It doesn't say specifically, but should be freshly made characters only (pre-created is fine, but still Level 1, 300g, 0xp, and no items). Maybe encourage, but not require given it'd be new, showing the party after a successful run?

Also, is a pre-saved party allowed? I'd assume it'd be better to say 'nay' given none of the current runs are using that option to save a bit of time when loading up the party, perhaps should be noted in the rules to clarify though.

re: Hard Reset- mesen it's clear (on my version at least) that it's a hard reset because it'll have a few frames of green after resetting (rather than just black with soft reset). FCEUX shows Power On instead of Reset. Hopefully other emulators have similar tells?

Or is there a way to "Soft" reset the game from within the game (and thus this rule is referring to not using that)?

BizHawk will say "Power Button Pressed" on a hard reset. It says "Reset Button Pressed" on a soft.

Based on the current runs, it should be held to the same restriction as Any% Pre-Creation. I'm sure it'll be re-written before to long. The speedruns are evolving fast these days. :)

Fair enough, it also doesn't reference saving a party name to load up your six characters a bit faster. Much less of a notable issue with a 5+ hours run. For win% it saves at least a full second the few times I was trying it out (for a party of three).