FAQ

[changelinged]

Frequently Asked Questions

🦋 Introduction

pixieled is a panfandom semi-private mission-based dark fantasy and folk horror roleplaying game with an emphasis on the more unsettling side of mythology and legend. Characters are led astray by the Fae and whisked away to their realm where they get adopted by one of the Fairy Courts. Once assigned their adoptive court, the ruler of that court offers up their court's ability. For a price, of course. Nothing in life is free. Trade a superhuman ability, or buy it on credit and owe the Fae. They're not especially picky.

It is up to your characters to decide if they want to risk finding a different way back home or accept their new position as the Fae's pet and obey. After all, it's a cushy gig, and they get to live as long as the Fae find them amusing. And, of course, there's no guarantee their world will be the same even if they managed to return...

To make searching a bit easier, we have mirrored the FAQ onto a Google Sheet. We update it fairly regularly, but the FAQ page itself will always have the most up-to-date information.

🦋 General Questions

🦋 Folk horror? Dark Fantasy?

Did you know in the original Cinderella story, the step-sisters mutilated their feet to fit into Cinderella's squirrel fur slippers to try and trick the prince? I just thought that was interesting.

In its simplest definition, folk horror plays up the inherent creepiness of common folklore tropes. Fairy tales as told by the Brothers Grimm, but turned up to 11. The Blair Witch Project. Etc.

Dark Fantasy is similar; it's horror in a fantasy setting. Pan's Labyrinth. Dark Souls. Your average vampire romance novel.

🦋 So what should I expect?

You can kill, you can die, you can fuck. There will be adult themes, political intrigue, and sketchy content galore.

As such, we take content warnings seriously and expect people to warn for commonly triggering topics.

🦋 What's the pacing like?

The game exists on a bimonthly event schedule; every other month there will be a mission and on off months there will be a Test Drive Meme open to new and old players alike.

🦋 Is there an overarching plot?

Yes, but much like every good fairy tale, there are some twists, turns, and lessons along the way to the plot.

🦋 Is this a short term game?

No. This game will continue as long as there is sufficient interest to keep it running. We currently have no plans for an endgame, and are prepared to run the game for a significant period.

🦋 So about that party...

Every other month there will be a post on pixieledmemes that functions as a test drive meme and a new character mingle log. Each one will be slightly different but they will all serve the same general function of allowing the Adopted and soon-to-be-Adopted to get to know each other and the Fae.

🦋 What happens if my character didn't eat anything during their initial feast?

If your character is being apped, they ate something at the party. Be it gentle coaxing or outright magical compulsion, the characters will end up eating.

In the case of robotic characters and other characters that don't have to or can't eat, a simple desire to be able to eat the food will suffice.

🦋 OOC Questions

🦋 What happens to characters that are dropped?

Their Court Ruler has decided they have no more use for them at this time. Characters who are dropped return home at precisely the moment they left, as if they were never gone in the first place.

On an IC level, no one knows this and the Fae are not going to give that information up without a fight. Other characters who try to reach out to the dropped character will find their GEIS messages bouncing and they won't be able to find the dropped character anywhere, but past that they won't get any notification or alert that someone has left.

If the same player re-apps the same character, they are welcome to have that character remember their previous time in the Fae Realm.

🦋 What kind of characters are not allowed?

Any player-crafted AU, including CRAU (CRAU = based on a previous RP). Real life people/celebrities. Religious figures/Fictionalized versions of religious figures. Historical figures. Non-anthro, non-verbal animal characters. Any character mentally or physically younger than 12. No canon OCs, other than D&D characters, Baldur's Gate protags, FFXIV protags, Pern characters, other TTRPGs (White Wolf & Pathfinder), and other, similar, examples.

For characters falling under the allowed canon OCs bracket, they should use the Original Character rules on the app, i.e. answer 6 questions or write about 7 words.

🦋 What is your position on aging characters up?

Aging up a character is totally fine so long as two criteria are met: 1) the events that take place after the canon ends are still in the spirit of the canon (i.e. nothing happens that would turn the canon into an AU) and 2) you're aging up a character who already meets the cut off age.

🦋 Can nonhuman characters stay nonhuman?

Yes. A player can choose to humanize their nonhuman character, but it's not required.

🦋 What happens if my character is taken from a canon point where they are severely or fatally injured?

If your character is severely or fatally injured when pulled into the game, their wounds get healed (if they leave scars is up to you), but the fae consider it a "favor" that they'll expect to get paid back for at some point.

🦋 Is there a spoiler rule in place when it comes to apping characters from new canons?

The canon (or, if canon updating to newer content, the canon point) has to be available in English (fan translations count) for at least 15 days to app or update.

🦋 How many characters can a single player app?

You may app up to 5 characters, applying for up to 2 each app round. Past this, there are no cast caps or game caps.

🦋 Can there be duplicates of characters?

If the canon in question has its own multiverse (such as the various Marvel media), yes. That is, if your character could reasonably meet another version of themselves in canon, then duplicates of that character are allowed so long as the characters are from different versions of that universe (such as MCU!Tony Stark, 616!Tony Stark, and 6160!Tony Stark). If the duplicate is the same character, then the duplicate is not allowed (such as SIM!Tony Stark and 616!Tony Stark). In the case of adaptations, both versions (such as BBC!Sherlock and book!Sherlock) will be allowed as the mod team considers these separate canons. We will only allow one malleable protagonist per canon.

🦋 Can I app multiple characters from the same canon?

Yes, up to two. If the characters have never interacted with each other before, nor are aware of each other's existence, it's allowed. It will be up to mod discretion whether or not two characters interact too extensively.

🦋 What does my character arrive with?

Anything they could have reasonably been carrying with them is fine to bring along. This can include weapons, magical objects, and pets.

🦋 Do my characters keep their canon powers and abilities?

Yes, they do. There is an option to trade away one of their canon abilities for their selected court's Fae ability if the player chooses.

🦋 Are any of those powers nerfed?

If your character's abilities would render this game unplayable, the mods may decide to nerf your character's game-breaking ability. Additionally, characters who have any kind of teleportation/dimension hopping abilities will not be able to use them at full power to escape the Fae Realm, however, they can use it to get around the castle, the grounds, and on battlefields.

While not a nerf, the realm of Faerie is about as magical as you can get. If your character knows magic, that magic will mostly work here, but the energy is a little different, so there can be consequences and glitches. For example, while resurrection magics work in Faerie, the one brought back from the dead may end up with a missing memory or an extra appendage or some other annoying change. It could be either a permanent or temporary change, but point is, it won't work 100%.

🦋 What counts as an ability for the purposes of the app?

Anything superhuman. Whether your character was born with it or fell into a vat of acid, anything outside of human possibility by a first-class Olympic athlete counts as an ability. To give an example, Black Widow in the MCU does not have any abilities as nothing she does is outside of what a well-trained human is capable of, while 616 Black Widow does due to having the super soldier serum. Another example, Reed Richards is incredibly intelligent, however it's not outside the realm of possibility for someone to be that intelligent. His intellect is not an ability the way his stretching powers are.

Pet-based power users, such as a Pokemon trainer, count as having abilities.

🦋 My character's powers and abilities are pet-based. What does that mean for me?

Daemons, psychically-bonded pets, Pokemon, Digimon, Pals, etc, are allowed to be brought along with your character within reason. In the case of Pokemon, for example, you could bring along the full party of 6 that you had on you, but no more. And, yes, this does mean that if you'd like to trade an ability to the Fae to not owe them, you will be trading your pet away.

Please indicate any pets and their powers on the Abilities section of the app.

🦋 Can I opt in for Court Abilities/Magic after the application process?

Opting in for court abilities can only happen during the application process as it is something to be kept track of by the mods. You may make note in your app that ICly they will not be accepting these powers until a certain period of time down the line ("My character will accept his court abilities on credit in April")

🦋 Tell me how the Courts and rooms are assigned.

On the Application, each player will be asked to list their top three choices for the character's adoptive court. Based on this list and the application's personality section, the mods will assign a court to each character.

Once their court is determined, that will inform which dorm they are in; each court has a corresponding spire of dorm rooms for their new citizens. From there, the mods will randomize roommates and room numbers.

On an IC level, sorting is done behind a curtain where only the eight Court Rulers are allowed. You are then ushered to their court dorms post party. In the dorm's common room on the main floor, the group of you get a little introduction from your court ruler about your court, deciding if you will take the court abilities/magic from your ruler, told what room is yours, and then promptly wished a good night before the court ruler walks off to their part of the castle.

🦋 My character has a medical issue and requires treatment and/or medication for it. What does that mean for me?

Characters with medical or mental problems will be able to access what they need, with the only change being, essentially, flavor text. For example, if your character has an infection, there are no antibiotics in the Fae Realm, however there are plenty of molds that have antibiotic effects. You might not be able to ask a doctor for penicillin, but a healer can get you access to Penicillium, the mold that produces penicillin instead.

If you are having trouble coming up with an alternate, lore-friendly way for your character to have access to what they need, feel free to come to the mods for help with your specific example or you can handwave the exact specifications of the treatment.

🦋 Can characters start to develop Fae-like physical traits after being in the Realm for a while?

If that's something you'd like to explore, you can absolutely have your character either slowly or suddenly change. However, it's not required by the setting. Feel free to be creative, have fun, and get weird with this; don't feel obligated to stick to pointy ears and wings.

See our Fae Traits page for more details.

🦋 Is there a regain/reward system in the game?

We will not be having a rewards system that the mods will be keeping track of. Some events may allow for item (re)gains for free. And some TDMs will feature an NPC that sells various things, including power ups. There will be a list of things you can trade for these items, but they will all be IC things as opposed to "trading" a certain number of comments you've made for the item.

🦋 IC Questions

🦋 What happens if a character tries to leave?

They're welcome to try. However, the Fae Realm is its own separate universe, tucked away from the rest of them. There's no portal back; the only way to leave is to have one of the court rulers send a character back. They can walk as far from the castle as they please; the surrounding forest will devour them by morning.

🦋 What happens if my characters die?

The Fae have promised immortality to their pets; if your character dies, they simply wake back up in their room the next morning. When they have died five times, it is up to the player to select a memory of their character's to delete. They cannot remember this thing, and they are unaware they are missing it. This change is permanent.

This remains the case no matter how the character in question died with one exception: Mod-run events where (nearly) everyone is expected to die, such as a Battle Royale type of event. When these events come up, it will be noted in the event text that the death will not count towards their five count.

🦋 What kind of laws exist in the Fae Realm?

Not many. "Don't steal" is the big one, and that's less because of any type of law enforcement getting anyone in trouble and more because if you steal from the Fae, they will kill and eat you, and not necessarily in that order. It's strongly advised not to thank anyone or apologize to anyone for the same reasons. Which, while at first is seen as disgusting and an annoyance, if you've been around long enough will be instead met with hostility and outright violence.

🦋 Can you interact with NPCs?

Short answer, yes.

Longer answer, the Lawspeaker (the woman from the Premise) will be around for events/TDMs/plot reasons to deliver information to the characters. The eight court rulers, on the other hand, will be available to be tagged, making their own posts, and interacting with the setting as characters in their own right.

There are some other NPCs, such as the blacksmith, the healer, or the barkeeper at the pub, who have some basic stats and information, but interactions with them can and should be completely handwaved.

🦋 Can you kill NPCs?

I wouldn't try, personally, but you're welcome to make the attempt. None of the Fae NPCs are actually able to be killed, and attempting to kill a member of the Fae (anything Seelie or Unseelie on the Bestiary) will absolutely land your character in jail for some period of time, as a best case scenario.

Non-Fae NPCs (i.e. Beasts, animals) are able to be killed with no punishment. Depending on mission parameters, this may even come with a substantial reward.

🦋 Do we have to interact with NPCs?

NPC interaction is completely opt-in. They won't be tagging other people's posts around the communities, so if you simply don't want to, you can completely ignore posts the NPCs make.

🦋 When it comes to Played NPCs, what are the limitations? What can I expect?

One limitation we have in place is that NPCs will never tag out to player posts and logs outside of special circumstance. This circumstance being that players may reach out to the mods for NPC interactions. Most often this will be discussed interaction and handwaves, but at times, if both parties agree, it can be threaded out.

Another is that NPC Threads will be no more than 5-10 comments from NPCs and after week two or three of an event/tdm going up, will naturally taper off due to mod duties and other responsibilities. Please understand that if a thread is not finished, it's nothing personal, we're just very busy. Please feel free to reach out to us for discussion about handwaving the rest of the interaction.

NPCs won't be available at all times, as well. Some events might just feature the Unseelie, while a TDM will usually only focus on the main two NPCs. Our random NPC thread on TDMs will also be limited to new players only, to give them ample chance to enjoy NPC interactions and experience the setting.

🦋 How can I get in contact with a played NPC outside of Events/TDMs?

Sometimes, NPCs will be posting their own network posts or logs that players can tag into and have interactions with the NPC in question. While NPCs will never tag out to player posts, they will tag each other. So keep an eye out, because that Narciso post? Might just have some flirting with Hagalaz in it.

Also, you are welcome to reach out to us through the NPC Request Page if you want to ask for NPC interactions. Most often it will be a discussion that will have handwaved conclusions, but there will be times when we may be open to threading it out.

🦋 How exactly does the jail work and where is it?

While there is indeed a jail it's not the Fae's first resort when punishing Adopted. Attack some Fae? They'll confiscate weapons before sending someone off to jail, but if someone doesn't take the hint from that... well, it's time out for them.

The jail is located in the basement of the castle proper. There are a few holding cells, but looking around reveals it's not really meant to be a long-term solution for anyone. They tend to release people pretty quickly, usually when they've calmed back down. But, say, if someone stabs their guard with a shank upon release, the guard will just sigh deeply and put them back in the cell.

🦋 What if my character is particularly rebellious or uncooperative?

The fae will largely just get annoyed with someone noncompliant; they don't really view any of their guests as a threat so it's more eyeroll worthy than anything. Expect a lot of stupid little roadblocks, such as temporarily being turned into an animal, maybe being unable to make sounds for a certain period, things like that; nothing outright harmful, but things that definitely make a proper rebellion harder. Eventually (if you want/are okay with it) the fae might realize "Okay, fine, this one's really stubborn," and start using magic to compel someone especially uncooperative into helping them with certain things.

🦋 Okay, but what if my character isn't rebellious? They want to impress their Court Ruler and fit in. How would I go about that?

Other than being a well behaved and obedient Adopted, it depends on the court. Narciso might reward flirtation, while Hagalaz might reward an artistic endeavor instead. Sunna might appreciate flower crown offerings, where Javora would probably rather hear some gossip. They're flighty, so what works for one person might not work for another, but largely the name of the game is entertainment.

🦋 What's daily life like for an Adopted?

That Adopted are largely left to their own devices and free to roam and do as they please. There's entertainment, Court sessions, and the like happening in the main halls pretty much always, but the Adopted, while welcome, are not expected to attend. Feel free to handwave minor town happenings like traveling bands and other artists and performers and the like. (No merchants, no fortune tellers)

🦋 But how do the fae NPCs treat the Adopted?

While each Adopted "belongs" to their court ruler - while they don't rank as highly on the social ladder as the average NPC/random fae, they've been told to treat the Adopted as if they were fae themselves; they might ask for help, for example, "Could you grab the other end of that crate?" or something but it's never an order. That's reserved for the eight rulers.

🦋 I want to talk to my character's Court Ruler or the Lawspeaker, how do I go about that?

The Lawspeaker will rebuff efforts to talk to them, but if you wanted to talk to a court ruler, you can either tag into a post they make, or hit up the NPC Request Page with what and who you're looking for and we are happy to set something up. Otherwise, feel free to handwave minor interactions such as a pat to the head as they pass or seeing them at an official gathering.

🦋 Are there other fae in the castle besides the rulers?

There are other fae besides the rulers living in the castle. They're a mix of both courtiers and staff (though the staff is fairly limited due to magic picking up a lot of the slack). Feel free to flesh out minor NPCs that live around the castle - there are enough of them around not to worry about people running into the same ones unless they choose to.

🦋 Can my character hide/withhold their name from the fae and others?

Alas, the fae already know your character's name and won't be fooled by a false one. As for others, after a couple days even a pair of small placards gets put up on either side of the door with the names of the people in that specific room (these are removable with effort and will reappear at dawn).

If your character has more than one name, we leave it up to the players choice which is on the door. The fae ruler will know all names associated with your character.

🦋 How does money work?

Money is a human invention, invented for humans. The Fae pay for goods and services with effort, trades, and IOUs. Any character can pay for any thing at all by working off the debt, no matter what it is. The pub functions mainly on trades of compelling stories, while the inn simply "suggests" that all patrons wash their dishes before leaving. Of course, the Fae love it when humans owe them things, so everywhere and everyone is happy to accept credit, put-it-on-my-tab, and I-owe-ya-one as valid payments. Just remember, you'll pay it back eventually...

🦋 How does language work?

Whenever someone eats any food in the Fae Realm, they become a part of the Fae Realm. The second your character chowed down, they could understand the various languages the different species of Fae speak, as well as the languages of every other Adopted and Beast they encounter. Each character will continue speaking their own language, but everyone else will be able to understand it as if they are fluent. It does not work as a translator, but the languages will be mutually intelligible nonetheless.

🦋 Tell me more about the Courts.

Essentially, the Courts are how Fae society runs. The High Rulers (those of the four Seelie courts), rule over every Seelie inside the forest - the actual figurehead changes with the seasons. The Low Rulers (those of the four Unseelie courts), rule over the Unseelie inside the forest - the figurehead changes depending on the time of day.

Every individual Fae is assigned a Court when they come of age (130, for them; they have determined the age is around 13 for many of the short-lived sentient species) based on their personality. While Seelie and Unseelie are immutable traits that lock someone into one of four boxes, from there they can be in any box regardless of species, though in some cultures being assigned to a certain Court is expected.

🦋 How do the Courts interact with each other?

The Seelie and Unseelie have a sort of friendly ("friendly") rivalry going with each other. They're a far cry from the old days when they had out and out animosity with each other, but they still get competitive with each other. While they'd appreciate it if their new pets also acted this way, the Fae understand the Adopted are not smart enough to truly appreciate it. For example, Seelie characters trying to visit a friend in the Unseelie dorms will, at best, get strange looks or get outright barred from entering by a guard. There's always sneaking in. But remember, this is not to bar people from certain CR or stifle roleplaying; it's to enhance the setting. Please feel free to play around with their rivalry.

🦋 How does the credit for these Court Abilities/Magic work IC?

When your character interacts with the court rulers, they will get to take advantage of the fact that you character owes them now. They will not accept any other payment besides this ambiguous IOU, which they may call upon at anytime.

🦋 Is there a curfew? Will you get in trouble for sleeping in another court dorm?

There are no curfews or forced expectations of sleeping in your dorm, but sleeping in another Courts dorm room or space might make the Fae a little catty towards your character.

🦋 Tell me more about the technology level of the Fae Realm.

Retrofuturist Victorian era England powered by fairy magic. Beer might be "on tap", yes, but it's because they have a mermaid waving her hands around to get some IPA to float into your cup from a keg in the back. Sure, there's an espresso machine at the inn, but it's made of pipes and the barista's an imp to heat the damn thing.

There's lots of gears and clockwork and visible joints on things. Lots of cranks and brass. Things glow, stuff floats. But you will find most modern conveniences, just strangely repackaged.

🦋 So are there magic outlets for stuff, then?

Not exactly. Because everything functions on something that's free-flowing through the air and can exist outside of a wire without causing harm and destruction, there's no real need for an outlet situation. Besides, magic is charged differently. If a character starts to notice their device running out of battery, they'll be advised to put it on their windowsill overnight to catch the moonlight to charge the device.

🦋 How does the network function?

Characters from an advanced enough civilization might think of it as functioning much like the internet, with wi-fi and servers, but in fact the devices all have a magical charge that allows for messages to flow between them. But functionally, yes, it's much like the internet.

🦋 What about the technology from home? Does it work here?

Technology from home will behave as normal (minus reception) until the battery dies. There's no way (currently) to charge it unless heavily modified to charge off of the ambient magical energy like the Leaf does.

🦋 What is the weather like?

The Fae Realm has four very pronounced seasons. In spring, temperatures gradually rise from the low-50s (10s) to mid-70s (20s). Snow melts as the season continues and the world warms back up. Flowers bloom and warm rain falls. In summer, temperatures vary from the high 70s (20s) to the mid-90s (30s). Expect afternoon thunderstorms and humidity. In autumn, temperatures drop back to the mid-70s (20s) to low-50s (10s). Mornings are often foggy and days are often windy. Leaves change color and fall from trees. In winter, temperatures drop to just below freezing, occasionally reaching temperatures up to the mid-40s (5). Snow falls, most animals migrate or hibernate, and the sun sets early. Expect snowstorms a few times per month.

🦋 What kind of things can my character buy at the market?

Things you'd be able to find at your average grocery store. Food, small trinkets, some small appliances, cookware, flatware, silverware, flowers, remedies to life's typical ailments. Art and writing supplies, clothing, and other creature comforts to customize your room.

🦋 What's the fashion of the game?

In their dorm rooms they'll have more basic outfits picked for them in colors they like. They'll be able to find clothes (and accessories) at the market if they'd like to buy anything especially nice and fancy. All the clothing available (i.e. other than what they arrived in) gives Ren faire realness, though.

🦋 What can my character buy at the blacksmith?

Weapons, cooking knives, hardware, armor, leather goods, jewelry.

🦋 Can my underaged character drink at the pub?

To an extent, they understand that little mortals should not be given alcohol. However, the definition of what makes a little mortal little and what they're allowed to do while little has changed vastly over the centuries and haven't really kept up with what's current where. Their own take is that anyone who is old enough to get taken to their realm is probably old enough to drink back home, too. So, if an underage character acts like they know what they're talking about, none of the fae would be any the wiser that they're not "supposed" to be drinking, but if the character points out that they're too young, the tavernkeeper will remember that.

🦋 Any flora/fauna of note?

Flora: If there is one resource the Fae Realm is not in short supply of, it's plants. There will be flora familiar to your character, and plants and fungi they've never even imagined. Common plants include most herbs, wildflowers, non-tropical fruit trees, and some typical garden flowers such as roses, peonies, hydrangeas, and wisteria.

Fauna: In addition to the creatures listed on the Bestiary, there are also animals running around that are non-sentient. These include rabbits, hedgehogs, foxes, a whole host of birds, badgers, weasels, and deer, but this is by no means an exhaustive list. If you can reasonably see a particular animal in your backyard, you can probably also find it on the castle grounds.

🦋 Is pregnancy allowed?

Yes, technically. However, after a 40 week term and the character has their baby, there's a 50% chance the Fae will steal it for themselves, never to be seen again. This will be determined via a coin flip, with heads allowing the character to keep their child, and tails meaning the Fae get it. No miscarriage drama as it can be triggering for people; if we find someone breaking this rule, no coin flip is needed as the Fae will automatically be stealing your child.

Please contact the mods after the birth to find out how lucky you are.

🦋 So our characters always have to use condoms to prevent that?

Reminder that this is a magical place with magic. So of course not. The simple lack of desire to have a child will cause the Fae's magic to work to prevent pregnancies. Take some mugwort and call me in the morning.

｡*｡˚ 🦋 ˚｡*｡

For any questions not covered, please feel free to ask in a comment below. The mods will return with an answer as soon as we can.

ｎａｖｉｇａｔｉｏｎ

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Comments

[feistro]

Hey mods! Is-this-character-allowed type question:

So Pom here is a player character from the Monster Hunter series. If you're unfamiliar, they're categorized as "action role-playing" games, but they're definitely more the former than the latter, as the main "role-playing" element is really just a lot of min-maxing your stats. The stories of the games have been absolutely paper-thin at his point (basically "a monster showed up for X reason, and you, the Hunter, need to go take it down before it damages the ecosystem/village/whatever; rinse and repeat). The provided backstory for the Hunter character is equally thin, and none of them have given personalities other than "registered with the Hunter's Guild" and "determined to hunt monsters." You rarely get any kind of dialogue option in the games, if any (usually none).

Basically, if you want your character to have any history and personality at all, you have to make it up yourself headcanon-style. While he's technically from a game (World, specifically), given all the legwork you have to do to make the Hunter an actual character with any kind of flavor, that puts Pom here on the border of canon/fandom OC for some folks, which is totally understandable.

So question - would he be allowed for appl? I am 1000% unlikely to get canonmates so that won't be a problem (and he doesn't have connections with the NPCs of World aside from "they told me to hunt this monster"), but I totally get if not! Thanks for your time!

[changelinged]

Hi! Thanks so much for the question.

Pom would count as an allowed canon OC, something similar in scope to a D&D character or the protag of Baldur's Gate or Skyrim! The one thing to note, however, is that when apping a malleable protag like this, you just have to follow the app's instructions for Original Characters (i.e. your personality section will end up being more questions/words).

Thank you for your interest and we hope to see you apply!

[furrowing]

Hi!

I have another question on character viability, although I don't know the mods so I'm not sure if I'll try for an invite. This might help other people too.

For FFXIV there are sort of two 'types' of FFXIV OCs, one being OCs that are the Warrior of Light (the character that plays through/experiences the main story), and any other kind of character in the world. What kinds of FFXIV OCs are acceptable, or is this more on a case by case basis? I understand the concern is usually around castmates and NPC shipping.

[changelinged]

Thanks for the question!

The WoL in FFXIV, the main character in Baldur's Gate, and other similar series that have a blank slate protagonist are all allowed. FFXIV OCs that are not the WoL would not be allowed.

To use another canon as an example: Commander Shepard from Mass Effect is appable, a turian OC would not be.

[somoteitbe]

Hi, mods!

I have a quick question regarding types of characters who can be applied re: ongoing/updating canons. Melinoë here is from Hades II, a video game, which is available... but in early access. The game isn't completely finished, but people are allowed to play for balancing tweaks and feedback for final touches and most of the major plot points are established.

Would this fall under her current canon point needing to be 'at least 15 days to app or update'? For a timeframe, the last major update with lore and story additions was in October 2024. I would mark for spoilers/have an opt-out for anyone interested in waiting to play the game upon full release as well! I just wanted to make sure it was kosher, but if not no worries!

[changelinged]

Thanks for the question!

Video games can be as much an ongoing canon as a comic or a TV show; we'll be treating early access the same way as something episodic, like a Telltale game. Yes, some people will wait until the end of a season to fully watch a tv show, for example, but for our purposes as long as the latest story update/episode is 15 days old, and it is in this case, you're totally fine to app Melinoë, so long as you mark for spoilers and have an opt-out for people who'd rather go in blind on release.

For a TV show/comic/that sort of thing where early access isn't nearly as accessible as it is with video games, we would expect the same spoilers/opt-out policy for someone if they were doing a mid-season/mid-run update rather than waiting until 15 days after the season completed.

[portenser]

Hi mods! I have yet another malleable protag question and an invite question.

You specifically mention Baldur's Gate protagonists, so I'm not so much asking about appability as I am how I'd handle the application. The Dark Urge kind of walks the line between Tav and the other origin companions in that they have a canon backstory, but they're a bit more of a blank slate than the other origin characters (Astarion, Wyll etc.) due to amnesia. Should I app them as a canon character, or as an OC and fill in the extra questions? (Happy to do so!)

Also, I looked through the invite page and wasn't entirely clear what the invite protocol is for this first round. Should I use the invite page when it opens or should I DM the mod account?

Thank you!

[changelinged]

Thanks for the question!

You can totally app The Dark Urge as a canon character, or if you really want to answer some extra questions to flesh them out a bit more that is also totally fine, though absolutely not required.

For every monthly round there's going to be a comment on the invite page for mod-given invites. Once invites open and that comment's up, you'll fill out the form and reply to that comment. In subsequent months, there will also be a player-given invite comment that'll work basically the same way.

setting and magic questions

[piperofdeath]

Hi mods! Your game sounds amazing! I have a couple of questions about the OC I'm thinking of bringing.

1. His magic can be influenced by how the world views his magic. It can damage the fabric of the world when it's feared, or it blends harmlessly with the magic of the world when it's accepted. Do the fae view the magic from the people they have whisked away any different than the magic of their world?

2. Kai's magic allows him to channel different elements by resonating with the emotions the dead leave behind in stories and songs. Since the fae realm is in a different universe would he still be able to use this ability and connect to the dead of his world? Or are there stories about the dead that Kai can use from this universe instead?

[changelinged]

Thank you so much for the interest and the questions!

1. The fae will view his magic as a neat trick, almost like how a pet owner would feel about some weird little thing their pet does. A delightful novelty. It's decidedly different from their magic, but it's not feared.

2. Apologies in advance for the lesson, but unfortunately you have hit upon my favorite part of fairy lore: So. In traditional Irish fairy lore, the fae live under burial mounds and use those to go between their world and the human world. In Nordic fairy lore, elves are seen as ancient, wisened dead humans. Basically, the fae have a weird connection to the dead.

Kai would be able to connect to the dead of his world, yes, but his abilities will work similarly to calling a payphone on the side of the street: You might get the correct dead person you're looking for, or some random fairy could pick up the phone instead. Feel free to have some fun with this: Make up an NPC fairy who keeps answering his "phone calls" if you want, have his abilities improve over time as he gets more used to the location if you want.

[kingkingcxiii]

Hello mods!

It's really neat to see another "darker side of the Fae" game come across my Plurk timeline. I love games that use this setting. I have a couple questions for you, if you please.

1.) Forgive me if I missed it in all the current FAQs (legit vision issues here), but is any kind of canon updating allowed once a character is in game? I see the information about new canons and spoilers, but nothing about in game canon updates.

2.) As I was looking through all the information posted about the game, I noticed a mention that some events might end up causing death to a large number of characters. Do you have any idea how often these kinds of events may happen? I'm not a huge fan of killing my character (even if they come right back), though I have no issues hurting or maiming them. Go figure! LOL! That's not the main reason I am curious, though. The main reason is that it would affect which canon point I would pick for my character should I apply--as would the above question--so any information you can give would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks so much!

[changelinged]

Hi, thanks much for the interest and the questions!

1) Yes, you can canon update once in the game; here is some more information, but the basics are it works the same way as new canons with regard to spoilers (15 days).

2) There will more than likely never be an event where we don't have some kind of non-death option for people; events will always have multiple options for people to pick from and you're never required to do any specific one. At the end of the day, we're all about our players having fun and even though I love killing my characters off, I know that's not everyone and I'm not in the business of forcing people to change. That was kind of rambling. Forgive me, I just woke up. tl;dr - you're never going to be forced to kill your characters.

[diana_abel]

Two related questions:

1. Are OCs from White Wolf's World of Darkness good? I imagine they are, since it's just like D&D, but wanted to check.

2. What are the rules for vampires and sunlight?

[changelinged]

Thanks for the questions!

Yes, all TTRPG canons work, not just D&D.

We're going to leave this up to player discretion. If you want you can say your vampire only goes out when it's night, you can bend it so cloudy days also blot out the sun enough, or you can say the fae completely took away that part when the vampire got here and so now they can go out in the sun. Whatever's most fun for the vampire's player.

[delaurentiis]

Hello mods, just your bog standard questions about vampires here.

1. with regard to food and feeding, how does this work in game? can vampires feed on NPCs, are they supplied blood or are they able to eat food?

2. how will vampire sun sensitivity work in-game?

[changelinged]

1. They'll be supplied with blood. There are plenty of fae with similar dietary restrictions.

2. That will be left up to the player - you can decide they aren't sensitive to the sun at all, can only go out when it's cloudy, or only at night. Whatever makes the setting most fun for you.

[cloversandcranes]

About those rules...what would happen to someone that thanks and apologizes a lot?

And how do they find out about these rules? Are they told or do they have to find out on their own? Possibly by trial and error.

Also, this game looks awesome already. I'm excited to try it out! ^^

[changelinged]

At first, they'd get disgusted looks and annoy the fae. After being around for long enough to have gotten the hint the fae will get more outwardly hostile, even outright attacking them. As I'm kind of implying here, they'd find out by trial and error.

Thanks for the question!

Questions about characters who may resist the game premise

[amaratha]

Hi mods! I'm considering a character who would not take well to the premise, and thought I'd ask for your take on such cases and what the options would be for getting an unwilling character to cooperate.

1) If a character would be unwilling to eat food at their entrance party, can they be coerced by the fae attendees to do so? Or would that be out of character for the NPCs?

2) If a character tries something extreme as a reaction to the Lawspeaker's announcement at the end of the party (e.g. they try to attack the fae, or run away, etc.), how would that play out? Would characters be accosted immediately, are there punishments for violence, etc.?

3) Generally, what would the experience of a character causing trouble / being noncompliant be like? What reactions would they get from the fae? What sort of punishments might happen to them? (I saw mention of a jail; what's that like?)

4) Lastly, how comfortable are you with characters rebelling against the premise and eating shit for it? (Within reason, so like characters would never successfully escape- I'm thinking more of, if a player wanted their character to cause trouble and be in jail all the time, whether that would go against your vision of the game. This is sort of a blank space for the modteam to establish any limits if they would like to.)

Thank you! And please don't take this as a cause for concern- I asked more questions than is directly relevant to me just to be thorough, I'm hoping not to cause too many problems as well 😅

[changelinged]

Thank you for the question! I have been dying for someone to ask this one. Rubs my grimy little hands together.

1) For food at the party - at first the fae will be sort of like an auntie trying to get you to eat more: "Eat, eat! You're too skinny! It's delicious! I worked so hard!" Eventually this will escalate into less friendly ribbing and then a straight out magical compulsion to eat.

2) The fae are functionally immortal so they're less concerned about getting actually hurt from an attack and more concerned about "Hey, watch the decorations, buddy!" It's more rude than terrifying; they'll confiscate weapons before sending someone off to jail, but if someone doesn't take the hint from that...

3) The jail is in the basement of the castle proper. There are a few holding cells, but looking around reveals it's not really meant to be a long-term solution for anyone. They tend to release people pretty quickly, usually when they've calmed back down. If, say, someone stabs their guard with a shank upon release, the guard will just sigh deeply and put them back in the cell.

The fae will largely just get annoyed with someone noncompliant; they don't really view any of their guests as a threat so it's more eyeroll worthy than anything. Expect a lot of stupid little roadblocks, such as temporarily being turned into an animal, maybe being unable to make sounds for a certain period, things like that; nothing outright harmful, but things that definitely make a proper rebellion harder.

Eventually (if you want/are okay with it) the fae might realize "Okay, fine, this one's really stubborn," and start using magic to compel someone especially uncooperative into helping them with certain things.

4) [grasps your face] We would love this so much. A character trying to fight back and argue and find a way home and cause trouble is always a delight, and having someone unafraid to Go There on the ooc front always helps other people realize it's okay for them to do similar things as well.

[magike]

HELLO i'm here to delightfully ask about death
so it says that when characters die they wake up the next morning in their room. what would happen if someone tried resurrection magic on another character before that happened?

also rowena has a thing about not dying. normally she has a spell on her that would resurrect her when she dies but she v recently removed that spell. would she [a] be able to find the ingredients for that spell if she tried to cast it again (i usually act like she can't but gotta ask) and [b] would there be any other kind of consequence to her trying to do that kind of spell/other resurrection spells on other characters (if all icly discussed like... idk i just like consequences)

[changelinged]

(Hi Kerry hi!!)

TL;DR version: If Rowena uses a resurrection spell on another character it will, technically, work, but there might be some small way that it backfires. Slightly longer version: The realm of Faerie is about as magical as you can get. If your character knows magic, that magic will mostly work here, but the energy is a little different, so there can be consequences and glitches. Basically, the way I'm thinking this could work is say Tony dies, Rowena resurrects him, and he comes back with a missing memory or an extra appendage or some other annoying change. It could be either a permanent change or something temporary, but point is, it won't work 100%.

As long as none of the ingredients are super canon-specific (like, say, she needs- IDK Castiel's trench coat for part of it), you can totally have her cast her self-resurrection spell again. If you want consequences for that, feel free to play it the same way, with some kind of annoying change attached to it.

[against_descent]

What might the deal be for a character who already has Fae ties? Surely it's not from an in-game Fae, of course, but is that something that they might notice? (Like maybe in an "ooh, this one could be FUN" way? I am down for that...)

Mostly I'm curious. She has an item from her canon from a Fae, but especially as it could be messy, I've played that the item she was given by said Fae goes inert when Cass here is not in her own universe.

OH also, since this character is prone to prophetic visions (at least in her own canon), how might that work? That is a power that I'd be open to have her barter away (or lose), though that'd weird her out.

Thanks in advance! Super excited for this game!

[changelinged]

On the functional, OOC front, nothing will really be different, but from an IC perspective, the court rulers and other NPCs will notice and expect a different level of decorum than they would from your average human; if a character already has fae ties, they expect you to know how to act around them.

You can totally say the item goes inert if that's easiest for you. I'm curious what it does, though. It might be interesting to have the court rulers mention it and such.

If you want her to barter it or lose it, that's certainly one way to handle it. But we would be okay with some leaning on the fourth wall about when events occur, such as her getting a vision on the 13th (events and TDMs will always be on the 15th) that something was going to happen soon. If you're okay with keeping it super vague like that, she's welcome to keep the ability.

[kingkingcxiii]

Hello Mods!

I have returned because I am starting to play around with Regis' application which means it's time to start thinking about limitations to that wacky Lucis Caelum skill set.

Now as large as that skill set is, most of it doesn't really fall into the world-breaking category, especially since I usually self-limit the stronger abilities. It's no fun when your character can just magic all his problems away, after all! There are a few powers whose functions I need to ask about, though.

1. The Armiger's storage space, AKA the Lucis Caelum version of hammerspace: In the game we see Noctis store various non-living things in it including his fishing pole, so Regis obviously can do the same. In past games I have had that unlimited space nerfed to only a set number of spaces, but it could also be nerfed completely if need be. What do you guys feel works best?
2. The Ring of the Lucii: The ring grants Regis the ability to access three spells--Death, Holy, and Alterna. I am actually considering having him trade the access to these three spells for his Court's special ability, but I am not sure if they would count as they are abilities granted to him by an object and not natural inborn skills, though I suppose since one has to be a Lucis Caelum to access the spells maybe it still counts in a roundabout way.
3. The Ring of the Lucii, Part 2: The ring literally holds the souls of all the past Kings and Queens of Lucis, so how would you like to handle this as they can interact with him should they wish to. I've not really used that ability in a game aside from when I had a Somnus as a castmate and could ask the player for permission. Otherwise, I've only had Regis be able to sense they are there and not seek to interact with them or have them interact with him. I don't know how any of that would work in this setting, though, because of just how much Fae magic is around.
4. Curative Creation: Regis has the ability to turn drinks into curatives, though I've only ever had him make lower level potions and ethers for the sake of game balance. How would that power work here if it would work here?
5. Power Sharing: In the game, the Lucis Caelums can create a bond with people who they deem worthy allowing that person to access portion of their powers. Would that ever be something that could be done in game?
6. ...No, just kidding! There is no six. Five is more than enough! LOL!

Thank you so much for your time. I apologize this list is so long!

[changelinged]

Alright let's go.

1. For the additional/fishing pole spaces, not counting the rest of the Armiger, let's say he has 9 of them.

2. We're fine with those three spells counting for the power trade.

3. It could be possible to have them contact Regis if you wanted to play around with it. There's enough magic and spirits around that you could say the Ring works almost like they were still on Lucis, just with "bad reception" so to speak.

4. 100% go for it, just do what you've done in the past. We're going to say stick to hi-potion level and under.

5. With player permission, absolutely.

6. You're totally fine, they're good questions! ;)

[klutziness]

hello! for characters with item-based abilities, can they enter the game with the item(s) and have them function as their abilities? e.g., rikku uses a garment grid to change jobs and gain abilities based on that job. thank you!

[changelinged]

Absolutely yes you can have her keep her garment grid and dresspheres, minus Machina Maw (which she could get later down the line as an event reward if you want).

[matermali]

Hello mods!

I am curious if characters choose their own GEIS usernames, or if they are chosen by the Fae?

[changelinged]

They get to choose their own usernames! On screen instructions will be provided when they first use their Leaf.

[tequila_sunset]

What would happen if someone had severe injuries during the time of pulling?

[changelinged]

Their wounds get healed, but the fae consider it a "favor" that they'll expect to get paid back for at some point.

[kingkingcxiii]

Hi!

I have a technology question you. How will a technical item like a phone or a tablet brought from a character's home world work? Would it be normal until the battery died and that's it? Would it suddenly start working via magic? Would it just not work at all? Might it be able to interface with a Leaf if someone with the right technical and magical knowledge (not Regis) started to mess around with the two things?

Regis is going to have his phone/tablet in the Armiger when he arrives because it is shown he was talking to Clarus right before he went to out to fight. I can't help but see him tossing the darn thing into the Armiger as he headed out, so here I am with yet another question.

[changelinged]

Technology like phones is going to behave as normal (minus having reception) until the battery dies. Pretty much all tech is not going to have a way to charge without some heavy modification - you don't exactly need outlets when everything's powered by magic - but the right people could, eventually, turn a piece of "normal" tech into something that interfaces with and even charges magically like a Leaf.

[silversunshine]

I have a question that's piggybacking a little off of Regis' players abilities question. Normally Prompto's abilities include being connected to Noctis and using those powers for things like potion use and armiger access. These powers don't really go away when Noctis gets locked away in a different dimension (Giant Crystal) but I wanted to double check juuuust in case. Would Prompto still be able to use Noctis' powers here even though they aren't his own?

[changelinged]

Just to clarify you mean for, say, summoning/storing his guns and the like, right? If so, that's totally fine, yes. You could even say that's a power Prompto could trade if you so wanted, even though it's not "technically" his power; the connection to Noctis is the real power that he'd be trading, but it counts!

[crosslaced]

Hi mods! Would like to clarify a few things on the app form & process- I wasn't able to find the answers on the various infopages, but if I missed it, I apologise :,D

1) I understand that new TDMs go up once every two months. Are app rounds also every two months, or every month?

2) What does it mean for a character to buy their Court's ability on credit?

[changelinged]

1. App rounds will be every month, always on the 22nd. Feel free to check out our Calendar for the other dates, like Invites and Reserves.

2. OOC, it means you get to keep all your character's abilities but also add the new one from their court, or it means your character has no abilities and you want to give them one. IC, it means you owe the fae something. This is largely a bad thing, much like using a credit card when you don't actually have the money. When this character interacts with the court rulers, they will get to take advantage of the fact that this character owes them now.

[haemophile]

Hello, mods! Quick question regarding Leafs (Leaves?): what would happen if a character were to misplace their Leaf? Or break it? Thank you!

[changelinged]

If they lose it or forget it at home or something like that, it sprouts (hah) little, stem-like legs and runs to find its person.

If someone breaks it, but superficially - like the screen - it will keep sending that person pop up alerts to get their face fixed (the alchemist in town is pretty solid at some repairs). It's pretty hard to break the Leafs in a meaningful, permanent way, though if someone did they'd likely just be given a new one after a small, respectful funeral for the original one.

[renhanded]

Alright here's a stupid question: how much does the tavernkeeper care or understand that alcohol is not supposed to be given to minors? I can't imagine they understand human laws or age appropriate things or anything like that, but I also get it if you don't want it in the game LOL tysm!

[changelinged]

To an extent, they understand that little mortals should not be given alcohol. However, the definition of what makes a little mortal little and what they're allowed to do while little has changed vastly over the centuries; where beer was once the only drinkable beverage out there and you'd give it to your babies, now it's a faux pas for anyone under 21? That's so old for them, isn't it? It's like a quarter of their whole lives! Silly!

Their own take is that anyone who is old enough to get taken to their realm is probably old enough to drink back home, too. So, if an underage character acts like they know what they're talking about, none of the fae would be any the wiser that they're not "supposed" to be drinking, but if the character points out that they're too young, the tavernkeeper will remember that, oh right, they have rules about this sort of thing don't they?

[renhanded]

Okay one more because I feel the need to check:

In Persona 5, the kids can access the Metaverse through a phone app, which basically lets them access the layer of the spirit world above the world they're currently in. They can only go there though if there's a Palace (which requires a name, location, and distortion) or Mementos (which starts in a fixed location). What would happen if any of them tried to open the app here? Would it show anything, would it even work, would the whole thing just crash, ect ect ect. I'm betting more than one of the mods knows what I'm talking about but if I need to explain this further I am happy to LOL

[changelinged]

For the phones they have with the MetaNav, the main enemy is going to be battery power: Technology like phones will behave as normal (minus having reception) until the battery dies.

If they try to use the app itself while their phone is still charged though, it'll almost seem like it's going to work and do something; the Nav will work pretty much as usual, say all the same stuff as it normally would, but the main difference is it won't take them to the Metaverse. (For example, let's say they wanted to change one of the court rulers' hearts, even if they figured out the Palace's location/distortion, they'll only be able to get to the point where they'd normally navigate to it. The MetaNav will essentially register them as already having arrived at wherever they were supposed to go.)

[piperofdeath]

Hey mods! I have a question about the applications. Do the RP samples need to be a certain length?

[changelinged]

Not really, no! Just give us enough to get an idea of your character's personality and how they speak, think, and interact with the world around them.

[principiamathematica]

I have some questions about non-human characters!

- Are very large characters (Transformers, dragons, etc.) required to downsize?

- If downsizing is required, is it possible a character could eventually gain the ability to temporary go back to their canon size?

- If downsizing is not required, is it possible a character could eventually gain the ability to temporarily assume a smaller form to make it easier to interact with the castle?

[changelinged]

Large characters are not required do downsize, though they will be given the ability to change sizes when they are adopted so they can get around the castle more effectively. The larger spaces within the castle can accommodate fairly large people, but the dorms are made with human-sized species in mind. If they were to die, for example, or otherwise get "forced" into their dorms, they'll be automatically shrunken down, but there's no real requirement for staying in the dorms beyond that; if a dragon wanted to set up a nest in one of the castle's gardens for example so they didn't have to shrink down, that's a totally fine place for them to sleep.

[haemophile]

Hello I'm sorry, here are more vampire questions:

1) How much personalization is allowed in the dormitories? Are Adopted allowed to decorate the outside, say, by covering the windows with planks, etc?

2) Can Adopted. ask for coffins instead of beds.

3) Alternately, are there basement-level dormitories available...

[changelinged]

1) Feel free to personalize as much as you and your roommate see fit! The fae understand the Adopted will want their creature comforts.

2) They will think Laszlo's a little crazy, but they'll agree to it and get him a coffin.

3) There's a cellar under the common area between the two sections of towers. If he doesn't mind sleeping among wine bottles and whiskey casks, he's more than welcome to settle in down there unofficially; he'll still wake up in his usual room if he were to die, for example.