Out of Character (OOC) Chatter

I think it's covered in the character application walk-through, but just in case it's not:


Just like I wouldn't accept eight characters of the same ethnicity, I won't be accepting eight female characters. I want everyone to make something they like (I haven't seen an Asian character yet, they aren't forbidden if you want to make one) but I also wanted to give this head's up. There are a lot of reasons for this- it wouldn't make sense to only take women on a mission any more than it'd make sense to only take ethnically Japanese, I personally dislike harem stuff, I want a balance for NPC interactions, etc.


So again, please make the character you want to make in terms of gender, school, and ethnicity, but also realize if you're trying to convince your friend(s) to join and make female characters, I will probably only be taking five! If for some reason everyone starts making dudes, I will also only take a maximum of five male characters, but will aim to just choose the most compelling characters.


For example: If I have 15 applications, 7 male and 8 female, I'll pick the subjectively best 8 with no more than 5 women or 5 men so it may be 5/3, 4/4, or 3/5. If I decide that of the 7 male applications only 2 were good because 5 made medieval characters that don't know how to speak English, then the balance might be 5/2.


Hope that makes sense!


Also please feel free to keep asking questions here or send me any questions you might have via PM.
 
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Just dropping by to say hello. I posted a very rough WIP of my character, and I would do more but it's currently 12.30am and I would like to keep my sleeping somewhat consistent this week xD  Will pick it up again tomorrow and flesh her out more!


^ Yay for more asians. 
 
No problem, the character applications aren't due for another week so we have plenty of time!
 
@Syrenrei I don't understand what you mean by an advantage in the hidden part of the CS. Do you mean what they can do well? The explaining part in the character skeleton doesn't help me understand it any better :/ .
 
I'm surprised to notice that despite all of these different applications finally coming out, I'm still the only agitator.  I would've thought it'd end up a more crowded choice.
 
@Collinbu98 can't speak for everybody, but I tried to somewhat avoid agitators after Syrenei's explanation:

Syrenrei said:
The last time I did this changers were the most popular choice followed by agitators [...] The 'flashier' power uses tend to get more attention on a whole just like in most superhero RPs. =)
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Syrenrei said:
That being said, there will be action scenes where certain flashier powers like Changers and Agitators will get to shine. I just want everyone to realize this will be tempered as it's not a dungeon crawl. Don't expect to flex your combat muscles every page. And it's ok if your character can't at all!


On a second note, this is a mystery that our folks are wandering into. Curious investigative folks are going to have lots to explore and do, so don't shy away from someone who has social perks if that's your jam. The answer is not going to leap out at us once we get to Black Rock so we'll have to do some creative digging, snooping, bribing, and/or sweet-talking.
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The first ever long-term LARP I participated in, I made and learned my mistake - don't take combat-heavy characters into social/mystery oriented RPs (At least, not without some utility to help those around you). Problem here being that I associate Agitators too much with purely "combat" characters. Even the name "agitators" is steeped in aggression, and the lore section vividly paints the stereotype as aggressive. I think that given the warnings, I just shied away from all the aggressive connotations of agitators.


That said - @Syrenrei how would one go about making changes and edits to their hidden post? If there's a way to unhide and edit it, I haven't found it. Would we make a second hidden post with the edits, or would we send you a PM? Because I need to edit out an AOPA center in favour of "psionic cultural center" since you've stated that the AOPA don't exist in many places around the world  - and within the next week I might edit my character's school to something else, which would require some small backstory changes.
 
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@Collidias Rex I can un-hide that for you and you can edit it. =)


As to agitators: It is very easy to see the aggressive application to the characters, but you should not feel married to the stereotypes of a school. For example, Valentin is the Crimson Sage and speaks for the agitator school. He is an incredibly composed man who does not lash out in anger. Agitators often do first display their powers as a result of a strong emotional outburst but because their powers are arguably the most dangerous, it would make a lot of sense to make a character who is incredibly self-controlled. It's really what you make of it! I had an agitator in the last game that was all about combat but I also had one that used the agitator powers more practically and was a chef. Agitators also make excellent handymen because they can stand at a distance, or behind glass/clear plastic/etc. and repair something without touching it.


So yeah, I think Collidias is right- being this is a mystery, there is a definite social component that is incredibly important. There will be some action, but it possible to avoid combat for most of the adventure depending on the choices the characters make. So I encourage everyone to play what they want. Diversity is the name of the game! I expect everyone will have a few things they can do, whether it be impersonating someone, pretending to be bait, reading minds, asking animals to help spy, picking locks, breaking into a home, etc.
 

Important Info I Just Realize Was Alluded to but NOT Stated
​

  1. Psions are sort of a "well kept secret." Some non-psions know they exist with certainty. Some simply believe they exist, just like in real life some people believe psychics exist or believe other supernatural things are verified. Others are related to a psion. Most governments are aware they exist "off the records" but the vast majority of society is unaware of their existence. Why? There are numerous reasons. Psions have inserted themselves in and established diplomatic relations with many governments, although some still wish to find a way to turn psions into weapons. The Preservers and Justicars deter such malevolent operations, but it's a somewhat tenuous peace. Both governments and psions are concerned about the hysteria people would go through realizing "superior humans" walk among them with terrifying and/or invasive powers. Psions know if they were integrated into normal society they would become "responsible" for them. It would be demanded they use authors to find all terrorists, and if they failed, they'd be crucified. Natural disasters would be expected to be halted by agitators and anticipated by dreamers. Changers would be sacrificial lambs on the front line of anything violent because they could recover versus a normal person. Travelers would be slaves to emergency transport and the rich and powerful. When psions are not in Psydrium, they should be discreet and subtle when in the presence of ignorant non-psions.
  2. Psions are a minority of the population. Think something like <2% of the world are psions, not 10% or 25%. Some areas do have a higher concentration than others because psions might blend in and survive better. 3rd world countries aren't great places for psions to be born.
  3. Psions present with their abilities at different times, but usually by adolescence. This is at your discretion! Maybe they showed powers since birth, maybe it wasn't until they were in high school. Agitators usually discover their abilities as a result of anger/emotional turmoil, authors usually passively read minds without meaning to, dreamers see bizarre visions, travelers may inadvertently travel short distances with just intense yearning to do so or frustration, and changers will self-heal or change something about themselves with willpower. There are a lot of variations what causes awakenings though, these are just suggestions!
  4. Guns are the most effective weapon on psions. This is because all psionic powers require focus and the time to react; an agitator can't see a bullet and have the reaction time to bat it out of the air like in the Matrix. If someone can anticipate a shot (like they see someone aiming) an agitator can create a wall of force, a changer can change their skin, a traveler can teleport away, etc. but I just want to be clear that if you are ambushed by someone wielding a pistol, you are probably taking a hit. That being said, guns are about as widespread in the city as you would expect anywhere in Europe. Don't think of them like Texans! I just want everyone to know they have this vulnerability because it could come up eventually.
  5. Your dudes can be from America and have come to Psydrium to escape the crazy bitches in DOC. It's totally something that happens. Let me know if you have questions about AOPA or DOC in America.
 
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That...changes everything!


What happens when someone catches a psion on tape, with major "incriminating" evidence? What if a psion just thinks he's had it with the secrecy and exposes his power for the entire world to see? It's a little hard to believe for me that psions are such a well-kept secret.


I... had different expectations regarding that part.
 
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Aldur said:
That...changes everything!


What happens when someone catches a psion on tape, with major "incriminating" evidence? What if a psion just thinks he's had it with the secrecy and exposes his power for the entire world to see? It's a little hard to believe for me that psions are such a well-kept secret.
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Do you have any experience with something like World of Darkness? It's rather akin to that. Or like how Harry Potter keeps magic a secret. Or how in that teen novel with angels and werewolves and shit they're a secret.


In general there's a lot of stuff that is done when someone has "incriminating" evidence. They are discredited at a large and accused of using the magic of special effects (think like when we see yeti videos on YouTube or pictures of the Loch Ness monster). Authors have on many occasions erased or altered memories of people who find out about their "secret" or those of their friends (which other psions don't like but might find necessary). It sort of depends on how credible the "threat" is and who is making it I suppose? If you're a person stumbling around near Psydrium and trying to get into the city, someone will find you and teleport you away sans memories. If you're trying to make a hate club on the internet, they might use more "old-fashioned" hacking, a lot of money, and some intimidation or threats to make you go away.


If I made a world where these <2% were completely "out" and everyone knew about them, this would be a very, very different RP. They'd essentially be at war with humanity because there is 0% chance an integration would not result in aggression, hostility, experimentation, hysteria, and human rights crimes.
 
1 minute ago, Syrenrei said:



If I made a world where these <2% were completely "out" and everyone knew about them, this would be a very, very different RP. They'd essentially be at war with humanity because there is 0% chance an integration would not result in aggression, hostility, experimentation, hysteria, and human rights crimes.




 
Click to expand...

That's an exaggeration of what I had in mind, but yeah. Basically.


Oh well...
 
@Aldur You do realize in the old Psydrium RP, which you were in, they were also "hidden" in society and walked among non-psions without them knowing? I didn't change that much! If we manage to finish this adventure without losing all of the players, then we might have one where someone is risking to expose psions, or trying to use them in a malicious way. I want to start off with something to make ya'll bond first. I have lots of adventure ideas!
 
Just now, Syrenrei said:



@Aldur You do realize in the old Psydrium RP, which you were in, they were also "hidden" in society and walked among non-psions without them knowing? I didn't change that much! If we manage to finish this adventure without losing all of the players, then we might have one where someone is risking to expose psions, or trying to use them in a malicious way. I want to start off with something to make ya'll bond first. I have lots of adventure ideas!




 
Click to expand...

It must've slipped then, or it didn't come up as much. Hmm... my curiosity for your plans influences me. I'll stick around!
 
So here's what's gonna happen on September 23rd:

  1.  I'll actually sit down and read the apps (I've only glanced at the forum a couple times so far)
  2. I'll start to systematically pick the best applications in my subjective opinion. I'll post in the application thread any changes they need to make before the RP starts such as "DOC can't do things here, change that part of your history" or "Psydrium doesn't have a USDA, can you adjust your profession?"
  3. If anyone doesn't want to make the revisions required, they will be removed from consideration and the next best application gets a shot
  4. After the 8 positions are filled, we'll start the RP. If anyone drops or goes LOA I will allow players to join back up to 8. For example, if Bob drops the RP, I might let Sue, who just found Psydrium or was previously rejected from the RP, get a chance to join.
  5. If for some reason you need to drop or leave the RP for an extended period of time, you may allow someone to "bunny" your character until they can leave the scene(s), allow them to be killed, or allow them to be an NPC that only I control.

If you don't post for a few weeks, we'll just move on without you and might replace you. I will PM you and/or tag you before this happens, but please know if you disappear I'm not keeping Billy Jo the Agitator in the game indefinitely until you remember you have an account on RPN! So if you get accepted, follow the IC RP thread. If you aren't accepted, please feel free to follow it as well and I'll be happy to add you later if another spot opens up.
 
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Just a reminder your characters are due by Friday, September 23rd at midnight (12 AM) EST! I'll probably drop a post shortly thereafter so the accepted characters can get the ball rolling sometime this weekend.


If you chose the advantage Unknown Heritage you can bounce some ideas off of me as to who you'd ideally like your character's parents to be, as well as if you'd like to play them or not, but I will ultimately decide who they are so it's a surprise to you. I have a couple important folks that have kids they have given up I'd really like to fold in if you guys are open to it!
 
Tags for the people that, at a glance, are still working on their RPs as a reminder:


@ChimpMan


@Tate Emil


@Zy That Guy


@Cheryl


@shatteredxfrost


Please let me know if you need any help! It looks like a few of you are stuck on the second part of the character app, and if you prefer you can PM it to me for me to add as your second post to your app (and then you can also see what you wrote in PM history).
 
I realized I have a lot going on this weekend- my younger son has a consultation tomorrow for tubes in his ears, my weekly tabletop group meets tomorrow night, we're attending a birthday party Saturday, and my older son has a play date Sunday. I am going to go ahead and post in the IC thread to just get things a little more ready for launch.


You still have 34 hours and 55 minutes or thereabouts for your character sheets to be completed, so DON'T PANIC. Unless you're @simj22, I'll allow him to panic needlessly if he really wants to.
 
@Syrenrei


Madison's done, but I don't want to hide the stuff in case you need me to change stuff. You know the problem with my hidden posts.
 
It appears our deadline is approaching... good luck to all of you, I'm seeing a lot of good apps that have me worried I personally won't make the cut.
 
Don't worry about it! I think you have a good chance since you're one of the few Agitators in here, while I made yet another Changer :P . 
 
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