THE GAME SYSTEM

We Understand that not everyone has experience in playing every type of online RPG that there is. That's why this page exists – to familiarize you with our gameplay style, as well as explain the system the game works under. While the gameplay itself is a fashion that has merely evolved over time, not that the tick system was developed by the incomparable Maji of MYTHOS Senshi fame, and was used with permission.

This page was last revised on June 17, 2006.

HOW TO PLAY

I. Play environment. Play can take place in any medium with which the players are comfortable. Most often this will take place over AIM (or another messaging service), through e-mail, or in the forums. All are equally acceptable. A copy of the session of play is called a "log." At times I'll also just refer to these as stories, but this more implies a log in which some plot takes place (as opposed to just general character interactions).

II. Format. Play can take place in either narrative or script format. "Narrative" means that the log is written like a story; eg, one person writes "Jim walked up to Sarah and smiled." and the next replies with "Sarah didn't look pleased to see him," etc. Script is the more traditional format for players less concerned with something readable to others and just want to play; it's when you only control the actions of your own character, and less emphasis is placed on setting and description; eg, "Jim: *walks up to Sarah and smiles*" would be responded to with " *doesn't look pleased to see him*" Obviously there's also a lot of dialogue involved, moreso in script than narrative. One thing I must ask is that you keep person and tense consistent within a log. A script log is typically always in present tense and uses the pronouns he and she inside the action tags (the asterix). Remember, you are playing a character, you are not the character yourself. Using "you" and "I" inside action tags is awkward and may make some players uncomfortable. Narrative logs should (preferably) be in third person, past tense, though it's conceivable individual logs (written by one person) could be in first person from the character's perspective. Just please, please keep tense and person consistent. Use common sense here, and ask if you have questions.

III. Who To Play With. We strongly encourage you to try to play with everyone else in the game. Sometimes due to scheduling conflicts this may be difficult or impossible, but we encourage you to try. It is infinitely more fun to have a variety of different relationships than to have small pockets of players who play only amongst themselves. In addition, the plot may cause your character to have to interact with people he or she may otherwise prefer not to, and it's a good idea to get in some practice and try to establish your character's behaviour and relations with other people beforehand. Logs may take place between just two people, and this will probably be the most common form, but we also encourage you to try to write in groups, either in the forums, through e-mail, or through group chats. It's lots of fun, shows your character in a different setting, and also helps them (and you) meet new people.

III. Writing for others. As discussed in the rules, you should make every effort not to write for other people's characters. This does not mean that you are forbidden from this activity, but it does mean that you are forbidden from doing so without the other player's consent. If you're writing a log and would like to have another character just briefly cameo'd, and you don't feel it's a big enough part to have the other player write it, you should ask if it's okay, explain what you're going to have the character do, and let the other player read and approve any part(s) of the story in which their character appears before posting the log or submitting it to me. If you feel your character is being misrepresented, don't be afraid to say so. I'll be more than willing to step in in such instances but it will be better for everyone if you try to handle them yourself first before appealing to authority.

THE TICK SYSTEM

I. Basics. This game operates on the same "tick" system as MYTHOS. It works as follows: Every time you submit a log or something happens to your character, you get a tick on the game timeline. The idea is that you want to get as many ticks as possible, because more ticks means more power-ups and opportunities for your character. More ticks also means more privileges for the player as well as the character. Think of them as merit badges.

II. In-Character Rewards. A character whose player has more ticks will be allowed more abilities, skill, and "luck" than characters who have not been played much. Racking up RP experience is the equivalent of your character racking up experience at whatever they do. In particular, since this is a fantasy game and not a sailormoon game where powerups happen just after time, any log in which your character fights will receive a special "battle experience" tick. The more of these you get, the more powerful your character will be able to become. More ticks also means your character will be better able to withstand assaults and may simply have better "luck" in future battles (enemies will miss more often, etc).

1. Power-ups. As in any console or table-top RPG, power-ups become harder to obtain the stronger you get. While intangible things like the character's general abilities are left in the hands of the player, power-ups are measured in terms of new attacks, spells, weapons, equipment, or abilities. For instance, a character may gain more agility and be better able to dodge, or they may gain a completely new spell or skill related to their power sphere.

2. Super-ups. As mentioned, characters can also gain special "battle ticks." These are in most cases equivalent to several regular ticks in terms of gaining new fighting abilities, but moreover by getting battle ticks characters have access to stronger attacks/weapons/etc than they do through normal ticks. For instance, a character who has been in fifty stories but has not battled in any is not going to be as strong as someone who has been in twenty stories and has battled in almost all of them. This is a realistic reflection of the character's training and experience. The assumption is made, of course, that characters are continuing to train even when this is not explicitly mentioned in stories, but this is not quite the same as real fighting experience. (Note that stories in which characters actively spar against allies count towards "battle ticks," and stories that focus largely or have a lot of training in them may also count, depending on the individual case.)

3. Focus. It stands to reason that characters whose players are more active and who are in more stories will seem more "main." We would very much like for everyone to be the main character at some point in the story and to have their own plot brought to the forefront of the action. Obtaining more ticks tells more of your story in addition to helping the game at large.

Please refer to player documents in the forums for charts of power-up and super-up "schedules" (when your character will be eligible).

III. Player Rewards. Getting more ticks is not just good for your character. It also gives you special privilege, like being allowed to create additional characters and.. stuff I haven't quite figured out yet. Mostly it will govern when you can apply for a second character and in a more intangible form your activity will determine how much control you have over shaping the direction of future plots. Please don't take this to mean, however, that the game is elitist or that you will be penalized for being shy or busy; we only want to encourage activity and fairness, not discriminate.

MORE ABOUT LOGS

I. Before You Submit. Be sure to proofread the log for spelling/grammar mistakes or typos. If possible, convert all tags in script logs to "Tiei:" instead of "<Tiei>." (This can be easily done using any newer versions of Notepad or Wordpad, by using the Find/Replace feature under "Edit.") Make sure the log is formatted in a way so that it is readable and, if it's a script, so that it is clear who's saying what. Also, as a matter of personal preference, try to make all action tags match. I personally use asterisks (ie, "Tiei: *walks up*" as opposed to "Tiei: ::walks up::" and other variations) but you can use whatever you want; it just reads more smoothly if you make sure both players' tags match.

II. How To Submit. Finished logs should be e-mailed to Kai (here or here) either in the body of the e-mail or as a hyperlink to an uploaded document. Attachments are acceptable only as a last resort, and only in standard and easily-readable file formats (.doc, .txt, .html, etc). If the log involves any plot-relevant material or includes appearances by other characters, including NPCs, do not link to the log anywhere or mark it on the timeline until it has been approved by me (and if necessary, other players whose characters appear). If you are using other people's characters it is strongly recommended that you get their approval before submitting the log and note this in your e-mail. Also included should be the following:

1. The names of any players involved in writing the log.

2. The names of any characters that appear in the log, broken into Major (characters who appear in most of the log, or as the major focus) and Minor (characters who make only a brief appearance or are in the background).

3. Title of the log. This can be anything from an actual title ("Harry's Busy Day") to simply a descriptive title ("In Which Harry Gets New Glasses" or "The One Where Harry Gets Sick," depending on Friends-esque you want to be).

4. When the log takes place on the timeline. Be as specific as possible, so that it can be inserted in the correct order.

5. A brief description/summary of the log; ie, "Tiei pesters Salix by the river, and subsequently pretends to drown."

6. A note on whether or not you will upload the log to your own server, or if you'd prefer I converted it to html (if necessary) and hosted it on dokuja.com for you.

7. Whether the log is simply for your character's personal timeline, or if you want it to be posted on the main timeline too.

8. The log's rating, and for what (language, violence, sexuality, whatever). As a reminder, logs can be rated whatever you want as long as you keep it legal and you mark them clearly.

III. Log Approval/Rejection. I assume/hope this won't be a problem, and I say with confidence that most if not all logs should be approved with no problems. BUT. If your log is found to be inappropriate in some way (you use another's character without permission, you make something happen that shouldn't, your character behaves completely differently from how they are described in their profile with no reason, you break any of the player's rules of conduct, etc) then at a minimum I will strike out the offending portions and ask you to redo them. If the whole log revolves around an inappropriate concept the whole thing may be tossed out; this is why it is important to get approval for any story-altering or plot-relevant pieces beforehand. If your behaviour is found to be completely out of bounds you will be subject to the disciplinary actions outlined in the Rules. But I really think this will never come up in play, or at least I hope it doesn't. Just play nice and fair and don't be god-modey.