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ROLE-PLAYING RULES
In-Character Information
Defining RolePlaying | In Character Information | Character Creation | Character Types: Vampires, Dragons, and Immortals | The Inn | Healing | Combat | Out of Character Information | Learning About Other Characters and Players | Special Events | Language | Controversial Content |Metagaming | Post Length | Using Ignore
BASIC
DEFINITION
What is roleplaying? In this setting, it's a game of let's pretend where you create a character, be it elf, gypsy, or Lord, and write the character's adventures as they occur. It can be as simple as an itinerant knight at arms seeking a new job, or as complicated as your imagination allows. This character then interacts with other characters, and the game unfolds from there.
For instance, you create the character of an elderly man, determine his age, height, weight, coloring, religion, family ties, all the details that a real person has. Now you may start off saying that this person is a widower, and add a wife's name and lenght of marriage later. The trick is to keep these details consistent once they have been established.
The setting in this gaming community is frequented by all races and times, from elves to users of the Force, borrowing freely from all gaming systems and adhering to none. No one acts as Game Master or arbitrates rules. While it is often difficult for an AD&D elf to play against a WoD garou, for instance, it can be done. The players have to talk to each other and compromise. Statistics are difficult to compare across system lines, but it can be done if the players are willing to take the time and compromise to do so. (One resource that is very helpful in this is ICE's A Million Ways to Die.) There have been major storylines and even battles involving characters based on Shadowrun, AD&D, and WtA that worked very well because the players did just that. Use common sense and a spirit of fair play to adjudicate and compromise, and nearly anything is possible.
Try to start with a reasonably believable but unique character. Cliched C's appear frequently and all too often you will meet "a powerful thief who knows magic and is a barbarian lord."
When comparing "basic" power levels and equipment between systems, remember that while modern and futuristic characters are accepted, it might crimp your play a little. Some players with fantasy characters may not begin interactions with modern characters with assault weapons. But in the interests of keeping some semblence of realism, if your character is stranded here from another time or place, remember that devices have a finite number of uses (amount of ammo, power source, etc.)
Three character types have created a lot of controversy: vampires, immortals, and dragons. While vampires are traditionally nocturnal creatures, this is impossible to deal realistically with online with players from all over the world. What appears to be a "Daytripper" vampire to the player in Oklahoma may actually be a night-time player somewhere else in the world, or a frazzled mother who can only do it while Junior is off at school! Again, patience and tolerance should prevail!
Dragons are incredibly large and powerful creatures in all systems, and many can regulate their size or shift into other forms. This is a good thing, as trying to squeeze a 100 foot dragon into the inn really strains the imagination. While there is often a question as to why a dragon would *want* to assume a humanoid form, a good player can include the motivation in the character's history or as part of a storyline.
Immortals - There has been a lot of debate over whether immortal characters should be allowed; many consider immortal the equivalent of unbeatable, which is not quite the same thing. An unbeatable character is the one who takes no damage or has so many powers and protections that other c's can't harm them. They may be doing this by the seat of their pants, or by skewing the rules of the system they are using to their advantage, but they generally aren't much fun to play with. Immortal c's can't die, but that is not the same thing as being invulnerable or unbeatable. There is no rule in any of the many systems available that says an Immortal c can't take damage or be beaten to unconsciousness, thus making them beatable. There is a lot of dramatic potential in playing a c who can't die and must live with the memories of centuries of life and mistakes. A well-rounded character always has a weakness, whether it be physical or mental. This weakness should be a significant one in proportion to the c's power.
Despite the wide use of systems in creating characters, this is free form. Feel free to create anything you see fit, and do not worry about being unfamiliar with someone's tabletop game. All players, whether they've been rolling dice since they walked ten miles thru the snow to the Internet, or newcomers who've never even seen a store that sells gaming products, are welcome. Just keep your character consistent with the parameters you've set for yourself. However, as many players do have characters from a system, please note that they may use terms that are unfamiliar to you. If that happens, do stop to ask, whether OOC or via PM, what they mean. There is nary a player who will not take the time out to explain what their character is trying to do. So please, do not worry if someone else's character happens to be a eighth generation Malkavian and you don't know what in blue blazes that means; in the Inn, all players are welcome, no matter how green to role playing they are.
One final note about character types: Taking a character directly from a book, story, or movie is often considered plagarism and frowned upon heavily. If you'd like to play a character based on someone else's fictional work, why not change the name and give it your own twist? Use it as a base and take it to new heights or explore it's reactions to new and different situations!
A general description follows, but different roleplayers tend to see different subtleties in the building.
The first floor contains a large common room with a bar, tables, chairs, couches, and a fireplace. There is also a kitchen on the first floor and lodging available upstairs. A door leads to the mysterious basement which has been known to emit a variety of horrendous creatures upon occasion. Rumor has it that there is a library of magics on the third floor, but there seems to be some question about that floor's existence.
To the south of the Inn, a lake is fed by a river from the east. On the river bank is a garden, and on the west bank of the lake is an orchard. Behind the Inn to the north is a field backed by a forest and a range of mountains. There are also a stable and a smithy nearby.
The area immediately surrounding the inn is empty of life but there are hundreds of little tunnels through space and time leading to it from other lands. Other kingdoms and cities have been created by various players and may be used as settings for play with the creator's permission. Talk to the creator as they are usually very complimented that you want to use their setting and will explain it in greater detail!
The Inn is also something of a nexus of ley-lines and power nodes that attracts mages and spell-casters of all races and creeds. There are no bartenders or waiters and the Inn seems to be a self-aware, self-repairing structure, and can not be destroyed due to the variety of magics that have been cast into its structure.
Healing can be either magical or mundane in nature. In either case, it is considered bad form and unrealistic for it to work immediately. Depending on the healer's background and the way their healing works, it will probably take a toll on the healer as well as the injured party. Unlike tabletop games, devices which protect a character from death are considered in poor taste as well. Resurrections are usually frowned upon unless done extremely well. What is extremely well? Generally, it involves someone other than the dead character finding another player with enough power to do it, and actually roleplaying the ritual or event out. There should also be some suspense as to whether it will actually work or not, since characters are not gods, and nothing in the world of roleplay is written in granite.
This is one of the most difficult areas to discuss because there are so many different opinions on what is fair, starting with the issue of whether you even want your character to be involved in a fight. Quite simply, it is a player's choice whether they get a character involved in a fight/scrap/battle with another. If you don't want to be involved in something, tell the other player nicely in a pm or other message. Some players say 'my c would do this and you're lame if you don't respond.' This player may be correct in stating that this is what his c would do, but he is wrong in judging you and your c for your decision. Remain calm, DON'T CALL NAMES, and remind him that it's your choice as a player whether your c is going to interact with another c. You shouldn't feel forced to enter an interplay. If the player continues to hassle you, drop them in ignore. BUT if you commit to a scene, be prepared to take the consequences - damage, death, or whatever. Bailing out when you see the battle is going badly is generally considered bad gaming manners, and will probably result in the person you are playing with getting very upset.
If you have agreed to a fight/battle/scrap, here are the basics: When you attack someone, make sure your target realizes and accepts that you're attacking them. Then, describe your attack but NOT the outcome of the attack. A good character will judge how well you composed your attack and respond accordingly, even if it means death or much gore. If a person truly isn't in the mood to fight, try not to push it unless there is a really strong RP reason to do so. If you use special weapons, i.e. holy or magic weapons, either PM your opponent about them or add a short description of the power of the weapon or spell to the message describing your attack. When you should be attacked and don't want to fight due to some ooc reason, try to RP your way out of the situation. Often there are several ways to avoid bloodshed; use your imagination and the skills of your C *AND* PM the other player in order to explaining why your C behaves the way he does. If you should be under attack and the attacker describes the outcome of the attack, assume it to be a possible outcome; you may vary the outcome by letting your C perform a defensive action or decide the outcome proposed by the other player to happen. Both attacker and defender should play their Cs according to their C's abilities.