Ysgard RP Rules and Info

Info

The Winds of Ysgard is a narrative rp. This means that you don't need to roll dice, and you don't need to consult the GM for all of your character's actions. Posts should be written in third person, like chapters in a book with multiple viewpoints, and in past tense. Write what's in character, and within reason. React to what other people write, and interact with other characters as much as possible. Be creative--you can introduce your own subplots and decide your own character arcs, although it is always a good idea to check with the GM. The GM's responsibility is to shape the overall plot, control the pace of the story, and make sure that everyone is as involved as they can be. They act more like an editor than a narrator. Your goal is to help create a story that is as interesting and fluid as possible, and to have fun doing it!


Rules

• No god-modding. Only post your own character's words and actions; don't make other people's characters do anything in your post unless they have agreed to it explicitly beforehand. This extends to assumptions about other character's reactions, like writing that everyone in the room was surprised or afraid.
  
• Player characters cannot be killed unless the player gives consent. This extends to things like major injuries or life changes--lifting a curse someone had since birth, etc. Player agreement is essential for anything that will have a lasting effect on their character.
  
• The GM must approve of all major plot events before they are introduced to the story. It would be awesome to get everyone contributing to the plot, but we don't want chaos. Check in before introducing subplots, new enemies, new NPCs, etc.
  
• Be reasonable about your character's abilities. What your character does needs to be consistent with what was approved in their bio, and the rules of the world around them.
  
• You can play only as many characters as you can handle. That is, post regularly with. I think that everyone is welcome to make a second character for sure, but for more than two there's going to be more consideration involved. Let's say the hard limit is four. Creating and dropping characters one after another is definitely discouraged. If you need a character for something but don't want the commitment, write up an NPC instead!
  
• The GM has the final word. Discussion and player plotting is encouraged, but to keep things simple, what the GM decides about the world and the story is how it goes.

Breaking any of these rules, or badly violating the guidelines below, will result in a strike. After one or two strikes, the GM and other players will work with you about what went wrong IC or OOC. If you're willing to learn and change that behavior, the strikes can be removed. If not, a third strike will result in you being asked to leave the game.

Inactivity

If you are inactive for a week or more, your character may be moved along by the GM, depending on the speed of the action and if your character is holding up anything. If you are inactive for a month or more, your character may be removed from play (separated from the group, decides to stay at a location while the group moves on, missing presumed dead, etc). Conclusively killing off inactive characters would be done only when absolutely necessary to the story and after a long absence, or with the player's consent.

If you anticipate being unable to reply to the rp for any reason, please tell the GM so in-character arrangements can be made, and you can choose how your character is handled for the duration. If you choose, you can even entrust your character to another player to move them along while you are gone.

As a note, there is no set posting order for this rp. Players may post as often as they are able, although the plot should not be advanced too far without all of the active players being caught up.


Guidelines & RP Ettiquette

Because people are going to have varying levels of familiarity with this type of rping, here are some guidelines that might be a little more subtle. A lot of this is common sense, but it's good to have written down!

• Give what you get. There are definitely no minimum wordcount rules for this rp, because length doesn't necessarily equal quality of writing, and short posts are often completely necessary for dialogue. But a good rule of thumb is that you should be trying to match what others are giving you in terms of effort. Don't sweat this too much, though: people have different styles.
  
• You are not your character. A character might be negative towards your character IC, but that doesn't mean their player dislikes you! On the flipside, don't let OOC disagreements turn IC.
  
• Communicate with other players; when in doubt, ask permission. Like talking to the GM about plot points, you should talk to other players if you want something to happen between your characters, like romance or rivalry. This can depend on play styles, as many people prefer to have character relationships develop completely naturally, but it doesn't hurt to bring things up as a possibility. For sure, if you're dead set on something happening with another character and would be disappointed if it didn't, let the other player know what you're thinking.
  
• Your fun shouldn't come at the expense of someone else's fun. Rping is a collaborative effort, not competitive; don't set out to overshadow other players, solve every problem yourself, or insist that things be done one way and one way only. It works best when everyone is trying to help the story and all the characters in it, rather than only their own character.
  
• Roll with the story. Even if the story doesn't seem to be going your way, you might be surprised by the new possibilities that come up when things don't go as planned. The fun (and often also challenging) thing about rping is reacting in-character to ideas that come from someone's else's imagination. Ignoring actions or dialogue that don't benefit your character, or are difficult to react to, is wasting some of that potential.