Forum Rules

by **xshanex** Sat Feb 07, 2015 9:31 pm

Hello reader, and welcome to Dark Space - A Mass Effect RPG. This group was founded simply because we love the canon of BioWare's epic sci-fi video game trilogy (soon to be more), Mass Effect, and wish to have our own explorations into the galaxy we've invested so much time and emotion in. We're trying for a very laid back experience here based more in role playing than in rules or game mechanics, but here are a few things to make sure we can run the stories smoothly.

Be cool, man:

This is more of an out of character thing, but let's all be cool. No need to get mad or pissy about the game, everything can be discussed like adults. This goes for the chat, too. I'm all good for a joke but let's not go too far just to get a laugh. The aim of the site is to just get together and play a game, let's not take anything too seriously.

How we RP:

So you may be used to the tabletop-style of role-playing. This site will be similar, but sent across as a series of posts in the forum that will contain small written segments of your character's / characters' actions and reactions, dialogue, etc. We'll set up an order as if we were going along the table, where one person posts, and then the next, and the next until the chin is complete and we return to the beginning again. It's that simple!

One unique aspect of the site is the lack of a DM (Dungeon Master) or GM (Game Master) controlling everything. Yes, the person who started the storyline (many times being me) will have the elder say on a lot of stuff (mainly when bosses die or stuff like that), but the chance to take the reigns is always there. Naturally, we won't allow a player to just up and shanghai another player mid-sentence or story, but if you've created a villain and the option for the next step in the story is open: GO FOR IT! We encourage the main writer spot, so to speak, to swap holders as new minds mean great new things for our characters.

Combat:

So how do fights work out? Well, they go by one simple rule: take some bumps to give some bumps. Now of course, this rule does not apply to every fight, but your character is not invincible. You'll get hit, you'll get shot, you'll get hurt. The thing is, there's not really any rolling dice or stats determining the damage. Everything is committed to story purposes and logical thinking. Want to run through a series on grunt-like enemies? Write it so it makes sense. Did the boss hit you with a singularity? That's going to freaking hurt. SELL THE INJURIES and we'll SELL YOUR ATTACKS!

So how do we level up?:

In short, you don't. Not really, anyway. We leave character progression up to the handler of the character. You will get stronger over time, over successful and even unsuccessful missions, should your character survive. This is all about trusting our players to tell a believable and compelling story together. The same thing can go with weapons. You obviously won't have the best stuff right off the bat, but you can easily trade up throughout the story.

So, are characters going to die?:

Oh yeah, totally. Death is everywhere in Mass Effect and that's not going to change here. In fact, death and combat is probably going to be a lot more grim in this rp than in the game. The thing is, we won't kill off your characters unless you find it necessary or the circumstances around the moment are just too lethal to ignore. Let's face it, spending a lot of time to make a character only to have them die fucking sucks. We're doing this for fun, so we want you to move on when you're ready. That being said, this does not make your character invulnerable. Just like the combat rules, near-death moments will leave some scars. However, this also means some new options for your character's story will open up!