FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
GENERAL
How do I get a character?
- Generally characters are obtained by getting accepted during a flat sale. Occasionally an auction or contest will be held. Detailed information on the joining procedure is located here.
- The flatsale rate is 30k. We have tried to price these fairly for our character artist while still making them well within the abilities of the average Gaian to afford. If an accepted player simply cannot come up with 30k, the staff is willing to work out a deal/payment plan. We value strong roleplayers over Gaian gold.
- At the moment, this question isn't applicable. In the future, you may be able to negotiate prices and we may be able to make a deal, provided our character artist isn't burnt out at the time. HOWEVER, if you do not have an approved character concept first, there's no way you can buy your way in.
- The whole point of this shop is to be a roleplay. Due to the stage advancements and changing artwork it qualifies for the B&C forum, but it is first and foremost a roleplaying game.
- Yes, each character is judged individually and must go through the approval & acceptance process.
SETTING
How do adventurers join the Asterion League?
- When the Asterion League is looking to increase its ranks, it will post flyers advertising that auditions are being held for League membership and a few lucky applicants will be hired into the League. (OOCly, a flatsale will be held.) Occasionally an adventurer has been known to come directly to one of the League heads and successfully plead their case for acceptance. (OOCly, an auction or similar event is held.)
- The world of Aludra is a mix of technology and magic that is frequently seen in rpg videogames. The most advanced places are only beginning to work towards the Industrial Revolution and current 'cutting edge' technology could pass as Steampunk, but this is extremely rare and likely only possessed by Inventor characters. For more information on level of technology, see here.
- Though a typical staple of fantasy, the closest thing in Aludra to an intelligent dragon is the Ejderha. Actual dragons went extinct centuries ago, around the time the Ejderha gained prominence. Still, some farmers in far out country claim to have seen dragons. It's uncertain if this is true or not, but whatever they are, they're extremely primal creatures and not to be messed with.
- Yes, all races are familiar with alcohol, but naturally, social drinking will have varying levels of acceptability from race to race. I feel that it is totally crucial to note that Muscherons have equal alcohol tolerances to humans because of their resistance to poisons. You can ask for additional details if this question is pertinent to your concept. XD
- Aschere is your typical European-style fantasy setting; buildings are made from large, heavy stone and dark wood. It is reasonable that an outsider may've built a strange-looking home or place of business, but in general, things should be relatively uniform.
CONCEPTS
Does my character have to be part of the Asterion League?
- Your character must be a member of the Asterion League or have some reason to live on the general premises - ie, they're a banker, washerwoman, etc. In most cases when they enter into the game, it is because they have auditioned for and been accepted into the Asterion League, but they could have also recently sought general employment with the League. This is because we simply can't cater to characters being spread across the world doing their own things. That said, characters are free to travel outside of Murzim for their own reasons, but understand that you must return to the group to be involved in event/plot activity.
- Because the characters are a three stage art deal, the answer is yes. Continue to fill out the form as you would a regular adventurer by distributing stats, identifying any skills, naming job classes, etc. You are, of course, not required to max out their stats and skills if you want to reflect their non-battle worthy nature. Feel free to get a little tongue-in-cheek with this. Hint: We highly recommend non-warriors taking 'Signature Move' and using this to create a really cute skill.
- A chronological 16/17 will be the youngest you'll find in the guild. Appropriate adjustments should be made for whatever's the age of physical maturity of the Duszek and Ejderha. And your character can be as old as realistically possible for their race, so long as they're still fit and capable.
- Absolutely. Characters shouldn't be defined solely by their job class/race/etc and should make themselves distinct through their personalities and histories. For example, if we already have a pacifist white mage, please consider a more militant white mage.
- If you're uncertain how to distribute your points, feel free to ask in this thread. As for bards and geomancers, their unique abilities fall under the realm of Other, though if you wish to be able to competently whack people with your lute, distribute points to Melee as well.
- Yes! It is in fact entirely up to you what happens in your character's job class, so provided that you can make your ideas work with the battle system, your character's job can be anything you want.
- The battle system is set up to accommodate a high amount of creativity while still keeping everyone on an even playing field. So weapon-wise, you are allowed to equip your character with something as normal as a sword, bow or magic spell, or something as out there as a broom, yo-yo or the sound of a bell. It's all the same to the system.
- Characters may not possess the following abilities: mind reading, human empathy, or precognition. These skills use OOC information and are too difficult to moderate. Telepathic communication, animal empathy, telekinesis and postcognition are allowable, but discouraged, and should only be taken if they clearly make sense with the character. If taken, be prepared for the mods to ask for their modification/removal if they do not feel they are appropriate. These skills require the same magic point investment as Teleportation and Flight.
- No, the races of Aludra are limited to the ones that we have laid out. At least two more races are planned for inclusion in the future, but these will created by the staff and included as an event. We've tried to make all of the races distinct and appealing and hopefully one will inspire you.
- As a general note, while it's fine to make a character who does not fit into the general mold laid out by us of a certain race, we would like to see people try to generally work within those guidelines to some extent — we've tried to leave them very loose. Bottom line is that characters should seem like they belong within their race beyond just sharing physical similarities.
- Figures like vampires and werewolves will mostly be reserved for "monsters" that the characters will be fighting, rather than have a character themselves be the werewolf/vampire. Still... if you have a really awesome concept, they do exist. (By the way, we'd be much more hesitant about a vampire character, as they have to kill to survive. A werewolf is a lot more viable and plays better with others.)
- Absolutely! While you're more than welcome to be from an established city, you're also more than welcome to create one of your own. We've tried to define enough that people understand the world while leaving it open for continued building.
- I see no reason why you can't, however they will have to be modified to fit within the world of Aludra. Be prepared to have the mods tell you that some part of your concept that you hold dear to your heart simply won't work in our world. Also, it should go without saying but characters from published works are not allowable. This sort of game doesn't allow for "cosplays".
- Yes, you can, but understand that each character is viewed by the mods as a separate entity that must be individually approved and accepted. It is very possible that both characters will not enter the game at the same time, so you should be ready to deal with that situation.
- Uhh, preferably not. But the same as above still stands.
YE OLDE SHOPPES
My character comes from a very rich background, can he start with gems?
- Only under special circumstances (such as an auction, etc) will characters be allowed to enter the game with gems in their inventory (and even then it will be a very small amount determined by the mods). Unfortunately the gems are a very location-specific form of currency so it is unlikely your character has previous access to them. However, our tavern would be more than happy to take your gold from you.
- Mounts are an incentive for players who have reached the third stage to continue roleplaying. As such, we can't allow characters to come to the League with their trusty stallion, Mr. Ed. There really isn't a good IC reason for why you can't have a mount prior to stage three, you just can't. Sorry.
- Sisel and Auguste do not receive the gems spent on their items and are acting in an NPC capacity in this instance. The gems disappear into Mr. Bank's vault like in any other store.
- As with the above, the Division Heads do not personally benefit from their ability to pass out gems and coupons and they are acting in an NPC capacity when they do this. However, we feel that limiting these four characters simply to NPC status would make them far less accessible to other characters - the Division Heads should grow to be not just your mentors, but also your friends.
- The only thing specifically non-transferable at this point are gems. This is because we don't want people who are never active in the roleplay to be able to job advance with minimal effort. (This is also one of the reasons that the occasional gem sales are limited and expensive - 210k for the 30 Sapphire Gems necessary to proceed to the next level should be a deterrent.)
That said, anything else is fair game, however the exchange must be roleplayed. (i.e. Mushkin A gives Human B a love potion in hopes that Human B will convince Lamia C to drink it. This would be a very Mushkin-like thing to do!)
In addition, players must alert the mods of the exchange via PMing the shop mule or posting in Mr. Bank's thread so that records can be properly updated to reflect the exchange.
Exchanges should also be aware of general rules regarding usage of the item being exchanged. A mount is unable to be used until the third stage and a level 3 pet is also useless to a character until then.
- It certainly wouldn't hurt for the sake of our record keeping. Item usage in battles are easily tracked by the mods, but joke potion usage would be a good thing to notify us about. We will try to keep track of everything happening in RP threads, but it's possible we can miss something.
- Roleplaying with the shopkeepers gives your character the opportunity to drive down the price of their purchase, be it by haggling, flirting, etc. Sometimes shopkeepers will be sticklers, but persistence often pays off!
Have a question? Ask it here!
