A.G.V.T.M. is an in game
forum to converse In-Character. It is not an
online game, there are no
storytellers, there is no plot. Contributors are
trusted to act with a sense
of 'fair game' in their posts and their
characters. You do not need
to describe your character actions or
speak in the second person.
This newsgroup is... a newsgroup, not a
bar, not a haven, not a
hang out... it's just what it appears to be. A
newsgroup.
2. What is In-Character ? What is Out-of-Character ? What
belongs on
this newsgroup ?
An In-Character (IC) post
is one where you play one of your
characters; on this newsgroup,
it means that you're posting as that
character. Think carefully
about what your character would post. An
out-of-Character (OOC) post
is anything else. In-Character posts
require no notification,
it is assumed that you are posting as your
character (it is polite
to sign your character's name so people know what
name to use in addressing
you). An Out-of-Character should be noted
to draw the reader's attention.
The usual form is to outline the
Out-of-Character section
with <<OOC: -message->>
A.G.V.T.M. is an IN-CHARACTER
newsgroup. Almost all
material posted here should
be IC. If you have questions about game
rules, White Wolf's upcoming
releases, etc. etc., those should be posted
on rec.games.frp.storyteller
or alt.games.whitewolf rather than here.
Some OOC stuff does belong
on this newsgroup - for instance, this
FAQ. Sometimes an OOC question
arises from an IC posting, but if this
turns into a long OOC discussion
it should be taken to other
newsgroups.
IC stuff should be written
as your character would write it - within
reason. If your character
is a Malkavian whose idea of fun is 500-line
signatures that choke up
the newsgroup, or e-mail abuse to all Gangrel,
don't bring him onto the
group. When your character gets obnoxious
enough that other players
stop having fun, it's time to stop. Arguing,
calling people toadying
pawns of the Elders, etc. is fine.
You don't have to fake a
vampiric email address, though. The game
stops a little below that
level of detail...
3. What about the background for my city ? Someone else has a different setting than me...
Often several groups set
their games in the same city, and have very different settings. This can
cause some
major problems : if Bern
Darkmoor is trying to rally the Camarilla to free New York from the Sabbat,
while
Arthur-Trevor Lasher calls
the Sabbat to liberate New York from the Camarilla, and Edgar of the Ba'ali
is
apologizing for letting
one of his demons destroy the entire city, things will not run smoothly.
Likewise, if William
Gordon announces that he's
made peace between the Camarilla and the Garou of Canberra, while Prince
Rachel
of Canberra announces that
the Camarilla and Garou are now at war, it all gets confused. Here are
a few simple
guidelines : If your world
differs radically from the "official" World of Darkness if the Sabbat have
been driven
out of New York, or the
Giovanni have been wiped from the face of the earth, or Rio de Janeiro
has just been
eaten by monsters - try
not to bring those aspects into the discussion. The official WoD may not
be the best of
all possible WoDs, but it's
something we should all know reasonably well.
If players from a particular
area (like, say, Ontario) are well represented on the newsgroup, let _them_
tell
what's going on in Ontario.
They probably have a fairly good idea of what's plausible. (Because they
live there,
they're also much less likely
to let it get eaten by monsters). Those who LIVE in the city or area in
question have
first call at defining the
area. If a player actually lives in Kingston, but his game takes place
in Miami, he should
be careful of what he posts
in case one of the actual Miami players is present on the newsgroup. The
player in
Miami will likely become
quite annoyed to hear how her city is defined, most particularly if it
isn't even close to
what is actually going on
there. These rules are meant to be broken, where it makes for a more interesting
discussion. Just remember
that there are many people on this newsgroup, and it needs player cooperation
to
keep it from disintegrating
into is-isn't-is-isn't arguments.
4. How do the Camarilla, Sabbat, Anarchs and others relate on this newsgroup ?
Again, act as you think your
character would act. You may know the finer details of Sabbat unlife, but
your
Camarilla character would
probably think they were a group of psychotic savages with no redeeming
features.
Ignorance is harder to role-play
than knowledge, but the group gets very boring if everyone understands
their
"enemies" in detail.
Do not reveal secrets that
your character would not have, and try not to act out of character for
the sect or
group to which you belong.
A member of the Black Hand who admits to being so generally dies very quickly,
at
the hands of the Black Hand.
Many of the sects and groups, clans and bloodlines have secrets that they
guard
very jealously and will
kill to keep. In addition, there is a LOT of misinformation out there...
At the same time, even the
most timid characters may be interested in finding out about their enemies
through a
"safe" medium like this.
On this group, the Camarilla and Sabbat have discussed their differences
in a very
civilized manner. But remember
that they _are_ still different sects, and that your elders may be reading
this
newsgroup...
5. Aren't we breaking the Masquerade by posting to this newsgroup ?
We would be, if this was
a newsgroup. In reality, all vampiric computers are set up with a special
encrypted
connection to a secret vampiric
billboard that emulates a normal newsgroup... Therefore this is NOT a breach!
In other words - yes, but
we overlook that for convenience here.
6. Can Garou/Mages/Wraiths/Changelings/whatever post here ?
This newsgroup is assumed
to be a secret guarded well enough that the NSA don't know of its existence.
If it's
kept that secret, the average
Garou or Changeling wouldn't know about it either.
If a Garou were to post
to this group, the Camarilla and Sabbat would both do their best to trace
them and
destroy them to protect
their secrets - so before your Glass Walker posts, ask yourself if he really
wants to
announce his presence...
7. When should I e-mail ? When should I post ?
Remember, anything you post
has to be sent to thousands of machines, and costs a LOT of money. If your
post
is only of interest to a
couple of people, consider e-mailing it to them instead. If you have something
to say that
you really don't want your
elders to read, you should definitely consider email.
8. My character is a fifth generation Tremere Justicar. Everyone else should defer to him. Right ?
Wrong.
Kindred on this newsgroup
have no way to know that you're who you say you are. Postings can very
easily be
forged, and many Kindred
go out of their way to avoid being traced. The only way to gain respect
on this
newsgroup is to earn it
by being an intelligent and worthwhile conversationalist. And if you want
_your_
character to be the Tremere
Justicar, remember that lots of storytellers have already decided on a
Tremere
Justicar who isn't you...
Postings of the "I will
get ten Glass Walker elders to trace you and kill you" variety are usually
laughed at and
then deleted. Character
power levels are also unappreciated when thrown out for all to see. This
is bragging and
power gaming. Methuselahs
have better things to do than monitor the internet, and most likely wouldn't
understand the technology
. Bragging about how you single handedly killed ten elder Garou will get
your
character invited to visit
a number of cities and may result in requests for your storyteller's contact
information.
Many of the participants
in A.G.V.T.M are or have been storytellers and few have any patience for
poorly run
games, Monty-Haul stories,
rules lawyers, politics and combat-gamers.
9. Can I tell people what I know about the WoD ?
Within reason. "I know this
Tremere in London who's very good at treating blood diseases, here's his
address" is
fine. Spilling out the secrets
of the Black Hand is not. The darker secrets of the World of Darkness stay
secrets
because they're well guarded.
The Black Hand would not recruit someone likely to reveal their secrets
to all
and sundry, and they'd most
certainly kill you the moment you did so. Or before - Auspex is a scary
thing. Apart
from that, it upsets the
entire mood of the WoD.
If all Kindred knew the
difference between a Child of Gaia and a Black Spiral Dancer, the WoD would
be a
very different place. As
a player you may know a great deal, but your character should know much
less. It is
not common knowledge that
Tremere diablerised Saulot, that the Salubri are actually "good guys",
that
Vicissitude produces nasty
side-effects, or that werewolves are anything more than rampaging animals.
All these
are widely-known RUMORS;
your character may have heard them all, but how is he to know which of
the
million rumors he's heard
are true ?
Keep in mind that some players
don't know all the secrets of the WoD, and that you make it very hard for
someone to play (for instance)
the Giovanni Chronicles if your character tells everyone else what happened
on
4/4/1444 and afterwards.
10. What about these 'party threads' - those don't look like posts to a newsgroup?
Occasionally, one of the
posters to this group may decide ICly to throw a party or some other sort
of gathering
which will spawn a 'party
thread' in which, rather than writing all posts as if they were being written
to a
newsgroup, people will describe
their characters attending the party from a narrative point of view. Here
are a
few guidelines for running
or attending 'party threads'.
All threads of this type
should be clearly labeled in the header with a subject such as 'Toreador
Party' or
'Ventrue Grand Ball' etc
Remember that posters to
the newsgroup may ICly come from all sects, all clans and may be of a wide
variety
of ages - wherever possible,
a polite host will make sure that their party is accessible to as many
of the posters
as want to attend as is
possible.
Parties are assumed to be
thrown by a poster for their friends/ correspondence partners. If you have
only been
posting here for a week
or two then its quite possible that no-one will feel they know you well
enough to accept
your invitation. If in doubt,
watch and see how other people do these things before you try running a
'party'
yourself.
Its generally bad manners
to try to poach other people's guests by scheduling 2 parties for the same
time!
Party threads are not ongoing.
They are temporary - eventually the party will end.
AGVTM Event FAQ
11. I've written a story about my character and I'd like to share it with the group. Is that OK?
Strictly speaking a story
is not interactive and so is more likely to be within the scope of rec.games.frp.storyteller
or alt.games.whitewolf.
However, if it concerns a character who posts here and may interest others
on the group
then post away. Any stories
should have a subject line: '[Story] Story Name' and if you are planning
to post
them in a series then it
should be a finite one. (It is probably also wise to inform the readers
as to whether these
are things their characters
could find out ICly or not)
12. What about Rick's Cafe American and the Wolves Glen Pub ?
These are IC threads on alt.games.whitewolf
and rec.games.frp.storyteller. As these are not dedicated IC
groups, it's polite to put
"IC" in the headers if you're posting in-character on either of these two
groups. Here it is
assumed that you ARE posting
IC. The rules of Rick's and Wolves Glen are quite different from A.G.V.T.M.
These are written as ongoing
stories, from a narrator's point of view, and people describe what their
characters
are doing.
It's a good idea to watch
for a little while before posting, to understand how they work. Violence
is not
permitted in Rick's; it
is in Wolves' Glen, but it only works if everyone involved sorts out the
details by email
first, and it shouldn't
get out of hand.
13. Is this In Game information?
Well, it's an in game discussion
newsgroup so... yes, it is. The Shared Universe permits any and all information
posted here to be recognized
and used in its cities. If you wish to use anything posted to this newsgroup,
talk to
your storyteller.
This is yet another reason
to be careful of what you post. If a storyteller discovers that one of
his players learned
everything there is to know
about the True Hand on this newsgroup, we're not going to be appreciated.
Most
storytellers don't permit
large numbers of "secrets" to run around in their game. But if you wish
to contact the
Saskatoon Settite to obtain
certain... information, clear it with both your and her storytellers and
then why the
heck not?
14. Who can I NOT be?
Well, if you post as a Justicar,
True Brujah, Salubri, Cappadocian, member of either the Inner Circle, Black
Hand, True Hand or the Council
of Seven, or as an Inconnu... or a Methuselah (5th gen or lower) you're
likely
to be ignored or flamed.
This newsgroup is not for the flexing of ego-muscles, it's for the enjoyment
of gamers on
the net. There are a number
of groups of Kindred who are restricted by WhiteWolf in their numbers or
in deep
secrecy. Posting as one
of those will not impress anyone on the newsgroup. And being some famous
historic
figure is also probably
a bad idea.
In addition, the use of
a long series of titles after your name will also likely get you poked
at and laughed at.
-- This FAQ was written by:
Cliff Goodman
Geoffrey Brent
Gary Lucas
Gene Gagnon
Christopher Wibberley
Tim Deegan
And one or two others whose names I don't have. Apologies
if you're not listed here and you were involved in writing
the FAQ.