I know this is a long read, but I believe all the points below are important to have an enjoyable game.

Ruleset
For this game, we'll be using the Twilight 2000 Alpha Ruleset by Free League Publishing. Being an Alpha Ruleset, it is incomplete in some places. If the game pick ups and we're all enjoying ourselves,  as erratas and different revisions come out, it is quite possible we'll update the game ruleset. We might modify existing characters or just try out a different story/setting. This means we might have to house rule some things along the way, if the actual rule is missing.

Posting Rate
Try not to post more than once every eight to twelve hours or so unless everyone has "had a turn" since your last post (note that I only mean "a turn" for the folks involved in the scene... if Bob is off scouting, you don't have to wait for him if you're chatting at base). I don't want to throttle your excitement, but it sucks when people get left out, too.

On the other hand, the GM is going to shoot for a minimum of 2 posts per week (with 3+ being desirable).  If you plan to be gone for any length of time (1 week or more), please let us know ahead of time. Considering the times we currently live in, my own posting schedule might get spotty and somewhat wonky at times, but I will always keep you all updated.

I tend to run somewhat slow-ish paced game, so bear that in mind. If we're all online at the same time and the posts start to flow, that's quite alright with me! As I've said, just keep in mind that others need time to answer :)

I have a busy personal life (work, family, kids and school), so don't expect flurries of posts every day. What I can say is I have a wonky work schedule, of which I will keep you appraised. My posting speed will vary accordingly. What I can say is that I can answer PMs and OOC every day. Proper IC posts will vary. If this is an issue for you, this might not be the game for you.

Posting Format
The preferred format for posts is third person past tense.  I'm not going to be a stickler about it, but if one person tends to post only in first person present tense in group threads, it can get confusing... so please be courteous.

Like in most RPOL games, dialogue will be in a colour of your choice, with any internal monologue you wish to add in italic. The colours Orange and Red are reserved for GM and Rolls purposes.

Any dice rolls or game mechanics notes will be added at the end of the post in Orange.

Since we'll be running multiple PCs per player, I am still a bit on the fence as to how to organize that. I see two options: have a single Player Account to post for the different PCs or have multiple PC accounts per player. Both are viable, but both have downsides as well. We can discuss this as a group.

Player Behaviour and Group Maturity
Although some game prohibit entirely character VS character conflict, considering the nature of the setting, it'll be allowed up to a point; to the extent that pure bullying of other PCs won't be tolerated. Characters might end up fighting one another if it makes sense for the story.

I expect everyone to behave maturely and politely. If you have an issue with myself or a player, do not take it out in OOC or IC threads; come talk to me directly. I am very open to discussion and I believe there's always a way to find a solution. I am a big advocate of the "let's figure things out like civilized people".

I will state what I have just said again: if you're feel ticked off about something or someone, come talk to me. There's always a way to fix things maturely. This is a written medium and I've found that more often than not, things being said (especially OOC) can be widely misinterpreted; tone doesn't always carry well.

Always remember that this is a game about telling a story. If it's a chore or makes you salty, then you need to re-evaluate what brought you to this game. We're here to have fun playing a game and being creative.

I do not know all the rules by heart! I might make mistakes or forget something.

Try to avoid metagaming and godmodding as much as you can. I know it happens sometimes by accident, so no hard feelings. I expect that metagaming might be difficult to avoid at times, considering I plan on running this game with multiple PCs per Player, so as long as it doesn't appear that your PCs are a hivemind, I think we'll be fine.

I also want to stress something: Player Characters and Players are two different things. Don't bring your PC's mindset into the OOC. I'm okay with the PCs not particularly loving each other, but those are the PCs, not the Players. Player Characters are are that: characters. They are not YOU. If you, as a Player, dislike another PC, don't let those feeling impact the other Player. Try to view scenes through the lens of your characters as much as you can, and not your own personal mindset.

Adult Content
By going into this game, I expect you to acknowledge the fact we're might wade into really dark and murky waters. We're going to discuss (albeit in fiction) some grim and horrible things at times, if not the most horrible things about our very nature. This doesn't mean that what you write needs to be explicit or graphic. It does mean it might be or can be at times.

This game has the Adult Tag. The Adult tag has been often used for "sex games" on rpol, so it's given the tag somewhat of a bad name. Reading RPoL's Mature Games Policy "Mature Games must remain suitable to all ages" and that isn't something I want to spend energy on. I don't want us to ever have to stop writing to go "okay, is this okay to read for someone who's 13? 17? 10? 45 with a sensible and innocent heart?"

Tagging the game as Adult also means that, technically, under-aged players aren't allowed. I've known a lot of mature teens and immature adults, but I feel that having an Adult tag to the game technically means the odds are we'll get more mature players.

So yea, the tag isn't there because there's going to be constant graphic orgies. It is there to give us the liberty to write what we want and not to worry too much when a PC gets his leg ripped out by a mine and  someone decides to describe the event.

Multiple PCs per Player
I've debated this (with myself) quite a bit. Demanding Multiple PCs per Players has both its good and bad sides. On the bad spectrum:

• It can demand more creative commitment to create multiple PCs
• It can be hard for the player to portray multiple characters “realistically” and reliably
• It's more management
• It can promote metagaming
• Character Creation takes more time.
• Some people might see their characters as more disposable

On the other hand:

• It allows us a bigger group, and so, lets us experience more situations, try out more rules and gives everyone a chance to try a bit of everything
• It allows Players to try out multiple character concept. It ensures that whatever the situation, the player will have something to do because at least one of his characters will be included
• With a larger diversity of characters, we can have a wider diversity of storytelling to explore.
• When a character dies (and they will in this setting), the player isn't immediately sidelined
• If gives us the opportunity to split the party for some scene

What I can say is that I've thought about it a lot and I think multiple PCs is the way to go. We could keep it to 1 PC-Player, but we'd have to get a larger group of Players, and on RPOL, people have a tendency to be flaky. Large groups usually see bigger player atrophy and disappearance, and can get really bogged down. Because of this, I want to limit the number of players.

I do not expect EVERY PC to be front and centre for EVERY scene. By the nature of the setting, some scenes (like large combats) probably will include every PC, but I expect a lot of scenes not to have all the PCs play an active role. I'm mentioning this because I don't want people to think I expect them to write out detailed IC posts for EVERY PC they control, for EVERY scene happening. I expect most scenes to spotlight a few characters at a time, while the rest are in the background.

All that having been said, I want players to take this as an opportunity to get out of their usual comfort zone when it comes to PCs. If you usually play the techy type, go for it for one of your PCs, but try to have something different in your pool as well.

The Military
Twilight 2000, in a rather large portion, is about the military. I want to state right now I have NO experience serving in the armed forces of my own country. All I can do is aim for what I know (which is things I've read, heard and seen) but it should never be taken as a reflection of reality. That having been said, I will do my best to reflect that reality accurately, but only to some extent. Those of you who do have an experience in that field, I will gladly take into account your suggestions, but I might not implement all of them.

We also have to keep in mind that Twilight 2000 is a “post apocalyptic” game of survival: this means that some things that might not usually fly in the military might have become accepted here. Rank still exist, but with the entire breakdown of the chain of command, it might not mean a whole lot. Civilian characters aren't obligated to follow orders, and high ranking officers can't necessarily just order every military PC under them around. I want to mention this, because I don't want this game to turn into a: 1 player makes ALL the decision and others players just have to obey blindly. I'm sure the military characters will follow some form of hierarchy because it makes sense both through the characters' lens and for the story; but I will NEVER enforce it.

No one exists in a vacuum
In all my tabletop games, I'm a big advocate of the “no one exists in a vacuum” rule. This means that I do not believe the lone-wolf type makes much sense, especially in a group of characters. Everyone has people that are dear to them. Family, friends, mentors, students, etc... Because of the setting, I do not expect these people to show up (unless the character is a local), but their existence still has an indirect impact on the characters and who they are. For example: if one character is a US soldier, some of his decisions might be influenced by the fact he has children back home. Loss is one of the major themes of Twilight 2000, so I believe it is important to keep in mind what each PC might have lost already.

Published Material</b>
For the sake of expediency and full disclosure, I intend to run whatever publish module I can find. The core rules come with one scenario, which we'll no doubt try out.

<b>Group Dynamic and Group Decisions
Once we have all PCs roughly done, we'll take a vote as to which PC will be the Leader of the group. Said Leader will be tasked with giving "advice" as to what goal the group should set for itself. He will never give orders, par see, that other PCs are obligated to follow, but I'd like for a PC to be able to have the final say in some decisions, so we don't debate forever what to do. Basically, when a decision needs to be taken for the group, all the Players (not PCs) will vote, and the Leader will act as a tie-breaker. This is mainly so we don't get bogged down during decision making with people debating their points and not wanting to budge.

The State of The Game World
See the thread of that name for an overview of the State of the Game World as the game starts.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:04, Thu 10 Dec 2020.