For Roman Roleplay in Second Life and in Venusia Magna, your clothing is the first and most powerful indication of your character’s legal status, wealth, and moral character. Proper attire is a non-negotiable component of deep Roman roleplay immersion within our A.D. 150 setting. That’s why we have clothing rules. Failure to dress according to your status can result in immediate IC challenges, fines, or public shaming. At worst, it can have you removed from the sim.

Clothing Protocol for Free Citizens

Our Sim operates with a subtle, yet important, alternative history twist: in Venusia Magna, free women are considered legally equal to men in terms of status and property rights, reflecting the peak prosperity of the Antonine Dynasty. This equality is reflected in the formal attire.

Attire for Male Citizens (Cives Romani)

The fundamental clothing for a free male citizen is the tunic and the toga.

• The Toga (Toga): The ultimate symbol of Roman citizenship. It is required for all formal and public events, including the Forum, the Senate (Curia), public gatherings, and when paying respects to a Patron. Failure to wear the Toga in public is an insult to the state.
  • Toga Pura/Virilis: The plain, off-white wool toga worn by the common citizen.
  • Toga Praetexta: Distinguished by a broad purple stripe, reserved for magistrates, senators, and young boys until they come of age.
• The Tunic (Tunica): Worn under the Toga. Senators and Equestrians mark their rank with stripes (clavi).
  • Latus Clavus: Broad purple stripe, reserved for Senators and their family members.
  • Angustus Clavus: Narrow purple stripe, reserved for Equestrians (Equites).

Attire for Female Citizens (Cives Romanae)

The formal attire for free women mirrors the respect and status of their male counterparts.

• The Stola (Stola): The primary garment of a married Roman matron. It is a long, sleeveless dress worn over an under-tunic, belted below the breasts. The Stola is the female equivalent of the Toga in denoting respectability and martial status, and is required for all public or formal functions.
• The Palla (Palla): A large rectangular shawl worn draped over the head and shoulders when appearing in public or outside the home. This signifies piety and modesty.
• Status Marks: As free citizens are equal in Venusia Magna, women of senatorial or equestrian families may incorporate the appropriate colored clavi into the borders of their Stola to denote their inherited status, reflecting their legal power within the Sim.

Mandatory Clothing for Slaves and Plebeians

Clothing for slaves and lower-class plebeians serves the distinct function of marking them as inferiors, often required by law to prevent them from “passing” as citizens.

Slaves (Servi Romanus)

• Requirement: Clothing is Mandatory. It is a historical myth that slaves walked around naked. Slaves were highly valuable property, and they were always clothed, often in uniform, coarse material to identify them as the familia of a specific house.
  • The Tunic (Vestis Servilis): A short, dark, rough tunic (brown, grey, or dark red) that is worn unbelted or belted only at the waist. It must be conspicuously plain and lack any purple or status ornamentation.
• Identification: Slaves should wear clear identification (servus tag or visible collar) that marks them as property.

For the full rules on Servus discipline and identification, please consult the Servus Romanus Training Protocol.

Plebeians (Plebes)

Lower-class free citizens wear simpler, less cumbersome clothing than their elite counterparts.

• Men: Simple tunics and cloaks (paenula). They are legally forbidden from wearing the Toga unless they are holding a minor magistracy or have been granted special dispensation by their Patron.
• Women: Simple, colorful tunics and a veil (ricinium) instead of the Palla. They should avoid the formal, matronly Stola.

Rules Regarding Nudity and Exposure

Venusia Magna is an adult Sim but we do have rules governing public and private nudity to make sure of proper immersive roleplay.

Public Nudity (The Forbidden)

• General Rule: Nudity is strictly forbidden in all open public areas of the Sim, including the Forum, main roads, temples, and shops. The exceptions to this are – Slave Trader command, public punishment, execution.
• Legal Consequence: In-character, public nudity is viewed as a grotesque lack of civilization, a threat to public order, or a sign of utter degradation. An IC free citizen found publicly naked will be subject to immediate arrest and severe fines or imprisonment. A slave found naked in public will be subject to the most extreme disciplinary action.

Semi-Public Nudity (The Permitted)

Nudity is only permitted in designated, private, or semi-public areas where it would be historically accurate.

• The Baths (Thermae): Nudity is permitted within the public bathhouses. This is the primary IC location for exposed bodies.
• The Arena: Gladiators are permitted varying degrees of exposure depending on their Gladiator Archetype, but this is combat-specific exposure, not simple nudity.
• Private Residences: Nudity is permitted within the boundaries of a closed, private home (domus), courtyard, or private rental space.

Nudity and Slavery (Dispelling the Modern Myth)

Slaves are NOT required to be naked at any time, in any public or semi-public space, for any reason.

The idea that Roman slaves were constantly stripped naked is a modern fantasy and counter-historical. As property, a slave’s clothing and grooming were dictated by their owner for maximum utility and to prevent damage to the property (sunburn, injury, etc.).

Clothing Rules Essential Resources

For further reading on the history and economics that define these clothing rules, consult these resources:

• History of Roman Clothing: Learn more about the evolution and sociology of the Roman Toga and Stola.
• Roman Citizenship Rights: Understand the distinction between who was legally permitted to wear the Toga by referencing Roman Law and Citizenship.

Dress appropriately and jump into the daily life of Venusia Magna! Your journey begins with your attire.