Isometrical Mods (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
isometricalmods) wrote2019-02-14 07:56 am
isometricalmods) wrote2019-02-14 07:56 am
Game Documentation
1. Game Information
Isometrical is a sci-fi horror game based on themes that include political intrigue, personal autonomy, sociology, and religion. Characters will face elements of social control, social engineering, body horror, and mind control. At the outset of their experience, characters are approached by the Limnus aliens at their canonpoint and asked if they will help populate the city of Centre on the Dyson ring that serves as Isometrical's setting. However, it is up to the player to decide how much of what they experience in-game matches up with what they might have expected for agreeing to such a thing.
The character arrives wearing clean white robes – which are for both medical and religious purposes – and is greeted by the Priestess of the Temple, who greets them and gives them the instructions needed for integrating into Centre's society.
⇀ Read the game's Premise page and Welcome page.
Cast caps are 8 characters, with 14 characters accepted for umbrella canons such as Marvel. Each player may play up to 3 characters at a time in game.
Elements of this game were inspired by past games the mods have participated in such as
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
ataraxion, sanctums, and piper90.2. Gameplay
isometrical is where all network interactions will begin. Although threads that begin here may lead to in-person interactions, if the post was made to the network, it should appear here.isometricallogs is where in-person interactions should be threaded out. All in-person starters should be posted here.Character inboxes can be placed on the character journal, but there is also a dedicated comm for these at
isometricalcomm should you want to make them easier to find.isometricalooc is for out-of-character notices by players and mods. Mod announcements will be made from the journal isometricalmods. Players may also post memes and crack on this community.Test drive memes will be posted to the
isometricalmods journal.Players should be 18 years of age or older to play. Characters may be of any age, but players of minor characters should be certain to keep them out of situations where there may be sexual or disturbing content.
Please cut and warn for adult or disturbing content in threads. Please move explicit smut to an off-community locked post or other designated place, such as the character inbox.
Test drives are posted on the mod journal on a monthly basis and will be linked on RP anons and on plurk. The test drives will include one or two prompts that simulate gameplay and may eventually be used as game canon if the scenario fits into the narrative of your character’s later arrival.
3. IC Information
3.1 The Network
Characters receive SYNC upon their arrival—the first concern of the attendant medical staff is characters' ability to interface with the network. For this reason there is no opt-in to using the network; characters are presented with an end-user license agreement, but there is basically no choice but to accept.
The SYNC menu is accessible at all times in the corner of one’s field of vision, as long as they are wearing their glasses. The menus can be navigated via hand gestures. The submenus allow people to access the many functions of the device. In addition to accessing the network, this includes allowing them access to the door controls to their living quarters, the controls to the food replicators, and their bank account information.
Characters can broadcast via voice, video, or text, although they should keep in mind video transmissions will show what they are seeing and not themselves, unless they position their interface glasses to view them. The keyboard layout is Dvorak and is accessible by selecting to send a text message.
Incoming messages will not open without being selected by the user. The message window will not open if the character is actively carrying out some important task, such as riding a bike or walking.
All characters with disabilities will find the network device compensates for their abilities. Blind characters will still be able to see the menus because of its ability to interface directly with the optic nerve, and will be legible because of the network’s ability to upload knowledge to the character’s head. Similarly, for illiterate characters, they will find themselves able to decode the symbols involved in reading shortly after arriving. Deaf characters will find that audio and video transmissions are automatically transcribed for them (as well as the option for in-person interactions to be transcribed, and SYNC will be able to interpret for those who speak sign language).
There is no anonymous function on the network. All communications will be sent with the user’s network ID and a link to their profile information. Hacking is not possible because of the nature of the implants.
The lingua franca of Isometrical is English. Because the character's language has been downloaded to the network, messages are auto-translated by their SYNC chip upon receipt. For this reason, to an English speaker, everything that they receive will seem to be in English. The exception is if a foreign word is the given name of a place or character. In that case, the translation software knows not to translate the word.
⇀ Read more about the mechanics of the network.
3.2 Housing
Housing is assigned to characters at the time they leave the temple. This initial residence consists of a furnished studio apartment. This residence is provided at no cost to the character. Larger or communal living arrangements can be made, and as long as the character remains in the newcomer’s district, no further costs will be incurred.
3.3 Jobs & Businesses
There are some jobs listed on the jobs page, but most any kind of work is available. Feel free to use your imagination when applying your character for work. They can also start their own business.
3.4 Finances
We don't expect players to keep track of a full budget, but we do expect there to be some parity between what your character chooses to do and how they plan to pay for it. For example, if they decide to move into a penthouse suite, they need to have a well-paying job to be able to compensate for the added expense.
Studio apartments (or communal housing in the newcomer’s district) and the three base meals per day are free. Anything else the character wants to partake in will cost.
Money is given in tokens. However, much of the economy on Isometrical is barter-based. The exchange rate is approximately 100 tokens:1 US dollar.
3.5 Technology
Technology on Isometrical is such that characters may request repair of old injuries. For example, damaged or amputated limbs may be replicated via a DNA sample in the medical replicator. As these sorts of enhancements are very costly, in addition to payment, the administrators of the city may request exchange of expert knowledge or other information that they may deem helpful to the city's population. However, this exchange of knowledge may have a consequence of deleting important or cherished memories from the user's mind.
4. Applying
Apps are accepted on a rolling basis. Please allow 5 days after posting an app before inquiring for a follow-up. Application contents can be recycled from an old app, but the information must be placed into our form. You must be certain that the name fields in both apps contain your current handle, or situations like this that are pointed out to us may be considered in violation of plagiarism rules.
Apps are to be posted to the application page, not linked from the character journal.
4.1.1 Accepted characters
- Canon characters: the character as they appear in the main media presentation.
- Alternate universe characters: characters from media-created AUs, but not player-created AUs.
- Original characters: characters sourced from player-created fiction. They may not be OCs created for other canons (an unknown Star Trek ensign, for example).
- Malleable protagonists: characters from video games where the player choice helps mold the character are allowed. In this case, a bullet-point timeline will be required in the background section of the app for explaining how the player choices have molded the character.
- Duplicates: only 2 versions of a character may be present at the same time. This includes variations such as Tony Stark from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Tony Stark from Marvel 616. Characters who are duplicates of one another in canon, such as Alpha and Epsilon in Red vs. Blue, will be taken on a case-by-case basis. In these cases we want to see their experiences and personalities are unique enough to each be considered their own person.
- Non-human characters: characters who are not human are allowed. If your character is disembodied, such as the case of an AI or a ghost, you can pick a PB and have them arrived humanized. This is the only case where we allow humanization. Players who would prefer not to have the character be humanized can instead have their AI character installed in a delivery robot, which will enable the character to be mobile and have a job.
Players may not app two characters from the same canon.
4.1.2 Characters who may not be allowed
Characters who are well-developed in canon are eligible for applying to the game, while more secondary characters may require too much headcanon to be appable. The general rule of thumb is that if you need to justify your characterization with more than 40% headcanon the character may not be appable. Characters whose background is not known in canon may fit under the minor character rule. Please contact the mods to inquire about specific characters if you are unsure.
Characters based in whole or in part on historical figures, such as Alexander Hamilton from the musical Hamilton, may not be applied. Characters based on mythical figures may be applied as they appeared in any work of fiction, such as Perseus in Clash of the Titans. Please contact the mods to inquire about specific characters if you are unsure.
4.2 Powers
Characters will arrive with the powers they had in canon. However, some will find their powers altered or nerfed in some way. This will mostly be taken on a case-by-case basis. For example, Superman will have little to no powers, as the ring world surrounds a white dwarf star and not a yellow sun. However, in general, abilities that interfere with game play or game mechanics, such as conjuring, reality warping, time manipulation, teleportation, and flying, will be removed. Please note in the powers section of the app whether the character has any abilities that should be nerfed, altered, or removed.
Magical or supernatural powers will be allowed, but will not interface with the technology on Isometrical.
Characters such as vampires and others with special dietary needs will need to make their own arrangements to feed. However, there are medical replicators that eliminate the need to feed from living creatures.
Werewolves will find that although there is no moon, there is still a thirty-day cycle that their powers center around. Simply pick a date for their transformation and be consistent.
We basically ask that you keep in mind the enjoyment of other players and ensure your character is not overpowered compared to others. Please include notes about your character’s powers in the section indicated on the app.
4.3 Character Inventory & Companions
Characters will only arrive with what they had on their person at the time of their being brought to Isometrical. They will not be able to arrive with companions or pets, etc. If the character has an onboard companion, such as an AI, the presence of such a companion will need to be enumerated on the application, and acceptance of such companions will be on a case-by-case basis.
4.4 Activity
Activity is via check-in. You will have until the 7th of the month to check in or your character(s) may be swept from the game.
Hiatus may be taken for up to 1 month out of every 3-month period. If this is split into multiple hiatuses, they should total no more than 30 days.
You may be exempt from activity for a particular month if you take 14 or more days of hiatus during the activity period. You will still need to post a check-in during activity check, or have a friend do it for you if you are going to be away when activity check is posted.
If you have special circumstances and you feel you may need to take a longer hiatus, please contact the mods privately.
When filling out the hiatus form, please note which option for hiatus you are taking.
5. Rules
5.1 Game Environment
- Treat others the way you would want to be treated. The Golden Rule applies. Please use common sense.
- Conversely, do not treat others in a way you would not like to be treated—i.e. whatever-the-inverse-of-the-golden-rule is applies. Let's call it the Shitlord Rule.
- Essentially, be kind and welcoming to fellow players at all times. A welcoming atmosphere and kind behavior do a lot to set the stage for gameplay, and we expect players to be generous toward others when there is otherwise potential for misunderstandings and poor communication.
5.2 IC/OOC Divide
- Players are expected to remain in character when engaging in play. If you apped a character you are expected to play That Character. Deviating from what was initially given in the app—without reasonable in-game character progression—is a reportable offense.
- Conflict between characters should not be reflected in interactions when out of character. If you have a problem with a character ICly, don’t transfer that to the person playing them. They’re not that character. You aren’t yours either.
5.3 Basic Roleplay Etiquette
No godmoding:
Don't play out another character's actions. You play your character. Let the other person play theirs. Knowing something OOCly is just that—out of character.No metagaming:
Character decisions should come from IC knowledge, not OOC knowledge. If your character has no reason to know A Thing, then you have no business using A Thing in a thread.No infomodding:
Don't give your character knowledge of the other characters or plot elements they couldn't possibly have. Infomodding and fourth-walling are to be left to the other character’s discretion. Don’t utilize either mechanic without checking with the other player first. If you’re in doubt as to whether something falls into either category, contact them before you tag.No powergaming:
Don't assume your character is always going to win or have the last word without discussing the outcome with the other player. Your character is the best at what they do in their canon. Coincidentally, so is mine! Don’t assume your character is still going to Always Be The Best—this is outside their setting, and there are a skajillion variables that go into this. Discuss shit with the other person before you just decide anything.5.4 Strikes
There is a three strike system for most infractions. Mod discretion applies.
5.5 Autobans
5.5.1 Plagiarism
If there is any copying of other players' work in your app or other materials related to the game, that will be grounds for your immediate removal. If evidence is brought to the mods that any part of your application or other materials (IC contact, threads, etc.) that proves substantial, it is grounds for your immediate removal from the game. This is a creative hobby—it completely defeats the point.
5.5.2 Creating a toxic environment
Harassment of other players: just don't do it! This can take many forms but should be self-evident.
Hate speech by players in any venue. Proven hate speech even tertiarily related to the game may be used as grounds for dismissal/a future ban, as long as whatever speech is used causes an unwelcoming environment for others, either in the game or looking to apply into it.
5.6 Prebans
The mods reserve the right to refuse a player admittance to the game based on previous reputation, past behavior, or recent actions. Preference will be displayed for game members who admit to being uncomfortable with the application of someone with such a reputation, provided there is proof of their behavior in screenshots or pastebins.
6. Mod Info
6.1 Accounts
Mod Journal:
isometricalmodsEmail: isometricalmods at gmail dot com
Plurk:
6.2 Time Zone
The mod calendar is on Eastern Standard Time in the US. Most mod posts will be made at 9:00am on the date posted on the calendar. Deadlines also fall at this time.
6.3 Questions
Please feel free to ask a question below, or privately on the mod contact page.
Revision: 4.0 Revised: 5.1.2025