FAQs

1. What's a GM?

GM stands for GameMaster, who serves as story-teller. They also will describe the setting, and act as officiant for questions regarding in-game 'rules' (like the laws of physics, how magic works, etc.), and may arbitrate the outcome of in-game actions (like whether a character's jump clears a pit, a shot hits its target, or an audience is successfully influenced by a character's speech).

They will create environments in which the player characters can interact, control the non-player aspects of the game such as the non-player characters (or 'NPCs') and random encounters as well as the general state of the game world, and will weave the other participants' characters' stories together. The GM is thus in charge of the in-game world and has the final say determining settings, environments, outcomes, and plots.

A good GameMaster draws the players into the adventure, making it enjoyable for everyone. They have quick minds, sharp wits, and rich imaginations, but must also maintain game balance: hideously overpowered monsters or player characters are no fun.

The basic role of the GameMaster as described above is essentially the same in all our role-play environments (or 'sims'), although differing genres make the specific duties of the GameMaster unique to that system.

3. What's an RPE?

RPE stands for Role Playing Environment. It is the world in which each sim (game) exists. Generally, the RPE will be based on the source material used as inspiration for the sims within it; "Star Trek" would be an RPE, and all sims within that RPE would be based on the technology and storylines of the Star Trek universe. Think genre!

5. What do OOC and IC mean?

OOC means "Out of Character". Players are asked to type OOC before communicating as themselves rather than as their character, within any sim, to avoid confusion. The only exception is when posting in any OOC threads.

IC means "In Character" and is used to transition between Out of Character communications and In Character communications. So for example, if someone began their post with an Out of Character communication ("OOC: Sorry for the late post!") and then wanted to resume playing as their character, they would need to insert IC.

example:

OOC: Sorry for the late post!
IC: Morgan O'Doyle slapped Corporal Rimmer in the face.

7. What's a CO?

CO stands for Commanding Officer, and refers to the in-game position of leadership in some RPEs. Sometimes the CO is also the Sim Leader, other times, it is just a player role-playing a leadership position in the game. The CO might be the Captain of the ship in a ship-based sim, for example, or the senior officer in a military sim's team.

9. What's an XO?

XO stands for Executive Officer. As with COs the title XO refers to an in-game position, in this case second-in-command.

In sims where the CO is also the Sim Leader, the XO is generally appointed to their position by the CO and expected to serve as Assistant Sim Leader and take on some leadership responsibilities for the RPE. In other cases, the XO is just another role-played character with in-game leadership responsibilities but no more real life out-of-character responsibilities for the sim than any other player.

11. What is 'God-Modding'?

God-Modding is a term used for when a player assumes control of another player's character without consent of the other player. By dictating the outcome of a scene's actions the offending player acts as 'god' of the scene. This style of play is considered antisocial and is not encouraged.

example:

Joe punched Jack square in the stomach, knocking him down.

If the player of Joe posted the above, he is god-modding this scene because he is not giving the player of Jack a chance to respond to the punch.

corrected example:

Joe's fist struck out towards Jack's stomach.

Note: GMs have the right to dictate the outcome of a scene in order to keep the story moving and play fair for all the characters and can void or edit player posts, while Sim Leaders have the ultimate say and can void even the GM. If you feel you've been a victim of 'god-modding', let your GM and SL know.

13. What is 'Meta-Gaming'?

Meta-Gaming is the frowned-upon convention of having your character know information that you yourself have gained from reading other posts but your character would have no idea about. For example knowing where something is or reading into actions of other players too deeply.

15: I would like to play in a game, how do I start?

You can PM the Sim Leader of the game that has caught your attention, or post in the OOC thread!