The Unofficial Rules

The unofficial Ingress rules are being written by Ingress players, for the entertainment of Ingress
players. They should not be confused with the actual rules of the game.

The development of the unofficial Ingress rules have been inspired by the often humorous and
sometimes important rules from the world of cycling.

As an Ingress player, you are welcome to join. You can add new rules and also vote existing
rules up or down based on how relevant and/or funny you think they are. If you think they can be
improved, you can post a comment on the rule's discussion page.

Rule #0 - Follow The Rules

An agent must follow the rules unless it is inconvenient or they just don't want to.

Rule #1 - GPS Spoofing

GPS spoofing is the most destructive form of cheating in the game. Anyone caught doing this
should be reported to Niantic and banned from the game. If you catch anyone spoofing, you
should smash their phone and tell them that is how it feels when a spoofer takes down a BAF or
guardian.

Votes 304 1
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Rule #2 - That Portal Is Not Yours!

A portal is never YOUR portal, you may hold it, you may care for it, but it's never yours. Don't
get upset when another player wishes to spend time with that portal too.

Votes 259 9
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Rule #3 - This Is Not Pokemon GO

Any agent who is asked if they are playing Pokemon, should (a) Be ashamed of their poor
spycraft at being mistaken for an apokealypse zombie, and (b) Explain that Ingress is the real AR
game, Pokemon Go is just the simplified version for children.

Votes 229 11
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Rule #4 - Accounts
One IGN. One team. One device at a time. It is in the ToS we all agreed to when starting.

Votes 209 14
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Rule #5 - The Tell Tale Guardian

If you have a guardian portal over 20 days old, you do not speak of said portal or even think
about it. You nonchalantly recharge it, paying it not special attention. Doing otherwise is
guaranteed to result in losing it.

As a caveat to this, a player should never ask another player about their guardians as it may force
them to break this rule.

Votes 170 7
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Rule #6 - Play Socially

Ingress can be at its best when played socially. You are encouraged to reach out and connect
with other agents. However, when planning to meet a stranger for the first time, do so in a safe
setting.

Votes 148 3
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Rule #7 - Get Over It

If you lose your guardian at 89 days GOI! If you lose your guardian at 149 days GOI! Forget to
hack for a day GOI! Someone takes down your megafield within 5 minutes of it going up GOI!

Votes 152 12
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Rule #8 - The Sojourner Paradox

The Sojourner badge is both the easiest and hardest badge to get. No one can stop you from
getting it but your own laziness.

Votes 150 13
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Rule #9 - Opposition Team Meet-ups

If you become aware that agents from the opposing team are having a gathering, do all that you
can to crash said event.
If your team is having the gathering, do not begrudge opposing team crashers. It is your own
fault for not being stealthy enough.

Votes 144 9
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Rule #10 - Directions

Portals should always be used when giving directions to other agents, but remember that non-
agents will not understand such directions.

Votes 130 2
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Rule #11 - Detours

A detour is limited to no more than 5 hours! Getting milk can lead to a detour, but you are
expected back home within the 5 hour limit. Anything longer than 5 hours is a planned
mission. Rule #47 (Missions)

Votes 126 13
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Rule #12 - Out of Area Experiences.

When travelling or visiting a new area, always introduce yourself in faction COMMS. If you are
visiting an area with fewer agents and portals than your usual haunts, it is courteous to share
capsules of level 8 gear and to upgrade as many portals as possible. If you are from a remote
area, it is courteous to share extra keys of your most remote and hard to access portals.

Votes 110 3
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Rule #13 - One More Portal

There is always one more portal to destroy, link, field, or capture. You must accept this fact. You
can and should spend as much time as possible getting one more portal!

Votes 106 1
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Rule #14 - If You Are Out Playing In Bad Weather, It Means You Are A Badass.
Your Badassness is strictly limited to the last bad weather you ingressed in, never your worst
weather. This rule is only superseded when you have ventured outside into hurricane conditions
to take down a field that covers your country, state or city.

Votes 104 5
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Rule #15 - Farm Location

Farms are decided not by the proximity to dense portals groups, but by how much food, coffee
and alcoholic beverages can be consumed whilst still maintaining range to as many portals as
possible.

Votes 100 12
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Rule #16 - Couch And Desk Portals

If a player from your team has a home or work portal it is your responsibility to detour as often
as possible to upgrade this portal, just as it is their responsibility to give you gear as often as you
ask for it. If you know of a couch or desk portal used by the opposing team then it's your
responsibility to detour and pineapple Rule #33 (The Pineapple/Campfire) the portal before work
for work portals or after work for home portals as often as possible.

Votes 83 1
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Rule #17 - The Game Paradox

The biggest question that plagues the minds of both ADA and Jarvis: after 90 days are you
playing the game, or is the game playing you?

Votes 80 6
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Rule #18 - Recruiting Agents

If you encounter a person who is playing a different augmented reality game, these are likely
agents who have yet to discover ingress. It is your responsibility to recruit them to your faction.

Votes 74 0
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Rule #19 - The Key Paradox

The more import your need of a key, the more unlikely it is that the portal will yield one.
Conversely, when you don't need a key and just do a fast drive-by hack, you are guaranteed to
acquire a key

Votes 66 0
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Rule #20 - Video Calls In Hangouts

Any player interrupting a group chat in Hangouts by initiating a video call, either by accident or
deliberately will be obliged to buy one round of drinks at the next faction meet.

Votes 68 7
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Rule #21 - Late Night Comms Trolling

The most suitable time to COMMS troll the opposition is when you're recharging from home,
sitting in front of the fire, with a glass of scotch in hand, whilst they are out on a cold and wet
night.

Votes 67 6
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Rule #22 - The Fairer Sex?

Don't piss off female agents, they can be vicious!

Votes 70 8
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Rule #23 - The New Level 1

Since the introduction of levels 9 - 16, level 8 will forever be known as the New Level 1. When a
player achieves the New Level 1, you should congratulate them of achieving the New Level 1
and refer them to the rules.

Votes 76 13
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Rule #24 - Shit Talking In Comms

A core aspect of ingress is interfaction rivalry, as such friendly banter can be expected in all
comms. However, never forget that if you start talking shit, players will reply in the same
manner.
Votes 67 5
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Rule #25 - Ingress Is A Verb

One does not merely walk and play Ingress they Footgress! If you're in a car your Cargressing, If
on a plane its Planegress, train is Traingress, bus is Busgress and on a bike is Bikegress.

Votes 60 0
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Rule #26 - Douche Links

Douche links can be both highly annoying and highly amusing, depending on context. Douche
links that just block an area from being properly fielded, but are otherwise uninteresting, can be
annoying. Douche links that cut through the heart of area that normally has no hope of working,
bringing both teams fields to a standstill, can be amusing.

Votes 63 7
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Rule #27 - Ingress Is Not A Game

Ingress is not a game, it is much more.

Votes 79 24
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Rule #28 - Introductions

New introductions should always be done by holding your devices screen towards the new player
you wish to meet. This both establishes that you're playing the same game and it also establishes
what team your play for. Then introduce yourself and follow the Rule #36 (Introduce
Yourself) procedures.

Votes 53 2
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Rule #29 - Spycraft

Ingress players should take great care to ensure non players remain unaware that there is a game
being played in their vicinity. It should be taken as a matter of great embarrassment if someone
asks if you are playing Rule #3 (This Is Not Pokemon GO)

Votes 53 4
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Rule #30 - Harden The F#%k Up

You're a secret agent, you carry all sorts of special gear to complete your missions faster and
better than your opponents. There will be no complaining about blisters, no stopping for snacks,
no complaints about the weather.

Votes 54 6
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Rule #31 - Adventures

A adventure is any ingress activity that exceeds a Detour Rule #11 (Detours) (5 hours) and a
Mission Rule #47 (Missions) (12 hours) and typically requires overnight lodgings somewhere.
These are often reserved for the hardest and most experienced players, and can often lead to
whole states being fielded by a mere handful of players working on an adventure together.

Votes 49 0
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Rule #32 - Stealing Fields

When Ingressing in close proximity to another agent of the same faction, take care not to throw
links that create fields from their work-in-progress. If possible, introduce yourself per Rule #28
(Introductions) and coordinate any further activities.

Votes 49 2
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Rule #33 - The Pineapple/Campfire

To pineapple a portal, first destroy it, then stand on top of the portal and deploying level 1
resonators on it, before installing 4 useless mods (link amps) then finally it should be flipped to
the opposing faction. The term pineapple comes from the look on the scanner from all the yellow
resonators and the green crown on top. The term camp fire comes from the look of a blue portal
with the resonators appearing as rocks around a campfire and the blue appearing as fire.

Votes 48 2
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Rule #34 - The Crapsule

To be counted as a crapsule, a capsule must contain a minimum of 5 media and or link amps and
no other useful objects. A crapsule needs to be dropped somewhere where a player of the other
team is likely to find it.
Votes 49 6
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Rule #35 - Respect your adversary

Respect your adversary. There is no game without an adversary. Players are human beings and
do not necessarily transform into aliens when they join a faction, just occasionally.

Votes 43 1
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Rule #36 - Introduce Yourself

Always introduce yourself to other players, be it your faction or the opposing faction. Introduce
yourself and ask if you may join the group. The silent joiner is viewed as a the scourge of the
earth. Conversely, the joiner who can't stop talking should be dropped from the group at first
opportunity!

Votes 44 6
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Rule #37 - 4WD's Addendum

If you can get your car up that cliff, your car is a 4WD. Number of actual driving wheels is
irrelevant. Rule #51 (4WD's)

Votes 36 3
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Rule #38 - Difficult/Remote Portal Takedown

If there is a portal that is very remote and/or difficult to get to, you *will* fail to take it unless
you undertake the mission Rule #47 (Missions) on a whim, woefully under-prepared, and
starting at midnight.

Votes 38 0
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Rule #39 - Power Levelling

Power Levelling a new player is only really accomplished by getting them to The New Level
1 Rule #23 (The New Level 1) as soon as possible. 200K AP is a good start, 400K AP is
impressive, but 1.2M AP in a day is what real Power Levelling is about!

Votes 36 1
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Rule #40 - Why is it Alan's Fault?

Pertaining to Rule #69 (Attribution Of Blame) - It's Alan's fault that: (1) everything is Alan's
fault; and (2) that nobody knows who said everything was Alan's fault.

Votes 38 5
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Rule #41 - Always Finish With Ice Cream.

Create a megafield? Ice cream. 5 hour mission? Ice cream. Hack a portal? Ice cream. Ice cream?
Ice cream.

Votes 55 24
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Rule #42 - Accidental Fields

If you create a field by accident when throwing a link, you must immediately say BINGO (or the
local equivalent) in all COMMS. If a player asks why, you should simply refer them to the rules.

Votes 40 11
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Rule #43 - Street Battle

If you happen to come across a player of the opposite faction and you are defending your portal
or attacking theirs, at least look up from your phone one second to wave at them. This can be
done in a very sarcastic way, if you are winning the battle, or in a very convincing way, to show
that you won't leave this portal any time soon. In the end, the one that has to leave because they
are out of weapons or have to go will always lose.

Votes 33 0
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Rule #44 - The First Rule of Farming

If a portal has four very rare hacking mods (heat sinks and/or multi hacks), it is most likely a
portal for collecting gear from. It will usually NOT be for anchoring large fields. As such please
carefully consider if you really need to destroy it. Flipping the portal with a virus might well be a
better option.

Votes 46 15
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Rule #45 - Close Encounters Of The Ingress Kind

If you meet a Shaper there is every likelihood that you have been on an Rule #31
(Adventures) for too long. Find your nearest Farm Location Rule #15 (Farm Location) , close
your scanner and take a load off.

Votes 30 0
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Rule #46 - Fielding Plan

If you first fully deploy an area without linking, somebody will always douche link, and ruin
your fielding plan.

Votes 31 0
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Rule #47 - Missions

Missions are not badges in the game, they are any continuous ingressing exceeding 5 hours.
These are a Mission, to single handedly field the town, to wipe the other team from a suburb,
these are missions! Note: Missions are limited to no more then 12 hours, for anything exceeding
12 hours please see Rule #31 (Adventures)

Votes 31 3
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Rule #48 - The Second Rule Of Farming

You do not put Shields, Link Amps, Force Amps, or Turrets on a farming portal. Conversely, if
your group of portals contains any of those mods it is not a farm.

Votes 37 8
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Rule #49 - Money, Money, Money!

One shall not ask for faction funds.

Votes 36 6
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Rule #50 - Scanner Deaths

Occasionally scanners will be damaged during ingress. Remember this sacrifice is for a worthy
cause (see Rule #30 (Harden The F#%k Up) ). Know which agents have spare devices.

Votes 29 1
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Rule #51 - 4WD's

Ford Falcons / Taurus are NOT 4WD vehicles.

Votes 32 7
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Rule #52 - The Ingress Backstory

No one knows the purpose of the Ingress backstory. Any agent over level 8 who caught watching
media or reading the backstory should be reminded that this is a game of Green vs Blue.

Votes 47 22
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Rule #53 - 4WD's Addendum Extension

Know someone with a real 4WD, just in case. See Rule #54 (3am Rescue)

Votes 27 0
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Rule #54 - 3am Rescue

There is always that agent who believes that Rule #51 (4WD's) does not apply to them when
starting a Mission Rule #47 (Missions) at midnight, in line with Difficult/Remote Portal
Takedown Rule #38 (Difficult/Remote Portal Takedown) . This agent will always need to be
rescued at 3am owing to Rule #51 (4WD's)

Votes 26 0
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Rule #55 - The Use Of iPhones

Any user discovered to be playing on an iPhone, needs to immediately say it is a work supplied
phone and they would prefer to use Android.

Votes 59 37
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Rule #56 - Submit A New Portal Picture

Rule #38 (Difficult/Remote Portal Takedown) Every now n then you may be summoned to share
your picture at the portal. It's your choice to share it or not, but it's a good practice to submit a
new picture. NIA will know you visited and your adversary too will get to know in the days to
come.

Votes 23 0
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Rule #57 - Remote Town

If you are visiting a remote town that seems to have only one or two active players, and you
stumble across a level 7 or 8 portal, it's really, really rude to kill that portal. City players have no
idea how hard it is to make a level 7 portal in a town with a very limited number of agents. Use a
virus. It's what they're for.

Votes 43 18
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Rule #58 - Guardianship Etiquette

If an agent comes across a portal belonging to their own faction during a fielding OP where by
that portals links are blocking the OP, it is proper etiquette to faction COMM the current owner
for permission to flip. Offering an upgraded rebuild is a sign of good faith. Given the time
constrained nature of a large fielding OP if this correspondence happens during travel the portal
owner has only 10 minutes to comply before waiving complaints that it was his or her guardian.
Conversely if the guardian portal happens to be inside a well maintained farm and
correspondence was made with the recharging team then all rights to complaint from the portal
owner are waived as per Rule #5 (The Tell Tale Guardian) .

Votes 23 1
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Rule #59 - Play Fair

As mentioned in the TOS: Do not extract, scrape, or index the Services or Content (including
information about users or game play). You wouldn't use a chess computer to help you when
playing a tournament? So refrain from using any tools that record player actions in ingress.

Votes 24 3
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Rule #60 - The Joke Humor Field

If an agent knows of an area that houses a majority of opposition agents, and there is no need to
clear blocking links, it is the agents responsibility to throw a joke/humor field over them for
amusement purposes. One should watch the opposing side scramble to drop the aforementioned
field. The more opposition agents under the field, the better the joke. The more difficult it is for
the opposition to drop the field, the better the humor.

Votes 20 1
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Rule #61 - Death To The Spammers

When a new player opens comms and all they see is spammers trying to sell high level gear is is
bound to taint their experience of the game. It also gives that impression that cheating is a normal
part of the game.

Votes 22 0
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Rule #62 - BAFs

A BAF is a Big Ass Field. To be considered a BAF it needs to cover at least a medium sized
City.

Votes 22 1
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Rule #63 - No Fun? Don't Play!

Rule #7 (Get Over It) Seriously, if you encounter game isn't fun anymore, just leave it... Don't
whine, don't complain, what's the point playing a game and all it's aspects if you can get the fun
from it?

Votes 22 0
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Rule #64 - Sportsmanship

Consider yourself a team with your fellow agents. Be a sporting. Work together and coordinate.
Do so, in order to face the other team as a whole, and not "this particular agent" from the others
side.

Votes 20 0
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Rule #65 - Megafields

A megafield is a really large field that is usually larger than a Rule #62 (BAFs) . They should be
visible on Ingress Intel when fully zoomed out. It is considered most impressive if the links are
shown as curves.

Votes 20 0
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Rule #66 - The Extremely Low Gear Circle Walk of Desperation

When you are almost completely out of bursters, and you find yourself having to walk to each
resonator of the portal you are obsessively trying to take down, to maximise the damage from a
handful of L4 XMPs...

Votes 18 0
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Rule #67 - Always Use Abbreviations

Agents are too lazy to use full names when referring to items within the game and are
encouraged to shorten terms as much as possible to confuse/inform other agents of terms.
Examples include: Lubes = Lawson Cubes Pubes = Power Cubes

Votes 18 1
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Rule #68 - No Personal Heros

Rule #6 (Play Socially) Ingress is a social and teamwork game, every person has their own
proportion to contribute in this game, if your faction won the site of anomaly, no need to say,
they won because of me.

Votes 17 0
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Rule #69 - Attribution Of Blame

If something goes wrong, it is by definition always Alan's fault. It is the responsibility of all
players to remind Alan of this. If you do not know Alan, you should blame Musto.

Votes 35 21
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Rule #70 - Capture The Moments

Rule #17 (The Game Paradox)

Votes 15 1
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Rule #71 - Mine!

If you and another agent are rushing to a portal to capture it, it is the duty of the agent who
captures it to say: 'mine'.

Votes 15 1
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Rule #72 - Links

Real links have curves. See Rule #65 (Megafields)

Votes 13 1
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Rule #73 - Glyph Codes

Too hard to remember all the glyph codes?, just simplify and use your mother tongue language
to remember it. Especially if English is not your first language, and you can't find option of your
language in the game.

Votes 12 0
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Rule #74 - It's not electricity, it's bacon.

You attack a portal, it fires at you. MMMMMMM! Bacon!

Votes 13 0
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Rule #75 - Take the heat

If you can't take the heat in Comm from time to time, don't make yourself a name amongst the
opposite team by making it a habit taking down level 8 portals, sofa portals, farms or big fields.

Votes 12 0
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Rule #76 - Its not a field unless you cannot see the map
So you think you threw a field do you? That light shade of blue or green over the map is at best a
shade of a field. You have only succeeded when hoards of agents are on comms complaining
they cannot see the map at all.

Votes 10 3
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Rule #77 - Silence Is Golden

If the other faction is Trolling a fellow team-member and your fellow team-member is not
responding, do not come to their defense. A valid response to Trolls is to ignore the Trolls. By
responding to the Trolls, you weaken your teammate's silence.

Votes 9 0
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Rule #78 - The other team has a better idea where your guardian is

Rule #58 (Guardianship Etiquette) So you open your scanner and you notice your guardian stats
are going up. You have no idea which portal is doing it, you might not even have a key.
Sometime later someone on the other team contacts you on comms after tickling your guardian
with a l1 burster. Hes trying to make you sweat. You respond with "THATS my guardian portal!
Thanks!". You meet several members of the opposition, all who have claimed to have hunted
your guardian, none of which you knew existed.

Votes 9 0
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Rule #79 - Expect the worst

When you see an enemy player who is also notorious for taking down portals in comm, get in a
fighting stance and brace yourself. If they don't introduce themselves, expect them to drop you
right there and take your portal. Rule #28 (Introductions)

Votes 5 0
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Rule #80 - Quick hack, no hack

ONLY glyph hack is hack, any quick hack is just a #%£¥&€@!

Votes 19 23
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Rule #81 - The other team always cheats

Remember, everyone on your side is a saintly vision of purity. Anyone in the other team who
captures any portal or has thrown any link has done so by cheating. When in a group you are
obliged to moan as loudly as possible about how all the members of the other team are so
dastardly and underhanded.