Character FAQ

How many characters can I have?

Ultimately, you can have as many characters as you can manage. However, there are some restrictions.

1. You should play each character a minimum of 2 weeks before you consider making a new one.
2. The first two characters are "freebies", but to create a third and up, you should have made at least 25 in-character posts on each of your previous characters.
3. If you have 10 or more characters and wish to make more, you'll need permission from an admin.

If all of your characters are retired and you want to ease back in to the game with a newbie, you can start from scratch under the following regulations:

• You still need to list your previous characters when you fill out the "Other Characters" field in your application.
• To make a new character after this, you'll need to wait a minimum of 4 weeks and make a minimum of 30 in-character posts on each new character in order to make the next.
• You may still reactivate characters at a later date if you decide you want to play them after all. However, they will then count as a new character under the standard regulations.

What does it mean to "apply" for a character?

Before you can begin to roleplay on Elysian Fields, you need to submit a character profile, otherwise known as the application template. This form gives us essential information for processing your character properly, and creates an easy way to find that information when needed.

We try never to turn away a potential roleplayer outright and will do our level best to work with you if your initial character profile doesn't fit into our setting, but we also expect you to work with us. We're not a free-form game, so the application process is intended just as much to help you figure out what kind of character you can play here as it is to help us. :)

How do I apply or make a character?

Please read through our Character Creation Guide for help with applications.

Can I edit my character's profile once it's been approved?

Yes, profiles can be updated. Minor edits (like adding a non-special item or naming a family member that already existed) can be done without consulting staff, but you'll need to get your profile re-approved if you make other changes (especially major ones like adding Knowledge, adding NPCs or background, etc).

To get an updated profile re-approved, just PM a copy of the edited section(s) (not the whole profile) to an admin. Remember to include the original version of those sections so they can easily see what the changes are. ;)

Can I kill my character off?

Yes, certainly! It's your character so you can do what you like to them, within reason. However, do remember that in-character actions result in in-character consequences, so if your character's murdered or something to that effect, there will be consequences for the other character(s) involved. (Also, unless you have enough karma to purchase a resurrection, they'll remain dead.)

Please contact Emma by private message before committing to the character's death if you do have enough karma and do want Xanth to resurrect them for you. Note, though, that Xanth cannot resurrect characters after 24 in-game hours.

Can I kill someone else's character?

With their permission, yes. If they don't grant this permission in their player limits, then you can contact the player via private message to ask them about it (unless they specifically say they don't want their character dead).

If you do arrange to have your character kill someone else's, please remember there will be in-character consequences for their actions.

Can my character be a species other than the ones listed?

No.

Can I have a Human character?

Humans are a restricted species because 1) They're quite rare in Elysia; 2) They're a downtrodden species; and 3) We're in a fantasy world so we want to see more of the fantasy races rather than the human default.

However, yes, you can have one Human character for every two characters of another, unrestricted species. (For instance, you could have an Anyelos, a Dracovarian and a Human, but you couldn't have just a Therian and a Human.)

Can I have a hybrid character?

Yes. Please read Hybrid Characters for more information, as there are some restrictions and things to note.

What possessions can my character own?

For information about the various types of items your character can own and buy, please see the Inventory section of the Character Creation Guide.

Can characters support each other?

No (unless a character is sending another character money to pay for in-character purchases). Everything you earn in terms of cash, karma and items should remain on the character you earned them for (so you can't buy a pet for Character A using Character B's money), except when using funds from previous characters to start up a new one. However:

• Certain contests, events and Prize Shop rewards can be spread across multiple characters, rather than funnelled on to just one. You need to let the awarder know which characters should receive what percentage of these rewards so it doesn't all end up on the same character you applied/entered with.

Can I use funds from a previous character to create a new one?

Yes. Packs are too expensive for new characters to purchase by themselves, and we allow new characters to own enchanted/cursed items which must also be paid for, so you can pool the resources from several characters to fund a new one.

Can my character own an enchanted item?

Keeping in mind the information about enchantments and curses (found here), yes: Your character can discover or inherit enchanted (or cursed) items in-game. However, these must be purchased from the Prize Shop out-of-character.

Can Vampires have children?

Elysia's Vampires are not the undead, so technically they could give birth. However, they are created by the Bloodlust Virus which, among other things, prevents the Vampire from aging. If they were to have a child, the infant would contract the virus during foetal development and, once born, would never mature beyond infancy.

Can I buy the lower-priced power pack now, then get the more expensive one later on?

Not at present, no. You can only buy one Standard (Modest or Heroic) pack and one Hybrid (Humble or Noble) pack, so if you plan to buy the more expensive one then you'll need to wait.

What is "Knowledge"?

The "Knowledge" listed in character profiles is different from the Skills. Where the latter is controlled out-of-character by a strict system of skill points and in-character by genetics, Knowledge can be learned by anyone. It applies to any crafts, trades, languages, hobbies, talents and any other areas of expertise your character might have learned (such as survival skills, carpentry, etc, as opposed to structured skills like Morph or Elemental Manipulation).

"Knowledge" is free — which is to say, you can give your character as much knowledge, and to any degree of expertise, as you like. However, that knowledge must be reasonable and justified (ie, no child prodigies and no "Master" craftsmen barely out of their teens, etc).

So my character can be as good at something as I want them to be?

Within reason, and as long as the knowledge is justified, yes.

How can I give my character money to buy items and stuff?

• Make an in-character post.
• Enter contests and challenges.
• Participate in special events and plots.
• Open a shop.
• Submit content to the wiki.
• Claim awards from the Prize Shop.
• Gamble at the Bookies.
• Sell unwanted stuff at the Auction House.
• Jump on random giveaways.

Can my character have children?

Yes. In fact, we encourage characters who have family (spouses, children, siblings, parents, etc) to match their age range, since this is a world we want to populate with more than just player-owned characters.

If your character is already married or has children when you first create them, their family background will be reviewed as part of the application process. However, if you want them to have children in-game, the pregnancy will need to be approved by an administrator before it's confirmed in-character, and there are some game rules regarding off-spring:

1. EF runs in real-time so you need to consider the gestational period of your character's species. Some races have longer pregnancies than others, with all the complications that brings.
2. Family members are counted as NPCs that belong to the parent PC, which means you can GM them to your heart's content. You may use the NPC account to play them separately if you like, but small children should not be left to their own devices.
3. Once an offspring has reached the Young Adult stage, you can post in the Needed Characters thread to see if anyone wants to adopt them as a played-character. In the meantime, you can treat them as any other NPC.
4. All immediate members of family should be added to your character's profile as an NPC.