Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Before you send a note to the DeviantART Group, post a query on The Forums, or reach out to us on Discord, please read the below Frequently Asked Questions!
The Admin Team of Equus Ballator tries to answer everything quickly and we are always willing to help. We also have an astounding member base with a strong sense of community; new members are encouraged to as and learn.
Don’t see your question down below? Joining the Discord Server (click the icon above) is the fastest way to get to the admin team for an answer and is the most encouraged for general questions.
Table of Contents
Registration / Selling / Acquiring An Equus Ballator
How do I sell my Ballator?
You can sell your Ballator in any way you like, for any amount of art, points, USD, or for free. However, an ownership transfer note must be sent in from the SELLER. Old references must be removed from the group either before or after the transfer note is replied to by the admin; if you chose to remove it after the admin has replied, the transfer is not official until you remove the reference.
Use THIS forum to transfer your Ballator. Below is the form that you will have to fill out once you click “Post Thread”
Horse Plaque Link:
Horse Reference Link:
New Owner:
Reference removed from group? Y/N
Ballators names cannot be changed without the Nameplate shop item. It must be applied at THIS thread
How can I get a Ballator?
Read our Getting Started page for everything you need to know on this subject!
How can I get a free Ballator?
There are many members willing to help newbies get their first Ballator! We also have a newbie Breeding Slot Donation Center where you can receive slots to Ballators for free!
How do I register my Ballator?
Read our Getting Started page for everything you need to know on this subject!
My request to submit my horse’s reference into the group was denied! Why?
Usually our admins will leave a comment on what needs to be fixed. Find the complete list of Do’s and Dont’s here, at the How to Register Journal!
I’m from the old group and I don’t want to keep/register my EB’s anymore. What do I do?
If you are from the old Equus-Ballator group, and you no longer wish to have your EB’s in the group, we recommend selling them to someone who will use them. If you do not want to do this however, note us and we will mark all your EB’s as deceased.
I don’t want my EB anymore. What can I do with it?
We recommend selling it! This not only gives your Ballator another chance to be used, but to be used by someone who wants it, like a newbie! However, if you would like to mark your Ballator as Deceased, note the group with a note titled ‘Deceased Ballator’ and we will mark it down on the ID list. Deceased Ballators CANNOT be revived.
Can I transfer my Ballators to a different breed?
Yes, but you must send in a “Deceasing” note, which must be approved, before you do. All Ballator characteristics (any combination of manes, fangs, horns, black sclera on Deserts, etc) must be removed. If a Ballator is found in another breed (another HARPG group or breed – not a personal stable group or similar) it will be deceased from the EB registry immediately.
How can I see what horses I own/How many I own?
Go to either BallatorDesignAdmin and search your username, or go to our ID List and search for a specific ID or your name!
Breeding / Designing / Plaques / Breeding Items
How do I breed my Ballator?
Everything you need to know about breeding is in the Breeding Info page.
I want to apply a Breeding Item to my breeding note. How can I do this?
Please check out our Geno Reroll / Breeding Item Guide!
How many breeding items can I apply on one note?
Each item has it’s limitations. Only two extracts of any potency can be applied to a note or unaccepted horse. Lesser Mutation Dice cannot be applied with any item that also causes or ensures a mutation, and the mutation that LMD gives cannot be removed with blueberry extract. If using Extracts along with Fertilitea, you must use two extracts to pass/hinder passing of whatever gene you are trying to use. Geno Rerolls can only be applied twice per note, and mutations passed from LMD will stay the same with each reroll.
My breeding note has not been answered in over a week / was denied. Why?
Please check the home page to view the turnaround times for the various areas of the group; if a few more days go by, feel free to send a message to the group about it using THIS forum. If your breeding was denied, there is always an explanation given! Check, too, to make sure breedings are open– if they are, just be patient! We’re probably flooded with breeding notes. If not, you must wait until the season opens.
I have genos that are marked as deceased/my dam died during a crossbreeding. How can I revive them?
Genos are only marked as deceased when the following occurs: Two overo (nO) horses are bred and produce a dominant Overo (OO) foal, which causes an issue with the foal called Lethal White Syndrome, and causes the foal to be deceased. Another reason is that you may have bred two horses of incompatible types together. Deceased genotypes or horses cannot be revived under any circumstance.
A horse I have a slot to was deceased; can I still use my slot?
People with slots to a deceased horse have two (2) months from the date of the deceasing to use their slots to said horse. After that, slots should be refunded by the owner.
I need help designing my Ballator from a breeding. What can I do? / Can other people design my foal? / I don’t understand the genotype.
Check out our Breeding Info journal for some tips, as well as these resources: Equus Ballator Color/Genetics Info / Resources
Other people CAN design your foal, but the design must be uploaded on your account.
Make sure to check the Design Hub and the Mutations journal in the group!
What is a Plaque?
A Plaque, also known as your horse’s Import or Import Image, is archived in BallatorDesignAdmin and contains their Official Design as well as a log of all their awards, breedings, owner changes, and appearance changes. If something is not on the plaque, such as a Level-Up or a design change, it is not official!
I found an error on my horse’s BDA Plaque. What do I do?
All plaque errors should be messaged to the group in THIS thread!
How many slots does my horse have and can they be re-used/can I gain more?
All Ballators have 10 slots, save for older group ballators. Slots cannot be re-used in any circumstance. Slots can be gained by finishing Quests, leveling up in the Stat System, and getting granted by the Highlords and such.
I have a slot to a horse that was sold; can I still use it?
Absolutely! It is recognized by the group that any new owner that puts new requirements on previously-purchased slots prior to the horse’s sale is considered theft and is not tolerated. Slots that have been given as gifts prior to the horse’s sale by the previous owner must remain on the horse’s counter as well.
I’m from the old group/my horse is from before there was a slot limit. I exceeded my horse’s slots, what do I do?
We are allowing people with this problem to acquire 5 new empty slots, but ONLY if your horse was from the OLD GROUP and ONLY if it exceeded the slot limit. You must state after the initial 10/15 slots that the next 5 are granted due to going over the slot limit before there was one.
Can I post my EB’s import/foal design on any other social media?
If at all possible, please try not to do this, as the EB lineart/template is for DA only and unfortunately when imports/horses from the official lines get posted on Instagram/Facebook etc, it usually results in a massive amount of character theft and breed theft so we really try hard to keep EB imports and official lines off of IG/FB to protect people’s horses from being stolen, and blatant breed theft!
Reference Images
What must be included in a reference?
See our How to Register page for a form you must fill out!
My horse’s design has not been posted to BallatorDesignAdmin yet. Can I draw it?
The group does not allow art, references, literature, or any other form of work featuring an unaccepted horse. Any horse who is not posted to BDA does not exist – knowingly commissioning, drawing, writing, etc, a horse who does not exist officially may result in a group warning and/or temporary bans.
Can I draw my horse before I have made a reference/registered it?
The group does not allow art predating a reference of the horse because we do not consider the horse to be alive until it has a reference that has been accepted into the group. Anyone caught creating art before making and submitting a reference for their horse will be issued a warning and none of that art will be able to be accepted into the group nor be worth any stats.
Can my reference be Traditional (drawn on paper and scanned in)?
Yes, but you must draw the horse’s colors and markings as accurately as possible with your colors!
Can I remove my Ballator’s shoulder/breed-specific manes, fangs, horns, or toes (in the case of Asiatics)?
Manes can be shaved or lost in Hannibal’s raffle, as can horns. Removing horns any other way is prohibited by the EBS, as horns are connected to the horse via bone and carry a blood supply. It is considered in most areas to be extremely cruel to remove either the horns, fangs, or toes (of Asiatics). Such practices are not allowed. Shaving can be done, but is frowned upon, for shows and such things which require it, but the manes grow back extremely fast. When shaved, there will always be a residual patch of thicker, denser hair that will be visible and must be shown in all drawings where the horse has a shaved mane. You cannot draw a Ballator without a shoulder mane and have it look like a normal horse. Think of the way a real horse’s mane looks when it is shaved!
Can I style my horse’s mane(s) or tail in their reference?
Yes, you can! Keep in mind that many of the Types have a specific, natural mane length and it must be followed unless you wish to give them hair extensions, which must be stated in their reference description.
Can I add accessories, tattoos, or other things to my horse’s reference?
All allowed accessories and add-ons are covered in the How to Register page.
Do I have to follow the group guidelines for type appearance?
Yes, all types must resemble their type! A lilliput cannot, for example, be normal-horse sized with one toe. A Plains cannot be pony sized, an Asiatic cannot have a normal mane, etc!
Artwork/Stories Involving Ballators
Can my Ballator use magic in my stories?
Magic is canon to mortal Ballators in their universe; however, your Ballator may only be able to use smaller/lesser magic abilities if you desire (such as telepathy, telekinesis, scrying, etc). Ballators may not shapeshift, breathe fire/ice/etc, or use large amounts of magic. Larger amounts of magic are reserved for Ballators who have successfully mastered the Majus Cursus Honorum.
Ballators residing in Earth may or may not have magic powers. Canonically in the human lore of them, they are not magical beings.
I can’t find or have a Ballator that fits an idea I have or prompt for the group, can I come up with my own?
Equus Ballator is a closed species which means making up your own Ballators is strictly prohibited. This prevents members from making up a character, then later trying to make them a real character and attempt to claim those stats before they were a legitimate Equus Ballator. That being said, there is an exception to this rule and that’s if you use a Blank Slate Item. This item lets you use an unofficial Ballator (one you made up) in personal art. You can not use this item in any official group activity.
The Forums
I can’t seem to figure out how to interact with the forums/create threads?
If you have been able to interact prior, make sure that your are logged. You should also double check the discord and newsletter to see if we made any announcements about closing certain activities as that can also make you unable to post to boards.
How do I know my account is activated/I did not receive an activation email?
Where can I see/access my past posts?
How can I see my profile?
Discord
Do I only have to talk about Equus Ballators in the discord?
How can I make sure not to break any rules?
Make sure to read up on everything in the #rules-and-regulations channel upon your first entrance to the Discord. The rules for each channel are also pinned to their respective channels. If you break a rule without knowing, an admin will politely inform you! You won’t be in trouble, unless you continue to break rules intentionally.
Do I have to talk or be active in the discord?
There are no activity requirements for being a part of the Discord. You’re welcome to never talk… or to talk a lot! We love interacting with the community, we just ask that you follow the rules laid out.
What is considered spam in general?
Spam is when you post the same or similar thing over and over again in a short period of time. It can also be considered spam if you say or do something completely different than the current topic. For example, posting lots of links at a single time or sending tons of gifs in the middle of a conversation. Another example can be consistently bringing up a topic in the same day even if others are not replying. It is important to be aware of what the current topic in the chat is and be mindful of others.
What is considered spam in the #advertisements channel?
We ask that you do not post more than one advertisement a day and no more than 5 advertisements a month. Once you have posted your 5th advertisement of the month, an admin will likely reach out to you to remind you of this. We also ask that no one “bumps” their ads if it hasn’t been a month of posting. Bumping is when you repost the same advertisement you’ve posted previously. We believe that the advertisements channel can be an invaluable source for members of finding something they need/want, but it can also lead to a lot of frustration for them to see the same person posting many advertisments in a short amount of time which is why we have these limitations.
Auttaja - Discord Bot
What does this bot do?
Can I use the bot?
Auttaja is for admin use only. We ask that you do not use the bot unless explicitly told so (ie. use the -agree command in the welcome channel).
What happens if I do use the bot?
If you use the bot with express permission, nothing will happen. However, if you use it without express permission, you will be issued a strike. Continuous use of the admin-only bot commands will result in a mute, and eventual kick from the server.
I noticed that a link to a locked page will appear requesting a password, how do I get it or can I get it?
Whenever you see a prompt with a link given by the bot such as this, the password will always be given in that box as bolded text. If you copy and paste the bolded text into the section requesting the password, it should unlock the page revealing a mini prompt!
Miscellaneous
Can I PM an admin any group questions?
We ask that all group questions get directed to the group, not the admins’ personal accounts.
When will Custom Imports be open again?
How much do custom Ballators cost and how do I order one?
A Ballator custom’s price depends on how rare you would like it. Check our Import Page for more info!
What are stats, what good are they, and how can I calculate them?
Stats help your horse excel in competitions and quests. Horses with higher stats are more valuable and pass on more quality traits to their offspring. the The Stat System has all the info you need.
What are Regale’s Quests and how do I do them?
Regale is the EB mascot, an Elite Ballator that is a group horse. His quests are a fun, optional way to use your Ballators and gain prizes and enhance them as well. You can visit the Quests page to find out more. There are also seasonal quests hosted by Highlords.
Disputes
I am unhappy with the breeding slot requirements/breeding rules of another member’s horse who I have a slot to. What can I do?
By agreeing to pay, or agreeing to obtain, a slot to another user’s ballator, you agree to their rules. The group does not deal with breeding rules unless theft or fraud is occurring.
A member/admin has really upset me and I don’t know what to do/I am really angry with them/I do not want to speak with them.
- If you have a problem, seek that person out in a calm way within a few days of the incident. Allow yourself time to cool down, but also make sure that your concerns are fresh in your mind. Do not let things fester.
- Be sure to ask clarifying questions. Not everyone speaks or thinks the same way, so before you pass a judgment, try and gain understanding of the reasons and background of the issue.
- Listen and speak. A good resolution requires both.
- Even when you get frustrated, don’t give up. Try to explain your side calmly, and do not be afraid to say “wait a minute so that I can explain” if you feel rushed.
- There are no absolutes. Make sure that you use “I” and “me” statements when you are in both agreement and disagreement. There is a very big difference between “I feel that this idea needs more thought” and “This is a bad idea”.
- Have a strong opinion, but understand that most of the best ideas come from compromise and combined effort. Also, understand that other people will have strong opinions too.
- Always have a moderator present if you feel like things may get out of hand. The moderator’s job is to look at the situation objectively and interject in areas that they think are right or wrong. The moderator is not out to get either side.
- Understand that in a team setting, everything is a give and take. Ideally, the ideas would come from a combined effort, but often, time does not allow the courtesy.
- When in doubt, ask if you have hurt someone’s feelings or did something that bothered them. Be honest in your reply. Holding a grudge without letting the other person know is both unfair and problematic.