparallel.io.
Prototype-stage notice. RUNECHAIN is in a prototype stage, and these Terms govern the Service as it exists today. Further terms, disclosures, and details — including those for the wallet, real-money settlement, and character-sale features — will be published as those features become available. Everything here is subject to change; the current version is the one posted on this page, indicated by the "Last updated" date above.← Back to Gracefall