What happens if I wanna RP and there are no GMs around?

GMs in roleplays like HotCW on SL function as moderators and instigators. They are closer to LARP GMs than tabletop gms in many ways. Generally if you want to RP, and no GMs are around you should simply instigate an RP with an another player who’s amicable to starting a scene with you. There will probably be a lot of times when GMs aren’t around or able to engage in RP directly with players (there’s only one of us and 15 PCs.. its just too much), so GMs throw players an idea and let them run with it.

What if there are no other players around?

Try asking in the group chat to see if anyone is interested in coming to the RP area and playing with you. There may be times when no one is available in game, you can also try posting in the forums if you find its a common problem with your timezone.

What do I use to represent sin?

You should use a combination of things ideally, but the primary thing we look for is colour. Each sin is keyed to a particular colour (Red, Blue, Purple, Black, or Gold), and you should make that colour a predominant element in your costuming attire. That’s not to say you need to be decked out in bling gold or be painted blue, but it should show in things like your clothing, accessories such as shoes and jewelry, possibly hair or ornaments in ones hair. Clothing is probably the easiest translation. For ghosts, their appearance should be semi designed on their sin, by way of chain position, wounds, accessories, etc. Demons should be a combination of colour and accessories.

What do I do if someone is godmodding?

Godmodding is a hard thing to judge depending on the situation and character, but if you suspect someone of it, please log the conversation and send a log to a GM for review. If they are found to be indeed godmodding then there will be one of two actions taken. If they have an official character and are a member of the RP group, they will be talked to about their behavior. If they are reported again, they will be temporarily banned from the RP. If it happens a third time they will be permanently banned. If they do not have an official character, they will be spoken to once and then on the second offense banned.

What do I do if someone is griefing in SL?

If there is a griefer being a problem in the RP area, please report them to the GMs if there are any online (you can view through the group), or to the Therianation staff. Eventually we will hopefully have full coverage of security people and GMs, but as we are just starting we are doing what we can. Record the name of the griefer, and we will ban them when we are able. You can also report them directly to LL.

What form of roleplay do I use?

Overall the RP is freeform, based on mutual trust and respect. This comes with a lot of personal responsibility to be mindful of your own actions, and not godmodding or being a twink. This is a horror RP, people are supposed to die and get hurt, not getting hurt and trying to ‘save the day’ is not going to work.  In secondlife, we do plan to have an RP system available for use but ONLY FOR THOSE WHO WANT IT, mainly for combat. The system we plan to use is DCS, but it is not configured properly for the sim at the moment. We will update this question when it is in place.

I don’t know how to roleplay, can you teach me?

There are a lot of resources and how-tos on RPing all over the net, which is a good place to get a feel for things like the lingo. Be sure to read the resources on the site, and don’t be afraid to just come and watch for a little while, be a guest and observe how people are doing things in the actual RP. When you are ready to join in, try a non-official character at first to get a feel for it. If you have questions you can ask them in group chat, or in the OOC area to people who are just hanging out, but the best way to get into RP is to jump right on in and start doing it.

I’m a new roleplayer, can I still play?

You can indeed! Just make sure you read up on everything you need to including the setting, the lore, and the various rules and expectations of etiquette. If you have questions, please ask GMs, or other players in the group. We try to be friendly!

Can I roleplay a story with someone over PM and have it be canon?

That depends. It can be canon for your character if you as a player decides that it is. However, for it to affect the world at large it has to satisfy the needs to be a) done between official characters, and 2) Within a storyline run by a GM and observed by a GM. Since PMs cannot be observed by a GM, the effects of PM rp that potentially could impact the world are not generally felt, unless the players use aspects of it in their interactions with a storyline RP that will impact the characters’ decisions and thus impact the world. So in short, for characters yes, for the world no.