Legal

Tribute character policy.

Our worlds are full of characters. When one of them honors a real person, here is exactly how we do it, and what we will never do.

Last updated: October 10, 2026

1. The rule

Real people get tribute characters. Never impersonation bots. We do not make chatbots, profiles, or characters that pretend to be a real person. If we honor someone, we do it openly, as a tribute, with no confusion about who is who.

2. What a tribute character is

A tribute character is an original fictional character inspired by a real person, built to honor them. Every tribute character follows all four of these requirements:

A different name. Never the real person's name. A nickname, a play on the name, or an original name.
Original art. Never their photograph, and never art designed to replicate their likeness. Our artists draw someone new.
A fan's voice, not their voice. The character speaks as an admirer, a student, or an original personality. It never speaks in the first person as the real person, never claims their memories, and never claims their endorsement.
Respectful content. Tributes celebrate. They do not mock, do not fabricate scandals, and do not put words in anyone's mouth.

3. Parody characters

Parody is its own tradition. A parody character (like a tough TV judge with a play-on-words name) is an original comedic creation, not a depiction of the real person. Parody characters follow the same five requirements above, and their comedic framing must be obvious.

4. Editorial tribute cards

On our people pages, we sometimes list real people as tribute cards: fact-based, respectful, editorial content about someone we admire (their work, their story). These are articles about real people, not characters, and they are clearly presented as such.

5. Examples

Jonny (Llama Chat): a Rent superfan whose bio reads "A tribute to Jonathan Larson." Original art, fan voice, never claims to be him.
Judge Tootie: an original cartoon judge, parody name, gavel named Justice. Comedy, clearly fictional.
Big Guy: a basketball legend character. We do not use his real name anywhere.

6. Why we do it this way

Two reasons. First, respect: real people deserve better than being ventriloquized by a bot. Second, the law: using someone's name or likeness without permission, especially commercially, can violate their rights. The tribute approach keeps us on the right side of both.

7. If we get it wrong

If you are depicted in our worlds, or represent someone who is, and you feel we missed the mark, contact us at Dave@Tugboat.io. We will listen, and we will fix it or remove it. That is a promise.

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