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Words Reveal Soul
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Zinn'Sunn
Posts: 5,161
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The City of Zinn'Sunn’s Starting Character Guide
Contents
- Introduction
- Basic Zinn'Sunn Knowledge
- Getting Started
- Character Concepts
- Contacting GMs and AGMs & who they are.
- Starting Packages
- First Posts (Gates, Hovels, and Socials)
- First Residences In Zinn'Sunn
- Employment & Training
- Continuing The Creativity…
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Introduction
Welcome to Zinn'Sunn, the cultural center of the Kemite people. We are a city of fifty thousand, so naturally there numerous activities, organizations, and professions available to PCs. This guide is just a quick no-nonsense way to help new players choosing Zinn'Sunn (ZS) as their starting city and to really get busy playing without a lot of fuss. In the following pages, you will read about character development, how I would like you to initally post, and how I can help you if you need it. This guide will take you step-by-step through a few processes to help you create a character you’re excited about. I really want the player who is brand new to Aelyria to be able to read this guide and say ‘Okay, I know how to start now!’ I will cover a few quick tips now, and then have a FAQ at the bottom. [/color]
Basic Zinn'Sunn Knowledge
First, you should read up on some basic facts about Zinn'Sunn. The city itself is located in a Located fertile valley along the River Laroo in Lylles Kingdom of Lauryl, which is in the western part of Aelyria. Zinn'Sunn was founded by Kemites, a race of olive and golden skinned people with predominantly black and dark brown hair and black or brown eyes. Their entire society is minimalistic, with a culture heavily steeped in honor and ritual. Zinn'Sunn is the birthplace of Song, and home of some of the most incredible Zinn'ka artists anywhere. Zinn'ka is a hand to hand marital arts that can be learned in numerous forms. There are very stylized forms of training available in Zinn'Sunn ranging from the Bladesingers and Bonedrummer song-warriors to the mysterious and somewhat mythic Darui’Torek warriors. Ikos, a unique form of arcana which is considered forbidden in most of the Empire, has also found a foothold of acceptance here in Zinn'Sunn.
Zinn'Sunn is not for the casual player, but rather designed for those that love intense deeply meaningful roleplay. The city is heavily steeped in ritualistic traditions and understated high Kemite culture. Every day living is symbolic and meaningful within this cultural center. And as Game Master of Zinn'Sunn I fully intend to carry on these traditions and introduce new ones to more carefully flush out the city and its really interesting denizens.
Getting Started
First and foremost, a great many documents have been compiled and posted on Aelyria to help you get started. You will need to read those along with this document to really get a firm grasp of how to start playing. That includes the players handbook and the rules of Aelyria. The rules will help you a great deal in picking names, and all sorts of miscellaneous items. A list of them is located below this section in the related links.
Other useful guides are included in the Compendium. You can easily reach it by clicking on the Lore button up at the top of any Aelyria page. That button will bring you to a page that lists player races, NPC races, the bestiary, trade skills, religion, arms and warfare, the military, geography… almost anything imaginable. Because others have done that work, we won’t get into that here. But, of course, it deserves a big mention if you need additional information on ANYTHING.
Now, let’s move onto the good stuff! You’ve decided you want to start a new character in Zinn'Sunn. Congratulations! You’re more than welcome to, and I’d love to have you. Consider this your welcome matt. But, what’s next? Why, character concepts are, of course.
Character Concepts
Well, first, we’d like you to think on what you like to roleplay. Do you enjoy the big grunting warrior types? Perhaps delicate elf maidens is more your type? Is magic your thing? Maybe you want something vastly different, way outside the norm. All of that is encouraged here, and VERY POSSIBLE. However, everyone gets to work for it! Working for it is half the fun. We keep the game balanced by starting all characters out on the same equal footing. No favoritism. You get starting goods, coins, and a lot of creative freedom to write write write! In Zinn'Sunn, I want to encourage the story! I want storytellers here, weaving tales and bringing others into the fold. As always, if you have questions, please feel free to Private Message (PM) me anytime. A link is provided in my signature below.
Now, once you have a grasp on what you want to play, pick a race (we have all the standards and some more unusual ones), pick a sex, and think on the concept. Remember, Dracons and Orcs aren't allowed within Zinn'Sunn. Everyone else is fair game, however most citizens are Kemite. On your header line at the top of this page, you can click on the CPU which takes you to a page where you can click on 'edit your profile'. Deciding on your race is as easy as filling out the field in your profile. Go ahead and add in your sex at that time in its field as well. Then go through, and fill out the physical description stuff, the age stuff (here’s a nifty age chart for those who have no idea what age a half-elf matures at, or how old an old dracon is), and any miscellaneous thing you see a field for. Don’t worry about items, money, skills… any of that right now. Remember, as long as you haven’t started posting (especially posts that describe your race) you can change those fields anytime, no questions asked.
Contacting GMs and AGMs (Who are they?)
GM’s are Game Masters who are in charge of the city or province and make sure everything happens smoothly. They moderate threads, keep track of NPCs, and award experience points. The xGM’s in Zinn'Sunn are very approachable and willing to discuss anything, no matter how trivial you might think your question is. The assistant game masters (AGM) are responsible for adventures, development, and aiding the load on the Game Masters. So... who are they?
GM Gossamer
[GM Office] House of the Rising Sunn
Likes: Development & Organization, Adventures, Weird Subculture, Culture, Arcana, Festivals, Romance, The Underworld, Martial Arts, and Newbies.
Dislikes: Politics, Outright War, Silly Stuff (I'm no good at pun/slapstick humor), and PC's that won't give GM's anything to work with. :P
Currently Zinn'Sunn has no AGMs. I'm always interested finding one or two though. So please feel free to check out the application here.
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Starting Packages
Now, for getting to the heart of it; The starting package. Each player on Aelyria starts with a hovel (roughly worth 1000 gcs), basic clothing and toiletries, a cheap dagger, one heirloom item that can’t be sold but has roleplay value (Mom’s locket, Dad’s sword, etc), an Imperial Visa, and 500 gold crowns (gcs). That’s it. Everyone starts out the same! If you’re happy with that, move on. If you want a little bit of customization for your character, read on.
Now, in Zinn'Sunn, I encourage diversity, so as a GM I don’t mind mixing and matching. I want to keep everyone starting out with roughly 1500 gcs worth of stuff, but hey if you’re an adolescent you don’t need the house right? You live with your parents. Conversely if you are a full time student of Song that boards, same thing. So what we want you to do is really think hard on your character, their values, what motivates them, and create a background story for them. Trust me, it will help you roleplay.
So, for example, say your background stated that you and your family came from the countryside and loved to keep bees for extra coin from the honey they sold… odds are your character would know how to keep bees. Thus, you could ask a GM to cash in some of your starting stuff for a skill called ‘basic beekeeping’ in lue of part of your hovel money, and some change back. Basic skills are considered worth 800 gcs. So, you could loose the hovel, gain the basic skill, and get 200 extra gold crowns to start out. Conversely if you want to start out with a nifty (non-magical) sword, you can cash in some of your starting coin for it. Since your total package is worth 1500 and some change, you can never start out with more than one basic, and never with an intermediate level skill. If this all seems confusing, don’t worry. A GM can clear it up for you if you have a good idea of what sort of skill or equipment you want to start out with, and what you wouldn’t mind cashing in to do it.
Three Examples:
Basic Fighter
Skill:Basic Longsword (800 gc)
Heirloom: Father's longsword
Basic Essentials (change of clothing, toiletries, food for a cycle)
cheap dagger
Imperial Visa
700 Crowns
Bard Package
Skill: Basic Harp (800gc)
Special Item: Lap Harp (200 gc)
Family Heirloom: Harp pendant (can't be sold)
Basic Essentials (change of clothing, toiletries, food for a cycle)
cheap dagger
Imperial Visa
500 gold crowns
Basic Underworld
Skill: Basic Dagger Throwing (800)
Job: Works For an underworld Clan (300)
Home: Clan's Headquarters (300)
Special Item: Set of nice Throwing Daggers
200 gold crowns
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First Posts
So you’ve created your character, filled out your profile, thought up a background, and are itching to post… what do you do? The next step is easy enough. There are In Character (IC) things to post, and Out Of Character (OOC) things to post. The first and most important action is to post in the OOC thread called Zinn'Sunn's Character Repository. Your post lets me as a GM’s know (if you haven’t PM’d me already) that your here, and what your motivations or needs are. That’s why the title says ‘Mandatory’. I really need this information. Next, you want to start your IC postings. Be sure to always TIMESTAMP your threads. If you’re not sure what Timestamping is, read the guide listed below in the related links. Now, back to first posts. You can do any number of things. All characters entering and leaving Zinn'Sunn are expected to post at the gate posts. If you grew up in Zinn'Sun as part of your background, don’t worry about posting at the city gates. Gate posts, house posts, and shopping or social posts are popular ones. Here are a few ideas.
- Post your entry into Zinn'Sunn via The Shisa Gates of Zinn'Sunn
- Start a Hovel Thread ie. [Location] Yinua’s Place the Dragon District (open)
- Go Shopping ie. Post in the armory and buy a new Katana
- Start an Open Thread about wandering around ie. Lost In A New City (open)
Now a note on posting threads and how to either make sure other players know they are welcome to join, or let them know you’d rather it be private or simply a training thread. If you want to post in a certain place, but the place’s location is rather cluttered (Ie The Wolfmoon Tavern) simply preface your title with the location name itself. Ie. [The Wolfmoon Tavern] Having A Quiet Drink (open).
Next, you need to leave some indication of how accessible you want the story to be for other players. We do this by following our threads up with additional tags. If you want people to join, follow it with (open). If you want to keep it private or just for a specific character, indicate that with a (private) or (private- john please). Also, you can flag them with (PM to Join) so folks have to ask permission to join. Or, you can mark them (Invite Only). People can also indicate in the title follow up brackets if they need a moderator (Private- Goss please). This is only polite to do if you have asked the moderator beforehand to moderate it, and sent them a link in their private message box.
First Homes in Zinn'Sunn (aka The Hovel)
There are two choices for homes in Zinn'Sunn. First is the all-important Hovel. The hovel is a small 500 sq ft home thats just barely adequate for a PC's needs. It's small, has no indoor plumbing, and has really nothing to recommend it other than the fact that it is shelter. In Zinn'Sunn, this hovel actually equates to ground-floor home with a tile roof, a hearth for cooking, and a space that might or might not be open (studio) or divided into two rooms (one for sleeping, one for living). That will be up for the player to decide. These hovels are called 'Lorkas' in the Kemite language. In the Lorkas, furnishings are minimalistic and floors are wood or tile. There will be a pump and a privy somewhere in the back, but no stable nor real yard to speak of.
The second choice for new players is more entertaining. This is the group home or complex. Often within these rp infested apartments or boarding houses, one can meet folks living in their same group settings. Below is the list of common housing starting points, and their descriptions. Not all of them are realmcrafted at this time, but we will be making it a priority to do so.
Common Housing
Coming soon...
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Employment & Training
Within Zinn'Sunn, there are tons and tons of opportunities. Do you want to be wicked and join the underworld? It’s encouraged! Do you want to join a convent and work on your PC’s spiritual life? It’s just fine, and we can definitely do that. There are a number of training opportunities, and unlimited job types accessible within this Kemite City. If you look around and don’t find anything close to what you’re looking for, PM a GM and we can set it up. I wrote a complete guide to deal with debunking employment, what people get paid etc so feel free to read it. It should clear a great deal of issues up.
Continuing The Creativity…
Never hesitate to bring your own ideas. Never hesitate to submit new locations, businesses, etc to Zinn'Sunn’s atmosphere. We can only be so creative on our own, so your PC’s needs will help shape the way the city looks in the future to come. Your creativity doesn’t have to be limited to locations either. You can work on groups, factions, guilds, even gangs. Never hesitate to open a dialog with a GM about it. There are templates in the Lauryl Realmcraft section for creating new NPCs, Organizations, and Locations. Realmcraft is a place where folks with new ideas can post those completely worked up ideas and have others comment on them before a GM submits them as fact into the main game. Feel free to look it over, and realmcraft to your hearts desire. In closing, we volunteer to help with this game for your pleasure, and for our own joys at storytelling with other people who love roleplay in the same way we do. Don’t hesitate to join the community, contribute, and become a vocal positive impact on the city itself. Your input is valuable and necessary to keep the city growing, changing, and to ward off stagnation.
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Last edited by Gossamer; August 11, 2008 at 06:23 AM.
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