The Newbie Guide, Outline of Essential Reads + more

[Venea Zephyrius]

Welcome to Meliora, new people. As you probably know by now, there is a lot of information that's been provided to enhance your RPing experience here. Some of it is very important for you to read, and other things are just there for reference in case you need them for specific character concepts and plots. To make things less frightening for you (some may be overwhelmed. I understand that.), I've created an outline of the information you'll find in this subforum. Read what you need and refer to the rest when necessary. If you find that you need clarification or details that aren't posted, please contact me (Dunquareiel) and I'll help you out.

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'Canons'
This thread contains information on Meliora's "canon" characters, which ones are available, and how you can apply for one. These characters are potentially (or definitely) very important to the site-wide plots and include members of the royal family.

Accepted Races
Here you will find information on the various races that inhabit Meliora. All of them are playable, and each race has it's own strengths and weaknesses. Some are also connected to sub-cultures which you may want to learn about. Of course, not all people from the same race are brought up to act as traditional members of their specific culture. You are still free to use your creativity there.

Character Application Sheets
This is where you'll need to go to get the template that must be filled out and submitted to the Pending Characters forum for review and approval. There are a few different sheets that you can choose from (some are position-specific. Please use one of those if it applies to your character). Also, there are brief explanations to explain what you should have in each section so you know what application admins are looking for. Make sure all of that's addressed, and you'll be in VERY good shape!

General Rules
These are the rules you must follow as a member of this site. They are fairly general and simple but definitely worth reading. We aren't strict here at Meliora, we're very flexible and fair, but we expect members to behave in a mature, responsible way. We try not to insult your intelligence by having a massive list of rules, but we will deal with problems as they arise, regardless of whether or not the specific offenses are listed in the rules in detail.

Magic in Meliora and Religion
This thread explains the source of magic in Meliora and how magic is used. It's a basic collection of information to give you a general idea about the concepts of deities and mages. Also, the common religious beliefs of Melioran citizens are explained. More specific information can be found in the Finer Details subforum.

Main Site Plot
This thread offers a basic explanation of the site's plot including the premise of the game and the major events which have shaped the current situation. It is updated as the primary site-wide plots progress, and all members are encouraged to follow this information closely to ensure that they are familiar with current events.

Map of Meliora
Pretty self explanatory. Here you'll find a simple map of Meliora which shows you where all of the RP locations are and another map to show you where the duchies and counties are. Keep this in mind when writing about your characters' travels. Unless your character can teleport, they won't make it from the Sea of Berrenbeck to Liresul in a day. Some locations may be missing as the map needs to be changed whenever a deity city is added, moved or renamed. You'll also find some more detailed info about certain regions in here.

Site-Wide Plots
These are the plots that affect the entire site. Any character can get involved in some way, and you are encouraged to incorporate plot details into your posts even if your thread isn't about some major plot event (ex.: even if your characters aren't in a battle thread, they may discuss how that battle is impacting them and the people around them).

Timeline of Important Events
This thread puts important historical events in order, allowing players to accurately refer to Melioran history in threads and keep the facts straight. Also, it helps when creating characters because players ought to know what their characters experienced in the past. For example, if your character is a life-long follower of the fire deity, it should be known that Sylus was probably their original deity. Some events are dated. The Melioran Calendar can be found in Finer Details.

Your Admins
Here you'll find some info about the admins of Meliora. Contact info, characters they play, how long they've been members. . . all the basics.

[Venea Zephyrius]

The Application Process
Are you a bit stuck when it comes to getting started? Are you feeling a wee bit intimidated by the application process? Fear not, new member, it's not so bad. The staff's always available and willing to help you out, and I've come up with some helpful hints and such to make this easier on you.

Choosing a character:
If you don't already have a character in mind, all the options can be a bit overwhelming. If you don't find that all of these options spark your creativity, and you can't decide what type of character you'd like to play, there are some resources available to give you a head start.

Character Concepts
This is a list of character concepts that may interest you. This thread contains a list of partially pre-made characters (essentially basic concepts you can snag), some adoptables, and a list of concepts that would be especially helpful to the game. Hopefully this will help you find a character that's right for you.

Applying:
As explained in the previous post, you'll find the application forms in this subforum along with some brief explanations of what application admins are looking for. If you've done some exploring and made a character that will fit into the game and an application that's well rounded, you're starting off on the right foot.

Once you know what you're getting yourself into , go ahead and post your application in a thread with your character's name as the topic title and a brief topic description (usually a character's title, occupation, etc.) in the appropriate place if you'd like to. An applications admin will review and respond to your application ASAP.

**Responses are posted as replies to application threads to make editting convenient (no extra windows necessary if you want to view the responses while editting your original post). If you would like to receive admin replies privately, please specify that in your post and they will be PMed to you instead.**

Responses typically contain both mandatory edit requests and helpful suggestions. Meliora's admins are not only here to enforce rules and keep things organized. They're also here to help you enjoy a quality RPing experience by helping you make the best characters that you can.

Once you've made all of the necessary changes to your application (if there are any), your sheet will be sorted and you can begin posting in-game. You can edit your sheet any time after it's been accepted, but please notify either Katie or myself if you make any significant changes. If you have any questions about the application process, please PM me (Dunquareiel) and I'll help you out.

Getting into the game:
Now that you've been accepted. . . how do you get started? I suggest that you look for any open topics that you can jump into. If you don't find any that appeal to you, check out the Plotting forum to browse plot ideas from other members and see if there's anything that your character would fit. If you still don't find anything you're interested in, post your own topic with some brainstorming ideas (either character development plots or anything else, it's up to you!).

Getting into the community:
If you want to learn more about the other members, stop by the Introductions forum to read a little bit about them. You can also post a thread to tell us about you. We're a very friendly bunch, so you don't need to be worried about intruding. I know I can speak for everyone when I say that we're always more than happy to welcome new people into the Meliora family. The Cbox is always open, and OOC topics aren't discouraged. Just dive right in.