Required Reading

Consent and Conflict

• Consent is Assumed: You’re here to roleplay. If a scene makes you uncomfortable, speak up early in OOC chat.
• Discuss Long-Term Consequences: Agree on serious outcomes like captivity or permanent injury before continuing.
• Keep Limits Fair: Do not use limits to force a dead-end situation for others. A gun to the head means act accordingly.

Power and Realism in Conflict

• Take Hits: Let your character suffer. Flawless dodges and perfect counters break immersion.
• Make Attacks Attempts: Describe your actions but leave the result open for others to respond.

❌ Bad Example: Powergaming

/me dodges every punch and knocks the other player out cold with one swing.

✅ Good Example: Fair Engagement

/me stumbles from the hit, then lunges forward, swinging a fist toward the man’s jaw in desperation.

Post Etiquette

• One Post at a Time: Combine your actions and dialogue into a single emote.
• Always Use /me: Describe physical actions and speech through third-person emotes.
• Use ((double brackets)) for OOC: Keep out-of-character talk quick and respectful.
• Third Person Only: Keep the focus on your character, not yourself as the player.

❌ Bad Example: Multi-posting

/me opens the door.
/me walks in.
/me glares. "You lied to me."

✅ Good Example: Combined Post

/me pushes the door open and steps inside, eyes locked on the figure across the room. "You lied to me," she says coldly.

❌ Bad Example: First Person Writing

/me looks at you. I say, "This town doesn’t scare me."

✅ Good Example: Third Person Writing

/me glances around the empty street, voice low. "This town doesn’t scare me," he mutters.

Writing Style and Setting

• Lean Into Noir: Characters should feel broken, bruised, or dangerous. This isn’t a place for perfect heroes.
• Use the Environment: Gas stations, swamps, motels, and dive bars all make great scene backdrops.
• Explore Dark Themes: Crime, betrayal, addiction, survival. These are all fair game if handled maturely.
• Fade to Black: For intense or graphic scenes, fade-to-black is always an option.

Choosing Your Path: Lost or Lurker

Backwaters characters typically fall into one of two categories. Choose a path that fits the story you want to tell.

• The Lost: These characters have vanished from society. Maybe they were kidnapped, discarded, or simply ran out of road. They’re found in cages, tied to bad deals, or working off debts in shadowy corners of Laveau. If you’re starting as Lost, you may enter play already “owned” by a business or caught in a dangerous storyline.
• The Lurker: These characters live on the fringes. They haunt bus stops, sleep under bridges, and know who to avoid in the alleys. Lurkers survive by keeping their heads down, blending in, and staying one bad choice away from being Lost themselves.

Whether you’re spiraling toward ruin or clawing your way out of it, your path shapes how others see you. Use it to build tension, find allies, or walk into the wrong place on purpose.