Terms of Service

Effective date: August 31, 2025

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of Ember Tables at embertables.com (the "Service"). By using the Service, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy.

1. The Service

Ember Tables provides a browser-based platform for playing board games (currently Chess and Chess960) including matches against AI bots. Features may expand over time (for example, accounts, social features, content creation tools, or a creator marketplace). We may introduce additional or updated terms for new features; those additional terms will become part of these Terms.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 13 years old (or the minimum age required by your jurisdiction) to use the Service.

3. Accounts (future)

Some features may require an account in the future. If accounts are enabled, you must provide accurate information and keep your credentials secure. You are responsible for all activity under your account.

4. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

  • access or use the Service for unlawful purposes;
  • interfere with or disrupt the Service, including by scraping, crawling, rate-limiting evasion, or reverse engineering (except where permitted by applicable open-source licenses);
  • upload or share content that infringes others' rights, is deceptive, or violates law;
  • bypass access controls or use automated means not explicitly allowed by us.

We may suspend or terminate access for violations.

5. Ownership; License to You

We and our licensors own all rights, title, and interest in and to the Service, including the site, code, game engine(s), AI models/bots, design, branding, and all related intellectual property. Subject to these Terms, we grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access and use the Service for personal, non-commercial purposes.

No ownership in game rules or engine. You obtain no rights in underlying game rules, engines, or tools beyond this license.

6. Your Content and Feedback

If the Service allows you to submit or publish anything (for example in the future: variant configurations, comments, avatars, or other materials) ("User Content"):

  • You retain your rights in your User Content.
  • License to Ember Tables. You grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, sublicensable, transferable, royalty-free license to host, store, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works of, publicly display, and distribute your User Content in connection with operating, improving, and promoting the Service and derivative features (now or in the future). This license survives termination to the extent necessary for our legitimate business operations (e.g., backups, logs, historical displays where your content appears).
  • No claim on platform IP. Submitting User Content does not grant you any ownership in the Service, our game engines, rulesets, AI, or branding.
  • Feedback. If you send ideas or suggestions, you grant us a perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free license to use them without restriction or attribution.

We may remove or refuse to display any User Content at our discretion.

7. Variants / Mods (future)

If we later enable tools to fork or configure game variants:

  • You may submit configurations and related metadata for use within the Service.
  • You acknowledge that game rules and engine behavior are our IP or third-party IP, and you receive no ownership in them by creating a configuration.
  • You grant the license described in Section 6 so we can host, display, adapt, and surface your configurations across the platform, including in training, matchmaking, and discovery features.
  • Additional creator guidelines may apply and will be posted when the feature launches.

8. Creator Marketplace for Cosmetics (future)

If we later enable a marketplace for cosmetics (e.g., skins, animations, sounds):

  • Uploading or submitting assets may require agreeing to separate Creator Terms, which will govern revenue sharing, payout, exclusivity, and takedown rules.
  • Unless those Creator Terms say otherwise, you retain copyright in your original assets, and you grant Ember Tables a broad commercial license to host, package, market, sell, and distribute your assets in connection with the Service and compatible games, including derivative and future modes.
  • We may moderate or remove assets that violate law, third-party rights, or platform rules.

9. Third-Party Services and Ads

The Service may use third-party services (e.g., ad networks, analytics) subject to their own terms and policies. We are not responsible for third-party services. Ads may appear in the Service; see the Privacy Policy for details on cookies, personalization, and opt-out options.

10. Changes to the Service

We may change, suspend, or discontinue any part of the Service at any time. We may also update these Terms. If updates are material, we will provide reasonable notice by posting the new Terms and updating the effective date. Continued use after changes means you accept the updated Terms.

11. DMCA / IP Complaints

If you believe content on the Service infringes your rights, send a notice to contact@embertables.com with sufficient detail to identify the material. We may remove content and, where appropriate, limit repeat infringers.

12. Termination

You may stop using the Service at any time. We may suspend or terminate access if you violate these Terms, create risk or legal exposure for us, or if providing the Service is no longer commercially viable.

13. Disclaimers

The Service is provided "as is" and "as available." To the maximum extent permitted by law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, secure, or error-free, or that any defects will be corrected.

14. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Ember Tables and its affiliates, directors, officers, employees, and agents will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages, or any loss of profits, revenues, data, goodwill, or other intangible losses, arising from or related to your use of the Service. Our total liability for any claim arising out of or relating to the Service is limited to the greater of $100 or the amount you paid to us (if any) in the 12 months preceding the event giving rise to the claim.

Some jurisdictions do not allow certain disclaimers or limitations; in those cases, they apply to the fullest extent permitted.

15. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify and hold Ember Tables harmless from any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or related to: (a) your use of the Service; (b) your User Content; or (c) your violation of these Terms or applicable law.

16. Governing Law; Dispute Resolution

These Terms are governed by the laws of Delaware, USA, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules.

Arbitration & Class-Action Waiver (US users). Any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service will be resolved by binding arbitration on an individual basis under the Federal Arbitration Act, administered by a reputable provider, rather than in court, except that you may assert claims in small-claims court if they qualify. Class actions and class-wide arbitrations are not allowed. You may opt out of arbitration within 30 days of first accepting these Terms by emailing contact@embertables.com with subject "Arbitration Opt-Out" and your full name.

Venue for any court action (if arbitration does not apply or is not enforceable) will be in the state or federal courts located in Delaware, USA.

17. Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions will remain in full force and effect.

18. Entire Agreement

These Terms constitute the entire agreement between you and Ember Tables regarding the Service and supersede prior or contemporaneous agreements on the subject.

19. Contact

Ember Tables
embertables.com
contact@embertables.com