News files provide information about the world,
rules of the MUX, and information on how to get a character, among
other things. Entries in bold are located on separate pages. The rest
are contained here. It should be noted that these are merely copies of
the ones on the actual MUSH, and likely have not been updated as
frequently as those are. So, it's best only to use these to give you a
general idea, and to read the ones online for more detailed
information.
Current policy is that you can have a maximum of
two powered characters each. We don't want people taking on characters
and not having the time to run all of them. Also, we highly recommend
that if you have a hero character already, your alt (alternate
character) be a villain. Villains usually being scarce on MUXes, we
don't mind as much if both your characters are evil.
This policy is not set in stone. It may change as
circumstances demand and, for certain players who demonstrate the
ability to handle more characters, exceptions may be made. People found
to be playing more than their maximum by cheating the system will be
given one chance to admit it and choose which ones to keep.
It is not okay to play with your alts such that one
gains benefits through the actions of the other. RP between your alts
is not forbidden, but isn't recommended, and will be watched for abuse.
It's better to be safe and keep your alts away from each other.
It's generally considered very rude to reveal who
another player's alts are without their consent. Some people don't want
to be bothered with issues for one alt while playing the other, or for
RP in one alt to prejudice them in others. This also goes for cross-MU*
alts. If people want others to know who else they are, they'll say so.
If not, it's not your place to say.
There are four basic classes of characters on XET,
although only three of those are available for application. The four
classes are Canon, Original, Temporary, and Non-Player.
Please, try to contact faction heads and come up
with ways to integrate your character with ongoing events! We hope to
focus on social interaction between groups with differing agendas, as
opposed to masses of individuals.
Canon characters are those derived from previously
published works by Marvel, or many of the various stories that make up
the Cthulhu Mythos. If you have a question concerning whether a
character is canon, please contact staff. Please keep in mind that
Marvel continuity does not apply here and should only be used as a
reference and guide for adopting the canon character to XET.
Be creative! You have a level of creative control
that you won't find on other X-themed games, and events that took place
in Marvel history did not necessarily happen in our timeline. In fact,
the vast majority of it did not. A character's origins rank among the
few things that might well remain constant between Marvel and XET.
As an example, while Kurt Wagner might still be
Mystique's son, tossed over a waterfall, later to end up in a circus
and chased about by the townspeople as a demon, he hasn't yet joined
the X-Men. The X-Men only formed within the past year.
If you have questions concerning the possible
origins of a canon character here, please contact staff and we'll help
you work something out.
Marvel, Lovecraft, and the demented minds of the
staff all contain characters which are either way out of scope for
regular RP, too key for OOC plots, or just plain don't work as
player-run characters. When these characters show up, they'll be run by
staff, to bolster RP or in the course of plots. These include, but are
not limited to, most of the Lovecraftian Elder Gods or Old Ones as well
as various monsters from beyond or alien races. It also includes
figures like world leaders, and the type of people who have enough
influence to start a world war on a whim. Should you be concerned that
your concept might fall under these guidelines, it's best to send a
short query e-mail to the appstaff before you start writing.
Rarely, a staff-run character may be released and
open for regular apping, though one shouldn't count on it. Should this
happen, when apping, you should consult the staff as to the TPs the
character has been involved in before becoming 'open'.
There are also staff-run characters which are not
off-limits at all, but just used for staff-run TPs. These are
essentially the same as Temp characters.
If you'd like to write something /completely/
different, then an original character might fit the bill. Many of the
most interesting and entertaining concepts are those not derived from
Marvel or Lovecraft, but the insane meanderings of the overly creative
fan.
We ask that you try to steer away from overused
concepts, and have listed these - along with concepts that are outright
restricted - in 'Restricted'.
Remember that they key word here is 'original.'
Look over the characters currently existing within the game, the
available canon characters, and try to find some way to distinguish
your character as a unique individual.
Temp characters are characters that may be run by
players for the duration of a certain TinyPlot. Usually, the player who
comes up with the TP will have the right and responsibility of playing
the important temp characters, though admin can help if there are more
than one or for special cases. There are certain characters which may
be involved in a TP, but for a number of reasons are best left as
staff-run characters, so if your plot is accepted they will control
them (Staff-run characters are covered in more detail in 'NPC').
When apping a TP that requires a character not
currently played by someone else, you must include a mini-app for the
temp character. This will consist of a listing and description of their
powers and key personality and other traits, as well as relevant
history. In the TP app itself, you should explain how and why the temp
character is involved. This process holds whether the temp character is
a canon character, or an original character created solely to move the
plot. Canon characters will be looked at more critically, because
involving them in a TP may disrupt things for future appers and so they
should be used only if integral to the plot.
We hope all characters will be active in RP, but
chances are that won't always be the case. Real Life intrudes, and
people wind up being Inactive. Inactivity encompasses both not logging
in at all, and being online but remaining OOC all the time. Either way,
the result is the same, your character isn't being used.
For a canon characters, extended inactivity means
you're both effectively wasting the character, and may be preventing
another player who can do more with it from apping. For original
characters, we'd still like to see you out there, and the characters
you regularly interact with would too. You've (hopefully) put a lot of
effort in the character, and it would be a shame to do nothing with it.
Generally, after a month of total inactivity (not
even logging on), without advance warning to the staff, if you can't be
reached either online or by your listed email address, you risk losing
creative control of your character. (The exact time may vary slightly,
for example during summer when some people lose regular access from
school, but it won't be less than a month). If someone's online but not
RPing, it's a bit harder to track, but the same general rule applies.
In these cases, we'll generally give warning online if we notice a
problem before we take drastic measures.
Losing creative control of your character may mean
a new player for the character for some of the major roles, or your
character being written out of play in some fashion. Losing a character
isn't necessarily permanent; you can re-app when you have more time for
the game, except in the case of canon characters who may be taken over
by someone else.
If you know for some reason (vacation, a temporary
loss of net access, etc.) that you're going to be away from the MUX for
a while, let the staff know ahead of time with a @mail telling us the
reason and how long you expect to be gone. That way, we know the
situation and will save your character. You should also let the people
you regularly RP with know the score, and providing an IC reason that
they won't be able to find you is a thoughtful thing to do (and, in
some cases, may even lead to a great TP if the reason is something like
'abducted by cultists').
Certain powers or concepts are either somewhat out
of theme, or have the potential to unbalance the game, or just make
life miserable for the staff. They're not forbidden outright (those
which are, are in 'news banned'), but they require very good apps or
staff approval beforehand in order for them to be approved. This list
is subject to change from time to time. If a certain concept is
overused, it may be placed here to warn off other people considering
the same idea. Concepts on the restricted list are considered on a
case-by-case basis.
So far, we are restricting the following
concepts/powers:
Characters who are members of the servitor races
of the Great Old Ones must tell staff their plans beforehand and should
ask for permission before apping, or risk having their app rejected
completely.
Characters from another dimension are restricted.
Characters with active dimension-hopping powers are even more
restricted and are very hard to get approved.
Original characters who have connections to
current (and especially canon) characters must both be cleared with the
character in question and the staff.
Magic-using and magic-based characters are
somewhat more restricted than mutants (see
'news magic').
X-Men: End Times is an amalgam world, which drops
the continuity of the X-men comics by Marvel and integrates the history
of the Cthulhu Mythos cycle by H.P. Lovecraft. The XET universe also
integrates the excellent Delta Green series of sourcebooks sourcebook
by Pagan Publishing. Lastly, we also borrow from the works and ideas of
Stephen King. The result? A game world where the surface largely
resembles that of X-Men comic books, yet with something totally
different, alien, and insidious lurking beneath.
Something that so damages the human psyche that you
are certainly better off not knowing the specifics.
On XET, the continuity of the X-Books has largely
been dropped. While many of the character names and origins are
familiar, this is a completely separate gaming universe. Note that
while certain key characters (such as Xavier and Magneto) exist here,
their histories, motivations and personalities may differ somewhat from
that which you are familiar with.
There are a few key points that will be of interest
to most players. The first concerns Marvel's Uncanny X-Men. As of the
year 2000, the X-Men do not exist. While Charles Xavier has often
considered founding a school where he can gather and train young
mutants, he has yet to make this a reality. Events of the past year,
however, have sharply motivated him to move in this direction.
Except in a few cases, canon characters will be at
the start of their careers. Their ages will probably be the same as
those of the characters in the comic books today, give or take a year
or two.
Cthulhu is with us courtesy of H.P. Lovecraft's
estate. The X-Men are courtesy of Marvel. Various significant bits of
Pagan Publishing's Delta Green sourcebooks for Call of Cthulhu have
also been introduced into XET continuity. Also we've used a number of
minor influences from Marvel's now defunct New Universe line (if you
remember those comics enough to recognize them, bonus points to you!)
We're not a profit making organization, and despite
using names without permission or endorsement, we intend to make no
profit from them. Please don't sue us, we're students and are already
deep in debt.
The subject material is a mixture of science
fiction and horror. There's some violence and swearing. Role-play on
the MUX will vary from 'PG' to 'R' in terms of movie ratings. If you're
a mature individual and can cope with this, fine. If not, this place
isn't for you.
While much of XET's history mirrors that of
real-life Earth, the behind-the-scenes happenings varies dramatically
until recently. At least, we certainly hope so! Below listed are some
of the more significant events of recent times, to help you get a
better feel for the current IC climate.
* Magic (see XET News files for detail)
* Mythos (see XET News files for detail)
Combat, especially when there are lot of people
involved, can be complicated on a MUX. Poses get missed, people lag or
take time to type, two characters try to do things which are mutually
exclusive, and worst of all, generally there's no GM or dice involved
to settle disputes over what happened. While some of these problems
will always creep up, things will go much smoother by following a few
simple guidelines:
* Pose only your actions, not the results of them.
This is the golden rule of RP in general, but it's most often forgotten
in combat. Do not pose that you fire a plasma blast, hitting the other
character in the chest and sending him flying. Pose that you fire a
plasma blast AIMING for the chest, with the hopes of sending them
flying.
* The flip side of the above is, make reasonable
responses to your opponent's poses. If there's a very good chance that
you're going to be hit, be hit. Most of the time, it won't be fatal
(and if it otherwise would be, you can make it a 'glancing blow'). If
what someone else does screws up your plans for the next round, you'll
have to change your plans. Failing to uphold your end of the combat
will only get you the label 'twink', and you'll find less people want
to RP with you.
* Leave an out from causing all-out death or
permanent bodily damage. Nobody wants their character to die, so you
should leave your opponents unconscious and wounded, not dead or maimed
for life. Even if it's in character to go in for the kill, a person can
be mistaken and leave someone for dead, or the cops could arrive at
just that moment.
* Have only one pose per character for every
'round' (unless one has powers which would allow them to move much
faster). If there are more than two or three of you, it's probably a
good idea to create a pose order and stick to it. Be considerate of
slow typers and people who are lagging-- don't just skip over them if
they take a few minutes.
* If too many people are dropping in just to join
the fight, it's okay to ask them to sit it out. The more people that
are involved the longer it takes to go through one 'round' of the pose
order. You can declare a timestop, which means that although you may be
there for an hour or two because of the time it takes for one round,
it's really happening very quickly, so there's not time for other
people to join in.
* Don't use powers that aren't in your traits, or
use spurious stunts with your powers just to get an edge in combat. (An
exception is that, during TPs, some characters might have changed or
enhanced powers that aren't listed, because they're not permanent. It's
a good idea to let people involved in the fight know beforehand about
these temporary changes, to avoid disputes later.)
* In cases where people just can't agree on an
issue come up during combat (who reaches a certain object first in a
race, for example), it's perfectly reasonable to call in a staff member
to judge. If no staffers are online, you might consider asking a
mutually agreed uninvolved player, or take a vote in larger groups.
A mutant is a creature that is predominantly human
but harbors some sort of contaminant deep within their genetic
structure. This "revenant DNA" of an earlier age or long-ago
manipulation has combined with "pure" human stock over the
millennia, creating a nearly infinite number of variations. All members
of humanity have some wayward genes, but only in a select few cases do
they manifest noticeably.
The "X-Factor" is extremely hard to
quantify, as it lays in the particular combination and sequence of
genes that otherwise serve no identifiable purpose. As the Human Genome
Project nears completion and humanity comes to terms with the reality
of the mutant epidemic, more resources will be devoted to understanding
the underlying causes of the mutant phenomena.
To the common man, anyone with superhuman abilities
is a suspected "mutant", regardless of the true origins of
their powers. The sole exception would be those individuals whose
abilities are immediately contributable to advanced technology.
Mutants have quickly become the witches and
sorcerers of the modern era. Very few people understand what they are,
or how their existence is possible. There are several camps of thought,
some seeing mutants as the outcome of alien experimentation, others
seeing them as the product of satanic corruption.
Some, including many prominent figures in
government and academia, insist that "mutants" do not exist
at all, but are one-time flukes, hoaxes, or otherwise explainable by
modern science.
"Mutants" can expect to be met first with
extreme skepticism, as humans refuse to believe that their abilities
are genuine without overwhelming proof or firsthand experience. Once
convinced that the alleged mutant's abilities are genuine, reactions
will range from abject fear and paranoia to a xenophobic mob mentality.
The vast majority of XET's world uses regular, year
2000 technology. Some things may be a little more advanced, but not
dramatically so. For most of the world disintegrator pistols,
antigravity drives and holographic disguises are still things of
science fiction.
This is not to say that these devices, and others,
do not exist. It also does not necessarily mean your character will
never get their hands on them, or that a character concept dependant on
high technology is completely unworkable.
However, it does mean that this sort of thing will
be monitored, and have to be accounted for. If your character has high
technology in their app, you'd better be prepared to explain where and
how they got it. If it was stolen, you'd better be aware that it's
probably somebody's top priority to find the thief. If it is on loan,
the owner probably has more authority over you than you'd like.
There are three main sources of high technology.
First, aliens possess technology far in advance of anything on Earth.
Of course, a lot of the world doesn't even believe in aliens, much less
have proof, or even direct contact, so this is probably the least
likely.
Next, certain factions of the government have high
technology. Some of this is, in fact, back-engineered or traded alien
technology. Some of it is human technology that has been suppressed
from public release for one reason or another. These may be available
for people who work in these factions to use, and are slightly (though
not much) more likely to fall into the hands of others, but they keep a
tight rein on what and who they have.
Finally, there are of course those characters, like
Forge, who have some mutant ability to invent things, or simple
hyper-intelligence. Characters with these powers are given slightly
more freedom with what they can do with tech, but new inventions must
still be apped through a @mail to the techstaff. (The response time can
be considered part of the time it takes to research into the device's
feasibility).
It should be also be noted that flagrant, obvious
use of high technology WILL draw a lot of IC attention to the user, and
overintelligent inventors have been known to disappear to work in
government labs "voluntarily against their will".
Exceptions to these three sources may be considered
on a case-by-case basis.
