IC FAQ

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IC FAQ
Main FAQ PAGE
IC Info Guide

Academy Life ♪ AU Specific Questions ♪ Transfer Students Panfandom Characters ♪ General IC questions ♪ The Black Mist and strangelings


OOC Info Guide

Format ♪ Applications ♪ Appable Characters ♪ General App Questions ♪ Activity and Etiquette


IC Guide

Gameplay and General Questions

Academy Life

How do my characters get to the floating islands? How do they get to the school once on it? There is a sky port station situated on the coast of Buena Vista that can take students, staff, visitors, and island residents to and from the main island. From the main island transport station, there is another gondola which leads to the sister island, and there are trams that lead to the Academy's personal tram station as well as Traverse Town's. What are the minimum and maximum ages for students and staff? Staff members are typically -but not always- twenty years or older, while students can be anywhere from a child onwards. I don't come from the American school system. What grade (year) would my character be if they're ____ years old? This is just a general guide, as some kids who are "smart" enough skip a year and those who don't do well enough learning or grade-wise can be held back a year. However, this is how most students are grouped. Elementary School 5-6 years - Kindergarden 6-7 years - 1st Grade 7-8 years - 2nd Grade 8-9 years - 3rd Grade 9-10 years - 4th Grade 10-11 years - 5th Grade Middle School/ Junior High 11-12 years - 6th Grade 12-13 years - 7th Grade 13-14 years - 8th Grade High School 14-15 years - Freshmen (Grade 9) 15-16 years - Sophomore (Grade 10) 16-17 years - Junior (Grade 11) 17-18 years - Senior (Grade 12) College (known as University in other places; note that anyone can start their college career at any time in their lives; the ages only hold true to those attending classes straight out of High School) 18-19 years - Freshmen 19-20 years - Sophomore 20-21 years - Junior 21-22 years - Senior What about animal companion NPCs? Can we acquire pets? Unlike the original game, NPCs will not travel with your character to the Academy. Instead, the option to have animal companion NPCs will be awarded to players who have consistent and on-time AC passings. Can my character run a class/club? Yes! Classes and clubs are self-run, and as such the players are responsible for running class and club activities. Just make sure the classes and/or clubs your characters run are relevant to their canon knowledge/skills/interests! There are no limits on what classes/clubs there can be, however, please carefully word the title of the class; we want the Academy to keep its globally-granted accreditation! Examples of Classes: Spontaneous Entrepreneurship (piracy), Advanced Physical Education (boot camp), History of Feudal Civilizations, Ballroom Dance, History of Magic, Music Appreciation, Seamanship 101 Examples of Clubs: Yearbook, Weapons Appreciation, Young Diplomats for World Peace, Wave Riders, Dramatics, etc. Is dorming optional? Dorming is optional, with conditions; please still comment to the dorm page to let us know where you intend your character to stay. For instance, both student and staff characters can live anywhere on-campus outside of the dorms, such as the stables, the botanical gardens, the roofs, etc. There is also off-campus housing as an option for staff members only, if that is better suited to their needs. However, note that should the school go into lock-down, no one will be allowed to enter or leave the Academy premises. Can I explore off campus? We prefer that you keep most of your interactions on-campus, unless there is a specific event (player-run or otherwise) that uses locations outside the school walls. However, students are required to remain on the islands; on non-eventful weekends and holidays, they can travel to any of the island locations. Teachers are not restrained to the islands; they can come and go as they please, and they can even hold field trips to locations on ground-level. That said, the Administration discourages too many field trips to locations off the islands, simply because of the immense and often unpredictable dangers of the Mist. Where on the islands can characters go? Almost anywhere, though please note some locations are dangerous/tied to the game plot (and thus off-limits); be sure to get mod permission if you want your character to wander into the Ave Maria Forest. Please see the the Island page for further information on the locales on the islands! Do my characters have to listen to Headmaster Mickey? They do not, but it's highly advised by the Administration. If your character attempts to escape (which is possible) during lock-downs or break any rules or temporary restrictions, it's likely they will have to deal with Headmaster Mickey's punishment (or, if during a BME, deal with the terror and consequences of being directly out in the Mist). What happens in detention? Mickey drinks and cries. In actuality, that is entirely dependent on the staff member (which will typically belong to a player) who gave the sentence of detention in the first place. What time/day is it in game? It's time for you to get a personal calendar! In other words, days pass in real-time. One day in game is the same as one day in real life.

AU Specific

I play an AU ROTG character. How does the belief system work in regards to the world setting and to the Academy itself? As previously mentioned, the magic of the islands does quite a bit! While all ROTG characters have to rely on canon methods to be seen and heard outside the boundaries islands, on them, the magic will both make them visible and audible. This way, canon growth and characterization can be respected and ROTG players can have the ease of playing their characters normally while at the Academy!

Transfer Students
Panfandom Characters

Does my panfandom character have access to items from home? No. Your character will only have what was on them at the time that they were whisked away from their reality. Does technology from the non-Disney realities work in the setting? Devices can turn on and off, and assuming your character has a charger with them when they're brought to the setting world, can be charged. However, any mobile networks (necessary for phone calls and texts) and internet will not work, as the technology in the setting world is just different enough for it not to register correctly. But worry not! That's why all students and staff receive communicators upon their registration. My transplant character has little/no money except from what they have in their pockets, and it probably isn't acceptable currency anyways. How do they survive on nothing? The Academy will give monthly salaries to staff members, as well as monthly allowances to transplant students to cover all costs of supplies and necessities. Free housing is provided via dorm rooms, and free food can be found in the cafeteria at specified meal hours.

General IC Questions

Do characters recognize that other characters are animated? No, though transplants may recognize that the citizens of the world and some of their fellow transplants are supposed to be animated; however, all characters look real and "normal" to one another. For example, Tiana looks like a normal young woman and Scar looks like an actual lion. Who are the NPCs? Can I play a non-canon NPC or reference them during gameplay? There is a small population of nameless students, though they're not particularly noteworthy. There are teacher NPCs who teach core classes which are mandatory for all students to take (though all these classes happen off-screen). Those classes include English (taught by Mr. Johnston), World History (taught by Mr. Kimball), Mathematics (taught by Mr. Davis), and P.E. (taught by Mr. Kahl). All player NPCs must be granted via AC Rewards. Can I canon update my character? Yes! Characters are eligible for canon updates at any time, and can be gone anywhere from the course of a few days to two weeks while they update. For AU characters, it's as simple as returning home (as long as the school is not in lock-down). For transplants, they must be in the Mist and/or close enough to a Strangeling to be whisked away to their home realty temporarily. They can do this by either waiting for a BME, traveling deep into the Ave Maria Forest (close to the church, though they cannot enter), or purposefully venturing out into a part of the world currently covered in Mist. At the end of the canon update, they will taken from their realities yet again and deposited in the Ave Maria Forest, in the section closest to the school walls. What languages are being spoken? Will my character understand everyone? There is a particular magic about the islands that not only allows animals to speak and be understood (as previously mentioned), but also people who speak different languages from around the globe and multiverse. There is a universal language on the island that automatically affects everyone the second they step out of the gondola. It's not consciously noticeable, as it does not sound any different to the ears or feel different speaking than the native tongue does. However, if characters concentrate, they can deviate to their home tongues (allowing for "foreign" language classes to be taught). Think of it as being automatically bilingual. How's the weather near the school? Do I need a light jacket? The weather varies by season. Pudge the fish will predict the weather; the school then notifies staff and students of those completely accurate predictions.

The Black Mist & Strangelings

What is the Black Mist? What are Strangelings? The Black Mist is a dark and fog-like substance, which first originated at the End of the World, then slowly spread in unpredictable patterns across the globe. It is the beat of the war drums before the soldiers come. It strikes fear into you, makes you cower, begins the trickling of fear. It brings an unnatural dip in temperature known for chilling people to the bone and brings out negative emotions, such as anger, fear, despair, dread, grief, humiliation, etc. Strangelings are the formless, faceless beings that dwell in the Mist. They are the true nightmare fuel. They lack any distinguishable features or limbs, though they can shift their shape to form tendrils to reach out to people with. These are the beings responsible for the thousands of disappearances around the globe since the first appearance of the Mist, and they are also responsible for any and all kidnappings from the Academy. What the Black Mist can and cannot do: ♪ When the Mist is around, there will be psychological distress. The longer your character is exposed and/or the greater the density, the stronger the effects. ♪ The Mist cannot bring people back from the dead. ♪ It cannot be controlled, not even by the power of worldly deities. It is currently unknown why. ♪ In special circumstances, the Mist can alter or erase parts of a person's memory (usually through failed rescues). Please ask a mod first if you'd like your character to lose more beyond the preordained failed!rescue consequences; we don't want to risk personalities changing willy-nilly, after all! ♪ If kidnapped in the Mist, your character will either be in a dream of their greatest desire or a nightmare of their greatest fear; both feel completely real, regardless of their contents. ♪ The Mist can affect the physical form in different ways: old wounds can be aggravated, characters may feel like they are physically somewhere else, and any extreme wounds received from either past or present Mist-induced illusions will appear as bruises on one's body. ♪ It affects devices of all sorts, depending on the density. For instance, in high densities, communication electronics do not work, and even navigational devices are disrupted (including things as simple as a compass). Characters with any cyborg parts or other robotic components will find those parts do not function properly or at all in heavy densities. ♪ It does not affect characters who have been on a multiple successful rescues as adversely as those who have not; however, if they failed in a rescue, they will find the effects far more substantial than before the rescue happened. ♪ The Mist also affects characters with more emotional "baggage" than those who lack it. ♪ However, it cannot control people as if they were puppets. It can influence their emotions to the point to where they act in ways they normally wouldn't, but it cannot control anyone's actions. ♪ The Mist cannot kill people directly. However, its illusions and effects may drive someone to hurt themselves or others. The physical effects of the Mist on a person are the following: Migraines, intense negative emotions of any sort, auditory and visual hallucinations, phantom pains from past injuries, vivid flashbacks, panic attacks, intensified powers/magic skills to the point of them being uncontrollable or loss of powers/magic skills, drastic dip in atmospheric temperature, and in some cases, temporary insanity. What Strangelings can and cannot do: ♪ They can speak; the sound is like a harsh whisper, and it's unintelligible to anyone but the person it's communicating with. ♪ Strangelings cannot be captured or injured, as they have no physical form. ♪ They will tempt you towards them; regardless of how terrifying they are, they will use your weaknesses to their advantage to reel you in. ♪ The Strangelings can pick and choose who they will kidnap. However, there is no known set or predictable pattern to their kidnappings. ♪ All Strangelings have minimal heart-reading capabilities, usually enough to see and imitate those close to a person's heart (in order to lure them out into the Mist). They are able to imitate the voices and, to a very slight degree, appearances of those presently or previously important to their victims/targets. In several accounts, a Strangeling has expressed a strong desire, whether genuine or false, to become close to its victim/target. ♪ If they know your name and call out using it, you will be drawn to them. ♪ Touching them typically -but not always- sends a person into a nightmare/dream of either their worst fear or greatest desire. Physical effects of the Strangelings on a person: Unnatural terror, freezing-cold chills, bruising wherever it touches, (on rare occasions) severe physical damage, reliving/losing memories, and temporary insanity. What can I do against the Mist and Strangelings?: As of right now, no one knows much of what to do against the Mist, as the closest comparison experts can make is that it might as well be fear. You can't shoot fear; you can't control or contain fear; the best way for your character to handle the Mist is to face their greatest fears over and over, to build up an "immunity" of sorts to the terror it brings. Connections with others seem to be effective in repelling Strangelings. While it appears to do them no real harm and does not deter them from pursuing other targets, it does dissuade them from further attacks on the persons involved; in other words, the buddy-system works. What's the weather like when the Mist is around?: The Mist is not preceded or followed by any special type of weather. When it does arrive, it looms, blocking out the sun and any sense of physical time, and it looks like a dark, foggy night. What if my character nature is dependent on the cycle of the day or month? What happens when the Mist is around during those times? Your character will not feel the normal effects of those periodic events. For example, gargoyles will not experience stone sleep, and werewolves will not experience the full moon. Can the Mist or Strangelings infect things? The Mist can agitate things, of course, and that agitation can extend to animals, which may make them aggressive. People who spend a constant, prolonged amount of time within the Mist lose the ability to feel emotions correctly or at all. That's about it, though; it cannot "infect" people in a virus sort of sense. How would it affect a drunk character? That depends on your character's emotional mindset and how the alcohol affects said mindset; the Mist would amplify that leading emotion, making it doubly worse for the character. For example, an "angry drunk" in the Mist might rampage without quit, while a "sad drunk" might be overcome with depression. Please see the Black Mist info page for any other details.

If you have any questions or concerns that this FAQ did not address, feel free to leave a comment below or contact a mod!