Azeri Fleet - RPG Role Playing Game

Detailed Posting Guidelines

Writing Style
Posting Standards
Posting Frequency
Start of Post
Signature on Post
Subject Heading
Setting out a Post

Length of Post
Using Part of Another Player's Post
NRPGs
Co-operation
Interaction with Characters
Communication Symbols

Writing Style

Writing style: Narrative Style -Third Person, Past Tense. For example:

Incorrect: Ensign Smith enters his quarters and orders some food from the replicator.
Correct: Ensign Smith walked to his quarters and ordered some food from the replicator.

Post Standards

The focus of your post should be on your character.
Each post must be written from the perspective of the character owned by the player (That is, the Playing Character (PC) and his/her actions and thoughts.
Each post is to be focused on the "Standard Mission". Character development is acceptable when it is relevant to what currently is happening on the ship and is intermingled with the "standard mission". If your are unsure, contact your Ship GM/CO.
Each post must be the correct length.

Posting Frequency

Everyone is expected to contribute once per week. Naturally you can contribute more often if you like.
If a player has not contributed in two weeks, a reminder (OK, warning) will be sent by the Ship GM/CO, to the player, requesting they submit a post within the week. If a post is not submitted within that week, the player will be removed from the game automatically. It makes it very hard to keep the momentum of a story happening if someone is not providing the input on a regular basis. Simple as that.
So, if you are going to be unavailable for some amount of time, it is in your best interest to notify your Ship GM/CO and the other players in the RPG. You will be granted a leave of absence (LOA) without any penalty.
If a player misses weeks on a regular basis, they will also be removed from the game.
Why so strict? Because we want to maintain each ship as an active ship. So if you want to remain playing in this Fleet, then please post and keep your Ship GM/CO informed if you cannot post for 2 or more weeks.

Start of Post

Keep it simple

Mission Day: Day number for the actual mission.

Mission TIme:Written in military style (24 hrs time).

     10:00 am would appear as:  1000 hours.
     8:42 pm would appear as:  2042 hours.

Scene: Where the events take place.

For example . . .

Mission Day:	34
Mission Time:	1400 hrs
Scene:		Away team - Planet Side

Signature on Post

Keep it simple (character name, player's name, position held, assigned unit). For example,

Character:	Ensign Kym Johnson
Player: 	Alison Smith
Position:	Chief Security Officer
Unit:	USS AQUILA

Setting out a Post

This is how a post could be set out . . .

Mission Day:	01
Mission Time:	1100 hrs
Scene:		Bridge
---------------------------------------------------

      The sound of the klaxon  ....... 
	  
--------------------------------------------------- 
Character:	Ensign Kym Johnson
Player: 	Alison Smith
Position:	Chief Security Officer
Unit:	USS AQUILA

Subject Heading

In the Subject Heading of your email, you need to identify the ship to which you are assigned, and your character. For example;

USS Southern Cross - Help on the way (Smith)
USS Triton - Away Mission Underway (Johnson)

If your post is a Joint Post, to help with the end of month ship administration please place (JP) in the subject heading. For example:-

USS Southern Cross - Help on the way - (Smith / McCloud)
USS Triton - Away Mission Underway (Johnson / Hedron / Green)

Length of Post

Each post must be the correct length.

300+

600+

900+

Why so strict? Because this is a writing RPG first and foremost. We just happen to use the Star Trek genre as a theme and we just happen to use the role playing technique because it enables writers to become more involved in the writing process.

There is no restriction on the length of a post but be mindful of "losing the interest of your audience". Remember, there is no rush to solve a mystery. The idea of the game is to have a never-ending story, so please don't feel that you need to include everything you know, or all your ideas in one post.

Using Part of Another Player's Post

If you think it is necessary to use parts of another player's post in order to explain the context of what you have written, please include the words of that player in a 'snip'. For example.

'Snips' are small, the author acknowledged, and the number included in any one post should be very minimal. They are really only used if absolutely necessary. Using too many 'snips', or large 'snips' throughout a post can detract from the flow of the content so be please be mindful of how you used them.

NOTE: Only the ideas of the author or authors whose name/s appear in the signature contribute to the 'word count' of a submitted post. Header, signature and 'snips' from other player's posts are not included.

NRPGs (Non-Role Playing Posts)

All NRPGs (OOC's) you should be sent to the dedicated ship's discussion list..

Co-operation

Remember the story is a group effort. No one person has control of the story or how it progresses - the easiest thing to remember is "go with the flow". However, the Ship GM/CO has the last say if any discrepancies arise.

Interaction with Characters

Focus the post on your character. It is fine interacting with other characters for say, basic one-line conversations, and done in a non-controversial way. However, if there is a lot of interaction, you should read a post written by the player who owns the character to get the feel for how they write the character's speech or actions. (ie: formal vs. informal, if they are a native speaker of English or not, what are their actions like etc).

If you have any doubt about what the character would say, how they would feel, how they will react, or if you intend to have that character involved in your post in a major way, please send a draft of the post to the player who controls the character in question to get their input before submitting.

You could always try a Joint Post. It is one of the fastest ways to get to know another character :)

Communication Symbols

Certain symbols are used to denote certain types of communication.

The Computer Responding

[ ] is preferred to denote a computer voice. For example,
[ Captain Picard is located on the Bridge ] the computer responded.

Character Speaking directly to another Character

" " is preferred to denote a character voice. For example,
Picard hit his COMM badge. "Picard to LaForge. I want a repair crew in my Ready Room immediately."

Character Speaking via their COMM badge

< > or =/\= is preferred to denote "sentinent" communications. For example,
< Aye, Sir. > Geordi responded.
=/\= On my Way. =/\= the Captain responded.

Telepathic Communication

* * is often used in a similar way to denote telepathic communication.