FAQ.

[ataraxites]

F R E Q U E N T L Y   A S K E D   Q U E S T I O N S

GENERAL ◆ Wait. What? ◆ Character Arrivals ◆ About the Planet ◆ About the Crash Site ◆ Exploration Opportunities ◆ Events ◆ Jumps ◆ Nanite Functionality ◆ Added Powers ◆ Electricity ◆ Network ◆ Jobs & Ranks GAMEPLAY ◆ Game Communities ◆ IC/OOC Pacing ◆ Activity Requirements ◆ Character Death ◆ Drops & Reapps ◆ Canon Updating ◆ Fourth Walling ◆ Muncesting ◆ Game Content APPLICATION ◆ Appable Canons ◆ Original Characters ◆ AU & CRAU Characters ◆ Played-Bys ◆ Non-Humans ◆ Humanization ◆ Canonly Dead Characters ◆ Power Caps ◆ Pets & Familiars ◆ Application Recycling ◆ Application Approval - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - If your question isn't covered below, feel free to contact us or ask us in the comments. G E N E R A L   Q U E S T I O N S I thought Ataraxion was that spaceship game? In July of 2015, the passengers aboard the Tranquility used their influence over the ship to force it into a jump with the intentions of escaping the clutches of Prime Minister van Rijn, who had returned to claim his property in order to assure the survival of humanity in his universe. This forced jump caused the ship to crash-land on a planet, bringing the game into its new PLANETFALL setting. This setting focuses on sci-fi exploration and survival while continuing the horror themes of the original game setting. How will my character arrive? Even though it has crashed, the Tranquility's jump drive continues to malfunction. Erratically, it engages, and draws characters from across the universe to itself. For the time being, those characters are still pulled inside the defunct medical bay where they wake up inside gravity couches, large metal and glass tanks filled with blue gel-like liquid that are designed to protect passengers from the G-force created by the jump. Upon release from the grav couch, all characters will feel disoriented. It may take them a few moments to regain their bearings and even their short-term memory. New characters will arrive naked, but they'll be able to find a crew-issue jumpsuit and appropriately drab underwear in their size in the wreckage of the medical bay. Inside the medical bay, for a full day following the jump, a garbled recording will loop erratically from the ship’s intercom system, telling them to take the blue lift to the passenger quarters. The lift, however, is not only out of order when they find it, but it’s completely destroyed. An empty elevator shaft is all the remains. Similarly, the lockers where characters were once able to request items will be destroyed, knocked over and broken open. On their arm, characters will notice a distorted tattoo. This tattoo is created by the ship’s nanites, injected into them as part of the grav couch’s functionality. These nanites will allow them to explore the wreckage of the ship by accessing certain areas—if they can get to them. What's the planet like? The ship crashed in a tropical region of this (presently) unnamed planet. As such, players should note that there are many trees reaching up to 80 meters in the air. In addition to the enormously tall canopy, on the ground, characters will encounter winding and gnarled trunks of thinner trees with heavy leaves and ropy vines. The immediate area gives no indication of any other sentient species living on the planet, but the flora and fauna is unmistakably alive. Some may seem analogous to life that your characters are already used to, but some will be entirely foreign. For specific guidelines on what the plants and animals on the planet look like, please direct your attention to the SETTING page. While water sources can be found in the form of a nearby two-mile-wide river that sprawls around the crash site about nine miles out, it won’t take characters long to discover that the water is dangerously acidic and burns to the touch. Characters’ nanites can steadily heal the burns (minor burns over a week, more stubborn major burns over the course of a month), or they can be treated by a member of the increasingly important medical team. Finding a source of drinkable water might take a little more work. Orbiting the planet are two (presently unnamed) moons, one larger and closer and one smaller and farther out. The smaller moon is always visible in the sky, and goes through a full cycle of phases daily concurrent with visible sunlight. The larger moon is visible for 13 hours a day, and has a cycle more in keeping with Earth's. (For information on what this means for werewolves, see the non-human section of the FAQ.) Due to the tropical climate of the immediate area, characters will not experience considerable seasonal shifts in weather. The air is always hot, muggy enough to catch them off guard with dehydration, and experiences approximately 10 days of consecutive rainfall per month. This rainfall and any other notable changes in weather will be announced or described in mod posts! What's the status of the crashed ship? Suffering massive damage from the crash, the Tranquility is no longer structurally sound for characters to enter. With each jump, its position on the cliff face grows more unstable, and the inner workings of the ship suffered greatly from the impact of the ship against the planet. Under no circumstances is the Tranquility considered livable any longer. Characters may choose to re-enter the ship for short periods to salvage the remains and retrieve new arrivals from inside the grav couches, but these expeditions will be challenging and unsafe. The only power inside the ship is the dark red emergency lighting. Doors (where they’re still in place) continue to malfunction, as will air filtration systems, and characters could easily find themselves locked in and suffocated. Can we explore the rest of the planet? Yes, eventually! However, the wreck site is the central hub of character activity for a couple of reasons: First and foremost, the crashed ship (about thirteen miles from bow to stern) has landed at the mouth of a deep canyon, its enormity teetering at the edge of a cliff. Each time groups of characters head inside to gather resources, the ship sighs and creaks, ready to plummet at any moment into the canyon below. Be careful, be balanced, and try not to upset it, or you might just be the unlucky winner who goes plummeting with it. This canyon blocks the characters’ progress West, and any progress too far in other directions is limited by symptoms that the characters may find startlingly familiar. Characters who hike fifteen miles out from the wreck site will begin to experience nosebleeds, headaches, and eventual collapse if they continue despite their body’s warning signs. Those who investigate psychically will find that the phenomenon resembles being pulled to the end of a mental “tether.” Through the use of the ABILITIES GRID and some practice, characters can begin to stretch this tether, allowing expansion as the game progresses and characters make headway in their powers. How will events work? Previously in Ataraxion, many events were focused internally, within each character's mind. With the setting shift, the game’s focus on types of events will also shift. Every other month, a game-wide plot will focus on some event that confronts the characters with external horrors or changes the setting as they understand it—either through expansion or alteration. Players interested in running game-wide events should check out the PLAYER PLOT PAGE. All mod-run plots will be placed on the CALENDAR PAGE at the beginning of each month. Five to seven days before a plot or event is due to start, an official planning post will be made in the OOC community. This post will serve as an outline of the plot itself, as well as provide a space for players to hash out any individual plans they may have. Should an event require it, there will also be an OOC closing post to tie things up. A closing OOC post is simply meant for reference; tags will not suddenly close on a post after the event is over, but time has "officially" moved on after that point. What is a "jump"? What does the jump drive do? While in flight, the Tranquility would use wormhole technology in order to move great distances through space. The jumps took advantage of a point where the curvature of spacetime was particularly weak. At those points, the ship created a mini-wormhole to slip through, appearing on the other side. These wormholes encompassed the entire ship so that it could pass instantaneously from one position in space to another. In order to open a wormhole, the jump drive first accelerates the particles around the ship to extreme speeds, opening a bridge from one position in space to another. Using this dimensional “fold” to bridge the points, the drive pulls negative energy from the bridge universe in order to keep the ship stable and both portals open. Though the process lasts only a second, the time in the bridge universe is unquantifiable. Space and time work differently in it, as some characters experienced in their last moments aboard Tranquility. Because of the massive amounts of energy required to power the jump, the drive cannot be used consecutively and must replenish its power supply before executing another jump. Due to the damage caused in the wreck, the ship cannot fully enter the bridge universe when it creates wormholes anymore, leaving it stranded on the planet and incapable of movement. All the same, it keeps trying whenever it generates enough energy to do so. These attempts cause their own slew of negative effects for the area around the ship. Just as the G-forces generated by the jump were too dangerous on board for the characters to withstand without being secured in a grav couch, the acceleration of particles surrounding the ship deters anyone from getting too close. When the ship begins to jump, it essentially accelerates the vibrational frequencies of all molecules within one mile. These accelerated particles could easily rip a human apart just as it rips apart the mile of dead forest in the immediate area around the ship, and just as it deteriorates the cliff it teeters on. With each attempted jump, the ship sinks lower, as if burying itself in the planet’s crust. What's the function of the nanites now? Characters who arrive on the planet through the grav couch will still have nanites implanted in their bodies. These nanites will continue to offer slow, small-scale healing to characters and grant access to various parts of the ship as characters salvage what they can. The nanites are also responsible for the game’s translation function. Should characters choose to remove their nanites, they will no longer be able to understand characters speaking in other languages, except through telepathy. Level 1 telepathy is sufficient, with concentration, for characters to understand one another through, but it is a mentally exhausting process. For more information on character telepathy, see the ABILITIES GRID. Upon and after the crash, characters will find their nanites scrambled, with the specific crew numbers on their arms no longer legible. These tattoos will resemble corrupted zalgo text. Wait, telepathy? Our characters have powers? Yes. Upon crash and subsequent arrival, all characters will find themselves exhibiting low-level psychic abilities. Characters who were previously practicing these abilities will find themselves snapped back to the most rudimentary level of the powers, struggling to expand them once more. These powers can be leveled up through hard work and practice, which OOCly presents as providing proof of additional activity to the ABILITIES GRID page. Do characters have access to electricity? If they make it! Electrical power, like all things on this planet, will be subject to character construction. Though the Tranquility still seems to have some power, this was partially generated through the purification system in the O2 Gardens and partially generated by the chemical reactions taking place in the engines, so there are no batteries or generators to reclaim without need for serious expert overhaul. Characters interested in setting up renewable energy for the planet should contact the mods to discuss their plans. Does this game have a network? Yes! There are currently two in-game options for network communication: mirrors and digital. The mirror network utilises a spell adapted from the standard two-way mirror magic shown in Harry Potter. Shards of mirror have been retrieved from the Tranquility's wreckage, had their sharp edges rendered safe, and been charmed to communicate with other shards. All posts on this network are visual, and go out to all other mirror shards at once; there are no options for filtering, privacy, or recording of messages. If your character is using this network, please put "mirror" in the subject line of your posts or comments! The digital network has been rebuilt from the remains of the Tranquility's original communications network. Individual communication devices have been installed with a new, hacked operating system and communicate using wireless routers spread around the area. This network can be voice, video or text, and messages can be filtered or made private. However, there is not an anonymous option, and there is a storage limit on how much data can be archived, making text the most efficient communication option. Characters will have to choose a username for use on this network: please put this in the subject lines of your posts or comments! Does my character get assigned a job/rank? All character contributions to the setting, role in the new society on the planet, and jobs will be decided ICly by the characters themselves and perceived need. If you would like your character to establish a business or department of some kind, contact a mod and start recruitment in the effort. An information page on this subject will be added as the culture develops. G A M E P L A Y   Q U E S T I O N S Tell me about the communities. ataraxion is the network community, and is where all network-style communication will take place, either using your character's communication device or, if they are of a high enough level, telepathy. Your character may use the network as a personal journal, a blog, or a private messaging system. If a video/audio/text post leads to third-person interaction, you may use action tags, but all prose starters should be posted in the log comm. NOTE: Presently, the network is in disuse due to the ship crash. No posts should be made to this community. ataraxionlogs is where all log or prose (in person) interactions take place. This community is mainly for prose tags, but we'll also accept actionspam logs. ataraxionooc is the OOC community, where players can post OOC notices, introductions, hiatuses, drops, canon updates, or general discussions. Mod or plot notices concerning the game will also be posted here with the journal ataraxites. ataraxioff is the meme/spam community. If you like to fool around or post silly stuff or subject your character(s) to memes, this is the place to do it! If you don't, that's okay; joining this comm is entirely optional. How is IC/OOC pacing handled here? Ataraxion is a slow-to-medium paced game, and we operate on a 1:1 day ratio. That means 1 OOC day (24 hours) will equal about 1 IC day and night. What are the activity requirements? What is an activity check? An activity check is our way of making sure that you're still around and being active with your characters! Activity checks will be run for one week at the end of every month, and require one proof of activity for each character. The activity requirements for Ataraxion are as follows: One post in ataraxion or ataraxionlogs             OR One thread containing at least 10 comments from your character in ataraxion             OR One thread containing at least 5 comments from your character in ataraxionlogs These comments must be consecutive within one thread, and cannot be added together from multiple threadjacks. To apply to that month's AC, posts (or the posts you are tagging into) must be dated to that month (ex: for January AC, a thread on a post made on December 25 will not count). The post must also occur ICly within the relevant month, meaning a post backdated to December may not be used for January AC. Comment chains should be counted as only one unique tag. Characters who were accepted in the most recent app round are exempt from the activity check during their first month in-game. Unless you have declared an official hiatus before the start of the activity check, all players must complete the activity check in order to remain part of the game. If you are having trouble making the activity requirements with a character, you can take a strike for that month. Please see the next question for full details on what this entails! All game deadlines adhere to the EST timezone (including apps, reserves, and AC). AC proofs must meet requirements before the close of AC, which is at midnight EST on the last day of each month. What is an activity strike and how do I clear it? If any player fails to make passing activity at any single activity check, they can opt to take a strike. It takes four months of sufficient activity (note: this does not include hiatuses) to clear a strike once it has been earned. If a character with a strike already on their record fails an activity check, they will be dropped from the game. For example, Sally Mae fails to make activity with Goku in January. She provides full activity for him in the February, March, April, and May checks. Her strike is repealed, and she has a clean activity record once more. If Sally Mae goes on hiatus at any point during those four months, she will need to pass June’s check as well before the strike clears. If Sally Mae fails an activity check during those four months, she will be dropped from the game. Instead of waiting out the four months of standard activity to clear the strike, players may choose to submit double activity for two activity checks in a row. In our above example, this would mean Sally Mae submitted two threads, posts, or logs that counted as sufficient activity for the months of February and March. Can my character die? Is it a permanent death? Yes and yes. However, not all of the events will be deadly, and all fatal situations will come with OOC warnings. Character deaths should be run by the mods to guarantee suitability with the game or specific plot mechanics. Once you kill your character, however, be aware that this is a perma-drop for that character! You will not be able to reapp the same character to the game, although other players will still be allowed to app that character in the future. Otherwise, your character will probably sustain a few crippling injuries that can be fixed up over time by the nanites or by a character with medical know-how. (Be aware that the healing process may take a while. Choose your events wisely!) What happens to my characters after they're dropped? Can I reapply with that character later? After being dropped, characters will mysteriously vanish from the planet. No one seems to know for sure where precisely they have gone, or even when it might have happened - only that no trace of them can be found or felt. Players can reapply for dropped characters only if they did not kill that character in-game. If a player wishes to reapply for a character they had previously dropped, they have the option of bringing that character back with their memories of the game universe intact or starting fresh. When dropping a character, keep in mind that Ataraxion does not have a grace period following drops; if you wish to reapply for a character that you have previously dropped, you must resubmit an application. Can I canon update my character? You may canon update your character every time Tranquility executes a spacetime jump, or once a month. Updates are only applicable to canon material or OC verses. They will wake from the grav couches with their new memories. Their previous memories and experiences in the game universe will also remain, though it may take them some time to remember. There are currently no hard rules regarding how long players must wait before updating to newly available canon information, but we do request you take care with spoilers out of consideration to fellow players. In order to canon update, make a post to the requests page. Once approved, be sure to give notice to your fellow players via the OOC comm! What's the game's policy on fourth walling? Fourth walling is not barred by the game's mechanics, and will have to be dealt with on a player-by-player basis. Never assume it's okay to fourth wall another character without getting permission first. What about muncesting? Please don't do it! While we understand your characters may sometimes brush shoulders via mutual acquaintances, threading with ourselves isn't what any of us are here to do. You may not apply for closely-related characters from the same canon, and you should try to minimize any interactions between characters that you play. Ideally, it shouldn't happen at all! Is there a test drive meme available? Every other month, the mod account will post a test drive meme to the meme community at ataraxioff. These test drive memes will be tailor-made to include relevant prompt information about what the setting looks like for individuals apping at that time. These test drive memes will take place during non-game plot months. Sounds like Bad Things are going to happen. Short answer: yep. Bear in mind that this is a horror game, and events may take place of a triggering and/or disturbing nature. Your character may be scarred for life, suffer horrible injuries, die, or worse. While some events or elements of the overarching plot will not have traditional opt-out features, if there is an event or mission that makes you uncomfortable in any way, you do not have to participate. Just be sure to drop us a note so we know what's up! A P P L I C A T I O N   Q U E S T I O N S What canons and types of characters are allowed? Characters from most established canons (films, television shows, books, webcomics, games, etc.) can be applied for. A list of the types of characters we do not accept applications for is on our RULES page. If in doubt, ask a mod before submitting your application! OCs created based on open worlds (including some tabletop settings) are allowed. However, canon OCs, or original characters placed within an existing canon universe (i.e. a Hogwarts student OC), are not applicable. To clarify, while we would accept characters from many traditional tabletop settings that focus on the generation of unique characters within a set of guidelines, such as World of Darkness or Dungeons & Dragons, a Star Wars OC would not be applicable. Can I app original characters? Yes! Please see the APPLICATION PAGE for further detail on what we'd like to see in an OC application. Keep in mind that applications for OCs are held to more strict guidelines due to the more malleable nature of their canons and characterizations. What about AU or CRAU characters? As of now, the only AU characters allowed in-game are canon AUs, other-game CR AUs and malleable protagonists, such as the player-characters from Dragon Age, Mass Effect, or Fallout. If apping a CRAU character, you will be required to provide a clear and concise summary of the growth of your character at the game he/she was at previously in the AU section of the application. If the character is rendered near or completely unrecognizable as the original character, we may deny your previous game history. Also, all previous game history concerning sex games is fine, but remember to keep it tasteful. While there may be sexual themes that take place in Ataraxion, we are not a sex game. We do allow both a canon and an AU version of a character to be in-game at the same time. Can I pick my own PB? PBs are encouraged for OCs and for characters from canons that provide little or no visual resources, such as books. They can also be used in exceptional circumstances, such as cases in which a character's physical body/appearance is altered by the mechanics of the game (e.g. a non-humanoid character being given human form). In all other cases, we require players to stay true to their canon medium; if you are playing from a comic or a game that provides usable pictures of your character, the substitution of a PB is not permitted. We understand that in some circumstances these resources will be limited, you must contact a mod and discuss what makes the situation exceptional. Are non-human characters allowed? What happens to them on arrival? All types of characters are allowed! However, as Ataraxion relies heavily on physical interaction with the character's environment, your character may undergo some changes if his/her original form conflicts with general gameplay. Characters who are already in organic, humanoid bodies have nothing to worry about, such as cyborgs, elves, vampires, aliens, etc. However, all other characters are subject to humanization as the plot of the game requires. This necessity will be identified based upon the description of your character's species/race in your application and be evaluated based on factors like height and body composition. Your PB choice should be specified in the "appearance" section of the application. In addition, players may choose to humanize any non-human characters not covered by the above rules as a side effect of the hyperspace jumps, but this is entirely optional. Downsizing height is always mandatory. The maximum height for potential crew members is eight feet, since anything taller than that won't fit inside a grav couch — which is where your character arrives during a jump. Two moons means enhanced lunar influence, and werewolf characters will find themselves in a near-constant struggle with control of their wolf side. The smaller (and farther) moon will not provoke a full shift, but rather will bring out aggressive and animalistic behaviors in the wolves when full. The nearer moon will always provoke a full shift when full on the 15th of every month. While the tree canopy should offer more than enough coverage from direct sunlight to keep them alive, vampire characters will not be automatically provided rations of blood. They will need to hunt, barter, or persuade player characters (with permission) or NPCs (with mod contact) to keep them fed unless they can find another solution. If you have questions about your character's particular situation, though, feel free to contact a mod or simply leave your question here! What is humanization? What will happen to my character when they're humanized? Humanization is when a character arrives in the game in an entirely new, human body, and is required for non-humanoid and non-organic characters, as well as any others if their original form conflicts with general gameplay. This will be identified by the species/race section of your application, and your PB choice should be specified in the "appearance" section of the application. Please see more about this requirement under the previous question. The new body humanized characters will arrive in will mean the loss of all abilities or powers linked to the physiology of their original form. For example, as Bumblebee from Transformers will no longer be a robot, he will no longer be able to transform into a car, and as Sam Wheat from Ghost will no longer be a ghost, he will no longer be intangible. However, if players choose to do so, they have the option to give their humanized characters equivalent powers in their new bodies, defined in the abilities section of their application. Bumblebee could instead find he has some shapeshifting capabilities, and Sam Wheat could phase through objects or turn invisible at will. Humanized characters with abilities which come from a more spiritual or ambiguous internal source will be able to keep these powers on being humanized. Are canonly dead characters appable? Yes. If your character dies in canon, it's entirely possible that the jump drive would have picked him or her up just before they died. The ship's medbay is state-of-the-art, after all; it can't cure death, but it can patch up just about anything else. If your character is some variety of reanimated or undead, that's cool, too! Provided that your character is a little more self-aware than your average zombie, undead characters are also appable. Keep in mind, however, that if your character is a ghost, spirit, or just corporeally-challenged, he or she must receive some kind of physical body upon arrival on the ship. In the case of characters who are arriving injured, their physical condition is mostly up to the player's discretion. While they may arrive bruised and battered, however, please note that any fatal injuries will have been healed before they are released from the grav couch. Are there power caps? Will my character lose his/her abilities? Yes and no. Ataraxion does have power caps, but we don't depower characters unless players specifically request it. The new Planetfall setting has an increased focus on action and adventure components appropriate to the use of character powers. As a general rule, any teleporting, flying, time manipulation or reality warping powers will be greatly limited. Teleporters will find they cannot teleport beyond the tether of the ship’s connection, with flying characters experiencing the same difficulty in going upwards. Time manipulators will have no access to their abilities, unfortunately. Reality warpers will find they can add the illusion of something to the scenery that already exists on the planet, but cannot change, alter, or remove any features of the planet itself to accommodate their reality. Additionally, that reality will be intangible. Note: If your character has another potentially game-breaking ability along these lines that we haven’t considered here, please be aware we may ask you to limit that power during the application process. Other powers, including mystical or superhuman powers, will not need to be limited. For example, Captain America or a SPARTAN from the Halo universe would not be subject to the power caps, since their abilities do not in any way interfere with the setting, but rather help them engage with it, while Thor or Haruhi Suzumiya would because both flying and reality warping are limited abilities. Characters who receive their magic from an outside power source would unfortunately be cut-off from that source. We do ask on the application for suggestions on how best to limit your characters' abilities. We're certainly not interested in rendering anyone unplayable, but we may ask for additional power reductions if your character is massively overpowered in comparison to the rest of the game or in any way breaks the setting. Are pets allowed? Yes, your pet can come with you! However, since a pet or familiar will count as inventory, they will be subject to our more stringent item requests, and may find themselves at the mercy of the game’s plot. The planet characters find themselves on is not hospitable - please be aware that serious harm might come to them if you decide to bring them along. Can I reuse sections from a previous app on my app for Ataraxion? Yes, you may reuse information sections from previous apps you have written, such as character history or personality. If your application was submitted under a different username than the one you are submitting your application under now, please make sure your responses in the name field and personal journal field match. I applied before other players, but they're getting approved ahead of me. What gives? When our responses and app approvals are slow, or when we appear to skip you, it's probably because we are unfamiliar with your character's canon and are approving those with canons we are familiar with. Don't worry, we'll get to you! We just need a little time to catch up with your character's canon in order to make properly informed decisions. The Ataraxion mod team approves applications on a vote-system. Each application, even when the mods are all familiar, requires two or more mods to vote "yes" on it before it can be approved. If any one mod requests revisions, we will request revisions of a given application. - - - - - - - - - - - - N A V I G A T I O N

Comments

[ontheline]

Hello! I hate to bother about any rules being set right now, but some of us have been using PB icons for a while now - I've been using Takeshi's for about 2 years of gameplay, and Tilly has for nearly 3, and so on - so I was wondering if mods would consider grandfathering in these people who've been using them all over the comms for such a long while.

I do plan on drawing manga-style copies of my PB icons over time if I have to so I can best utilize the money I've put into my extra icon slots (half of mine are live-action so I don't want to lose out on all that space I've already paid for a few months in advance), but I figured I'd ask why pre-existing playerbase who have been doing this for a while can be cleaned out over time with drops and etc. as the 4-character-rule has. I know icons are clearly not as important as removing characters from game (definitely not!!), but I was hoping we could consider maybe letting those who have used PBs in their threads for a long while keep them as we merge into new rules.

If not, I will certainly work on replacing them as fast as I can, because I do enjoy this game enough to not run off over icons, lmao; I hope I'm not sounding too entitled or grumbly. Thank you for your time!

[ataraxites]

Out of fairness to new players joining the game from here on, we will not be grandfathering the use of played-bys in for existing players. However, we fully understand that players often use character journals for multiple games, museboxes, or meme play. As such, we do not expect existing players to remove played-by icons from these journals - but we will no longer allow the use of these icons when playing in Ataraxion.

[fullmoon]

How would the geckodragons and catcranes respond to domestication attempts? I assume we can't befriend or ride the rhinobears.

This is very important and absolutely worthy of being the second question on the shiny new FAQ page for a serious horror game.

[ataraxites]

For the time being both the geckodragons and the catcranes will be extremely wary of people, while the rhinobears will be incredibly rarely sighted. In future the geckodragons may be more responsive (or more likely apathetic) to contact, but getting a catcrane to tolerate even being close to a person would take a very, very long time filled with lots of positive reinforcement.

The rhinobears cannot be domesticated, and we would not advise any characters try - they would likely lose a limb, if not more.

[theroadwarrior]

Ah, sorry, one more question!! I see that the network will be down until players do something about it in-game! But you have the main ataraxion journal listed as a means of acquiring AC. Is this just a note for when communications do go back up, or will the main account be used for something in particular to acquire AC? It's probably an obvious answer, sorry, I was just wondering since I think most AC will be confined to logs until then, if I understand correctly!

[ataraxites]

Yes, it's just a note for the future! The main community ataraxion will not be in use until a network functionality is somehow restored ICly.

Initial Crash Rainstorm

[anybodies]

Hello, is it too early to ask if the rain is acid like the river water?

[ataraxites]

No rainfall on the planet is acidic, whether at the initial arrival or further! How odd...

[ryuuzaki]

In relation to upcoming efforts to salvage devices capable of communications and networking from the ship and use them to set up new things!:

- What is salvageable?
----- I'm assuming that we have whatever was in Comms that actually survived the crash, including the nebulously defined contents of the storage closet, as well as the router setups in some of the more accessible hallways (the ones used for triangulating locations) and possibly (?) some walkie-talkies? The secondary network archive is gone; it was kept in a cabin in the player quarters. Is there anything else that would strike people who are interested in doing this as a viable addition to their electronics arsenal, especially if someone like Tadashi was also involved?
- The Comms Hub itself looks relatively accessible on the map... how does that play out? Is it something we need to wait and see about during a thread, or is it something we need to know ahead of time?
- What if they look in the command crew quarters? Anything that could be repurposed, like, IDK, climate control panels from the rooms?
- What kind of network can they feasibly make with these objects?
----- A few networked terminals around the crash site that people could check into a few times a day, kind of a community bulletin board setup that can be used to arrange meetings or ask for help with projects seems the most feasible off the top of my head, but is there other stuff they'd find that would make it possible to do something more individualized, with a lot of tweaking?
- How is it possible to power any of this? Generators from near medbay? Something else that we'll find in the crash site? Would the power only be available a few hours a day?
- Anything I'm forgetting to ask that comes to mind and amounts to a hot tip?

Please take your time answering this: I don't think efforts will be launched for at least a few days IC-ly, and they can always be backdated a little.

[ataraxites]

Many things on the ship are salvageable, depending on characters knowing where to look and what they're looking at! However, the ship's entire structural integrity has been compromised, meaning any trips in to retrieve tech will be dangerous and difficult. If you're looking to have characters head deeper inside than medical, we can give you a more detailed info pack to play out the mission with if you let us know which characters and what area they're targeting.

For the building of a new network (or any tech) characters will likely have to improvise a fair deal, and build a lot of stuff from scratch. The comms hub is about half intact (the what would be detailed more in a specific info pack, as above) but the routers, being more spread out, will likely be harder to retrieve. They would also be incredibly short range - it may be necessary for characters to build something a little bigger if they want to cover a wider area. Characters can take resources from any system they do manage to get their hands on, or even just straight out of the walls (or the walls themselves!), if they think they can adapt it to use in whatever project they're working on!

The type of network would really be down to what you'd like to do and say characters can build. However, it may be worth note that characters can still have their individual communication devices, and that more spare can be found by picking through the remains of the lockers in medical. They're just saying 'no signal' and running out of juice with no regular way to recharge at the moment, and would likely need to be individually modded a little to connect to a network which is not the TQ's own.

Which brings us to power! There are no generators available around medical, and hooking into the emergency power medical is running on would not be particularly efficient or offer any stable longevity. We encourage characters to find their own independent sources of power, such as building their own generators or solar tech (or anything else you can think of!)

Please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any further questions, ideas, or need clarification on any of this!

[milagros]

re: milagros' vitakinesis abilities (and i'm not on a tag-related deadline for this or anything, i'm gonna play with amnesia stuff for a while before she has any clue about what she can do or not):

it didn't really come up previously because on a spaceship but as specified in her application, mila is able to completely manipulate plant and animal matter on a cellular level, with the built-in limitation of drawing on her own strength/magic to do so. (so she can't do huge massive things in one go without like, bleeding from the eyes and crashing hard.) i talked mostly about the healing and destructive capabilities wrt the human body because that's been more directly relevant, BUT ALSO:

something one of her coven members did in a previous game was, through the power of magical hippie bonding with some trees, coax them to grow and alter in such a way as to build himself a simple house. plus assisting their growth to make the process faster. mila would not be as good at this type of magic and it'll take her longer than it took him bc she's not constantly befriending plants like a total weirdo, solomon, and has less experience on the Gardening While A Blood Mage front, but she knows how to do it and would be hella motivated to get to work. i don't imagine there'd be a problem with this, but i wanted to make doubly sure that it's cool! i think it would be a neat project :>

brings u treehouse gifts sry about their lack of elves in

[ataraxites]

Yes, that sounds fine!

[lostsoldier]

Quick questions:

1. Can these guys climb?

2. When you say the river is highly acidic, am I correct in assuming you mean like sulfuric acid, not like lemon juice? If so, is it a type of acid that reacts with metals as well as organic material?

[ataraxites]

1) No, they can't! However, if their chosen prey flees up a tree, they are known to ram the tree as a group to attempt to knock or scare it back down. If this doesn't work, they can be incredibly patient in simply waiting it out.

2) Yes, that's correct, and yes, it will corrode metal quite quickly!

[hairrands]

You still have a 'network sample' section of the application form although it sounds like we will not have access to a network in the traditional sense for some time. It appears that, replacing it, there will be a variety of psychic skills tethered to the ship.

Can I tailor my sample to some kind of display of telepathy? Is that where the network comm is going? Or would you prefer a traditional network style 'cam comes on, character dances and sings' response?

[ataraxites]

While the game doesn't currently have a network, due to the damage to the Tranquility's in-built one, players are already working towards having their characters build their own. We can't say for certain how soon this will be, but we do still intend the game to have a working network in the traditional sense. That said, we will also be encouraging those players who have characters reach high enough levels in telepathy to also feel free to use this as a medium on the network comm.

In short, yes, you can provide a telepathic message as network sample in your application if that's what you'd like to do! This would simply be considered another choice next to text, video and audio for characters who level up enough in that ability.

[forgodssake]

in reference to soon future efforts regarding sourcing food from native flora and fauna:

- is there salvageable equipment from medical that can be used to collect samples from flora and fauna for the benefit of scientific testing?
- is there salvageable equipment from medical that can be used to test samples from flora and fauna for toxicity levels and presence of poisons, as well as other tests determining nutritional value?
- any suggestions or desires from you guys with regard to this process are welcome.

the basic aim is to start scouting, collecting, categorising, and slowly building a taxonomy, with a view to support survival. it can act as an rp hook too towards pairing up and exploration and give nerds more things to do.

i understand there are characters also with powers and abilities that could also be helpful but between amnesia and later, xavier's instinct towards using processes that can be replicated in the event of someone important's death/disappearance, he will try to use the available technology. but all methodology will be explored for sure.

[ataraxites]

Hi, sorry for the delay!

The availability of equipment which can be used to collect samples varies. There are a few bulk packs of smaller tools, such as scalpels, clean swabs and syringes available, but some of these packs will also be missing or will have been damaged beyond use in the crash. Specimen containers can be found, but will be in shorter supply, many of them having been destroyed. Packs of disposable gloves can also be found.

Medical's general scanners, if powered, can detect if an individual has been poisoned, but determination of what the poison is would be done through sample testing. There are some portable devices for toxicity testing, but these are designed specifically for detecting alcohol levels or presence of common narcotics. Testing for an unknown toxic agent would be done much the same as it is now, but was not considered to be a high risk for the Tranquility's journey, and so medical only have a small stock of appropriate equipment.

There is a salvageable supply of plates for thin-layer chromatography, but much of the store of visualisation reagents will have been damaged, putting them at very short supply. Characters will also have to improvise the proper containment to prevent contamination from the environment during testing, as well as for the safe dispersal of fumes. Improvisation will also be necessary in the levels of reagents used and analysis of results if testing is done on direct samples, rather than those taken from a patient.

For general analysis of chemicals in any sample, there is a singular HPLC-MS machine which can be salvaged from medical. This will be more compact and a little faster than current modern standards, but will still need to be supplied with solvents (a small supply of which can be found in medical), containers to collect waste, and quite a bit of power. Characters will also not have access to a database to compare the results to, and will essentially have to begin building their own.

Please let us know if you have any further queries or need more clarification on any of this!

First Jungle Cycle AC/Abilities Grid Bump

[bespectacle]

Hi!

I know it's cutting it real close at this point, but is it possible to submit extra AC (i.e., just 1 thread/post/whatever) to develop the in-game Abilities Grid this month? Thanks!



CHINA.

[ataraxites]

Unfortunately not, no! As the game is still settling into the new setting and activity check was only a check-in, the abilities grid is not available for any level ups this month, but will be next month.

For future note, levelling up on the abilities grid will always require standard AC + extra AC as detailed on the abilities grid page, regardless of what type of activity check we may be running at any point!

[lostsoldier]

Hello! So, a question about CRAUs. I see on the game application that physical changes brought on by the previous game setting are to be described in the application, and I'm taking that to mean that any physical changes would generally translate into Ataraxion. With that in mind, I'm wondering if there's room for flexibility when the prior game setting let players use two physical forms - one canon and one substantially altered. In the case of Systemwide, charcters' non-canon body was "Real", while their canon body with its canon powers was a residual self-image that manifested when they were plugged into the Matrix. But that all kind of hinges on whether the Real was real at all, or any more real than the Matrix, blah blah subjective nature of reality blah etc., and from an OOC perspective it meant the game allowed players to keep and use characters' canon forms in gameplay.

My question is, in that situation, can Jeeps and I choose which form to app into Ataraxion, and have the option of apping their Matrix forms to retain both their canon powers and the prior game's theme of mindfuckery questioning the nature of reality? For example, is that a change the ship could make based on their residual self-image, or that we could justify in our applications by saying the Real in Systemwide was not in fact any more real than the Matrix?

(To be clear, we would definitely pick one form or the other, and this would naturally not involve the ability to change between forms or use any Matrix-specific powers, like bending physics and knowing kung-fu, since I'm. assuming Ataraxion is not really the Matrix, or if it is it's a pretty tightly controlled one, but. u kno. If I'm wrong there please correct me, and either way it seems narratively interesting to throw in some characters who aren't sure it isn't.)

[ataraxites]

CRAU characters are brought into the game via the same mechanic as other characters, only considering the previous game to be the universe they're taken from rather than their canon! As such, changes they experience in that game should remain, as well as any fundamental changes in their physical form as dictated by that game's unique setting.

In respect of Systemwide specifically, this means CRAU characters brought from there to Ataraxion would be taken in their Real bodies, rather than their Matrix ones!

Animal Size compared to humans?

[hairrands]

How large are the river cephalopods? For some reason I am imagining man-sized, but I think I may have made that up.

[ataraxites]

The cephalopods from the river vary in size, but at maximum can grow to about 2 meters in length!

October 2015 Arrival Log Supplies

[hairrands]

Hello Mods!

Is there only one blanket/pillow/gas mask or are these a fresh supply of spoopy comfort goods to go along with the food and water?

[ataraxites]

There are a few of each of the items described - approximately enough for any one character to find (or be hit by) one or two items - but certainly not enough to consider it an intentional supply drop for the entire camp!

[(Anonymous)]

hello ataraxion mods! i had a question regarding this note at the bottom of the NPC page:

IN FUTURE it will be possible for players to apply to play a crew NPC as a Game-Native OC. Please keep your eyes peeled for announcements with further news of this!

i was wondering when or how soon this would be implemented?

[ataraxites]

Hi there!

While we do plan to open Game-Native OC applications at some point in the future, there are still a few game elements which need to be established before this can happen. We don't have a set timeline for this, but expect it will only be a few months now, and will announce it clearly once we have everything in place!

[circumitus]

I feel like you guys might've answered this somewhere, but try as I might I can't seem to find it if you have, so I'll ask here for posterity's sake:

In regards to some of the ability upgrades, how would you handle upgrading to an ability that is similar (if not the same) to what a character already has?

I'm asking this not just in regards to telepaths, but Rey for one has a very similar ability to the level 3 of reality manipulation, in that her body can generate particles that allow her to manipulate heat or cause things to burst into flame. Really, the main difference that I can think of is that her ability comes from her body rather than psychically. Of course, I'm not asking if I can skip that level entirely, but I was just wondering how to proceed with that if I want to upgrade her telekinesis in the future.

On that note: Not related to my character at all but I'm curious if there is any point for telepaths to upgrade the ability grid's version of telepathy?

[ataraxites]

As the abilities grid represents abilities characters gain entirely through the unique in-game situation of Ataraxion, none of the abilities offered by it will be changed by the presence of existing canon abilities, regardless of any similarities such as telekinesis, fire manipulation or telepathy.

OOCly those tiles will still need to be levelled up through, and ICly the characters will feel that the ability, despite its similarities, comes from a distinctly different place - though they may have a slightly easier time getting to grips with controlling it!

The grid has been designed to be as open to customisation as possible. Any players who believe there will be too much overlap between the abilities offered and their character's existing powers will hopefully be able to find another 'branch' that interests them instead!

[blood_and_gold]

I'm sorry if this was mentioned somewhere, but are fandom OCs okay? My guy is from the Dragon Age universe. Obviously I would remove any interaction with cannon characters from that universe, which I never really consider "cannon" for him anyway.

So he'd just be from an established fandom universe, while being an OC. Cool? Not cool?

OH ALSO:

He's possessed, kind of. More like fused with a powerful demon. Of course I would be reasonable with power caps, but is he allowed to keep his dragon-demon if so?

Thank you :)

[ataraxites]

Hi!

Unfortunately, Ataraxion does not accept canon OCs, or OCs that are placed within an existing canon universe, regardless of whether or not they interact with canon characters. You can find our policy on appable characters here on the FAQ.

To comment on your second question, we generally allow this concept to be applied for, with the caveat that the demon fused with your character would not be allowed to interact with other PCs in the game, but could still influence and power your character.

[noman]

Greetings! Re: the latest arrival log and my saved ability upgrade, would it be possible to say David progressed to level 2 just in time to be knocked out, or is it too late for that? Peas and tanks.

[ataraxites]

Unfortunately yes, it is too late, sorry. We'll add a note to the Abilities Grid page to make our processing period for level up requests clearer.

[hairrands]

If a character is dropped from the game for a couple of months and is re-apped, does their ability grid get dropped back to 1 for anything they'd leveled before? I see that AJ's leveling comments were screened rather than deleted, which argues that she should be fine... but I'd rather play above board and ask ahead of time. o7

[ataraxites]

If a character returns to Ataraxion with all of their in-game memories, yes, they can keep their previous ability grid progress!

[coldshot]

Apologies if this has already been answered somewhere, but I wanted to ask for a little clarification re: leveling up on the abilities grid.

I know an extra 5-tag log thread or 10-tag network thread = 1 level up, but can you accumulate (and presumably save) more than one level-up from a single month if you have more extra activity to submit? Or is it just one level-up per month no matter how much extra activity?

I.E. this month I'll have triple or quadruple activity - can I save and use those extra threads to have Bucky gain one level this month and another level next month, or is it just one this month?

[ataraxites]

Yes that's right! It's one level up per month per character regardless of whether you have more than the level up requirements.

[windblownrose]

Hi! I have a question about the application inventory -- do these items have to be things that the character had on them or with them at the canon point they're being apped from? Or can it be any item the character owns, regardless of whether they would have had it with them at that moment?

Thanks ♥

[ataraxites]

Inventory items can include any item the character owned in canon, yes!

Grav Couches Question

[hairrands]

What would happen to someone if they tried to climb into a grav couch just before the jump, now that they're on planet? I wasn't here beforehand but I got the impression that characters were supposed to be herded into grav couches while the ship was operable.

I'm not planning on doing anything with the info now but I know there was a hypothesis that pre-crash, passengers thought that some characters were able to get home this way, usually sort of at random. If someone wanted to test that common hypothesis would they be pasted?

[ataraxites]

Unfortunately any attempts to enter a gravcouch will find that they do not activate or engage as they should! This means that they will not provide the life support, fluid or seal necessary to keep an occupant alive or protected from the jump's force. Any character attempting this during a jump will die.

Plot Suggestion Question

[hairrands]

(I'm sorry I have too many questions but a few came to me today!)

At some point can players suggest places or events from which the Rains Of Trash can draw? I'm still not sure if they is a repeating phenomenon linked to the same circumstances as the broken jump drive, or if the rains are linked to the planet and its presumed tendencies to suck things in from all over the place... but I'm excited to find out!

[ataraxites]

It's likely we might open this up for player input in the future! For now, we're going to continue to dictate this aspect of the game ourselves so characters (and players) can create more ideas as to its nature and cause before the mechanic is opened up for input.

[circumitus]

Hey! I just have another annoying question regarding the ability grid, more specifically the reality manipulation (again). The max level indicates that one can cause anti-gravity within an area, but to what level of control do they have regarding what is affected by the anti-gravity field? Can they choose what is affected, or is it everything within that ten meter radius? Could one, say, use this ability to jump higher and/or levitate themselves?

[ataraxites]

Characters using this ability can learn to control whether the anti-gravity affects themselves or not, but otherwise will find they have no control, and the anti-gravity will affect everything else within the ten meter radius.

[tongueamok]

Hey there! So Rey and Carlisle are doing some exploring of the ship because they've both been feeling the ~mysterious pull~ to it and whatnot. Questions:

1. What parts are up for exploring and maybe some basic scavenging?

2. Do we need to put in a full request if they only really go into areas that have already been searched?

3. Of those explorable parts, what sort of stuff is there to find? Anything new? You know, since ~ooo spooky pull to the ship~ and whatnot.

4. Or can we just assume they find some basic stuff that'd be lying around in the wreckage, so long as we don't go overboard and find some laser guns and killbots or something? Again, this is less about scavenging and more about the inclination toward exploring the ship, since that seems like a plot thing that should be addressed soonish so folks will have an incentive to investigate it.

Thanks in advance!