Effective Date: August 19, 2026
Calytix (“we,” “our”, or “us”) provides a platform for community members (“Contributors,” “you”) to submit original ideas, characters, items, mechanics, and written stories (collectively, “Submissions”) for integration into Verdition and the broader Calytix universe. This Contributor Rights Policy governs the intellectual property (IP) rights, licensing, and attribution associated with those Submissions, and supplements the representations, indemnification, and payment terms in our Terms of Service.
01Introduction & Core Philosophy
tl;dr — We tell you exactly what you keep, what you license to us, and how you’re credited. No fine-print IP grab.
When you submit an idea to Calytix, our goal is absolute transparency regarding ownership. We reject the standard industry practice of unconditionally absorbing user IP. Instead, we define exact boundaries of what you retain, what you license to us, and how you are credited. By participating in the Submission process, you agree to these terms.
02Contributor Representations & Warranties
tl;dr — Your Submission has to be yours, not infringe on anyone else, and be honestly disclosed if AI tools were involved. If any of this turns out false, you’re on the hook under our Terms’ indemnification clause.
By making a Submission, you represent and warrant that:
- Originality: The Submission is your original creation, and you are the sole and exclusive owner of all rights, title, and interest in and to the Submission.
- No Infringement: The Submission does not infringe upon, misappropriate, or violate the intellectual property rights, privacy rights, publicity rights, or any other rights of any third party.
- AI Disclosure: If any part of the Submission was created with the assistance of generative AI tools, you disclose this at the time of submission. AI-assisted work is permitted only where the core creative expression — the central concept, character, or narrative voice — is your own human authorship, and the AI tool was used in an assistive capacity (e.g., brainstorming, editing, or draft iteration). Submissions that are substantially AI-generated with no meaningful human authorship, or that omit required disclosure, may be rejected or, if discovered post-acceptance, removed under Section 8.
- Authority: You have the full right, power, and authority to grant the licenses set forth in this Policy.
A breach of these warranties is covered by the indemnification obligations in Section 12 of our Terms of Service, including any third-party claim that your Submission infringes their rights.
03Retained Rights (What You Keep)
tl;dr — You keep credit, portfolio rights, moral rights (where recognized), and the ability to make your own non-competing derivative works.
Regardless of the licensing tier selected (see Section 4), all Contributors unequivocally retain the following rights:
attribution & credit
The right to be publicly credited as the originator of the core concept. Calytix will ensure proper attribution (e.g., “Designed by [Name]”) within the relevant project interfaces, credits screens, or compendiums. Contributors may optionally choose to be credited anonymously or under a pseudonym. If you believe your credit is missing or incorrect, you may raise it through the Support Portal and we will correct it promptly.
portfolio display
The perpetual, non-exclusive right to display, publish, and present the raw concepts, lore, and mechanics in your personal, educational, or professional portfolios, demonstrating your design capabilities.
moral rights
The foundational moral right to be recognized as the author of the work, and the right to object to derogatory treatment of your original concept, distinct from the ordinary structural balance changes, rebalancing, and rework contemplated by Section 4 and Section 8. To the extent moral rights are waivable under the law that applies to you, you agree not to assert them in a manner that would interfere with the modification and integration rights you grant Calytix under this Policy, beyond the derogatory-treatment objection preserved here. Where your local law does not permit such a waiver, your moral rights remain as provided by that law.
non-competing derivative works
The right to create derivative works of your original concept for personal use or non-commercial projects, provided they do not conflict with the exclusive licenses granted to Calytix in Section 4.
04Granted Licenses (Integration Tiers)
tl;dr — Two tiers: Tier 1 covers the specific game you submitted to; Tier 2 extends that to the whole Calytix universe (stories, future games, merch).
To accommodate different levels of involvement, Calytix utilizes a tier-based licensing system. During the Checkout/Submission pipeline, you will explicitly select one of the following integration tiers, and your selection is recorded against your Submission at the time of acceptance. Note: For all tiers, you grant Calytix the right to modify, balance, and adapt the Submission for mechanical implementation.
Standard Project Integration (Tier 1)
Under Tier 1, you grant Calytix a perpetual, exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to implement, display, and monetize the Submission strictly within the boundaries of the specific target project (e.g., Verdition).
- Scope: Limited to the game/platform it was submitted for.
- Exclusivity Clause: You agree not to submit the exact same specific mechanical design or character explicitly to another commercial video game.
- Media: Includes the right for Calytix to commission official, derived 2D/3D artwork of the Submission for use in the target project.
Expanded Universe Canon (Tier 2)
Under Tier 2, you grant Calytix everything in Tier 1, plus a perpetual, exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to utilize the Submission as canonical elements within the broader Calytix universe.
- Scope: Expands to include original written stories, future video games, merchandise, marketing materials, and all associated media developed by Calytix.
- Narrative Control: Calytix gains the right to expand upon the character’s backstory, personality, and lore in official capacity.
- Cross-Pollination: An item originated in Verdition may appear in a Calytix novel or a future RPG.
05Written Story Submissions (The Story Exception)
tl;dr — You keep full copyright of your prose. We just get a license to host and display it.
Textual submissions, specifically full prose stories (3,000–10,000 words) intended for the Stories section, are governed by a unique carve-out to protect the author’s copyright of the written word.
- Textual Copyright: You, the author, retain 100% full copyright of the specific prose text submitted. You may freely publish, distribute, and monetize the text elsewhere (e.g., personal blogs, self-publishing platforms, Royal Road).
- Platform License: You grant Calytix a non-exclusive right to format, host, and display the written text on the Calytix website and associated digital platforms.
- Derived Entities: Novel characters, items, or mechanics introduced within the story that are subsequently ported into Calytix games are governed by the Integration Tier (Section 4) selected at submission time.
06Rejection, Revisions, & Refunds
tl;dr — Rejected or declined-revision Submissions get a full refund and all rights back. Once accepted, it’s final.
Calytix maintains strict quality standards to protect the integrity of the universe. The submission review process includes the following legal safeguards:
- Outright Rejection: If a Submission is rejected (for reasons including IP conflict, mechanical impossibility, or extreme thematic mismatch), the Contributor retains 100% of all rights. The transaction is voided, and a full refund is processed.
- Revision Proposals: Calytix may tentatively accept a Submission pending specific revisions to fit the world or mechanical balance. If the Contributor declines the proposed revisions, the Submission is considered rejected, all rights revert instantly to the Contributor, and a full refund is issued.
- Post-Acceptance: Once a Submission is formally accepted and finalized, the license established by the selected Tier goes into effect permanently. Refunds are not available post-acceptance due to the associated development costs (e.g., commissioning art, writing code). Because review and evaluation begin promptly after submission, you agree that performance of this service begins immediately, and, where required by applicable consumer protection law, you expressly consent to that immediate performance and acknowledge the resulting loss of any statutory right of withdrawal once review has begun.
07Compensation & Royalties
tl;dr — One-time fee, no ongoing royalties, in either direction.
Calytix operates a one-time contribution model rather than an ongoing royalty model. The fee paid at submission covers evaluation, review, and, upon acceptance, the integration of the Submission under the selected tier. All licenses granted in Section 4 are royalty-free: no ongoing payments, revenue shares, or per-unit royalties are owed for accepted Submissions, and the submission fee is the sole compensation for the license granted.
This structure is what allows us to keep integration decisions (balancing, artwork, placement) driven purely by creative fit rather than financial exposure. Contributors retain the portfolio, attribution, and derivative-work rights described in Section 3 regardless of tier.
08Removal & Discontinuation
tl;dr — Accepted content can be reworked or retired, but the license and (where recognizable) attribution obligations continue.
Once a Submission is accepted and integrated, it becomes part of a live, evolving project, and the granted license continues even if the content is later reworked, rebalanced, or retired from active use. Calytix may modify, adapt, or discontinue use of any accepted Submission at its discretion; in such cases, attribution obligations for the original concept continue where the concept remains recognizable.
If you believe an accepted Submission is being used outside the scope of the license you granted, or that AI-assistance disclosure requirements under Section 2 were violated, you may raise the concern through the Support Portal. We will review the concern in good faith and either bring the use back within scope, correct the record, or promptly cure the issue.
09Modification of Terms
tl;dr — We can update this policy, but it won’t retroactively change licenses you’ve already granted us.
Calytix reserves the right to modify this Contributor Rights Policy at any time. Changes will not retroactively alter the licensing terms of legally accepted Submissions made prior to the update. Continued use of the Submission Portal constitutes acceptance of the modified terms.
10Contact
If you have questions about this Contributor Rights Policy, your licensing tier, or an accepted Submission, contact us through the Support Portal, via our official Discord server, or by email at support@calytix.dev.