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Game rules may be subject to change.

SECTION I. CHARACTER QUESTIONNAIRE

Applications will not be accepted on a first come-first served basis. Please take some time and give some thought to your character submission.



QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Here are some answers to some questions you might have.

What is the Big Picture?

This game is about a group of youths attending the Marchlands Academy, an institution unlike any other, whose purpose is to train young monster slayers. It takes place in the small quaint town of Marchwood, which resembles more a mashed up version of 1980s Americana, rather than the Tolkien-esque fantasy world of its surrounding environs.

Who are the players supposed to be?

The player characters are new students of the Marchlands Academy of Adventuring and Heroism. Most likely they're also residents of Marchwood and subjects of the Union, though there may be a few foreign exchange students within the student body as well. For more information, read the Reference: Setting document for more information.

At its heart, the game is not really about anything except that which the players bring themselves. The stories that are pertinent is the drama inherent when colourful personalities clash, as will happen in any school setting.

What do you mean by a "home-brewed" system?

The system I'm using is more about using a quick resolution mechanic, to get the mechanics out of the way of the story and the fiction. Rolling a d20 with bonuses and penalties versus a specific target number is pretty easy to reason about.

If you are more interested in optimizing your build, killing everything in sight, and gaining treasure, this is probably not the game for you. Nor are we going to go into lengthy combats every time, with round by round blow-by-blows. That's not the point of this game.

I'm far more excited about exploring interesting characters in a fantastical milieu. :)

So this is freeform?

No. It's far more involved than simply freeform or even guided freeform or even freeform with rolls thrown in. We're using the Dungeons and Dragons 5th edition ruleset, with many of the class features, spells, et cetera from that system, but home-brewed to be able to play a game about young mages in a modern world.

Luckily, there's a handy Reference: System document if you're curious.

What's your perspective on game balance?

I take a more nuanced approach to balance than is espoused in D&D. Remember that this game isn't about combat per se. As long as every character has something interesting to do, I don't see a really huge problem. Often in stories you have an ensemble cast of characters with widely differing skillsets. You can have Frodo, Sam, Gandalf, Legolas, Gimli, and Aragorn in the same company and the same story.

Style

I expect players to think about their characters' inner life and thoughts and feelings and be descriptive about such in their posts. Some players have only posted their outward physical actions, which is fine for some games, but not the ones I run. I'm interested in character arcs and narratives and emotional pay-offs and so forth.

Lay out your character's backstory gradually. The tendency of most players is to get it all out at the beginning, sometimes in the first post. I've had some players whose first posts were their entire backstory, with 1000 words or more.

Don't do that.

Not only is it contravention to the posting guidelines, but we're just getting to know the characters, the world, the story. The less you spill, the more that is retained. Leave us wanting more, instead of wanting to skim.

Collaboration

I expect players to be open to collaboration in the fiction. I'll rein you back if I feel you come up with something that contradicts the world, but players should generally be open to suggestions from other players and the GM. We're all in charge of the fiction together. You can write for another NPC, just as much as I can. Someone else can even chime in and move other characters around if their idea makes for a more interesting story.

I'm even okay with player characters moving other player characters, with each other's permission, of course. Comfort levels may vary, but if I was playing Doc Brown, and another was playing Marty, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch for me to move Marty in such a way:


If you do move another PC or NPC, be sure to be open to making edits if someone says you're doing something to make them go out of character.

Regarding Romance

I'll leave it up to the players whether they'll engage their characters in a romance. Personally, I prefer for romance to arise organically in the story, as opposed to something that is forced or the "point" or the main driver of a game.

Nice as romance is, my aims and interests do not revolve around romance, but instead are concerned with the overarching narrative and the character arcs I'm trying to build in complicated webs between the characters. Romance can play its part, and maybe even a vital part for some arcs, but keep in mind that it's only one part amidst many others.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:54, Mon 11 Oct 2021.