Water and Air, Fire and Earth
Bless and cleanse this home and hearth
Drive away all harm and fear
Only good may enter here WelcomePagan.Plus is a federated ActivityPub social server for those interested in spirituality, the occult, witchy culture, and good-natured exploration of paths less traveled. We offer a space to share, collaborate, learn, and grow. All who arrive with good intention are welcome; those who would seek to harm others are not.
A Letter from the AdminHello, cyberspace traveler.
Welcome to my little witchy corner of the web. I've tried to build a space where people interested in spirituality, paganism, and off-the-beaten-path ideologies can share and collaborate. My role is to be the groundskeeper of a shared public garden, a place to learn, grow, and help others do the same. (And honestly, I'm also just a big fan of the aesthetics.)
My own background as a white man working in tech means I carry blind spots I may not always see. I'm working to keep the gates open to all while staying aware that some aspects of spiritual and occult traditions have been appropriated, co-opted, or weaponized by those who would harm others. This garden is meant to be safe and nurturing. Poisonous weeds will be removed.
So, welcome and well met, friend. Join us, grow, and may you receive everything you deserve.
@Crazypedia@Pagan.PlusCode of ConductOur CommitmentHarm None and Do As You Will.
We strive to be a community that welcomes and supports people of all backgrounds and identities, including but not limited to: race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, immigration status, socioeconomic class, educational level, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, body size, family status, religion, neurodivergence, and physical or mental ability.
You must be 18 years of age or older to create an account on Pagan.Plus. 🔞
Guiding ValuesBefore you post, THINK:
- True - Is it factually accurate?
- Helpful - Does it benefit someone?
- Inspiring - Does it uplift or add something of value?
- Necessary - Does it need to be said?
- Kind - Would you say it to someone's face?
Expected ConductBe welcoming. Greet newcomers. Share your knowledge. Remember that everyone is a beginner at something.
Engage in good faith. Assume positive intent unless there is clear evidence otherwise. Raise disagreements with curiosity, not aggression.
Respect community labor. Moderation and community management are done by volunteers. Treat staff with the same respect you would want for yourself.
Respect people's lived experience. Community members sharing their own stories and testimony, especially survivors, marginalised voices, and those seeking support, should not be expected to sanitize or pre-label their own narratives. Requiring this can silence the very voices this community exists to support.
No illegal content. Do not post content that is illegal under United States federal law, or clearly illegal under your own jurisdiction.
No hate speech or dehumanisation. Slurs, derogatory remarks, and content that degrades people based on identity have no place here. This includes racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia and other religious hatred, xenophobia, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, biphobia, ableism, ageism, and similar forms of dehumanisation.
No harassment. Do not target, intimidate, follow, or abuse other users. This applies to interactions directed at community members both on and off this server.
No impersonation. Do not pretend to be someone you are not, including other community members, public figures, or official accounts.
No coordinated manipulation. Brigading, astroturfing, sock-puppeting, and other forms of coordinated inauthentic behavior are prohibited.
No spam or service abuse. Do not use this server to distribute unsolicited mass messages, scam content, phishing links, or other disruptive material.
Content Warnings (CW) GuideThis is a place for friends. We hold space for each other here, and part of that means giving people a heads-up before they walk into something heavy. That's what a Content Warning: a subject line that lets someone choose when they're ready to engage, not a judgment on what you're sharing or why.
These guidelines have been shaped over years of watching what pushes people past their breaking point online. For some of our members, this community is a refuge. When our feeds fill up with the same storms battering everyone everywhere else, the ability to opt in on your own terms matters. Using a CW is how we hold space for each other.
These are guidelines, written by humans, interpreted by humans, enforced by humans. That means they're flexible and occasionally imperfect. If you're asked to add a CW to a post, it's a gentle nudge from a neighbor, not an attack. We'd rather ask than remove, and we'd rather talk than escalate.
Understanding Post VisibilityBefore talking about when to use a CW, it helps to understand who can actually see your posts. Visibility settings don't work quite the way people expect.
Public 🌐 - Anyone online can see these, with or without a fediverse account. They appear in the local timeline and federate to all connected servers. Think of it as standing on a soapbox in a public square.
Unlisted 🔉 - Still fully public, but not broadcast in local or federated timelines. Anyone can see them by visiting your profile, and they can be boosted into other people's feeds by anyone who follows you. This includes bots with thousands of followers you've never heard of. Unlisted is not private; it's more like having a conversation in the park. A quiet public post is still a public post.
Followers Only 🔒 - Only people who follow you can see these. They don't appear in timelines or federation feeds. Because this server uses auth_fetch, viewers need a compatible fediverse account and must be signed in. This is more like a meeting of friends in a back booth; you've made an effort not to broadcast it. Keep in mind: if your follows are open, anyone from a server we haven't blocked can follow you, including newly created accounts.
Direct Message ✉️ - Visible only to the accounts mentioned in the post. These are unencrypted. Staff can read them if necessary for moderation. Think of it as passing notes; the teacher can still intercept them.
When to Use a Content WarningCWs matter most on Public 🌐 posts, where you have no control over who encounters them or what they're carrying that day. Unlisted posts benefit from them too. The intent of using a CW is to spare each other from taking on the labor of processing heavy human experience when we're already struggling ourselves. It's not about what you can or can't say; it's about letting people choose their moment.
Broadly, consider a CW for:
- Distressing or triggering topics - mental health, trauma, abuse, self-harm, suicide, grief, eating disorders
- Graphic content - violence, gore, death, serious injury
- Sexual content - imagery or text that is sexual in nature or presented in a fetishized context
- Substances - alcohol, drugs, intoxication
- Current events and politics - news, political commentary, disasters, tragic events
The IFTAS community maintains a
comprehensive content warning vocabulary as a broader reference.
Sensitive Image FlaggingMark an image as
Sensitive if it depicts nudity in a sexual or fetishized context, graphic injury or gore, or strobing and flashing content that may affect those with epilepsy.
The body in ritual, artistic, or celebratory contexts is welcome here and is not required to be flagged. Nudity that is not sexual in nature does not require a sensitive flag, though you are welcome to use one.
ModerationAll reports are reviewed by a human moderator and handled with proportionality and discretion. Moderation decisions are not subject to public debate or disclosure.
If you feel a moderation action was taken in error, contact
@PaganPlus@Pagan.Plus directly.
ReportingCommunity safety is a shared responsibility. Use the
Report button on any post to flag concerns, including federated content from other servers. A brief note explaining the issue helps staff act on it effectively.
If you need an immediate personal solution while moderators review a report, you can also
mute an account to stop seeing their posts, or
block them to prevent all interaction. These tools are yours to use at any time and do not require a report.
There is no automatic filtering of federated content. Your reports are the primary way moderators become aware of problems. All reports are reviewed by a human.
Banned accounts may be able to export their data at server owner discretion.
PrivacyPagan.Plus staff will respect your privacy and will not seek out your personal information beyond what is necessary to fulfill moderation and administrative duties.
Caution: ActivityPub was not designed with privacy at its core. You should not expect guaranteed privacy for posts, direct messages, registration email, IP address, or profile details, not from this instance's staff, other federated servers, or our hosting providers. If a communication requires real privacy, this platform is not the right tool for it.
You may export your data, follows, blocks, and account information at any time via
Profile Settings. We support profile exports and redirects.
Data & AvailabilityWe aim for maximum uptime and minimal data loss. Planned server shutdowns will be announced with a minimum of
90 days' notice.
We do not currently control our own hosting environment and are hosted through SpaceBear services. If data preservation matters to you, use the export tools in your profile settings periodically.
DonationsDonations are accepted through
LiberaPay and
Patreon. The goal is to cover monthly server and domain costs. Donate only what you can genuinely afford. no pressure is intended.
LiberaPay is preferred as it retains a smaller share of your donation.
About the Fediverse & This ServerActivityPubActivityPub is the open protocol underlying the fediverse. Think of it as a new kind of email standard for social media. It allows independently run servers to exchange posts, follows, and media with each other. Servers run different software (Mastodon, Misskey, Pixelfed, PeerTube, Friendica, and more) and are operated by individuals and communities with their own values and policies.
ActivityPub.Rocks has the technical specification.
MastodonMastodon was among the first and most widely adopted ActivityPub implementations and set many early fediverse norms. Features include a 500-character post limit, admin-uploaded custom emoji, and a range of post visibility options.
Mastodon documentation ·
Fediverse.PartyHometownHometown is a Mastodon fork developed by Darius Kazemi and collaborators. Key additions:
Local-Only Posting - Posts stay on Pagan.Plus and do not federate to the wider fediverse. Use the :local_only: emoji or the chain-link icon in the composer.
Additional privacy controls - Further options for limiting account and post visibility.
Improved content type handling - Better native support for more ActivityPub post types.
Hometown on GitHubAlternative Interfaces - Phanpy - clean, modern interface
Getting StartedWrite an introduction post. Use the #introductions hashtag and share your interests, what you hope to find here, and whatever else feels right. Lots of hashtags help.
Fill out your profile. A photo, bio, and filled-in info fields make a real difference in whether others engage with you. Pronouns, languages, and creative extras are all welcome.
Use hashtags. There's no algorithm here, #hashtags are how discovery works. They help others find you and help you find others. You'll only see posts your server has already encountered through follows or federation.
Check out Follow Friday. The #FollowFriday and #ff tags are used to recommend accounts worth following. Since you curate your own feed entirely, community recommendations matter.
Accessibility & Alt TextMaking this space welcoming means ensuring it is genuinely usable for everyone, including members who navigate the web using screen readers or refreshable braille displays. A few small habits make a massive difference.
Describing Media (Alt Text)When you attach an image, video, or audio clip to a post, please add a text description (often labeled "Alt", "Description", or "Edit" on the image preview before you hit publish).
- Keep it narrative: You don't need to describe every single pixel. Focus on a narrative description of what you actually want people to notice. Imagine you are describing the image over the phone.
- Human over AI: While AI tools can guess what is in an image, they often create auditory clutter by over-explaining irrelevant details. A human-written description is usually better because you know why you posted it.
- It doesn't cost characters: The text in the Alt/Description box has a massive limit (1,500 characters) and does not count against your main post's 500-character limit.
Tools to Help with Alt TextIf you are struggling to write a description, there are tools built into our community ecosystem to assist you:
- On mobile or with a computer with a microphone, it can be easier to describe an image out load using speech to text.
- Phanpy UI: If you use our alternative web interface at Phanpy, it includes a built-in, Gemini-powered alt-text generator you can use when you are unable to write your own.
- Altbot (@altbot@fuzzies.wtf): You can mention this bot in a reply to any post with an image, and it will generate an alt-text description for you. It processes images privately on its own server (nothing is saved or used for training data) and uses a low-power model to minimize its carbon footprint. It is completely opt-in.
- (Note: Always verify AI-generated text for accuracy before using it!)
Helping Out & Community NormsSometimes you might not be able to write a description yourself. That is completely fine.
- Asking for help: Add the hashtag #Alt4Me to your post to signal that you'd like someone else to write the description for you.
- Offering help: If you see an image without a description (especially one tagged #Alt4Me), you can reply to that post with #Alt4You and provide a written description.
- Fave, don't Boost: A common and polite custom on the fediverse is to "favorite" but not "boost" images that lack alt text. Favoriting lets the author know you appreciated the post, while choosing not to boost prevents inaccessible content from spreading further into other people's timelines.
- No shaming: Never criticize someone for missing alt text. You do not know what their personal accessibility hurdles might be. Just be a good neighbor and offer an #Alt4You instead.
Accessible Text and HashtagsEven in text-only posts, screen readers need a little formatting help to sound natural:
- CamelCase Hashtags: Capitalize the first letter of every word (e.g., #WitchesOfMastodon instead of #witchesofmastodon). This allows screen readers to read the words separately. It is much easier for sighted folks to read, too!
- Minimize auditory clutter: Screen readers read the full text description of every single emoji and special character out loud. Limit yourself to two or three emojis in a row to avoid creating an overwhelming wall of noise.
- Avoid random capitalization: Avoid alternating capital letters (often used online to convey a mocking tone). Screen readers interpret this as disjointed gibberish, making your post impossible to understand.
- Standard fonts: Avoid using "aesthetic" Unicode font generators for your text or username. While they look like fancy fonts to sighted users, screen readers often read them aloud as a string of random mathematical symbols.
- putting these types of posts behind a CW stating 'emoji spam' or 'unicode art' can help warn users of screen readers
This Code of Conduct was informed by best practices from the IFTAS Trust & Safety Library and example fediverse community guidelines. It is a living document updated as this community grows.Last updated: June 2026