FAQ 5

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X-PROJECT DOES NOT ACCEPT APPLICATIONS FOR ORIGINAL CHARACTERS.


Applicants are expected to have read the Rules before applying. Also, the FAQ is extremely useful for applications, so please use it. ;)




Applying to X-Project

Writing the Application

It's a confusing application - is there one I can look at to get an idea?

Yes! We have a Sample Application up for you to get the idea. And we always welcome questions.

There is also the Application Checklist

Character Backgrounds and Relationships

Can my character be related to an existing XP character?

If the player of that character is agreeable, yes. If an application is received where there is no indication the player of the character the relationship is established with has been talked to about it, the applicant will be directed to go talk to them about it.


Player X and I have talked about our OTP and I want to bring in the other half so we can play out their story!

Awesome! One thing to be aware of, however, is that the mods will want more from your application and goals for the character beyond “play with Player X and their character”. X-Project tries to be inclusive, and that includes encouraging people to widen their logging pools to beyond their character’s significant other. We’ve also found that in cases where a character only has the OTP, the player finds themselves having problems continuing if the other player leaves, changes their mind about the OTP or similar. Keep your options open to interactions and you’ll find you’ll have a much better time!


Can my character have ties to an existing villain/NPC/organisation?

Again, as long as you do your research and make sure that what you're planning fits within XP's canon. For example, in XP Nathaniel Essex is not yet Mr. Sinister and so your character can't have escaped from his cloning tanks and be fleeing to the mansion for protection. Likewise, the existence of the X-Men is completely unknown - it is unlikely that your character will have just heard about them on the street or in the newspapers, so you'll need to have a solid IC reason why they come to the mansion other than "I heard about the team and I want to be an X-Man". Use the Wiki, do your research, and if you have questions, the mods are always happy to help.

If the Phase 1 organisation/villain/NPC you’re thinking of using has not been transferred over to Phase 2 yet (does it have a yellow Phase 2 button?), you are free to introduce them to the world as part of your application. And no, you don’t have to use Phase 1 information if there is any there.


If it's in my app, does that mean it's going to happen?

No. Development of character relationships of any kind tends to be an organic thing and we always stress the need for players to talk to each other about prospective situations. Just because it's in your app doesn't mean the mods have given 'permission' for it to happen.


Can my character have NPC connections that are important to them?

No man is an island, and neither is a role playing character. Most characters have associated NPCs at the time of application - families, mentors, friends and the like. The mods do ask that you keep the NPC numbers down to a reasonable level - for example, don't write up the entire population of their school! - and that if the NPC(s) is/are going to appear in any regular form in-game, that you get a socker for them.

Depending on the NPC's importance a full write up usually isn't needed - just a paragraph at the bottom of your character application outlining who they are, what they mean to your proposed character and who is socking them is all that's required.


Powers

Does my character have to have powers?

Preferably, yes. We've had two non-powered PCs in the game - Moira MacTaggart and Madelyn Bartlet - and ultimately they were very limited in their options for gameplay. Moira is now a modsocked NPC and Madelyn (an OC) has been permanently retired.


What age is normal for powers manifestation?

Powers manifest normally at two stages: birth (such as Kurt Wagner) or, more commonly, at adolescence, from around 10 or 11 at the earliest to 16 or 17 at the latest. In some cases, trauma might bring on early manifestation or delay it.

If you want your character to have manifested before adolescence, you'll need to provide a reason why - trauma, extreme early development, outside influence, etc.


How powerful can my character be? Can I play someone with Beyonder-like powers?

No. While we don't specifically ban applications for particular characters due to their powers, any application for a highly-powerful character would have to have the powers toned down to mesh with the rest of the game's characters. The rule of thumb is that any character whose powers and skills make them able to defeat a team of at least 6 X-Men at once is too powerful.

Also, reality warping powers are considered too destabilising to the game as a whole, and would have to be limited to the point of near-to-useless to be allowed in-game.


You talk about limits. What do you mean?

Limits can take a number of forms in order to ensure no one character makes the rest of the characters superfluous to a plot or to the game as a whole.

  • Power levels: Sheer strength of the ability. This can be reduced to prevent your character being 'too strong'. For example, Rachel Kinross-Dayspring, who is based on Rachel Summers, has only limited telepathy due to problems in the astral plane.
  • Applications: The number of things someone can do with their powers. Where someone in the comics canon might be able to do all sorts of things as the plot demands, in XP this can be reduced to a set skill set. For example, Amanda Sefton in the comics is a witch with any number of spells. In XP, she is restricted to more 'urban' type magic and only has a specific range of spells she has control over.
  • Consequences: The 'cost' of using a power. This is particularly useful for canon characters whose powers are innately flexible and strong. For example, Marie D'Ancato can absorb the abilities and memories of other mutants, but if she does so for too long or too often, she gains that personality as a 'resident' in her mind and eventually loses her sanity; Marius Laverne cannot access physical powers without an exchange of blood, and only holds borrowed powers for a limited amount of time.


Does my character have to have a unique power, or can they have the same as someone else?

Obviously, given the number of telepaths/telekinetics in the game (and in canon!), overlap is possible, however we ask that players of characters with similar powers work together to ensure no-one is rendered superfluous to the game because they can't do anything that isn't already being done by someone else. The rule of thumb is to ask yourself "does my character make another useless?" If the answer is "yes", you need to look at the powers skillset again.

Magic

[coming soon]


What are the biggest rules to magic in XP?

The essential rules of magic in X-Project are:

1) Magic has a price. Every spell cast has a cost on the caster, be it physical, emotional or karmic.

2) Magic is not common in the X-Project universe. Even in a world with superpowers, magic is generally NOT known outside of the magical community.

3) Magic has limits. Magic cannot raise the dead, solve world hunger or create world peace. There are limits and costs - see rule #1.

4) The type of magic and the intention of the caster has an impact on the results of the spell and on the caster. Using Dark Magic regularly will corrupt the caster, no matter how pure the motives. Using magic to mess with people will result in things getting twisted.