Starting Guide
Forum Roleplay
Antarok is a forum roleplaying game - a Forum RPG - where stories are facilitated over forum threads using a character sheet (CS) to represent your character, who they are, and what they can do. This is somewhat analogous to tabletop roleplaying games, but without dice. The game is freeform; you come up with goals based on what your character would want, and write about them with respect to the setting of Antarok and its lore.
It's encouraged that authors write in third person. First and second person are discouraged but allowed.
Starting a Character
Registration
The very first step to playing on Antarok is registering a forum account here. Once that is done, it's recommended to join our community Discord. We will be able to assist you with any questions you might have from that point on.
2.1 Character Name 2.2 Race, Age, and Gender 2.3 Appearance 2.4 Picking a Home Region, City, or Other Domain 2.5 Character Concept 2.6 Personality Merits and Flaws 2.7 Starting Package 2.8 Magic
Race, Age, and Gender
Race & Age
When beginning play, you must first figure out which race you would like to play. Each race on Antarok has its own biology
- Race List
Name
Each race should have a naming convention associated with it, but these are not required. Avoid having names that are offensive, overt puns, or names that contain numbers. Your forum account name should match one of that character's names; If a character has a title as their account name, they should also have a given name in the profile. You can change an account name here.
Skills
Player characters begin with 300 experience that must be allocated towards skills and up to 3 Minor Merits. 'Starting Package' XP is spent in specific increments by subtracting the amount from the 'Skill Ledger' located on your Character Sheet. Add any bonus XP from your chosen race, but this cannot result in a number exceeding 50.
- 25 XP: Apprentice Skill
- 50 XP: Journeyman Skill
- 00 XP: First Minor Merit
- 25 XP: Second Minor Merit
- 50 XP: Third Minor Merit
Examples: Purchasing an Apprentice skill would be represented as having a 25 out of 250 XP in that skill, and you would be left with 275 XP. Your first Minor Merit is free, your second costs 25 XP, and your third costs 50 XP. If you wish to begin with an Arcana, then you will need to expend a Minor Merit to buy it as an Apprentice or Journeyman skill - this means any character can only begin with up to 3 forms of Arcana aside from Theorems.
- Further
Inventory
- All characters begin with 500 Gold.
- All characters begin with a free set of clothing and a container that makes sense for who they are.
- All characters begin with free toolkits for any skill or arcana they have experience in.
- All characters eat for free if the meal makes sense for their standard of living.
- All characters begin with a home worth up to 500 gold; this home does not need to be written up until referenced in play.
Gold is earned through Careers and spent on the Price List. Feel free to spend your gold as you wish prior to starting play. Deduct spent gold from the Finances Ledger on your Character Sheet. Silver and Copper coin expenditures are not tracked unless they amount to more than 1 gold in total; items worth less than 1 gold may be obtained for free if not bought in bulk. Hoard those knick-knacks!Languages
- Characters may speak any languages they have a good reason to be fluent with.
Rebirth: You may apply to use some of your earned XP from other similar Forum RPGs. See Rebirth.Playing
Pick a roleplay forum matching where your character should be. Read any supplied codex or relevant material in the Out-Of-Character portion of that forum. A calendar may also be provided with plot prompts for the area. Once you have decided to play there, fill out a post in the character registry for that area, and consider messaging other characters from that topic via the forums with your ideas.
Any in-character post to any thread requires a minimum of 150 words to be a valid post.Thread Types
Prefixed to a thread may be one or more tags. These prefix tags indicate what type of thread it is, and the author should do their best to properly tag their threads.
Solo
- A story written by oneself. Minimum 450 words total to submit for review and earn XP from them. On Antarok, there is no pressure to collaborate with others, and you may write by yourself for as long as you wish. 150 words written solo is worth 1 XP, up to 1500 words for 10 XP.
Collaborative
- A story written with others. Each participant must write a minimum of two posts, the minimum word count being 150 words per post, and they must each reach 450 words total to earn XP in a review. 100 words collaborative is worth 1 XP, up to 1500 words for 15 XP. Threads in roleplay boards without the Solo or OOC tags are assumed to be collaborative.
Open
- A collaborative story where anyone with a character nearby can join, without prior permission. Take care to read the thread and contribute to the overall plot instead of derailing it. A thread without the Open or PM to Join tags is assumed to be 'closed' to new characters the author hasn't invited.
PM to Join
- A story where anyone with a character nearby can PM (Private Message) the person who made the thread and ask permission to join.
Memories
- Memories are stories taking place before the current season, marked with the Memory prefix. They allow characters to play in differing periods within their lives, sometimes in other locations they’ve been to prior. Memories do not allow for the gain of material possessions, and care should be taken not to violate the causality of the timeline.
Dream
- A story taking place in a character’s dreams, marked with the Dream prefix. Anything within the character’s imagination can be explored without consequence, but memories of these events are fuzzy without lucid dreaming. See Sopor.
Non-Canon
- A story that never happened, marked with the Non-Canon prefix. While XP can be earned from these, they are not considered valid canon and cannot be referenced in-character. Some stories with poor lore or causality interpretation may be declared so until specific changes are made. These should still be in some way related to Antarok, whether it’s Antarok with Sci-Fi elements or something more subtle like playing from the point of view of a historic figure. If it’s completely unrelated to Antarok, it cannot be reviewed for XP.
Mature
- A story with mature themes, marked with [M]. Mature content refers to excess violence or blood, horror, vulgar language, or tasteful adult material. This does not refer to 18+ content such as smut or gore which have their own private board covered placeholder:here.
Job
- Job threads have to do with earning seasonal wages from a career. They pertain to some aspect or complication of your job. See Careers.
Rules of Play
Rules of Play: Several philosophies govern how Antarok is moderated, and how its players should interact. Please give them a read, for the good and joy in all of us. Note: You will be quizzed on these. See Rules of Play.
