simpathis: (Default)
Empatheias Mods ([personal profile] simpathis) wrote2014-05-25 12:36 am

[ game information ]

— GAME INFORMATION —
» ABOUT THE GAME

Empatheias is a world that is driven by emotions, and it is currently starving for it. Characters who are brought in find their emotions are now on full display for others to see, taking form of various different effects such as change of weather or mild destruction. There are god-like guardian beings called the Arehtei, cities filled with their own culture and problems, and large portions of the world that still need to be restored. All in all, it's a jamjar with a living world that boils down to its key element: emotions.

The game itself is an odd mix of world building, plot based events, and slice of life. When not dealing with large scale emotion inducing events, characters have an opportunity to set out to different locations of the world to explore or help restore different locations. Thus while there is a mod driven plot, we also encourage and invite player action to help build onto the world and its expanding lore.

There is a logging community and a network community, [community profile] empatheias and [community profile] crystalnet, and we have a meme community as well, [community profile] memepatheias. Announcements are posted in [community profile] empatheias_ooc. Our IC:OOC day ratio is 1:1. We run on a rolling application basis and monthly activity checks. CR Memes occur after the applications are processed. We do allow original characters, so please refer to the rules on the OC application page.

» ARRIVING INTO EMPATHEIAS

No one knows how anyone arrives into Empatheias—it just happened one day and it's been a mystery ever since.

Characters are pulled out either near or during a time where they experience "strong feelings" about something. This can be taken loosely, but in general the character should have been in the middle of something rather than just sitting around idly daydreaming (unless it was an emotional daydream). Perhaps this strong burst of emotion attracted the world and pulled them in. Dead characters are also allowed and their arrival is a bit more loose. It could be from the moment of death or a little bit after.

Unless noted otherwise, all characters will arrive somewhere around the main city of Verens, or they can also land just outside of the city. Along with a unique amulet found on their person, they will arrive with their usual clothing and any weapons or particular items players may wish for them to have. That includes any random memento. For information about "sidekick" companions and summoning companions, refer to here. Both an OOC Player Intro post and an IC Character Intro log are created right before applications are processed. These entries are linked within the acceptance notices. While you can create your own introduction post, everyone is encouraged to use these logs so as to reduce clutter and to help players and characters mingle with one another. It should be noted that all characters are referred to as Otherworlders by the local denizens. Very original, we know.

» WORKING TOWARDS

There is no known way home—everyone just pops in and out at random. So until a way is found, there is a general goal that everyone brought in can help work towards, one that may hopefully bring about a definitive way to leave this world (ie, endgame).

The world is a mess and everyone is encouraged to help restore it by one of two ways. The first is simple. Just living in the world itself helps improve things as emotions are released back into the world. Focusing on certain emotions helps certain regions, and this leads to the second way. Active help in restoring specific locations, such as channeling emotions, cleaning it up, or rebuilding, will help the world flourish. The more the world is restored, more clues on the world's history is revealed, and this history will lead them to the answers they seek.

» THE ISLAND & THE WORLD

Empatheias is a large land mass that floats around in the sky... or at least, it used to. As of January 2020, the island is no longer rooted and traveling through the sky once more. The island itself is around 1000 square miles (2590 square kilometers), which is just a little smaller than Long Island, USA. There is only one majorly populated city, Verens, with smaller hamlets and towns scattered around the island. The rest is untamed wilderness and mountains.

There are other main cities outside of the island: the desert city Shaarnath, the artistic mountain city Theasthai, and the pirate city Briarlan. All three can be easily accessed via teleporters located within each area.

As for the surface of the world, many areas look as if the apocalypse occurred, but it's slowly healing and there are notable improvements hear and there. Prior to the characters' arrival, all past expeditions met with death and destruction as the atmosphere was too volatile and toxic in most places without proper protection. Currently, however, although it is still dangerous it is easier for people to take on lengthy expeditions to scout out new areas and explore.

More in-depth information about the various locations can be found in the Locations entry.

» LIVING IN EMPATHEIAS

» Residence.
For the most part characters will be living in the city of Verens. An entire section of the Residential Quarter has been cleared for characters to choose from. They can also choose any other apartments or cottages within or outside the city. There are no real apartment systems—just individual small houses and multi-floored building complexes. Players are free to be creative and make up the home their character claims. Just be mindful that while the initial stay is free, rent will be required after a couple of months. The locals' generosity only goes so far.


» Employment & Task Board.
Everyone is going to be dirt poor at first and the locals will be lenient for a little while, but so long as they work they can earn a pretty good salary quickly. So for those looking for jobs, the best way is taking up various jobs and missions from the Task Center found at the Merchant's Square. This building will have large bulletin boards with various job postings that anyone can take up. They range from simple help for errands to more advanced such as clearing out some monsters harassing neighboring farm lands.

Every month we post a Task Board filled with various tasks that characters can take up. There is no formal sign-up except for those that require it, so players can just pick and choose as they will. Players are free to submit Tasks for us to post onto the Board. Characters are also free to create businesses of their own, either as owners or to work at.

The currencies for each city varies, but for the most part people work with sylvs, the currency used in Verens. Shaarnath uses drasks, Theasthai and Briarlan use a bartering system.


» Culture aesthetic.
Everything is steampunk influenced. From the fashion to the architecture, at first glance it may look similar to Victorian England, but the incorporation of gratuitous leather belts in fashion and clockwork structures in everything else gives that unique "industrial revolution" nuance to the city. There are a lot of variations in terms of the style, so we suggest doing a quick Google image search or visit here to get an idea if you are unfamiliar with steampunk.


» Languages.
Finally, thanks to the amulets every language is automatically translated so everyone can understand each other. This includes text. Huzzah.

» CRYSTAL AMULETS

(Note: the term "crystal" and "amulet" are used interchangeably.)

All characters will have a personalized crystal amulet on their person. They can have a customized look on arrival or have it customized later at a local shop. The amulets are important to keep because they serve several functions. Two of the biggest are telepathic communication and protection against the world itself. More information on the "network" use of the crystal amulets can be read here.

» Protection.
As mentioned the world is starving for emotions. Without the crystal the world would drain the emotion energy of people directly and can effectively kill a person after a month. The crystal serves as a ward, "filtering" the user's emotion energy. A portion of it is absorbed into the crystal and the rest is released into the world. This release results in the varying emotion effects.


» Completion.
Crystals are considered complete when they are filled with emotion energy. Natives turn theirs in to collection centers to be used for various means, but characters have the option to either keep theirs or turn them in to their aligned Arehtei. Not only will this benefit the Arehtei, but they have a chance to regain an item from home. OOCly, this is a flat rate of four months being in game. More information on this process can be found here.

If a crystal is completed, lost, or destroyed, it needs to be replaced. Characters can go to the various crystal collection centers around town to pick one up. Once receiving a new crystal, the collection starts all over again.


» Additional tech use.
Crystals are also used in various tech. From powering small appliances to houses and buildings to powerful airships. Different ways of using crystals are constantly being developed, including weaponry. However this is highly regulated as no one wants a repeat of the past.

» TELEPATHIC NETWORK SYSTEM

The crystals can automatically translated everything and everyone, including writing. The game uses a telepathic communication system via the crystal amulets. It works similarly to common network systems, but here are some specifics:

» Image, voice, and text.
Instead of "video" we call it "image" and is the default. Individuals can have mental image representations of their face that can be seen by those they are speaking with. It is possible to display whatever the person is actually seeing, thus using the eyes as a camera. "Voice" remains the same—all the receiver hears is a voice and no additional images. "Text" is also possible. Neither sound nor image will transmit—only actual words will appear to be read. How the text looks is up to the user.


» No caller-id.
Because this is an amulet and not some type of phone, there's no type of "caller identification." It is also possible to alter one's image and voice, and "text messages" have no indicators whatsoever. This actually allows for complete anonymity. However, individuals can learn to recognize those connecting to them, like a sixth sense. This also means there is no contact list, so there is no easy reference as to who is in the world.


» Incoming message notification.
These messages are not "played" automatically. Rather, the intended receiver (or receivers) will hear a distinct "hum" in the back of their mind (like a wavelength) and feel a slight warmth from their amulet. To answer all they have to do is focus. If they know the "caller" they can recognize them through the wavelength. It is also possible to completely ignore the "call," and if they want to call back they just have to remember that wavelength. It works whether they recognize the person or not.


» Post types.
As for the types of network posts, joint, open conference, and private are all possible. By default, there's no threadjacking unless the poster specifies it possible. It's also impossible to "hack" into a conversation.


» Inboxes.
Although we welcome the use of "Journal Inboxes," there's no true "answering machine" due to the nature of telepathy, so characters can't leave telepathic messages behind. Old fashioned letters or messenger birds can be used instead.

» STEAMPUNK & MAGITECH

The technology is best described as early steampunk with traditional fantasy flavors still attached, such as magitech. Modern technology such as computers, cars, advanced modern appliances, telephones, TVs, etc. are not available. Think more 19th century Victorian era, the usual time period steampunk fantasy is based upon. So horse drawn carriages, iron stoves, iceboxes, etc. Basic electricity is available, so characters won't have to rely solely on candlelight and lanterns, but it's more magitech oriented than "normal" electricity.

There have been other small advances in technology, such as polaroid-like cameras, portable radios and radio towers, walkie talkies, and other simple devices. Some of these have been created by players and in general mostly stays within the late 1800s-early 1900s, so feel free to ask if something exists or not.

» Vehicles.
Verens is well known for its airships which are used both for cargo transportation and travel. Shaarnath has motor vehicles designed for the desert and Theasthai has hot air balloons. Other vehicles that have been introduced are early motorcycles and hover bikes.


» Brought in modern tech.
Any modern devices brought in by the character will work for as long as it has its source. If they can find a way to recharge their batteries, awesome. Otherwise it'll become dead and useless, a relic of what could be... That doesn't stop anyone from developing ways to integrate or advance the current game technology.


» Elemental cores.
Elemental cores are special crystallized rock that contains one of four elements: air, fire, water, and earth (only found on the surface). Through these cores, elements can be pulled out and used in their technology, so rather than use electricity or just fire, they can use the fire cores as a source of heat or light energy source. These cores are mined in the distant mountains and can be bought for personal use. For exact details on how they work, refer to this thread.


» Weaponry & Crystal Tech.
In terms of weaponry, firearms have been developed are widely used along with swords and other martial weapons.

There have been recent advancements in crystaltech—technology based on crystals—to further improve technology as a whole. One big focus is technology that can counteract emotion effects, or at least reduce the more destructive effects.

» LAW ENFORCEMENT

The laws of each city are different, but each have a system with their own ruling and punishment system. For the most part, if you get caught, you get punished. A police force exists in Verens called the "Enforcers", but like the real world, pick pockets and a black market do exist—it's not a perfect, pristine city, and neither are the rest.

It's possible for your character to join the Verens' Enforcers, as well as get in trouble with them. The punishment will depend on the crime, with light thievery or extortion carrying a prison sentence, while death may result in a person's crystal being shattered, and therefore slowing killing them. The only instances where leniency will be granted is if the death was for a job, self-defense, or an accident, and it can be proven that it is.

» Murder plots.
Anyone planning murders will want to contact the mods when applicable. We do allow for jail break-outs and for evading and hiding, but if your character is murdering at a high body count or regularly, it may well be noticed. And as player characters are capable of joining police force in Verens, and everyone is the police in Shaarnath, you will want to consider if your characters actions would realistically be noticed, and work in planning that out with the playerbase. There have been crime plots before, and the mods are happy to work with you if you contact us!

In addition, we do stress in-game consequences and we have a mechanic called the "Reaper." More details are written in the "Death" section, but essentially either once the killer has been caught or it's plotted ahead, the Reaper will exact its own punishment. All of this can and will be discussed with us, but this allows to keep things fair as punishments set by the local setting on its own would be inadequate.

» EXPLORATION: EVENTS AND ADVENTURES

Characters can go on grand (or less grand) adventures onto the world's surface. Most of these adventures are mod run, but it is possible for players to make a request and do something on their own.

Some mod-run events will have a specific area that players can explore. With these events there are special missions to help give some guidelines and goals. These usually have a planned intention that can affect either the immediate or distant future events for the game.

Smaller adventures, however, are posted on the Task Board and are localized to specific locations with specific goals. While excursions will provide some opportunities for player influence, adventures are guaranteed to have player actions count. Some types of goals include restoring the area, looking for a particular item, exploring the area, etc. Players can also request a type of adventure via the Task Board.

As to how traveling works for the characters, they will be given the necessary protection and supplies. Protection will take in the form of crystal powered barriers, dunamis, and Arehtei protection charms. Transportation will either be via airship or the use of the teleporters. There are also large land vehicles that can be used in certain locations.

A chart of all expeditions can be found here.

» ABOUT EMOTIONS

Emotions are the core mechanic to the game. No matter how big or small, they can produce varying outward effects and influence the environment immediately around the person. Joy may make the nearby lightbulbs flicker, while despair may wilt the nearby flowers dead. The more intense the emotion, the more intense the effect.

» Positive & Negative.
All emotions are catergorized under "Positive" and "Negative". Joy is a positive, while grief is a negative; being calm is positive, being angry a negative. This refers to how these emotions will typically make your character feel.

However, unhealthy emotions can still fall under "positive" and "negative". Indifference can fall under calm, while a blissful, obsessive love is considered a "positive", even if it may swing towards jealousy, a negative, later on. Positive and Negative emotions aren't considered better or worse than one another, because while some would prefer to be cheerful as opposed to angry, a character's anger can push them forward better than being without it. As they say: sometimes, too much of a good thing is a bad thing. Too must trust will make you poor.

For characters who are more apathetic by nature, they will have much more subdued expression and effects compared to the other emotions. However, if they do express any kind of emotion, it will be stronger, even if it is a minor feeling.


» Filling crystals & Emotion Tracker.
This is worth remembering for when you fill out your character's completed crystal, and also for when game events will bring in use the Emotion Tracker. The Emotion Tracker is a form that will ask you to choose the strength of your character's emotions from 0 to 10: with 10 being incredibly strong, such as a blind, environment destroying rage, and with 0 being that the emotion wasn't experienced at all. (Note: This is different from apathy.) While character actions can and will have an effect on the game, the overall emotions during some events will be crucial as to the outcome.

As for deciding the completed state of your character's crystal, each time your character experiences an emotion, "emotion drops" drips into the crystal amulet on their person. Usually inconspicuous, this is how a character's amulet becomes filled. For more information on the benefits of a filled (or completed crystal), please read here.

» EMOTION EFFECTS

Emotion effects can be small and only affect the immediate area around the individual (flowers wilting or blossoming, lights flickering or brightening) or it can be large and alter the island entirely. The latter would require a large mass of emotions. A more medium and individualistic example would be someone having enough rage that windows suddenly shatter and maybe even a wall breaks. Otherwise, players can be very creative in what the actual effect is.

For apathy, it follows the theme of "emptiness" and "loss." Some examples are loss of color, muted sounds, surface distortion, tiny holes, etc.

These effects serve as a kind of physical mirror of what the individual is feeling. Emotions can even affect a person's home and the home itself can warp and twist to alter to fit the owner’s mood.

However, emotions can be overpowered or countered by another person's, and it would depend on the strength of each person's emotions. This helps maintain the balance.

» APATHY

Apathy is a unique "emotion" in how it works. Aside from slower crystal growth, there's no real punishment because apathetic people exist even for the local Empatheians. They even consider apathy as part of the norm. Apathy will destroy some of the emotion drops contained in the crystal, but to compensate any emotion that they do feel is probably going to actually impact them a lot more than an average person. So even if they just feel a little happy, the effect will be greater and the crystal will fill up more.

In terms of effects, it follows the theme of "emptiness" and "loss." So some examples are loss of color, muted sounds, surface distortion, tiny holes, etc.

» AREHTEI & ALIGNMENT

The Arehtei are mysterious beings sometimes referred to as guardians who are supposed to protect and reflect the health of the world. There are eight Arehtei, each one representing a set of emotion dynamics. However, only seven are currently existing:

  • Aiada: appreciation and envy
  • Daimonia: joy and grief
  • Elios: love and hatred
  • Peromei: hope and despair
  • Piphron: trust and distrust
  • Sosyne: calm and anger
  • Thras: bravery and fear
The eighth Arehtei is known as Simpathis, sympathy and apathy. Her whereabouts are unknown and some believe her to be dead. These beings were once corrupted but have been purified thanks to the emotions gathered over the years.

One of the requirements for the game is to choose an alignment. This is mechanic makes the characters "aligned" to a specific type of emotion and thereby aligned to a specific Arehtei. All types of emotions are still absorbed by the crystal amulet, but the aligned set of emotions will have significantly more weight. Players will have to choose which alignment would best fit the character OR, if the character has no particular dominant emotion, you are free to choose whichever one you think you'll be able to work with most. Additionally, emotions can be forced, and there will be events and situations where this option will be available.

It is possible to change alignments, and information on that process can be found here. A chart on the current alignment spread can be viewed here.

Those who are aligned will also resonate with their Arehtei and have more opportunities and priority access to that Arehtei and events revolving around them. Characters can also make "appointments" and personally communicate with the Arehtei. Refer to the Arehtei Scheduler to make an appointment. These can be handwaved or threaded out.

» DIFFERENT EMOTION BASED TECHNIQUES

While the people of Verens don't do anything special with emotions other than trying to keep it under general control, the other cities have developed their own kind of "technique" in using their emotional energy.

» Dunamis.
Also known as "emotion magic," this technique was developed in Shaarnath. Similar to the concept of using one's "chi," dunamis is the practice of controlling and using one's emotions so that it doesn't disperse into the environment as "violently" as it does normally. That is to say, emotional effects are more controlled and subtle. It has also been proven that dunamis can fulfill almost every aspect of living, from replacing the need of actual appliances to medical care. To put it in perspective, where Verens is a place of technology and a bit of magical elements, Shaarnath is more pure "magic" with their use of emotions.

In terms of gameplay, it is possible for any character to learn dunamis and have it augment or add to their own abilities. Those who have no magical ability at all can now begin to learn something similar. Additionally, players can use dunamis to help replace or alter certain canon abilities that would otherwise needed to be nerfed. For example, a canon ability to blow up an entire building in one shot would need to be nerfed. However, in-game development with dunamis could restore that ability to perform in a similar manner. Of course such an action would still need to be reasonable, but it's at least more doable.

As mentioned, anyone is capable of learning dunamis, but it does require time and practice. No one should be a master in the first month; it should take several with repeated trial and error. Fuller details can be read here.


» Performancy.
Theasthai also has their own technique, called performancy. Similar to dunamis in concept, it focuses more on creating special effects for theatre, and so less useful in day-to-day activities, or battle. However, if your character loves to put on a show and wants to create the best real life CGI effects, to mask their appearance or to learn to go unseen until the right moment, then the Thespian's skills can't be ignored.

» GENERAL CHARACTER QUALITIES

Any canon or original character is allowed in the game. For more specifics, refer to the Rules.

» Non-humans.
We do not require characters to be humanized. They can maintain their original form. The only change we do require is for gigantic non-humans to be downsized to a maximum of 8 feet. This is actually more for practical purposes than any other reason. If they were any bigger, they would have a really hard time getting around the city! If the character does not have a set body, it is possible for one to be created. Players can use a canon analogue, humanize the character, or talk with us with whatever idea you may have.


» Character/Species/Canon specific characteristics.
If your character has a peculiar quality or ability that requires some canon mechanic, such as an item, to work or even live, there are alternatives to keep this trait. One alternative is to use the emotions in place of that mechanic. For example, if the character requires a special serum or song to keep them from going berserk, positive emotions can be used as a substitute. Feel free to ask us if you have any question about this and if you have an idea, shoot it at us!

We've had some character/canon specific questions, so here are some links to some various solutions we've had so far: sources of power (soul gems); consuming emotions; mmo anime avatars


» Character doubles+possession.
Characters who are possessed or share a body with another soul or sentient being can be tricky to apply for. By default, a player will always have the ability to control both. However, under certain circumstances, it is possible to separate the two so that both could co-exist in the game as separate entities. This will highly depend on the canon and the character(s) in question. Some in-depth answers we've given on this matter can be found here and here. When in doubt, feel free to ask us with information as to the character and canon in question.


» Disabilities & Illnesses.
If a character has some kind of disability, like a missing limb or damaged organs, then it will carry over. However, if it’s an illness then it’s up to the player whether that illness carries over. If it is carried over, attempts for a cure can be made. If the player wants a cure, then we can grant permission for it somehow happening. This would have to be worked at, but it could be done.

Such things can also be inflicted upon characters. Unless there are healer type characters, the road back to health will be a long one as the medical technology is not modern at all. In fact X-rays are the most advanced medical equipment Empatheias has.

» ABILITY NERFS

For the most characters can retain most of their original abilities. Only the super game breaking god tiered abilities are nerfed. They can either be done away completely or be weakened. Your character won't be able to move mountains or destroy buildings in one hit, but they can still do decent damage (maybe make a giant crater in the street or knock out an entire wall). The same goes for weapons. Weapons can be brought with the character, but if there's something game breaking about it, that ability needs to be altered or removed entirely. Any other abilities can be left as is, but if you have a question feel free to ask us.

In terms of how abilities that utilize specific canon world energy, such as a world's mana type, that is all automatically converted/transferred to use Empatheias's emotion energy. Magic users may notice a slight difference in the feel of it, but they should be able to use their abilities without much issue. This also includes characters from canons based off MMOs, like Sword Art Online or .hack. Rather than there being a system dictating what and how skills and abilities are used, they are translated to be like "natural" magical abilities. So no energy point costs, just actual physical energy and stamina used.

» SIDEKICKS, PETS, AND SUMMONS

Characters that have pets can bring them along into the game. This rule also applies to characters who could arguably have another player play the partner, but the chances of finding that player are extremely low. If you do this, you will have to include the sidekick character in your application and make any notes about its personality. The caveat is that while you can play both characters, you cannot thread exclusively with yourself. If the sidekick is present, you'll have to write "joint" tags if you wish to include the sidekick's presence. So for example, Digimon characters. It is possible for an applicant to apply for their main character and bring the Digimon partner with them. Note: This is only applicable to characters with a sidekick. This would not apply to "pair" characters, like twins. They must be apped as separate characters and by different players to comply with the Playercest rule.

If a character is able to summon certain spirits or creatures, those beings can also be brought along with them. Ability nerfs will apply. Pokemon also fall into this category. There is a limit as to how many can be brought: five (5).

» OTHER RESTRICTIONS

Those who can fly or teleport may try to leave the island and there have been attempts to leave the island via airships and other flying mechanisms. However, the farther away one travels from the island, the weaker the protection. Even with a full amulet, if someone were to try and fly away from the island, it will not be enough to protect them from the world. The world will break the amulet, absorb all of that fluid, and then proceed to absorb from the person, effectively killing them.

If one wants to travel away from the island, they would need to use the means provided for the exploration crews or somehow devise enough suitable protection to go on their own.

For characters who already know telepathy, they can use their own telepathic powers to communicate and can bypass all of the restrictions that amulet users have, except for "hacking." They can't eavesdrop on a conversation.

» DEATH IN-GAME

Death is possible and normally permanent, but for whatever reason, characters do not stay dead. At least in general. If someone wants to drop a character through death, that is totally possible (adds more plot twists). Upon dying, the amulet will crack and shatter, the character disappearing along with it. From a few days to a week, they will later respawn at the edge of Empatheias with a brand new amulet. They will be severely weakened and will need to be treated.

There is a being known as the "Reaper" who watches over the passing of souls. Those who die may catch a glimpse or hear its voice without much consequence. However, if a character dies under dubious circumstances, such as from a convicted death penalty or with a murder or two in their recent history, the Reaper may give them a more personal visit while in hell. Murderers of all kinds will not only get a visit, but they will also receive an additional punishment fit for the crime. We will of course discuss it with the player as the Reaper's punishments have a more "reformative" or "lesson teaching" type quality to it. Life is important, dammit! These punishments are still designed to be as punitive as possible so that the character ICly learns from it and potentially they and others will be dissuaded. So if a death plot of some kind is to happen, there should be substance and good reason behind it.

Another constant consequence is to their amulet. It doesn't matter how much was in it before, it's been completely reset. Even though it will automatically reaccumulate liquid from current and pre-existing relationships, it will be much less as it won't have any that was gained through other personal accomplishments.

There is also something like a penalty, as if the world used some of those emotions to help "recreate" the individual. Thus about a fourth of the liquid will always be taken away. This penalty actually stacks. This means if a character dies again, another fourth is taken. Thus a second death would result in half of the liquid gone no matter what. A third is three-fourths, and four and beyond is the entire amount. Even if there are pre-existing relationships, there's no sudden boost. It's all zero and they have to build it back up. The rebuilding will be faster with existing relationships, but it will still take time.

» HIATUS

There are two options for when a player goes on hiatus. You can either have the character just handwaved that they're bustling about the town and gathering a couple of emotion drops here and there. The other option is to have the character crystalized. Yes that's right. For the entire time you are on hiatus, the character is a crystal statue. There is no penalty in terms of emotion drops for this, but it will probably freak out a few people (and give them some emotion drops). When you return, the crystal will shatter and free the character. For the hiatused character, it will have been as if time had stopped, though they will have a vague sense they were stuck in that crystal.

In terms of Activity Check, hiatuses that last at least 2 weeks will require half the proofs. Hiatuses that are 3+ weeks are completely exempt.

» DROPPING A CHARACTER

When a character is dropped, they simply disappear. In addition, their name will appear on a wall in a room ("Wall of Names")in the Calinede Temple ruines, and a crystal will also appear around one of the shrines dedicated to the Arehtei. Currently it is assumed that the crystal is theirs though there is no in-game proof of it.

OOCly, we post a list of all the characters that were dropped or removed after the Activity Check, and this list would be the same list that is ICly posted in the Residential area at the beginning of the month so characters can see who has disappeared.

If the character is reapplied for, either by the old player or a new one, they will restart from scratch. This applies even if the character remembers everything from their previous stay.

» CANON UPDATE

For characters that are canon updated during their stay, the character disappears but the amulet is neither full nor broken. It remains a strange translucent state until the character returns. The character will reappear either in the exact spot the amulet currently is or somewhere near it in case the amulet is in a place like a drawer. Unlike the death scenario, there is no loss of emotion drops so the character can pick it up right where they left off. In addition, the character's name does not appear on the Wall of Names. The form for canon updating can be found here.

Still have a question? Then just comment to this entry and we'll answer it ASAP! Just double check and view the top level comments to see if anyone has touched on it yet. If we feel that it's an important one, we'll add it to the actual entry. If you wish to contact us in private, you can either use the Confidential Contact or send a message to the journal.
hiddeninfidelity: (blank face)

[personal profile] hiddeninfidelity 2016-04-27 04:14 pm (UTC)(link)
Question!

I was intending on apping one of the dolls from Rozen Maiden and was wondering if they'd be allowed to enter the game at their normal size (which is about a foot tall)
hadthehighground: (cloak and a beard)

[personal profile] hadthehighground 2016-05-01 02:27 am (UTC)(link)
Question for the modlies!

Is it possible to get canon items after a characters arrival somehow? Say... perhaps a Varactyl named Boga for Obi-Wan?

I really liked having her else game and would like to have her here too. If it's at all possible.

I apologize if there's information about this somewhere and I've missed it.
Edited 2016-05-01 02:28 (UTC)

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lastation: (cocky)

[personal profile] lastation 2016-05-01 05:11 pm (UTC)(link)
Hi! Quick question: I am re-apping a character I have had in game previously, and I have threads from when I was in-game that show how I play her in the setting re: use of emotion and character portrayal. Can I use these threads as the sample on my re-app, or do I have to write up a new one?

Thanks much!
itellyourstory: (Default)

[personal profile] itellyourstory 2016-05-15 10:02 pm (UTC)(link)
I don't really have plans of pursuing this but due to actual historical stuff and an active sex life, what is the deal with pregnancy - specifically becoming pregnant within the game? Is it a "not at all just find an excuse for them not to get pregnant" thing, a "with mod permission" thing, or a "somehow they are prevented from conceiving" thing?

also, mostly unrelated and for our own edification, does Verens have condoms?
Edited 2016-05-15 22:04 (UTC)
deathboss: (Emotion - Hearts Flutter Away)

[personal profile] deathboss 2016-05-22 12:06 am (UTC)(link)
Hello mods! I could have sworn I had asked questions 1 & 2 as Yu, but I can't find it anywhere and also I have a little more to ask with Eikichi so here we go!

1 - Is it possible for Eikichi to visit the Velvet Room in Empatheias (the Velvet Room is a location in all Persona games were characters can go and switch their Personas. It exists as its own dimension (between dream and reality, mind and matter) and time doesn't pass while they are in it. I wasn't planning on switch Eikichi's Personas around, but I was wondering if he'd still see the blue door around.

2 - If it does exist, since the Velvet Room tends to take the form of whatever is needed (In P1 and P2 it was a giant room with a couch, in P3 it was an elevator and in P4 it was a limo, in P5 it will be a jail) would it have a special look? (I was thinking if it does it could look like a cool crystal cavern, but honestly I'm cool with anything or having it look like in his game)

3 - Third question which doesn't quite relate to the ones above, but in Persona 2, the characters gain their Persona after playing the "Persona Game" which is basically chanting game you play with a few people. Those who are strong of will are given a Persona.

I was wondering if it was possible for Eikichi to teach this skill to people. This would only work with:
1) Strong-willed people
2) People/characters who don't have canon magic or a way to defend themselves, as Personas are basically a part of themselves they use to fight back, and awakenings only happen in moments of great emotional distress (usually when you think you're about to die).
3) They would be limited to one Persona and it would be low level spells (gotta start somewhere, right? Still better than nothing at all!).
4) He'd only be teaching it to characters he feels a close connection to, so no mass Personas around (if anything considering Eikichi's personality, I'd expect the number to stay very low) and
5) I'd warn if it ever happens, (it would probably take a few months in game unless it suddenly becomes very battle related for the next few months) so you'd be aware.

Again if none of these are possible, I completely understand! I figured I might as well ask. Thank you for the time, mods! ♥

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[personal profile] doublesmall 2016-06-01 09:25 pm (UTC)(link)
Hi! I just have a quick question so I know how to handle this-- my character's basically one of his mafia's bosses in canon and would definitely be working to get established/make connections within the black market & whatever underworld exists in the game. How difficult would it be for an otherworlder to get on their good side?

he just doesn't want a regular job, honestly, crime's easier...
defaming: (to destroy)

[personal profile] defaming 2016-06-09 02:31 am (UTC)(link)
Hi mods! I have a job-related question. I hope this is the right place to ask it.

Kristoph's #1 priority in game is obtaining law-related work. He took on a court task last month and will be taking on a law-related task this month. I was wondering, what permanent or semi-regular job might he be able to attain at the court? (He's a bit obsessed.)

Also, when Kristoph was last in the game (with a different player), he did some defense work for animals, which Kristoph became aware of. Would the locals remember him from that time and consider that to be relevant experience?

Thanks for your help!

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alchemicals: (010.)

[personal profile] alchemicals 2016-06-18 03:05 am (UTC)(link)
I have a question along the lines of injuries/illness, what comes in with a character, and how it could be potentially dealt with:

Say that we wanted to app someone that, due to canon-based reasons, has an unstable physical constitution - for simplicity's sake, they got caught up in magical...stuff that burned their body up from the inside and now they're in a state of "going to die in maybe a couple of weeks because my body will decay and give out on me, also don't touch me because that does the exact opposite of helping." This physical state of being is shown to carry over even after the character dies: that is to say that he actively dies in canon and is resurrected, but (presumably due to his previous physical instability) he proceeds to last ten days and then he up and dies again.

Now, I obviously would not want to play out this sorry idiot dying every couple of weeks, because that isn't conducive to anything productive. So my question is basically whether that would just be wiped upon his arriving (because it isn't a disability, per se, it's more of a massive traumatic injury caused by magical canon bullshit), whether the dying process would be slowed down and need to be cured or actively worked against somehow in-game (because it isn't an illness and so would come in with him), whether there's another solution that I haven't presented or considered, or whether this is a case of "oh my god, Dal, you need to stop and pick another canon point."

Thank you for your time!

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eternalcutie: monopoly (i'm just saying.)

[personal profile] eternalcutie 2016-06-18 05:17 am (UTC)(link)
Hey there, I have a question regarding immortality! Czes here is immortal in the sense that rather than dying, his body automatically and fairly quickly repairs any damage done to itself. I don't really have any plans to try to kill him off if I do end up apping him, but just for clarity's sake I'm curious: would his immortality be un-nerfed in game and just work purely as in canon, or would his body only repair itself from non-lethal wounds? Would there be some kind of limit on what kind of injury he could come back from? Thanks in advance!
ohrlyeh: (polaris)

[personal profile] ohrlyeh 2016-06-26 01:47 pm (UTC)(link)
Mods, this is probably the dumbest (or best) question you will get, for that I apologize.

I've been informed that there are fishing boats in the lake, and H.P. Lovecraft here has...a really petty grudge against fishing boats for obvious reasons.

The question is: can Lovecraft knock the fishing boats over and sink them? He won't be particularly aiming towards killing any fishermen (there probably will be no deaths), he really only has it out for the boats! I'm totally fine with repercussions/what have you, I just want to make sure this is a-okay before I have him go on his fishing boat-hating temper tantrum.

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(Anonymous) 2016-06-27 03:31 pm (UTC)(link)
Hi team! Another immortality question here.

The character I have in mind has what tvtropes calls resurrective immortality (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ResurrectiveImmortality). They're as squishy as any normal human, with 0 healing powers or defensive shields, so dying is still a) easy and b) painful. But, unless killed by fire, they always respawn the day after death... minus several hours of pre-death memories.

I'm not planning to abuse the respawning either way (see: dying hurts). That said, I am wondering if the character would get to keep their canon respawn ability (i.e. resurrecting a day later, disoriented & lacking memories), or have to go through the full amulet cracking process like non-immortals? ... Or a mix of both, which is totally cool because immortals are weird and should feel weird about it. :V

Lmk what you think, thanks!
itsatie: (Default)

[personal profile] itsatie 2016-07-03 09:29 am (UTC)(link)
I'm sorry if any of this has been discussed before.

About the crystallization hiatus option. Do any of the locals get that kind of crystallized state for any reason whatsoever? Also, is there more information about that state that one can get from reading up / talking to locals (or the Arehtei), or it's literally only a thing for the recent arrivals and nobody knows what it might or might not have any connection with?

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(Anonymous) 2016-07-10 09:00 am (UTC)(link)
Unsure of the rules on this, but, say I wanted to app in a Pokemon Game verse 'Silver'(Who'd come from the GSC games, meaning his name is what the PC what it to be).

I know you have Manga!Silver. Would I need to get permission from the current player to do so?

(Apologies if you there is already a gameverse 'Silver' in game, I didn't see one on the taken list/

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lalliho: (eenie meenie minie mo)

[personal profile] lalliho 2016-07-16 01:55 pm (UTC)(link)
Soooo if the explosives that Emil brought in with him had become, like, a fixture of their room, would they have stayed or disappeared when he left?
tenyearslost: (tumble)

[personal profile] tenyearslost 2016-07-25 01:17 am (UTC)(link)
HELLO MODS I have a suggestion/request for technology!!

If it doesn't already exist, can we have an iPod/mp3 player type device? And if so, can we call it a CogPod?

THANKS

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hadthehighground: (Thought provoking)

[personal profile] hadthehighground 2016-07-31 04:01 am (UTC)(link)
I have a few questions regarding Inoman!

Obi-Wan is wanting to visit the little island and I've read the report on it. Since its been some time since its discovery, has the bits of land between it and the main island made it possible to cross without flying? Or at least would Obi-Wan be able to use his Force jumping to hop from piece to piece and get there? Or is the only way to get there still by flight?

I also noticed that calm emotions tended to have an affect there. Since Obi-Wan tends to exude a lot of calm, would this come into play at all?

And finally, is there anything that can be found there that the archaeologists haven't already discovered or removed?

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namesaquestion: (Default)

[personal profile] namesaquestion 2016-08-10 12:22 pm (UTC)(link)
canon, why do you give me a thief to play - say Game!Silver attempted to steal a number of sylvs from Verens natives. One: He'd be sticking to drunks or the backstreets, but staying away from anything too shady or dangerous.

Two. He'd most likely use his golbat to confuse them, then have his haunter (yay for ghosts that turn invisible..) steal whatever it could.

How much would he reasonable be able to get? (I don't personally intend to have him take more than 200 - 500 sylvs before he goes looking for legit way of making money.)
properprincess: (Default)

[personal profile] properprincess 2016-08-17 05:39 pm (UTC)(link)
Is there anyway we can get a more permanent list of the Arehtei representatives and ways to contact them?

[personal profile] futureprofessor 2016-08-18 04:59 pm (UTC)(link)
Hello mods! For characters from RPGs that always carry around a bag with stuff, is it ok for them to bring that bag to the game? Not going full hammer space of course, but a couple of potions, berries, a notebook and the like, and in the case of Bianca here, her pokédex. If yes, would you like us to make note of that in the application? Thanks in advance!

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hadthehighground: (lets talk)

[personal profile] hadthehighground 2016-09-11 02:41 am (UTC)(link)
Hello again mods!

In regards to the giant floating crystal in the sky, how accessible is it? I'm considering having Obi-Wan and Anakin flying up to it and checking it out. Once Obi-Wan tames and brings back a Wyvern from Shaarnath that is.

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spiritualray: (repose)

[personal profile] spiritualray 2016-09-18 09:10 pm (UTC)(link)
I do apologize if this has been asked in another form and I missed it when skimming the player questions, but...

The character I'm considering apping was recently rendered physically blind. However, to compensate and continue on keeping on, she uses her world's ambient magical soul/life/existence energy stuff to see by (though it places great strain on her and perhaps even eats away at her own lifeforce). Moreover, because of this and other things, she is very sensitive to it and can tell a lot of things just by 'looking' at things or being around them.

My question is, how would this translate over to Emp? Would she 'see' through harnessing ambient emotions? Should I expect this to affect her vision? For example, if she were around very strong apathy to have a poorer sense of sight, things blurred in addition to lacking color? Or for very strong and vivid emotions to be almost too 'bright' in a way?
praelucente: You hold the world in your hands (Observer)

[personal profile] praelucente 2016-09-23 02:49 am (UTC)(link)
So to start with: the character I'm looking to app is a robot ghost.
Well, astral projection of sorts into ghost. Thing. It... Megaman's a weird canon, after a point. But this brings up a major question concerning how I'd be playing him, here:

X has two "forms": his "full-sized self" looks like a projected, semi-solid and somewhat glitchy hologram, and his other form is a palm-sized version of this projection with what look like neon-tube wings that most people see as a glowy data ball with a few extra details (basing this on other entities of the same type because there's no official art saying one way or another, and he's a special case even with that in mind). This other form is also semi-tangible, but moreso than the "projection", while conserving more energy. While I'm fine with the idea of playing him darting about as a ball of light, that makes dealing with the crystal a little more difficult since it's... probably close to his size, and interaction with other characters may prove difficult, as well. So comes the question: is it conceivable that emotions make him more capable to take on that full-sized form more solidly instead of tiny data disco ball? So the more he feels, the more solid he can be at full size, and the more distant or apathetic, the harder it is to take on to the point of only being tiny disco ball? This would also offer something interesting for me to play off of, but I'm curious if it'd work by setting-rules.

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[personal profile] deathofempathy 2016-09-29 06:03 am (UTC)(link)
So, this is for a possible future app but. If I were to bring in Hisoka from Yami no Matsuei with his whole empathy deal. Through this, he can get glimpses of what others are feeling/thinking. This includes feeling the emotion/ physical pain himself as a result. He has some small measure of control over it through the years, but there are still times where if confronted by a particularly strong/powerful emotion it will affect him greatly. This is heightened even more through physical contact, so he is not really a touchy-feeling sort of kid. No surprises there, really. He can also sense traces of people from objects/items and tell where someone is, tracking them, to a certain extent through this power as well.

Would this ability mean he can pick up on more emotion drops by picking things up from others affecting his own emotions and thoughts? Just curious how that might work if I were to bring him in. Because all of this on top of said empathy will clearly mean Fun Times for him if so.

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(Anonymous) 2016-09-30 01:51 am (UTC)(link)
- Can a TDM top level still be used for a sample if it didn't get any replies?

- Also, really random and lame, but the canon point I'm going for w my character is directly from being within their mecha. Could a miniaturized version of it (able to fit in their palm, and pretty much a plastic figurine) be something that could count as a "random memento"? It's totally fine if not!

[personal profile] futureprofessor 2016-10-01 10:22 pm (UTC)(link)
Hello again lovely mods! A question about the local nature - what kind of wild life can be found in Verens? I don't expect a wiki list, of course, just a general idea of what to expect - only normal animals and plants like bears and apples? Or could there be some more exotic/magical/etc stuff? Gnomes and trolls, or plants with special qualities? I know the surface has the wyverns and that wildlife association is looking for more stuff but I wasn't sure if this applies to Verens' forest and mountains, too. Would the encounters change the farther away you go from the city?
Edited (I keep repeating words go self) 2016-10-01 22:23 (UTC)

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