Hello everyone!

For those who have been here at least a year, you probably have caught onto what is going on by now. For our newer users, while here in /r/AskHistorians we take things seriously 364 days a year, we take April Fools just as seriously too, and use it as an opportunity to let our hair down and get rid of all those jokes that we've been holding back the rest of the year!

This year, once the clock hit 0000, 1 April at /r/AskHistorians HQ in Kiribati, we returned to our 'Greatest Hits', and /r/AskFakeHistorians 2.0 has been in full swing for several hours now! The flairs have the privilege of a heads up to get in on the fun too, but everyone is welcome to partake, of course, and for the next day or so, Answers may be written as long, elaborate jokes that are not real history. We invite you to partake (or not) in the fun, but ensure that you follow the rules and guidelines laid out below, as the moderators aren't going to be taking the day off.

The number one rule of /r/AskFakeHistorians is your answer must be obviously fake. The rules for the event are designed to help keep that from happening, but in general, keep that spirit of things in mind. We want this to be a fun and entertaining experience for everyone, which includes the readers, not just you laughing at people believing your BS. So as you write and post, keep these in mind:

• Please show judgement and good taste: The point is to get crazy, but that doesn't mean everything is fair game. We aren't going to be making an exhaustive list of what is out of bounds, but we hope that it is for the most case obvious. That doesn't mean that the villains of history are out of bounds - Hitler clones, anyone? - but it does mean you shouldn't be writing the secret history of how they were actually the good guys.
• Participation is Voluntary: If you just want your question answered normally, including [SERIOUS] in your title will keep it off-limits, and our flairs pinky promise that even if they don't have time today, they will do their best to find time to return to it once the event is over.
• Don't Jump Into the Archives: Threads posted earlier than 0000 EDT, or 0400 UTC, are off limits. Please don't post joke responses in anything older than that.
• Poll and Example Seeking Rules are Relaxed: These rules exist for technical reasons, related to their impact on efficient moderation. Not being concerned that answers are correct, we will not be enforcing them today, with, of course, the usual base rules about Soapboxing, Civility, and such remaining in place.
• Real Questions Only: This isn't /r/AskFantasyHistorians. Making up fake history in the question ruins the fun! IF you need inspiration for a question to ask, try visiting the archives and reposting a classic. We can see how the two answers compare!
• Answers must be obviously fake: If you are writing something that is basically real, just with subtle tweaks a non-expert would never notice, that is not going to fly. To be sure, the first round of this proved that there are some really gullible people out there, and riffing off of real history is not only allowable, but encouraged, but make sure that things get obviously ridiculous by the end of the post! And of course, keep in mind that what is obvious to you might not be to a layperson. Make sure you write with that in mind.
• Sources are required: They might be highly suggested usually, but here they are required. They also must not be real, or must be obviously inappropriate for the topic at hand - for instance citing novels or films as if they are non-fiction academic sources.
• Listen to the Mods: We will be giving a warning when the day is at an end with a post sometime in the middle of April 1st UTC-4 to 'turn things off'. All threads posted before then will remain fair game, but thread posted after that point will be back to normal and joke responses removed. We may also make periodic updates to this thread during the day, so please check back from time to time.
• Edit Your Answers: ALL answers, after the day ends, must be edited with an April Fools disclaimer. Those that aren't will be removed if we see them.
• Keep META Discussion to This Thread: Feel free to talk about the event, or offer META commentary on answers in this thread. Feel free to share how much of a killjoy you are here, as well if you would like to complain about what is going on today.

If you are still a bit unsure of things, and want a few examples, I linked a few of my own as examples above, but we also have a complete archive on the Wiki which you can peruse for inspiration. Not all are going to reflect the revised guidelines as there are changes from 1.0 however, so these ones in particular we would highlight as what we are really looking for:

• /r/AskHistorians/comments/21vjle/were_there_any_notable_independence_or_insurgency/cggxjwc/
• /r/AskHistorians/comments/21y0ka/from_the_mid_1800s_to_the_late_1800_the_noth/cghj8q0/
• /r/AskHistorians/comments/21w9oa/suppose_i_am_a_17th_or_18th_century_caribbean/cgh4pks/
• /r/AskHistorians/comments/21vnwq/did_any_works_of_literature_from_persia_transmit/cggxpwf/
• /r/AskHistorians/comments/21uybe/what_us_veteran_has_fought_in_the_most_wars/cghacqx/