Post by Skir on Jan 21, 2013 15:01:09 GMT -8
Shelving Characters
Players will be able to shelve a character temporarily, while allowing them to play another character long term. This allows characters to be put on out of play while another character is played if there is a reason your character might have left the city temporarily. Maybe he has business in Italy? Maybe he got wanderlust? Maybe the city got set on fire by no means of your own and you think it's a little too dangerous for your high-class Toreador to wait out?
Perhaps playing that Tremere has become boring and you just want to go somewhere else for a while, but you don't want to lose the character? Or your friends just came in and want to get set up in Brujah, but you are somewhere else, and it's hard to get integrated into a new game without some guidance?
The intent of this rules change on characters is to increase the amount of fun that players can have at game by ensuring they can play the character they want to play, that they will enjoy portraying, and that will be the most fun for the people around them to interact with, rather than ever feeling "trapped" into a role you want a break from without losing the character forever.
Shelving is not a fair escape, so if you decide to go underground after doing a crime--a perfectly viable decision for a Kindred--and the crime finds its way back to you regardless, the STs will walk up to you and inform you that your character is being attacked if they go get you. In situations like this, called "an emergency situation," you will be allowed to portray your character if you choose to, or you may ask Staff to portray your character.
This is not Special Inactive, which is for players that will be absent from game for personal reasons.
We believe that it is always best to role-play through the horrible consequences of your horrible actions, stick to your guns and enjoy the attention of scandal, lie your way into an alibi, manipulate your accusers and otherwise NOT shelve your characters when the going gets rough. However, we acknowledge also that while this game is a competitive as well as cooperative one, it is a game designed to help us tell stories with our friends, and isn't a job or a punishment sentence. Think carefully about whether shelving your character will be the most fun option for you before you use it, and if it really is, by all means, have the most fun possible playing Vampire with your friends.
The rules of Shelving are as follows:
1.The character must be going on an extended leave. This means that there is a minimum time to return with that character of 3 months, during which time your character cannot contact in play characters and cannot be casually contacted by them.
Only in an "emergency situation" can you take any actions as your character. Emergency situation means that PC or NPC forces are actively seeking you out to do you harm or put you in some other critical circumstance. In this circumstance you may take any actions, including basic communication, as your shelved character, but you may not include your active character in any way shape or form, and Staff will watch closely for any crossover of interests between the two.
Forum posts documenting your amazing journey through the amazon, your period of self-reflection at a monastery, or whatever else it is you are doing are still acceptable.
2. Shelving a character requires that the circumstances of your leaving be carefully documented by staff and recorded in your file so that if you return under a new staff, all current entanglements that are still relevant (especially with NPCs that future staffs may not be aware of) are not forgotten.
Further, if you are currently involved in an intense or extremely dangerous situation, Staff has the right to delay your Shelving until it is calmed down or partially resolved. Being actively pursued or hunted by PCs or NPCs, being the current Prince without stepping down (or faking your death, or whatever) and other such situations may impose a waiting period of up to one month before Shelving can proceed.
3. Powers such as Summon, Scry, Bloodstones, etc may still work on the Shelved character. Players of Shelved characters must carefully document with staff what their character is doing and where they are going. Depending on the circumstances, a Summoned character may be asked to portray their character next week, or otherwise be brought back into the city by force. If they are able to, they must attempt to leave active play again after the situation is resolved unless they have reached the 3 Month minimum period.
Attempts to Summon the character just to ask them a question or anything that is not an "emergency situation" (staff discretion) will not work. Summon isn't a way to circumvent the out of communication policy. The policy exists so that people can play their new character in peace without constant hassle coming from their old PC, so please respect their gameplay by keeping it to critical issues only.
Any attempt to contact, find, reach, or just speak to the character, whether over email or in a scene, must have Staff present.
4.You may only have one character officially shelved at a time. Temporary 1-month concepts are different, and still work under the standard inactive rules.
5. You may spend your XP on either your shelved character or the one you are playing currently, at the same learning rates as standard, but only on things that you can earn without a teacher or further help. If you already have Mentor dots purchased and assigned, you may raise those with exp, but you cannot contact a Seattle PC to ask them to teach you a discipline, nor may you teach any PC anything either.
6.Level 4 and 5 Influences will slowly depreciate, just like they would a character who goes special inactive. You cannot purchase influences while the character is not present in the city. Present, in this case, being defined as being public. Even if your shelved character is a Nos who went underground in the sewers, they cannot maintain the contact required to continue their influence over Seattle.
7. Because these characters are not permanently retired, they are not eligible to be purchased as a Contact, Ally, or Mentor. Only permanently required characters that have become permanent World NPCs may be portrayed by Staff in this way.
Players will be able to shelve a character temporarily, while allowing them to play another character long term. This allows characters to be put on out of play while another character is played if there is a reason your character might have left the city temporarily. Maybe he has business in Italy? Maybe he got wanderlust? Maybe the city got set on fire by no means of your own and you think it's a little too dangerous for your high-class Toreador to wait out?
Perhaps playing that Tremere has become boring and you just want to go somewhere else for a while, but you don't want to lose the character? Or your friends just came in and want to get set up in Brujah, but you are somewhere else, and it's hard to get integrated into a new game without some guidance?
The intent of this rules change on characters is to increase the amount of fun that players can have at game by ensuring they can play the character they want to play, that they will enjoy portraying, and that will be the most fun for the people around them to interact with, rather than ever feeling "trapped" into a role you want a break from without losing the character forever.
Shelving is not a fair escape, so if you decide to go underground after doing a crime--a perfectly viable decision for a Kindred--and the crime finds its way back to you regardless, the STs will walk up to you and inform you that your character is being attacked if they go get you. In situations like this, called "an emergency situation," you will be allowed to portray your character if you choose to, or you may ask Staff to portray your character.
This is not Special Inactive, which is for players that will be absent from game for personal reasons.
We believe that it is always best to role-play through the horrible consequences of your horrible actions, stick to your guns and enjoy the attention of scandal, lie your way into an alibi, manipulate your accusers and otherwise NOT shelve your characters when the going gets rough. However, we acknowledge also that while this game is a competitive as well as cooperative one, it is a game designed to help us tell stories with our friends, and isn't a job or a punishment sentence. Think carefully about whether shelving your character will be the most fun option for you before you use it, and if it really is, by all means, have the most fun possible playing Vampire with your friends.
The rules of Shelving are as follows:
1.The character must be going on an extended leave. This means that there is a minimum time to return with that character of 3 months, during which time your character cannot contact in play characters and cannot be casually contacted by them.
Only in an "emergency situation" can you take any actions as your character. Emergency situation means that PC or NPC forces are actively seeking you out to do you harm or put you in some other critical circumstance. In this circumstance you may take any actions, including basic communication, as your shelved character, but you may not include your active character in any way shape or form, and Staff will watch closely for any crossover of interests between the two.
Forum posts documenting your amazing journey through the amazon, your period of self-reflection at a monastery, or whatever else it is you are doing are still acceptable.
2. Shelving a character requires that the circumstances of your leaving be carefully documented by staff and recorded in your file so that if you return under a new staff, all current entanglements that are still relevant (especially with NPCs that future staffs may not be aware of) are not forgotten.
Further, if you are currently involved in an intense or extremely dangerous situation, Staff has the right to delay your Shelving until it is calmed down or partially resolved. Being actively pursued or hunted by PCs or NPCs, being the current Prince without stepping down (or faking your death, or whatever) and other such situations may impose a waiting period of up to one month before Shelving can proceed.
3. Powers such as Summon, Scry, Bloodstones, etc may still work on the Shelved character. Players of Shelved characters must carefully document with staff what their character is doing and where they are going. Depending on the circumstances, a Summoned character may be asked to portray their character next week, or otherwise be brought back into the city by force. If they are able to, they must attempt to leave active play again after the situation is resolved unless they have reached the 3 Month minimum period.
Attempts to Summon the character just to ask them a question or anything that is not an "emergency situation" (staff discretion) will not work. Summon isn't a way to circumvent the out of communication policy. The policy exists so that people can play their new character in peace without constant hassle coming from their old PC, so please respect their gameplay by keeping it to critical issues only.
Any attempt to contact, find, reach, or just speak to the character, whether over email or in a scene, must have Staff present.
4.You may only have one character officially shelved at a time. Temporary 1-month concepts are different, and still work under the standard inactive rules.
5. You may spend your XP on either your shelved character or the one you are playing currently, at the same learning rates as standard, but only on things that you can earn without a teacher or further help. If you already have Mentor dots purchased and assigned, you may raise those with exp, but you cannot contact a Seattle PC to ask them to teach you a discipline, nor may you teach any PC anything either.
6.Level 4 and 5 Influences will slowly depreciate, just like they would a character who goes special inactive. You cannot purchase influences while the character is not present in the city. Present, in this case, being defined as being public. Even if your shelved character is a Nos who went underground in the sewers, they cannot maintain the contact required to continue their influence over Seattle.
7. Because these characters are not permanently retired, they are not eligible to be purchased as a Contact, Ally, or Mentor. Only permanently required characters that have become permanent World NPCs may be portrayed by Staff in this way.
