The CHARACTER BACKGROUND INFORMATION group of rules is designed to help you deal with what things in your history and background might break the rules. It also deals with the possibility of multiple characters.

Pets, Servants, Children

The noble warhorse. The trusty squire. The cute little ferret with the ability to pick pockets. These are all examples of supporting characters or followers, also known as NPCs. As such, their behavior and actions fall solely under the control of your Moderator. You can make requests and issue commands, but ultimately your Moderator will describe the actions taken by your followers, be they human, animal, or otherwise.

You can usually expect that your orders or requests will be followed, if your character enjoys a position of command. But this is not an absolute, and your behavior toward your followers will greatly determine their attitude toward you. Mistreat your squire often enough and you’ll be lucky if he leaves in the night with only your purse. And there is always the case of the child who throws a temper tantrum in the common room of the inn rather than going quietly to bed, regardless of the treats you gave him just that afternoon.

What can you do with a rebellious follower? You can try to restore their belief in your authority through reason or force. You can track down their traitorous hineys and slaughter them where they stand. You can cut your losses and continue on alone. But you cannot control their actions. You can tell your trained wolf to attack, but it will be up to your Moderator whether he succeeds, or even whether he attacks the correct target.

Nobility & Titles

It’s the dream of every peasant child: a mysterious stranger appears and tells him that he is really the son of a great king, and off he goes to find his heritage. Unfortunately, life is rarely so kind, and neither are we.

Starting characters cannot be of the nobility, nor can they bear any sort of title. Such things must be earned through roleplaying. This is never easy to do, and as such the granting of a noble title is a rare reward.

There are exceptions, however. A character may have been born to a noble family, but for some reason he does not have a title or influence. He might have renounced his title, been born the illegitimate child of a noble, or perhaps he just ran away from home to seek adventure, causing his disapproving parents to disown him. Regardless of the cause, the character retains no influence, holds no wealth (unless he has the Wealth Advantage), and cannot expect any help from his noble relations. He is on the same level as the “common folk.”

Another exception is the character with the Nobility Advantage. This character is no prince or baron, but he is still a noble, a member of a minor family. Unless he has the Wealth Advantage, his is a poor noble family. However, he retains connections to powerful people and can move with grace in noble circles.

In no case can a character be a member of a royal lineage. There just aren’t very many to choose from. Even higher nobility is mostly off-limits. A character with any sort of noble background is generally tied to a minor house.

Multiple Characters

It can be difficult to limit yourself to a single character concept. Telgard is a world rich in diversity, and the desire to experience as much of it as possible is strong. However, having too many characters causes difficulties for our Moderators. As a result, while everyone is welcome to have one character, you must earn the privilege of having a second character.

Second characters are earned by providing contributions to Telgard outside your character's thread. These are the requirements for being granted permission to create a second character. It does not guarantee persmission:You must have played in Telgard for at least three months, AND you must have either

1) made a significant contribution to Telgard (such as helping out newbies in the Tavern, submitting Fan Art or Tribune Articles, or joining the Moderating team),

OR 2) through excellent roleplaying and good storytelling skills, obtained a recommendation from a moderator,

AND 3) have pre-arranged for a moderator to take on your new character.

It is necessary to have a moderator "sponsor" to help prevent areas from being overloaded. We'd like to give everyone a chance to play at least ONE character. Second characters must sometimes wait their turn giving priority to first characters.

If you are given permission to create a second character, it must abide by the following rules:

1. Your characters may NEVER be in the same Kingdom. If your first character is in Korresh, and your second character is dragged to Korresh by kidnappers, you must make arrangements with your Moderators to have one of the characters leave Korresh as quickly as possible.
   
   
2. Your characters may not speak to each other, leave notes for each other, drop or stash items for each other, or communicate in any way.
   
   
3. Your characters do not share a brain. If your Elf in Lirynn finds out that there’s an Elven army marching on Krull, your Goblin in Krull can’t forewarn the city.
   
   
4. This last isn’t a rule, but a recommendation. We recommend that your second character be of a different race than your first. There’s a lot to explore in Telgard, and racial diversity is a big part of it. This will also help you avoid the common trap of having both characters become copies of the other. Dwarves just think differently than Elves.
   
   

What happens if you get tired of the single character you have, or if you are playing two and decide you would rather play a third? Let your Moderator know you want to retire one of your characters. That character will be deactivated, and you are then free to create a new character. It’s best if this is accomplished through role-play, however, rather than the thread just stopping in the middle. Perhaps the character could be killed off or incarcerated for an extremely long time. Something that wraps up the story gives a more satisfying resolution than just ceasing to post. If you already have two active characters, though, keep in mind that any new character will be subject to the above rules for creating a second character.

At no time may any player have more than two active characters. Characters may not be constantly activated and deactivated to allow for more. Once a character is deactivated, it is done and cannot be reactivated, barring approval from the CDs.

The PLAYING YOUR CHARACTER section deals with the ways that playing your character follows the rules of Telgard. Among the most important are the rules on Wyrming. You will want to make sure you understand this sometimes-difficult topic, and you should feel free to ask a moderator or Creative Developer any questions you might have about it.

IC and OOC

This can seem a difficult concept to grasp at times, but in reality it is very simple. In-character (abbreviated IC) is something being said or done by your character. Out-of-character (abbreviated OOC) is something being said or done by you. Use ‘IC’ and ‘OOC’ in your writing to signify the difference.

Example:

OOC: How many rats are there? IC: Hargrew the Warrior stopped as he saw the rats come down the hallway toward him. He let out a battle cry and charged. An observer would have thought that it sounded more like a scream of terror than a battle cry, and this would have been borne out by the fact that Hargrew was charging away from the rats. OOC: I hope that door’s unlocked!

When writing in your character’s thread, most of your writing will be IC, and generally does not need to be noted unless it comes immediately after an OOC comment. Many comments that you may want to make OOC can also be made IC. Both of the OOC comments in the above examples could have been incorporated into the IC part: “He counted the rats in the approaching pack.” “As he fled, a desperate thought crossed his mind: I sure hope that door’s unlocked!”

When writing in the Tavern, your writing will probably be mixed between IC and OOC. The Tavern is a place where the people of Telgard can associate either IC or OOC. You should try to be clear when posting in the Tavern as to whom you are posting as-yourself or your character. It can be embarrassing (at least!) to be criticized for expressing views that are your character’s, not your own. Remember, though, at all times, courtesy to the players and Moderators is the rule whether posting IC or OOC. The same doesn’t necessarily apply to the NPCs-or the other characters.

Wyrming

Wyrming is a very important concept in Telgard. It is something you do not want to do. Wyrming only relates to the progression of your character’s story, and as such is generally only something you need to worry about when posting for your character. So what is Wyrming?

Simply put, Wyrming is the act of making assumptions. Specifically, assumptions that give you an advantage.

It’s a lot more complex than that, though. There are three basic things that you as a player have no control over:

1. The success of your actions
2. Other characters
3. Your environment

All of these things are under the control of your Moderator (or in some cases, as relates to the second item, other players). Let’s examine these items in further detail.

Your actions: You decide what your character attempts to do. Mundane tasks, like eating or walking down the street, are generally acceptable to assume successful, unless you have some sort of Disadvantage that makes these things difficult. However, the success of more complicated tasks will be determined by your moderator. If your character is new to their profession, they cannot be expected to succeed handily at everything they attempt. Especially when attempting difficult tasks, your character may fail more often than not.

The actions and reactions of other PCs or NPCs: You can tell other characters what to do. You just can’t ensure that they’ll do it. If your character takes an action, you can’t say what the reaction of the people around him will be. “Hargrew the Warrior lashed out with a vicious blow, striking the brigand square in the chest. The hapless robber fell to the ground, clutching his chest and begging for mercy.” This is an example of a Wyrm that blatantly violates both point one and point two. “The Guard was impressed by Hargrew’s list of accomplishments.” This is a subtler example of a Wyrm. Neither is considered acceptable.

Your environment: This one is the most tricky one, as there are some things you can assume about your environment. You can assume that stone is hard, that fire is hot, or that a knife to your gut is going to hurt. As long as the assumption is based upon common sense, it shouldn’t be too much of an issue. Your writing can be fleshed out and deepened by describing your environment, provided what you described is common sense and fits the boundaries of what has already been described by your Moderator. However, you still don’t have the leeway to create things like buildings, NPCs, or events of a scale beyond the most minor.

So, in general, there are two guidelines to follow: If it gives your character an advantage, don’t create it; and if you have any doubts about whether it would be appropriate, don’t create it.

There is a small exception to the rules on Wyrming. When a character progresses to a high level in a skill, the simpler tasks relating to that skill become very easy. A highly-skilled blacksmith would be able to create a simple dagger without much difficulty, for instance, and a character with a high level of stealth would be able to noiselessly cross an unobstructed stone floor. All high-level skills are considered to have this degree of automatic success at simple actions. However, it does not apply when the task is a matter of life and death, or of other importance. In such cases, the attempt to use the skill is Moderated normally.

Your Moderator may also occasionally grant you a brief and temporary exemption from the rules on Wyrming, usually as a reward for good writing. You may be invited to describe a scene, or the results of an extended series of actions. Whatever the setting, try to stay within the bounds of the game. Don’t let yourself get carried away.

There is a corollary to this: As your Moderator controls everything around your character, so do you control your character. Only you can determine his thoughts and actions, although, again, you cannot determine the success of his actions. There may be rare cases, such as relate to phobias, illness, or mental control, when your Moderator can exert some influence over him, but generally she has no control over your character. A Moderator can Wyrm by dictating character actions, whether they are actions that your character would take or not. For help on resolving this type of issue, please see the section on Settling Disagreements.

Improving Skills and Attributes

There are three different classes of abilities that make up a character: Attributes, Skills, and magical Talents.

Attributes are the four statistics Strength, Intelligence, Dexterity and Health. These values are fixed once you create your character, and may not be increased save for an act of powerful magic or a god. They may be decreased due to illness, injury or certain Disadvantages.

Skills are the ability to perform certain tasks. Your character starts out with a certain number based upon his Intelligence Attribute. All starting Skills begin at Novice level, although the Humans’ Race Skill allows exceptions. These Skills can be improved, and new ones learned, through practice. If your character practices a skill during the thread, his skill level will eventually improve. Improvement is likely to be faster if you describe his actions in more detail. Higher levels of a Skill take longer to attain. New Skills can be learned by practicing under the eyes of someone trained in the Skill, or sometimes just by practicing.

Talents start out dormant. That is, the beginning character has the potential to learn certain types of magic, but is unaware of this fact. The number of Talents a character can have is based upon his Intelligence Attribute, as well as his Race. However, he has no access to the magic at that time. Something must happen to the character to activate the magic within. Usually this is achieved with the assistance of a skilled wizard, but sometimes, stressful experiences can shock them to activity. At this point, the Talent is Awakened, although still not usable on a conscious level. Practice is required to bring the Talent to the level if Initiate, at which point it can be used freely. Just as with Skills, practice is required to increase the power of a Talent. See the section on Magic for more information.

Settling Disagreements

There may be times where you have a disagreement with your Moderator. This usually happens when the Moderator has Wyrmed, but there may be other cause for disagreement. The first step is to contact your Moderator and see if you can settle your disagreement directly. Polite language and a courteous tone generally go farther in settling disagreements than argumentative or abusive language. If the disagreement cannot be resolved, or if you feel that you cannot speak directly to her on this issue, the next step would be to contact her supervisor. If she is an AGM, her supervisor would be the GM of the city. If she is a GM, her supervisor would be the KM of the Kingdom. If she is a KM, her supervisor would be one of the CDs.

When communicating a disagreement, it can be helpful to begin by stating your name and the name of your character. Then provide a description of the issue. Quote text from the thread or include a link to it. Attach previous correspondence. State the resolution you would like to see. Above all, though, try to retain a fair and balanced outlook. Most disagreements arise from simple miscommunications that can be easily and quickly rectified.

You may always contact the CDs directly if you feel the need.

Character Death

Although it is rare, it does happen. Sometimes it happens as the result of continuous Wyrming. Sometimes a character makes a fatally bad decision. Sometimes a character’s death will occur at a vitally dramatic moment, as he sacrifices himself to save the world. Whatever the cause, that character is dead and can no longer be played. If he was your only character, then you are free to create another. The standard rules still apply for multiple characters. However, the more history your character has, the more well-written his story has been on your part, and the more dramatic and important his death, the more likely you are to reap some benefit from it. You may be automatically granted permission for multiple characters. You may even be given some sort of bonus to creating a new character. If your character’s death was impressive enough, he may even wind up in the Hall of Heroes, which lists the accomplishments of some of Telgard’s greatest inhabitants.

As long as you have done your best when detailing his life, your character’s death will not be the ending of your adventures in Telgard, but merely the start of a new beginning.

Powergaming

What is powergaming? Powergaming is when your only interest in playing is to get the most power for your character, regardless of the methods. Gathering the most items, killing the most people, gaining the most money, these are the only things that are important to a powergamer.

Telgard is not about powergaming. Telgard is a place of exploration and adventure, of imagination and creativity. It is a place where you can develop a character concept from a brief sketch to the richly detailed image of a person. This person will have hopes, dreams, and desires, just as a real person would. It is possible that this person will want to amass incredible wealth or power. The difference is, a powergamer generally isn’t interested in developing his character as a person. He just wants all the good stuff, and he wants it now. A role-player, however, wants to see how his character develops along his journey. He is willing to suffer indignities and hardships to reach his goal, and may even be satisfied to find that, once he has obtained the power he sought, it is not truly what he wanted. A role-player is willing to allow his character to grow and change, and his focus is on that character, not on the things his character may possess.

Telgard is a community of, for, and by role-players. Powergamers are invited to look elsewhere for entertainment.