The Guide
Security & Account Recovery
The Cellars relies on standard, audited authentication. Staff never know, store, or set your password.
Passwords are yours alone
Your password is held only by the authentication service. No member of Staff — not Wardens, Keepers, the Ivy Regent, nor the Châtelaine — can read it, reset it on your behalf, or set a new one for you. Any request to share your password is illegitimate and should be refused.
Forgetting your password
From the sign-in screen, choose Forgot password? Enter your registered email and follow the secure link sent to that address. You will then choose a new password. The link is single-use and expires quickly.
For your safety, we always show the same confirmation message — whether or not the address belongs to an account here. This prevents anyone from using The Cellars to discover who is a member.
If a recovery link has expired or already been used, you may simply request a new one. We rate-limit the button briefly to prevent accidental repeated sends.
Changing your password while signed in
Open Settings → Security and choose Change password. You will be asked to confirm your current password before a new one is accepted.
Changing your email address
In Settings → Security, choose Change email. A confirmation will be sent to the new address. Your current email remains your authoritative recovery address until you confirm the new one — so a mistyped address cannot lock you out.
If you believe your account has been compromised
If you can still sign in, change your password immediately in Settings → Security. Then use I believe my account has been compromised in the same section to notify a Warden. The Warden will review recent activity on your account and advise on next steps. We will never ask you for your password.
Why we do not use security questions
Security questions are, in practice, a weaker form of password — often guessable from public information and rarely remembered when needed. We deliberately exclude them. Ownership of the registered email remains the standard for proving an account belongs to you.
If you have lost access to your registered email
Open Request a Warden and explain your situation. The Warden may escalate the matter. Any institutional recovery is reviewed by the Châtelaine or the Ivy Regent and is exceptional by design — the aim is not to recover passwords, but to determine whether the account can safely be restored to you.
What Staff will never do
- Ask for your password.
- Ask for answers to secret questions.
- Send you a new password by message or email.
- Bypass authentication on your behalf.