Character Plot Policies and Guidelines: Character Histories and Downtime Writeups

Making a Character

So you want to make a character! Awesome. There are a few steps involved:

1. Download an e-copy or purchase a hard copy of the Alliance LARP rulebook here. This will explain the mechanics of creating a character and the basics of the In-Game world.
2. Download the Deadlands Player's Guide here. This is an In-Game document explaining the recent history of our chapter and describing the general feel of our world.
3. Once you've chosen your race, download the corresponding National race packet here. This contains further details about the race as a whole.
4. Email DeadlandsCharPlot@gmail.com and request our chapter-specific race packet. This is a history of the race on Laerthan, both ancient and recent, and any chapter-specific customs, traditions, enemies, etc.


Character Histories

When submitting your character history to our Plot team, please write "Character History: [Character Name]" in the heading of your email so we know what to look for. Please include the below sections, either in the body of the email or in an attached document.

Vital Statistics: Character name, Race, Class, Starting level, Player name
Keywords: 3-6 words or two-word phrases that highlight important aspects of your character. These could be things like: Enemy: Fever Grey, Shy, Drunk, Protective: Children, Hiding, Pacifist, Fear: Spiders, Sailor, Hates: Slavery, Ally: Fever Grey, etc.

Main Body: This can be presented as a story, a series of journal entries or letters, a bulleted list, an IM conversation, anything that makes it easy for you to communicate about who your character is and what they've done with their life so far. Some things that should be included are Family, Friends (if any), Enemies (if any), and Personality (if any. #stoneelfburn). Some things that should not be included are How you slayed teh dragon, How you're really 50th level but you're pretending to be level 2, How your father is secretly the King of Syraandor, How you're actually half fey, etc. To clarify: it's perfectly okay to say that your family was killed by Lord Voldemort and you have a startling scar. It's not okay to say that everyone says you're the chosen one and that there's a prophecy linking you and Voldemort. That sort of thing is up to Plot to decide.

Please don't hesitate to ask questions of Plot to help determine the details of your character history. We're here to help!

The person in charge of character plot will email you if they have any questions, clarifications or modifications to make, and will work with you to integrate your character into the world. Once we have reviewed and accepted your history, we will notify you and you will be cleared for takeoff!


In-Between Game Actions

Length: Submissions should be no more than one page, preferably no more than two paragraphs. Providing lengthy prose to include all the details and your character’s feelings is perfectly fine, as it gives Plot more insight into your character’s motivations and will let them better guide your actions. But if you do that, please also provide a brief bullet-point summary to ensure what’s important to you is what we respond to.

Deadlines: The deadlines for submissions during the season will be the Monday one week after the event, at 11:59pm. Winter deadlines will vary from season to season and will be visibly posted when announced, but New Years Eve is always a safe bet. If you submit your request after the deadline, we cannot guarantee a response.

Eligibility: You may submit an IBGA for an event you attended or pay-no-played. If you know you will only be able to attend one or two events per season (or you plan to NPC multiple events in a row) but your character still plans to remain active on Laerthan in the interim, you may submit an IBGA after the event you attended that covers a longer length of time. If you are not able to attend or pay-no-play an event, you may participate in a group writeup including at least four other PCs who attended, but please do not expect to the main focus of the response. Due to the large number of IBGAs we receive, we must restrict our responses to active players.

Solo vs. Group Submissions: Group submissions are highly encouraged and groups of four or more will be rewarded 30 gobbies per person for making Plot’s lives easier. The submission must have the emails of every participant included by CC, and every participant must send us a confirmation that they are in fact attending. All confirmations must be received before the stated deadline. If you do not have a valid email appended to the submission or you do not confirm your participation you are extremely unlikely to be included in the response.

If you submit an IBGA as part of a group, please do not also submit a solo action unless it is very concise (a letter to an NPC, for example). If you are part of a group you will be considered to be part of that group for the entire between-event period. If you do also submit a solo action, please do so in a separate email.

Time: Remember that our game occurs in real time, and the length of time covered in an IBGA is exactly how much time is in between events. A submission of “I wander the entire Deadlands uniting the High Orc clans!” cannot be achieved in a month’s time, or even a winter’s time. Please take time needed to achieve your goals into account when submitting your action.

Reponses: Do not expect significant events to occur in downtime writeups as a matter of course; we would much prefer important moments occur In Game. In that vein, it is always a possibility that Plot’s response to your request will be just that: “This will be handled In-Game”. If you receive such a response, please be patient, and we will find a way to make your request happen during an event.

Players with questions are encouraged to speak with the writer of their response or player of the central NPC involved during downtime at game if and when that person is available. In the event that clarifying information is given out in this manner it is the player’s responsibility to include the main points of that conversation in their next submission to character plot so that it will be in our records. Any information not emailed for conformation may not be seen as valid and canon.

The reasons for these policy shifts are that we want to ensure all players who submit character actions receive equal treatment and to encourage our players to collaborate with and include any people who would be interested in participating. We feel this is both better for the game’s atmosphere and our ability to provide quality plot to everyone.

If you have any questions, please ask them here and we will answer them.
 
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IBGA Policy Update, to take effect after our 2015 season opener, May 22-24 (all winter submissions have been/will be honoured):

You may submit an In-Between Game Action for an event you attended or pay-no-played. Standard deadline still applies (the Monday one week after the event, at 11:59pm). If you know you will only be able to attend one or two events per season (or you plan to NPC multiple events in a row) but your character still plans to remain active on Laerthan in the interim, you may submit an IBGA after the event you attended that covers a longer length of time. If you are not able to attend or pay-no-play an event, you may participate in a group writeup including AT LEAST four other PCs who attended, but please do not expect to the main focus of the response. Due to the large number of IBGAs we receive, we must restrict our responses to active players.

(This will shortly be integrated into the full policy above)
 
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