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What are the general rules?
In general, the major rules are to be respectful of other players, do not god-mod (forcefully take control of characters or dictate what your character can do to them without giving them a chance to respond), metagame (use out-of-character knowledge in-character despite your character having no way of having this knowledge), and generally remain in-character.
Because of the nature of the game, we also ask that you make use of the Plot Community to coordinate with other players, and try to keep in contact with them to ensure nobody is accidentally hurt or offended. Communication is very important, and we have tried to facilitate it as best we can so we ask you to make use of the tools offered to keep the game running smoothly and have it remain fun for everybody.
What is a good rule of thumb for judging whether I should ask someone first before having my character do something?
In general, you should always ask the other player if your action will cause an enormous and potentially unwanted change to the character's state in the game, such as arranging a marriage involving that character or ordering the character to be executed. However, most incidental things can just be broached ICly, the characters are free to respond as they will. Most issues will arise with characters who are ICly higher-ranking, while the character beneath them is obligated to follow their orders that does not mean the player is somewhat obligated to follow your orders, so if it's going to be a big deal always ask first.
ICly of course characters are free to disobey their rulers and rulers are free to mete out punishment, but if it's going to be a big deal such as "do this for me or I'll have you killed" you need to ask first. Ordering a subordinate character to go stand guard at a rainy outpost for a day because they refused to get your ruler a muffin, however? Not a big deal.
How does the major communication mode work?
All characters possess magic crystals that mark them as beings of destiny. In addition, these crystals can act as a messaging system, allowing them to send text or even visual messages to any other crystal bearer. These messages can be broadcast to everybody, or filtered to certain people, although how well the filter works is based on how disciplined the character is and how well they are at using the system (in general characters with magic training or highly disciplined minds are much better at it).
Even if a character is capable of making a message unhackable, however, any entry, no matter how private can be viewed with the use of the Hierophant Tarot Card.
How does travel work?
Normally, characters can travel between provinces instantaneously via use of the Waypoint crystals. However, should they wish to move an army, travel can take days or even weeks. In general, if its a case of a big combat log you can assume some time lapse and handwave it, as logs often take several days to complete. As a general rule though, most of the time an enemy ruler should have time to react, logistics only become important if it's advantageous to the plot (for example, someone launches a ploy to draw an army out of position so they can smash a province before the defenders arrive, but due to some daring measures they manage to get there just in the nick of time).
How do Tarot Cards work?
Characters gain 3 Tarot cards upon being apped in, representing their past, present, and future. They can acquire more via trading with each other, or through special plot events that the mods run. Tarot cards can be used once for a special effect and are expended, and finding a new Tarot card is considered a prophetic omen - the Tarot represents something that will happen to the character in the future.
Trading Tarot cards does not give any prophetic effect.
How do Magic Items and Artifacts work?
Magic Items are generally given to kingdom rulers and are considered to be present in their store rooms every few months. These items can be gifted or traded to other characters, and they give effects, usually in combat, that can be considered useful but tend not to change the dynamic of the character's abilities too greatly, it's more in the nature of giving them more options (such as a sword that can catch fire).
Characters may be apped with magic items, so long as they don't go overboard with them.
Artifacts, on the other hand, require some pre-planning, usually in the application although the mods will also create some special artifacts. Artifacts are usually sentient and will often be tied into either mod or player plots. They tend to be more powerful than magic items, generating several effects, and can change the course of a character's life for better or for worse. No character can gain an artifact without first clearing the artifact and the plot involved with the mods.
How many characters may I app?
You may app 1 character at a time, to a maximum of 5 normally. However, every month, we will hold an activity check, where you can earn an additional slot by meeting double the activity requirements with every character in your roster. There is no limit to how many extra slots that may be earned, but should any of your characters fail activity check, you will lose a number of additional slots equal to the number of failed activity checks.
What is the activity requirement?
You must make a single post or a 5-comment thread, with at least 3 of the comments in the thread being from you. If you are trying to meet double activity to earn additional slots, you may use threads that were made in a post by your character.
Are regular canon characters allowed or do all characters need to be Alternate Universe versions?
Because this is an AU game, all characters must be "Alternate Universe," you take the pre-existing character as a base and alter their history and backstory to fit the setting. That said, many characters are easily altered into the setting, and depending on the character we may not require much in the way of backstory tinkering.
Can I app an Original Character?
OCs are welcome, they must be tailored to fit the setting like any normal character. OCs are also held to higher standards in terms of background, personality, strengths, weaknesses and abilities - because we have no canon information with which to go on we need a more complete app to ensure we have a handle on who the original character is and where they are coming from.
How powerful can my characters be?
No matter how powerful a character might be in canon, we are generally equalizing the various abilities of characters in this setting. While they might be a powerful mage or warrior, most player characters will be strong enough to take on a large number of standard soldiers, but will be in trouble if surrounded by a lot of soldiers or elite soldiers. Characters are also generally considered to be equal to each other as well, with higher-ranking characters or characters with artifacts holding a slight edge. In general though, combat and warfare should be part of a plot, so the ones who win should be the one who's victory is best for the plot.
What if we can't decide who should win a battle?
If you can't decide, you are welcome and encouraged to contact the mods either via AIM or by messaging the mod journal. We will assess the situation and give our call. The more information you can give us the better, we may even be able to help extrapolate on how the battle might go to make it more interesting.
How does death work in the game?
If a character dies, they are considered to be gone and should be dropped. However, as part of a plot, a character can be resurrected. The most common way this happens is for a character to either fight or trick their way out of the afterlife, in which case they are returned to life although they may be hounded by servants of the ruler of the afterlife they escaped from, depending on the nature of their escape.
If returning to life is part of your plot, please tell a mod. Any character that wishes to revive may do so, although it may require some logging beforehand.
Can I app a dropped or killed character?
Yes. When a character is dropped, they usually fall off the grid, in some cases it may mean they are still active and in possession of their crystal, in other cases it may mean that they lose their crystal or their crystal is broken and they have just acquired a new one. It can even mean the character has died, thus causing their crystal to go dark.
If the dropped character did not die, you can simply pick them up where they left off, determining the details as you wish. If a character is dead, the character will have to have escaped from the afterlife somehow. Upon returning to the physical world they will find their crystal has taken light again and it will once again be active.
Re-apped characters gain all the Tarot cards they had when dropped, and will be given extra cards up to 3 if they do not have at least 3.
How do I ask a question that isn't addressed here?
Please feel free to comment below and ask, or IM or PM one of the mods with the question and we will be happy to answer it.