Post by Kyla Monroe on Feb 7, 2012 5:32:15 GMT -5
Laws o' the Land
Before you begin to role play, there are some basic ground rules that need be laid down. Please take a couple of minutes to read them.
First thing's first, this site is made PG-13 due to Proboards TOS.
||Registration||
We do not care what username you sign up with (as long as it is not vulgar or otherwise inappropriate). As long at some point before you get accepted or right after you change it to reflect your character's name, this goes for you Chatbox username as well.
||General
Be polite - respect your fellow roleplayers.
Roleplaying - Please do not post any in-character roleplay topics or replies until your character application is approved; while the staff strive to get to applications quickly there are times where it may take a few days. Please be patient and understanding.
Post often - if you're going to be gone for an extended amount of time or no longer want to be a member, let us know in the Absence List section.
Tagging - In topics it's a good idea to 'tag' what characters are involved. Clearly define your private RP. A private RP is simply role playing between a certain party of people who want to roleplay together with no outside interference. You can spot a private RP because it will have the character’s names in brackets and will sometimes include a title, such as:
In the Snow [Theresa, Leonard, Rob]
When you see this, DO NOT interfere with this thread. They don’t want you to jump in and if they do, they’ll ask. Just go about the RP without them, and if you really want to be a part of it, ask permission first.
If the thread does not have a bracketed list of names in it, or if it says [OPEN], it means anyone may reply. It's fair game!
We ask that when you create a new RP thread to make sure you post a date at the top of the topic. You don't need to put it in every reply you make, just the very first post. Format is pretty much up to you but please make sure you are putting at least the Month, Day and Year.
[ The code-word for your application is: Bushwacked ]
||Content[/color]||
All roleplay posts should be written in third person and in past tense.
Avoid one-liners - the only place you should have any replies like this is in the OOC or chat topics. Remember it can be very difficult to reply to such short posts :: There's so much you can add to your in-character posts - help give your fellow roleplayers enough to go off of for their own replies. Be descriptive!
Proofread before you post, that includes spelling and grammar - we have a spellcheck function to help with this - we understand not everything can be perfect all of the time, mistakes happen, but if Proboards doesn't catch the mistake, you can always use www/dictionary/com to check your spelling or even help you diversify your word choice.
Don't use netspeak, ever.
Capitalize things that should be; names, ships, planets, ect.
Speech should be put into quotations (" ") and bold, while thoughts should be put into apostrophes (' ') and italicized -- text colors and formats are up to you, just make sure it is easily legible against the board's backdrop.
Stay in-character in your roleplay posts, if we notice your character going way off from their application we may PM you about it -- characters grow and change over time, but if your character is described as a shy person who doesn't drink and the first post you make is them getting drunk and being the center of attention -- we will have a problem with that.
Before you post, check the basics:
*Does my entry fit in with what's going on?
*Is everything spelled correctly (especially Firefly terms)?
*Does my entry make sense?
*Am I leaving anything out?
*Is this entry long enough?
OOC in IC posts - Sometimes it's necessary to make a note for a fellow roleplayer in your character's post and this is fine to do. When you do this simply clearly define that this is an OOC notation. For example:
Leigh was making her way down the corridor when she bumped into Trey. “What are you doing down here?” she hissed, “This is my patrol route!”
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OOC: Trey IS an officer, right?
You use the Out-of-Character speak to ask RP-related questions, or specify something RP-related. If you don’t have to use it, don’t. It clutters up the RP space and nobody cares what you have to say on the side. If you want to talk about something non-RP, you can PM them about it or visit the OOC threads located at the bottom of the forum. Remember, posts are like pages in a book, try to write them as such.
||Characters[/color]||
Characters in the 'verse should all be human.
Mary Sue and her brother Gary are not welcome in the 'Verse. We all know who they are right? He/she’s the most beautiful, popular, talented, perfect person you’ll ever meet. This person is also extremely dull and incredibly unrealistic. That is the exact opposite of what you should be striving for.
When creating your character, flaws are a must. Nobody is perfect, and those who are are hated by everyone anyway. It’s easy to make a flawless character; challenge yourself!
Please do not register canons. A lot of sites use them, but The 'Verse does not. While it would be cool and awesome to play as Malcolm Reynolds himself, the administration does not believe there is anyone save for Joss Whedon perhaps who can play a canon in-character and stay active. Canon Relatives are fine as long as their existence is believable.
Don’t feel obligated to give your character special abilities. Your character can still be productive by having no other skill than good old-fashioned working skills. Though few realize it, perfection is often what other role players despise. The less-perfect your character is, the more fun it’ll be to play them.
Characters should be represented by real people; celebrities, models, singers, ect. No cartoons, or anime or other CG type characters here please. Graphics should be sized/re-sized so that they don't stretch the boards. Avatars should be no larger than 200x300 and Signatures should be no longer than 500x300 - if your graphic stretches the board we may remove it completely from your profile.
Character Limits:
Upon joining the board you may create up to 2 characters. A 3rd character may be created after one month of activity and a 4th character may be created after three months of activity. Any additional character slots need to be requested from the staff and all active staff must be in agreement. *Please only send your request to one staff member, they will handle getting with the other staff members.
||God-Mode||
This is mainly an issue of common sense, but even the most experienced roleplayers make this error sometimes. It’s a very common error. It is the issue of playing YOUR character, and only your character.
It can be hard to write just for your character, but how would you feel if someone said that your character did something that you did not state that you did? How could they know that your character is dong that?
Do NOT, and I repeat, do NOT say a character did or said something when the character has not already stated it. It will upset and possibly anger the other person. The only time it is okay to assume is when you have permission from the person you're playing with. GET PERMISSION!
Nothing may be assumed in roleplay. Ever. Period.
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[ Now that you've reached the end of the rules; the real code-word is: Shindig ]
If you have any questions, comments, concerns or anything else like that please feel free to message one of the staff members. ~ We are here to help![/center]
