Rules
Rules
Please take the time to read these carefully and fully, as they contain some elements that aren't common across LJ RP. Any changes or updates to the rules will be announced on the OOC comm so that all players are aware.
• No godmoding or info-modding
The only character whose actions you may control is your own. Though there will certainly be occasions when it is up to players to NPC townsfolk or shopkeepers who their characters encounter, you may not control the actions of any other player's character without their express permission. This includes actions in combat: your character may throw a punch at another, but it is ultimately the other player's decision whether the punch connects.
Remember that no character, no matter how powerful, is purely invincible, especially in this setting. You cannot simply circumvent or ignore the consequences of your character's actions because you prefer to avoid the repercussions of how you've played of them.
Info-modding, which means allowing OOC knowledge to bleed into IC knowledge and inform a character's actions or opinions, is also expressly forbidden. If you can't think specifically where or when your character would have learned a piece of information, then you should check to make sure that they do indeed know it. The mods will ask players to retcon actions or threads that proceed from knowledge that a character would not actually have access to. If in doubt about whether your character would know a given piece of information, please check with the mods.
• Stay in character
Of course everyone has their own interpretation of a character and variations are inevitable. That said, players should make every effort to represent their character in ways that are consistent with their canon characterizations. We have a crack comm (miscterium) for playing out bits of absurdity and general goofing off, so please do make use of it.
• IC ≠ OOC
Please keep the border between in-character and out-of-character interactions, utterances, and knowledge clear. Don't superimpose a character's personality onto their player, and don't use your character as a mouthpiece to air your views with impunity. In-character actions will have in-character consequences. Out-of-character actions will have out-of-character consequences.
• Playercesting
Developing long and elaborate CR between two characters who you play defeats the purpose of an RPG. If that's the sort of dynamic you want, you'd probably be better off writing fic. Try to keep any interactions between characters you play to a minimum; leave them implied or inferred.
• Good Conduct and Good Citizenship
We expect players to conduct themselves as adults and to be ethical in all their interactions with fellow players and mods at all times. That means both respecting differences of preference, desire, and identity, as well as being thoughtful and self-reflexive, keeping in mind the enjoyment of others as well as one's self. And, of course, it means not harassing other players.
We think of all this as a matter of "good citizenship"--it is perfectly acceptable to disagree or to have dissenting views. It is acceptable and productive to express those, provided they are expressed in respectful, non-abusive ways, and we encourage players to do so. What is absolutely not acceptable is making straw-man arguments or ad hominem attacks, whether they be directed at fellow players or mods.
We also do not consider submitting Roleplay Secrets, no matter how seemingly "positive" their tone, to be an act of good citizenship. We understand that there are some worthy uses for anon discussion and that it can give a valuable outlet for those who feel, for whatever reason, that they cannot sign their name to their views. We certainly make no effort to restrict players' from anon discussion, but using anon discussion merely to stir drama or wank for one's own amusement or pleasure (or to create a spectacle for one's own entertainment at the expense of others) is clearly not ethical conduct nor good citizenship.
As mods, we see our priorities as lying with those players who have shown themselves over time to be assets to the game, who have consistently demonstrated good citizenship, good conduct, and consistent activity. This is not to say that we don't welcome new players into that group nor that we have an a priori designated group to whom we give preference. Rather, it is saying that we seek to facilitate good citizenship practices by rewarding them when we see them. This may mean, for example, that these players are more often approached regarding upcoming plot developments and that unique opportunities are offered to their characters.
• Player conflicts
If you are having a conflict with another player in a matter that pertains to the game, please don't hesitate to bring it to our attention. If you ask for our help, we will do our best to arbitrate and help to resolve the issue, though keep in mind that players are expected to conduct themselves as adults and that the mods are not going to act as anyone's parents.
• Serial Apping/Dropping, Idling Out, Binge Apping, and Bad Citizenship
We appreciate how deeply true it is that players make the game--any game lives and dies by its players' devotion and engagement, and the introduction of new characters necessarily alters the landscape, as do drops, particularly of characters who've been especially active and long-standing.
It will be our objective to reduce as much as possible the "revolving door" and mass-enabling dynamics that often plague games. Though we are aware that some characters just don't work in a setting, despite a player's best intentions, we strongly discourage patterns of apping a character just to drop and app another, and we may bar players from making subsequent applications if the pattern persists.
We consider choosing to idle out, rather than just dropping a character when the player has already decided that they don't intend to continue playing them, to be bad citizenship. It leaves others in the lurch and shows a general lack of consideration for players still in the game. (You don't even have to make an OOC drop post if you don't want to--the drop and hiatus page has an easy to use form just for this purpose.)
• Activity
Players will be required to fill out monthly activity checks. Specific requirements can be found here. Only hiatuses posted on the official hiatus page will count for activity requirements. Players will also be required to participate in the in-house HMD which will be held every other month. Character squatting, by which we mean consistently maintaining only a bare minimum or activity and/or repeated hiatusing and reduced activity, is harmful to the game dynamics overall and will be dealt with on a case-by case basis.
• Age Restrictions and NC-17 Content
While we have not set a minimum age for player participation in the game, we will ask for and maintain a record of which players are under 18 years old. These players will be designated with a [♦] on the taken page. This is done so that other players may make informed decisions about whom they will play mature themes and material with. Misrepresenting your age is duplicitous to fellow players, and anyone who we learn has done so will be banned from the game.
NC-17 rated material should be f-locked, placed behind an LJ cut with appropriate warnings provided. We request that players who are under the age of consent in their local jurisdiction not post NC-17 material in the game comms.
• Fourth-Walling of Cthluhu Mythos
We realize that many of Lovecraft’s creations (Cthulhu not least of all) have become popular mass culture icons and that some characters might well be able to justify making references to Lovecraft’s fiction. However for the sake of game atmosphere and the integrity of the game world, fourth-walling with regards to H.P. Lovecraft or any element of his world/ Mythos are not allowed. This includes characters slyly or secretly being in-the-know, but just keeping tight-lipped about it all.
For practical purposes, no character entering the game will have any knowledge of Lovecraftian fiction. You can imagine that any such knowledge or awareness has been fully erased from their minds upon entry to the world, leaving behind not so much as a trace. (If you absolutely positively could not play your character without them breaking the fourth-wall to make references to the Mythos, they are probably not a good match for the atmosphere of this setting.)
• Avoid Anachronisms
The game takes place in an early 1920's American setting. Players should keep in mind historical accuracy when envisioning and describing the environment, its infrastructure, culture, and technology level. This may mean doing a bit of internet research into the era to make sure that you're keeping the tech level appropriate. Of course there will be times when needed historical info will be too obscure or specialized to be garnered from what google or wikipedia can provide. In those cases, use good judgment in trying not to break the setting. However if checking up on historical facts and developments sounds about as much fun for you as a root canal, then keep in mind that this game might not be a good match.
• You Can’t Hack the Thing That Should Not Be
Mysterium Tremendum is not a “Lovecraft Lite” setting, which means that NO character, no matter how powerful in canon, how clever, how resourceful, or how skilled, may punch out Cthulhu. Characters may, however, find that they have broken their arm punching out Cthulhu.
General Notes, Disclaimers, and Credits
Lovecraft was in many ways very much a product of his time, and the world of horrors he created bears some undeniable marks of racism, xenophobia, and Orientalism. There is both a fear and a fascination with the mysticism of the Other in Lovecraft’s Mythos. In fact, in some ways, it is the encounter with Otherness that most explicitly marks the dread of mysterium tremendum in Lovecraft’s works.
The mods certainly do not condone any of these racist or xenophobic panics. We see them as a mark of both the historical moment and the fictional corpus of Lovecraftian horror, and thus don’t seek to erase or prettify them. Of the many horrific things that there are to encounter in Lovecraft’s world, these forms of prejudice may be the most enduring and the most quotidian, and it falls to each of us to maintain a critical consciousness of them and of the legacies they still bear out today.
~
Given the breadth of texts dealing with Lovecraft’s mythos and the challenge of such a vast body of work, the mods have drawn liberally from Chaosium Books tabletop RPG Call of Cthulhu and its sourcebooks. Many (though not all) of our maps are owing to these texts.
Please take the time to read these carefully and fully, as they contain some elements that aren't common across LJ RP. Any changes or updates to the rules will be announced on the OOC comm so that all players are aware.
• No godmoding or info-modding
The only character whose actions you may control is your own. Though there will certainly be occasions when it is up to players to NPC townsfolk or shopkeepers who their characters encounter, you may not control the actions of any other player's character without their express permission. This includes actions in combat: your character may throw a punch at another, but it is ultimately the other player's decision whether the punch connects.
Remember that no character, no matter how powerful, is purely invincible, especially in this setting. You cannot simply circumvent or ignore the consequences of your character's actions because you prefer to avoid the repercussions of how you've played of them.
Info-modding, which means allowing OOC knowledge to bleed into IC knowledge and inform a character's actions or opinions, is also expressly forbidden. If you can't think specifically where or when your character would have learned a piece of information, then you should check to make sure that they do indeed know it. The mods will ask players to retcon actions or threads that proceed from knowledge that a character would not actually have access to. If in doubt about whether your character would know a given piece of information, please check with the mods.
• Stay in character
Of course everyone has their own interpretation of a character and variations are inevitable. That said, players should make every effort to represent their character in ways that are consistent with their canon characterizations. We have a crack comm (miscterium) for playing out bits of absurdity and general goofing off, so please do make use of it.
• IC ≠ OOC
Please keep the border between in-character and out-of-character interactions, utterances, and knowledge clear. Don't superimpose a character's personality onto their player, and don't use your character as a mouthpiece to air your views with impunity. In-character actions will have in-character consequences. Out-of-character actions will have out-of-character consequences.
• Playercesting
Developing long and elaborate CR between two characters who you play defeats the purpose of an RPG. If that's the sort of dynamic you want, you'd probably be better off writing fic. Try to keep any interactions between characters you play to a minimum; leave them implied or inferred.
• Good Conduct and Good Citizenship
We expect players to conduct themselves as adults and to be ethical in all their interactions with fellow players and mods at all times. That means both respecting differences of preference, desire, and identity, as well as being thoughtful and self-reflexive, keeping in mind the enjoyment of others as well as one's self. And, of course, it means not harassing other players.
We think of all this as a matter of "good citizenship"--it is perfectly acceptable to disagree or to have dissenting views. It is acceptable and productive to express those, provided they are expressed in respectful, non-abusive ways, and we encourage players to do so. What is absolutely not acceptable is making straw-man arguments or ad hominem attacks, whether they be directed at fellow players or mods.
We also do not consider submitting Roleplay Secrets, no matter how seemingly "positive" their tone, to be an act of good citizenship. We understand that there are some worthy uses for anon discussion and that it can give a valuable outlet for those who feel, for whatever reason, that they cannot sign their name to their views. We certainly make no effort to restrict players' from anon discussion, but using anon discussion merely to stir drama or wank for one's own amusement or pleasure (or to create a spectacle for one's own entertainment at the expense of others) is clearly not ethical conduct nor good citizenship.
As mods, we see our priorities as lying with those players who have shown themselves over time to be assets to the game, who have consistently demonstrated good citizenship, good conduct, and consistent activity. This is not to say that we don't welcome new players into that group nor that we have an a priori designated group to whom we give preference. Rather, it is saying that we seek to facilitate good citizenship practices by rewarding them when we see them. This may mean, for example, that these players are more often approached regarding upcoming plot developments and that unique opportunities are offered to their characters.
• Player conflicts
If you are having a conflict with another player in a matter that pertains to the game, please don't hesitate to bring it to our attention. If you ask for our help, we will do our best to arbitrate and help to resolve the issue, though keep in mind that players are expected to conduct themselves as adults and that the mods are not going to act as anyone's parents.
• Serial Apping/Dropping, Idling Out, Binge Apping, and Bad Citizenship
We appreciate how deeply true it is that players make the game--any game lives and dies by its players' devotion and engagement, and the introduction of new characters necessarily alters the landscape, as do drops, particularly of characters who've been especially active and long-standing.
It will be our objective to reduce as much as possible the "revolving door" and mass-enabling dynamics that often plague games. Though we are aware that some characters just don't work in a setting, despite a player's best intentions, we strongly discourage patterns of apping a character just to drop and app another, and we may bar players from making subsequent applications if the pattern persists.
We consider choosing to idle out, rather than just dropping a character when the player has already decided that they don't intend to continue playing them, to be bad citizenship. It leaves others in the lurch and shows a general lack of consideration for players still in the game. (You don't even have to make an OOC drop post if you don't want to--the drop and hiatus page has an easy to use form just for this purpose.)
• Activity
Players will be required to fill out monthly activity checks. Specific requirements can be found here. Only hiatuses posted on the official hiatus page will count for activity requirements. Players will also be required to participate in the in-house HMD which will be held every other month. Character squatting, by which we mean consistently maintaining only a bare minimum or activity and/or repeated hiatusing and reduced activity, is harmful to the game dynamics overall and will be dealt with on a case-by case basis.
• Age Restrictions and NC-17 Content
While we have not set a minimum age for player participation in the game, we will ask for and maintain a record of which players are under 18 years old. These players will be designated with a [♦] on the taken page. This is done so that other players may make informed decisions about whom they will play mature themes and material with. Misrepresenting your age is duplicitous to fellow players, and anyone who we learn has done so will be banned from the game.
NC-17 rated material should be f-locked, placed behind an LJ cut with appropriate warnings provided. We request that players who are under the age of consent in their local jurisdiction not post NC-17 material in the game comms.
• Fourth-Walling of Cthluhu Mythos
We realize that many of Lovecraft’s creations (Cthulhu not least of all) have become popular mass culture icons and that some characters might well be able to justify making references to Lovecraft’s fiction. However for the sake of game atmosphere and the integrity of the game world, fourth-walling with regards to H.P. Lovecraft or any element of his world/ Mythos are not allowed. This includes characters slyly or secretly being in-the-know, but just keeping tight-lipped about it all.
For practical purposes, no character entering the game will have any knowledge of Lovecraftian fiction. You can imagine that any such knowledge or awareness has been fully erased from their minds upon entry to the world, leaving behind not so much as a trace. (If you absolutely positively could not play your character without them breaking the fourth-wall to make references to the Mythos, they are probably not a good match for the atmosphere of this setting.)
• Avoid Anachronisms
The game takes place in an early 1920's American setting. Players should keep in mind historical accuracy when envisioning and describing the environment, its infrastructure, culture, and technology level. This may mean doing a bit of internet research into the era to make sure that you're keeping the tech level appropriate. Of course there will be times when needed historical info will be too obscure or specialized to be garnered from what google or wikipedia can provide. In those cases, use good judgment in trying not to break the setting. However if checking up on historical facts and developments sounds about as much fun for you as a root canal, then keep in mind that this game might not be a good match.
• You Can’t Hack the Thing That Should Not Be
Mysterium Tremendum is not a “Lovecraft Lite” setting, which means that NO character, no matter how powerful in canon, how clever, how resourceful, or how skilled, may punch out Cthulhu. Characters may, however, find that they have broken their arm punching out Cthulhu.
General Notes, Disclaimers, and Credits
Lovecraft was in many ways very much a product of his time, and the world of horrors he created bears some undeniable marks of racism, xenophobia, and Orientalism. There is both a fear and a fascination with the mysticism of the Other in Lovecraft’s Mythos. In fact, in some ways, it is the encounter with Otherness that most explicitly marks the dread of mysterium tremendum in Lovecraft’s works.
The mods certainly do not condone any of these racist or xenophobic panics. We see them as a mark of both the historical moment and the fictional corpus of Lovecraftian horror, and thus don’t seek to erase or prettify them. Of the many horrific things that there are to encounter in Lovecraft’s world, these forms of prejudice may be the most enduring and the most quotidian, and it falls to each of us to maintain a critical consciousness of them and of the legacies they still bear out today.
~
Given the breadth of texts dealing with Lovecraft’s mythos and the challenge of such a vast body of work, the mods have drawn liberally from Chaosium Books tabletop RPG Call of Cthulhu and its sourcebooks. Many (though not all) of our maps are owing to these texts.