Rules of engagement.

1. Acceptance of terms

By accessing or using gods.church (the "Service"), you agree to these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you don't agree, don't use the Service.

These Terms form a binding agreement between you and the operators of God's Church. We may update them — see section 13.

2. Eligibility

You may use the Service if:

• You are at least 13 years old (or the minimum age of digital consent in your jurisdiction, whichever is higher).
• You can form a binding contract under applicable law.
• You are not barred from using the Service under applicable law (sanctioned jurisdictions, etc.).
• Your account has not been previously banned by us.

If you are under 18, you should review these Terms with a parent or legal guardian before using the Service.

3. Your account

You're responsible for:

• Keeping your password secure.
• All activity that happens under your account.
• Providing accurate registration information.
• Notifying us promptly at [email protected] if you suspect unauthorized access.

You may only maintain one account. Multiple accounts used to manipulate rankings, evade bans, or other prohibited behavior may all be terminated.

4. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• Harass, threaten, defame, or impersonate other users or any person.
• Use a username that contains slurs, sexual content, religious mockery, brand names you don't own, or impersonates real people or organizations.
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to any account, server, or system.
• Probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of the Service (except under a coordinated disclosure agreement — email us first).
• Interfere with the Service's operation (DDoS, request flooding, scraping at abusive rates).
• Use the Service to violate any law.

5. User content & questions

The Service allows you to submit content (e.g. question reports, bug reports, profile information). You retain ownership of what you submit, but you grant us a worldwide, royalty-free license to use that content for operating and improving the Service.

You confirm that any content you submit:

• Is yours to share (you have the rights to it).
• Doesn't violate any third party's rights.
• Isn't unlawful, defamatory, obscene, or harassing.

6. Fair play

The integrity of competition is everything. You agree not to:

• Use bots, scripts, or automation to play battles or submit answers.
• Use external aids (web searches, AI tools, secondary sources) during ranked battles. Practice mode has no such restriction — practice is for learning.
• Collude with other players to manipulate rankings (e.g. throwing battles for an ELO partner).
• Exploit bugs in scoring, matchmaking, or ELO calculation. If you find one, report it.
• Create alternate accounts ("smurfs") to play against lower-ranked opponents.

7. Subscriptions & payments

Free tier

The free tier of God's Church will remain free for unlimited gameplay. We may add or remove specific premium-only features over time, but core PvP play and ranking will always be available without payment.

Paid tiers

We offer optional subscription tiers (currently Blessed and Apostle) with additional features. Pricing and feature lists are available on the relevant signup screen at time of purchase.

Billing & cancellation

• Subscriptions auto-renew at the end of each billing period unless canceled.
• You can cancel anytime through your account settings or by emailing us. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current period — no prorated refund for unused time.
• We may offer refunds at our discretion in cases of clear billing errors or extended Service outages.
• Payment processing is handled by Stripe. We do not store full payment card numbers.
• Prices may change. We'll notify subscribers at least 30 days in advance of any increase, and you may cancel before the increase takes effect.

8. Intellectual property

God's Church, the logo, the Crusader visual design system, the question pool we author, and all software powering the Service are owned by us or our licensors and are protected by copyright, trademark, and other laws.

The Bible itself (King James Version) is in the public domain in most jurisdictions. Other translations remain the property of their respective publishers and are licensed for limited use where applicable.

You may not copy, reverse-engineer, scrape, or redistribute the Service or its content except as expressly permitted (e.g. sharing your own battle results on social media).

9. Termination

You may terminate your account at any time — see the Privacy Policy.

We may suspend or terminate your account if:

• You violate these Terms.
• Required by law.
• The Service is being discontinued (we'll give 30 days' notice).

On termination, your right to use the Service ends. Sections that should reasonably survive termination (intellectual property, disclaimers, liability limits, governing law) will continue to apply.

10. Disclaimers

The Service is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, either express or implied, including but not limited to merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement.

We do not warrant that:

• The Service will be uninterrupted, timely, secure, or error-free.
• Question content is theologically definitive — we strive for accuracy within mainstream Protestant scholarship, but biblical interpretation varies.
• Your use of the Service will result in any particular spiritual or educational outcome.

Some jurisdictions don't allow exclusion of certain warranties. To the extent required by law, those warranties apply.

11. Limitation of liability

Our total cumulative liability to you for all claims arising from or relating to the Service shall not exceed the greater of:

• The amount you paid us in the 12 months preceding the claim, or
• USD $100.

Some jurisdictions don't allow limitations on certain damages. In those places, our liability is limited to the maximum extent permitted by law.

12. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless God's Church and its operators from any claim, demand, loss, or expense (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from your violation of these Terms, your violation of any third party's rights, or your use of the Service.

13. Changes to these terms

We may update these Terms periodically. Material changes will be announced by:

• An in-app notification on your next login.
• An email to your registered address.
• A notice on this page with an updated "Last updated" date.

Continued use of the Service after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms. If you don't agree, you can terminate your account before the effective date.

14. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, United States, without regard to its conflict-of-law principles. Any dispute will be resolved in the state or federal courts located in Los Angeles County, California, and you consent to the personal jurisdiction of those courts.

If you are a consumer residing outside the United States, applicable mandatory consumer protection laws of your country of residence may also apply.

15. Contact

Questions, concerns, or formal notices under these Terms:

Email: [email protected]
Subject line: "Legal notice — [topic]"