General Player Policy and Standards
Character Creation, Roleplaying Standards, and General Crew Standards
Character Creation Guidelines |
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Your character must be functional and capableYour custom species and character must be functional and capable of doing their job, even if they are incompetent. Hiring standards on the frontiers are nowhere near as strict as those in the core worlds due to manpower shortages, but they are not that desperate. For instance, your character must be able to operate independently as an adult and be physically and mentally capable to do their jobs. You can be slightly less than competent, be a criminal seeking a new start, and so on. However, you cannot be insane, a serial killer, a dependent, a person who is unable to work with others, etc. A character cannot be excessively primitive if they are part of a civilized faction such as the station crew. For example, you may play a formerly tribal Ashwalker, however, they cannot be so primitive that they cannot work with their peers or function to an acceptable capacity. Note: Character Guideline #2 and #3 does not mean you cannot play these characters. Rather, we want players to conform to the setting to allow for a more cohesive and coherent experience for others. For instance, if we have a gargoyle character that turns into a statue upon being in contact with light or being seen by others, you should either keep it mysterious or have an ordinary explanation ready at hand. SCP Foundation, for instance, encounters the mythical, the mystical, and the mysterious, but they keep it grounded. |
Your character must fit the setting in a grounded wayYour custom species must be adapted if they are of supernatural or cartoonish origin that is ill-fitting to the server, i.e. Demons, Angels, My Little Pony, etc. To clarify, you can play custom species based off of the aesthetics of demons or angels, but they cannot be called such or be supernatural in the typical fantasy or cartoon sense. Instead, take a page from SCP Foundation. You can still be mysterious, dark, and mystical, but you must keep it grounded and make it fit the setting. For example: if you want an imp, incubus, succubus, and so forth character, you may if you avoid the whole "demonic" angle, i.e., have more of a less magical explanation so they fit the setting and not have direct references to Earth demons. Same goes for bipedal, anthropomorphic MLP characters (Quads are not allowed. You need hands). You must eliminate any MLP references, i.e., change cutie marks to tattoos. You must then convert your character to being a proper alien or splicer/genemodder. Names must be changed to fit. There must be no association with MLP, rather you must be a horse character. The main thing is that it should fit the setting.
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Give your character a proper nameGive your character an acceptable name. Do not name them after real-world people (historical, political or just general popular figures) or pre-existing fictional characters (Don't just name your lawyer Phoenix Wright, be creative!).You should not give your characters titles in their names, unless a mime or clown. |
No mary sue charactersYour custom species and character should not be what is colloquially known as a 'Mary Sue'. We highly encourage players to focus on creating 'background characters' for the corporation. They cannot be heroes or stereotypical protagonists with deep connections or effects on the lore. Simply put, remember that you are playing an employee for a company so much bigger than yourself, and that you are probably a little bit irrelevant. On top of that, you should not be good at everything as specified by Server Principle #7. If you do want to play a character that has lost their former glory, that is allowed, given that you keep it grounded and serious. Additionally, their former position should not be anything that would make them noticeable in the lore. |
No feral-like custom speciesYour custom species and character cannot be a talking four-legged animal with no arms. They also cannot be anything too animalistic to the point they are difficult to distinguish from an actual animal. Taurs are allowed, and borgs are not a custom species. |
Flavor is encouraged within reasonYou are allowed to be flexible with your character, even if they have abilities or features that cannot be fully depicted within the game. However, it cannot be anything that may influence mechanics, even if it is only for emotes. For instance, you can say your character has minor psionic abilities, given reasonable constraints. You can use this in emotes to describe flipping a coin or pulling out a cigarette from a pack hands-free with your psionic powers, but you cannot do anything that would have a significant mechanical impact. However, you cannot say you can crush people at will, as that affects in-game mechanics and also falls in violation of Character Guideline #3. |
No purely fetish charactersYour character or custom species cannot revolve solely around a fetish and should instead be a believable, fleshed-out individual. The fetish should not be the focal point. You can build up a character around a fetish, but you must make it so that they are more than the fetish and the fetish becomes a mere backdrop to the character itself. For instance, if you have a vore fetish, the character can have physical designs to accommodate for your preference, but the focus of the character should not be based around vore. Rather, it can be a physical component of the character that is not overly emphasized to the point of being "in your face" Another example are latex characters. As long as the character is sensible with a reasonable backstory on why they are the way they are, i.e., are experimental androids or was involved in an experiment gone wrong, they are perfectly acceptable. This does not prohibit characters that are designed to allow for whatever fetish you may have, rather your character must be well-balanced in their personality and appearance. Again, avoid being "in your face". That's it! Remember: While this server allows for ERP, it is not its central focus. For any NSFW detail, please write them under an "incoming NSFW" warning. If you want to show off your interest, please put a disclaimer and be reasonable. You should not shove your fetish into people's faces. Conversely, this is a server that does allow for ERP. If you cannot handle seeing any NSFW details or action, this is probably not the server for you. People on both sides should have consideration for each other and be able to exist alongside each other. |
Adults onlyYour custom species or character must follow the adults-only rule. Attempts to skirt past this rule will be dealt with harshly. To keep it simple, they must look like adults, and they should not act like a child either. Short species like dwarves, goblins, kobolds, and so forth are allowed, however, they must be physically mature. Age play within our community is explicitly forbidden and will be met with a community blacklist. |
Custom species can not affect loreIf you play a custom species, they cannot affect the lore. They must be distant or insignificant enough that they do not impact the lore. |
Roleplaying Standards
Read the Guide on Roleplay in Skyrat for specifics!
What are Skyrat's Roleplaying Standards?
Skyrat should be treated as a HRP-MRP server. For roleplaying enforcement purposes, please play on the main server with the aim to be High Roleplay or HRP, even if our minimum requirement is MRP. This is to ensure people consistently stay above the roleplaying standards, even at their lowest points. Essentially, we want you to be MRP at your very worst, so that LRP is no longer an issue on the station.
On Skyrat, LRPers, or players who are LRP by default rather than exception, will be dealt with harshly and possibly permanently after sufficient warning has been given. However, we acknowledge LRP situations will arise due to the nature of the game, and that will be considered along with a person's history. TG is like that sometimes.
Why are we writing this?
We created this document in order to clarify what is meant by NRP, LRP, MRP, and HRP, as there are so many different interpretations. For instance, one pattern that we've noticed is that there seems to be a general consensus that LRP servers are NRP, MRP servers are LRP, and so on, hinting that there is a sort of "inflation" going on in regards to roleplaying standards.
Furthermore, there are significant differences in how people interpret, so we will attempt to define it here on Skyrat so it may be a little less vague. In Skyrat, NRP/LRP/MRP/HRP all describe the roleplaying intent of a player or setting. It does not mean how serious or silly the setting is. Our definition is by no means comprehensive and will be subject to change. See below.
What is Low Roleplay (LRP) and No Roleplay (NRP)?
Low Roleplay (LRP) and No Roleplay (NRP) occurs when there is little to no interest in roleplaying in good faith, nor is there any real intent to roleplay. The two terms hold the same connotation with the main difference being that LRP has marginally more effort involved with roleplaying. A player or action is said to be LRP/NRP if they conduct themselves as if they have minimal interest in contributing to the roleplaying environment, often breaking the immersion of other players.
They are more interested in memeing, mechanics, and are self-indulgent in their behavior without consideration for others or their immersion. These players will face a quality control ban on the Main Server. Please note that if a player is so poor that they come off as LRP/NRP, even if they intend to be MRP/HRP, they may also face a quality control ban. So, using an excuse like your character is "mentally unstable" is invalid if your conduct comes off as LRP/NRP. Read The Guide on Roleplay in Skyrat for specifics on LRP/NRP behavior!
What are Examples of LRP and NRP Behavior?
There are different tiers of LRP. For instance, there is "explicit LRP" where a player is acting in clear contrast in what is acceptable IC behavior such as attempting to hug a horror-form changeling in the middle of a gunfight. There is also "subtle LRP" where a player is acting LRP in a way that is not as noticeable or is internalized such as having OOC feelings dictate how they behave towards characters or acting in a way that tries to optimize gameplay and winning. Lastly, one may not act outwardly LRP in typical fashion, but they may outright ignore or dismiss any attempts at roleplay, especially with emotes, and are solely focused on gameplay mechanics. Neither is acceptable.
What is Medium Roleplay (MRP)?
Medium Roleplay (MRP) is the minimum requirement to play on the server. While many servers on SS13 are MRP by name, they range widely in the amount and quality of the roleplay required. For us, we will go by the standard that you are making a serious attempt to roleplay and that you make a good effort not to break immersion. You might crack a few jokes that may not fit the setting completely, you might be somewhat silly, and you may be mechanically motivated in some ways. However, as long as you make a good attempt to roleplay in good faith in a somewhat realistic fashion without heavily relying on mechanics or combat, you will maintain good standings with staff. You can focus on the mechanics, given that you are able to pull away from them to roleplay in conjunction with the mechanics when needed. For the most part, minor breaks in immersion are tolerated. It is a game after all.
What is High Roleplay (HRP)?
High Roleplay (HRP), otherwise known as Heavy Roleplay, is what we want people to be where they treat their character with respect for the relative realism of the setting. We are not saying your character must be realistic. We are, after all, playing in a relatively lackadaisical setting on a 2D pixel game that is almost two decades old. However, we want players to take a page from the HRPer who will attempt to immerse themselves as their character and play them according to the setting in a hardcore fashion, as that is the most crucial part when it comes to playing on a roleplaying server. They treat the character separately from one's OOC self. They have a good understanding of their character, their background, and personality. Therefore, they are able to use all that to articulate how their characters behave and conduct themselves through roleplay by showing, not telling. They play their characters as if they are living and breathing in the setting in a way that is distinctively separate from the player.
What are Examples of High Roleplay (HRP)?
Keep in mind, HRP does not mean you emote before every action. While you should be emoting here and there, the amount you emote does not dictate whether or not you are HRP. Instead, HRP is all about how you treat your character, the environment, and how they interact with everything by contributing to the immersion. Your character should exist outside of your OOC self as its own living, breathing entity that shows through its emotes, dialogue, and even mechanical actions.
Let's take for example how a player can engage in combat.The act of engaging in combat can be an expression of roleplaying, as the actions you portray with your character should tell a story about the character and how they would react in a situation like the present one. A HRPer will understand that being the best mechanically will not make much roleplaying sense for your character, especially if said character is physically or mentally weak. A HRP player will not try to play to win, rather they will play to tell a story with their character and to show how they would act in said scenario.
Again, emotes are a good way of showing how your characters are from their idiosyncratic tics to any unique style of talking, moving, or behaving. Emoting should be a big part of how you play your character, and it should not be overshadowed by mechanics. All we are saying is that emoting isn't everything about roleplay. At the end of the day, you must show that you are roleplaying your character, rather than to tell. Staff and other players cannot read your intent, rather you must show it. You have many tools at your disposal to express your character such as game mechanics, dialogue, and emotes along with your flavor text.
A Parting Statement
NRP/LRP/MRP/HRP does not necessarily correspond with quality. One can be very much LRP with quality and effort, rather it correlates more directly with effort placed into roleplaying and creating a comprehensive story that is coherent from start to finish. More often than not, the two do go hand in hand, as quality roleplay cannot be done without effort. Yet, we are not here to be snooty elitists, and we highly discourage such behaviors here. We must emphasize that we have no desire to replicate the restrictiveness of traditional HRP servers, nor do we advocate for elitism. Rather, we advocate for people to treat the setting and character with respect, even if the game itself isn't perfect when it comes to roleplaying.
General Crew Policy
As a crew member aboard one of Nanotransen's frontier stations, you may or may not always be the most loyal to Nanotrasen. In fact, it is quite possible you might not even be affiliated with them such as in the case of the security department which has been outsourced. It is possible you may just be a temporary laborer or contractor as well.
The station is more than just a place for mining and research. They are transit hubs where travelers, contractors, and so forth stay in between trips. While you could be an NT employed workman, you might just be a vagrant, or an independent contractor. The sky's the limit. Why is this important? Because we want a more unique environment, one where it feels like cyberpunk and sci fi equally.
Below is a list of guidelines and rules to detail what is expected out of your IC and OOC behavior as a non-antagonist crewman.
Don’t needlessly involve yourself.
It's all too common where people involve themselves too much in situations, they should either observe or step back from in ways where they can become a disturbance or obstacle more than a simple witness. Examples include:
- Watching an arrest occur is usually fine. Following security all the way to brig when they drag the perp away is not, at least usually.
- Seeing an argument between two command staff and butting in when you have no context, or god forbid physically intruding on it.
- Seeing someone use a Stealth Implant and pursuing them as a normal crewman and not security.
Try to use common sense and judgement to figure out when you should get involved. If you see someone getting beat to death, then it isn’t needless, for example.
Do not go beyond your scope
Security, and sometimes the department guards, is the first line of defense against hostile entities on board the station. They should be the first and sometimes the only people that are making moves against antagonists. If you are not security, do not go out of your way to valid-hunt, unless you are directly called upon by command or security to assist. If you want to go after the bad men, you are welcome to play as security.
You are not perfect
To help favor a roleplay friendly environment, we expect people to limit their mechanics knowledge to some degree when possible. A cargo technician shouldn't know how to do an ultra-secure and safe plasma SM setup, but if the station is losing power, the pipes are easy enough to see that a barebones basic setup for the engine is fine to do. Use your best judgement and try to let others do their job before you jump into things. See Principle #7.
Not everyone is Nanotrasen
The station isn't entirely NT owned and is meant to be akin to old port towns, a place where travelers of all sorts sit down and rest. Unless you're working directly in science, engineering, or medical, you are allowed to have your affiliation within reason. At the time of writing this, we don't have anything set in stone, but as things go on we will keep players updated.
Important: As a non-antagonist, your on station character can not be a double/triple/multiple layer agent. Be realistic with your allegiances and understand that everyone is a cog in the machine, not the main character.
NOTE: This does not give you a license to grief or self antag.
Do not self-antagonize
Because people can't be trusted, this rule now has to exist. Self-antagging is the practice of doing extreme crimes as a non-antagonist. It involves many factors with the context factoring in often, but the point still stands. Rule of thumb here is if you question if something is against the rules, seek out admin intervention.
Remember, escalation rules exist and should always be kept in mind when performing any “self antag” actions.
Examples of what entails self antagging:
- Stealing or breaking out prisoners without good reason and admin permission.
- taking theft objective items or valuable department equipment FOR NO REASON OR WEAK REASONS without permission from that department staff
- Beating someone to death on purpose as a non-antagonist
- Pretending to be an antagonist (flashing people randomly, faking cults, doing bomb threats)
- setting fires or detonating bombs as a non-antagonist
- stealing weapons and using them for no reason as a non-antagonist
These are just the most likely scenarios. If you have questions, ask by using ahelp before you do something. There are VERY few circumstances in which this is acceptable. Keep in mind as well that accidents may happen, but this starts to look suspicious when you claim accidents happen after setting off your second or third plasma fire.
Keep in mind, this does not mean you cannot be a criminal. Read...
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Don't Be Too Much of a Hardass on Antagonists.
Antagonists exist to give the round some spice and make things interesting. Without them, security wouldn’t really have a job, as their main role is to be the foil to antagonists. Even as security, you should be trying your best to play nice with them, as they are expected to do the same to you.
If you see someone doing something you know only antagonists can do, you have all the reason and freedom in the world to ignore it and not report it, or just silently report it to security.
To blatantly copy the Goon Station rules page: Because antagonists are often the primary driver for rounds, some amount of goodwill should be extended to them. This means you should try to interact and communicate with antagonists and try to create an exciting narrative, rather than, say, immediately laser them to death when you see them. Communication and dialogue are expected on both ends.
Furthermore, do not go around screaming out the game mode the second you see something. Keep meta-knowledge in mind (detailed below), and never, EVER go and scream out stuff like “traitor”, “ling/changeling”, “malf”, “revs”, and the like. It’s completely LRP behavior and does nothing but encourage validhunting.
Prisoner role
Under no circumstances are you allowed to try rioting or break out of perma. The ONLY exception to this is if you get explicit admin permission via using the admin-help function. If you do not get permission and proceed to riot, escape, self antag, etc, this will result in job bans or server bans.
Note: This does not apply if there is a situation in which mass chaos is happening, such as rev takeovers, cult takeovers, etc. If the station has descended into chaos and you are aware of it, you may act on that by escaping if you feel it necessary.
Above all else, you are not a roundstart or midround antagonist UNLESS you are made into one. You have no licenses to grief, self antag, or over escalate.
This applies only to the perma prisoner job role, not people put into perma by security mid-round because they were shitters/antags.
Clothing & Nudity Policy
https://wiki.skyrat13.space/index.php/Misc_Roleplaying_Policy
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